The Breast by Philip Roth

I first met David Kepesh a few years back - way back when I was still in college. My creative writing professor, Rene Saldana, Jr. turned on to reading a John Gardner collection of essays on writers and writing. He discusses Philip Roth's novel, in which David Kepesh wakes up one day to learn he has become a giant breast. I jumped onto the internet and bought the first copy I found that was inexpensive. Hardback. Good price. Moving on.

I read it then continued on to reading The Professor of Desire and The Dying Animal. Both equally wonderful reads.Nothing, however, compares my first experience reading The Breast.

Last week, I reread the novella for the second time. And like Kepesh states, when you read a favorite novel later in life, you find things you didn't see before. I never questioned Kepesh's transformation. I read the novel rather literal. Here was a man who followed his lustful instincts in life who gets transformed into a breast. No big deal. 

The question I find myself asking, was Kepesh just crazy?

I won't go into too much detail because it's such a short book, but it's a must read for fans of The Metamorphosis.

The Breast is available on Amazon and Barnes and Noble.

The Book Hunter on Vacation

After a grueling week - weeks, actually - without a single break (half days don't count!), this book hunter's wish was granted. Now, sitting in this room at the Ramada Unlimited - located in South Padre Island - unwound and relaxed, I decided to make a quick update of the blog. Because you can go on vacation from your job, but never book hunting.

At first glance, it's easy to miss "Paragraphs." I nearly missed it, anyway. The last thing I was expecting to see was a book store anywhere on the island. I'm glad I found it. Not to mention the three Philip Roth novels just tucked on the shelf, as if waiting for me. Sadly, I only purchased one novel - The Humbling. New copy, half the price! Can we say awesome?!

Oh well, I better go back to enjoying myself. Until next time, keep on huntin'.

A Book Hunter's Christmas

I'm not a big Christmas fan. What I mean is, I'm not a big fan of the Christian concept of Christmas. That whole reason for the season crap. Not a big fan of it. But I come from a Catholic family and so I put up a front. Most of my family still thinks me as Catholic and I've more than once told them that I am not. Either way, I celebrate Christmas with them because it's the only time you get us together.

Now there's a misconception of book hunters. We love books and everyone expects us to want books for Christmas. This is true, but we also love other things. I got a new computer from my mother and a purple flannel shirt from Jyg. That's right, I said purple! (Love it, by the way.) I also didn't give books away for Christmas. Well, save one. I got Jyg a copy of Freud's letters.

The day before Christmas Eve, I went into a panic, realizing I didn't get my mother a single damn thing. I wasn't much in the holly jolly spirits this year because of the death of my old computer. Either way, I went on over to Hastings and snatched up a copy of To Wong Foo, on of her favorite movies starring the late great Patrick Swayze.

While there, I stumbled upon a copy of Philip Roth's The Plot Against America. How could I resist? The book was only $5.49 used. It looked unread as well.

Also, while there, I saw my friend JD who was having some problems looking for Russell Brand's book. Well, ladies and gentlemen, if all goes well. I have a new book to hunt for the New Year.

Happy Holidays from the Book Hunter.

Hot for Teacher

Desiring The Professor of Desire

I started my love affair with David Kepesh when I first read a criticism piece by John Gardner - a entitled The Breast after the novel it was on. Never before had I heard of Philip Roth - I must've been a sophomore in college and still toting around genre books as if they were the most literary thing I've ever seen. I was interested in becoming a writer myself and picked up a copy of Gardner's On Writers & Writing by mistake, thinking it was something about teaching me to be a better writer (in a sense, I suppose, it was).

I had only read the Kafka's short story, The Metamorphosis, solely because I had to - like I said, I was younger then. I never before read something like that before and thought that I would never see or hear of anything similar again. Imagine my surprise when I picked up that Gardner piece and read that some guy named Philip Roth had written something in the same vein, only the dude had woke up, not a giant grotesque bug but a giant breast!

I bought The Breast for only eleven cents on Amazon (obviously, not including shipping) and lost myself in the banal life of David Allen Kepesh and how he one day woke up to being a breast. About a year later, I decided to give Roth another chance and picked up The Dying Animal and found myself, once again, reading about David Kepesh. Looking through the also by Philip Roth page, I found that there were three and I had purchased the last one - according to the list - so I set off to buy The Professor of Desire.

Years past since I last ventured into the world of Professor Kepesh - though I had watched Elegy, the adaptation of the novel The Dying Animal - before I picked up The Professor of Desire. I had my attempts in the past with reading the book, but nothing came out of it. I just returned into the shelf it lived for the past years. Just last week, however, I decided that the season was right and I was in the mood for a little desire of my own. I quickly got myself into it, losing myself in Roth's magic.

The man is a genius. How he manages on creating such "banal" characters who have more than banal lives is beyond me. In the novel, Kepesh returns to his childhood, mapping his sexual origins from a crude Herbie Bratasky to a wild and crazy gal in Europe to his estranged wife and finally landing on the possible love of his live, Claire. It's a semi-different Kepesh from Animal and Breast. Nevertheless, he still has the same fears, the same desires and the same thoughts streaming through his mind.

However, it makes sense that he seems more down to earth in the sexual world in his latter days in the novel, simply because these are possibly pre-The Breast memories and narration and obviously pre-The Dying Animal Kepesh. Nevertheless, it's still an enjoyable read, worth of more praise that I am giving it, but this laptop I'm on isn't letting me express myself further - it's a loaner.

Your Bargain Book Store Hunt

Hunt: 'Salem's Lot by Stephen King & Interview with the Vampire by Anne Rice

Partner: Meester Binx

Location: Your Bargain Book Store (inside Georgia's Thrift Stop) 1305 W. Pecan, McAllen, TX

Success rate: 1/2 - though I did manage to buy four other books

Cost: $3.50 (before tax)

My failure to find the other two books in last week hunt left me a little down. So I got around to thinking, I know a guy who owns a used book store so why not contact him to see if he had them. I contacted Mike, owner of Your Bargain Book Store which is located inside Georgia's Thrift Shop, and asked if he had 'Salem's Lot and Interview of the Vampire and got the answer I wanted to hear - Yes. I called Meester Binx and headed out there on the mission.

I've never been to Georgia's before, so the whole set up was sort of shocking. They have a little bit of everything. I snaked my way to the back where Mike's book corner was. It was a little slice of heaven. Not more books than Books -n- Things, but a much better selection - classical & contemporary literature, Chicano studies, tons of Stephen King, poetry and erotica.

He had 'Salem's Lot in stock, but no sign of Interview with the Vampire - and if he had it, it was in hardback and I wasn't willing to buy hardback because I don't know if I'd like the book. Along side, 'Salem's Lot, I picked up a copy of The Dark Tower: The Gunslinger (recommended by a friend) and Brian Keene's The Rising. Contemporary literature had two gems for only a dollar each - The Human Stain by Philip Roth - one of my favorite authors who still breathes - and The Remains of the Day by Kazuo Ishiguro - a book recommended by my former creative writing professor & author, Rene Saldana, Jr.

Mike said that tomorrow is when he's there restocking his inventory. I might make an appearance then to check out what he put up.