i don't want to be seen as a pretty thing;
it's the pretty things we're always breaking

age of iron

j. m. coetzee

what makes a coetzee novel beautiful? is it the simple, uncluttered plot, that almost insidiously takes hold? is it the protagonists, who are so thoroughly flawed? or is it simply the writing, simple and austere? (disclaimer: i’ve only read this and disgrace, so when i say “a coetzee novel,” that’s what i mean.)

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  • potential is overrated