I gave the benefit of the
doubt to the first volume of Karl Ove Knausgaard multi volume autobiographical work
MY STRUGGLE due to the style which was Proust-like enough in its efficiency of
recall that it kept my interest. My
review is here http://rgdinmalaysia.blogspot.com/2014/11/my-struggle-book-one-by-karl-ove.html
Unfortunately, I cannot say
the same about the second volume MAN IN LOVE.
The love in the title isn’t
what I expected. Knausgaard does go
through how he met his second wife, the mother of his children, which is a
rather tawdry and unappealing romance as his wife was in a relationship with a
friend of his first and also spent time in a mental institution. Kanusgaard’s first marriage is hardly
mentioned at all. However, he spends as
much time talking about his kids and about writing as he does his relationship
with his wife (other than his two wives no other women are mentioned). The love in the title is everything in life,
not just the opposite sex.
Unfortunately, unlike his
first volume, Knausgaard has nothing of consequence to say about anything he
loves. His kids are annoying but
ultimately worthwhile. Writing is a
series of anecdotes. His wife is
difficult but he loves her.
I was particularly not
impressed with his ruminations on writing.
About the best he has to offer is the writer is chained to his social
class. Knut Hamsun was a farmer so his
view of the worlds skewed by that. What nonsense!
His musings on philosophy are
shallow worddrool on time and the like. Also
a problem in the first volume but here he indulges himself even more.
The bottom line is if you are
going to write a series of books like that, you need to have an interesting
story to tell and not babble too much about unconnected philosophical thoughts. Knausgaard fails on both counts.
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