Darkness at Midnight

For the past month, I have tried to get through Arthur Koestler's "Darkness at Noon." Can't do it. There's nothing wrong with the book or the writing; it simply puts me to sleep. Each evening I would crack open to the same page and within five minutes, my eyes would start to cross, and I'd sack out. I have wanted to read this book for years. When I read that one of Koestler's books ("The Act of Creation") had a huge influence on Brian Wilson (that's B.W. below in a bookstore), I pulled "Darkness at Noon" off the bookshelf. I first became aware of this book in 1993, when I read a horrific kidnapping story in which a man was buried in a hole and kept his sanity for 13 days by remembering "Darkness at Noon." I thought, "I must read this book in case I ever get kidnapped." Of course, I now realize that no book would save my sanity and that I would be reduced to a blubbering puddle. (By the way, if you are at all interested in the kidnapping story to which I referenced, here's a link. After reading this, I'm sure that you, too, will be reaching for your copy of "Darkness at Noon.") (Images via Michenermuseum.org and The Zen Interpretation)