The novelist, Nick Hornsby (whom I love) writes a column for a British publication with this very title. He lists first the books he bought and then the books that he actually read. I shall attempt the same, imitation being the greatest form of flattery.
I have a pile of books that I received as Christmas gifts (leaving nothing to chance I gave my husband and daughter a lengthy wish list of book titles). In addition I listen to books on CD in my car and on my mp3 player when I iron or go for walks. Actually, I haven’t done any ironing or walking in recent weeks as I’ve been working my way through my book stack. All of these books had glowing reviews on Amazon.com, Barnes and Noble and Bookshelf.com. I was certain I would love them all.
My first category is: Started but Didn’t Finish
1. Running with Scissors by Augusten Burroughs
A memoir and runaway best seller, I expected humor, I will quote a reviewer from Publisher’s Weekly, “this book is both compulsively entertaining and tremendously provocative”. Oh really? This is a true story? Can any childhood be THIS dysfunctional? Can any family be THIS mentally unbalanced? Must a child’s first sexual encounter with an adult be described in THIS much detail? Surely not. I couldn’t finish it, I will not finish it, I chose not to finish it.
2. Middlesex by Jeffrey Eugenides
As soon as I read that this book is both a Pulitzer Prize winner and an Oprah Book Club selection I should have known I’d never finish it. Who am I kidding? I read until page 134, it took me weeks to get that far and that was only a little over 1/5 of the book. This is a novel about Greek immigrants, a brother and sister who married (each other) had children who married first cousins and apparently produced a hermaphrodite due to a mutated gene. Not all that unusual, apparently, when siblings mate. Why do I even start books like this and the fore mentioned “Running with Scissors”? I am at once repulsed and fascinated by the unspeakable subjects but never quite enough to finish what I start. What does that say about me? I have sick fascinations without the self discipline to finish what I begin. It’s hard to say which trait I am the most ashamed of.
Books I Have Actually Finished
1. About a Boy by Nick Hornsby
Now, this is more like it. The book is a fast, funny read. I saw the film so I kept hearing Hugh Grants voice as I read. I intend to read many more of Nick Hornsby’s novels; I could care less if he ever wins a Pulitzer Prize. Let’s hear it for humor and escapism. Loved it!
2.The Girl with the Dragon Tatoo by Stieg Larsson
This book was translated from the Swedish, wasn’t sure if that would work for me but I liked it. It was suspenseful and had one fascinating character, Lisbeth Salander; she made the book for me. On the downside, it the first in a trilogy so all my questions about Lisbeth went unanswered. I read 590 pages and didn’t learn much more about her than I knew in the first 100 pages. I felt cheated.
3. The Wife’s Tale by Lori Lansens
Confession time, I bought this book because it had a “plus-sized” heroine. I thought I would completely identify with her but no, not completely. My heart went out to her when she overheard the family doctor say she was obese when she was just a child. She thought he said she had an “O-Beast”, she figured that was what was causing the gnawing hunger that she could never satisfy. I understood that, some times I think I have an “O-Beast” too. However, I was completely grossed out and I didn’t identify when she began eating dirt and earthworms the summer before her senior year in high school. She found that she could eat anything she wanted and still lose weight with constant diarrhea. She continued the practice until she met her future husband, the schools star athlete and got promptly pregnant and married.
On the plus side, an unfortunate choice of words I guess, the writing was good, the action moved swiftly but Mary Gooch was nothing short of pathetic. Still, I wish her well and would welcome a sequel. Mary and I had kind of a love-hate relationship.
4. The Forgotten Garden by Kate Morton
This was a mystery with the feel of a fairy tale. My very first favorite chapter book in life was “A Secret Garden” by Frances Hodgson Burnett, this is kind of a more grown up version of that. It starts with a tiny girl abandoned on a ship heading to Australia in 1913. She arrives completely alone with nothing but a small suitcase containing a few clothes and a single book, a beautiful volume of fairy tales. The Forgotten Garden is long, and it switches back in forth in time and place so when I put it down for a few days, I got a bit lost. It should be read at a time of leisure, during convalescence or maybe on a cruise or a beach vacation. It would go well in rehab and or prison libraries.
5. The Elegance of the Hedgehog by Muriel Barbery
This book was translated from the French and has won gobs of cultural prizes so you won’t be surprised to hear me say; I had a bit of a problem getting into it. However, I am admittedly a sucker for coming of age stories and it is that and more. There are actually two heroines in this book. Renée Michel is the dumpy, nondescript, 54-year-old concierge of a small and exclusive Paris apartment building. Paloma Josse, the other, is an introspective 12 year old who views the world as absurd and records these views in her journal. These two heroines have something in common, they are both inordinately intelligent and they both go to great lengths to hide that fact. It was a slow read for me but I think that’s as it should be, this book should be read slowly. A very surprising ending, left me feeling a bit off balance, also, perhaps, as it should be.
I have a pile of books that I received as Christmas gifts (leaving nothing to chance I gave my husband and daughter a lengthy wish list of book titles). In addition I listen to books on CD in my car and on my mp3 player when I iron or go for walks. Actually, I haven’t done any ironing or walking in recent weeks as I’ve been working my way through my book stack. All of these books had glowing reviews on Amazon.com, Barnes and Noble and Bookshelf.com. I was certain I would love them all.
My first category is: Started but Didn’t Finish
1. Running with Scissors by Augusten Burroughs
A memoir and runaway best seller, I expected humor, I will quote a reviewer from Publisher’s Weekly, “this book is both compulsively entertaining and tremendously provocative”. Oh really? This is a true story? Can any childhood be THIS dysfunctional? Can any family be THIS mentally unbalanced? Must a child’s first sexual encounter with an adult be described in THIS much detail? Surely not. I couldn’t finish it, I will not finish it, I chose not to finish it.
2. Middlesex by Jeffrey Eugenides
As soon as I read that this book is both a Pulitzer Prize winner and an Oprah Book Club selection I should have known I’d never finish it. Who am I kidding? I read until page 134, it took me weeks to get that far and that was only a little over 1/5 of the book. This is a novel about Greek immigrants, a brother and sister who married (each other) had children who married first cousins and apparently produced a hermaphrodite due to a mutated gene. Not all that unusual, apparently, when siblings mate. Why do I even start books like this and the fore mentioned “Running with Scissors”? I am at once repulsed and fascinated by the unspeakable subjects but never quite enough to finish what I start. What does that say about me? I have sick fascinations without the self discipline to finish what I begin. It’s hard to say which trait I am the most ashamed of.
Books I Have Actually Finished
1. About a Boy by Nick Hornsby
Now, this is more like it. The book is a fast, funny read. I saw the film so I kept hearing Hugh Grants voice as I read. I intend to read many more of Nick Hornsby’s novels; I could care less if he ever wins a Pulitzer Prize. Let’s hear it for humor and escapism. Loved it!
2.The Girl with the Dragon Tatoo by Stieg Larsson
This book was translated from the Swedish, wasn’t sure if that would work for me but I liked it. It was suspenseful and had one fascinating character, Lisbeth Salander; she made the book for me. On the downside, it the first in a trilogy so all my questions about Lisbeth went unanswered. I read 590 pages and didn’t learn much more about her than I knew in the first 100 pages. I felt cheated.
3. The Wife’s Tale by Lori Lansens
Confession time, I bought this book because it had a “plus-sized” heroine. I thought I would completely identify with her but no, not completely. My heart went out to her when she overheard the family doctor say she was obese when she was just a child. She thought he said she had an “O-Beast”, she figured that was what was causing the gnawing hunger that she could never satisfy. I understood that, some times I think I have an “O-Beast” too. However, I was completely grossed out and I didn’t identify when she began eating dirt and earthworms the summer before her senior year in high school. She found that she could eat anything she wanted and still lose weight with constant diarrhea. She continued the practice until she met her future husband, the schools star athlete and got promptly pregnant and married.
On the plus side, an unfortunate choice of words I guess, the writing was good, the action moved swiftly but Mary Gooch was nothing short of pathetic. Still, I wish her well and would welcome a sequel. Mary and I had kind of a love-hate relationship.
4. The Forgotten Garden by Kate Morton
This was a mystery with the feel of a fairy tale. My very first favorite chapter book in life was “A Secret Garden” by Frances Hodgson Burnett, this is kind of a more grown up version of that. It starts with a tiny girl abandoned on a ship heading to Australia in 1913. She arrives completely alone with nothing but a small suitcase containing a few clothes and a single book, a beautiful volume of fairy tales. The Forgotten Garden is long, and it switches back in forth in time and place so when I put it down for a few days, I got a bit lost. It should be read at a time of leisure, during convalescence or maybe on a cruise or a beach vacation. It would go well in rehab and or prison libraries.
5. The Elegance of the Hedgehog by Muriel Barbery
This book was translated from the French and has won gobs of cultural prizes so you won’t be surprised to hear me say; I had a bit of a problem getting into it. However, I am admittedly a sucker for coming of age stories and it is that and more. There are actually two heroines in this book. Renée Michel is the dumpy, nondescript, 54-year-old concierge of a small and exclusive Paris apartment building. Paloma Josse, the other, is an introspective 12 year old who views the world as absurd and records these views in her journal. These two heroines have something in common, they are both inordinately intelligent and they both go to great lengths to hide that fact. It was a slow read for me but I think that’s as it should be, this book should be read slowly. A very surprising ending, left me feeling a bit off balance, also, perhaps, as it should be.
Thanks for the reviews...someday I may take a spin with on of them but right now I cannot seem to find just leisure reading time. When I pick up a book just to read I fall asleep. I like the way you dissect the books into "just Connie" and analyze them from your view point. I am always amused at the raves and good book reviews when most of it is just to sell the book. It's like the blogging world...you scratch mine and I'll scratch yours. Nice reviews, I enjoyed reading them.
ReplyDeleteConnie, this is a great idea. Your reviews are witty and fun to read. Since you are such an avid reader and an adventurous one at that, posting your reviews could be a great way for you to build an audience. Be sure to tag your posts as book review. You should also tag with the title of the book if you do one at a time. In the world of google this will better optimize you. You might even consider creating your own blog for your columns. You need a wider audience. We can chat about this. Good work.
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