Rilke – IcthusBookCorner

I’ve had two whole months of reading time this year, and I cannot believe how much I’ve actually read in February. It’s been a great reading month with loads of books that I loved. I want to talk about the last seven books I read with all of you!

WHAT I READ

This February, I read seven books, and I know it might not be a lot for some, but for me it sure is. I’m so happy to see that I can read more than five books in one month! If I’m being honest, what helped was me not doing the work I had to do for my thesis…But we are not going to talk about that! Reading this much made me think of how much I actually love books and reading.

When it comes to statistics, I read 1 325 pages, which is way more than what I read in January. I read three books by Russian authors, two non-fiction books, one play, one poetry collection, one fantasy and four classics. I am surprised to see that I still read mostly classics and that all the books were written before 1950. No surprise, I read mostly physical books (6) and only one ebook, one of the physical books I borrowed from my local library. I gave five stars rating to four books, four stars rating to one book and three stars rating to one book, leaving one of the books I read with no rating. This month I read no ARCs because I wanted to focus on books I have wanted to read for a long time.

Overall, it was a great month, and I discovered amazing titles. However, I could read other things, for example, I have been in the mood for sci-fi and some historical fiction (so I need to pick those up).

TITLES/BOOKS

The Lower Depths, by Maxim Gorky – ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ (review coming soon)
Notes from Underground, by Fyodor Dostoyevsky – ⭐⭐⭐⭐ (review coming soon)
Three Guineas, by Virginia Woolf – ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Letters to a Young Poet, by Rainer Maria Rilke – ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ (review here)
The Magic Shop, by H.G. Wells – ⭐⭐⭐
Gender Trouble: Feminism and the Subversion of Identity, by Judith Butler – no rating
Lolita, by Vladimir Nabokov – ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ (review coming soon)

I haven’t done one of these posts in such a long while I don’t even know how to finish it. 🤦

So, I have a few questions for you! How was your reading month in February? What was your best read? What are you currently reading? What books are you excited for this coming month? Let me know in the comments!

All I can say now is: Bye, keep on reading.

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Hello hello, everyone! The book I’m reviewing today is Letters to a Young Poet by Rainer Maria Rilke. This book is a collection of ten letters written by the Austrian poet Rilke to the young Franz Kappus while he was an officer cadet in Wiener Neustadt.

I first time I ever heard of Rilke was while watching one of * e m m i e *’s older videos. The way she talked about his work reminded me a bit of how I speak about Saramago’s books, so I knew I had to give it a try. Before reading this book, I had the chance of reviewing an arc for the English translation of his Poems to Night, but I knew Letters to a Young Poet would be an entirely different experience.

This book is both exceptional and profound, even somewhat philosophical when pointing out how life can influence our art. It’s easy for the readers to put themselves in Kappus’ shoes and read Rilke’s bits of advice as if they were for them.

It’s also quite interesting to get to know the author’s considerations on love, disease and solitude and how he believed all three of these were of extreme importance for the human experience and therefore for the art we create. Rilke does this with humility and solidarity rather than putting himself in a somewhat superior position, which brings out sheer intimacy in his words.

All I can put into words about this letter collection is that Rilke’s writing is graceful and fascinating, making us feel like he’s speaking directly to us. I evidently gave this book 5 out of 5 stars.

Bye, keep on reading.

Link to the book: https://blackwells.co.uk/bookshop/product/Letters-to-a-Young-Poet-by-Rainer-Maria-Rilke-Charlie-Louth-translator/9780241252055