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Brian this was extraordinarily helpful to me. I had not considered how limited an experience of the world James had before the start of the story and how much the events were a series of revelations for him.

Fingers in my ears, may come back to this video when I've read it!

Totally agree about Sula. The Years is one I want to get to. 😊💙

_First!_ Thanks for this. I just finished _James,_ now Im on to _The Trees._ (Hell of a _SPOILER!_ ah?!!?) I enjoyed the sectiins w the minstrial composer, Daniel Everett. James' quest for freedom & money to free his wife and daughter are heartbreaking.

Toni Morrison is one of my favorite authors so right with you there. Plus for this fun tag by Marily Maya Mendoza.

Sprinted over here from Kim's channel because she mentioned she got this topic from you. What a fantastic topic! Beautiful writing tops my list in what I look for in a book. After hearing you read a passage from Blood Meridian I'm bumping it in my tbr to read for this year.

Woot, I’ve been tagged! Thank you so much for the kind shout out and I look forward to filming this tag and also I love that story about your grandmother riding a mule to school. Based upon the phenomenal women writers that you just mentioned I bet our tastes are more aligned than we think 😂

I am THRILLED to have just discovered your channel! I just discovered Eva Baltazar - I read Boulder in one sitting and am completely smitten with her style of writing. I will read more from her. I also love Cormac McCarthy, and agree that some of his books are overhyped. I've read The Road over and over, No Country For Old Men is phenominal, but Suttree was a slog. Anyway, cant wait to watch more of your videos, finally a channel that seems just right for me

Good video. Throwing the word "literary" in front of something doesn't negate all the bullshit. I'm not an aesthetically minded dude, and language like that is all style and no substance: it's an empty well. But even "genre" fiction doesn't stack up much better tbh. It's all the same themes and characters and stories in different packages. Eh, maybe I'm too prudish for the emotional vomit that is modern fiction (and poetry). Heck, modern philosophy isn't too far behind either, lol, too much of that fresh and soft logic those "intellectual" pretty boys gush about inside their ivory towers.

"Phenomenal women" - just in case they couldn't prove it themselves. The more adjectives and titles put behind someone's name the less I tend to like them. But that's just me.

The greatest writing I've ever encountered was in Light Years by James Salter. I can't believe I'm committing this to the world, but there it is. I've read thousands of books but this is the one, I think lol, that had the type of writing that makes me glad to be a human so that I could encounter it. Also, tho, I love McCarthy(BM is not a favorite bc I like so many of his other novels better) and you talked me into reading Trevor and now I have read at least 3 books of his. Love and Summer is now coming home to me. He is definitely a favorite now thanks to you! I've never read anything by Ernaux and so that one looks interesting.

Thank you mr Brian for wonderful cultural literary. I am Learning new vocabularies and new information with every video you are posting. First of all definition of phenomenal woman is about woman who does not fit societal standards of beauty, yet is extremely, attractive because of way her strength, power, femininity are projected with confidence. She reveals her inner beauty in way she Carrie’s herself . Phenomenal person is always moving forward they always be pushing to succeed in everything they do . They have strong drives , know complacency and , conquer it gracefully. Maya Angelou ( 1928-2014 ) she was American memoirist, poet , civil rights activist. I liked her quote ( do the best , you can until you know better , then when you know better , do better ) . She wrote poem phenomenal woman . I choose some stanzas from it pretty woman wonder where my secrects, Iam not cure or built to suit fashion model size but , when I start to tell them, they think o telling lies . It’s reach of my arms , span of my hips , stride of my steps , curl of my lips . Iam woman phenomenally phenomenal woman that me . Thank you for giving us chance to read learn new information improve our English as well . Best wishes for you your family friends.

I'm very excited that I'll be starting my Toni Morrison journey soon, especially after all the praise I've heard you say about her writing. I read Small Things Like These earlier this year and need to read more from Claire Keegan. You're certainly qualified, and I loved hearing all you shared here!

Big fan of _women,_ me 😅 Good one, Brian. I was tagged by Pat, too. Ill drop my video, today. (Great story about your maternal grandmother riding a mule into town, then residing all week there to attend school 😊 I take the bus to the P.O. and I need a nap, afterward!)

there are many women writers I've enjoyed over the years including some you mentioned. If I had to name one it would be iris murdoch though she passed away sometime back and I don't know how much she's read anymore.⚛

You may not be a woman, but you are definitely respectful of women and that is evident in all your phenomenal videos! Your wife, daughter and granddaughter are pretty pretty pretty damn lucky!

I understand the shout-out to female authors, but is it something you think about while you are reading? Do your expectations differ?

Great video! You mention so many amazing authors in a short time. And I love the story of your grandmother riding to school on a mule!

Just phenomenal, Brian. You definitely have the qualifications to do this tag! Love your choices, too.

Hi Brian, I just finished Boulder and the writing was indeed beautiful and poetic. I didn’t love it as much as you did. I felt the side characters weren’t as well developed, but I read it in one day because it was a propulsive story and like you said so well written. Aloha friend.

Hi Brian, what a wonderful story about your grandmother riding a mule to school. You are a phenomenal man who was raised by phenomenal women! Thank you for doing my first original book tag. I guess what I meant by the third question was to make up your own book prize and nominate a phenomenal book. Thank you also for your kind words and for shouting out some new to me booktubers. Aloha friend.

Love Alana's channel!

Terrific video, Brian! Thank you for the shout-out and for doing this tag. I especially loved hearing you talk about the phenomenal women in your life! Just wonderful! 😊

❤️😀

Thanks for video. I started with Eugenie Grandet and am now listening to Father Goriot. Love them both. Wonderful descriptive writer.

Great answers Brian. I am looking forward to reading more Morrison.

Alana is great for book reviews though I don’t see her doing a lot of tags. This was short and sweet and regular viewers might have predicted some of it - did you hear me shouting _Boulder_ at the screen? 😂 - but it was nice to hear it laid out so succinctly. I haven’t read enough female authors.

Alana is excellent and mesmerizing and she deserves to reach a wider audience so your plug nomination is perfect!

Bookish, I'm hooked on your videos, keep them rolling

I am deeply down a rabbit hole involving Herbert Hoover, the Depression, and FDR. I didn’t plan it but I am enjoying the ride!

I enjoyed this video, Brian. I never read the third installment of the Fosse and I don't know what happened to the painting. I guess I'd better pick that up sometime. I do love the slow writing he is so good at.

Could I suggest some great LGBT writing ? Alan Hollinghurst, James Baldwin for example.

It sounds interesting but your description of part three got me to wondering if Hemingway had begun to write with an eye on Hollywood?

To me, most of these are examples of appalling writing.

The Great Gatsby is one of my all-time favourites. To me what is most striking about it aside from the writing and the plot is that it feels a LOT more modern than a book that was written in 1925. It is really 'timeless'.

slow down. words running together. where are you going in such a hurry.

I find it very hard to describe what kind of writing I like, great way of dealing with this. Though I think we like different things about writing. :)

I vote for Martin Eden to be on this list.

Interesting… I have only read one of these, The Great Gatsby, which I don’t really love but appreciate a great deal after hearing it taught well several times in my ESL career. I’ve read four others of these authors but not the particular books you mention. I’ve enjoyed the McCarthy, Faulkner, and Morrison that I’ve read but didn’t quite connect with Woolf. Subjective as you say … 🤓

I have never heard of William Trevor! So happy that my library has a lot of his books, I will definitely try him soon😊. The exerpts you read are writing that appeals to me and I find this kind of writing beautiful as well. Last month I read Robert Macfarlane's Underland, and I found his writing beautiful.

It's hard to tell great writing when a not-so-good reader reads it.

Wahoo, The Great Gatsby! I’m so glad I finally read it and it is indeed beautiful writing.

I’m reading a translation of ‘The Anabasis’ by Xenophon: Literal Ancient History 😂

I may steal this video idea. 😉

I totally agree with Blood Meridian. The man could write. Sula is one of my favorite Morrison novels. 😊

I generally don’t listen to old white guys but I’ll listen to you. 😂 Great video.

I'm reading The Years right now! I am reading it simultaneously in French and English. I wish I could tell you that the French is beautifully written as well...but mostly I'm just trying to figure out what each word means!! 😂 I am hoping I'll get into a rhythm where I'm not struggling so much, but it's been a long long time since I read anything in French.

For me the writing comes first. I don’t think the greatest story or characters ever could overcome “bad” writing. Eight of your authors mentioned would also be mentioned on any list of mine discussing the same. (I have not read Fosse or Au). GGM does it ALL well! Nabokov writes beautifully. And so many others. .. As always, thank you and stay well! xotk

I've found that beautiful writing is the one thing that I enjoy most in a book. I can forgive a lot of other weaknesses if the prose is lovely. I recently read On Earth We're Briefly Gorgeous and loved Ocean Vuong's writing. And my favorite fantasy novel is Little, Big by John Crowley, largely for the writing. "Sophie could see day go from her hands; they became indistinct by degrees, and life then light went from the bunch of flowers she still for some reason carried. But she felt her head to be still above the rising dark, until the path before her grew obscure and she breathed an evening coolness, and was submerged."