South and West

 South and West by Joan Didion probably shouldn't have been published. The very small book is only a collection of notes on two essays that she didn't finish in the 1970's. She traveled through the southern United States; she considered writing about Patty Hearst. It's unpolished and incohesive and admits lacking any overall theme. 

And yet. It's a testament to Didion's brilliance--during her most fruitful writing period--that this detritus is better than almost anything I've read recently. She just drives around and talks to people and makes flash judgments, and it's all fantastic. I loved South and West. It was funny and poignant and astute. Her aborted essay notes (it occurs to me that "notes" is an underrated nonfiction genre) were a true pleasure to read, and nothing has so inspired me to begin writing again as this funny little book. May we long celebrate Joan Didion. 

Inverting the Pyramid: The History of Soccer Tactics

 Inverting the Pyramid by Jonathan Wilson is a comprehensive account of the formation and strategy of the world's favorite game. I am a huge soccer fan--though a relatively recent one--and I understood about 70 % of the book. Most of the book was wonky tactics and ancient heroes, but I found the whole was satisfying. Could I relate how Hungary's system in 1953 anticipated the 4-2-4? Not really. Do I have a greater respect for the evolution of the game? Yes, certainly. The last chapters in particularly were helpful, as they explained the predilections of current coaches. The more I watch soccer, the more I learn, and I may go back to this book in five years' time and understand it much better.

Kim Ji-young, Born 1982

 Kim Ji-young, Born 1982 by Cho Nam-Joo is in the Uncle Tom's Cabin genre of novels: obvious and didactic, but sympathetic because its subject matter is important. Cho's novel has caused an enormous sensation in its native South Korea, I imagine because it bluntly hammers at women's ongoing oppression. For that, I wish it well. The novel describes a wasteland of double-standards and ingrained sexism that ultimately causes its titular character a nervous breakdown. It hits that one note over and over, and even footnotes the cultural brutality in case readers didn't believe the descriptions were accurate. As a work of art, it's a rough read, but as a fictional manifesto, I hope it causes perspectives to change.