I haven't gotten very far yet this year, but I got off to a slow start last year, so I don't think the goal is in jeopardy yet. In fact, even though I have only finished 2 books so far this year, I think I will end January with more than the 4 I had last January, so I should be a bit ahead. I have about three books going now, and I have been reading a lot faster in the past week or so than I did in the first week or so.
I find it interesting that my reading seems to be changing now that I am keeping track. I have been consciously searching out some more good science fiction since I started the list, so I am not surprised to see that I am reading more of that. But, some of my more guilty pleasures (J.D. Robb books, Janet Evanovich's Stephanie Plum series) have fallen off. I don't think it is because I don't want to write them on the list--I don't really care if anyone approves of my choices. I think I have just found it easier to get good suggestions for books I want to read more than that kind of brain candy. I have a long list of higher quality books fighting for a spot on my tbr list, so this kind of thing gets pushed down to the bottom. Maybe this is cyclical, too, though, and I will get back to them in a few months or so.
I am so loving this long term list of books I am reading. I am totally geeking out on the thought of more data to analyze as time goes on. There is no hope for me.
1. The Blind Assassin by Margaret Atwood
Good but not great. Sad. A bit overwrought in the middle, but enjoyable. Not Atwood's best.
2. Death in Holy Orders by P.D. James
Great. Good development of recurring characters, without taking a lot of time away from the main focus of the book--the mystery. The story was compelling, although it was a bit odd how sympathetic everyone was to the pedophile priest. I thought it was odd that they equated the murder victim's dislike of the pedophilia (although it may have been more accurately pederasty, which involves post-pubescent children, which, while still being totally wrong, is not quite as repellent) with prejudice against gay people. Being gay and molesting children are two entirely different things, regardless of the gender of the children abused. But, the rest of the story was very interesting, and the conclusion was satisfying.
Thursday, January 17, 2008
Tuesday, January 08, 2008
I got new bookshelves this weekend!
And, they are gorgeous. I'd put a link here, but Costco doesn't seem to have them on their website, which is a shame. So, I will have to make do with describing them, at least until I unpack enough boxes to come across the software and cords to download pictures from my digital camera.
The shelves are double wide, about 48 inches, and made out of dark wood. There are six shelves on each side of the middle divider, with the top two shelves having glass inserts. There are lights in the top molding that shine down through the glass, and there is a touch pad to turn the lights on and off. It's a lot of shelf space, and I am sure I am FINALLY going to be able to get all of my books on shelves, rather that stacked on top or or in front of other books. For a while at least.
The most fun part of all of this is that I finally get to organize all of my books. When I first moved into this apartment and got my new shelves up, I wanted to get everything in some sort of order, grouped by genre and author. But I was moving and I was in a hurry to reuse the boxes in which I had carried the books to the new place, so I just grabbed books and put them on shelves. It has bothered me that my books were all jumbled ever since, but I was putting off rearranging, in the hopes that I could channel that organizing energy toward unpacking the mound of boxes and making our home look presentable. Now that I have new shelves, though, I HAVE to move all the books around! After all, I do have to put some of the books on the new shelves. I suppose, in theory, I could have just grabbed all the books that were on top of or in front of other books and put them on the new shelves, but I could not restrain myself any longer. My books were crying out for some order, and I could not ignore them.
This is so much fun! I am putting non-fiction on my new shelves. I don't have enough non-fiction to fill them, but that is good, I have room to grow. I have been picking up big armfuls of books and moving them from room to room. Science fiction is going on the shelves next to the reading chair. Mysteries will be in the other set of shelves in the front room. I have two shelves in the family room that will be devoted to unread books. Or, maybe not. Maybe I will just put all unread books in their categories, but put them over to the right, or something like that. Actually, that sounds like a good idea, both because it will be more organized, and because I am afraid all of my unread books won't fit on two shelves. I think I will have to try it both ways, and see which one is better.
All of this empty space is great, too. My shelves were getting seriously crowded, and I was wondering where I would put new books. Not that I need to buy any, with all my unread books, but let's be realistic; I am going to buy new books. I bought 5 new books tonight*, and I haven't even finished my first book of the year yet. I love having the books around, and I will read at least some of them. Some day when I have more time to read, I will get through my whole tbr list, a thought which actually fills me with a bit of anxiety. Fortunately, I am kidding myself--there will always be more books to buy!
Oh, and I saw that the shelves that I bought at World Market are on sale! I don't actually need more shelves right now, but I do want to get another set of these eventually. This is such a good price, I think maybe I should go ahead and get them now, but I am not sure I want to. For one thing, I don't know if I have the energy to carry the shelves up to my third floor apartment. I can't carry the whole box up, even with a friend helping, so it means multiple trips up the stairs with pieces of the unit. Then, I have to put it together, which is not undoable, but it is time-consuming. And, I would need to clean some stuff out of my bedroom, where I want to put the shelves. That's not the end of the world, but it is one more thing to do. I like to do some relaxing on my weekends. Still, I am thinking about it. I need an excuse to buy more books. Don't I?
*Mandy, again, although I have to admit, the bookstore was my idea. She wanted to go clothes shopping, but I figured the bookstore was less likely to make me feel fat.
The shelves are double wide, about 48 inches, and made out of dark wood. There are six shelves on each side of the middle divider, with the top two shelves having glass inserts. There are lights in the top molding that shine down through the glass, and there is a touch pad to turn the lights on and off. It's a lot of shelf space, and I am sure I am FINALLY going to be able to get all of my books on shelves, rather that stacked on top or or in front of other books. For a while at least.
The most fun part of all of this is that I finally get to organize all of my books. When I first moved into this apartment and got my new shelves up, I wanted to get everything in some sort of order, grouped by genre and author. But I was moving and I was in a hurry to reuse the boxes in which I had carried the books to the new place, so I just grabbed books and put them on shelves. It has bothered me that my books were all jumbled ever since, but I was putting off rearranging, in the hopes that I could channel that organizing energy toward unpacking the mound of boxes and making our home look presentable. Now that I have new shelves, though, I HAVE to move all the books around! After all, I do have to put some of the books on the new shelves. I suppose, in theory, I could have just grabbed all the books that were on top of or in front of other books and put them on the new shelves, but I could not restrain myself any longer. My books were crying out for some order, and I could not ignore them.
This is so much fun! I am putting non-fiction on my new shelves. I don't have enough non-fiction to fill them, but that is good, I have room to grow. I have been picking up big armfuls of books and moving them from room to room. Science fiction is going on the shelves next to the reading chair. Mysteries will be in the other set of shelves in the front room. I have two shelves in the family room that will be devoted to unread books. Or, maybe not. Maybe I will just put all unread books in their categories, but put them over to the right, or something like that. Actually, that sounds like a good idea, both because it will be more organized, and because I am afraid all of my unread books won't fit on two shelves. I think I will have to try it both ways, and see which one is better.
All of this empty space is great, too. My shelves were getting seriously crowded, and I was wondering where I would put new books. Not that I need to buy any, with all my unread books, but let's be realistic; I am going to buy new books. I bought 5 new books tonight*, and I haven't even finished my first book of the year yet. I love having the books around, and I will read at least some of them. Some day when I have more time to read, I will get through my whole tbr list, a thought which actually fills me with a bit of anxiety. Fortunately, I am kidding myself--there will always be more books to buy!
Oh, and I saw that the shelves that I bought at World Market are on sale! I don't actually need more shelves right now, but I do want to get another set of these eventually. This is such a good price, I think maybe I should go ahead and get them now, but I am not sure I want to. For one thing, I don't know if I have the energy to carry the shelves up to my third floor apartment. I can't carry the whole box up, even with a friend helping, so it means multiple trips up the stairs with pieces of the unit. Then, I have to put it together, which is not undoable, but it is time-consuming. And, I would need to clean some stuff out of my bedroom, where I want to put the shelves. That's not the end of the world, but it is one more thing to do. I like to do some relaxing on my weekends. Still, I am thinking about it. I need an excuse to buy more books. Don't I?
*Mandy, again, although I have to admit, the bookstore was my idea. She wanted to go clothes shopping, but I figured the bookstore was less likely to make me feel fat.
Saturday, January 05, 2008
Year End Statistics
I hit 93 total books in 2007, 10 more than 2008. I am a little bit surprised at how much reading I got in, because it was a busy year. I moved to a new apartment, which was very time-consuming. I made a big push to de-clutter my apartment and start doing the regular cleaning maintenance more regularly. Although, it seems like I spend more time cleaning these days, because I do some every day rather than waiting for the weekend, but I never spend 3 or 4 hours in a row cleaning anymore, so that may actually have been a net gain in time. I have had a very active social life, because I was starting to get worried that I did too much by myself. My job has been very busy, with some overtime, although not a lot. And, I started my third blog in 2007, and did more blog posting in general. This is not even getting into all the time I spend on Library Thing.
Even so, I got in more reading than ever. Part of that is all the time I spend at Library Thing, which seems counterintuitive, but makes sense when I think about it. First of all, posting about what I read makes me think a bit more about what I read, which actually makes me enjoy my books more. Also, all the great recommendations make me anxious to get through my reading list and get to even more great books! So, I am going to increase my goal for 2008 to 100 books, but first, a look at 2007 through statistics.
Total number of books: 93
January: 4
February: 4
March: 7
April: 5
May: 9
June: 7
July: 10
August: 11
September: 9
October: 10
November: 7
December: 10
Total number of pages: 33,276
Average number of pages per book: 361.70
Science Fiction books: 39, or 41.94%
Non-fiction books: 15, or 16.13%
Mystery books: 21, or 22.58%
Re-reads: 7, or 7.53%
Since I read a lot more toward the end of the year than I did at the beginning, I think I can easily add in the 7 books I didn’t have to make up the 100 in 2007. I am glad to see I got in quite a bit of science fiction this year, although that is partly fantasy, actually. That is only a few books, though, because I am not a big fantasy fan. I found a good list of science fiction classics this year, and I have been trying to work my way through that. I am going to try to get a little bit more non-fiction books read in 2008, I think.
Overall, this looks like a pretty good year’s reading to me. Now, I just need to get my first book for this year completed!
Even so, I got in more reading than ever. Part of that is all the time I spend at Library Thing, which seems counterintuitive, but makes sense when I think about it. First of all, posting about what I read makes me think a bit more about what I read, which actually makes me enjoy my books more. Also, all the great recommendations make me anxious to get through my reading list and get to even more great books! So, I am going to increase my goal for 2008 to 100 books, but first, a look at 2007 through statistics.
Total number of books: 93
January: 4
February: 4
March: 7
April: 5
May: 9
June: 7
July: 10
August: 11
September: 9
October: 10
November: 7
December: 10
Total number of pages: 33,276
Average number of pages per book: 361.70
Science Fiction books: 39, or 41.94%
Non-fiction books: 15, or 16.13%
Mystery books: 21, or 22.58%
Re-reads: 7, or 7.53%
Since I read a lot more toward the end of the year than I did at the beginning, I think I can easily add in the 7 books I didn’t have to make up the 100 in 2007. I am glad to see I got in quite a bit of science fiction this year, although that is partly fantasy, actually. That is only a few books, though, because I am not a big fantasy fan. I found a good list of science fiction classics this year, and I have been trying to work my way through that. I am going to try to get a little bit more non-fiction books read in 2008, I think.
Overall, this looks like a pretty good year’s reading to me. Now, I just need to get my first book for this year completed!
Wednesday, January 02, 2008
Finishing up a series
92. The Ghost Brigades by John Scalzi
93. The Last Colony by John Scalzi
I got The Last Colony from the Science Fiction Book Club (before their TERRIBLE customer service forced me to leave, which is a shame, because I liked the books), only to realize it was the third book in a series, forcing me to buy Old Man's War and TGB before I could read it. I am sure I could have read it alone and liked it, but I prefer to read books in order. I am really glad I got all three books, especially these two. I really like the way that Scalzi sets up a situation that seems rather straightforward and then shades the gray in there. The characters are well-drawn, too, and I like the way he handles his male and female characters, making them whole people who sometimes behave in stereotypically gendered ways, but generally just behave like themselves, not a man or a woman primarily, but a person. And, although I liked the characters a lot and I wonder what happens next, I was glad to see him say he is done with them. It is good to leave on a high note, not drag things out until people get tired of reading about your characters and your world.
So, that is 10 more than I read last year (or, rather, in 2006, since I am behind here). Much more than I thought I would read this year!
93. The Last Colony by John Scalzi
I got The Last Colony from the Science Fiction Book Club (before their TERRIBLE customer service forced me to leave, which is a shame, because I liked the books), only to realize it was the third book in a series, forcing me to buy Old Man's War and TGB before I could read it. I am sure I could have read it alone and liked it, but I prefer to read books in order. I am really glad I got all three books, especially these two. I really like the way that Scalzi sets up a situation that seems rather straightforward and then shades the gray in there. The characters are well-drawn, too, and I like the way he handles his male and female characters, making them whole people who sometimes behave in stereotypically gendered ways, but generally just behave like themselves, not a man or a woman primarily, but a person. And, although I liked the characters a lot and I wonder what happens next, I was glad to see him say he is done with them. It is good to leave on a high note, not drag things out until people get tired of reading about your characters and your world.
So, that is 10 more than I read last year (or, rather, in 2006, since I am behind here). Much more than I thought I would read this year!
Thursday, December 27, 2007
87-91, plus the new goal
I have really fallen behind here!
87. The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald
I am not sure how I missed this book before now. This was incredibly well-written, and the topics that it covers, class divides and class mobility, are some in which I am particularly interested. I liked the detached narrator who frames the story. Gatsby, of course, was a very flawed person, but his flaws were much more appealling that Daisy's and Tom's flaws. His flaws stemmed from a yearning to improve his life, and be with someone that he loves, whereas Daisy and Tom only care about their own comfort and feelings. This was a very thought-provoking book.
88. Original Sin by P.D. James
This one made me cry. The story was absolutely tragic, and it very, very sad. James really works at her craft, exploring interesting questions, and transcending the mystery genre. Her characters are fully realized people, not stock characters that just move the puzzle along.
89. A Certain Justice by P.D. James
I enjoyed this one, as I do all of James' books, but I am not sure it was as good as Original Sin. Still, the story was intriguing, and the characters were fascinating, as always.
90. Have You Found Her by Janice Erlbaum
This was an Early Reviewer's book.
This was a fantastic book, for many reasons. First, Erlbaum is a great storyteller, keeping me turning pages all the way through. She is also very honest. As she describes her efforts to help Sam, a homeless junkie, and other girls at the same homeless shelter that she used when she was a teenage runaway, she reveals a lot about her own personality and life, not all of it flattering. Since she describes her behavior with a great deal of insight, she clearly learned a lot and grew as a person due to the experience, but it still must have been difficult to describe herself, flaws and all, so candidly. At times I wanted to shake her--how could she not realize that these girls were so damaged? Sure, she had gone through a similar experience and emerged successful and relatively stable, but she must have known many other street kids who did not have such good outcomes. When she describes her friends and family, none of them seem to have pasts that encompass street living. Yet, she seems to think that a little bit of care and listening from her will turn these kids around.
To be fair, she really does do a lot to help these girls, especially Sam, and she obviously does really care for them and want them to have better lives, from the very beginning. Also, she learns a lot from her experiences, obviously becoming a stronger person and more clear-headed about this all as the story progresses.
Most people who want to help those less fortunate themselves have this idealistic view of what helping others means. Even with a background that should help them to know better, they think they can just give a little and make a big difference. It also seems easy to compartmentalize this kind of giving—it’s something that a person does at certain specific times, and it doesn’t encroach on normal life, except for short anecdotes at parties to show how caring and noble the volunteer is. But when you work with damaged people, it isn’t that simple. These people have enormous needs that can’t be covered from 6:00 until 9:00 on Wednesday evenings, and they demand more than a casual volunteer with a life elsewhere is comfortable giving. Erlbaum does a great job of describing how she struggled with the desire to do more, help more, and still live her hard-won normal life.
91. Solar Lottery by Philip K. Dick
Even in a world that seems to be governed by totally random forces, people struggle to impose meaning and control on their lives. Or, some people do, at least. This was a short book that managed to get in some very interesting discussions about the nature of free will and the laws that govern our universe.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
So, what kind of goal am I going to do for next year? I am thinking about aiming for 100--I don't know if I will make it, but it seems like a good goal. It wouldn't even get through my tbr list, and you KNOW I am going to buy even more books. I just got 5 or 6 books yesterday with the gift card my brother gave me for Christmas (he was going to get me these cool shelves from Ikea, but they wouldn't accept a different ship to address than the billing address :-(), although one of them was cookbook, so I don't need to add it to the list. I am thinking that aiming to read more is a really good idea, because, as always, there is so much out there that I want to read! 100 it is.
I don't think I am done with this year, yet, though. There are still 4 whole days this year, plus tonight, and the kids are at their dad's until 12/31. I am sure I will get at least one more book on the list.
87. The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald
I am not sure how I missed this book before now. This was incredibly well-written, and the topics that it covers, class divides and class mobility, are some in which I am particularly interested. I liked the detached narrator who frames the story. Gatsby, of course, was a very flawed person, but his flaws were much more appealling that Daisy's and Tom's flaws. His flaws stemmed from a yearning to improve his life, and be with someone that he loves, whereas Daisy and Tom only care about their own comfort and feelings. This was a very thought-provoking book.
88. Original Sin by P.D. James
This one made me cry. The story was absolutely tragic, and it very, very sad. James really works at her craft, exploring interesting questions, and transcending the mystery genre. Her characters are fully realized people, not stock characters that just move the puzzle along.
89. A Certain Justice by P.D. James
I enjoyed this one, as I do all of James' books, but I am not sure it was as good as Original Sin. Still, the story was intriguing, and the characters were fascinating, as always.
90. Have You Found Her by Janice Erlbaum
This was an Early Reviewer's book.
This was a fantastic book, for many reasons. First, Erlbaum is a great storyteller, keeping me turning pages all the way through. She is also very honest. As she describes her efforts to help Sam, a homeless junkie, and other girls at the same homeless shelter that she used when she was a teenage runaway, she reveals a lot about her own personality and life, not all of it flattering. Since she describes her behavior with a great deal of insight, she clearly learned a lot and grew as a person due to the experience, but it still must have been difficult to describe herself, flaws and all, so candidly. At times I wanted to shake her--how could she not realize that these girls were so damaged? Sure, she had gone through a similar experience and emerged successful and relatively stable, but she must have known many other street kids who did not have such good outcomes. When she describes her friends and family, none of them seem to have pasts that encompass street living. Yet, she seems to think that a little bit of care and listening from her will turn these kids around.
To be fair, she really does do a lot to help these girls, especially Sam, and she obviously does really care for them and want them to have better lives, from the very beginning. Also, she learns a lot from her experiences, obviously becoming a stronger person and more clear-headed about this all as the story progresses.
Most people who want to help those less fortunate themselves have this idealistic view of what helping others means. Even with a background that should help them to know better, they think they can just give a little and make a big difference. It also seems easy to compartmentalize this kind of giving—it’s something that a person does at certain specific times, and it doesn’t encroach on normal life, except for short anecdotes at parties to show how caring and noble the volunteer is. But when you work with damaged people, it isn’t that simple. These people have enormous needs that can’t be covered from 6:00 until 9:00 on Wednesday evenings, and they demand more than a casual volunteer with a life elsewhere is comfortable giving. Erlbaum does a great job of describing how she struggled with the desire to do more, help more, and still live her hard-won normal life.
91. Solar Lottery by Philip K. Dick
Even in a world that seems to be governed by totally random forces, people struggle to impose meaning and control on their lives. Or, some people do, at least. This was a short book that managed to get in some very interesting discussions about the nature of free will and the laws that govern our universe.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
So, what kind of goal am I going to do for next year? I am thinking about aiming for 100--I don't know if I will make it, but it seems like a good goal. It wouldn't even get through my tbr list, and you KNOW I am going to buy even more books. I just got 5 or 6 books yesterday with the gift card my brother gave me for Christmas (he was going to get me these cool shelves from Ikea, but they wouldn't accept a different ship to address than the billing address :-(), although one of them was cookbook, so I don't need to add it to the list. I am thinking that aiming to read more is a really good idea, because, as always, there is so much out there that I want to read! 100 it is.
I don't think I am done with this year, yet, though. There are still 4 whole days this year, plus tonight, and the kids are at their dad's until 12/31. I am sure I will get at least one more book on the list.
Wednesday, December 12, 2007
The To-Be-Read List
At the beginning of November, I made a vow that I would not buy any more books until I made a dent in my TBR list. I have made this particular vow many times before, so I did not hold out a lot of hope that I would succeed, but I did have good intentions.
The first thing I did to try to keep my vow was to cheat. I bought two Bibles. These books would not be added to my TBR list, so they didn't count. I used the same technique recently, when I purchased The New York Times Guide to Essential Knowledge at Costco.
I also tried staying out of the bookstore. This was, obviously, a much more successful (and ethical!) technique. The entire time I stayed out of bookstores, I managed to not buy any books! Unfortunately, this was not a technique I could sustain indefinitely. On Black Friday, after a marathon morning of shopping with my mother and aunt, I ended up meeting my friend Mandy and taking the kids to the mall for dinner. I was too tired to cook. But, the mall is dangerous, because there is a Waldenbooks there. Of course, Mandy* wanted to go to the bookstore. Of course, I agreed, but I told myself I wouldn't buy anything. Ha! I did manage to make it out of there with only one book, though (The Truth (with jokes), by Al Franken; it was on the bargain table, I had to buy it!).
So, I was not terribly successful, but still, I was feeling pretty good about this. I finished 7 books in November, and I only added 1 book to the list. It seems like I added a lot more, because I made a real effort to go through my LibraryThing catalog and mark everything unread, so I could get an idea of what I was working with, but I already had all those books, so they don't count.
This past Monday, though, I found myself with an hour to kill while my daughter went to basketball practice. And do you know what is less than a half a mile from the community center where basketball practice takes place? A Barnes & Noble store, that's what. And I had been wanting to read The Great Gatsby for some time. And, I was finished with all the PD James books I owned. And, what else would conveniently fill that hour of time? (Don't mention working out, I know that would have been the wise choice. But, I didn't feel all that well on Monday. And, I am good at rationalization.)
The boy and I dropped the girl off at practice and we were off to the bookstore! First, I have to say that I told the boy, who is only 5, that he would have to wait until I picked out my books before we headed to the children's section, and he was very good about it. He did ask me a few times if I was done yet, but he stayed by me and did not yell or run around, so I was thrilled. Of course, when we did make it back to the children's section, he was much more interested in all the toys they have back there than the books, but still.
I ended up with 4 books for me, 2 P.D. James, Atonement, by Ian McEwan, and the aforementioned The Great Gatsby, plus How the Grinch Stole Christmas for the boy, and The Giver for the new read-aloud with the girl. She was so excited, too, yelling and actually jumping up and down. Apparently Mrs. H, her teacher, had recommended the book, which is the highest accolade a book can get in S's opinion.
By my count, that is 6 books that I added to my TBR list** since the beginning of November, but if I add the 4 books I have already completed in December to my 7 from November, 11 books to take off the list, putting me 5 books ahead. If I didn't manage to actually refrain from buying books while making a dent in the list, at least I was able to buy less than I was reading.
* Poor Mandy gets blamed for this a lot. She really does entice me to go to the bookstore a lot, but I do the same to her. We are probably equally to blame here, but it is more fun to blame it all on her. She doesn't read my blog anyway.
** According to my LibraryThing tags, my I have 104 unread books, but I need to do some updating with that. First, I have not completely catalogued my list, although I think I do have most of the unreads in there. Secondly, I need to make sure I have distinguished between reference books that I do not really intend to read cover to cover and books that really should be on the TBR list. This is one of those projects for a block of time on some weekend when I am not trying to run around and get ready for the holidays.
The first thing I did to try to keep my vow was to cheat. I bought two Bibles. These books would not be added to my TBR list, so they didn't count. I used the same technique recently, when I purchased The New York Times Guide to Essential Knowledge at Costco.
I also tried staying out of the bookstore. This was, obviously, a much more successful (and ethical!) technique. The entire time I stayed out of bookstores, I managed to not buy any books! Unfortunately, this was not a technique I could sustain indefinitely. On Black Friday, after a marathon morning of shopping with my mother and aunt, I ended up meeting my friend Mandy and taking the kids to the mall for dinner. I was too tired to cook. But, the mall is dangerous, because there is a Waldenbooks there. Of course, Mandy* wanted to go to the bookstore. Of course, I agreed, but I told myself I wouldn't buy anything. Ha! I did manage to make it out of there with only one book, though (The Truth (with jokes), by Al Franken; it was on the bargain table, I had to buy it!).
So, I was not terribly successful, but still, I was feeling pretty good about this. I finished 7 books in November, and I only added 1 book to the list. It seems like I added a lot more, because I made a real effort to go through my LibraryThing catalog and mark everything unread, so I could get an idea of what I was working with, but I already had all those books, so they don't count.
This past Monday, though, I found myself with an hour to kill while my daughter went to basketball practice. And do you know what is less than a half a mile from the community center where basketball practice takes place? A Barnes & Noble store, that's what. And I had been wanting to read The Great Gatsby for some time. And, I was finished with all the PD James books I owned. And, what else would conveniently fill that hour of time? (Don't mention working out, I know that would have been the wise choice. But, I didn't feel all that well on Monday. And, I am good at rationalization.)
The boy and I dropped the girl off at practice and we were off to the bookstore! First, I have to say that I told the boy, who is only 5, that he would have to wait until I picked out my books before we headed to the children's section, and he was very good about it. He did ask me a few times if I was done yet, but he stayed by me and did not yell or run around, so I was thrilled. Of course, when we did make it back to the children's section, he was much more interested in all the toys they have back there than the books, but still.
I ended up with 4 books for me, 2 P.D. James, Atonement, by Ian McEwan, and the aforementioned The Great Gatsby, plus How the Grinch Stole Christmas for the boy, and The Giver for the new read-aloud with the girl. She was so excited, too, yelling and actually jumping up and down. Apparently Mrs. H, her teacher, had recommended the book, which is the highest accolade a book can get in S's opinion.
By my count, that is 6 books that I added to my TBR list** since the beginning of November, but if I add the 4 books I have already completed in December to my 7 from November, 11 books to take off the list, putting me 5 books ahead. If I didn't manage to actually refrain from buying books while making a dent in the list, at least I was able to buy less than I was reading.
* Poor Mandy gets blamed for this a lot. She really does entice me to go to the bookstore a lot, but I do the same to her. We are probably equally to blame here, but it is more fun to blame it all on her. She doesn't read my blog anyway.
** According to my LibraryThing tags, my I have 104 unread books, but I need to do some updating with that. First, I have not completely catalogued my list, although I think I do have most of the unreads in there. Secondly, I need to make sure I have distinguished between reference books that I do not really intend to read cover to cover and books that really should be on the TBR list. This is one of those projects for a block of time on some weekend when I am not trying to run around and get ready for the holidays.
Monday, December 10, 2007
The Paradox of Choice
86. The Paradox of Choice: Why More is Less by Barry Schwartz
This was a very interesting look at how, while no choice is definitely bad, too much choice can almost as detrimental to our psychological well-being. Schwartz examines the differences between maximizers, who attempt to get the absolute best of everything, and satisficers, who are willing to settle for good enough. Good enough could very well be high quality, but satisficers are all right with the idea that there may still be something out there that is even better. Maximizers are bothered by this, and have difficulty making choices, since there are always more options available that might be better.
I tend to fall on the satificer end of the scale for most things, but there are some exceptions. I have a hard time picking a meal in a restaurant, for instance, because I can't decide which one will be the best experience. This book was an interesting look at how unlimited choice can make us less happy with what we have, and I picked up some good tips for being satisfied with my life, even though the tips themselves weren't anything I hadn't heard before. Having more of an explanation behind them makes it easier to apply these ideas to my life.
Interestingly enough, one place where I notice a tendency to maximize is choosing a book to read. Sometimes I go right from one book to the next, but I often find myself, at the end of one book, staring at my bookshelves, trying to pick the perfect book that I will enjoy the most at that particular time. Usually, if I just can't choose, I decide it is a sign that I am simply ready for a break from reading (!), but more often I have to remind myself that I bought these books because they looked good to me, and force myself to take the leap into one of those books. And, when I do, it usually turns out well--I may buy a lot of books, but I am fairly discerning. It's not my fault that there are so many good books out there!
This was a very interesting look at how, while no choice is definitely bad, too much choice can almost as detrimental to our psychological well-being. Schwartz examines the differences between maximizers, who attempt to get the absolute best of everything, and satisficers, who are willing to settle for good enough. Good enough could very well be high quality, but satisficers are all right with the idea that there may still be something out there that is even better. Maximizers are bothered by this, and have difficulty making choices, since there are always more options available that might be better.
I tend to fall on the satificer end of the scale for most things, but there are some exceptions. I have a hard time picking a meal in a restaurant, for instance, because I can't decide which one will be the best experience. This book was an interesting look at how unlimited choice can make us less happy with what we have, and I picked up some good tips for being satisfied with my life, even though the tips themselves weren't anything I hadn't heard before. Having more of an explanation behind them makes it easier to apply these ideas to my life.
Interestingly enough, one place where I notice a tendency to maximize is choosing a book to read. Sometimes I go right from one book to the next, but I often find myself, at the end of one book, staring at my bookshelves, trying to pick the perfect book that I will enjoy the most at that particular time. Usually, if I just can't choose, I decide it is a sign that I am simply ready for a break from reading (!), but more often I have to remind myself that I bought these books because they looked good to me, and force myself to take the leap into one of those books. And, when I do, it usually turns out well--I may buy a lot of books, but I am fairly discerning. It's not my fault that there are so many good books out there!
Sunday, December 02, 2007
84, 85
84. Special Topics in Calamity Physics by Marisha Pessl
This was an odd book. Blue, the main character, is a very gifted girl with an interesting past that involves much travelling around with her Dad. The mystery of her life, and her Dad, is at once more thrilling and more mundane than she expects. At first, she seemed overly melodramatic to me, but after a while, I realized that it was just the way she spoke; she actually had a fairly realistic view of what was happening to her. I really enjoyed this book, but I understand why I have seen people both praise it and pan it. It can be a bit difficult to access.
85. Post Secret by Frank Warren
Warren asked people to send him secrets via postcard, to participate in a public art project. The only requirements were that they be true, and something the sender had never told anyone else. Also, they were told to send the secrets anonymously. Apparently he did exhibit many of these secrets, and I think he still is, but he also has a series of books. I think I will buy more--it is fascinating to see what people send. Some of the secrets are truly horrible, some are the kind of thing you recognize.
This was an odd book. Blue, the main character, is a very gifted girl with an interesting past that involves much travelling around with her Dad. The mystery of her life, and her Dad, is at once more thrilling and more mundane than she expects. At first, she seemed overly melodramatic to me, but after a while, I realized that it was just the way she spoke; she actually had a fairly realistic view of what was happening to her. I really enjoyed this book, but I understand why I have seen people both praise it and pan it. It can be a bit difficult to access.
85. Post Secret by Frank Warren
Warren asked people to send him secrets via postcard, to participate in a public art project. The only requirements were that they be true, and something the sender had never told anyone else. Also, they were told to send the secrets anonymously. Apparently he did exhibit many of these secrets, and I think he still is, but he also has a series of books. I think I will buy more--it is fascinating to see what people send. Some of the secrets are truly horrible, some are the kind of thing you recognize.
Friday, November 30, 2007
Goal reached
83. The Worst Thing I've Done by Ursula Hegi
I have mixed feelings about this book. On the one hand, I COULD NOT PUT IT DOWN, and stayed up too late last night to finish it. On the other hand, it was kind of an obvious story. It was very obvious how Annie felt about Mitch and Jake, and kind of weird how delusional she was about it. The characters were fully realized and interesting, but I just wanted to shake them sometimes.
And, here I am at my goal, with a whole month left for the year. Go me!
Now, if I can just get some more books off my TBR list before I buy even more books. I am not so delusional as to think that I am going to not buy anything until I read all the books I already own, but it would be nice to make a dent in the pile.
I have mixed feelings about this book. On the one hand, I COULD NOT PUT IT DOWN, and stayed up too late last night to finish it. On the other hand, it was kind of an obvious story. It was very obvious how Annie felt about Mitch and Jake, and kind of weird how delusional she was about it. The characters were fully realized and interesting, but I just wanted to shake them sometimes.
And, here I am at my goal, with a whole month left for the year. Go me!
Now, if I can just get some more books off my TBR list before I buy even more books. I am not so delusional as to think that I am going to not buy anything until I read all the books I already own, but it would be nice to make a dent in the pile.
Thursday, November 29, 2007
Books by ex-presidents
Well, only one.
I wondered as I read this book: how much of this was ghost written? On the one hand, why would a politician be a good writer? That's what speechwriters are for, right? On the other hand, this wasn't great writing. It was fine, it was easy to read, but it was pretty straightforward. Surely a reasonably intelligent person (which I believe describes Bill Clinton) could put a book like this together, maybe with some editorial help. But still, he's a busy guy, does he have time to write this book? Either way, it doesn't really change my feelings about this book (it's not like James' Frey's fictional memoir), but I do wonder.
82. Giving: How Each of Us Can Change the World by Bill Clinton
This was a quick and easy read, basically a survey of several different effective charity efforts, both global and local. It was very inspiring, and I got several different ideas of things I could do to help others. There was a fair amount of self-promotion, but I imagine that is a hard habit to break after a lifetime in politics, and it clearly wasn't the main intent of the book.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Only 1 book away from my goal! I haven't really been that focused on the goal per se, but it does feel good to read as much as I did last year in 11 months. That means I can get in that many more books that I have waiting to be read. AND, I only bought 3 books this month, 2 of which were bibles that I will not read straight through, so my TBR list actually went down for a change! Woohoo!
I wondered as I read this book: how much of this was ghost written? On the one hand, why would a politician be a good writer? That's what speechwriters are for, right? On the other hand, this wasn't great writing. It was fine, it was easy to read, but it was pretty straightforward. Surely a reasonably intelligent person (which I believe describes Bill Clinton) could put a book like this together, maybe with some editorial help. But still, he's a busy guy, does he have time to write this book? Either way, it doesn't really change my feelings about this book (it's not like James' Frey's fictional memoir), but I do wonder.
82. Giving: How Each of Us Can Change the World by Bill Clinton
This was a quick and easy read, basically a survey of several different effective charity efforts, both global and local. It was very inspiring, and I got several different ideas of things I could do to help others. There was a fair amount of self-promotion, but I imagine that is a hard habit to break after a lifetime in politics, and it clearly wasn't the main intent of the book.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Only 1 book away from my goal! I haven't really been that focused on the goal per se, but it does feel good to read as much as I did last year in 11 months. That means I can get in that many more books that I have waiting to be read. AND, I only bought 3 books this month, 2 of which were bibles that I will not read straight through, so my TBR list actually went down for a change! Woohoo!
Tuesday, November 27, 2007
80, 81
80. Old Man's War by John Scalzi
Very interesting. I am guessing this was early in Scalzi's career, since the writing was a bit juvenile at times, but the story was well-thought out and I enjoyed the characters. I am looking forward to reading the next books in the series.
81. The Sun Also Rises by Ernest Hemingway
I don't know where I got the idea that I wouldn't like Hemingway. I do see why we didn't read this in high school, though--the drinking! It never stops! This was an excellent book, though, and I am glad I read it.
I am currently reading Giving, by Bill Clinton, and I am most of the way through The Feminine Mystique, by Betty Friedan. I brought TFM along to my parents' house for Thanksgiving, and ended up leaving it in my mother's minivan after a marathon day of shopping on Black Friday. I miss it, but not enough to make a special trip over to pick it up yet. It is a very interesting book, but it is really shocking to me how relevant it is to today's world. I mean, I thought we got over that, but we are seeing this whole return to homemaking now, too. I have even participated in it at times in my adult life. This is one of those books I have always heard about but never seemed to get around to reading; I am glad to be reading it now.
In other news, once I finish these two books, I will have hit my "goal" for the year. Since I have over a month left, I know I will pass it, and my semi-kidding stretch goal of 90 books seems totally possible. I am making a real effort to read some of the books on my TBR pile, without buying too many new books. That isn't too hard this time of year anyway, when I should be spending my money on gifts for other people, not on books that I don't even have enough shelves to store. I have my eye on some really cool shelves from Ikea, though--too bad I will have to drive to Chicago to get them! But, if I get the white ones, I can put them in my bedroom and paint a purple pattern on them to match my bedspread, and store lots more books. Maybe I can even get some of my boxes out of storage (if I hurry before I buy more).
Very interesting. I am guessing this was early in Scalzi's career, since the writing was a bit juvenile at times, but the story was well-thought out and I enjoyed the characters. I am looking forward to reading the next books in the series.
81. The Sun Also Rises by Ernest Hemingway
I don't know where I got the idea that I wouldn't like Hemingway. I do see why we didn't read this in high school, though--the drinking! It never stops! This was an excellent book, though, and I am glad I read it.
I am currently reading Giving, by Bill Clinton, and I am most of the way through The Feminine Mystique, by Betty Friedan. I brought TFM along to my parents' house for Thanksgiving, and ended up leaving it in my mother's minivan after a marathon day of shopping on Black Friday. I miss it, but not enough to make a special trip over to pick it up yet. It is a very interesting book, but it is really shocking to me how relevant it is to today's world. I mean, I thought we got over that, but we are seeing this whole return to homemaking now, too. I have even participated in it at times in my adult life. This is one of those books I have always heard about but never seemed to get around to reading; I am glad to be reading it now.
In other news, once I finish these two books, I will have hit my "goal" for the year. Since I have over a month left, I know I will pass it, and my semi-kidding stretch goal of 90 books seems totally possible. I am making a real effort to read some of the books on my TBR pile, without buying too many new books. That isn't too hard this time of year anyway, when I should be spending my money on gifts for other people, not on books that I don't even have enough shelves to store. I have my eye on some really cool shelves from Ikea, though--too bad I will have to drive to Chicago to get them! But, if I get the white ones, I can put them in my bedroom and paint a purple pattern on them to match my bedspread, and store lots more books. Maybe I can even get some of my boxes out of storage (if I hurry before I buy more).
Tuesday, November 20, 2007
78, 79
78. And Then We Came to the End by Joshua Ferris
Brilliant. The workers at this failing advertising agency become increasingly paranoid as layoffs get closer and closer to them personally. The ridiculous things that they do seem reasonable when they are in the thick of them, but when you pull back a bit, you wonder how intelligent people can find themselves in those situations. But, I can tell you that it happens all the time in big corporations. This was more insightful than I expected, and also hilarious.
79. The Year of Living Biblically by A. J. Jacobs
I love A. J. Jacobs. He is clever and funny and interesting. This project, following the rules of the Bible as literally as possible, could have been done very poorly. I am not religious, but I don't want to read a book about someone making fun of religious people. But Jacobs was able to do this well and even learn a lot, despite not changing many of his beliefs about God or religion.
Brilliant. The workers at this failing advertising agency become increasingly paranoid as layoffs get closer and closer to them personally. The ridiculous things that they do seem reasonable when they are in the thick of them, but when you pull back a bit, you wonder how intelligent people can find themselves in those situations. But, I can tell you that it happens all the time in big corporations. This was more insightful than I expected, and also hilarious.
79. The Year of Living Biblically by A. J. Jacobs
I love A. J. Jacobs. He is clever and funny and interesting. This project, following the rules of the Bible as literally as possible, could have been done very poorly. I am not religious, but I don't want to read a book about someone making fun of religious people. But Jacobs was able to do this well and even learn a lot, despite not changing many of his beliefs about God or religion.
Monday, November 19, 2007
An odd trip to the bookstore
My trip to Border's today was odd for two reasons. First, I had a mission, and I did not deviate from it. I mean, sure, I looked longingly at several extraneous books, but I did not purchase any of them. The second odd thing? My mission was to purchase a Bible (actually, I ended up with two, but that still counts in my estimation, since they were different versions, but both were bibles).
I have been reading The Year of Living Biblically: One Man's Humble Quest to Follow the Bible as Literally as Possible lately. A. J. Jacobs was raised as a secular Jew who doesn't really practice any religion, but he decides to spend a year testing the Bible out, living by the rules in the Bible and investigating both Judaism and Christianity, although he doesn't go so far as to actually believe in Christ's divinity. The book is very funny, which I expected, but also deep. It also reminded me that, despite 13 years at my local Catholic schools, I am somewhat lacking in religious knowledge. This, even though I was a fairly devout Catholic for some time. Now, I find myself viewing all religion rather skeptically, and I am reading TYLB almost like a tourist, who doesn't recognize what Jacobs is describing at all from a first person perspective. Being deeply secular now, I seem to have repressed much of the religious knowledge that I used to possess.
I don't have any plans to start following the Bible's teachings, but I decided that reading the Bible might be a good idea. It's one thing to decide not to believe in God, and another to completely disavow any knowledge of what is arguably the most important and widely read book in our country. Much of our culture and English and American literature draw heavily on Biblical symbolism, to say the least about the Bible's impact. So, I went to get a Bible. I got a Catholic bible, because it has more books than the Protestant bibles, or the Hebrew bible (the portion that Judaism and Christianity share, that is)--the Apocrypha, as Protestants call them, or the Deuterocanonical books, as Catholics refer to them. I am scraping the bottom of that particular branch of my biblical knowledge there, but suffice to say, I wanted to read those books, too. I also got a King James version that was on the bargain book rack, because that is the most common version.
As a non-believer, I felt weird going to the cash register with two bibles. I can tell already that I will do my bible-reading at home. It's not that I am embarrassed to be seen reading it exactly, but rather that I don't want people seeing me reading it and making false assumptions about me. I wouldn't be insulted to be called a Christian, but it feels like lying to me to put out that image when it isn't true. And people do assume you are a Christian when they see you reading the bible. Today in the bookstore, I seriously considered buying God is Not Great by Christopher Hitchens, to even out my purchase, but I stopped myself.
So, I didn't go crazy at the bookstore (have I mentioned the over 100 books I already own that I have not read? Yes, I have? well, just a reminder here...), and I bought not one, but two bibles. A very odd trip for me, indeed.
I have been reading The Year of Living Biblically: One Man's Humble Quest to Follow the Bible as Literally as Possible lately. A. J. Jacobs was raised as a secular Jew who doesn't really practice any religion, but he decides to spend a year testing the Bible out, living by the rules in the Bible and investigating both Judaism and Christianity, although he doesn't go so far as to actually believe in Christ's divinity. The book is very funny, which I expected, but also deep. It also reminded me that, despite 13 years at my local Catholic schools, I am somewhat lacking in religious knowledge. This, even though I was a fairly devout Catholic for some time. Now, I find myself viewing all religion rather skeptically, and I am reading TYLB almost like a tourist, who doesn't recognize what Jacobs is describing at all from a first person perspective. Being deeply secular now, I seem to have repressed much of the religious knowledge that I used to possess.
I don't have any plans to start following the Bible's teachings, but I decided that reading the Bible might be a good idea. It's one thing to decide not to believe in God, and another to completely disavow any knowledge of what is arguably the most important and widely read book in our country. Much of our culture and English and American literature draw heavily on Biblical symbolism, to say the least about the Bible's impact. So, I went to get a Bible. I got a Catholic bible, because it has more books than the Protestant bibles, or the Hebrew bible (the portion that Judaism and Christianity share, that is)--the Apocrypha, as Protestants call them, or the Deuterocanonical books, as Catholics refer to them. I am scraping the bottom of that particular branch of my biblical knowledge there, but suffice to say, I wanted to read those books, too. I also got a King James version that was on the bargain book rack, because that is the most common version.
As a non-believer, I felt weird going to the cash register with two bibles. I can tell already that I will do my bible-reading at home. It's not that I am embarrassed to be seen reading it exactly, but rather that I don't want people seeing me reading it and making false assumptions about me. I wouldn't be insulted to be called a Christian, but it feels like lying to me to put out that image when it isn't true. And people do assume you are a Christian when they see you reading the bible. Today in the bookstore, I seriously considered buying God is Not Great by Christopher Hitchens, to even out my purchase, but I stopped myself.
So, I didn't go crazy at the bookstore (have I mentioned the over 100 books I already own that I have not read? Yes, I have? well, just a reminder here...), and I bought not one, but two bibles. A very odd trip for me, indeed.
Tuesday, November 06, 2007
75-77, TBR List, and Pace
75. I Am American (And So Can You) by Stephen Colbert
Absolutely hilarious. I am so impressed with people who can write to ostensibly portray one message while clearly portraying another. This book also included the transcript of Colbert's speech at the White House Correspondents' dinner last year, which was absolutely brilliant.
76. A Taste for Death by P.D. James
Excellent book. The end was shocking, I actually found myself responding to it out loud, without meaning to--good thing I was alone in my car. The mystery was clever, and even when you found out who did it, it was suspenseful. I liked the new character of Inspector Kate Miskin, and I thought he development of both her and Chief Inspector Massingham was very well done. There were several places when I thought James was headed for something trite and stereotypical, but she did not.
77. Devices and Desires by P.D. James
James gets better with every book. I would have liked this a little better if Rickards had been able to keep up with Dalgleish a little bit more, but the story overall was very satisfying. I really like the way that James doesn't feel the need to explain every little thing in total detail, and the way none of her characters has the full picture of what happened. I do like the traditional mysteries where the whole group gathers in the drawing room and the whole thing is explained for a fun read, but this is much more realistic, nuanced and interesting.
I can't wait to read more James' books, although I am thinking I should read some of the 100+ books I already own first. I think I am going to update my TBR list soon so I can see exactly how many books I already have. Maybe that will actually deter me from going to the bookstore and spending all that money. Probably not for more than a month or so, but maybe longer. Hope springs eternal and all that.
In order to match my pace from last year, I only need to read 6 books between now and the end of the year. I was only at 73 books this time last year, and I hardly read anything in December, so I am feeling pretty sanguine about passing up my goal. Especially since hardly reading anything in December means I finished 4 books last December. I am starting to get more interested in finishing unpacking my apartment (a seemingly never-ending task, but the piles of boxes do seem to be diminishing, as long as you don't look in too many closets), and maybe doing some crafts for Christmas and general decorating, but I still have been keeping up a good pace lately, so I am thinking 83 is an easily reachable goal. I think that my stretch goal will be 90, but I have no real pressure on myself to reach that goal. I am just having fun with it.
Absolutely hilarious. I am so impressed with people who can write to ostensibly portray one message while clearly portraying another. This book also included the transcript of Colbert's speech at the White House Correspondents' dinner last year, which was absolutely brilliant.
76. A Taste for Death by P.D. James
Excellent book. The end was shocking, I actually found myself responding to it out loud, without meaning to--good thing I was alone in my car. The mystery was clever, and even when you found out who did it, it was suspenseful. I liked the new character of Inspector Kate Miskin, and I thought he development of both her and Chief Inspector Massingham was very well done. There were several places when I thought James was headed for something trite and stereotypical, but she did not.
77. Devices and Desires by P.D. James
James gets better with every book. I would have liked this a little better if Rickards had been able to keep up with Dalgleish a little bit more, but the story overall was very satisfying. I really like the way that James doesn't feel the need to explain every little thing in total detail, and the way none of her characters has the full picture of what happened. I do like the traditional mysteries where the whole group gathers in the drawing room and the whole thing is explained for a fun read, but this is much more realistic, nuanced and interesting.
I can't wait to read more James' books, although I am thinking I should read some of the 100+ books I already own first. I think I am going to update my TBR list soon so I can see exactly how many books I already have. Maybe that will actually deter me from going to the bookstore and spending all that money. Probably not for more than a month or so, but maybe longer. Hope springs eternal and all that.
In order to match my pace from last year, I only need to read 6 books between now and the end of the year. I was only at 73 books this time last year, and I hardly read anything in December, so I am feeling pretty sanguine about passing up my goal. Especially since hardly reading anything in December means I finished 4 books last December. I am starting to get more interested in finishing unpacking my apartment (a seemingly never-ending task, but the piles of boxes do seem to be diminishing, as long as you don't look in too many closets), and maybe doing some crafts for Christmas and general decorating, but I still have been keeping up a good pace lately, so I am thinking 83 is an easily reachable goal. I think that my stretch goal will be 90, but I have no real pressure on myself to reach that goal. I am just having fun with it.
Tuesday, October 23, 2007
74. Why Beautiful People Have More Daughters
74. Why Beautiful People Have More Daughters: From Dating, Shopping, and Praying to Going to War and Becoming a Billionaire, by Alan S. Miller and Satoshi Kanazawa
I had never really heard of evolutionary psychology before I picked up this book this weekend, but I think I will be reading more about this soon. This was really fascinating. They did a couple of things I really liked, one about how they treated the material, and one involving the end notes. First, they made a point of saying that just because something is shown scientifically to be the way things are, it doesn't mean they are good or that we shouldn't try to change things. But, if we want to change things, first we need to understand what is going on, even if we don't like it; we can only make effective changes if we are looking at reality rather than what we would like it to be.
Second, on the endnotes, they used a regular superscript for notes that were just citations of studies, and bracketted superscript for notes that contained additional information. I have never seen a book that did that, but it was wonderful. I hate paging back and forth just to read something like Miller, Brown and Doe, 1987. It was nice to know when it was really worth it to go to the back of the book.
More about the actual topic--fascinating. Not shockingly, it turns out that the motivation for almost everything we do is sex and reproduction. It is interesting to see how different behaviors make their way back to sex and reproduction, though. The sections on risk evaluation were interesting, too. I am very motivated to find more in depth books on this topic.
I had never really heard of evolutionary psychology before I picked up this book this weekend, but I think I will be reading more about this soon. This was really fascinating. They did a couple of things I really liked, one about how they treated the material, and one involving the end notes. First, they made a point of saying that just because something is shown scientifically to be the way things are, it doesn't mean they are good or that we shouldn't try to change things. But, if we want to change things, first we need to understand what is going on, even if we don't like it; we can only make effective changes if we are looking at reality rather than what we would like it to be.
Second, on the endnotes, they used a regular superscript for notes that were just citations of studies, and bracketted superscript for notes that contained additional information. I have never seen a book that did that, but it was wonderful. I hate paging back and forth just to read something like Miller, Brown and Doe, 1987. It was nice to know when it was really worth it to go to the back of the book.
More about the actual topic--fascinating. Not shockingly, it turns out that the motivation for almost everything we do is sex and reproduction. It is interesting to see how different behaviors make their way back to sex and reproduction, though. The sections on risk evaluation were interesting, too. I am very motivated to find more in depth books on this topic.
73. Count Zero by William Gibson
I started to read Spook Country, Gibson's latest, and about 60 pages in, I realized that I just didn't care about any of the characters. So, I wondered, am I just not in a Gibson mood, or do I really not like this book? I had Count Zero sitting on my shelf, so I decided to give it a try. 28 pages in, with only brief character sketches of at least 3 major characters under my belt, I did care about them, so I am thinking I wasted my money buying the hardcover Spook Country.
CZ was an interesting blend of the corporation-is-all, cyberspace technological society with religiosity, in the form of voodoo. It is frighteningly easy to imagine a world where corporations practically own the people who work for them, and governments can't do much about it. The huge class differences in this book, where the rich, talented company employees seem to live in an entirely different world than the poorer people also seems like not too much of a stretch. The characters in this book seem like real people, with interesting motivations, strengths and flaws. This was a very good book.
CZ was an interesting blend of the corporation-is-all, cyberspace technological society with religiosity, in the form of voodoo. It is frighteningly easy to imagine a world where corporations practically own the people who work for them, and governments can't do much about it. The huge class differences in this book, where the rich, talented company employees seem to live in an entirely different world than the poorer people also seems like not too much of a stretch. The characters in this book seem like real people, with interesting motivations, strengths and flaws. This was a very good book.
Wednesday, October 17, 2007
62 - 72 and Vacation
62. The Skull Beneath the Skin by P.D. James
I really like James' Cordelia Gray books. Gray is a private investigator, as opposed to James' other series protaganist, CID Commandar Adam Dagleish. It is nice to see a less black and white character (and it was only when typing this that I realized the significance of her name), and more nuance to the criminals as well. Not that the Dagleish books are lacking in nuance, this is just a different perspective, and a very interesting one.
63. Herland and Selected Stories by Charlotte Perkins Gilman
Herland was part of my effort to read more science fiction classics. Gilman has a rather bracing tone in her fiction, as a rule, and that was quite evident in the short novel. I have read other treatments of an all-female society, and I have to say that I thought this one was a bit too optimistic. I do think that overall, a society run by women would probably be more humane than one run by men, but I have a hard time believing it would be quite as smooth as Gilman postulates. Still, centuries of selective breeding, with an emphasis on social skills and getting along, might do the trick. The stories were interesting, and I can see why she was thought to be so ahead of her time. It was refreshing to read some feminist stories that were positive and turned out well, and nice to see that Gilman doesn't assume that all men are evil.
64. The Maquisarde by Louise Marley
I read this one based on a recommendation from Storeetllr, and it was well worth it. It was a story that lends itself to black and white, with an evil organization repressing people and an innocent victim, but the book was much more nuanced than that. I loved the strong female characters, but also that there were strong male characters, too. I will have to read more Marley.
65. Dune by Frank Herbert
Fantastic! I can't believe I haven't read this in about 20 years. I love this book.
66. The Myth of You and Me by Leah Stewart
This was a really good book about how friendships shape our identity. Also about how you can be so close to someone and still separate. And how scary loving someone is. And so on. It was a quick read, but fairly deep. I definitely recommend this one.
67. We Need to Talk About Kevin by Lionel Shriver
Disturbing. Sad. Thought-provoking. I need to think more about this one.
68. A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L'Engle
I have been reading this out loud to my daughter for a while now. Last night when I read the last chapter, she kept wiping her eyes, saying that she was yawning (which was making her eyes water). I remembered that I had read this when I was young and liked it, but I didn't remember the book at all, so I really enjoyed this. I read about a chapter a night, and after I read the second to the last chapter to S, I read ahead and did the last chapter while she went off to bed.
69. The Year's Best Science Fiction: Twenty-Fourth Annual Collection, edited by Gardner Dozois
Wonderful as usual. Dozois is a very good editor, and he puts together a consistently high quality collection every year.
70. To the Power of Three by Laura Lippman
Structurally, this was very similar to What the Dead Know. There was a traumatic event, a witness who was not telling all she knew (although she clearly would at some point) and a lot of flashbacks. But again, the payoff was satisfying, and I really enjoyed the book. If all of her books follow this formula, I am not sure I want to read them, even though they are well-told, but this one was definitely enjoyable.
71. Skinny Bitch by Rory Freedman and Kim Barnouin
This was an interesting book on the benefits of the vegan diet. On the one hand, I liked the way they tried to take some of the mainstream stigma away from a vegan diet with their tough-love tone and complete lack of "crunchiness." I don't have a problem with alternative lifestyle stuff, but it was nice to read a book with straightforward, practical reasons for veganism, not the kind of touchy-feely stuff that turns off a lot of people, or strident, disapproving activism. Not that they were shy about talking about the abuse of animals that occurs on factory farms and in slaughterhouses, but they did it in a more informational tone than a condemning one. On the other hand, their use of profanity was gratuitous and over the top. Overall, though, I enjoyed this short book, which had a nice balance of information on why people should change and practical tips to make the change.
72. The Big Bad Wolf by James Patterson
I didn't bring enough books on my long weekend camping trip, so I ended up borrowing this from my friend. It's the only reason I would read a James Patterson book. I can't stand the way he is so cutesy about everything. I hate the "sensitive man" character that he reveres and populates all of his novels with. I read one of his romances years ago (Suzanne's Diary for Nicholas, I believe), and it was horrible. I can just barely stand his Alex Cross books because at least they have a gruesome crime to counteract the sickening sweetness. And, the crime puzzles are a bit intriguing. But still, the faults! Some that drive me particularly crazy:
The 2-3 page chapters. All of them are short. This could create drama, used sparingly. Used for every chapter, it just makes the book seem extremely disjointed.
The constant use of italics and exclamation points. Like the short chapters, these things lose their effect when every page makes use of them. They aren't really emphasizing anything if they are used constantly.
****SPOILERS*****
The endless "climaxes." Okay, we've solved the crime! No wait, it's not the right guy! But there he is! No, still the wrong guy! Hey, here's another really bad guy! Can you believe this guy that seemed like a good guy way back in Chapter 15 (approximately page 42), that we haven't heard from again, actually turns out to be a bad guy?!?!?! And, he's REALLY BAD! Oh, we think we found the bad guy over here! Nope, wrong again!
I could go on, but really, I have used enough energy on this guy. I really don't understand why he has such a successful career.
*******************************
Can you believe that I didn’t bring enough books with me on a vacation? Last year I took six books with me on a weeklong camping trip, even though one of them was Jonathon Strange and Mr. Norrell, at 782 pages (and I read three of them). For this three-day trip, I only brought two books, and I found myself finished on Saturday afternoon. Next time I definitely need to bring more than I think I will be able to read, just to be safe.
I really like James' Cordelia Gray books. Gray is a private investigator, as opposed to James' other series protaganist, CID Commandar Adam Dagleish. It is nice to see a less black and white character (and it was only when typing this that I realized the significance of her name), and more nuance to the criminals as well. Not that the Dagleish books are lacking in nuance, this is just a different perspective, and a very interesting one.
63. Herland and Selected Stories by Charlotte Perkins Gilman
Herland was part of my effort to read more science fiction classics. Gilman has a rather bracing tone in her fiction, as a rule, and that was quite evident in the short novel. I have read other treatments of an all-female society, and I have to say that I thought this one was a bit too optimistic. I do think that overall, a society run by women would probably be more humane than one run by men, but I have a hard time believing it would be quite as smooth as Gilman postulates. Still, centuries of selective breeding, with an emphasis on social skills and getting along, might do the trick. The stories were interesting, and I can see why she was thought to be so ahead of her time. It was refreshing to read some feminist stories that were positive and turned out well, and nice to see that Gilman doesn't assume that all men are evil.
64. The Maquisarde by Louise Marley
I read this one based on a recommendation from Storeetllr, and it was well worth it. It was a story that lends itself to black and white, with an evil organization repressing people and an innocent victim, but the book was much more nuanced than that. I loved the strong female characters, but also that there were strong male characters, too. I will have to read more Marley.
65. Dune by Frank Herbert
Fantastic! I can't believe I haven't read this in about 20 years. I love this book.
66. The Myth of You and Me by Leah Stewart
This was a really good book about how friendships shape our identity. Also about how you can be so close to someone and still separate. And how scary loving someone is. And so on. It was a quick read, but fairly deep. I definitely recommend this one.
67. We Need to Talk About Kevin by Lionel Shriver
Disturbing. Sad. Thought-provoking. I need to think more about this one.
68. A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L'Engle
I have been reading this out loud to my daughter for a while now. Last night when I read the last chapter, she kept wiping her eyes, saying that she was yawning (which was making her eyes water). I remembered that I had read this when I was young and liked it, but I didn't remember the book at all, so I really enjoyed this. I read about a chapter a night, and after I read the second to the last chapter to S, I read ahead and did the last chapter while she went off to bed.
69. The Year's Best Science Fiction: Twenty-Fourth Annual Collection, edited by Gardner Dozois
Wonderful as usual. Dozois is a very good editor, and he puts together a consistently high quality collection every year.
70. To the Power of Three by Laura Lippman
Structurally, this was very similar to What the Dead Know. There was a traumatic event, a witness who was not telling all she knew (although she clearly would at some point) and a lot of flashbacks. But again, the payoff was satisfying, and I really enjoyed the book. If all of her books follow this formula, I am not sure I want to read them, even though they are well-told, but this one was definitely enjoyable.
71. Skinny Bitch by Rory Freedman and Kim Barnouin
This was an interesting book on the benefits of the vegan diet. On the one hand, I liked the way they tried to take some of the mainstream stigma away from a vegan diet with their tough-love tone and complete lack of "crunchiness." I don't have a problem with alternative lifestyle stuff, but it was nice to read a book with straightforward, practical reasons for veganism, not the kind of touchy-feely stuff that turns off a lot of people, or strident, disapproving activism. Not that they were shy about talking about the abuse of animals that occurs on factory farms and in slaughterhouses, but they did it in a more informational tone than a condemning one. On the other hand, their use of profanity was gratuitous and over the top. Overall, though, I enjoyed this short book, which had a nice balance of information on why people should change and practical tips to make the change.
72. The Big Bad Wolf by James Patterson
I didn't bring enough books on my long weekend camping trip, so I ended up borrowing this from my friend. It's the only reason I would read a James Patterson book. I can't stand the way he is so cutesy about everything. I hate the "sensitive man" character that he reveres and populates all of his novels with. I read one of his romances years ago (Suzanne's Diary for Nicholas, I believe), and it was horrible. I can just barely stand his Alex Cross books because at least they have a gruesome crime to counteract the sickening sweetness. And, the crime puzzles are a bit intriguing. But still, the faults! Some that drive me particularly crazy:
The 2-3 page chapters. All of them are short. This could create drama, used sparingly. Used for every chapter, it just makes the book seem extremely disjointed.
The constant use of italics and exclamation points. Like the short chapters, these things lose their effect when every page makes use of them. They aren't really emphasizing anything if they are used constantly.
****SPOILERS*****
The endless "climaxes." Okay, we've solved the crime! No wait, it's not the right guy! But there he is! No, still the wrong guy! Hey, here's another really bad guy! Can you believe this guy that seemed like a good guy way back in Chapter 15 (approximately page 42), that we haven't heard from again, actually turns out to be a bad guy?!?!?! And, he's REALLY BAD! Oh, we think we found the bad guy over here! Nope, wrong again!
I could go on, but really, I have used enough energy on this guy. I really don't understand why he has such a successful career.
*******************************
Can you believe that I didn’t bring enough books with me on a vacation? Last year I took six books with me on a weeklong camping trip, even though one of them was Jonathon Strange and Mr. Norrell, at 782 pages (and I read three of them). For this three-day trip, I only brought two books, and I found myself finished on Saturday afternoon. Next time I definitely need to bring more than I think I will be able to read, just to be safe.
Tuesday, September 11, 2007
A Look at Statistics
A long time back, I mentioned the spreadsheet that I keep of books that I have read. I decided today that I needed to take a look at it and make some comparisons with last year. I have been keeping the list for almost 2 years now, with 2006 being the first complete year that I tracked. It is fascinating to me to be able to do this kind of within the year and year over year analysis, but I am aware that this makes me odd ;-).
Books I have completed to this point in 2006: 63 (83 total)
Books I had completed to this point in 2007: 61
Science fiction books, 2006: 24, or 28.92%
Science fiction books, 2007: 24 (so far), or 39.34%
Books started but not completed, 2006: 4
Books started but not completed, 2007: 4, not counting the one I am currently reading
Non-Fiction books, 2006: 14, or 16.87%
Non-Fiction books, 2007: 7, or 11.48%
Re-reads, 2006: 4
Re-reads, 2007: 6
So, I am reading more science fiction this year, but less non-fiction. I am ahead of the pace to read 83 books this year, but behind where I actually was at this point last year. I was slowing down at this point last year, but I have been speeding up lately, so I may even finish more than 83 this year. Disturbingly, I saw some books on the 2006 list that I do not remember reading at all. Most of them I remembered well, but I did not have any memory of re-reading Neuromancer last year, and only a vague memory of Disturbance, by Bruce Sterling.
Books I have completed to this point in 2006: 63 (83 total)
Books I had completed to this point in 2007: 61
Science fiction books, 2006: 24, or 28.92%
Science fiction books, 2007: 24 (so far), or 39.34%
Books started but not completed, 2006: 4
Books started but not completed, 2007: 4, not counting the one I am currently reading
Non-Fiction books, 2006: 14, or 16.87%
Non-Fiction books, 2007: 7, or 11.48%
Re-reads, 2006: 4
Re-reads, 2007: 6
So, I am reading more science fiction this year, but less non-fiction. I am ahead of the pace to read 83 books this year, but behind where I actually was at this point last year. I was slowing down at this point last year, but I have been speeding up lately, so I may even finish more than 83 this year. Disturbingly, I saw some books on the 2006 list that I do not remember reading at all. Most of them I remembered well, but I did not have any memory of re-reading Neuromancer last year, and only a vague memory of Disturbance, by Bruce Sterling.
Monday, September 10, 2007
55 - 61
55. The Average American: the extraordinary search for the nation's most ordinary citizen by Kevin O'Keefe
The author set out to learn more about being average, after a life spent trying to avoid averageness in nearly every way. This was an interesting book, if you like statistics, but despite the fact that O'Keefe really did seem to learn a lot and become less snobby and superior, he somehow seemed to remain out of touch with the average American anyway. The writing didn't grab me, and the numbers didn't seem to make a lot of sense. But, the topic was interesting, and I do like statistics, so I enjoyed it.
56. What the Dead Know by Laura Lippman
Fantastic book. I stayed up way too late to finish this because I could not go to sleep without knowing the end. I was really surprised by the end, but it made perfect sense.
57. Innocent Blood by P.D. James
This is very different from James' more straightforward mysteries, and it is very thought-provoking. I will have to think about this one for a while.
58. More Than Human by Theodore Sturgeon
Fascinating book on a possible future human evolution. This book postulates a social organism with different people making up a group that functions as a whole. It seems unlikely, especially since the people involved are born into normal families and then have to find each other, and procreation in general seems problematic, but the ideas investigated are intriguing.
59. Brave New World by Aldous Huxley
Brilliant, thought-provoking book. This was a subtle and fascinating exploration into the meaning of life. The non-fiction afterword by Huxley is a little more difficult to take. He makes good points, but his superior tone is not going to win a lot of converts. He was much better off making his points fictionally.
60. The Stone Diaries by Carol Shields
Pulitzer Prize winner. I have read one other book by Shields (Larry's Party), so I knew that she is a fantastic writer, and this book was not a disappointment. The main character of this book is just an ordinary person, which is refreshing. Very good book.
61. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Book 7 by J. K. Rowling
I enjoyed this book--I read the whole thing yesterday. I pretty much knew what happened already, but it was nice to read it all. I am obviously not an obsessive fan, but I do find these books compulsively readable when I do read it.
I find that I am ahead of schedule suddenly, after spending nearly the entire year behind. Well, not schedule, but pace, I guess. So, maybe I can get even more books in! Probably not, with Christmas at the end of the year, I am sure I will slow down in December.
The author set out to learn more about being average, after a life spent trying to avoid averageness in nearly every way. This was an interesting book, if you like statistics, but despite the fact that O'Keefe really did seem to learn a lot and become less snobby and superior, he somehow seemed to remain out of touch with the average American anyway. The writing didn't grab me, and the numbers didn't seem to make a lot of sense. But, the topic was interesting, and I do like statistics, so I enjoyed it.
56. What the Dead Know by Laura Lippman
Fantastic book. I stayed up way too late to finish this because I could not go to sleep without knowing the end. I was really surprised by the end, but it made perfect sense.
57. Innocent Blood by P.D. James
This is very different from James' more straightforward mysteries, and it is very thought-provoking. I will have to think about this one for a while.
58. More Than Human by Theodore Sturgeon
Fascinating book on a possible future human evolution. This book postulates a social organism with different people making up a group that functions as a whole. It seems unlikely, especially since the people involved are born into normal families and then have to find each other, and procreation in general seems problematic, but the ideas investigated are intriguing.
59. Brave New World by Aldous Huxley
Brilliant, thought-provoking book. This was a subtle and fascinating exploration into the meaning of life. The non-fiction afterword by Huxley is a little more difficult to take. He makes good points, but his superior tone is not going to win a lot of converts. He was much better off making his points fictionally.
60. The Stone Diaries by Carol Shields
Pulitzer Prize winner. I have read one other book by Shields (Larry's Party), so I knew that she is a fantastic writer, and this book was not a disappointment. The main character of this book is just an ordinary person, which is refreshing. Very good book.
61. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Book 7 by J. K. Rowling
I enjoyed this book--I read the whole thing yesterday. I pretty much knew what happened already, but it was nice to read it all. I am obviously not an obsessive fan, but I do find these books compulsively readable when I do read it.
I find that I am ahead of schedule suddenly, after spending nearly the entire year behind. Well, not schedule, but pace, I guess. So, maybe I can get even more books in! Probably not, with Christmas at the end of the year, I am sure I will slow down in December.
Friday, August 24, 2007
Some books should be left alone
54. Slan Hunter by A. E. Van Vogt and Kevin Anderson
So incredibly disappointing.
Vogt started this book, but couldn't finish due to Alzheimer's. Anderson finished it, and it is difficult to imagine how he could have done a worse job. Not only is the book not even remotely consistent with the first book, it isn't internally consistent. Anderson took the real people that populated Vogt's book, characters with complicated motivations for their actions, and turned them into silly caricatures. The plot consisted mainly of people frantically running from place to place so that when they got there, they could sit around and explain things to each other. The tone was sentimental and insipid. The ending was horrifyingly atrocious. On the plus side, I recognize the genius of Slan even more after reading this horrible sequel. That's the most positive thing I can think to say.
So incredibly disappointing.
Vogt started this book, but couldn't finish due to Alzheimer's. Anderson finished it, and it is difficult to imagine how he could have done a worse job. Not only is the book not even remotely consistent with the first book, it isn't internally consistent. Anderson took the real people that populated Vogt's book, characters with complicated motivations for their actions, and turned them into silly caricatures. The plot consisted mainly of people frantically running from place to place so that when they got there, they could sit around and explain things to each other. The tone was sentimental and insipid. The ending was horrifyingly atrocious. On the plus side, I recognize the genius of Slan even more after reading this horrible sequel. That's the most positive thing I can think to say.
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