Rainy weather is conducive to reading too, and I finished A Tree Grows in Brooklyn today. I agree, it is a must-read novel and deserves a place close to the top of my "second fifty" list.
I feel a little odd admitting that I most enjoyed the novel's portrayal of poverty. The Nolans live very poorly but find simple happiness in things like a clean shirt, a cup of coffee, or a library book. The imagery is vivid.
So, on to the next book, and I have to go back to The List. Help me decide what to read next. I have three books on the list in the house now. In no particular order:
Lolita
Catcher in the Rye
The Moviegoer
My thoughts: a) I've avoided Lolita for about a decade and a half now and should probably dive in; b) I've read Catcher in the Rye before, but after A Tree, I would welcome another coming-of-age novel; c) The Moviegoer is very short, and otherwise I know nothing of it.
Saturday, February 19, 2011
Sunday, February 13, 2011
Outdoor reading
Hard to believe it's February!
Thursday, February 10, 2011
Procrastination
I can't motivate to read. Even though I love the current book, even though I have time. I constantly wonder why it's so hard to just sit down and open a book. I have plenty of excuses. I tell myself it'll make me tired and I'll just end up falling asleep. I tell myself I won't have enough time to read an entire chapter (and it really irks me to stop mid chapter). Or I want to work on my knitting instead. And the perennial excuse, it is so much easier to just turn on the TV or waste time on the Internet. I don't even have my cable hooked up, and I still manage to watch hours on end of Farscape and Doctor Who... instead of reading.
And I spent 15 minutes just now reading about procrastination on the web.
I'm about a quarter of the way through A Tree Grows in Brooklyn by Betty Smith, which is the first friend recommendation I added to the list (thanks JMZ). I love the characters and their voices. The family's poverty communicates essential truths about the complexities of life. The images are so rich - the meat on their table; the clothes on the dapper father; the Williamsburg street life.
I hear that many people read this book in their younger years, and I do recommend picking it up again - or if you're like me, trying it for the first time.
That is, if you can get over your own procrastination traps.
And I spent 15 minutes just now reading about procrastination on the web.
I'm about a quarter of the way through A Tree Grows in Brooklyn by Betty Smith, which is the first friend recommendation I added to the list (thanks JMZ). I love the characters and their voices. The family's poverty communicates essential truths about the complexities of life. The images are so rich - the meat on their table; the clothes on the dapper father; the Williamsburg street life.
I hear that many people read this book in their younger years, and I do recommend picking it up again - or if you're like me, trying it for the first time.
That is, if you can get over your own procrastination traps.
Sunday, January 23, 2011
Woolfed-out
I just finished Mrs. Dalloway this past week, and it was a doozy. I am Virginia-Woolfed-out, for the time being (To the Lighthouse is on the list, and I will read it eventually).
Here's what I didn't like about her -- a) the stream-of-consciousness style; b) most of the characters, particularly Septimus; c) how the book managed to sprout 10 new pages for every 10 I read. Remember that feeling you got in high school, reading Watership Down or something similar, and the book just would never end? Well, that's what Mrs. Dalloway did to me.
I've never liked stream-of-consciousness, whether it be Joyce's writing in Ulysees or Kerouac with On the Road (the former is banished from the list because I refuse to read it again; the latter is on the list, and I hope to like it this time). But what bothered me most about Woolf was that her stream-of-consciousness didn't feel genuine. I was not convinced that she understands what a World War I veteran (Septimus) would think on the day he kills himself. I've read too much WWI poetry and current war writings, and this just didn't feel authentic to me. So it irritated me.
I think there's brilliance in the way Woolf constructs the plot and weaves the characters together. I can tell why this is on anyone's "best of" list - though on my "best of," it will sit at last place until I read something that irritates me even more.
Some of you suggested I keep my own tally, as I read through the list. So far, that makes:
1) The Sun Also Rises
50) Mrs. Dalloway
I look forward to filling in the rest.
PS. This month, I also listened to Water for Elephants on CD, which I would recommend to anyone looking for a page-turner. The CD version was particularly well read.
Here's what I didn't like about her -- a) the stream-of-consciousness style; b) most of the characters, particularly Septimus; c) how the book managed to sprout 10 new pages for every 10 I read. Remember that feeling you got in high school, reading Watership Down or something similar, and the book just would never end? Well, that's what Mrs. Dalloway did to me.
I've never liked stream-of-consciousness, whether it be Joyce's writing in Ulysees or Kerouac with On the Road (the former is banished from the list because I refuse to read it again; the latter is on the list, and I hope to like it this time). But what bothered me most about Woolf was that her stream-of-consciousness didn't feel genuine. I was not convinced that she understands what a World War I veteran (Septimus) would think on the day he kills himself. I've read too much WWI poetry and current war writings, and this just didn't feel authentic to me. So it irritated me.
I think there's brilliance in the way Woolf constructs the plot and weaves the characters together. I can tell why this is on anyone's "best of" list - though on my "best of," it will sit at last place until I read something that irritates me even more.
Some of you suggested I keep my own tally, as I read through the list. So far, that makes:
1) The Sun Also Rises
50) Mrs. Dalloway
I look forward to filling in the rest.
PS. This month, I also listened to Water for Elephants on CD, which I would recommend to anyone looking for a page-turner. The CD version was particularly well read.
Monday, January 3, 2011
Really want to give Virginia Woolf some love...
I'm honestly sad that I don't like Mrs. Dalloway. I always wanted to like Virginia Woolf, but nothing she's written has ever appealed to me. It's also disappointing because she's one of the few female authors on my list. And I am vaguely annoyed that she appears twice on the list, so even when this book is through, I'm stuck with the other one. So in some ways, Virginia Woolf is setting a new precedent for the project: I will finish each book even if I dislike it immensely.
I have to admit, too, that I did not read anything off the list during the bulk of my vacation. I brought Mrs. Dalloway and The Moviegoer (thanks to Johanna for lending them), but I couldn't push myself to do it. I did, however, manage to watch the Doctor Who Christmas Special, twice; muscle through almost all of Torchwood; listen to Dashiell Hammett's The Maltese Falcon & The Fifth Horseman by James Patterson.
Oh, and I finally saw Serenity and liked it, even though I can't get into Firefly. But tomorrow it's back to work, so too, back to the project!
I have to admit, too, that I did not read anything off the list during the bulk of my vacation. I brought Mrs. Dalloway and The Moviegoer (thanks to Johanna for lending them), but I couldn't push myself to do it. I did, however, manage to watch the Doctor Who Christmas Special, twice; muscle through almost all of Torchwood; listen to Dashiell Hammett's The Maltese Falcon & The Fifth Horseman by James Patterson.
Oh, and I finally saw Serenity and liked it, even though I can't get into Firefly. But tomorrow it's back to work, so too, back to the project!
Thursday, December 23, 2010
Tight
New idiom from The Sun Also Rises: "tight," as in "I can't just stay tight all the time," says the irresistible Lady Ashley or "Brett." It means drunk, which is what Brett, Jake and the other "chaps" in this book are just about all the time. Beware: I may try to reintroduce the word "tight," and it's unlikely to make sense most anywhere, especially considering that tight means something completely different idiomatically now.
My initial impression from this book was that Hemingway dislikes women or generally thinks they're up to no good. It reminds me a lot of the same tone Fitzgerald takes with Daisy in The Great Gatsby (which shouldn't be surprising, since Fitzgerald apparently edited Hemingway). There is one dynamic female character, she is adored by all and screws up everything. I don't hate Brett as a character though, and I don't dislike Hemingway for his portrayal of her, so in general she is tolerable to read.
The characters' anti-semitism is more difficult to read. I am not quite through the book, but I am still unclear why it was necessary for Hemingway to make his most unlikable character, the most abused by his friends, also a Jew. Given more time and resources, I'd look into the theme. Though, I'm about to write about how Hemingway seems to describe things simply for the sake of... describing them. And perhaps that's what he's doing with the anti-semitic remarks, too - perhaps he is describing racism as plain as day, as he saw it in society.
This book's greatness is in the richness of description. The imagery is so vivid; I would love to take the book and travel to Spain on the very same path. The characters go fishing for trout in a lusciously hot part of the country, dipping into the stream water to cool off and sober up. There are lengthy descriptions of bullfighting, sometimes hard to read. Perhaps I have been so carried away reading such ridiculous and delicious things like the Twilight Saga or the Harry Potter series, but I forgot how some authors write rich description just for the sake of ... describing things richly. It is rare (maybe unlikely altogether) to read that from a contemporary or popular author like Stephanie Meyer or JK Rowling. For example, nothing in a Harry Potter book gets described by accident; all of it is somehow weaved into the plot. That's not the case with Hemingway. He describes people and places just for the sake of pure poetic imagery.
Again, not quite done with The Sun Also Rises, but in all, I've enjoyed it. It's been an easy read, and I think it will stick with me much the same as The Great Gatsby. At some point, when I've read more of the books on this list, I'll stick this Hemingway in a list of my own rankings... and we'll see how it stacks up.
Next, I read Rushdie's Midnight's Children.
My initial impression from this book was that Hemingway dislikes women or generally thinks they're up to no good. It reminds me a lot of the same tone Fitzgerald takes with Daisy in The Great Gatsby (which shouldn't be surprising, since Fitzgerald apparently edited Hemingway). There is one dynamic female character, she is adored by all and screws up everything. I don't hate Brett as a character though, and I don't dislike Hemingway for his portrayal of her, so in general she is tolerable to read.
The characters' anti-semitism is more difficult to read. I am not quite through the book, but I am still unclear why it was necessary for Hemingway to make his most unlikable character, the most abused by his friends, also a Jew. Given more time and resources, I'd look into the theme. Though, I'm about to write about how Hemingway seems to describe things simply for the sake of... describing them. And perhaps that's what he's doing with the anti-semitic remarks, too - perhaps he is describing racism as plain as day, as he saw it in society.
This book's greatness is in the richness of description. The imagery is so vivid; I would love to take the book and travel to Spain on the very same path. The characters go fishing for trout in a lusciously hot part of the country, dipping into the stream water to cool off and sober up. There are lengthy descriptions of bullfighting, sometimes hard to read. Perhaps I have been so carried away reading such ridiculous and delicious things like the Twilight Saga or the Harry Potter series, but I forgot how some authors write rich description just for the sake of ... describing things richly. It is rare (maybe unlikely altogether) to read that from a contemporary or popular author like Stephanie Meyer or JK Rowling. For example, nothing in a Harry Potter book gets described by accident; all of it is somehow weaved into the plot. That's not the case with Hemingway. He describes people and places just for the sake of pure poetic imagery.
Again, not quite done with The Sun Also Rises, but in all, I've enjoyed it. It's been an easy read, and I think it will stick with me much the same as The Great Gatsby. At some point, when I've read more of the books on this list, I'll stick this Hemingway in a list of my own rankings... and we'll see how it stacks up.
Next, I read Rushdie's Midnight's Children.
Sunday, December 19, 2010
My Very Own Keen Reading List
I took the TIME 100, the Modern Library and The Guardian's 100, cross-referenced them in Excel and made my own list (as some of you suggested). Miraculously, it resulted in 50 books. All either appear on two or all three of the lists.
The books that appear on all three lists are: Orwell's 1984; Ellison's The Invisible Man; Midnight's Children by Salman Rushdie,Virginia Woolf's To the Lighthouse; Nabokov, Lolita; and The Sound and the Fury by Faulkner.
I sadly admit that out of these six, I have only read one, and out of the 50, I've read seven. And all of those readings happened more than 10 years ago, with the exception of The Great Gatsby, which I read last year (for the first time, if you can believe it!).
I also want to note that Joyce's Ulysses appears on two of the lists, but I've read it once, and once is more than enough. Nor will I acknowledge its place on this list. This is, after all, my list now -- and I say Ulysses doesn't get to be on it.
As for the other 50 books, I really liked Molly's suggestion of taking recommendations from friends about a book that changed their lives. Fair warning: I will probably nix anything I've already read for the latter 50. For example, I know someone will say Pride and Prejudice is a must-read, for example. It is one of my favorite books of all time, but I have read it too many times already.
One more fairly significant thing: I want to read all or most of these by borrowing from the library. I already learned the O'Hara novel isn't even in the Garfield County Library System, which sort of shocks me. The county can order it from Denver, but I am going to talk to the librarian and see if I can purchase & donate whatever books are missing.
This week, I'll write about my love of old library books, also about The Sun Also Rises, which I'm halfway through already.
| A Clockwork Orange | Anthony Burgess |
| A Dance to the Music of Time | Anthony Powell |
| The Heart is A Lonely Hunter | Carson McCullers |
| Things Fall Apart | Chinua Achebe |
| Sons and Lovers | DH Lawrence |
| The Golden Notebook | Doris Lessing |
| Ragtime | E.L. Doctorow |
| A Passage to India | E.M. Forster |
| The Sun Also Rises | Ernest Hemingway |
| Brideshead Revisited | Evelyn Waugh |
| A Handful of Dust | Evelyn Waugh |
| The Great Gatsby | F. Scott Fitzgerald |
| Animal Farm | George Orwell |
| 1984 | George Orwell |
| The Heart of the Matter | Graham Greene |
| Loving | Henry Green |
| Tropic of Cancer | Henry Miller |
| Under the Net | Iris Murdoch |
| The Catcher in the Rye | J.D. Salinger |
| On the Road | Jack Kerouac |
| Go Tell it on the Mountain | James Baldwin |
| Deliverance | James Dickey |
| Wide Sargasso Sea | Jean Rhys |
| Appointment in Samarra | John O'Hara |
| The Grapes of Wrath | John Steinbeck |
| Nostromo | Joseph Conrad |
| Catch-22 | Joseph Heller |
| Slaughterhouse Five | Kurt Vonnegut |
| Under the Volcano | Malcolm Lowry |
| The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie | Muriel Spark |
| The Day of the Locust | Nathanael West |
| The Sheltering Sky | Paul Bowles |
| Invisible Man | Ralph Ellison |
| Native Son | Richard Wright |
| I, Claudius | Robert Graves |
| All the King's Men | Robert Penn Warren |
| Midnight's Children | Salman Rushdie |
| The Adventures of Augie March | Saul Bellow |
| An American Tragedy | Theodore Dreiser |
| The Bridge of San Luis Rey | Thornton Wilder |
| Beloved | Toni Morrison |
| A House for Mr. Biswas | V.S. Naipaul |
| To the Lighthouse | Virginia Woolf |
| Mrs. Dalloway | Virginia Woolf |
| Lolita | Vladimir Nabokov |
| Pale Fire | Vladimir Nabokov |
| The Moviegoer | Walker Percy |
| Death Comes for the Archbishop | Willa Cather |
| The Sound and the Fury | William Faulkner |
| Lord of the Flies | William Golding |
The books that appear on all three lists are: Orwell's 1984; Ellison's The Invisible Man; Midnight's Children by Salman Rushdie,Virginia Woolf's To the Lighthouse; Nabokov, Lolita; and The Sound and the Fury by Faulkner.
I sadly admit that out of these six, I have only read one, and out of the 50, I've read seven. And all of those readings happened more than 10 years ago, with the exception of The Great Gatsby, which I read last year (for the first time, if you can believe it!).
I also want to note that Joyce's Ulysses appears on two of the lists, but I've read it once, and once is more than enough. Nor will I acknowledge its place on this list. This is, after all, my list now -- and I say Ulysses doesn't get to be on it.
As for the other 50 books, I really liked Molly's suggestion of taking recommendations from friends about a book that changed their lives. Fair warning: I will probably nix anything I've already read for the latter 50. For example, I know someone will say Pride and Prejudice is a must-read, for example. It is one of my favorite books of all time, but I have read it too many times already.
One more fairly significant thing: I want to read all or most of these by borrowing from the library. I already learned the O'Hara novel isn't even in the Garfield County Library System, which sort of shocks me. The county can order it from Denver, but I am going to talk to the librarian and see if I can purchase & donate whatever books are missing.
This week, I'll write about my love of old library books, also about The Sun Also Rises, which I'm halfway through already.
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