argh!
alas and alack - not only have i done a terrible job of writing about the books i read here, but i've even been remiss in writing down the titles on the list i keep for reference. so, while i definitely know that i have recently read the books listed below, i feel certain that there are others that i am currently forgetting. which is oh so sad, but also perhaps means that they are not worth remembering. although maybe i'm just deluding myself and there really aren't other books i've been reading. i fear that i haven't been terribly enthusiastic about a book since tipping the velvet. such a dry spell makes me oh so sad. in any case, recently:
tipping the velvet by sarah waters - the entire time i was reading this, j. kept asking me, "how is your lesbian book?" and in interviews, ms. waters has mentioned the reputation her earlier books do have as being "lesbo-victorian romps." but really, it's so reductive to think of the books as such. yes, there is plenty of the proverbial tipping, but the novel is so much richer than a few sex scenes. i thought it was terrific. a really historical epic, and i'm not even very fond of those things. but i do so enjoy waters' work; my affection for the night watch is what led me to finally start this one; well, that and finding a used copy for a mere two dollars at a charity shop. well worth the price paid, and a whole lot more.
affinity by sarah waters i enjoyed slightly less, although it was still a worthwhile expenditure of my time. i adore that it was set around spiritualism, an (event? movement? ideology?) which i find very interesting. not so much the concept itself, but the fact that it was all the rage, there for a little while.
the end by lemony snicket - mostly satisfying. i still have questions that it would be nice to have answers to, and characters that i would've liked to have seen again.
lost girls by alan moore and melinda gebbie - beautiful art, but disappointing. it's not that i've anything against pornography or erotica per se. but it seemed like such a male take on the whole thing. which i suppose one should expect, but still. the concept is a great one, i just expect so much more.
an abundance of katherines by john green - i have a bit of a literary crush on john green. he's cute and funny and smart and he messages people on myspace. reading an abundance of katherines did nothing to discourage said crush. it was terrific, and i told my boyfriend he should read it because colin reminded me very, very much of him. or at least what i imagine he was like when he was seventeen, since i didn't actually know him then.
the homework machine by dan gutman - i read this so that i could do a little spiel and recommend it during a class visit. in the end we ran out of time and the kids were eager to browse, so i didn't end up doing so, but i did like the book. it's pretty smart and the characters are well drawn and it's nice to see an easy middle grade novel dealing with "issues" without being completely heavy-handed about it.
you don't love me yet by jonathan lethem - oh jonathan. are you so happy these days in your "real life" that you've got to phone it in for your literary one? okay, so i didn't hate this book. it has it's moments - a few scenes, a tossed off line or two. but overall, sigh. not nearly the experience i would've liked it to be. i know lots of people hate lethem and the whole literary cult that he seems to be a part of. but i've always been a fan. these days, he's just trying my patience. sure, he was cute and funny and all the right things when i saw him speak last year, but three half-hearted publications in a row? i mean, disappointment artist and men and cartoons had their moments as well, but the good stuff you'd probably read elsewhere. i also think that lethem should not convincingly try to pen a female protagonist. he's a boys boy and while some have levelled that at him as a criticism, it's important to know your own abilities.
girl in a box by sujata massey - i am a long time fan of massey's rei shimura mysteries. i've been there pretty much from day one, when i took home the salaryman's wife as a stripped paperback, from the dead-end bookstore job i worked the summer after i graduated college. i found this one to be a little exasperating, though. i love the setting - with rei going undercover to work in a big japanese department store. but there were a lot of flaws for me. too many brand-names, for one. maybe that's necessary in the aforementioned setting, but it got annoying very quickly. and the series is edging from traditional-mystery-to-spy action, which i'm not sure i'm entirely in favor of. the whole whodunit aspect seemed sort of tossed off, and i don't entirely buy the romance angle.
hm. maybe i'm being a little grouchy about books lately. like i said though, or just indicated - i've mostly been underwhelmed by things lately. any recommendations for things that my tiny number of readers think will blow me away?
tipping the velvet by sarah waters - the entire time i was reading this, j. kept asking me, "how is your lesbian book?" and in interviews, ms. waters has mentioned the reputation her earlier books do have as being "lesbo-victorian romps." but really, it's so reductive to think of the books as such. yes, there is plenty of the proverbial tipping, but the novel is so much richer than a few sex scenes. i thought it was terrific. a really historical epic, and i'm not even very fond of those things. but i do so enjoy waters' work; my affection for the night watch is what led me to finally start this one; well, that and finding a used copy for a mere two dollars at a charity shop. well worth the price paid, and a whole lot more.
affinity by sarah waters i enjoyed slightly less, although it was still a worthwhile expenditure of my time. i adore that it was set around spiritualism, an (event? movement? ideology?) which i find very interesting. not so much the concept itself, but the fact that it was all the rage, there for a little while.
the end by lemony snicket - mostly satisfying. i still have questions that it would be nice to have answers to, and characters that i would've liked to have seen again.
lost girls by alan moore and melinda gebbie - beautiful art, but disappointing. it's not that i've anything against pornography or erotica per se. but it seemed like such a male take on the whole thing. which i suppose one should expect, but still. the concept is a great one, i just expect so much more.
an abundance of katherines by john green - i have a bit of a literary crush on john green. he's cute and funny and smart and he messages people on myspace. reading an abundance of katherines did nothing to discourage said crush. it was terrific, and i told my boyfriend he should read it because colin reminded me very, very much of him. or at least what i imagine he was like when he was seventeen, since i didn't actually know him then.
the homework machine by dan gutman - i read this so that i could do a little spiel and recommend it during a class visit. in the end we ran out of time and the kids were eager to browse, so i didn't end up doing so, but i did like the book. it's pretty smart and the characters are well drawn and it's nice to see an easy middle grade novel dealing with "issues" without being completely heavy-handed about it.
you don't love me yet by jonathan lethem - oh jonathan. are you so happy these days in your "real life" that you've got to phone it in for your literary one? okay, so i didn't hate this book. it has it's moments - a few scenes, a tossed off line or two. but overall, sigh. not nearly the experience i would've liked it to be. i know lots of people hate lethem and the whole literary cult that he seems to be a part of. but i've always been a fan. these days, he's just trying my patience. sure, he was cute and funny and all the right things when i saw him speak last year, but three half-hearted publications in a row? i mean, disappointment artist and men and cartoons had their moments as well, but the good stuff you'd probably read elsewhere. i also think that lethem should not convincingly try to pen a female protagonist. he's a boys boy and while some have levelled that at him as a criticism, it's important to know your own abilities.
girl in a box by sujata massey - i am a long time fan of massey's rei shimura mysteries. i've been there pretty much from day one, when i took home the salaryman's wife as a stripped paperback, from the dead-end bookstore job i worked the summer after i graduated college. i found this one to be a little exasperating, though. i love the setting - with rei going undercover to work in a big japanese department store. but there were a lot of flaws for me. too many brand-names, for one. maybe that's necessary in the aforementioned setting, but it got annoying very quickly. and the series is edging from traditional-mystery-to-spy action, which i'm not sure i'm entirely in favor of. the whole whodunit aspect seemed sort of tossed off, and i don't entirely buy the romance angle.
hm. maybe i'm being a little grouchy about books lately. like i said though, or just indicated - i've mostly been underwhelmed by things lately. any recommendations for things that my tiny number of readers think will blow me away?