Here you will find the articles I read each morning and a multimedia commonplace collection: basically anything you might find on a coffee table.
This week includes:
Morning coffee reads: a close reading of seven articles I read this week, and seven more for us to read next week
A close reading of the recent London Review of Books issue, for paid subscribers
A dissection of my weekly literature reading, for paid subscribers
Morning Coffee Reads
From the 7 articles I picked lat week, here are the ones that resonated with me most during my morning coffee reading sessions, and 7 more for us to explore next week.
18/05 - Three Poems
These are three poems by Ricardo Alexia translated from Portuguese by Dan Hanrahan. Words Without Borders frequently publish translated poetry and I am so grateful for the work they do.
The first poem ‘My Man’ is free verse but still packs a punch. It begins “I am whatever you think a Black man is.” The possessive pronouns suggests that the ‘I’ of this poem cannot control his identity, it is shaped by preconceptions and prejudices. It seems as well that the ‘I’ does not necessarily perceive themself as black which would also reflect the narrator owning the title of the poem and saying this is who they are. The possessive is not the reader but the poet’s version.
19/05 - Why do people hate hypocrisy?
I think we’ve all probably been hypocritical in our lives. Whether we say we don’t like something the next minute but like it the next, or we’ll say we will do someting and then don’t. It’s these little acts that Westacott excuses as okay, however there are more morally significant acts of hypocrisy that cause of distaste and to judge someone.
I have never thought much into hypocrisy before but it’s certainly a feeling that is circulating around at the moment and I agree with Westacott that it is inextricably linked with one’s morals and aesthetic preferences.
24/05 - 5 New Books We Love This Week
It’s bold of me to look at adding more books to my TBR when I am in no state to be reading at the moment! However, I cannot help myself. I just surpassed my two year work anniversary at work and received £20 credit to use on a voucher and of course it’s going to be for a bookshop. I already know one book I want to choose but I’ve have settled on the second.
None of these books caught my interest though. Nerve Damage by Annakeara Stinson maybe. I’ve grown to realise I quite like a psychological thriller / horror over the past year and perhaps this is a genre I will move into more.
Next Week
25/05 - The Failure of Bildungsroman
26/05 - Being Small
27/05 - Light While There Is Light
28/05 - The City and the Writer: In al-Kabri with Mai Serhan
29/05 - Life Sacrifice
30/05 - 200 Words with Owen Lang
31/05 - How and When Did Astrology Influence the Ottoman Empire?
