Manners, decorum, morals, tact, niceties, propriety. Doesn't this all sound fun! 'A Room With A View' by E. M. Forster is the tale of a young woman who is constrained by the conventions of her time. Lucy Honeychurch lives in 1900's England and meets the strange George Emerson whilst travelling to Italy. After a brief but intense contact she returns home and becomes engaged to the uptight Cecil Vyse. However coincidence throws the two back together and she has to decide whether to be a proper lady or do what would make her happy. Would love to hear your feedback and appreciate any support you wish to give :) Timeline: (0:00) - Coming soon Value 4 Value Support: Paypal: https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/meremortalspodcast Boostagram: https://www.meremortalspodcast.com/support Connect with Mere Mortals: Website: https://www.meremortalspodcast.com/ Discord: https://discord.gg/jjfq9eGReU Twitter/X: https://twitter.com/meremortalspod Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/meremortalspodcast/ TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@meremortalspodcast ... https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v7j3iDgeYAc

Is there a moral boundary that cannot be crossed, even by those who act unthinkingly? 'Thérèse Raquin' by Émile Zola is a simple story with only four main characters. Set in 19th century Paris, it tells of passion, betrayal, murder, deception and ultimately, accountability. Zola wrote the book in a literary style known as 'Naturalistic'. In the preface he expressly states that he was interested in the temperaments of the personas, rather than their characters. By this he explores how humans would behave in an extreme situation, where free will plays very little part. I summarised the book as follows. "Overall it is gloomy and sad but manages to be very entertaining, even riveting at points. The simple plot and sparse use of characters makes it flow superbly, without the reader needing to backtrack and reconfirm previous passages. The descriptions of old grimy working-class Paris spring into the mind clearly. It prompts questions of unendurable suffering, the acceptability of suicide and how the sub-conscience interacts with morality. A fine read!" I hope you have a fantastic day wherever you are in the world. Kyrin out! Timeline: (0:00) - Synopsis (1:58) - Is there a boundary point/line that cannot be crossed? (6:19) - Suicide and living a life not worth living (8:12) - Personal Observations (14:26) - Summary (14:57) - Pragmatic Takeaway: Use Google street view Connect with Mere Mortals: Website: https://www.meremortalspodcast.com/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/meremortalspodcast/ ... https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O_6u6dtpA7I

Have you ever wondered why you have heard of the mythical place of Shangri-La? 'Lost Horizon' by James Hilton is a utopian (although arguably dystopian) fictional adventure of 4 Westerners captured and held against their will. They remain in limbo in the Lamasery of Shangri-La high up in the unexplored mountaintops of Tibet. Although on the surface it seems to be an almost ideal existence there is a suspicious secret that adds a dark side to the tale. There are many themes to explore in the book including (but not limited to): the ideal man/character, disillusionment, East vs West mentality and what happens as we grow old. I summarised the book as follows. "This is easily the best book I have read in a while! Immersed is not a word strong enough to articulate just how deeply I enjoyed this, it really ticked off all my interest boxes. This is highly subjective as it's not a standout for it's prose or style, it's just my type of book. Wisdom & philosophy in the shell of a fun story." As always, I hope you have a fantastic day wherever you are in the world. Kyrin out! If you would like to support the channel, you can grab yourself a copy of the book here! https://amzn.to/3zsoqry Timeline: (0:00) - Intro & Synopsis (3:57) - The Ideal Man: Unflappable, stoic and English! (7:36) - Disillusionment: The loss of the utopic (11:50) - Personal Observations/Takeaways (13:32) - Summary Connect with Mere Mortals: Website: https://www.meremortalspodcast.com/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/meremortalspodcast/ ... https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T-Zx_Khh54o

It's eerie coming across the literary version of yourself, essentially the same person who lived a different life and made different decisions. 'My Brother Jack' by George Johnston is a classic Aussie story about family relations, cultural snapshots, responsibility and dashed dreams. It is narrated by David Meredith and is mostly an introspective story but with the constant play of the polarity between himself and his brother Jack. There are many themes contained within but David's shirking of responsibility and Jack's portrayal as the classic Aussie bloke really jump out. I summarised the book as follows. "It him home hard and was maybe even too close to home. I saw so much of my innate personality in David, basically an alternate Kyrin living an alternate life (& I didn't like what I saw eeeep). It reveals the cultural feeling in the air between the two world wars and the ending left me reeling. A fantastic book that is very close to being in my top 10!" As always, I hope you have a fantastic day wherever you are in the world. Kyrin out! Timeline: (0:00) - Intro & Synopsis (4:21) - Shirking: An avoidance of duty &/or responsibility (9:59) - Old Mate: What makes an Aussie man? (15:33) - Personal Observations/Takeaways (21:12) - Summary (22:16) - Aussie Slang Connect with Mere Mortals: Website: https://www.meremortalspodcast.com/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/meremortalspodcast/ ... https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nRT1ojhgBYI