Lit in the Time of War: Frankl

Hello. Welcome to December. I hope you’re healthy, safe, and as warm as could be expected during these cold times. I’ve reviewed one book this week (due to it being a busy last week of classes). It’s a very meaningful book, though. I’ve also included a list of organizations you can donate to in order to support Ukrainians in need.

(Note: This review mentions suicide.)

Yes to Life: In Spite of Everything, by Viktor Frankl,
Narrated by David Rintoul

“What we create, experience, and suffer in this time, we create, experience, and suffer for all eternity. As far as we bear responsibility for an event, as far as it is ‘history,’ our responsibility, it is overwhelmingly burdened by the fact that something that has happened cannot be taken out of the world. However, at the same time, an appeal is made to our responsibility precisely to bring what has not yet happened into the world.”

Victor Frankl is famous for his book, Man’s Search for Meaning, and for creating Logotherapy (existentialist therapy). Yes To Life: in Spite of Everything contains lectures he gave that became the foundation for Man’s Search for Meaning. Surprisingly, these lectures were only published in English in 2020.

The lectures are about the pointlessness of suicide, the unethical nature of euthanasia, Frankl’s own experiences in a concentration camp, and the ultimate power people have to create meaning in spite of everything that may seem to strip life of any meaning it may have had.

The book was terrific in getting this last (and main) point across. Some people may lose heart in the face of adversity (of any kind), but others can see it as a call to meaning and come to approach life with more determination and intention.

Overall, if you’re looking for a convincing case for life’s enduring meaningfulness, or are interested in tracing the development of Frankl’s philosophy, I would strongly recommend Yes to Life: In Spite of Everything.

As promised, here’s a list of organizations you can donate to in order to support Ukrainians in need. Please do so if you are able.

The Salvation Army–Provides food, warm bedding, stoves, and hygiene kits to Ukrainians in need. Donate here: https://sawso.org/sawso/ukraine-disaster-and-refugee-relief

Direct Relief–Gives medical aid to Ukrainians in need. Donate here: https://www.directrelief.org/emergency/ukraine-crisis/

Project HOPE–Gives medical and mental health support to refugees in Ukraine, Moldova, Poland, and Romania. Donate here: https://www.projecthope.org/crisis-in-ukraine-how-to-help/04/2022/

Core–Provides medical, food, cash, and long-term support to Ukrainians in need. Donate here: https://www.coreresponse.org/ukraine/

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Lit in the Time of (Ongoing) War: Let The Right One In

Hello. I hope you are all well, and that the war in Ukraine stops soon. Meanwhile, I’ll keep titling my posts “Lit in the Time of War,” and hope that it’ll end soon. Also included at the end of this post is a brief list of places you can donate to in order to support Ukraine.

Let Me In (AKA Let The Right One In), by John Ajvide Lindqvist, Translated by Ebba Segerberg, Read by Steve Pacey

“The fact that the [murderer who had disfigured his face with acid to avoid being recognized] had not been recaptured during the day made the news more sensational, and a British journalist gave the best analysis of why the whole thing had attracted such attention: ‘It’s a search for the archetypal monster, this man’s appearance, what he’s done, he is the monster, the evil at the heart of all fairy-tales, and every time we catch it, we like to pretend it’s over for good.’”

This book is about a mysterious girl, Eli, who comes to Sweden and befriends a bullied boy named Oskar. Eli’s strange. She only comes out at night, and she lives with a man who kills people so she could live on their blood. In other words, she’s a vampire (but a much better vampire than Edward Cullen ever could be!)

This is a story of their friendship, along with the story of a bunch of other irrelevant side-characters who somehow become relevant only in the last quarter of the book.

The book was fun to read. It took a while (it was very long), but it was entertaining, and its ending was good. The narrator was fantastic, as well, so if you can get it on audiobook I’d highly recommend it. My only real gripe with it was that it felt like there was too much buildup with the side characters—they were important but they weren’t that important.

In any case, I’d definitely recommend this book. It’s very good horror, with humanity mixed in.

Some organizations supporting Ukrainians that you can donate to:

Razom For Ukraine—Provides medical relief for soldiers and doctors on the front line. Donate here: https://razomforukraine.org/

United Help Ukraine—Provides medical supplies to soldiers, and ships goods to Ukrainian refugees. Donate here: https://unitedhelpukraine.org/

Ukrainian National Women’s League of America—Provides humanitarian support to civilians and military hospitals. Donate here: https://unwla.org/top-news/call-for-humanitarian-aid/

Doctors Without Borders—Ships emergency supplies to Ukrainian hospitals. Donate here: https://donate.doctorswithoutborders.org/secure/donate 

Red Cross—Provides first aid, food, medicine, and evacuation help to Ukrainians. Donate here: https://www.redcross.org/donate/cm/abc.html/?subcode=abc-pub

UNCHR Refugee Agency—Provides refugees with food, water, health support, and assistance in rebuilding damaged houses. Donate here: https://give.unrefugees.org/

International Rescue Committee—Provides food, medical care, and emergency support services to Ukrainian refugees. Donate here: https://www.rescue.org/

Save the Children—Provides food, water, money, hygiene kits, and psychosocial support to children. Donate here: https://www.savethechildren.org/us/where-we-work/ukraine

Amnesty International—Investigates human rights violations in Ukraine to hold those responsible accountable, defends journalists and other people at risk. Donate here: https://www.amnestyusa.org/

Have you read Let Me In? Have you donated to any of these organizations (or know of anywhere else someone can donate to support Ukraine?) Let me know in the comments below!