Anne Sexton Transformations

I've been reading poetry lately.  It's a new thing I'm doing and it's not easy.  I've never really been a poetry reader.  The education I received stopped covering that after sixth grade.  So far I've found that I really like Anne Sexton.  She's easy to understand.  Her best work is about her battle with mental illness but Transformations was ok.   It's a book based on the Grimms' fairy tales.  While she covers familiar fairy tales like Red Riding Hood and Rapunzel she also does fairy tales that aren't really known like The Wonderful Musician and One-Eye, Two-Eyes, Three-Eyes.  Most of the time variations on fairy tales are tiresome but this one was all right.

Mishima a Biography

Yukio Mishima was a fascinating guy.  This book was written by a friend of his, John Nathan. He did translations for Mishima.  He's more familiar with the author than the usual biographer.  Mishima went from being a sissy boy to becoming a buff man who trained his own army.  Then he committed harakiri, ritual suicide.  His books indicate that this man was always very troubled.  The first book he got published was "Confessions of a Mask", about his hidden homosexuality.  I've read it and "The Sailor who fell from the Grace of the Sea". Both are disturbing and not for the faint of heart.  Despite it, Mishima tried to be a regular Joe.  He had a wife and family.  He tried to present himself as "normal" but there was always something off.  The one thing I really admire here about him is how he always kept his deadlines.  Most writers can't say that.   

The Subtle Knife

I didn't find the sequel to The Golden Compass as interesting as the first book.  I rated them the same on goodreads regardless.  I like the introduction of the new character Will.  I found him intriguing especially the whole dynamic of him and his mother.  I like the friendship between Lyra and him.  It just wasn't as much of a page-turner as the first one.  Still, I'm going to finish the trilogy.  I already started The Amber Spyglass.