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December 25, 2007
Books I Read When the Weather Turned Cold
New Total: 135
Ex Libris: Confessions of a Common Reader
by Anne Fadiman
My Thoughts: Mr. Amazing surprised me with this charming book of essays on our second date, and even read a few chapters aloud to me. While the relationship fizzled, the book remains my favorite part of the time we spent together. I loved being with a man who loved books like I do, someone who could rattle off a list of books I would like based on a single suggestion. By the time I finished the last essay Mr. Amazing was gone, but having this tiny green book on my nightstand made me hopeful that another amazing man might be around the corner.
If on a Winter's Night a Traveler
by Italo Calvino
My Thoughts: Ms. ADA and Mr. Amazing had both suggested this book, which I had never heard of until they mentioned it within a week of each other. After reading it almost straight through, I can't decide if it's a brilliant work of staggering genius or a fancy sleight-of-hand with no literary merit beyond the author's technical prowess. This would have been an excellent book club selection because of the twists and turns--since regardless of my final love-it-or-hate-it decision, it was chock full of interesting discussion points.
Catch-22
by Joseph Heller
My Thoughts: I had never picked up this book before Matthew Baldwin chose it as the book for November's National Novel Reading Month (NaNoReMo). Mr. Pilot said it had been hugely influential in his life, although several other people had said it was mind numbingly difficult to get through. After a month of reading according to a syllabus (which was maybe the most challenging part--not skipping ahead), I have to agree with both viewpoints. I can see how the endless repetition would frustrate a less patient reader, but I also saw how that repetition was intentional and intensely important to the point of the book. Although I have no desire to read the sequel, I feel like I am a better read, more insightful person for having gotten to the last page. And there could not have been a better book to read along with a group--and so a special (if belated) thanks to Matthew Baldwin for pushing ahead when the middle chapters got rough.
