It’s time for #6degrees. Start at the same place as other wonderful readers, add six books, and see where you end up.
This month we begin with a book that I absolutely loved – The Museum of Modern Love by Heather Rose.
The novel was written during Rose’s residency at Hobart’s MONA (Museum of Old and New Art). Charlotte Wood refers to MONA in The Luminous Solution.
If you have been to MONA, I imagine you may have felt the same things I did. I reeled in horror at the cruelty and violence of some of the works I saw there and wept, awestruck, at the beauty of others… I had to ask: could I have experienced the awe if I had not also felt the horror?
I’ve been to MONA a few times but the most memorable exhibition I saw there was a Marina Abramović retrospective (incidentally, Abramović is the focus of The Museum of Modern Love).
I have Abramović’s memoir, Walk Through Walls (yet to be read), but I was thinking about it while reading Catherine Lacey’s Biography of X. It’s a novel about an artist who works in multiple mediums. The artist is also extremely temperamental.
There are dozens of stories about mad artists, but the first that came to mind was Second Place by Rachel Cusk.
Incidentally, I referred to Charlotte Wood’s The Weekend in my review of Second Place. Wood discusses The Weekend in The Luminous Solution – she states that a line from Rudyard Kipling’s autobiographical work Something of Myself was significant in unlocking the plot in The Weekend.
Lots of looping back this chain! Where will others go? Link up below or post your link in the comments section.
Next month (September 7, 2024), we’ll start with the charming After Story by Larissa Behrendt.
Here’s mine: https://tinyurl.com/mmw9xdw3
I enjoyed your chain.
Here’s mine: https://anzlitlovers.com/2024/08/03/six-degrees-of-separation-from-the-museum-of-modern-love-to/
PS I did not know that about Charlotte Wood and the plot of The Weekend. Somehow, I can’t imagine her reading Kipling… which just goes to show how wrong I can be about (a) Charlotte Wood and (b) Kipling!
Don’t think I’d ever applied a moments thought to Wood and Kipling… but The Luminous Solution provided some interesting insights into her process.
I did buy that book, and I read a bit of it, but then I thought, nope, I’d rather read a novel:)
Interesting chain Kate. I’m particularly interested to read The luminous solution, particularly after reading your quote, but most of your books intrigue.
Here is my chain: https://whisperinggums.com/2024/08/03/six-degrees-of-separation-from-the-museum-of-modern-love-to/
The Luminous Solution is an essay collection – I think lots of them are available through other channels, but I enjoyed the theme of the collection.
I can’t decide if I’ve read The Weekend or just heard so much about it when it came out that it sounds familiar. My chain is linked much more basically than yours, https://clairesreadsandreviews.home.blog/2024/08/03/6-degrees-of-separation-5-august-2024/
I LOVED The Weekend because it was a beautiful story about women’s friendships, particularly the long and enduring ones. If you have read it, you’ll remember the dog called Finn.
As you say, lots of looping back here. Very cleverly done. Here’s mine: https://margaret21.com/2024/08/03/six-degrees-of-separation-from-the-museum-of-modern-love-to-on-gallows-down/
What the world needs now, is love sweet love! Here’s my chain https://tcl-bookreviews.com/2024/08/03/tcls-6degrees-of-separation-for-august-3-2024/
I’ve kept things very simple this month and just gone for museums! Although the first and last books do link through love as well.
https://portobellobookblog.com/2024/08/03/6degrees-of-separation-for-august-2024-from-the-museum-of-modern-love-to-lovers-at-the-museum/
I have you to thank for introduing me to the Rose, Kate, and I’ll be adding Walk Through Walls to my list, too. Great chain, as ever! Here’s min: https://alifeinbooks.co.uk/2024/08/six-degrees-of-separation-the-museum-of-love-to-did-you-ever-have-a-family/
I can’t recommend all of Rose’s books (controversially, I loathed her last one (Nothing Bad Ever Happens Here) but Museum was spectacularly clever.
An interesting chain – I enjoyed reading it. I haven’t read The Museum of Modern Love, but I would like to. Of the books in your chain I’ve only read Second Place, and I hadn’t heard about The Weekend, but now I really want to read that too.
Not sure how many countries The Weekend made it to! Museum of Modern Love is well worth seeking out – it’s very clever and if you like stories about art, it’s a great pick.
I remember Second Place as a starter story a while ago, nice to see it’s one of your six degrees.
My list this month ends with The Lady and the Unicorn by Tracy Chevalier. Also about art.
https://momobookblog.blogspot.com/2024/08/six-degrees-of-separation-from-museum.html
Second Place happens to be the only Cusk I’ve read. Including it in my chain has prompted me to seek more Cusk, and I have a few on reserve at the library (Outline and Parade).
So, looking forward to reading all about it when you get to that one.
That’s a clever chain! I haven’t read any of those books but they all sound interesting. Here’s mine:
https://shereadsnovels.com/2024/08/03/six-degrees-of-separation-from-the-museum-of-modern-love-to-the-woman-in-black/
I read Biography of X at the start of the year and I have yet to read anything I enjoyed more. Great chain!
Biography of X is one we’ll have to agree to disagree on – I couldn’t get into it at all and found the characters infuriating!
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I ended up writing about art and artists too. Here’s my chain: https://residentjudge.com/2024/08/03/six-degrees-of-separation-from-the-museum-of-modern-love-to/
I always enjoy art and artists as a theme.
Here is my chain: http://perfectretort.blogspot.com/2024/08/six-degrees-of-separation-from-museum.html
The New York Times had an interesting article about Rose and Marina Abramovic (this link should be free) when this book came out
https://www.nytimes.com/2018/11/26/books/heather-rose-museum-of-modern-love-marina-abramovic.html?unlocked_article_code=1.AE4.S-Qs.IDVV5vUZ5HC-&smid=url-share
Charlotte Wood sounds interesting! I have not come across her but my library system owns two of her books; perhaps the others have not been published here.
Thanks so much for the NYT link! I don’t think I saw it at the time.
Well worth seeking out Wood. I love all of her books but the one that got the most publicity was The Natural Way of Things, which in many ways isn’t representative of her other novels (it’s dystopian, whereas her others are contemporary). Anyway, Natural Way is an extraordinary take on the #MeToo movement and gripping.
These are really cool links!
Here is mine: https://wordsandpeace.com/2024/08/03/six-degrees-of-separation-from-love-to-murder/
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Thanks for hosting this meme, it was my first time participating and I really enjoyed making the chain.
https://darkshelfofwonders.com/six-degrees-of-separation-museums-the-plague-horses/
& glad you loved the Museum of Modern Love, I had never heard of it before but it sounds intriguing.
Welcome and so glad you could join in!
Museum is absolutely worth seeking out – lots of wonderful themes.
That’s great, I do love a book with good themes! 😄
Nice work! I’ve been watching the Olympics and forgot all about it this mounth–sorry!
That’s understandable! (although the time zone difference has been brutal in Australia and has seriously hampered my Olympics viewing).
I splurged and got Peacock so I can stream it instead of watching it on broadcast. I’ve done pretty well to avoid spoilers online, too, so watching the replays has been great. I saw your women play rugby, soccer, and field hockey! And also the men in a couple of those. I loved getting to watch sports they never show like field hockey or rugby (Tho that is much more popular now) or badminton or something. On tv they mostly show gymnastics, basketball and other superstar sports.
I like your Marina Abramovic’s thread running through here – I’ve also used her as my first link.
I love Abramovic’s work. Great regret when I was in Berlin pre-COVID and there was a new Abramovic exhibition which was closed on all of the days that I was there 🙁
Ah, that’s a shame! I just managed to see the wonderful Kimono exhibition at the V&A the weekend before Covid lockdown in London – it’s such a shame that exhibition didn’t get a wider audience either.
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Museums that aren’t!
https://mmzlibrary.blogspot.com/2024/08/6dobs-august-museum-of-modern-love-by.html