Rating:  Summary: Eat, Drink, and Sleep Sexus Review: Henry Miller is a maniac. If you didnt know already, this Sexus stuff is really good. You need a handbook for life? Well this is pagan dianetics. There are wonderful observations on humanity and existing here. A hi-liter is essential. I admonish the publishers for not including one.I don't know if this work is beyond human or just completely. Miller is like Stradavarius, both gentlemen of whom I without hesitation hereby accuse of witchcraft. This demon and daredevil, this Miller, I read and reread these hysterical lucid raves of his and I feel like i've just ran a marathon or something. The lyrical waves of profundity, i'm just drinking and drowning deeply. I'm exhausted but more so inspired and want more but its dawn and my eyes burn. But of course they do. Now that's communion. This guy is Dionysus incarnate, so dangerous, this way of frenzy, lust, electricity. There's no form here. Form is for the psychosis inspired neurotic, the self-conscious, the little man, e.g the statesman, priest, advertiser, intellectual, Nobel Prize winner, of civilization and petty politik. No, this is the other hand, the forgotten invisible buddist one who never claps, but makes and gets it anyway. Here now life in every direction. Its nature, you know, bigger, better, faster, stronger than any construction, invention or bright idea or cage. Its reality, the one and only. Nothing can contain it. Watch it fleet like a fox when you try to leash it. Dont get me wrong. Hemingway's nice too. Just that he's the exact opposite. Hemingway is control. He has the form, the one-two combination, in life as fight mode. He's like Apollo, with grace under pressure of the cosmos, until his inevitable, a shotgun suicide. Ah, the poor good old soldier of duty. Papa forgot that he must do things also the wrong way. The Miller, as we all may know, becomes itself and combustion under any kind of pressure. One with life, he becomes the gun, shoots back, hits hardest. And the reader is fortunate enough to be priv to all the loveliness and juices that come along with this metamorphosis called human, at the very least.
Rating:  Summary: really good Review: i have not finished it yet but so far i canot put my eyes off it am so enjoying it i think it is really good am reading the arabic version and its great i really want to finish and start the second part and maybe then read it in english
i like it allot
Rating:  Summary: highly recommended Review: I just finished reading Sexus and can't wait to read the next two, Plexus and Nexus...In my opinion, Miller is quite underrated. In this book you can feel his influence on the beats, Kerouac and Burroughs especially. Sexus is an autobiographical novel about his relationship with Mona, his second wife, told from the perspective of many years and a continent away. In fact, this book draws a portrait of one of the great relationships in modern literature -- a crazy, intense relationship, but Miller conveys the sheer joy of falling head-over-heels in love. Miller's books remind me a bit of de Sade's: graphic sex scenes interspersed with philosophy. But of course there's a lot more to Miller and Sexus, including vivid portraits of fascinating secondary characters, and some great descriptions of New York in the 1920's. But the main character in Sexus is of course Miller himself. A big part of the appeal is that he comes across not as a born literary genius, but as an ordinary guy who's so unsatisfied with ordinary life that he decides, through force of will, to become a great writer. My only complaint with this edition of the book is its large size format, which is not as convenient as the small Grafton Books editions of Miller's books, which are now out of print.
Rating:  Summary: HM: writer, genuis, poet, catalyst, inspiration, comic Review: In this book Henry Miller emerges as a writer, genius, poet, catalyst, comic, contradiction, devil, and ultimately an enigma, defying all categorization. In my estimation Sexus is the work of genius... I couldn't help but marvel as Henry Miller took me on a literary roller-coaster ride that was at turns a thriller; tragedy; was ribald and outrageous; pious; disgusted me; inspired; and finally an awakening. When I first read this book it made me aware as the myriad of possibilities that life offers the brave few that are willing to follow their dreams unflinchingly, and without apology. What makes this book unique to me is its breadth, and its masterful treatment of the many ridiculous scenarios Henry Miller constructs; full of contradictions; hilarious characterizations; brutal honesty; and a rawness of spirit that is rarely captured so eloquently in print. It's not for everyone, it's often a tough read, and can be quite crude, but if you can hold on to the book through all the razor sharp twists and turns I think it's worth the ride. This work by Henry Miller reminds me that life is short, often hilarious, and an adventure, and it can be as wild and enchanting as we choose it to be.
Rating:  Summary: HM: writer, genius, poet, catalyst, comic, devil, enigma Review: In this book Henry Miller emerges as a writer, genius, poet, catalyst, comic, contradiction, devil, and ultimately an enigma. In my estimation it is a work of genius... marvel as Henry Miller takes you on a literary roller-coaster ride that will at turns thrill you; sadden you; make you laugh; disgust you; inspire; and finally awaken you to the myriad of possibilities that life offers the brave few that are willing to follow their dreams unflinchingly, and without apology. What makes this book unique is its breadth, and its masterful treatment of the many ridiculous scenarios Henry Miller constructs; full of contradictions; hilarious characterizations; brutal honesty; and a rawness of spirit that is rarely captured so eloquently in print. Through this book I discovered a soul mate in Henry Miller, whenever I'd lose my way in the world, I'd simply read a few pages from this book, and I'd feel marvelous, balanced, and inspired again... Henry Miller reminds me that life is short, hilarious, and an adventure, and it can be as wild and enchanting as we choose it to be.
Rating:  Summary: Perfect! Review: Miller is by far and without a doubt the best writer I have ever read. The writing is hilarious...from the very first page...he's untouchable. This is not pornography, Miller uses sex in many places merely as a vehicle to bring us to unmapped territories! I cannot read enough of his work. Whoever said "American fiction began and ended with what Henry Miller has done" could not have been more right! Henry Miller has made my world a better and far more interesting place.
Rating:  Summary: Great porn, mediocre literature Review: One thing I can say for certain about Henry Miller is that he is a far better pornographer than philosopher. His insights into human existence are hit and miss, but he definitely knows what he's talking about when it comes to sex. And the sex, admittedly, almost makes this book worth reading. For anyone with an imagination, it's better than Playboy or most of the stuff that you'll find in the adult section of your video store. At least from the male perspective, Henry Miller has a firm grasp of the human being as a sexual creature. As a writer and a philosopher, however, Miller falls painfully short. He has his moments of brilliance, but not often enough. Some passages dazzle the reader with witty, original, expressive prose. Others are either flat or incomprehensible. At times he reveals a powerful truth about what it means to live, but too often he rambles on about what seems to be a personal reflection that has little or no meaning to anyone in the world except for him. This book would have been better - and shorter - if he just stuck with the porn.
Rating:  Summary: Great porn, mediocre literature Review: One thing I can say for certain about Henry Miller is that he is a far better pornographer than philosopher. His insights into human existence are hit and miss, but he definitely knows what he's talking about when it comes to sex. And the sex, admittedly, almost makes this book worth reading. For anyone with an imagination, it's better than Playboy or most of the stuff that you'll find in the adult section of your video store. At least from the male perspective, Henry Miller has a firm grasp of the human being as a sexual creature. As a writer and a philosopher, however, Miller falls painfully short. He has his moments of brilliance, but not often enough. Some passages dazzle the reader with witty, original, expressive prose. Others are either flat or incomprehensible. At times he reveals a powerful truth about what it means to live, but too often he rambles on about what seems to be a personal reflection that has little or no meaning to anyone in the world except for him. This book would have been better - and shorter - if he just stuck with the porn.
Rating:  Summary: Miller's Zenith Review: Sexus is the captivating first chapter of Henry Miller's masterpiece, The Rosy Crucifiction. The first novel opens Miller's three-part personal expose` by sharing with the reader the turbulent foundation of his literary career. Set in Manhattan in the roaring twenties, we are lead through the turbulent adventures of an embittered husband, father, bread-winner and employee. As Sexus details the writer's turbulent love affairs, riotous friendships and shady encounters, it introduces the reader to Miller's then-germinating process of discovering what he came to call his "true self." Those who have read Tropic of Cancer will recognize in Sexus his unbridled rawness and violence, and those who have read Tropic of Capricorn will recognize his fluid (though torrid) poetry and unabashed hedonism. What makes the Rosy Crucifiction his masterpiece is that he is not controlled by the impulses that dominated his earlier works; in fact, he accomplishes what few of even the greatest writers achieve: he is undeniably the master of the language, bending it to his will instead of being bound by it. One may not like Miller. One may even find him wholy dispicable, and with good reason: he did not lead a life that most would want to emulate. But the point is not what he did, but how he expresses it. Fran Liebowitz once said, "your life story would not make an interesting novel; don't try it." What saves Sexus from being a presumptuous piece of egoism is that Miller does not try to make his life a story. An avid water-colorist, Miller's writing feels as though he is painting pictures in words rather than telling a coherent story. The result is that his prose is poetry of a quality rarely attained. The words leap off the page, away from your eyes and mind, and you are left only with the events that Miller so colorfully relate. The event becomes a part of you, not something read but something felt, something experienced, something shared. There are few other writers who transform the art of writing into so powerful a means of personal expression, and it is.
Rating:  Summary: A vivid writer but quite the sexist egomaniac! Review: The assertion that Henry Miller cannot write is utterly absurd! If the writing seems crude you should understand why, he explains everything. He uses shock to awaken and even if you hate him, his words will linger long after you've read a long stretch. By this time in his life he's not an ordinary man learning to write. I consider Sexus better than Tropic of Cancer and Tropic of Capricorn. He does speak to every sentient being in the universe. He makes you realize that one must ultimately educate himself, at the same time reminding us of what we really need to live. He shows us the way to emancipate ourselves, divorce ourselves from all that is false and embrace the truth. I suppose, though, that some people can't get past the graphic sex and that's a pity. He reaches for the stars here and not just a piece of tail. If you've had an itch but couldn't scratch it, Miller takes care of it. Keep your scope of perception open.
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