# Too Loud A Solitude - Author: Bohumil Hrabal - Genre: #### Kindle Highlights #### Notes > I can be by myself because I'm never lonely, I'm simply alone, living in my heavily populated solitude, a harum-scarum of infinity and eternity, and Infinity and Eternity seem to take a liking to the likes of me. (pg. 19) > It never ceased to amazed me, until suddenly one day I felt beautiful and holy for having had the courage to hold on to my sanity after all I'd seen and been through, body and soul, in too loud a solitude, and slowly I came to the realization that my work was hurtling me headlong into an infinite field of omnipotence. (pg 62-63) > "The highest law is love, the love that is compassion." - Arthur Schopenhaur Damn this was a good story and beautifully written. I said I don't like happy endings and this one did not disappoint in that regard. The story follows a man, Haňtá, and his life of being a waste paper compactor. He's done this for the entirety of his life & will rescue rare & precious books when they come his way while working. He'd rather save them than allow them to be destroyed in the compactor. His work is difficult not just because the work itself is a challenge but also due to his boss being rather unkind, ill mannered and all around rude. Yelling & calling Haňtá names due to him being constantly behind his work. Regardless Haňtá is a diligent & hardworker. Despite working late, coming in early and even working on his days off, Haňtá never seems to be able to keep up with the demand. However he continues to somewhat enjoy his mouse infested work despite all the short comings. It's all he's ever known to do. The mice that frequent his work area are constantly destroyed in the compactor and he doesn't take satisfaction in this as much as it's just part of the job. It doesn't help that on occasion he'll have one stowaway in his clothing to pop out when he's paying for drinks at the pub to the dismay of the barmaid. Haňtá collects many of the books that would otherwise be discarded at his home. He's amassed quite the collection. So much that much of his home is over run with books to the point that there isn't much space left for him to move around without the risk of causing an avalanche. Avalanches could occur anywhere, from his bathroom where he barely has enough space to properly use the toilet to his bedroom that has just enough space for him to sleep, given he not move too much or suddenly. He keeps them in the hopes that when he retires he'll create compacted art bale collections of them & sell them to collectors. Except to foreigners though, at least not for cheap. He loves the books and they appear to be a primary source of his joy. He savors the words, lines and bindings of each of them as one would candy or other delights. Throughout his life in this line of work, he'll occasionally reflect on his life & the relationships he's had. Unfortunately many times, this causes him much dismay due to them never working out for reasons beyond him.One lover has the unfortunate experience of her hair ribbons being covered in feces when they used the restroom & ends up flinging it everywhere as they dance, (this I found both incredibly embarrassing & hilarious). While another lover is sadly is taken by the Gestapo during WW1(?) and is never seen again. Thus he gives himself to his work wholly, completely and does it despite its pains & challenges. Eventually he hears of a new machine that performs his duties at a greater rate than he ever could and decides to go visit it to see what it's about. He is shocked at how efficient it is and how the workers blindly perform their duties without even as so much reviewing or trying to save the precious books from the machine. To them, it's all in a days work. He doesn't appreciate the manner in which they work, with gloved hands and drinking milk & soda whilst performing their duty. All this brings him to the bitter reality of progress and how he'll soon be replaced & eventually is not by the machine itself but two younger workers from the Socialist Workers Union. In the end, distraught by being replaced and the realization that the wondrous, fascinating books will not be appreciated or saved from the compactor, he chooses to end his life. Haňtá does so by entering the compactor that he has used & come to know for most his life. To be crushed as the mice, waste paper & books that have entered it for all the years he's worked at it... "I've learned that the heavens are not humane, neither the heavens nor any man with a head on his shoulders- it's not that men don't wish to be humane, it just goes against common sense." - Haňtá