Bird & Julian

Though I saw it only once upon its 1988 release, there is one scene from "Bird" - Clint Eastwood's biopic of legendary alto saxophonist Charlie Parker - that has never left me. After hearing one of Parker's superhuman feats of improvisation, another saxophonist throws his instrument into a river. I have yet to meet a musician who has not had a similar impulse at least once over their playing life. It's an occupational hazard.

I'd wager there are authors who'd be tempted to ditch almost finished manuscripts after reading "The Sense Of An Ending" (2011) by Julian Barnes. I've now read this staggering piece of literature three times over four years. The first time - using a library book - I took more than three pages of notes. For the second reading I used post-its in my own copy to highlight different passages than my initial read. This go round I annotated additional different sections with pencil. The notes, post-its and annotations probably account for 25% of the text. And there are still many jewels left. Like Parker did for saxophonists, Barnes effectively resets the bar for novelists.

If you love books, this is one you must read. If you're working on your own book, I'd suggest waiting until you're published before reading "The Sense Of An Ending".