"To compensate a little for the treachery and weakness of my memory, so extreme that it has happened to me more than once to pick up again, as recent and unknown to me, books which I had read carefully a few years before . . . I have adopted the habit for some time now of adding at the end of each book . . . the time I finished reading it and the judgment I have derived of it as a whole, so that this may represent to me at least the sense and general idea I had conceived of the author in reading it." (Montaigne, Book II, Essay 10 (publ. 1580))

Friday, February 27, 2015

The Name of the Rose (Umberto Eco, 1980)


Book club selection (via PJr/PJ).

As the years go by, I can see that I will spend more of my reading on re-reading prior books that I found useful.  While this re-read was prompted by book club, I could also have seen myself re-reading it on its own merits.

Discussion from initial read is here.

Enjoyed it more this time around.  I have a better sense of the history, partly because of books like this.  Also, the book is pretty complex - so even though I didn't recall all that many details, it ultimately was helpful to have some familiarity going in (from the prior read).

Eco's "Afterword" is quite interesting.

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