Deadly Force

I have been contemplating the value of (often unintentional) extrapolation of personal values on other people. On the one hand, it seems like a tremendous overstep of personal boundaries. It pushes the envelope of politeness. On the other hand, what kind of person would I be if I kept my values to myself? Certainly not the type of person that I have been for most of my life, and I do not know if I am willing or capable of change.

But change comes nevertheless. It often comes from situations where I am forced to deal with people whose values are very different from my own. I tend to respond to these types of people in two ways; I either despise them or fall in love with them.

The second book I read this year was Giraffe by J.M. Ledgard.

Ledgard wrote this before Submergence, and I have to say that his earlier work lacked the refinement and focus that attracted me to that book. It is not a bad book, in fact it is a very good book. I would rate it 3 out of 4 thumbs. If I had 4 thumbs.

Giraffe is very sensory. Everything is described with regard to color, odor, and taste. This would normally be great, but because it is set in Czechoslovakia in the mid 1970s, these colors, odors, and tastes are grim and bland; very Soviet (if I can use that as an adjective without imploding from self-hate). The ending is nightmarish and bloody and I quickly forgot the tiny things which brought warmth and joy during the early chapters. Nothing is solved at the end, which was troubling to me.

The result is an oppressive book. Sometimes, I dreaded reading it and I was relieved to finish it. Make no mistake, it is beautiful. But it is less beautiful than Submergence. I feel bad, holding both books up to the same light, but it really is an inevitable by-product of reading both books so quickly in succession.