Books Read, 2009.

I do enjoy keeping lists, so perhaps this little table will inspire me to actually finish a book this year.

Finished	Book Title	Author	Genre	Pages
In Progress	Song Yet Sung	James McBride	?	?

The other's shy and quiet.

I can't even remember why I started suddenly thinking of Sweet Valley High, of all things, but I found this awesome site that recaps (with quite a bit of snark) most of the Sweet Valley High books. There's also this site and this one.

Ahahaha. I love it. Love, love, love it.

I loved those books when I was younger. I loved Sweet Valley University more, but there's not many recaps of them on the site.

I was actually a bit frowny at some of the recaps...they're quite snarky, like I said. They pick on my poor Liz too much!

But then I dug out some of my Sweet Valley books and read a few pages...and, wow. They really were quite bad and melodramatic! I still love them, though. I was definitely not into The Babysitter's Club, by the way. Sweet Valley High owns them.

Honestly, though, they did deal with some heavy issues at times, when they weren't being ridiculously campy and soapy and promoting an unrealistic existence. Anorexia, suicide, attempted rape, death, uh, attempted murder times 1,000?

Really, I definitely would not encourage any daughter of mine to read them. They're is so much under-reaction to the violence and the many near date rapes. And the boyfriends are usually sexist jerks, I can see now.

I used to have almost all of the Sweet Valley High and University books (I bought them for $.25 in bin sales, never new). Then I gave most of them away to my first cousin, once removed (see last post at my joy of finally understanding what that means). Damn it! I only have 14 Sweet Valley High books left in my possession...no University :(, about one Sweet Valley Kids and a handful of Sweet Valley Twins.

I do have some classics, though. Two out of the werewolf arc. The first book that started it all: Double Love. And some from the Margot arc (awesome, awesome). I don't know why I gave some of my favorites away, though, like Dear Sister, where Elizabeth is in a coma! That was my all-time favorite. And Kidnapped!...in which Elizabeth is kidnapped.

I also loved the Little House on the Prairie Books, the American Girls series, the Phantom in the Tollbooth, and Sideway Stories from Wayside High!

But this post does have a point.

The Sweet Valley High books are being re-released with a "modern" look.

These modern changes include the Wakefield girls now being a "perfect size 4." In the old versions, they were a "perfect size 6."

This change bothers me. It's, like, why? What is the point of this change, except to give even more girls an eating disorder? I guess I should be glad they aren't a perfect size 0.

I mean, why do they have to make a mention of their size at all? And that "perfect size 6" was emphasized in every book, in every description of the twins. Just get rid of it, mmmkay? There's no need for it.

And remember the TV show? Yes. You can watch most of season four on ABC Family. Oh, it's so bad it's awesome.

Books Read, 2007 (#16 - 17)

# We Don't Need Another Wave: Dispatches from the Next Generation of Feminists by Melody Berger (Editor)
I love feminist books that are modern and have a collection of articles on a variety of topics written by different people, and this book is no exception. Having said that, though, I do have a minor quibble. A lot of the articles seemed v. "me me me" orientated, and there's nothing wrong with that, per se, but I (mostly) would rather read about more than just one person's experience in something. Like, I don't care how someone started her Web site or sticker-selling business.

...and His Lovely Wife: A Memoir from the Woman Beside the Man by Connie Schultz
I complained about this book a post ago, but it got better and I finished it. I prob. exaggerated, but there definitely is still quite the feeling of "oh, we love each other so much," blahblahblah, which, really, shouldn't we be happy that there is a happy marriage out there? She adores her husband. Lucky her.

Books Read, 2007 (#16 - 17)

# We Don't Need Another Wave: Dispatches from the Next Generation of Feminists by Melody Berger (Editor)
I love feminist books that are modern and have a collection of articles on a variety of topics written by different people, and this book is no exception. Having said that, though, I do have a minor quibble. A lot of the articles seemed v. "me me me" orientated, and there's nothing wrong with that, per se, but I (mostly) would rather read about more than just one person's experience in something. Like, I don't care how someone started her Web site or sticker-selling business.

...and His Lovely Wife: A Memoir from the Woman Beside the Man by Connie Schultz
I complained about this book a post ago, but it got better and I finished it. I prob. exaggerated, but there definitely is still quite the feeling of "oh, we love each other so much," blahblahblah, which, really, shouldn't we be happy that there is a happy marriage out there? She adores her husband. Lucky her.

Disappointing.

I've been reading ...and His Lovely Wife by Connie Schultz.

I adore her. I really do. But I don't know if I can finish this book! It's too much, oh, I love my husband, oh, our lives are just perfect, oh, he never does a wrong thing. Okay. She doesn't express it quite that way, but those are definitely impressions a reader gets. And it's unbearable, really.

I'll give it a few more chapters, but if it doesn't improve, I'm done.

P.S. This computer is so slow.

Zzz.

I started to write an entry about the winery tour I went on today (and all of the wonderful food, smothered in wine sauces...) but I am too tired. I will write this tidbit: never eat grapes that aren't ripe! I knew unripe grapes caused stomach aches, as it has happened to me before, but I couldn't help myself. I paid for it, though. Possibly it wasn't the grapes, though, as I have had stomach cramps for 24/7 for about two days now.

Well, I'm going to read some of ...And His Lovely Wife by Connie Schultz now.

The White Stripes, finally!

"White Americans, what?
Nothing better to do?
Why don't you kick yourself out?
You're an immigrant, too."
--The White Stripes, "Icky Thump"

I heart the White Stripes. I'm finally listening to their new album, Icky Thump. Yea! It's a bit strange, but that's par the course with the White Stripes.

I found my copy of Manifesta: Young Women, Feminism, and the Future by Jennifer Baumgardner and Amy Richards. It was in my dresser, with some other books from school. So, s0ja, you can borrow it, if you want. It's a must read, if only for the massive collection of feminist links and resources in the back. I've found a lot of great organizations through the list. Right now I'm going down the list, signing up for any free newsletters or mailing lists. For example, even though "we don't need another wave," ;), I just signed up at Third Wave Foundation. They have to be at the forefront of any news. I need to be more aware of current feminist activism. Disappointingly (for a number of reasons), a number of the links in the book are no longer active.

A total *non* rec.

I received a free copy of Bright Lights, Big Ass: A Self-Indulgent, Surly, Ex-Sorority Girl's Guide to Why it Often Sucks in the City, or Who are These Idiots and Why Do They All Live Next Door to Me? by Jen Lancaster in the mail today (courtesy of Bzz Agent), and it seemed decent enough, so I started to read it.

The beginning was...mildly entertaining. I write "mildly" because I found the author (it's a memoir) to be a tad immature, self-centered, spoiled, etc. etc. But also amusing at times.

Her constant bashing of Carrie Bradshaw (of Sex and the City) annoyed me, though, especially since the basis seemed to be she's a liar, life in the city's not like that, blah blah blah, but I took her opinions with a grain of salt because, hello, she didn't seem to have a problem with watching the so-not-realistic Desperate Housewives.

But a greater annoyance was still to come.

Brace yourself.

She's a Republican.

I felt a bit twitchy at the mention of the Drudge Report, but I felt I could handle a book about a Republican, as long as she didn't mention her politics too much.

But no. The utter inanities kept coming.

From page 99: "If I could endure the fraternity party otherwise known as the Clinton administration, you can deal with President Churchy McJesus."

The fraternity party...? Okay, I don't agree with everything Clinton did during his presidency, but, please, let's compare his accomplishments to Bush's. And also, let's compare their failures. Who drove our country into the ground and is responsible for thousands of deaths? I'm thinking, not Clinton.

It gets better. She's a fan of Ann Coulter, watches Fox News regularly, and believes Sean Hannity deserves a raise.

Also?

From page 122: "I quickly revise my I Dig Any Famous Pit Bull Advocate stance, which previously gave passes to Rosie Perez, Vin Diesel, Michael J. Fox, and Jon Stewart..."

Uh. What's Michael J. Fox done that he needs a pass for, other than being pro-stem cell research, which, you know, could save his life? I'm sorry if him having a disease offends you so much...

But wait.

There are some real fighting words.

From page 212: "I pushed through a pack of tourists from Cleveland while rushing to the register to purchase my prize. Out of the way, you slack-jawed yokels..."

Well, fuck you.

Frankly, though, even though she proclaims to be a Republican, I find that she has little understanding of politics. I think she's quite naive/ignorant about the world outside of her self-absorbed bubble.

Anyway, we don't have to worry too much about her inflicting her ignorance on the rest of us:

From page 222: "The worst part was I realized I was far more likely to vote for an American Idol contestant than a government official, as evidenced by my not walking next door to vote in the last local election because it was raining."

Super.

I'm so not finishing this book.

Books Read, 2007 (#11 - 15)

I haven't been updating my Books Read, 2007 list! I better write them down before I forget what I've read. I'm quite proud of my mix of fiction and nonfiction reads this year.

# The Official Fahrenheit 9/11 Reader by Michael Moore
How can people ignore facts, is what I want to know.

Season of the Witch by Natasha Mostert
I won ten copies of this book for my book club. It was a lot better than I expected it to be, actually, but it stills reads a bit like a male fantasy.

# The Assault on Reason by Al Gore
I agree with so much of what Gore wrote, but at times this book read like someone's dissertation, it's not always accessible to the every reader.

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows by J.K. Rowling
Finally! Ask my thoughts in person, if you want to know. Too long for here.

Mr. Monk and the Blue Flu by Lee Goldberg
This book was better than I expected it to be, because I think it's hard to translate Monk's behavior and quirks to text. I was leery about the book being from Natalie's point-of-view, because I'm not a huge fan of hers, but know I realize that it couldn't be done from any other way. An enjoyable mystery, but I don't know if I'd read another one in the series.

#6 - 10

The Pact: True Love Story by Jodi Picoult
We read this novel for my book club in May. I can understand why Picoult is such a popular writer, but she's not to my tastes. I find her v. manipulative, v. deus ex machina. Also, this novel is so not a "love story." It's about a teenage couple, and the girl is found dead with a bullet wound to her head. The boy is on trial for murder, and he claims it was a suicide pact. The girl is basically the only sympathetic character in the entire novel.

# BITCHfest: Ten Years of Cultural Criticism from the Pages of Bitch Magazine edited by Lisa Jervis and Andi Zeisler
Highly recommended. I love that it's filled with articles about different topics, like puberty to media to slash to gender roles to stereotypes to basically anything. I loved it to pieces. I don't want to read an entire book about just one topic. A caveat: I wouldn't recommend it to someone brand new to feminism, because I think you have to have some understanding about women's history plus some understanding and recocognization of issues. For someone new to feminism, I would recommend the first feminist book I ever read: Manifesta: Young Women, Feminism, and the Future by Jennifer Baumgardner and Amy Richards.

Feminism is for Everybody: Passionate Politics by bell hooks
I am so disappointed in this book. Most feminists I know, whose opinions I trust, highly recommended it. I came away with nothing, though. I felt like it was a Cliff Notes version of feminism. Chapters were two to four pages long on each topic, and I just don't think it delved into enough detail about anything.

The Innocent Man: Murder and Injustice in a Small Town by John Grisham
June's book club book. Nonfiction. It made everyone furious with the "justice" system.

Girls Rock!: Fifty Years of Women Making Music by Mina Carson, Tisa Lewis, and Susan M. Shaw
Yeah. I knew women have it hard in the music industry, but some of these stories were shocking. I found the book mostly boring, though. I don't care much about when people bought their first guitar, etc.

Books Read, 2007
Books Read, 2006
Books Read, 2005

I better start reading a heck of a lot more if I want to reach my goal of 50 books.

Bitch!

"There is a dangerous myth going around this country that sexism doesn't exist anymore, that we have gotten past it and that 'alarmist' feminists are an outdated nuisance. Warnings like 'Oh, watch out - here comes the feminazi!' abound in our culture, as if for a woman, entitling yourself to an opinion puts you on a par with followers of the Third Reich." - Margaret Cho, from her foreword to BITCHfest: Ten Years of Cultural Criticism from the Pages of Bitch Magazine

I am only past the introduction, but already I am in love with this book! Something modern, finally! Plus, the loveliness of picking and choosing which articles I want to read, if I don't have time to read it cover to cover (although, I think I will have time, since it's fabulous).

"I believe that a thinking person in today's society can be driven mad by isolation." - Margaret Cho, same as above.

So needs to be a caption for something of mine.

Sex and the City! and #4 and #5

Okay. This post is mostly going to be about material objects, because I've had enough debates for the week (Rosie, of all people, standardized testing, Imus...etc.), and I just want to indulge myself.

So, good things.

I finally won the complete set of Sex and the City through E-Bay! Soon, I will joyously watch all six seasons whenever I want! I paid $82, and considering it retails for $200 - $300, not bad. It's supposed to be brand new and sealed and in English, so if I get some burned DVDs or some packaging from Japan, I will be pissed.

I was one of the first 5,000 to sign up for a tote bag filled with goodies from Oprah! Yes! I've never been so happy about a freebie. This one and the coffee pot, which I don't and probably will never use, are the two coolest ever.

I need to update my album collection, most notably with The Story by Brandi Carlile. I love her music. Listen to her!

***

I read the following novels lately, both for my book club:

The Thirteenth Tale by Diane Setterfield
The Time Traveler's Wife by by Audrey Niffenegger

Both novels had such great premises, but both fell flat, I think. Highly overrated, the both of them.

***

I received a letter from Congressman LaTourette in response to this e-mail. Same old, same old, but he at least pretends to listen to his constituents.

#3

I forgot to add this book I read in February:

The Worst Hard Time: The Untold Story of Those Who Survived the Great American Dust Bowl by Timothy Egan

This book has so many details and names, they're hard to keep track of it. I did read it very quickly, though, which surprised me. This book would be a good read for history buffs. I don't remember learning about the Dust Bowl in school.

#2

The Constant Gardener by John le Carré

I finished The Constant Gardener last week. I wanted to read it because the movie was my favorite movie of 2006. It's an incredibly moving and beautiful story. And romantic! I love how it's a mystery with intrigue and fighting corruption and it's political and suspenseful, but that at it's heart, it's a love story. I don't know if I want to spoil it for anyone! But I just love it. I love the way Justin changes in the story. I love that he loved Tessa so much to do so.

The novel is fabulous, too, but I still prefer the movie, probably because I saw it first. I think the novel isn't as good as the movie because the movie isn't as dense as the novel. Also the novel focuses entirely on Justin's point-of-view, unlike the novel, and so I think that point is in the movie's favor, too, because his mission is the one you care about.

The novel's ending felt a bit anti-climatic to me, at first. Now I'm getting over it, though. The movie's ending is essentially the same, but the order is switched around, and so you get a bit more satisfaction. But, like I said, I'm getting over that feeling. I think the ending of the novel is growing on me.

Books Read, 2007.

For my own edification, a listing of all of the books I've read in 2007. Hopefully updated regularly!

# = recommended

Fiction

The Pact: True Love Story by Jodi Picoult (discussed here)
The Time Traveler's Wife by by Audrey Niffenegger (discussed here)
The Thirteenth Tale by Diane Setterfield (discussed here)
# The Constant Gardener by John le Carré (discussed here)
The Five People You Meet in Heaven by Mitch Albom (discussed here)

Nonfiction

Girls Rock!: Fifty Years of Women Making Music by Mina Carson, Tisa Lewis, and Susan M. Shaw (discussed here)
The Innocent Man: Murder and Injustice in a Small Town by John Grisham (discussed here)
Feminism is for Everybody: Passionate Politics by bell hooks (discussed here)
# BITCHfest: Ten Years of Cultural Criticism from the Pages of Bitch Magazine edited by Lisa Jervis and Andi Zeisler (discussed here)
The Worst Hard Time: The Untold Story of Those Who Survived the Great American Dust Bowl by Timothy Egan (discussed here)

#1

I joined the 50bookchallenge over at livejournal, a community that challenges you to read 50 books a year.

I've read one book so far this year: The Five People You Meet in Heaven by Mitch Albom.

Someone selected this book in my book club, and I didn't enjoy it that much. I don't like Albom's style of writing.

My book club meets tonight, so I'm curious to find out our next book!

1 / 50 (2.0%)

In 2006, I read 41 books!

The Curious Incident and The Bell Jar.

I haven't updated with what books I've read recently!

The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time by Mark Haddon
Decent.

The Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath
Okay, this novel is now one of my top favorites. I'm a bit freaked out about this occurrence, but I can identify with at least 80% of the things the lead character thinks/feels/etc. in this novel-—up until the point she has a nervous breakdown, has electric shock therapy, tries to commit suicide, and winds up in a mental institution. Let's hope I'm not headed down that path, kids!

The Glass Castle by Jeannette Walls.

"Walls has joined the company of writers such as Mary Karr and Frank McCourt who have been able to transform their sad memories into fine art." -- People

I've just finished one of the best (if not the best) memoirs I've ever read: href="http://www.amazon.com/Glass-Castle-Memoir-Jeannette-
Walls/dp/074324754X/sr=8-1/qid=1158259576/ref=pd_bbs_1/104-8745101-
4337517?ie=UTF8&s=books">The Glass Castle by Jeannette Walls.

I'm not the best at describing books or why I like them, so instead I give you some obersvations from people who are paid to review books:

Book Description:

The Glass Castle is a remarkable memoir of resilience and redemption, and a revelatory look into a family at once deeply dysfunctional and uniquely vibrant. When sober, Jeannette's brilliant and charismatic father captured his children's imagination, teaching them physics, geology, and how to embrace life fearlessly. But when he drank, he was dishonest and destructive. Her mother was a free spirit who abhorred the idea of domesticity and didn't want the responsibility of raising a family.

The Walls children learned to take care of themselves. They fed, clothed, and protected one another, and eventually found their way to New York. Their parents followed them, choosing to be homeless even as their children prospered.

The Glass Castle is truly astonishing -- a memoir permeated by the intense love of a peculiar, but loyal, family. Jeannette Walls has a story to tell, and tells it brilliantly, without an ounce of self-pity.

Amazon.com

Jeannette Walls's father always called her "Mountain Goat" and there's perhaps no more apt nickname for a girl who navigated a sheer and towering cliff of childhood both daily and stoically. In The Glass Castle, Walls chronicles her upbringing at the hands of eccentric, nomadic parents--Rose Mary, her frustrated-artist mother, and Rex, her brilliant, alcoholic father. To call the elder Walls's childrearing style laissez faire would be putting it mildly. As Rose Mary and Rex, motivated by whims and paranoia, uprooted their kids time and again, the youngsters (Walls, her brother and two sisters) were left largely to their own devices. But while Rex and Rose Mary firmly believed children learned best from their own mistakes, they themselves never seemed to do so, repeating the same disastrous patterns that eventually landed them on the streets. Walls describes in fascinating detail what it was to be a child in this family, from the embarrassing (wearing shoes held together with safety pins; using markers to color her skin in an effort to camouflage holes in her pants) to the horrific (being told, after a creepy uncle pleasured himself in close proximity, that sexual assault is a crime of perception; and being pimped by her father at a bar). Though Walls has well earned the right to complain, at no point does she play the victim. In fact, Walls' removed, nonjudgmental stance is initially startling, since many of the circumstances she describes could be categorized as abusive (and unquestioningly neglectful). But on the contrary, Walls respects her parents' knack for making hardships feel like adventures, and her love for them--despite their overwhelming self-absorption--resonates from cover to cover. --Brangien Davis

From Publishers Weekly

Starred Review. Freelance writer Walls doesn't pull her punches. She opens her memoir by describing looking out the window of her taxi, wondering if she's "overdressed for the evening" and spotting her mother on the sidewalk, "rooting through a Dumpster." Walls's parents—just two of the unforgettable characters in this excellent, unusual book—were a matched pair of eccentrics, and raising four children didn't conventionalize either of them. Her father was a self-taught man, a would-be inventor who could stay longer at a poker table than at most jobs and had "a little bit of a drinking situation," as her mother put it. With a fantastic storytelling knack, Walls describes her artist mom's great gift for rationalizing. Apartment walls so thin they heard all their neighbors? What a bonus—they'd "pick up a little Spanish without even studying." Why feed their pets? They'd be helping them "by not allowing them to become dependent." While Walls's father's version of Christmas presents—walking each child into the Arizona desert at night and letting each one claim a star—was delightful, he wasn't so dear when he stole the kids' hard-earned savings to go on a bender. The Walls children learned to support themselves, eating out of trashcans at school or painting their skin so the holes in their pants didn't show. Buck-toothed Jeannette even tried making her own braces when she heard what orthodontia cost. One by one, each child escaped to New York City. Still, it wasn't long before their parents appeared on their doorsteps. "Why not?" Mom said. "Being homeless is an adventure." --Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Sharks and Our Flat World.

I have always been fascinated by marine life. For some reason, I just feel very drawn to and connected with water [even though the only water I've ever seen in person (basically) is Lake Erie!]. I used to want to be a marine biologist, actually. Still do, really.

Anyway! So lately I've been watching a lot of marine life shows on the Discovery Channel. Last week was Shark Week.

I watched a lot of fascinating shows. Great White Sharks are so amazing! There were numerous shots of them flinging their entire body out of the water and into the air as they went after seals and turtles (sad!). They're a huge animal, so to be able to do that? Wow.

And sharks aren't predators to humans. It's not part of their evolution to think of us as food. When people are bitten, most of the time it's because sharks think we're seals. Sharks are close to humans in the water all the time (without us knowing) and don't attack us. In one of the shows, there was footage of a man in a helicopter spying a couple of huge Great Whites in the water--and if they looked huge from the air...--and then noting how fifty feet away was a beach full of people (and noting that he sees this all the time).

Then I watched a new special on giant squids. Did you know more people have walked on the moon than have dived more than five miles in the ocean? The ocean is so mysterious and beautiful.

Anyway, a giant squid has never been filmed alive. A Japanese scientist and his friends created this camera that could go deep in the ocean and automatically snap photos every thirty seconds. After several tries and misses with it, they got about 400 photos of a giant squid. They were still photographs, but the show put them together in sequence and showed it like a slide-show. Magical!

Can you imagine how these scientists must feel? What a breakthrough. But it's still not as good as a film of them would be!

And just like in the myths, sperm whales and giant squids do fight! Squids are what the sperm whales eat, and the whales have scars from fights with them. Crazy!

I borrowed The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou from the library so I can see pretty (and fake) sea animals.

Do you know what else you can borrow from the library? CDs. Awesome! I borrowed Nina Simone's Remembering and Ani DiFranco's Knuckle Down. And what do you think I'm going to do with them?

I've started to read The World Is Flat: A Brief History of the Twenty-first Century by Thomas L. Friedman, which is not exactly what I thought it was about. I'm freaked out, though. Did you know some accounting firms outsource our tax returns to people in India? And that this practice will probably be the norm in a decade? And that some hospitals outsource the reading of our CAT scans to people in India and Australia? Um. Not cool. All this after only reading about twenty pages? Ack.

P.S. I hate my slow-ass Internet connection. I've been trying to download something for several days now, and it ain't happening. Every time I get up to 70-90% done, the Internet conks out and I have to start all over! Gah.

ETA: Yea! I finally got it downloaded. *does a little dance*

Books Read, 2005.

For my own edification, a listing of all of the books I read in 2005.

# = recommended

Fiction

Home Away From Home by Lorna J. Cook
# The Bright Forever by Lee Martin
One Thousand White Women: The Journals of May Dodd by Jim Fergus
Memoirs of a Geisha by Arthur Golden
The Heart is a Lonely Hunter by Carson McCullers
The Bluest Eye by Toni Morrison
Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince by J.K. Rowling
# Sula by Toni Morrison (discussed here)
# Midwives: A Novel by Chris Bohjalian
# The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini (discussed here)
# Life of Pi by Yann Martel
# The Myth of You and Me by Leah Stewart
# "Brokeback Mountain" by E. Annie Proulx (discussed here and here)

Nonfiction

A Small Place by Jamaica Kincaid
Essentials of Corporate Finance by Stephen A. Ross, Randolph W Westerfield, Bradford D Jordan, and Bradford Jordan
Managerial Accounting, 11th Edition by Ray H Garrison, Eric Noreen, and Peter C. Brewer