'undated fragment.
an idea for a story.
a man, a writer, keeps a diary. in it he notes down thoughts, ideas, significant occurrences.' - j.m. coetzee, summertime.
horsemouth has just finished summertime by j.m. coetzee (dew but it's grim). there is, of course, a joke here (of the type milan kundera would have appreciated), that the academic in the book is interviewing all 'john coetzee's friends and acquaintances rather than reading his poetry, or diaries or letters. but of course the second layer of the joke is that john coetzee is not (quite) the same as j.m. coetzee.
bookpilled/ thrift-a-life's escape to mexico seems to be going well (here he is telling us about the 12 best books he's read in the year the man in the high castle, ice, etc. it must be good to have all these books ahead of you).
'1 August. went to the train to see K off. relatives everywhere in the office. would like to go to valli's.' kafka's war is progressing. he seems to be home back in prague.
'I have nothing more to record but that dempster and I went upon the thames and saw the watermen row for doggett's badge and other prizes. we saw most excellent sport...' boswell, 1st august 1763.
from here on in reading the diary entry would require horsemouth to cut the page. he has done it but that is the end of the entry for august 1st. as a bonus he now knows how the diary of boswell's first visit to london will end (and it will end soon).
'monday. lammas day.
the morning opened with a dense sea fog which turned to great heat during the day close oppressive and sultry...' kilvert is down in cornwall having a whale of a time. pretty girls, poetry, photograph albums, expeditions to tintagel etc.
here in the wilds of herefordshire it looks like a nice day. some decent sunshine. it is lammas day when the landowners have to be paid and various common land rights can be asserted. in hackney horsemouth thinks there is a beating of the bounds. today the celebrant visits. tomorrow a visit to tescos.
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