The Kind of Surprise That I Like to Get

       

        In mid-November I received a request to read a book for review on this blog.  Since I first started reviewing books on Tossing It Out, I have been receiving a number of such requests and have been happy to oblige when I'm able to fit it into my schedule.  Of course, I always accept the mission with the caveat that yours truly, Mr. Super Slow Reader, author of this blog, may take a while to get the job done.   But I try.  I try.

         Now I am spoiled.  Future books will have to meet new expectations set by one Veronika Carnaby.  She has raised the bar by forwarding to me a book that I will call one of the best of 2012--or at least my favorite of the year and one of my favorites of all time.   Veronika's Bohemia is my kind of story written in the kind of style that I enjoy.

          As with any book review, my opinions are totally subjective.   This can be seen in the range of reviews that one can find for Bohemia on Amazon or Goodreads.  Bohemia seems to be one of those love it or hate it novels with a large group in the middle of it all.   Count me as one who loved, loved, loved the book.  As far as I'm concerned those on the lower range of opinion just didn't get it.   I got it as soon as I started into the book and I was getting it and it never let up for me.   I became a part of the story and was thrilled to be there.

         What is the story?   Here's how the author describes it:

       Influenced by the works of Beat Generation authors and great poets, the story takes place during 1960 and chronicles a group of bohemian twenty-somethings who defy the "ideals" of a mid-twentieth century society to seek creative fulfillment. On a deeper level, it portrays the creative path that artists of all mediums tread, all the while depicting the challenges faced by youth and women in the ‘60s.

          This was enough to lure me in--yeah, my kind of tale.  The story of the artist, the creative thinker, my struggle and your struggle.   Bohemia is a literary journey in the tradition of the Great American Novel.  It's a female version of Huckleberry Finn become Holden Caulfield without all his self-absorbed angst following the paths set in Kerouac's On the Road.  

            The style of Bohemia is essentially Beat.  The writing is funny at times, while beautifully insightful at others.  Carnaby does a tremendous job of capturing the spirit of 1960 and creating characters that seem real and likable.  The narrator of the story, Valerie Freed, starts out as a naive college grad with little idea of what she's going to do in life.  During the course of the story, Valerie discovers her calling as a writer and begins to pursue her dreams in the biggest way she can.  The character arc is one of the most natural I've ever experienced from any book.

             Experience is a key word here.  I felt like I didn't so much read this book as much as I lived it, felt it, and became a part of it.  Carnaby did a splendid job of putting me into Valerie's mind.   When the end of the book came, I wasn't ready to leave Valerie.  She was now like a friend, so close that she was a part of me.  Bohemia is one of those books I wanted to keep going.

             Veronika Carnaby--I don't know how you found me and decided to share your book with me, but I'm glad you did.  So often I am less than gratified by books that I read.  Yours has left me satisfied and has lingered in my mind.   Readers, if you like books like what I've described here, I encourage you to support Carnaby and hasten to obtain Bohemia.  Use that Amazon gift certificate you got for Christmas.  Buy a copy for a friend who has an interest in the Beat era or America circa 1960.   Follow the dreams of Valerie Freed and her friends.   Are these dreams similar to your own?

Veronika Carnaby can be found at her blog:   http://veronikacarnaby.blogspot.com/

My reviews of Bohemia can be found at:

Amazon

Goodreads

         Have you read Bohemia by Veronika Carnaby?    If so please share your thoughts about it.    Are you a fan of Beat literature or the era?   Are there any books that have taken you by surprise to become a favorite read?

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When Is Profanity Necessary in Writing?

Cartoon of a person waving fist (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

 Not in this House!

        In the early 1970's when I was still in college, my dad found a book that I had purchased at the University of Tennessee bookstore and being greatly offended by that book he promptly tore it to shreds, leaving the pieces strewn about our rec room so I would be sure to find them.  That book, The Anatomy of Dirty Words by Edward Sagarin, was a scholarly examination of the meanings, origins, and etymology of various words that are typically considered to be profane, obscene, or unacceptable.

         Profanity was necessary in this book because the words were the subject matter.  What I learned from the book in the short time I was able to access it is that dirty words are just words that in many cases had perfectly legitimate beginnings in English or another language and over time had become offensive in one way or another.  The words are only words, but the associations can arouse strong feelings in others.  The offense might stem from the way the words are spoken or in the context they are used.  They have become words that are intended to shock, embarrass, or anger others.

         I am probably a bit more open-minded than my father was, but I also went through that era of rebellion and radical change where profanity came more into common use in the arts, media, and everyday conversation.  Not that I approve of this usage.  I don't blush when I hear offensive language, but I don't encourage it either and rarely use it in my own speaking or writing.  Frankly, my dear reader, I don't think it's necessary in most cases.

Do You Want to Talk Dirty?

         In a recent Tossing It Out guest post,  Profanity: Where Do You Draw the Line?, Bridget Straub discussed how she approaches this issue in her writing and in her life.  The ensuing conversation in the comment section offered some interesting and radically different points of view.  As promised in those comments I am here with my thoughts on the use of offensive language in writing.

         I avoid most use of language that I deem offensive because I think there can be better ways of saying things.   Personally, I find profanity to be very distracting, often coming across as an author's attempt to be edgy, gritty, or "realistic".   But is this worth the possibility of losing a potential portion of a reading audience?  And is a larger sector of audience going to be gained because an author uses profanity.   To my thinking, excellent writing can convey grittiness and realistic characters in such a way that the fact there is no profanity would go unnoticed to the average reader.

          In my opinion the reader who is looking for obscenity in writing and titillated by it is puerile and unsophisticated.   They are not looking for literature, but just dirty writing.   Quality writing should not stoop to that level in hopes of better suiting it to modern tastes.   Writers who are trying to deliver that experience are not being especially creative or original.

Let's Look for the Nasty Parts

          An example from cinema that I always think of is the Oliver Stone Viet Nam film Platoon.  When I first saw this in the theater I was so distracted by the use of profanity in the film that this aspect was what I remembered most.  I disliked the film after that first viewing.  Some time later I saw the film again on television in a censored version where the most obscene things were the commercial breaks.  Without the distraction of profanity I was able to pay more attention to the characters and thematic elements of the story. I enjoyed the film much more in this second viewing.   I realized that the profanity had hindered in many ways and helped in virtually none.

        In literature I will cite Catcher in the Rye for two aspects of the use of profanity.  Firstly I was annoyed and offended by the ongoing using of the Lord's name in vain by Holden Caulfield.  There is some suggestion that Holden's casual use of "goddam" throughout the book helps establish his character, but I would argue that there are plenty of other things that the character says and does to show his rebellious and belligerent spirit.

         The second use of profanity in Catcher in the Rye is probably necessary because it is an integral part of the story and it is not used in a gratuitous way.  When Holden discovers the "Fuck You" graffiti scrawled on the walls he is shocked and angry because of the possibility of children seeing the words that are offensive even to him.  Since the theme of the book has to do with protecting the innocence of childhood, the shock of seeing the words symbolizes the loss of that innocence.   The argument that could be made as justification for Holden's use of profanity is that it illustrates the same kind of phoniness that he disdains in other people.  Profanity is in a sense central to the theme of the novel.

        However, in nearly every other case of profanity used in written work, that profanity is unneeded.  I will probably always shy away from the use of offensive language because I strongly feel that there are other ways to deal with what an author is trying to convey by using it.   I won't commit myself to this, but this is my intent as I see it now.

          How else can a writer depict bad people without using bad words?   Do you notice when obscene language is not used for characters who might use it in real life?   Do you miss the language when it's not there?   Would you like to hear offensive language used regularly in network television programming?  If so, why?


     

Related articles

• Profanity: Where Do You Draw the Line? (A Guest Post from Author Bridget Straub)
• Choose Your Own Appropriate Language
• So Long, Holden

Talk Like a Beat Day

         

Bob Denver as
Maynard G Krebs

             The first beatnik that I distinctly remember was Maynard G. Krebs.  He was a character in the television show "The Many Loves of Dobie Gillis".  Maynard was played by Bob Denver who later gained fame as the Gilligan who was stranded on an island when the S.S Minnow was shipwrecked during a three-hour tour.  Maynard was the stereotypical image that most Americans had of those who were lumped into the Beat Generation category--a sort of white bread version of a group reviled by many.

           Jack Kerouac's On the Road is a literary manifesto of the Beat Generation.  Although in some ways I would consider Catcher in the Rye's Holden Caulfield to be a truer precursor to Beat.   Recently as I was reading Catcher, somewhere in the back of my mind I was thinking this kid's gonna grow up to be a beatnik.   But then again it's probably more likely that he became a banker or a politician.

          Movies and TV shows often portrayed the Beats as unkempt slackers who spouted modern poetry to the accompaniment of bongo drums.  They had a hip way of talking in a special slangy jive lingo that became part of the parody.

        Today, October 7, has been designated as Talk Like a Beat Day by the UK paper The Guardian.  I've never been very good at picking up dialects or talk styles.  I guess I can say "aaargh" and "ahoy mateys" but I don't talk like a pirate very well so I never got into Talk Like a Pirate Day.  But I've always gotten a kick out of hearing others do it.  Same with this Beat talk.  It might be funny to hear people doing it, but I doubt whether I'll be able to pull it off like other cool cats might.

        The whole Beat Day thing was brought to my attention by long time friend and new blogger Kelly Robinson.    More about this chick next week when I do my Pay It Forward post.  But listen up all you cool cats.  You need to be hip and talk like a beat today.  Play fair and don't be square cause today being hip is in the air.   Can you dig it?

        Who's your favorite beatnik?   Are you a Bob Denver fan?   Whatever happened to Holden Caulfield anyway?








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