Book Review: Roughing It Unknown

So this post was in the works since last week, but with the preparations for yet another trip, I couldn’t finish it on time. But here it is now!

We know the name Mark Twain, and are familiar with his most popular novels, The Adventures of Tom Sawyer and The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. What’s not really known are his other works. Honestly, I personally assumed that though he must surely have written more, perhaps the rest were deemed not as good as his two rambunctious characters.

I can’t remember how I came to possess a copy of Roughing It, but judging from the RM5 label on the back of the worn 1962-printed book, it must have been a find at a secondhand bookstore. This was waaaay before the existence of the Big Bad Wolf Booksale. And yes, I’ve only just now gotten round to reading it.

Roughing It is a semi-autobiographical book about Twain’s travel adventures during the years 1861-1867. It’s only part autobiographical because Twain was very liberal in embellishing his experiences. Also, he digresses a lot into gossips, legends, and informative essays that mostly didn’t have any relation to his main plot. Ramble is the word. Actually, I liken Twain’s approach here to that of a blogger who may tell a tale for tale’s worth.

The book starts when Twain’s brother Orion Clemens was appointed Secretary to the Territorial Governor of Nevada, and to Twain’s delight, Clemens invited him along as private secretary. He didn’t stay long as a civil servant, however. Young and restless with just enough ambition, he took this turns as prospector, reporter and traveling lecturer. The book takes the reader from the anarchy and dust of the Wild West all the way to the hypnotic tropical richness of the Sandwich Islands, Hawaii. (On a side note, did sandwiches come from Hawaii?)

I’m not going lay the entire synopsis out, but I’ll summarize my impressions into three main points.

Stories about People
I love stories about people, so of course I’m delighted by the people Twain’s met, or even people he’s heard about. He met Slade the Terrible, a well-known and much feared murderer, Brigham Young, and some “insignificant” but very interesting persons. His description of the Chinese miners reveals that at the heart, Chinese culture and traits have changed little. And his accounts of the Hawaiians and their laidback attitude remind me strongly of a certain modern tropical nation and their love for taking things easy.

Twain’s Wit
Twain deserves his title as one of the greatest American writers in history. The same tongue-in-cheek humor found in his more famous books can be found here. Some of the funny stories are not originally his, but he gives such liveliness to them. Such as this case when he was describing a particular editor he had.

Once, while [Mr. F. was] editor of the Union, he had disposed of a labored, incoherent, two-column attack made upon him by a contemporary, with a single line, which at first glance, seemed to contain a solemn and tremendous compliment – viz: “The logic of our adversary resembles the peace of God” – and left it to the reader’s memory and afterthought to invest the remark with another and “more different” meaning by supplying for himself and at his own leisure the rest of the Scripture – “in that it passeth understanding.”

The Wild West

I found his time in the Wild West extremely fascinating. What I know of that time is gleaned entirely from films, and we know films tend to romanticize things. So to read of a firsthand account is a delightful discovery. To be sure, the lengthy explanations of mining and “prospecting” perplexed me, but there’s much insight – both grave and sweet – into the raw state of new communities. To imagine the hordes of individuals who gave everything to find that one streak of solid silver, to shudder at the lawlessness such that the level of honor given depends on the number of men one has killed, to be tickled at Twain’s description of the advent of a new attire called “jeans” - there's much from the Old West to intrigue.

Conclusion

I truly enjoyed Roughing It for its social and historical commentary, in all its frankness and imagination. Admittedly, it can be difficult to tell which is true and which is invention, but it doesn't quite matter. It’s a delightful sneak peek into the person behind Mark Twain. The final impression I have of Twain is that even though life had served him more than his fair share of trials, particularly financially, he never gave up. Instead, he picked himself up, found the next thing to pursue, then wrote humorously about it after. Regardless of the situation, Twain always had something to write about, and it is this keenness that ultimately led him to his calling in the pen.

P.S. Roughing It can be read free from Project Gutenberg

surprised by joy Unknown

It was as if a veil that had hung before her inner consciousness had been lifted,
giving to her view a revelation of unsuspected feelings and realities. Perhaps, after all, romance did not come into one's life with pomp and blare, like a gay knight
riding down; perhaps it crept to one's side like an old friend through quiet ways; perhaps it revealed itself in seeming prose, until some sudden shaft of illumination flung athwart its pages betrayed the rhythm and the music; perhaps. . .
perhaps. . . love unfolded naturally out of a beautiful friendship,
as a golden-hearted rose slipping from its green sheath.

...But the Anne who walked up the dark lane was not quite
the same Anne who had driven gaily down it the evening before.
The page of girlhood had been turned, as if by an unseen finger,
and the page of womanhood was before her with all
its charm and mystery, its pain and gladness.

Of Anne and Gilbert, Anne of Avonlea

My other favorite story =)

for your eyes only Unknown

And such is your definition of matrimony and dancing. Taken in that light certainly, their resemblance is not striking; but I think I could place them in such a view. -- You will allow, 
that in both, man has the advantage of choice, woman only the power of refusal; that in both, 
it is an engagement between man and woman, formed for the advantage of each; and that when once entered into, they belong exclusively to each other till the moment of its dissolution; that it is their duty, each to endeavour to give the other no cause for wishing that he or she 
had bestowed themselves elsewhere, and their best interest to keep their own 
imaginations from wandering towards the perfections of their neighbours, or 
fancying that they should have been better off with anyone else.

Henry to Catherine, Northanger Abbey

the screwtape letters Unknown

I deleted the previous post. I was upset, so yeah, sorry I had to vent it here.

I am growing re-accustomed to the slower pace of life brought on by sickness. It still feels weird, so I have to be somewhat deliberate in my actions. I reflect on a passage in The Screwtape Letters that speaks on time being a gift – which ironically was what Jared Goon was affirming moments before I read it. Many times I take time as ‘my own’, when in fact I can no more control it than a five-year-old can. To consider time as a gift is liberating. What was once a guilt-ridden burden is now an appreciated treasure.

Speaking of The Screwtape Letters, I’m going back to my first love, hobby-wise. I’m reading not because I have to, but because I want to. And I’m not reading non-stimulating books like Twilight and Confessions of a Shopaholic (although they have their rightful place on my bookshelf). 

The Screwtape Letters is a 'compilation' of letters from a demon to his nephew, a demon-tempter in training. It’s funny, yet serious; ironic, yet true. C.S. Lewis’ brilliant use of satire highlights things like character, time, humility, pride, truth, love, hypocrisy, and the human life in scope. Made me realize how flighty we can be, and how we cleverly justify our actions and pride any way possible. It pointed me to this wall of ‘goodness’ we build that can hinder any potential for us being real.

Lewis may have written the book decades ago, but his words still speak today. There’s one part where he touches on post-modernity, or what he defines as the Historical Point of View (italics added).

“The Historical Point of View, put briefly, means that when a learned man is presented with any statement in an ancient author, the one question he never asks is whether it is true. He asks who influenced the ancient writer, and how far the statement is consistent with what he said in other books… or in the general history of thought… how it affected later writers… what the general course of criticism on it has been the last ten years, and what is the ‘present state of the question’. To regard the ancient writer as a possible source of knowledge – to anticipate that what he said could possibly modify your thoughts or your behavior – this would be rejected as unutterably simple-minded.”

That spoke to me, because I have recently been disturbed by how even the very idea of questioning a thing in absolutes is absurd. Not that I’m one of those who sees you with a broom and instantly throws you into a Salem court. But I'm not going to go into that. Right now it’s about a book. 

I guess you need to read Screwtape to fully understand my praise for it. It makes you think, if that’s any worth. A forewarning, though, that Lewis’ English is of the ‘older’ kind.  You might have to pause once in a while in order to digest his point.

Too bad Screwtape is not mine. I need to get a copy for myself, because I definitely need to read it again. For now, I’m at the 21^st chapter of Of Human Bondage by W. Somerset Maugham. It has 122 chapters, and I don’t even know when my copy was printed.

But that’s what I like about classics. 

Words are Not Enough Unknown

My shopping weakness is books.

That sounds weird, no? Maybe you expected me to say hats, which I love, or bags, which I also love! Yet with these I have sufficient self-control and am able to put them down and walk away.

But put me in a bookstore and I go crazy. Oh a book on patchwork! Maybe I should start quilting. Agnes Grey by Anne Bronte! Tuesdays with Morrie! I haven't read those. How about an autobiography? Or a historical record of Russia? I may go there one day. No, no, maybe that little book on time management, I need that. Oooo that notebook is so preeettty!!

Then comes the part where I reluctantly turn over and look at the price. In the world of hardbound words, numbers look very insignificant. What is RM59.90 when I can kickstart a career as a Spanish translator? Or 'slightly' more than that when the future of Middle Earth is at stake?

By some miracle, I'd be pulled back to the world of frugality. But if I can leave a boutique empty-handed and feel secure, I cannot do the same when I leave MPH. There's a sense of wrongness! The world must be righted again! And so at wit's end I grab a RM5 magazine instead. But now that I think of it, all the 5 ringgits I've spent could have placed a worthier book on my shelf now. Sigh...

Maybe my fondness for books would be pardoned if it weren't for the fact that I have many titles I have not read still. I look at what I don't have and forget what I do have. I don't realize how blessed I am just to have the privilege of having books. There are still many out there who are illiterate or cannot afford books.

Last I counted, I have about 300 books. A third I got for free, another third I got dirt cheap at flea markets and bargain bins, and only the last third did I buy at normal prices. But it's not just about money.

The issue is contentment. I should learn to be satisfied and grateful with what I have. I found several verses on contentment:

For we brought nothing into this world, and it is certain we can carry nothing out. And having food and clothing, with these we shall be content. (1 Timothy 6:7,8)

Take heed and beware of covetousness, for one's life does not consist in the abundance of the things he possesses. (Luke 12:15)

Let your conduct be without covetousness; be content with such things as you have. (Hebrews 13:5)

The first verse is something. To think that I cannot bring my books into the afterlife is sobering! =\

The age of consumerism feeds on our never being satisfied. Sure, maybe it sustains the economy, but what does it do to our being in the end?

Of course, we cannot altogether stop from shopping. There will always be those necessities (Like real necessities, not the ones we claim we cannot live without). Nonetheless, let us regularly take stock and be grateful and content for what we already have. =)

So God... thank You for my 300 books!

The Secret Opinion of a Shopaholic Reader Unknown

So I read The Secret Dreamworld of a Shopaholic. Or if you prefer its shorter title, Confessions of a Shopaholic (Now why need there be two titles and confuse people?). And I have to say, this would be one of the rare occasions when I actually prefer the movie than the book.

Of course, in both versions, there is nothing much laudable in the protagonist's actions. But the movie's saving grace is Isla Fisher's comedic timing. I've watched the movie more than once just to see Isla's reactions and ridiculous dancing.

Becky Bloomwood in the novel does far worse things. For more than half the book, she lies and lies some more to cover up her tales and shopping splurges. And then when the consequences of her irresponsibility come knocking, she goes into denial. I tell you, it is exasperating and sometimes I feel like screaming into the pages, "Stop buying already, will ya!"

Then I stomp around and open my wardrobe and whoomp! I'm greeted by hangers of pants and skirts, and a whole door of belts and scarves. And the verse lights up above my head: And why do you look at the speck in your brother's eye, but do not consider the plank in your own eye? (Matthew 7:3)

So am I mad at Becky Bloomwood because she really is an insanity driven mall-hopper, or because I'm forced to look at my own spending habits?

I admit, I shop too. But I do usually pick the bargains and believe I have more self-control than Becky. =P

Anyhow, I'm going to do a little self-study on this shopping addiction thing. And not buy any new clothes this month, just for a start. You're welcome to keep me accountable. haha...

Hm... just out of curiosity... what is YOUR shopping weakness?