A Reading Diary：A Year Of Favourite Books

WriterandcriticManguel's(ReadingPictures)elegantlyellipticalandwrylycontemporarydiaryofcitiesrevisitedandbooksrereadduring2002and2003openswithajourneyheundertakestohisbirthplace,BuenosAires,justafterArgentina'seconomiccrisisinDecember2001.AsManguel'sreadingoverlapswithjottedobservationsofBuenosAires,hereflectsonthemeaningofhomeland,andonmemory.Nostalgiaandthesignificanceofcities—inpersonalandliteraryterms—arethemesthatpreoccupyManguelonfurthertripstoLondon,Paris,GermanyandCanada.YetManguelislessmelancholicthanthoughtfulandjoyfullypostmodern.AthomeinruralFrance,hisreflectionsrangeaswidelyasonhistravels,emergingashetidieshislibrary,converseswithwritersMavisGallantandRohintonMistry,andreceivesvisitsfromhisadultchildren.HiseclecticreadingmatterincludesH.G.Wells,ConanDoyle,MargaretAtwood,KiplingandGoethe.Andhequotesfrommanymorewriters:Chateaubriand,VirginiaWoolfandChesterton,tonamebutafew.Mangueldelightsinlistmaking—whetheroffavoritedetectivenovels,madscientistsorliteraryheroes.Manguel'sexquisitelydistilledstyleandgentlehumilityarepurepleasure.Hisdiaryisagoldmineoftheunexpected,andhiscompanionable,deeplycultivatedpersonawillentranceallthosewholovetoreadandtoponder.