Reading Henry James

One reason it took me a while to get started on my Reading Henry James project was that I got a bit tied up in another reading “binge”. I live in France, and there was a lot of to-do about the 50th anniversary of Albert Camus’ death, which was on January 4th. Camus was a huge influence on me when I was in my early twenties, and I read most of his major works in English (I lived in New York City at the time). So the event prompted me to look at Camus again, getting his complete works in French as a Christmas present, and reading two biographies of Camus, as well as several other books about him.

I’ve read about half of the first volume so far, and I very much like what Camus wrote. I like his thinking, and his style. Interestingly, he was said to have appreciated Henry James, along with Proust, Melville, and several other authors I like. He also, for a short time, had a dog named Kirk.

Back with Henry now, I’ll be continuing my reading of Camus over the coming months, interspersing the two (and, of course, other books as well, such as Robert B. Parker’s wonderful Spenser mysteries, which I’ve been reading lately). While James and Camus are quite different, there are actually some interesting similarities in the way they both worked with characters. Camus’ writing is more philosophically based, even if he never considered himself a philosopher, and it’s essential reading, in my opinion. If you haven’t read Camus, check out one of his books from your local library.