All Things Are Too Small: Essays in Praise of Excess | 
so-soI found the essays written when Rothfeld loves a thing (pasta, Melville, David Cronenberg‘s horror films, the comedies of remarriage from the 1930‘s & 40‘s, erotic sex with her partner) way more pleasurable than those when she writes about her hatred for a thing (minimalism, fragment novels, mindfulness). This is funny because Rothfeld herself draws attention to “the pleasure of hating,” a term coined by 19th century essayist William Hazlitt.👇🏻
monalyisha 1/10: Part of my personal joy over excess, though, is the way in which it gives us license to embrace. I‘m not hunting for things to cast away from me; I‘m searching for ways to add to myself & to my world. Therefore, the essays in which Rothfeld takes pleasure in her hatred — joyfully squishing ideas, art, & ethos with her shoe — are not what I was looking for from this collection. 1w
monalyisha 2/10: There are, of course, plenty of ideas that are dangerous to embrace. I‘m not advocating for a judgment-free existence. I see the value in “extolling virtues” AND in “condemning inadequacies.” However, I‘m currently in a place where I‘m desperately craving celebration, as it‘s been profoundly lacking IRL. This is what I expected “essays in PRAISE of excess” to do. 1w
monalyisha 3/10: The subtitle feels akin to false advertising. As the world burns, there are enough people around me taking “pleasure in hating.” I don‘t need it in my reading life, too. 1w
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monalyisha 4/10: Part of my issue may be format & tone. As a thought experiment, I asked myself, “What if Rothfeld‘s essay, “Wherever You Go, You Could Leave” were reformatted into a handful of jokes in a standup act?” I think I‘d laugh riotously! 1w
monalyisha 5/10: In essay form, her serious smackdown grates & has a tendency to come across as wildly arrogant. She says she‘s always associated herself with “spikiness,” & that‘s exactly right. It‘s hard to embrace something prickly. 1w
monalyisha 6/10: My frustration with tone kept me from fully embracing this collection, which is a disappointment because I thought, at first blush, that I‘d love it! Rothfeld‘s writing can be strong (when it‘s not embarrassingly overwrought); there are some knockout sentences & ideas here. 1w
monalyisha 7/10: I guess what I‘m saying is that if she ever undergoes a midlife crisis, has a change of heart and a change of career, & takes her standup show on the road, consider my ticket purchased! Given that jokes require the boiling down of material, however (Norm MacDonald‘s brilliant moth joke notwithstanding), I don‘t think it‘s in the cards. 😅 1w
monalyisha 8/10: Rothfeld writes, “To live at all is to yearn to be somewhere besides where we are, and to make every effort to get there.” Despite my occasional yearning to be somewhere other than reading her book, I found that making every effort to fulfill *my* desire was to keep reading. The bitter end was the “there” in question. The only way out was through — & the only place to be was where I was (between the pages). 1w
monalyisha 9/10: Along these same lines, Rothfeld also agrees with a character in one of her favorite films, that “the prospect of quiet happiness stretching indefinitely before me depresses me.” This is where our dispositions diverge most drastically. 1w
monalyisha 10/10: I didn‘t always agree with Rothfeld, which was dispiriting because I thought we‘d be kindred spirits. In particular, I firmly believe that sometimes (certainly not always), “living” IS resting & luxuriating — in *exactly* the place we find ourselves. But disagreeing doesn‘t amount to disliking, & I‘ve judged the reading & writing of Rothfeld‘s essays to be a worthy effort…most of the time. Okay, some of the time. At least 50% of the time! 1w
monalyisha Tbh, I think her true calling is as a film critic. 1w
PurpleyPumpkin Excellent, thoughtful review!👍🏽 1w
monalyisha Thanks, @PurpleyPumpkin! There was certainly *plenty* of content to respond to! 6d
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