It's All in the Blood

Being a college student, it makes it hard to keep up with reading. I do make it a point to read as often as I can though because I feel like a more rounded person when I do so. In previous posts, I reviewed some books that were sporadic across the Guardian's 1,000 best books of all time. Instead of rooting through all the topics, I'm starting from the top.

The first book on the list was Lucky Jim by Kinsley Amis. I liked the old nostalgia of the book, and there were some parts that made me laugh out loud. The personality if Jim (the lead) is pretty right-on in terms of how men think. I liked it, it has some political undertones about college and the different classes that it is composed of. I liked Jim because he was risky, flighty and pretty oblivious to everything going on around him. It was a bit hard to relate to as a woman, although I could see a lot of guys out there rooting for Jim as he burns bedsheets with cigarettes after blacking out and the ensuing scene where he has a rough time determining how to fix the problem (the bedsheets weren't on HIS bed) from the text, they sounded rather expensive.

The second book on the list was Money by Martin Amis. There is a lot to be said of this book. Genetically speaking, Martin is the above-mentioned author's son. Writing must run in the family. You can't put both works side-by-side and notice that it's a father-son relationship. They write like their from two different planets. Martin Amis is a dirty, but brilliant author. He gets down to the nasties and I felt like such a sinner reading this book. I wouldn't recommend it for light reading. Although entertaining, it's depressing. If you get into the book enough, it can bring you down. Is this book an accurate portrayal of the British entertainment industry? I hope not. One thing I will say about Martin's writing: It's really brilliantly witty. Can I say brilliantly witty> Yes, I can. He even brings himself, played as himself into the novel. I didn't like the storyline, it was too...... greasy. I like his writing, though because it's very blunt. I'll be looking forward to reading The Information by Martin Amis, which is next on my list.

-Coming up in new blogs: Flaubert's Parrot and The History of the World in 10 1/2 Chapter by Julian Barnes & The Information by Martin Amis.

Lagging

I haven't been staying on top of my blog, but I have been staying on top of my reading. Although the reading process of going through the Guardians list is a grueling one and some of the books....I wish didn't exist, it's been an adventure. I'm able to scratch several books off the reading list.

The Three Musketeers was a beautifully written and exciting book and why all the movies can't just stick to the book is beyond me. Nothing bothers me like a drawn-out, money-burning BOOK BOTCHING. To squeeze all the glory out of this book, you have to really pay attention. There is no skipping. Alexander Dumas adds little bits of humor in some pretty interesting scenarios, but it makes the reading fun and unpredictable.

Postmortem by Patricia Cornwell is good, but there are a couple of her books in the Kay Scarpetta series that are much more intriguing. If you like CSI, then you'll like her books. They definitely take a more left-wing view in terms of topics. So, conservative readers (like myself) should be prepared to be open-minded. If you want to get a taste of Patricia Cornwell, I would recommend Cruel and Unusual.

Catcher In the Rye describes an ADD personality type. I didn't learn much of anything. What did cross my mind during the book was....'this type of thinking sounds just like my husband...'. Too much hype for such a bore of a story.

The Hitchhiker's Guide To The Galaxy makes me laugh only because of it's stupidity. I learned nothing from the story. It wasn't enjoyabe. It made no sense. I felt like my brain had gone into another galaxy...a galaxy where I didn't have to think at all. It was so bad that if I had heard it in the radio back in 1978, I probably would have flipped the station. Sorry, Douglas Adams. Even underground junkies are over this book. It may have been good for it's time, but it's not even classic anymore.

With that being said, I can move from my negative points of view to Cry, the Beloved Country where I am able to learn more about Apartheid from a simple storyline than I could from a well-written historical document. Getting into the minds of the people who had to experience it was much more interesting to read than just the plain facts. It was beautifully written and had my brain working full speed.

-Coming up on the list
The Little World of Don Camillo
& A Portrait of the Artist As A Young Man

3-In-1

I went ahead this past week and fell forwards instead of backwards in my reading. I finished The King Of Torts by John Grisham, Their Eyes Were Watching God by Zora Neale Hurston and The Time Machine by H.G. Wells.

I have a favorite. Simple reading, just like Lonesome Dove, always gets me. Being able to retain information from a book because it kept me interested is something that people search for in a book. John Grisham is a master at what he does. I'm not just saying it because all the critics do... I'm saying it because it's the gosh darn truth. This book was especially interesting to me because I had never heard of mass tort law, nor had I understood it until after I finished the text. It was almost as if I became a lawyer overnight with all the information I retained about "getting rich quick" through sleezy lawsuits in big corporations. I loved it. I ate it up like I've been starving for a good book my whole life.

Their Eyes Were Watching God was also good, but in quite a different way. As a person who viewed the TV special movie before reading the book, it was a spoiler. There's one thing that the book by Zora can do for us that the movie couldn't. It was able to grasp the characters in a way that made me feel sympathetic for them. It also brought in natural elements and analogies (especially leaves and trees) that otherwise couldn't be enjoyed on film.

Conclusively, I would never say that H.G. Wells was lacking in talent, but I just can't get into sci-fi novels. It makes me feel "funny". The whole bringing back the monster-in-the-closet doesn't do me any good. I need my sleep. Morlocks and Enui, as genius as they were and as innovative at the time.....just can't compare to the psychotic ACID TRIPS some of our modern-day sci-fiers emerge with. Your going to see me put these disasters last on my list....(sci-fi I mean).

Check out next weeks blog. I'm taking on THE THREE MUSKETEERS by Alexander Dumas. It's a big one, but I might throw in a James Joyce novel as well: A Portrait Of The Artist As A Young Man.--Enjoy!!

One Hundred Years Of Solitude

I have come across this title several times when perusing through bookstores but was never really intrigued enough to pick it up. Although it was an interesting circle of family lineage, it was sometimes very confusing. At one point, the name sequences had me so baffled and intertwined beyond superficial understanding, I had to start writing out the characters and what part they played in the story.

I think that the real impact this book had in literature was its' mix of realism and fantasy. Some parts of the story had to be read and then re-read since there were so many fantastical parts that kept you wondering if you had "read that part correctly"; where a seemingly realistic scenario (suddenly and without any warning) turns into a sci-fi episode of the Twilight Zone.

The book has several characters, with several dimensions and a lock-down accountability as far as their lineage was concerned. Some of my favorites included Remedios the Beauty, Ursula, Melquiades & Jose Arcadio. There were complex characters such as Fernanda and the Aurelianos' of the story.

Some may be surprised at the incest and the violence but if you can handle it then it really is an interesting read. If you sometimes get confused, continue reading (some portions are told at a later time in the story).


*** Current Selections for those in discussion:
- The King Of Torts- John Grisham
-Their Eyes Were Watching God- Zora Neale Hurston

The Ending

I never thought that picking Lonesome Dove as my first book off this list was going to be such a big deal. This really may have been one of the best reads of my life. It's ridiculous length seemed short and the story that was told truly melted my heart, made me weep, laugh and get mad. It invoked thought and actually turns out to have some meaning. Through all the characters that passed away and all the love you had for them, there was still a tremendous lesson to be learned. Though some readers may not take the time to look into the text, I was interested to find out what the motto in Latin meant that Gus put at the bottom of the Hat Creek's sign. After some pretty superficial research I found that it meant (more or less) that each man finds his happiness in his own way. Gus wanted to be buried underneath his and Clara's tree, Call wanted to fulfill his promise to his lifelong friend, Dish wanted to stay with Lorena, Xavier didn't want to live without her......and so on and so forth. It's true in our lives as well. We follow what's important to us...which brings me to the next book on the list. One Hundred Years Of Solitude. I am starting the first 100 pages tonight so stay tuned for some conversation points in the near future. Happy Thanksgiving and happy reading!!!

The First 200

Uva uvam vivendo varia fit

It sure will be nice to know what that means in Latin as the book progresses. I am really happy with the book so far. It makes sense, which is more than I can say for some books. I'm actually picking up a few interesting tidbits like the fact that "fatback" is Western terminology for our "bacon".

McMurtry is a master at character building. Not just dimensions of the character but literally adding on to the group of characters that you are just starting to get used to. It seemed like as soon as I started getting to know Jake, Lorie, Call, Dish, Pea,Deets and Gus, I would get a storm of new characters like the O'Brien brothers, Pedro (who we don't even get to see because he dies before we know him well enough), and a slew of women that are somehow tied to all these love-hungry men. The book itself is becoming so scandalous it sometimes reminds me of a soap opera, but in a more manly-dramatic way. YES, men are much more drama oriented than women, the book proves this. The fact that it was written by a man speaks for itself.

The biggest surprise so far is the amount of humor that is in the book. The men are always short with each other and sometimes Gus blerbs out sentences that are so off-center to the topic it just makes you giggle. Pieces of a quilt that Deets wears for pants was enough to have me laughing out loud in the middle of the night while my children were sleeping.

If you want to follow along or just take a peek at some of the books on the list, go to http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2009/jan/23/bestbooks-fiction

If you would like to read along with me, you can pick up the next book A Thousand Years Of solitude by Gabriel Garcia Marquez.

Lonesome Dove-Larry McMurtry

Goal: 10 Day Read (994 pages)

Bolivar stirred his sugary coffee and held his peace. He whacked the dinner bell because he liked the sound, not because he wanted anybody to come and eat. The men could eat when they liked-- he would whack the bell when he liked.

I get relatively excited when I find a book that goes above my expectations. Usually seeing a movie to a book would turn one off to actually going out and buying it. Lonesome Dove by Larry McMurtry really is am interesting book for me to start with. So far it's quite descriptive and the characters are well-rounded. I've only gotten to chapter 5 today and I am already starting to be impartial to characters like Call and Augustus. I'm also curious to find out more about people like Lorie and Bolivar (who seems really vulgar to me). To be quite honest I get a better picture of the book as a whole because I don't actually REMEMBER seeing the book on TV, so I get to start from scratch. Plus, I already had the book in my inventory, so I didn't have to buy it. I'm excited to see where this book is going to take me. It seems like it's strictly a pleasure reading book. My hope is that it can tug at my heartstrings because I need something to cry about. The drama has been lacking in my private life.