Thoughts of Sorts by Georges Perec
Perec, one of my favourite authors and only a relatively recent discovery, was an inveterate scribbler and seemed to be publishing articles and short pieces all over the place, as well as writing his novels (and holding down a day job!). After his early death in 1982, a collection of his shorter works was put together under the title of “Thoughts of Sorts” and it’s available in a number of editions. Mine, however, is a beautiful little Notting Hill Editions clothbound hardback, translated by his biographer David Bellos, and reading it recently was a joy!
I was in a Perec kind of mood anyway, having been delighted with the recently published “Portrait of a Man” (kindly sent by MacLehose Press) and this seemed the ideal dipping into kind of volume – which it was! TOS collects a miscellany of essays and short pieces, all different but all bearing the distinctive imprint of Perec’s mind. Some read simply like lists; some are autobiographical; some take a seemingly straightforward subject like spectacles and run away with it! All are curious, fascinating and mentally stimulating.
I’d read a few of the pieces before, in the collection “Species of Space”, but it was a delight to experience them all together, in a lovely volume with an excellent introduction by Margaret Drabble. One of my favourites is “Brief Notes on the Art and Craft of Sorting Books” which covers the kind of issues all of us booklovers experience regularly:
“Torn between these two poles, the right to be laid-back, easy-going and anarchic, and the virtue of a clean state, the steely efficiency of the great clear-out, you always end up trying to sort out your book collection. It’s a nerve-wracking, depressing operation which can nevertheless bring pleasant surprises, such as when you find a book you had forgotten you had from not having seen it for so long and, putting off to the morrow what can’t be done today, you lie flat on your bed and re-read it from cover to cover.”
Another, perhaps more profound, essay called “Backtracking” covers the experience of undergoing analysis, which Perec himself did over a period of years. Given his upbringing it’s perhaps no surprise that he needed this. “Reading” is a little study of how we physically read and, like all Perec’s work, it takes a seemingly surface level subject and somehow manages to end up being a quite profound and revealing exposition of the subject at hand – I don’t quite know how he does it.
This book is most certainly the perfect introduction to Perec’s shorter works, giving examples of most of the styles he used. As for sorting out your thoughts – well, this collections of thoughts of sorts won’t necessarily do that, but it certainly will stimulate a lot of new thought! 🙂
jacquiwine
Nov 11, 2014 @ 08:11:43
I’m enjoying your Perec posts as I’m learning a little more about this author through each one. Thoughts of Sorts is a great title!
kaggsysbookishramblings
Nov 11, 2014 @ 08:26:17
It is! The more I read of Perec’s work, the more I love him!
hastanton
Nov 11, 2014 @ 10:02:44
I haven’t read any Perec and that seems to be a massive omission . I am going to have to catch up I think
kaggsysbookishramblings
Nov 11, 2014 @ 11:30:54
I only stumbled across Perec recently, but as soon as I’d read him he became a massive favourite – I highly recommend! 🙂
litlove
Nov 11, 2014 @ 13:46:53
Ooh I love those Notting Hill editions – so gorgeous, and Perec is a pet of mine. Lovely review, Karen; I’ll have to look out for this one.
kaggsysbookishramblings
Nov 11, 2014 @ 14:20:19
They *are* lovely and I seem to have been on a bit of a run with them lately – I’m halfway through my third! And I do *love* Perec!
Fleur in her World
Nov 12, 2014 @ 11:54:54
Your enthusiasm for Perec is proving infectious – could you recommend a good place to start?
kaggsysbookishramblings
Nov 12, 2014 @ 11:56:47
That’s actually really tricky! Because I started with “Life: A User’s Manual” which is huge but very wonderful. All his works are very individual, but if you wanted something shorter, “Things” is great and also “A Void” is the one with a missing vowel. But if you want to commit to a long read, I’d recommend “Life” – it’s his masterpiece!
Fleur in her World
Nov 12, 2014 @ 12:03:36
Thank you – I’ll be checking my library’s catalogue.