Friday, October 12, 2007

Either you do ...

... or you don't: Acquiring a taste for John Cowper Powys.

I think it's "his espousal of magical thinking" that attracts me. I, too, am given shamelessly to magical thinking. Incidentally, a review (by Patrick Kurp) of Morine Krissdottir's new biography of Powys will run in The Inquirer on Oct. 21.


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4 comments:

  1. Levi Stahl7:58 PM

    When I tried reading A Glastonbury Romance several years ago, I struggled through about a hundred pages before giving up. But while in Dorset to see the Thomas Hardy sites last spring, the Dorset County Museum brought Powys back to mind, and since then I've come across him here and there, every time sounding more intriguing.

    I think I may have to give him another try.

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  2. Frank Wilson11:57 AM

    Hi Levi,
    It took me three weeks of reading a few hours a day to finish all 1,189 pages of the edition of A Glastonbury Romance that I read decades ago. I think the autobiography is a masterpiece and so is Owen Glendower. The latter should be read right about now, as the days grow shorter and colder. You have to hear it to really appreciate it and you have to move at its pace.

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  3. Levi Stahl6:27 PM

    Frank,
    Thanks for the tips--that sounds like a helpful way to approach Powys. You've sold me.
    Levi

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  4. Levi Stahl12:29 PM

    Frank,
    It took me nearly five months (and probably three dozen other books in between) but I've finally read Owen Glendower--and you were right. If you're interested, I've written about it a bit here.

    Thanks for the recommendation. It's unlikely I'd ever have had the determination to tackle Powys again without it.

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