I must have been close to 20 too when I read Proust's Swann, it's more than 45 years ago now and I don't remember anything of the story. But no novel after it grasped me so much right from the first sentence, it wasn't the story, it was the style of his writing, the descriptions of things that beamed me right into the places he writes about. It was a revelation for me of what literature can do and set the standards for what to read after. I always wanted to reread it and to read the whole set of volumes - but so many unread books pile up in my room and I won't live another 45 years ...

@BetterThanFoodBookReviews

7 жыл бұрын

Biggest tragedy for me is having to choose, I know. Time is precious. Thank you for choosing to spend your time here, means a lot. Helps me to highlight things and skip to them once in awhile for reminders.

@dougstotts9760

4 жыл бұрын

Please read the rest of the volumes, if it meant so much to you then I guarantee it will resonate even more now. Please take my word for it, and take the time, you will thank God you did. You’re the kind of person he was writing it fore--someone that got it.

@j0nnyism

2 жыл бұрын

You might. It’s not unheard of to live to 105

@dianal.clausen8118

Жыл бұрын

I'm 80, just starting this masterpiece and I've made a commitment to be in my second reading before I check out. I'm reading it slow, so someone younger better get on climate change and the Ukraine, cause I'm going to be around for a while with Proust. I love your reviews and will join as soon as I can. Meanwhile, thanks a bunch. Diana/Chicago

@attheranch873

7 ай бұрын

Well sad.

I spent 6 months reading Proust (made a video sharing my thoughts) and it is my favourite novel of all time. It's the hard but at the same time the most rewarding book you will ever read. It really goes deep, i learnt things i didnt know existed inside me. reading proust is reading yourself. Thanks for the video. if you have time, watch my summary of the novel, or not. cheers!!

@ginomorales8989

Жыл бұрын

My two favorite english speaking booktubers reunited by my favorite novel. What else can one ask from digital life? Keep up the criminally good work man!!!

About 30 years ago, during a lecture, Michael Graves called Proust a likely great architect just for his description of dust appearing in sunlight through parted curtains.

Yes. Proust's language is so beautiful, you can't even see the horizon of it's beauty.

Music is also a huge mean to reminisce. Proust has talked about it with Swann's "sonate de Vinteuil". But today, with recorded music, we all have many of our own sonatas

' the past is a foreign country; they do things differently there.' - L.P. Hartley ( The Go-Between; another great book, similar is some ways).

This channel is one of the best discoveries I've made (or KZread's algorithm made for me) in a long time. Thank you for creating this environment of cultural showcase and exchange. I truly enjoyed your delivery, perspective and humour. Eagerly waiting for the day you'll (maybe) review philosophy books. Came for the Clarice book (Paixão segundo G. H.), stayed for the absolute quality of the content. PS: Sorry about my English. It's not my first language (portuguese) and I'm still figuring it out.

@edwinbelete76

Жыл бұрын

Please don’t apologize for your English. It is excellent and you write as if it is your first language. Well done! 🙂

Always love your reviews! Been watching for a year now and love to see your channel expand even more.

@CedricV77

7 жыл бұрын

Been wanting to get into Proust. This sounds like a good time to do so.

Greetings from Siberia! I'm so happy to hear your analysis again and again. The thinking people form a real family. Thank you so much, man, for your work!

amazing narration, you picked out some of my favorite passages as well. love the backdrop of the tea

22.19. That is the exact extract I sent to friends. An incredibly peceptive passage. Marx said "An hour prwctice is worth a 100 hours of theory". Proust is saying we can learn faster from literature which provides us with experiences we may never have.

YES! 19:40 this really translates my feelings with Proust. And Tim Hecker was absolutely one of my more blissful live experiences ever, I was completely drowned in the sound of his Konoyo live setting, accompanied by an ensemble of Japanese musicians playing Gagaku. It made me think of Teshigahara's films and Toru Takemitsu's soundtracks.

Swanns Way is broken into three parts, the first and last is a first person narrative by a high-class youth of his experiences at home in France and while in Combray, a village of France, the second part, stuck in the middle, is told in third person, and relates the love life of a French socialite in his relationship with a free-spirited woman, Odette, who isn't as serious as Swann in their relations, and eventually parts from him. The beauty of the book is its long and beautiful descriptions of French countrysides, the social interactions between the characters with its masterfully crafted dialogue and tension. In a sense, Swanns Way is a poetic look of life in France during the turn of the 19th century, full of its drama and social intrigues. It's a very good book! Most readers and writers suggest people to read this book, for its witty use of words, for in very few other works, can one read a work written with such a wonderful style.

Hey Cliff, just wanted to say your channel has made a great impact on my life. I'm 17, about to go into uni and this period of transition has given me time to read and appreciate many of the books you have recommended. Thank you! Should you find yourself in Sydney Australia, give us a heads up!

@BetterThanFoodBookReviews

7 жыл бұрын

Shall do! Great to hear Adam, stick around and keep in touch.

@magnavitae4736

3 жыл бұрын

Hey hows it going?

@JJ-ic7sq

5 ай бұрын

How are you today

I've been hoping you'd do Swann's Way since I discovered your channel. It has intimidated me for years. I've always doubted my ability to grasp it but I think it's about time I gave it proper go.

It took me until I was quite an mature lady to realize how hilarious parts of "Swann's Way" really were.

If it doesn't taste like you're eating a stick of butter, it's not a good madeleine.

@sukhshuvo134

3 жыл бұрын

Great humour of you. I enjoyed this comment.

@leafyconcern

3 жыл бұрын

I want to eat a stick of butter!

@ciganyweaverandherperiwink6293

3 жыл бұрын

Ha! Also, croissants in UK supermarkets taste of misery and despair. I have no idea what those imposters actually are, but they are most certainly NOT croissants. :)

@DarkAngelEU

2 жыл бұрын

Pastry shops are a treasure

If anyone is interested, the George Sand novel that Proust mentions in volumes one and seven in connection with the night the narrator's mother failed to kiss him before bed, _François le Champi_ , is potentially an "Easter egg" relevant to the story. I'm currently about a third of the way through _François_ and have already observed at least three things that bear directly on _À la recherche du temps perdu_ . And it's a good story of its own, as well.

I can’t wait to read it. I really like the analogy with ambient music (and Tim Hecker!)

Read Swann's Way only last year and totally loved it! As you said, it needs to be taken in slowly, sipped in drop by drop like very heavy port wine. Second Part is already on my bookshelf, but I'm still busy with other books and work and boring everyday issues... ;-) As Proust is also one of the writer's discussed by Bataille in "Evil in Literature" I wondered wether you would touch on that. But maybe that would make for a good topic for a seperate vid: "Evil in Literature" and the works discussed therein.

@BetterThanFoodBookReviews

7 жыл бұрын

Ohhhh yeaaaahh....God I love that essay. Thanks for watching.

@shaanparwani

4 жыл бұрын

Can u do one on The Tale Of Genji

Great review per usual . After I finish up with Giovanni's room I'm definitely picking up Swan's Way. Have you read any James Baldwin? Is he a future video topic ?

Just started reading this. After reading Lolita I have struggled to find a work with such beautiful prose.

@kaspafischer

3 жыл бұрын

call the Monsieur "Marcel Prose" I guess... LOL

@herrklamm1454

Жыл бұрын

I don’t think I’ll ever find anything as beautifully written as Lolita.

I love this playful and insightful discussion of Proust and his amazing insights to be found in Swann's Way.

God i was excited when i saw this in my feed. Purchased the Recherche a couple of weeks ago, now i just gotta finnish all my unread books. Keep the Great content comin'!

I'm sorry, I thought this was Better Than Food: Book Reviews, not Better Than Books: Food Reviews!

I came here after reading Flaubert's Madame Bovary (I loved it), because you recommended that book to people who like Proust. So happen now I am reading Swann's Way; I like Madame Bovary the story more, but I enjoy the writing in this book. That part you read at the end, about how we empathize better with people in books (more than people we know outside books) because we can see them really close, we can see them change (I am thinking about Madame Bovary when I write that), and people outside books change too slow and feel less than real for us. Happen it is similar if you have a child and the child she is growing; in your mind you can remember when she was an infant but because you saw every moment in her growing, it is difficult for to feel how each part in her childhood, infant, 1 year, 2 year, and every day and week between she is changing, but we forget the different people they become and remember only a line stretch back from how she is now. I remember the moment I read that part and I think, still think, that is one of the most true things I read in my life. Thank you.

@j0nnyism

2 жыл бұрын

I read Bovary when I was younger I remember feeling contempt towards her and pity for her husband. Retreading it later in life I have pity for her and contempt for her husband. Life changes the way you read tremendously

Proust distinguishes himself from all the other great authors through his meticulously fathoming of human emotion and the unparalleled meditation on the passing of time which surpasses in his complexity any philosophy I've read. Great review Cliff, always happy to see a new video of yours.

@BetterThanFoodBookReviews

7 жыл бұрын

Thanks!

@williamdrouin8063

5 жыл бұрын

I dont know. Joyce is probably his equal

@DarkAngelEU

2 жыл бұрын

@@williamdrouin8063 The themes of Joyce are very different though, dealing with religion, symbols and language. I'd say Virginia Woolf is much closer to Proust because she also uses interiority, time and memory to structure her narratives. She also has a debt to the romantics like Proust, Joyce is radically modern.

glad to see this one on here cliff, it really is a great read. hope ur project is going well. if you like proust but maybe found him a little too sensitive I recommend the man without qualities by musil-some of his sentences r more precise than math equations. also based on the high recommendation from bolano, I discovered the great poet ( or antipoet, as he claims), niconor parra. looking forward to whats coming

Cool ive been meaning to watch some of these after the Yukio mishima vid on sun and steel, good channel!!

I re-watched Eyes Wide Shut a few days ago, then picked up Dream Story by Arthur Schnitzler today. Just wondering if this novella is on your to-read list?

I'm glad you love Withnail and I. I always wonder if the humour of those quintessential British comedys carries over the Atlantic.

Ohhhh Man I really love your channel, just because you talk about my favorite books and authors (and you do it with passion): Huysmans, Pessoa, Lispector and now Proust (if you do one of Virginia Woolf I die jaja). Im happy,. In this days Im reading the second novel of the saga, and Im doing it to my grandmother.

@BetterThanFoodBookReviews

7 жыл бұрын

I really didn't care for 'The Waves' but I'm willing to give her another shot if you have a rec, thanks for watching.

@Morsoculi

7 жыл бұрын

Better Than Food: Book Reviews Well, I recommend you The Complete Shorter Fiction. One of my favorite topics in those tales is madness, and how that style, the steam of conciusness, fall in a hole (as ocurrs in Ms Dalloway).

@Pantano63

3 жыл бұрын

@@BetterThanFoodBookReviews 'Orlando' is my favorite book of hers. It grabs you right from the first page. Borges even translated it to Spanish. Maybe that one, Cliff.

I would love for you to read/review Aurélien by Aragon!

@BetterThanFoodBookReviews

7 жыл бұрын

Always wanted to read him and more surrealists - thanks for the suggestion!

your videos are always the highlight of my day

@BetterThanFoodBookReviews

7 жыл бұрын

Thanks! Glad to make it better!

Must read: Robert Musil's Man Without Qualities.

Hi there Mr. Books, Love your channel! You give literature another fun dimension... thank you for that! So, question: Did you read anything of Mr. Philip Roth? What do you think about him? Keep on awesome work! Kindest and warmest regards, De Selby

YES. I WAS WAITING FOR THIS

haha finally! I love Proust. I had planned to read all of In Search... last year, but life happened and school happened... maybe when I graduate. But yeah, I read Swann's Way in High School and it became my all time favorite book.

@austinwyant2928

7 жыл бұрын

Vrixton Phillips qeqeeqeeeeeqeqeeeeeqeqeeqeeetqqtqtqeeqqeqqerqeqeqqerqeqeqqeeqqeeeqqeeqqeqeqeqqeeqeqeqeqeqeqeqeqeqeqeqeqeqeqqeeqeqqeeqeqpqeqqeeqeqeqqeeqqqeqeeqrqqrrqeqqeqeeqqteqqeqeqeqeeqqeqtqeqeqeeqqeqeeqqeeqeqrqqeqeeqqeqeqeqeqeqeqtrqqeqeqeqeqepqteqeqqeqeqeqeqreqeqqeeeqqqtqeyqeeqeqqeqeqerqqrqrqrqrrqqrqeqeqeqeqeqqqqqqqqqeqeeqqeqtqeqeqeqeqqqqqqqqqqqq

I really enjoyed Alain De Botton's book 'How Proust Can Change Your Life'. That's a light, fun but worthwhile read.

Withnail and I is the best. Great review as always. Love Tim Hecker too

The only book review channel I really enjoy

Fantastic reviews dude. Read Story of the Eye last week, very cool book.

@BetterThanFoodBookReviews

7 жыл бұрын

Glad you enjoyed man, thanks for watching

As the same occurrence. I have read Proust with the same breaks. Firstly, half of Swan's way, then about 7 months passed and I returned to again and couldn't separate myself from him.

I was thinking of reading this, now I'm convinced

Love this book. I'm starting to watch your video now, so maybe you'll answer it there, but... I still have got to read the others, do you think they can be easily be resumed after some two or three years I've read the first one?

@BetterThanFoodBookReviews

7 жыл бұрын

Don't know, find out!

Hey Mr Sargent, could you recommend any british comedy similar to Whitnail and I?

I believe it was Richard Griffiths who played Uncle Monty in 'Withnail & I'. Did you know 'Withnail & I' was originally an unpublished novel?, one which featured a far bleaker ending than the one shown in the film.

@BetterThanFoodBookReviews

7 жыл бұрын

Had no clue - gotta review that one, thanks for watching!

@90RavenBlack

7 жыл бұрын

Not sure if the novel is readily available, though sections of it certainly are. If you do manage to find it then I'll look forward to your review of it. :)

'Withnail and I' is my all-time favorite comedy, next to 'O Brother Where Art Thou?'

You should read Harvest by Jim Crace, I think you'd like it. Keep up the good work man these are the best book reviews online, at least that I've seen

My proustian moment is smelling the decay of leaves and feeling the warm sun of mid autumn whilst walking through my local park

Thank you for giving me words.

If you're looking for another great winter read I recommend Ice by Anna Kavan.

What we all have in common with Proust is that we are human beings possessing the ability to live life and assess life simultaneously.

Wish I had more time to watch this right now! Great review choice. I'll be back.

@toniqa3

3 жыл бұрын

Hey in case you forgot to come back, here to remind you that you can watch this now :)

This might seem unrelated, but I recently saw The Neon Demon and I was wondering--spoilers for the ending--: Do you think the ending was a reference to 'Story of the Eye'? It fits the themes of the film oddly well, in my opinion.

@BetterThanFoodBookReviews

7 жыл бұрын

yup, I do.

Loved it! Watched till the end! Recently, I was planning to read Proust, and just want some encouragement. Thanks dear!😊

Just finished Swann‘s Way. Anybody read the other one‘s? How are they in comparison?

@kaspafischer

3 жыл бұрын

I finished Past Recaptured a few years ago... it was magnificent! time well-spent I must say... Proust was a genius.... what else can I say? LOL... thank goodness for that damn madeleine!

@scriecumine913

3 жыл бұрын

Swann's Way is the least interesting from the bunch. Still great, though.

@khadimndiaye7730

3 жыл бұрын

@@scriecumine913 thanks for the recommendation. The first volume has sort of shocked me profoundly while the 2nd helped me to grasp Proust‘s genius. I will continue and plan to read it all!!

Life is too short to read bullshit. What a wonderful review! I picked up Swans Way last fall and was intimidated that I wouldn’t grasp it fully. But after your review I can’t wait to take my time, slow down and take it in. Thank you!

@j0nnyism

2 жыл бұрын

Life’s to short to read bullshit and here am I reading KZread comment sections. Yourself excluded of course

Amazing review, thanks a lot

I have a painting that is probably done by Marcel Proust, it has been in my French family for decades and I wonder if art by Marcel would have some value. Anyone?

Its funny you mentioned Borges, because I just picked him up recently. All I can say right now is that I'm in complete awe. He manages to do things in stories that I didn't think were possible.

Hope you share your views on the other six volumes as well.

Hey, great video, new to your channel but I am slowly working my way through your content. You make a nice change from much of the booktube culture. I would be really interested to see your take on Sons and Lovers by D.H. Lawrence.

Waiting for the day you'll review some Haruki Murakami or Pynchon. Keep doing the great job

@davej5313

4 жыл бұрын

Ulisses Brandão Murakami is exactly how I learned about Proust. 1Q84 brought me here

Hey bro. Great review, rather unconventional. What book would you recommend by Jorge Luis Borges? Like what's THE BOOK to get?

@sebasargent

2 жыл бұрын

He recommends Ficciones

I'd like to see you review Pimp by Iceberg Slim

Volume 1, Swan's Way, is like a prelude to the remaining volumes, or so I am told by an Oxford literature professor friend of mine. I'm currently half way through Volume 2, In the 'Shadow of Young Girls in Flower'. I'm reading the Penguin Modern Classics ed. translated by James Grieve. I highly recommend it. It is a dazzling analysis of male and female adolescence, of childhood memories, of love and sexuality, of growing up, relationships, finding one's place in society and much more. Proust's ability to describe feelings, emotions and perceptions is simply spectacular. Please don't stop at reading Swan's Way. In The Shadow of Young Girls in Flower is, in my opinion, deeper and more profound. Virginia Woolf is quoted as saying 'My great adventure was undoubtedly Proust. What is there left to write after that?'

There's more to life than books you know, But not much more. -Moz

Will be reading Woman in the Dunes soon, sounds very interesting.

Another great review

Well, as far as we know Thomas Pynchon never had any daddy issues. Then again, certain more disturbing passages in Gravity's Rainbow could be interpreted to suggest such a thing... Great review. That's cool that you enjoy Tim Hecker; I'd very much like to see some more music recommendations.

@aswinunni1811

7 жыл бұрын

Dylan Baldwin we hardly know anything about the guy ..:D...Pynchon is like an enigma collapsing in itself...if that makes any sense...

11:26. The answer is James Joyce.

You read the Lydia Davis translation?

Hey has anyone noticed that this novel is available in different number of volumes? 3, 4, 6 or 7? Why is that?

@valpergalit

6 жыл бұрын

Dazza Howard SWANN’S WAY is Volume 1 of a whole work called IN SEARCH OF LOST TIME, in which there are 7 volumes total.

See the Monty python sketch - summary of the whole of Temp Perdu in 30 seconds in a barmy Quiz show .

Have you ever considered doing anything by Thomas Pynchon, Gravity's Rainbow seems like something you might enjoy thematically at least.

@BetterThanFoodBookReviews

7 жыл бұрын

tried '49', really struggled getting into it. Maybe will try GR, thanks for watching

@TangledUpInPurple

7 жыл бұрын

Better Than Food: Book Reviews I believe Pynchon said 49 was a failure. GR might be a better experience. Or perhaps start with his latest novel, Bleeding Edge.

@ferguscullen8451

7 жыл бұрын

I'm not a Pynchon expert, but I believe it's better to start with, say Inherent Vice or, as RyanJE suggests, Bleeding Edge. GR is exhausting, apparently.

@BetterThanFoodBookReviews

7 жыл бұрын

Yeah I heard that. As we progress and I have more time I'll be able to get to GR. Maybe in stages. It's a serious commitment.

@seanpatton4161

7 жыл бұрын

I didn't care for The Crying of Lot 49 myself, but Gravity's Rainbow is something else entirely. Brilliant book.

19:05 Who is this author that he mentioned? I couldn't quite grasp what he said

@BetterThanFoodBookReviews

5 ай бұрын

J.K. Huysmans 👍 Great author

Here we go!

That opening is hilarious! XD

By being so sensitive and observant of the tiniest details a great writer can express the human experience in the most beautiful way but it also means they can cut through bullshit which may not be so good for the fathers ego. Clashes of opinion are probably quite good for sharpening the sword of rhetoric too.

Kerouac loved Proust, so I’ve wanted to dive in!

Arcana; in an essay, Michael Graves called Proust a better architect than most by virtue of his description of dust floating thru rays of light.

Love this book!!!

What about Karl Ove Knausgaard? He is meant to be the Swedish Proust?

@ezekielyu4294

7 жыл бұрын

I think he did a video on "My Struggle" a while back.

@JJJameson.

7 жыл бұрын

ImmaterialDigression More or less,Karl is cooler and less slow

@RagnvaldT

7 жыл бұрын

ImmaterialDigression Knausgaard is norwegian, not swedish

@ImmaterialDigression

7 жыл бұрын

hahaha My bad I don't know much about him I knew he was from a country around there

@pesahson

7 жыл бұрын

Knausgaard definitely has daddy issues. He wrote about it extensively in his books. In an interview I saw, he himself doesn't take that comparison seriously. Lazy reviewers came up with this label because their works are somewhat autobiographical and long. That's it. The style of writing is nothing alike. Proust has a truly unique style.

I don't think James Joyce had any issues with his dad, actually I've heard they were quite fond of one another, and Joyce is my favorite 20th century author! (please try to review one of his books, although I remember you saying in one video that you did not finish "Ulysses" which is understandable but unfortunate)

@almahperditae

6 жыл бұрын

Who the hell finish Ulysses? I try, 2 or 3 times, and when I can enter is stream of tought, the book is really amazing, but the last 1/3 of the book is just impossible. i can't believe that someone ever read that. It's impossible.

@joshg.4448

6 жыл бұрын

wait until you get to Finnegans Wake....

you don't read big books and now you pick the largest of the lot! i suppose you are going to read it in series form. A great reward if you can do it so they say.

After spending hours of analyzing this novel at Uni, this intro just made me die.

How do you hold back, to relish these long sentences without getting carried away by the dense prose?

Richard Griffiths was Uncle Monty in Withnail and I

My goal in life now is to become the one great author without daddy issues. Thanks, I have found my purpose.

@ailuvmie

3 жыл бұрын

😂😂😂😂

why is the cover page worded 'snob'?

"You mean you've been up here in all this beastly mud and oomska without wellingtons?"

Here for the Withnail and I reference 🖤🖤🖤

The book is mainly about how the narrator became a writer, how the narrator became the writer of the book your are reading.

i nearly spilled my fucking coffee at the beginning ahahahaha

I wanna see you review the REST of Rememberence of Things Past, please.

Who's the author he mentions at 19:04 ? I can't spell the name and the captions don't help.

@quarkycharms2506

22 күн бұрын

I couldn't articulate it either. Glad I sounded it out enough for Google to give the name of the author. 'Joris-Karl Huysmans' is his name, and the book title is, 'Against Nature'. 'Better Than Food' gives a review of it, btw. kzread.info/dash/bejne/aJ14xrSMcrqfYtY.html

Loool I loved the intro 😂😂

my question is, could someone get away with floral descriptions today? i mean, you can self-publish now, almost as like a main consideration in many instances, but, would one be able to sell at a decent clip if their work is full of those brands of lavish meditations on [pick a topic]....

The tea should be served in pocerlain teacup and from teapot