from Brennan

 I greatly enjoyed "The Disappearance of M" and the accompanying introduction. Naturally, I enjoy anything that involves cryptography or historical-calligraphic elements. Really, though, I enjoyed the kind of absurdist premise of what is a very incisive story. Especially after everything we have discussed over these past two semesters, I find it totally implausible that the New York Times has anyone on staff capable of enjoying or recognizing the value in an "English" novel composed in so many other languages, including oracle bone script. We've already seen in other readings how "accessibility" and "naturalness" are the only things the Times and similar reviewers are ready to grapple with. So I find it very optimistic that M would have found an audience in New York, even while accepting the story's premise that Kristmas is of unprecedented literary quality.

I wasn't entirely pleased with the translation, which seemed redundant and repetitive. Calling a dinosaur "prehistoric" does not actually add anything to the description. All dinosaurs are prehistoric. Another uncomfortably repetitive passage was "...a thick layer of spongy leaves. He stepped onto it barefoot, and could feel the moisture and softness of the leaves." I don't find this an acceptable piece of English prose.

The article also interested me. It lays out groundwork that I definitely needed to enjoy the story, such as the situation of the ethnic Malay and Chinese populations of Malaysia. The status of pork, taboo to Muslims and beloved by Chinese cooks, is such a fascinating example of the cultural variation that exists there.