Ten More Hard Books I Want to Read (But It’s Fine If You Don’t)

I would highly encourage you to keep making youtube videos like this. Ive watched many booktubers and you're the only one whose videos I immediately watch when they come out. Your depth of thought is very rare and is something of tremendous value in this intellectually decaying world we find ourselves in. I would also recommend that you do book reviews where you share your thoughts and give a summary on books you've recently read. These videos will be more popular than you'd think. And would provide an excellent service to your viewers.

"...the details that fractally expand." You are marvellously dextrous with words! Another treasure trove of recommendations. I hope you make a million more of these videos. And thank you for the shoutout, my friend. You do Virginia Woolf justice every time! And re Black Lamb, Geoff Dyer has a wonderful essay on Rebecca West and BL&GF in particular.

Thank you for your videos, that are very insghtful and full of useful perspectives.

Again you have helped expand my perspective even before I tackle any of these books. Much appreciate your insights on these works and why they can be worth our time and efforts to experience in spite of various difficulties.

Been enjoying your videos a lot! Keep em coming!!!

Such a fantastic and thoughtful discussion, Ruben. Thank you. I’m eager to read Miss MacIntosh.

It's crazy! I just bought Black Lamb and Gray Falcon! I'm very excited to read it as it's a topic I know very little about. I read the Tale of Genji many years ago and have been wanting to reread it again for a while. I'm glad for the reminder. Thanks for introducing some more new books to me as well.

I really admire the way you spoke about these books. Thanks for sharing.

Great to see you continuing with this series of videos. I am currently reading Black Lamb and Gray Falcon, potentially my new favorite…

Thanks for this list! That Christine Brooke-Rose Omnibus looks right up my alley, just put it on the wishlist.

Hi Ruben! Thank you for making this kind of video content. I have never heard of these books, and your articulate descriptions have made me want to drop an inordinate amount of money at my local bookstore.

A sequel to my favorite book tube video let's go

Thank you for another thought provoking and inspiring video! I wouldn't be aware of Bren Booth-Jones if not for you and through him I became aware of Wallace Stevens. I absolutely love with all my being Steven's work, I had never thought to consider how important it could be to look for your response to the words on the page rather than their meaning. Truly a quantum shift. To quote Steven's, "Only as he sees his imagination become the light in the minds of others" Thank you to you for being that light in my mind that fires my imagination. Elfriede Jelineks Children of the Dead reminds me a little of Darkmans by Nicola Barker. It describes a village that is haunted by the ghost of a court jester and the influence his presence has. It was a strange book and I remember wrestling with it for some time but by the end wanting to start over. Very compelling in a difficult to define way, certainly not your typical supernatural story. Would love to see a video on poetry, it's something I have been completely ignorant about but now realize my mistake. Thanks again.

Oh by the way, regarding the Bonus Books with distended time following Marguerite Young… Include William Golding’s second, “Pincher Martin” - the time frame is the getting out of boots of a drowning man…

Awesome video as always

Always good to hear what others have to say about books. Thanks for the insights. I'm currently reading through the Bible and almost finished. I do think one needs to read the most read book of all time, cover to cover. There are so many books I'd love to read, and with over a thousand unread ones in my bookshelf, I need to focus on the ones I already own. Tsundoku is perhaps the apt word.

Hi Ruben. Your description of the book by Rebecca West reminded me of a literary novel I read a decade or so ago called The Tigers' Wife by Tea Obreht. It's about a woman traveling in the former Yugoslavia searching for her grandfather. In her travels she hears the legend of 'The Deathless Man' and discovers forever changed by the crucible of wars, not just the landscape, but people and their altered attitudes towards others of different ethnic origin. Checking my shelves I discovered I have a few of these difficult reads waiting my attention at some point. I have Mrs. Dalloway, both volumes of Anniversaries, and The Tale of Genji (which I might try to begin reading at years end). Thanks for posting.

Awesome!!! Everything Lorraine Daston is involved in is bound to be excellent.

You should place a link for all the books to Amazon in your description. Your videos are awesome! Keep up the good work!

I found the Edward Seidensticker translation of Genji Monogatari to be the more readable version for myself but I read that while living in Japan and generally enjoy Seidensticker’s previous translation work. Also, the G.E.M. Anscombe work in ethics seems to be something I have yet to read (I read her philosophy of mind articles), but again that might be on the count that my ethics and logic are seriously lagging behind my other interests in general philosophy. Good vid! You’re like me, which is bizarre to see on YouTube to be honest.