“I wanted to be seen, but I didn’t want to be known.” Chapter 1: Fuyuko’s Solitude Fuyuko Irie, a freelance proofreader in her mid-thirties, lives a quiet, isolated […]
German literature
Demian
“I wanted only to try to live in accord with the promptings which came from my true self. Why was that so very difficult?” Chapter 1: Two Worlds […]
German literature
Siddhartha
“Wisdom cannot be imparted. Wisdom that a wise man attempts to impart always sounds like foolishness to someone else… Knowledge can be communicated, but not wisdom.” Part One: […]
German literature
Wilhelm Meister’s Apprenticeship
“The human being is not born to solve the problems of the universe, but to find out where the problem begins, and then to restrain himself within the […]
Russian literature
Glory
“The only way back is forward.” Chapter 1: Early Years Martin Edelweiss, a young Russian émigré, grows up in pre-revolutionary St. Petersburg in a privileged but emotionally distant […]
French literature
The Girl Who Reads on the Métro
“A book is a door. You open it. You step through.” Chapter 1: Juliette’s Routine Juliette, a young Parisian woman, mechanically rides the Métro every day to her […]
French literature
Hunting and Gathering
“Sometimes, happiness is just a matter of putting the right people together in the same place.” Chapter 1: The Unlikely Roommates The novel introduces four misfits living in […]
French literature
The Yellow Eyes of Crocodiles
“Life is like a crocodile: it watches you with yellow eyes, waiting for the right moment to strike.” The novel follows the lives of two sisters, Joséphine and […]
French literature
The Immoralist
“I was now seeking in all things the occasion for a self-betrayal.” Chapter 1 Michel, the protagonist, recounts his life story to three friends who have come to […]
English literature
Black Swan Green
“Hang on, I thought, if I can see the stars from here, then the stars can see me.” January: Hangman Thirteen-year-old Jason Taylor lives in the small English […]