I did this for 2004, and it came in so handy
that I've decided to continue. So, here we go...
I'm always trying to remember
the title of that really cool book I read a few months ago, that I'm just
dying to tell someone about. Now I can just refer them here. (Note,
Amazon links open new windows.)
Fiction
Ernest Hemingway, The Sun Also Rises(How did I get this far in life without reading Hemingway, you ask? Especially as a writer! Well, it's pretty simple: when I was in high school it was all about Faulkner, and in college I was interested in earlier literature; I studied Old English and early novels. Nonetheless, it is somewhat embarrassing to admit that I've come to Hemingway late. On the other hand, I don't know if I'd have enjoyed this book quite so much if
I'd read it when I was younger. Hemingway's way of saying a lot with silence, of sketching in the lines in his spare way and letting your brain fill in the rest, is something I might not have appreciated ten years ago or even five. In some ways, I'm pretty unsophisticated. Anyway, I really enjoyed this, and look forward to reading more Hemingway.)
Nancy Farmer, The House of the Scorpion(This is a YA novel, but read it anyway. It's really, really good. I included it in a book display I did of science fiction on the Frankenstein theme, and it's definitely a fresh take on the subject. The only part that didn't really work for me was when Matteo falls into some sort of pseudo-Communistic labor camp; at that particular point in the story I thought I heard the sound of grinding axes. I could be wrong about that,
though, and overall this book is so good that I recommend it without reservation. It's an example of how an author can take a well-established SF trope—cloning, in this case—and do something new with it.)
Arturo Pérez-Reverte, Captain Alatriste(This new translation was recently issued, probably due to the upcoming movie which, although filmed in Spanish, features a certain American movie star. Anyway, I'm glad because I'd read The Club Dumas, which was much, much better than the movie that was made out of it (the unfortunate The Ninth Gate), and I wanted more by this author. But I don't read Spanish very well, so I'm happy to be able to read it in
English. This story is good fun. Not a literary classic, perhaps, but it hits all the marks, buckles are swashed, villainy and derring-do abound, and it successfully conveys a sense of history. Incredibly entertaining.)
Mary Shelley, Frankenstein: Or the Modern Prometheus (Penguin Classics)(I got this in audiobook format to listen to during my commute; otherwise, it would be a re-read. A re-listen? Anyway, this second time through Shelley's classic reinforced my opinion that Viktor Frankenstein is one of the most self-obsessed literary characters I've ever encountered. I mean, it's a good story, and it's true that if he complains of suffering, no one can say he doesn't have the right. But, good lord. And, once he dies,
the Monster continues in the same vein. Like father, like son, I guess. There's a lot of interesting stuff going on in this book, and it's really amazing how much science fiction on the same theme has echoed Shelley's story and conclusions. Although I may have come up with one take that I'm pretty sure hasn't been done yet, so keep an eye out.)
Terry Pratchett, Night Watch(This was actually a re-read, and I liked it a lot better the second time around; the villain was scarier and I felt Vimes's feeling of being out of place much more. I do think that Pratchett's books aren't as trim as they used to be—the era from Wyrd Sisters to about The Truth, or possibly The Fifth Elephant, seems to be his height. But I do like how he copes with the time travel problem.)
J.K. Rowling, Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone (Book 1)(Yup. I finally read it.)
Elizabeth Hand, Mortal Love : A Novel(Elizabeth Hand works in one of my favorite areas of creative invention: the reinvention of myth. She does it really, really well, too, which is intimidating. This book is kind of a counterbalance to Waking the Moon; similar setup, very different result. Hand is especially good at creating a mood and texture of sensuality that supports and emphasizes the pagan themes she often works with. I consider her stories to be excellent
models for what I'm trying to do, although I hope I don't imitate too closely. After all, as T.S. Eliot put it, the point is not to copy, but to steal.)
J.R.R. Tolkien, The Lord of the Rings
(What can I say? This is probably my most favorite book ever. I took Old English in college because of it. Favorites ought to be re-read because, if they deserve to be called favorites, you'll always find something new in them. On this re-read, I found the story more emotionally affecting than I had in the past, which was interesting. That's another thing about favorite books: if you read them at different times of life,
you'll get different things out of them. Again, if they deserve to be called favorites, which is why I think my Robert Jordan will be going to the library donation pile, freeing up some much-needed shelf space.)
Priscilla Royal, Wine of Violence (Poisoned Pen Press Mysteries)
(Strictly okay whodunit in a medieval setting. Don't get me wrong, Royal's a decent writer, but I'm getting picky and cantankerous about my fiction. Time to re-read The Name of the Rose.)
Douglas Adams, The Ultimate Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy
(I have a different edition of this that's long out of print, but a classic remains a classic. I liked the movie but of course it can't replace the book, which can't replace the TV series, which can't replace the radio program. If Hitchhiker's hasn't been a Broadway musical yet, then that's about the only thing left. Anyway, I first read this when I was 12 or so and I still maintain that it's largely responsible for
my world view. My dad gave me the book. Now you know who to blame.)
Elizabeth Hand, Last Summer at Mars Hill
(Elizabeth Hand is one of my favorite writers. She works in an area that I'm particularly fond of, drawing on classical myths and using them to inform modern stories, sometimes literally. This collection includes "The Bacchae", which is a very important story for me personally for a number of reasons. If you've read it, you might find that alarming. Please don't. I draw a different meaning
from the same impulse, and if the dang story I wrote as a result ever sees daylight, you'll see what I mean.)
Cynthia Voight, A Solitary Blue (Tillerman Series)
(I read Homecoming and Dicey's Song quite a few years ago, and always wanted to read more of Voight's stories about these characters. This is one of them. I didn't like it quite as much as the other two, mostly because the protagonist is so passive for so much of the story, but I did like it.)
Haruki Murakami, Hard-Boiled Wonderland and the End of the World: A Novel (Vintage International)(Highly-praised sorta cyberpunk-ish novel that I actually felt fairly uncertain about at the end. It
may be because I've read enough stories with a similar premise before to have some idea what was up with
this one, but I also may have missed some subtleties as a result. Either way, it's intriguing enough to
be worth one read, and possibly two.)
- Michael Scott Rohan, The Anvil of Ice (Winter of the World, Vol 1)
(Epic fantasy loosely—very loosely—based on Finnish and Nordic myth. This is another of those books that I feel bad for disliking because someone recommended
it to me, but the truth is that I was hard-pressed to finish it and don't particularly want to read the next volume(s) in the series. I found the language and the pacing awkward, the
dialogue stilted, and the characterization clumsy. People say the same thing about Tolkien, of course—and I think they're wrong—but Tolkien was able to make the mythical seem familiar, without making it
pedestrian. This novel doesn't seem to be able to manage one without the other, and ultimately I found it uninvolving.)
Non-Fiction
Ellen Cannon Reed, The Heart of Wicca: Wise Words from a Crone on the Path- Karl Kerényi, Goddesses of Sun and Moon (Dunquin Series)
David K. Shipler, The Working Poor : Invisible in America (Vintage)
Tom Shippey, The Road to Middle-earth : Revised and Expanded Edition
David Cordingly, Under the Black Flag: The Romance and the Reality of Life among the Pirates
Rebecca Bryant, Discovery and Decision: Exploring the Metaphysics and Epistemology of Scientific Classification
George Lakoff, Women, Fire, and Dangerous Things (re-read)
Michael E. Bell, Food for the Dead: On the Trail of New England's Vampires
Karl Kerényi, Athene: Virgin and Mother in Greek Religion (Dunquin Series: No. 9)- Susan Deacy & Alexandra Villing, Athena in the Classical World
What I want to read next (Amazon
wishlist, opens new browser window).
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