Eat, Pray Love & The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Nighttime

Holiday greetings!  Merry Christmas etc....

I've finished 2 books since I last blogged, (and my space bar isn't working right) so this may be long, or it may be short and un-spaced.....

First: Eat Pray Love.  What a wonderful book!  I really enjoyed reading this, as I could identify with Ms. Gilbert's search for something more.  I found it enjoyable, and thought provoking.  I'm actually interested to see the movie now, although I don't think the movie could be as good as the book.  Anyway, definitely a good read, very recommendable.

The second book was The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Nighttime, by Mark Haddon. Again, a really GOOD book.  It was a really interesting experience to be put into the shoes of someone with autism/aspergers syndrome, and I thought that the subject of disabilities was treated respectfully and thoughtfully, as were the difficulties that other people experience when meeting or trying to help or interact with someone who struggles with these difficulties.  Again, highly recommended.  I'd love to hear comments!

                        I've got one more from the library to read - Good Bones, by Margaret Atwood, which is a collection of short stories, then I think I'll change eras, and go back in time for a while, as I was lent copies of Tess of D'Ubervilles and Jane Eyre.... see you in the future!  Happy reading!

The God of Small Things

I've finished the first of my books from my new winter reading project: The God of Small Things,  by Arundhati Roy.  It was an entirely different read than pretty much anything I've read recently.  To describe the book in one word, I would choose "bleak".  The whole story seems, to me, to be lacking in any (I'm pausing while I search for an appropriate word here) sense of "goodness".  The characters are all definitely "human" - using the term to mean petty, mean, and generally selfish - without any of them seeming to have any redeeming qualities.  Perhaps I've read too many romance and fantasy novels, where the characters, even the "bad guys" generally have at least some sort of redeeming quality, but I found this book astoundingly depressing!

All of that said, it was an interesting read, although at times a little confusing, as Ms. Roy moved back and forth between the "present" and the "past", and sometimes it was hard to tell when a given event was happening;  but this also kept me interested in the book.  You had to read the whole thing to see the whole picture she was painting.

I'm not sure if I would recommend this to read or not - it's not a comfortable book to read, but it was intruiging.

Now, on the the second book - I think I'll read "Eat, Pray, Love", by Elizabeth Gilbert.  I haven't seen the movie, so I would request no spoilers on the story line etc., but, as always, I would welcome anyone who wants to read along with me!  

A Change in Plans

Hi!  I've decided to change the project a little.  After reading through the "1001 Books You Must Read Before You Die", I was amazed and slightly appalled at how few of them I've actually read.  Now, I don't think I will EVER read all of them - some of them don't interest me in the slightest (The Shining, for example), but I am going to try to read many of them!  Therefore, I'm moving away from my original intent of reading my way through the non-fiction stacks to reading my way through some classic fiction.
The first book I've chosen (since I had it at home, unread until now) is "The God of Small Things".
I don't think I will get through these books quite as fast, as they aren't usually the kind of books one reads through quickly.  I really want to enjoy them and find out why they would be in a book like the one above.  (1001 Books....) Anyway, I'd love it if anyone wanted to read along, and kind of discuss the books with me!  Thanks for your understanding, and thanks for reading!

To Read or Not to Read

Hello!  I have just finished flipping through 1001 Books You Must Read Before you die, and I am absolutely astounded at how FEW of them I have read!  I mean, I read, on average, 2 - 3 books A WEEK, and I have only read about 20 of the books that they reccomend, at least in their entirety.  I have read excerpts or abridged versions of a few more, during English or Lit classes in high school.  There were a few that I read at my dad's urging in high school - mostly John Wyndham (The Triffids et. al).
I am almost tempted to shift my focus from the non-fiction stacks to read a few of the "classics"... or at least some of the 1001 books they reccomend!  I'm going to have to think about that.
I was sometimes amused, and sometimes shocked, at what made the list, and what didn't in this book!  Some are obvious choices, while others seem obscure to me, but I suspect that I have lived in the land of "brain candy" (thanks to my friend Tamara for the term!), otherwise known as the SF/Fantasy and Romance sections of the library for so long that I've somehow managed to avoid reading much of anything that is "classic".

What do you think?  If you were picking a book that should be on a list like this, what would you choose?  I think I'd add "The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe" and "Anne of Green Gables", but I will admit that those are two of my favorite books of all time, regardless of their literary merit.

As always, I'd love to see comments!