Ian McGuire

Lawrence's The Rainbow.

So this is kind of a lockdown read.

It was kind of, I was thinking, what are the classics which I've never read?

And I've never read The Rainbow.

And in fact, I haven't reread any D.H.

Lawrence for years, probably decades.

So I thought I would try it.

And I'm finding it extremely interesting, actually, and quite suggestive.

So I think it's kind of brilliant in some ways and brilliant at bringing characters who you would think are

of as rather ordinary or having mundane lives and sort of showing us the richness of their inner lives.

So he does that wonderfully.

But there are also very strange passages to a contemporary ear, I think.

When he starts sort of trying to write about sex, it becomes very odd and kind of metaphysical and abstract, I suppose, because he wasn't able to

be concrete.

So it's an interesting read because it sort of goes between strangeness and sort of brilliancy and back and forth.

So I am very much enjoying that.

Flowers and blood and a lot of, yes.