The Opposing Shore is ranked 594th on The Greatest Books of All Time and that is why I have tried to approach it, without success: it does not make it on my GOAT list, not if we stop at the ten thousand mark – nevertheless, you find reviews on books from the aforementioned list on my blog, thousands of them https://realinibarzoi.blogspot.com/2025/09/do-you-have-any-feedback.html and notes on films as well

 

The Opposing Shore is ranked 594^th on The Greatest Books of All Time and that is why I have tried to approach it, without success: it does not make it on my GOAT list, not if we stop at the ten thousand mark – nevertheless, you find reviews on books from the aforementioned list on my blog, thousands of them https://realinibarzoi.blogspot.com/2025/09/do-you-have-any-feedback.html and notes on films as well

 

6 out of 10

 

This was not for me, albeit, if I were to take the time, find some resilience, patience somewhere, who knows, it may have worked (wonders?) as it is, Seneca https://realinibarzoi.blogspot.com/2025/06/on-shortness-of-life-by-seneca.html said that ‘life is not short, if we manage time in the proper way, and not waste it’

 

It was not like that, but you can google for the exact quote, the gist of it being in this particular situation that maybe The Opposing Shore is fantastic for you, it was for many critics, ergo the exact position it has on that GOAT site – 594 – and that means that I should rely less on this compilation, especially seeing its mistakes

Kingsley Amis https://realinibarzoi.blogspot.com/2025/01/lucky-jim-by-kingsley-amis-author-of.html is my favorite author, and he only has Lucky Jim high up on this list, while magnum opera can be found thousands of places below The Opposing Shore, and that may work for other readers, but it is anathema for me

 

‘The novel is characterized by its rich, baroque language and a focus on atmosphere rather than a conventional narrative. It delves into the psychological effects of prolonged conflict and the existential dread of waiting for action that may never come. Gracq's writing evokes a sense of timelessness and surrealism, drawing comparisons to the works of Kafka’ but hear Kingsley Amis out on Kafka and his books:

“Kafka now there's another man who can't tell a story, who's incapable of illustrating the slightest thing, or the most important thing, by action. I don't think I've ever seen so many abstract nouns in a supposedly narrative writer before.” Which might mean that Magister Ludi Kingsley Amis would have rejected Gracq

 

Blink The Power of Thinking Without Thinking https://realinibarzoi.blogspot.com/2025/01/blink-power-of-thinking-without.html is a classic of psychology that explains The Thin Slicing Effect, The Harding Effect and in the case of The Opposing Shore I would say that one, the other, maybe both worked so that I see there is not much in it for me

Another classic of psychology is Flow https://realinibarzoi.blogspot.com/2025/01/flow-by-mihaly-csikszentmihalyi.html and you find there the principles of Maximum Experience, Being in The Zone: you are in control, nothing else matters, it is autotelic (does not check here), you have clear, meaningful goals…

 

You are between burnout and boredom, time changes its units, feedback is instant and constant, now, there are some rules that are not ‘obeyed’ by The Opposing Shore- I am not between boredom and burnout, but in the former, times will not be passing in a pleasant way, never mind the elation that I was expecting, the verdict is negative

 

Now for my standard closing of the note with a question, and invitation – I am on Goodreads as Realini Ionescu, at least for the moment, if I keep on expressing my views on Orange Woland aka TACO, it may be a short-lived presence

Also, maybe you have a good idea on how we could make more than a million dollars with this https://realinibarzoi.blogspot.com/2025/09/do-you-have-any-feedback.html – as it is, this is a unique technique, which we could promote, sell, open the Oscars show with or something and then make lots of money together, if you have the how, I have the product, I just do not know how to get the benefits from it, other than the exercise per se

 

 There is also the small matter of working for AT&T – this huge company asked me to be its Representative for Romania and Bulgaria, on the Calling Card side, which meant sailing into the Black Sea wo meet the US Navy ships, travelling to Sofia, a lot of activity, using my mother’s two bedrooms flat as office and warehouse, all for the grand total of $250, raised after a lot of persuasion to the staggering $400…with retirement ahead, there are no benefits, nothing…it is a longer story, but if you can help get the mastodont to pay some dues, or have an idea how it can happen, let me know

 

As for my role in the Revolution that killed Ceausescu, a smaller Mao, there it is http://realini.blogspot.com/2022/03/realini-in-newsweek-participant-in.html

 

Some favorite quotes from To The Hermitage and other works

 

‘Fiction is infinitely preferable to real life...As long as you avoid the books of Kafka or Beckett, the everlasting plot of fiction has fewer futile experiences than the careless plot of reality...Fiction's people are fuller, deeper, cleverer, more moving than those in real life…Its actions are more intricate, illuminating, noble, profound…There are many more dramas, climaxes, romantic fulfillment, twists, turns, gratified resolutions…Unlike reality, all of this you can experience without leaving the house or even getting out of bed…What's more, books are a form of intelligent human greatness, as stories are a higher order of sense…As random life is to destiny, so stories are to great authors, who provided us with some of the highest pleasures and the most wonderful mystifications we can find…Few stories are greater than Anna Karenina, that wise epic by an often foolish author…’