Lonely Madness

So it seems I am unable to keep blog promises. But I did just spend a wonderfully relaxing week in California, driving along the PCH between the mountains and the sea and now I'm listening to J.S. Bach's complete violin sonatas. . .whoever said beauty was elusive? I read a brilliant book, it is now a close favorite, in fact it should probably be number one except that my attachment to other favorites is so deep it will take time to replace. . .The book is Hunger by the Norwegian Knut Hamsun--a disturbed Hitler admirer. Here's my review, for what it's worth: Hunger explores the madness wrought by isolation through the experiences of a lonely aspiring writer. Without friend or family, Hamsun's hero is driven to eccentric behavior, embracing starvation and pinning made-up names onto strange women. But even at his most depraved, when the hero has clearly lost all control over his erratic actions, he maintains a frighteningly lucid awareness of the absurdity of his situation. Hamsun's hero is not the first madman to strike an author's fancy, but in this case the hero knows he is mad, but his hands are tied, which gives the book an added sense of urgency. Hunger is a deeply evocative novel that will resonate with anyone who knows loneliness at its most profound, the sense of utter alienation from a world that has no time for madness.