The Vulgar Eclectic

Category: books

  • The Collected Works of Billy the Kid: Left Handed Poems by Michael Ondaatje

    I just finished reading The Collected Works of Billy the Kid: Left Handed Poems (1970) by Michael Ondaatje. It is a combination of poetry and prose poetry; it’s often referred to as a novel in verse. Most of it is written from the fictional perspective of Billy the Kid. Some sections are written from the…

  • Stormbringer by Michael Moorcock

    I just finished reading Stormbringer (1977) by Michael Moorcock, the sixth and concluding novel of the Elric Saga. This novel early on develops an epic tone and does not disappoint. In addition to Elric and his runesword Stormbringer, the reader is treated to some of Elric’s best companions—his fast and closest friend Moonglum, his cousin…

  • The Hunter by Rose Estes

    I finished reading The Hunter (1990) by Rose Estes, the first in a trilogy of novels that blends fantasy and science fiction.

  • Oedipus by Seneca

    I just finished reading Oedipus by Seneca (1st century AD), translated by E. F. Watling. This play deals with familiar Greek myth, specifically the story of Oedipus, more well-known from the earlier Theban plays of Sophocles. Seneca’s writing is darker and more violent than his Greek predecessor and, while the basic structure of the plot…

  • The Eumenides by Aeschylus

    Finished reading The Eumenides by Aeschylus, the third part of the Oresteia.

  • The Libation Bearers by Aeschylus

    The Libation Bearers (The Choephori) by Aeschylus (translated by Robert Fagles); second part of The Oresteia.

  • Agamemnon by Aeschylus

    Agamemnon by Aeschylus, first part of the Oresteia

  • The Lower Depths by Maxim Gorky

    I just finished reading The Lower Depths (translated by David Magarshack), a play written by Maxim Gorky in 1902. It brutally depicts the lives of several poor Russians who are living in the cramped basement of a boarding house. The characters are superbly drawn. Through the dialogue, Gorky is able to ask profound questions regarding…

  • The Pathfinder by James Fenimore Cooper

    I just finished reading The Pathfinder (1840) by James Fenimore Cooper. Although it’s the fourth novel Cooper wrote in the Leatherstocking Tales, it is the third in the chronology of the series. The novel is set around the year 1758, in the midst of the French and Indian War. Pathfinder (known at various times throughout…

  • The Power of Darkness by Leo Tolstoy

    I finished reading The Power of Darkness (1886) by Leo Tolstoy. It’s a five act tragedy set in a peasant village in 19th century Russia. Several of the characters commit increasingly depraved acts, culminating in a particularly vile crime. As these actions and their outcomes are contrasted with another, sympathetic character, I was left with…