#bsjohnson

#happytuesday enjoying my morning coffee while working on my #boomerangshawl #knitandcoffee #brownsheepcompany #bsjohnson #knit #knitting #knitshawl #renaissancefaire #wip #etsy https://www.instagram.com/p/CEUDAxuhmCK/?igshid=y2ssfgqn30eh

new #wip the #bsjohnson shawl from MMario on ravelry - found a few new patterns to try, but thinking this one may be perfect with garb at #renaissancefaire looking forward to seeing everyone who makes the trip out for the #sociallydistant @parenfaire opening weekend. so many safety measures in place and well explained. i'll be with @susanbelloff at Dress Your Dreams Clothier #mondaymakes #monday #knit #knitshawl #boomerangshawl https://www.instagram.com/p/CER1RgfhLgR/?igshid=jevku0oa2ekc

B. S. Johnson was such a badass. I’m currently reading Like a Fiery Elephant, Jonathan Coe’s masterful biography of the ‘experimental’ writer, from which this letter to an American publisher is taken. Johnson isn’t read so much nowadays, but he was a significant figure in the literary world of 60s and 70s Britain and was regarded by some (himself included) as the heir to Joyce and Beckett. He believed that, ‘Life does not tell stories. Life is chaotic, fluid, random; it leaves myriads of ends untied, untidily. Writers can extract a story from life only by strict, close selection, and this must mean falsification. Telling stories really is telling lies.’ His novels signal their own artifice and attempt to reflect the randomness of reality: Alberto Angelo has holes cut in the pages so that you can read through to see what happens next; The Unfortunates is a series of separately bound chapters in a box which can be read in any order. I’m excited to read more of Johnson’s work, particularly Christie Malry’s Own Double-Entry (which was featured on Backlisted). Also, I’m looking forward to reading Jonathan Coe’s new novel, Middle England, which is published next month!