FORGOTTEN JOURNEY & THE PROMISE by Silvina Ocampo

[@marinamaccagni5253]

Silvina Ocampo! Yes! Amazing author!

[@LeafbyLeaf]

Agreed! Can't wait to read more of her stuff!

[@Azzy1921]

Yes man!!! Silvina Ocampo is great. I’m colombian but I was raised in Argentina, and im constantly shocked by the amount of great authors and hidden gems that this country has produced. Just to tell you, Silvina Ocampo isn’t really considered as one of the greats. I’d say in my top ten argentine authors she wouldn’t grace even the number eleven, and by every consideration she is a great author of her own.

[@LeafbyLeaf]

There’s something in the water in Argentina! Arlt, Aira, Bioy Casares, Borges, Lamborghini, and the list goes on! Jorge Baron Biza is another one I discovered that shocked me. For sure, Ocampo is way under appreciated.

[@fc1984fc]

Wow, congrats on the fluency of your English!

[@suzannelevine5286]

As the translator (with collaborators) of Silvina Ocampo and solo translator of Bioy Casares whose words are of course quoted throughout this review, the reviewer, I am shocked by the total lack of consideration toward the "scribe" whose words this man is citing. His research is pretty good in the superficial context of a culture that is deeply anti-intellectual. But still am grateful for the attention to Silvina Ocampo, a brilliant literary artist who deserves every attention.

[@LeafbyLeaf]

Hello there, Suzanne! First of all--a thousand thank yous for making Borges, Bioy Casares, Ocampo, and Julián Ríos available to people like me. I'm afraid I couldn't completely follow your point in your comment, but if it boils down to my failure to give due credit to you the translator, please accept my humblest and sincerest apologies. This is something about which I am working to be more deliberate, as I have agreed ever since reading Douglas R. Hofstadter's meditation on translation, "Le ton beau de Marot: In Praise of the Music of Language," that translators are not given adequate credit. I certainly don't want to be part of the problem. All my very best to you and thank you so much for stopping by!

[@jackseney7906]

So far I've only read her long story "The Imposter." And I'll have to re-read it. Which means it's worthy of such! She is atmospheric and creepy in a very erudite way👍. 30 years more or less on "The Promise" for Ocampo. 30 years on "The Tunnel" for Gass. But how's about FORTY years on "Juneteenth" for Ralph Ellison?! And he STILL hadn't finished it upon his death! They did release it, using his notes. It's pretty good 😁😸

[@LeafbyLeaf]

Great anecdote!

[@morrirowan7384]

I'm currently reading The Brothers Karamazov, just started yesterday. I read slowly, particularly for the great books, and try to get it all in, I'm up to page 74.

[@LeafbyLeaf]

That is indeed a great book-a masterpiece! It is on my list of “books overdue for re-reading” along with C & P. Enjoy your journey!

[@morrirowan7384]

@@LeafbyLeaf I've read Crime and Punishment, in 2018. I found it to be disturbing, and anxiety provoking, as you're reading through the eyes of a mentally ill person, thus empathizing with him, and it's done so well. At the same time I was trying to understand how much stock to put into the characters psyches, how 3 dimensional could one writer portray a fictional character, and so, to what degree to analyse. It was the first book I picked up, after not really reading for a long while.

[@noseonscent1935]

Fantastic overview and review.

[@LeafbyLeaf]

Thanks so much!

[@JohnZaabi]

You took me by surprise !!! Dont cry for me Argentina! Do Hopscotch by Cortázar, or if proves too long...there's the collection of short stories by Cortázar "Blow-Up and Other Stories"... Cortázar Is very dazzling. Back to Silvina Ocampo, I think she takes after Katherine Mansfield and Virginia Woolf. Bio Casares... they stole his island story for the Lost series, such a shame!!!! A huge hug from former wealthy now impoverished Argentina, we shall bounce back!!!

[@LeafbyLeaf]

Hahaha! Hello there! I have read and loved Hopscotch, but since it is so well known and there are other videos of it out here, I was thinking of doing another of his books. It'll be posted in the future. Your country has such a rich literary history!

[@JohnZaabi]

@@LeafbyLeaf It does indeed. Argentina is a little bit different from other Latin American countries (hence the hate we get) as it has a very rich past (not only literary), in fact there used to be an expression in the English language that went "rich as an Argentine"!!! One of my in-laws was making a trip around Europe, she was in Paris... and was approached by a woman in the Eiffel Tower (atop), this woman was an American, she inquired where my relative was from. On learning she came from Argentina, she replied "so you must be rich." I was bewildered by this but it's true, there were many landowners with huge estates, prolific in expensive grains and beef, commodities that kept the foreign currencies flowing. Many of these folks studied in France, England, Germany and so forth. Fast forward a century, we've become poorer, less cultivated, sadder. Maybe this reflects in literature as well, I opine ours does sound more "European" in tone, less "García Márquez" if you know what I mean. I read a lot of Javier Marías and find him to sound "Argentinean" as well! (all the pondering, literary rammifications, penchant for meta-reflections, notes on the dirty years Spain and Argentina share). I thank you dearly for showcasing what your find interesting about our culture and country. There's a short novella called "El juguete rabioso" (The Mad Toy) by Roberto Art, that might be quite captivating, and see if you can find connections with J.D. Salinger's seminal work "Catcher in the Rye". So good to talk to you, I am currently writing a collection of short stories myself hopefully it'll get published! A big hug from Argentina

[@resboy3793]

Hey! Another great video. Question: the way you read books and analyze them, how did you learn that method of reading? Was there a specific book or course that thought you how to read and understand like that? If so, fo you have any recommendations? I am asking because i feel like there are some literature i cant rrad because i dont understand them, maybe i need to learn analysis to understand them. Maybe it might be because you have been reading for so long, but if you have a recommendation it would be very helpful. For example, i tried to read mason and dixon, i couldnt get through the first page because i didnt even understand the opebing and line "snow-ball arc something" and i am struggling with heart of darkness. Thank you!

[@LeafbyLeaf]

To be fair, Mason & Dixon is written in an older form of English (and even at that, Pynchon uses a hybrid form), so it takes some getting used to even for advanced native speakers. When he says "the Snow-balls have flown their Arcs" this is a way of painting the picture of a snowball fight, with the parabolic (geometric) path of a snowball through the air. Then he says something like "they starred the sides of the outhouses" or something--this paints the picture of a snowball striking the side of a building, leaving the pattern of a star on its side. So, don't beat yourself up over that one. I have never followed a system for reading, though I have read a lot of such books. For me, it is a combination of reading, reading, reading. For 30 years I've been reading every day. And I've read a lot of literary criticism and went to school for my MA in literature (though I argue that studying lit theory does NOT make one a better reader). One of the best practical books on reading is Thomas C. Foster's How To Read Literature Like a Professor. Essentially, the more you read, the better the read, especially because the history of literature is a conversation between books, so the more we intake the pieces of conversation, the clearer the picture we have. Here is a video I did with 31 books on reading: kzbin.info/www/bejne/oWjNZp2Zedh-d68 And here's my Goodreads shelf of books on reading: www.goodreads.com/review/list/5976824-chris-via?ref=nav_mybooks&shelf=of-reading I've been toying with making a video on this subject, but I hope this helps for now!

[@resboy3793]

@@LeafbyLeaf thank you!

[@fc1984fc]

I've just picked up a short story collection, The Impostor And Other Stories. The cover had a catchy statement from Jorge Luis Borges. Nice discovery!

[@LeafbyLeaf]

Very nice! Is it the Serpent's Tail paperback?

[@fc1984fc]

@@LeafbyLeaf it's The Impostor And Other Stories

[@LeafbyLeaf]

Yes, but who is the publisher?

[@fc1984fc]

@@LeafbyLeaf sorry, I misread. It is The Serpent's Tail.

[@intellectualreads5696]

Great Review Man! I am going to pick her up! Do you subscribe to New York Review of books? What subscriptions if any do you have book related. Inquiring minds want to know!

[@LeafbyLeaf]

Yes, I subscribe to NYRB. Also: London Review of Books, Rain Taxi, and The American Scholar. Nice to hear from you!

[@rickharsch8797]

Typically engaging

[@LeafbyLeaf]

Gracias!

[@arghyashubhshiv3239]

Hey! I like your bookshelf, is there any link or so from where you bought them? Thank you!

[@LeafbyLeaf]

Thanks! These are actually custom-built into the walls. Formerly, I used IKEA bookshelves though.

[@arghyashubhshiv3239]

@@LeafbyLeaf oh ok. Thanks for replying!!!

[@LeafbyLeaf]

No problem!

[@Focaminante]

I was unaware that there was an Argentinian literature in English renaissance going on. I’m very glad that that’s happening. However, with so many amazing Argentinian authors, we are in need of such renaissance in Spanish as well.

[@LeafbyLeaf]

Well, I think I coined that renaissance all on my own, so take it with a grain of salt. I'm so thankful for Gregory Rabassa, Margaret Sayers Peden, Margaret Jull Costa, et al.!

[@liquidpebbles7475]

yeah...here in southamerican readers read more from europe than southamerica itself...

[@LeafbyLeaf]

Sounds like me, an American, trying to read less American literature. :-)

[@liquidpebbles7475]

@@LeafbyLeaf preach! honestly thank you, I know reading (good literature) is a pretty niche interest, nowadays thanks to the internet it's easier to create at least a sense of community between us and content creators like you really do help in making people read beyond their comfort zone, which is in my opinion the purpose of reading itself (It goes without saying that the work done by all the people who make it possible for these books to be read in other places is also extremely important) i digress but i dont even know whats my point anymore, SIlvina was on my list for while I'm jealous and ashamed you read her first ajjajaj

[@LeafbyLeaf]

🙏👊😂

[@waylonwraith5266]

“Our lives are strands between the miracles of birth and death. / I am St. Elizabeth” Sublime

[@LeafbyLeaf]

🙏

[@musicofbeing1997]

Only familiar with 'Thus were the faces'. I'll have to check out these newer volumes.

[@LeafbyLeaf]

And I can't wait to read Thus Were Their Faces!

[@winstonsmith77]

Do you read manga ?

[@LeafbyLeaf]

No, I never have checked out any manga.

[@winstonsmith77]

@@LeafbyLeaf I would recommend Death Note. It is philosophical and a favourite of many. Just remember read all the volumes.

[@LeafbyLeaf]

I presume this would be DEATH NOTE by Tsugumi Ohba in 13 volumes, yes? Thanks for the recommendation! I will put it on my list for when I get round to reading manga.

[@winstonsmith77]

@@LeafbyLeaf yes,it is by tsgumi obha.

[@winstonsmith77]

@@LeafbyLeaf I would prefer you read the black editions as the quality is superior on that one. The 13 volume is a bonus volume.