Date: Sun, 23 Jul 1995 14:20:19 -0400 (EDT)
Subject: Re: MB: Recommendation?


Tom,

Well, I'll jump in until someone who has read more can offer 
more substantial advice.  Of the fictional works which I've read, I 
enjoyed _Death Sentence_ the most.  I also liked _The Last Man_ and 
_Thomas the Obscure_ (which I think is supposed to be his greatest 
fictional achievement).  _Vicious Circles_ has two short pieces which I 
remember as being Kafkaesque.  Sorry this is at the thumbs up/thumbs down 
level--my reading of Blanchot's fiction (which might be the best way 
to enter the oeuvre) was done a couple of years ago and I'm still trying 
to work my way through to a better grasp of his thinking.

In terms of nonfiction, I've only read essays here and there, but _The 
Space of Literature_ and _The Infinite Conversation_ (a pretty thick 
work) both have some big pieces.  Some of these are gathered in _The Gaze 
of Orpheus_, which is (I think) more or less of an American anthology.  
Anyway, those are some books you might want to take a look at.  Enjoy.

Ryan Trimm
trimmrs-AT-email.unc.edu

On Sun, 23 Jul 1995, Tom Blancato wrote:

> Can anyone recommend a good first or major work of Blanchot?
> ---
> There is no path to peace. Peace is the path.
> 
> Tom Blancato
> tblancato-AT-envirolink.org
> Eyes on Violence (nonviolence and human rights monitoring in Haiti)
> Thoughtaction Collective (reparative justice project)
> 
> 
>