I’ve read some great books by Derrida, but the latest of his seminars, The Death Penalty, Volume I, is right up there with them.

He is such a wonderful reader of texts. There is so much care, attention to detail, context and political import here. Some of the juxtapositions are really startling. I don’t intend to write about it – I’ve barely written on Derrida at all – but it is so inspiring. Yesterday was a day of travelling, from Vancouver to Halifax, but this book has made it a worthwhile day. There are many more of these seminars (really lecture courses) to come, as Derrida preserved his notes carefully over several decades, though they are coming out quite slowly.