Hello, I'm Benjamin McEvoy :) Thank you for visiting my channel. If you like this kind of bookish content, you will love the Hardcore Literature Book Club and Podcast. Deep dives into the greatest books ever written, provocative poems, evocative epics, and life-changing literary analyses. We don’t just read the great books - we live them. Together we’ll suck the marrow out of Shakespeare, Homer, and Tolstoy. We’ll relish the most moving art ever committed to the page and stage from every age. Join us on the reading adventure of a lifetime.
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I appreciate this!
I love your vlogs. Thank you!!!!!! I can't find any recent ones so will have to reply to you on this site and hope you see it. I have told my daughter and son in law about you..they devour books too. From the sublime to the present.. I have recently returned to books that I read as a child, particularly Wind in The Willows which I found in a second hand book store in France. My copy when a child was missing the last pages (war time, no other books available!) It was a revelation.. this is not a children's book at all! A beautiful work, it is about real people and has enriched me anew. The Little Prince is also a new gem on re reading., I found it is impossible to get copies with the full text. It is a wonderful alegory, but all the guts have been removed for modern P.C.readers. I was looking for copies for my seven year old twin Grandchildren. I found two rather mauled , but complete, first American edition copies, but this 'doctoring' of texts and even encyclopedias is the modern way of book burning. I encourage people to keep old books from before the modern mania for PC. It was a site in French on youtube that alerted me to the surgical job done on The Little Prince. I was curious why it was advertisd as containing ALL the chapters. Sadly now I know that those chapters are not acceptable to American and British readers. Tell your readers to be careful what they read and buy old and sometimes tattered copies rather than succumb to the culture censors and the Thought Police.
Anton Chekov is incredible, just recently started reading his short stories!
I should add that Sophia Clef did real deep dives on Crime and Punishment and Anna Karenina, but it seems like she stopped doing videos. But for those two books, I highly recommend. She is a native Russian speaker and brings a lot of knowledge from that background to her discussions.
Regarding other BookTube channels kind of like Ben's channel, I don't think anything fits the bill precisely. Ben is one of a kind. But lots of other channels do discuss the books, albeit nowhere near in depth as Ben. If you want something close, I recommend CodeX Cantina. The two hosts read at the same time a work of literature and then do videos discussing in-depth the book after.
"Sabahattin Ali" okuyunuz!
Bronte really tiptoes the line between absurdity and realism. The characters are absurd, constantly giving in to their passions against better judgement. But then again while reading it, i also thought that real people can absolutely be this way.
Love the list and your insight. Thank you, Benjamin. I have a long commute so I've been listening to audiobooks while suffering in traffic. There are many on this list I plan on listening to. The one that surprises me that so many people love is The Great Gatsby. I admit that I'm an idiot but I simply didn't understand what was so great about it. For me, I struggled to find any plot and the character development seemed thin. What am I missing?
To Dickens newcomers: do keep these two things in mind. First, the attitudes of his society toward children and, second, the disregard for the poor and destitute. Victorian attitude's about children and child-rearing (until relatively recently, attitudes shared in America) was something about which CD was intensely concerned. In every Dickens work I have read there is a struggling child: Oliver, David Copperfield, Smike and the boys of Dotheboys Hall, Tiny Tim and, perhaps, most heartbreaking, Jo of Bleak House, who's only function is to stand on a street corner with a broom and sweep horse dung out of the way of upper-class persons wanting to cross the street. It is with children that a callous disregard for the agonies of dire poverty in Victorian England come into sharp focus.
Thelonious Monk ! ❤
❤️☺️
28:55 but at the same time they are all "b*tches"
I think the story of Melville is that he was a celebrated writer, then he wrote Moby Dick and everybody hated it and it ruined his reputation, then he died, and then people celebrated Moby Dick
What were those books?
Greek, ancient, byzantine and modern.
a friend of mine lend me their copy of The Master and Margarita and although I'm enjoying it (Chapter 13, german edition so far), it feels like I'm missing a lot of background info. Thank you for this video!
Lmao reading Finnegans Wake as your walking book is crazy and I’m all for it. Lovely presentation style and warm personality as usual!
Ha, thank you, my friend! That's so kind of you! I really appreciate that ☺️
Do you feel that Proust is as good as Tolstoy?
Thank you
You're welcome! Thank you for watching :)
One aside. I think the quote about ' wrote no language' was from Ben Jonson about Edmund Spencer. I think it was intended as a criticism about Spencer's use of archaic forms. I think Samul Johnson was also critical of Milton but I think this quote wasn't his.
Milton's Paradise Lost is a great poem, possibly the greatest poem of English. Faerie Queene is a possible competitor - though great I haven't managed to finish it. I am currently reading it in German. It's great in German as well as in English. My main advice (similar as for Faerie Queene) is not to worry too much about words you don't understand (due to being archaic), just let it go over you. By the way the sexual references pre-Fall are quite compelling. PS I do believe everyone who is an Engish speaker should read this poem at least once in their life.
I am going to buy this book. Sounds absolutely amazing.
I'm so happy to hear that! I hope you love it :)
Thanks for the vid... I think these are my personal favs..... I am quite surprised I liked George Chapman's translation even with it's complication incomparison to Alexander pope's translation...which is my least fav. 1. Robert Fagel 2. Emily Wilson 3. George Chapman
Hello, before I join would you please tell me which translation you are using in the Proust club? Thank you! Forgive me, but I can't find anywhere else to ask.
Read the book, get the audiobook after that then see the movie and the television movie, think about it a lot, and ten years later read again and think about it some more. Thanks for the analysis. It was the icing on the cake.
I recently watched your Moliere video and copied whole passages in my journal/annuaire. I am also polishing up my penmanship by writing French style script with a fountain pen. These videos have inspired me to enjoy taking my time with books and savoring all the details, and all the undercurrents. I wish there were more hours in the day so I could delve into all the things I love in my books. Thanks for helping me along this journey!
I'm halfway in. It only took me three months
That's amazing! Nice one :)
Hello Benjamin, many thanks for your intense and in-depth discussions of so many books I use to read and re-read since early youth. Just love to listen to your thoughts. As you mentioned in this video that you‘d welcome any advice on good books from the Balkan countries: May I draw your attention on Ivo Andrić? His 1945 novels „Bridge on the Drina“ and „Travnik chronicles“ make such wonderful reading. The only author who would come to my mind who wrote about the condition of man in similar profoundness and sympathy would be John Steinbeck. Indeed the Nobel Prize Committee had chosen Andrić over Steinbeck, Tolkien and others like E.M. Forster for the 1961 Nobel prize. Cheers!
Started reading this and will be following along at the Hardcore Literature Bookclub. Great presentation as always Ben 👏
Aw, thank you so much!! ☺️
Thank you for the great channel! _____ 'Sense and sensibility' I've been reading it lately. I've been drawn to the title for a long time. And also "Pride and prejudice" is a favorite. Fresh and modern sounding. These wonderful relationships, love - between the two sisters, their mother, their father, and between their father and mother. Later, another outstanding person appears and marries the little sister. Tender, sensitive, emotional, exceptional, as well as the love between them. Despite the mistakes - nobody is perfect. But the pains of love almost destroy the little sister and cause suffering, at times greater than anything else, for the older one. _ Eleanor has a hard time sharing because she feels compassionate for her beloved to the extreme; lest she should harm him with something. How wonderful love also could be between the little sister and Willoughby, if he if he hadn't failed it. And many other good things in this book.
Thank you very much! It's great help! _ I'm now reading 'Ulysses'. I wish I had started earlier. _ Two favourite quotes: 1. 'Travel round in front of the sun, steal a day’s march on him. Keep it up for ever never grow a day older technically.' (Part II / Chapter 4 - Calypso) 2. '...Do you know what is the proudest word you will ever hear from an Englishman’s mouth? .... -That on his empire, Stephen said, the sun never sets. *** -Ba! - Mr Deasy cried. - That’s not English. A French Celt said that. ... I paid my way. ' *** '_ Good man, good man. _ - I paid my way. I never borrowed a shilling in my life. Can you feel that? I owe nothing.' _ (Part 1/Chapter 2 - Nestor)
I started early by reading the Bible, in Swedish, an older translation from 1917. The language is exquisite. Then Homer, Dante, Shakespeare, Kafka and all the Austens and Brontes. I can read French and Italian, which has been a blessing.
I just finished reading this and can concur with these tips. I'll definitely be rewatching this before my reread in the future.
Russian, English,Japanese.. in that order. P.S Russians didn't invent ballet either, just saying.....
I love what you said about John Keats. His Ode to a Nightingale is my haunting favorite for many reasons . Love your channel!
I really loved this novel and this video made me want to study it in detail. Brilliant stuff Benjamin. 👏👏👏
dont read the first chapter absolute nonsense nothing to do with the story just to make charlie a bit more money read pickwick papers first one of the best comedy novels ever read them in order and enjoy
Thank you so much for this comprehensive discussion about this great book! I especially love the part where you discussed and emphasized the revolutionary use of free indirect speech. Now I have a term for the 3rd person POV that I love! I often wonder why I don’t like other 3rd person POV compared to others, and now I know it’s because some of them aren’t free indirect speech. This is I believe the primary reason why we love all P&P’s characters. Their thoughts and feelings are felt because of this technique.
Amazing! ❤
Dr Octavia Cox has some interesting videos about Jane Austen novels, including breakdown of class distinctions, which actually added a lot of context to an area that is less intuitively understood nowadays. Once you realise who is being snobby, who is overcompensating (ahem, ahem, Caroline, ahem, and Mr Collins) and who is less snobby than expected (Darcy) it makes for much more interesting interactions.
I’ve been referred to as Dorian Gray all my life (currently late 60s) because of my youthful appearance that hasn’t changed too much over the years. Given the story though it’s really not a compliment. I guess I should now explore Against Nature and see if it corrupts my character by making me self-indulgent (which we all are to some extent anyway). Thanks for the synopsis and the tip on your recommended translation.
Can you recommend which English translation to read for Hadji Murat?
I just finished this right now and it was so delightful! I'm excited for your thoughts on this vid. :) Edit: My favorite character is definitely Mr. Bennet. His wit and sarcasm is so funny every time.
A well thought through and presented argument. Great work.
Yeah, that's what I was thinking as you were guiding us through the list, especially once we reached the "top ten." There were some real LOL moments. Thanks again Benjamin.
Ive got Dover Thrift Edition. how is it?
I had read Crime and Punishment a few years ago and was completely blown by it. But yeah, Pevear and Volokhonsky translation felt dry, mundane at times. So I am wondering which translation to go for "The Brothers Karamazov". Kindly help with some suggestions.
I loved your story about your teacher. My 7th grade literature teacher would walk around the class as he dramatically read Shakespeare to us and even though I was an 11 year old girl, I admired him. He gave me such a love of books. He changed my life. Thank you to Mr. Pitkin!
What do you think of the book by Mortimer Adler on this subject?
Harper Lee definitely did not want Go Set a Watchman to come out. Lee's original attorney was her own sister. She died in her mid-nineties. Another lawyer moved to town, gained the now-aged Lee's confidence, and conned her out of her entire legacy. Now her estate is in the hands of a self-serving opportunist who never cared anything for Lee's wishes. She's made enemies of everyone in Lee's hometown.
I study Latin literature in college and honestly I don't think the Aeneid deserves to be on this list. It is certainly influential and an important piece of literary history, but it is only so in relation to the Odyssey and the Iliad. In other words, everything important and good about the Aeneid is more or less present in a superior form in the Greek classics, so if you've read those books you don't really need to read the Aeneid. An eastern epic like the Bhagavad Gita deserves the spot more, if we're reserving it for an epic poem.