Haruki Murakami - Novelist as a Vocation -Comment.

Reading about a successful novelist's career, particularly when they write about themselves, is fascinating to me on many levels. Novelist as a Vocation is really a selection of essays published at various times in the author's life as a writer. 

Murakami's beginnings as a novelist started quite late in his life. I believe he was in his late twenties, owning and managing a jazz club/cafe and doing quite well. One of his great loves is baseball. During a game, he heard that well-known crack of the ball hitting the bat. (one of my favorite sounds) an epiphany "You need to write a novel." His first published work, his first try, was Hear the Wind Sing. This book gave hin critical acclaim as a promising new writer in Japan. 

Murakami's humility is obvious throughout the text. He attributes most of his success to lady luck. Something of a miracle. He writes:

What has been (and continues to be) most important for me is my direct, physical awareness that some special power has given me a chance to write novels. I have been able to grasp that opportunity and, with no little help from Lady Luck, turn it into a career. Looking back, I have no idea who granted me this license, only that someone or something did. All I can say is that I am truly grateful. (p.41.)

As we read the essays, we see his transformation as a novelist. Moving from the first person to the third person came gradually. Kafka on the Shore, for example, combines both. I've read that many great novelists have experienced the same: when creating a character, the character takes over and takes the narrative in a new direction at some point in the writing. One of the great mysteries of the art form. 

Many people ask a novelist about their habits and procedures as a writer. Many are different and somehow the same. A professor I had the pleasure of meeting proclaimed: "Writing is all about rewriting, to then write the whole damn thing again." At the time, I thought this was a bit harsh. All the good writers do this. Joyce, Hemingway, Joyce Carol Oates, and Murakami. It's necessary hard work before the novel is thrown into the world. 

I love Murakami's stories. The man's writing style and subject matter are original. I connect to his characters, life's vagaries, and unanswered questions about our world. 

Novelist as a Vocation is a novelist's account of his writing and view of life. 

The US Government has Gone Mad. Opinion.

Only 3 months ago, Biden announced that he would not send $10 million F16' to Ukraine. He has reversed this decision and is sending them anyway.  The Ukraine military can't fly these highly technical and expensive war machines; thus, the Americans must train them. This is terribly bad news for the world at large. In war terms, this is commonly called an 'exalation.' While Ukrainians are receiving billions in social aid and weapons of mass destruction, the US is considering cutting basic social welfare for American citizens because of the US's' debt ceiling. 

This is utter madness. 

The anti-Russian propaganda machine has been in full swing since at least 2015. Government officials and corporate stenographers have ensured the world that Russia is a bad actor and must be stopped. Anyone with half a brain and a little knowledge of Russia's history knows this to be propaganda. 

NATO has surrounded  Russia with military bases and deadly weapons in violation of the verbal treaty made sometime after WWII. NATO extended its forces eastwards anyway, putting Russia on high alert. What would the US do in a similar situation? Because the US is an economic war machine, the answer is an obvious one. 

Last year many called the Ukraine war a proxy battle between the US and Russia, while Ukraine is a sacrificial pawn for American imperialist intentions. Back then, you'd be called a Putin puppet or Kremlin apologist. It's common knowledge that this is a proxy war between Russia and the US. From various leaks and now the promise of F16s, there is no doubt this is a proxy war. 

When the legendary American journalist, Seymor Hersh, reported the destruction of the Nord Stream Pipeline was the act of the US., the neocons went silly/stupid, first blaming Russia for the sabotage (yea, right!) then claiming it was a "Gilligan's Island" operation, the world couldn't stop laughing and crying at the same time. At any other time, this would be an Act of War. Considering Hersh's reputation as an investigative reporter, there's no doubt that America conducted the operation. 

What is the American government doing? They're putting the lives of millions of human beings at risk for absolute annihilation. And for what? Absolute economic hegemony? 

Again, this is pure madness. 

I'm not a "Kremlin apologist" but a human concerned about the planet's welfare. 

To be crude, the US Government needs to get its collective head's out of its ass and push for peace - and the weapon manufacturers can all go to hell. 

Preston & Child - Relic - Comment.

 

An admission here must be stated from the start: Of the 21 novels published in the Pendergast series (I've read most), Relic is the first novel, and I only picked it up for the first time last week. This is a cardinal sin for me as a "fanboy" of these novels. Needless to say, what a gripping story. 

As stated many times, this series combines detective mystery, science fiction, and great gothic tales of the 19th century. This novel introduces the enigmatic billionaire and FBI agent Aloysius Pendergast. For all 21 novels to become best sellers, there is a certain attraction for many. Why? Because Pendergast is a modern Sherlock Holmes with many skills and talents that sparks the reader's imagination. 

Relic is a wild tale. On face value, and for many discerning readers, the subject matter belongs in a comic book. I would disagree. This novel is polished. The research alone in archaeology and genetic science is accurate. The possibility of an unknown species is valid. 

The introduction of Detective D'Agosta, aside from Pendergast, is my favorite character. He's a hard-nosed, persistent, and honest NYPD detective. The man's sense of humor is purely New York American, The fact he gets along with the highly intellectual, southern FBI agent is ironic in the least. Both men are loyal, smart, honest, and basically good men. 

The story begins in the early 1980' in the Amazon jungle. An anthropologist is in search of a legendary tribe. He comes across a small hut, an altar, displaying a small statue of a "god." An old woman comes out of the jungle screaming about the evil of the spirit. The scientist captures the "relic"  and returns it to The New York Museum. Years later, gruesome deaths in the museum begin, 

Agent Pendergast shows up in New York because he's investigating similar murders. Then, of course, the fun begins. 

After reading most of these novels, I'd have to say I enjoyed this one as much as the rest.  

Australian PM: "Enough is Enough" in Assange Case. Really?

 

In an interview some weeks ago, Australian Prime Minister Albanese spoke out about Australian political prisoner Julian Assange. He said (paraphrased), "Julian Assange is an Australian citizen. The man's prosecution has gone on way too long. Enough is enough." From memory, no leader from this country has uttered a peep about Assange. Yes, some back-bench politicians have mentioned Assange in Parliament, to no meaningful change for the award-winning publisher. The question remains, does the PM have any power to use diplomatic channels to finally free him? As a card-carrying cynic, I think not. 

That said, this is a step in the right direction.

Over the last few months, the president of Mexico asked for Assange's release. More recently, the president of Brazil, Lula Desilva, protested Assange's imprisonment and officially requested the journalist's release. 

The last Press Gala in DC revealed a cartel of stenographers patting each other on the back for their "journalism." For me, this was a cringe-fest like no other. And to hear President Biden carry on about the power of the press as a necessary aspect of "our democracy," everyone in the room knowing full well the US has a journalist in prison for telling the truth about American war crimes and governmental corruption, was not only cringe-worthy but pushing many to get physically sick over the hypocrisy. 

The American corporate press is a cult in total collusion with the security state. When we look back at Russiagate, at least, we know this connection to be true. When one looks at the Biden Laptop story suppressed by MSM and social media, named "Russian propaganda," to discover later the story to be absolutely true, this only substantiates this diabolical collusion. 

At the risk of repeating the views of many independent journalists and free press activists, the imprisonment, persecution/prosecution of Julian Assange is a crime against the US Constitution and a crime against humanity. If Julian Assange goes down, this will set a terrible precedent for investigative journalism. Obviously, this is the point. Reveal a government's corruption and war crimes, and you'll end up in a high-security prison like a child molester or terrorist. 

When I hear that well-used phrase, "It's a matter of national security," I wince and think they're hiding something. 

Way back when the free press's job was to hold power to account. This is rapidly disappearing because corporate and governments have joined forces - known as true fascism. 

To hear national leaders call for the release of Julian Assange is a great move for real democracy. The problem is that the permanent government calls all the shots, particularly in the United States. 

Viewing the Assange case from this highly cynical point of view, knowing our "leaders" really have no power to release Assange, any hope for the man's release diminishes. 

Considering the current political mayhem and social upheaval around the planet, it's necessary to remind people that the UK and the United States have a journalist in prison for telling the truth. 

This is not democracy but totalitarianism.