BOOKS
Today I got the call from the library telling me that they weren't hiring me for the temporary clerk position. sigh. Job hunting when you have no connections sucks ass.
Anyway, that's not so much fun to write about, even if it is consuming the majority of my time.
In 2007 I read:
Mansfield Park by Jane Austen
Eragon by Christopher Paolini
Karaoke Fascism: Burma and the Politics of Fear by Monique Skidmore
Fighting For Faith and Nation: Dialogues with Sikh Militants by Cynthia Kepply Mahmood
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows by J.K. Rowling
A Mind of Its Own: How your brain distorts and deceives by Cordelia Fine
The Parable of the Sower by Octavia Butler
Whale Rider by Witi Ihimaera
A Curious Intimacy by Jessica White
Beasts by Joyce Carol Oats
The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Nighttime by Mark Haddon
The Freedom Writer's Diary
I also reread the previous six Harry Potter books.
I've really enjoyed keeping a record in lj about the books I've read. I just went through the entries of the past year with the tag book2007 and it was really fun. I'm going to keep doing it for this year.
So, I just finished Tipping the Velvet by Sarah Waters. I wanted to read some lesbian ficiton, so I dived into the internet for some recommendations and then picked up the things the library had. I really enjoyed this romping "lesbian historical romance". Part of the joy in it was reading characters I identified with or who were just like people I know. Her writing style is delightful, a crisply creative take on writing. I am curious to know how much of the details in the book are accurate, including the society's attitude towards what we would now call gay folk. I remember when I took my class on Walt Whitman one of the things we discussed was how the idea of gay/lesbian was not an identity. I just think it is wise to caution against putting our modern understandings to historical cultures. While I'm sure that women have loved women since waaaaay back, I'm not sure they would identify as we would. Did identifying as a tom really mark you as part of that circle, as different, as identifying as gay today makes you part of a different community? That question of historical identification fascinates me. Of course there were people sexually oriented towards the same sex, but how did they see themselves?
Anyway, that's not so much fun to write about, even if it is consuming the majority of my time.
In 2007 I read:
Mansfield Park by Jane Austen
Eragon by Christopher Paolini
Karaoke Fascism: Burma and the Politics of Fear by Monique Skidmore
Fighting For Faith and Nation: Dialogues with Sikh Militants by Cynthia Kepply Mahmood
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows by J.K. Rowling
A Mind of Its Own: How your brain distorts and deceives by Cordelia Fine
The Parable of the Sower by Octavia Butler
Whale Rider by Witi Ihimaera
A Curious Intimacy by Jessica White
Beasts by Joyce Carol Oats
The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Nighttime by Mark Haddon
The Freedom Writer's Diary
I also reread the previous six Harry Potter books.
I've really enjoyed keeping a record in lj about the books I've read. I just went through the entries of the past year with the tag book2007 and it was really fun. I'm going to keep doing it for this year.
So, I just finished Tipping the Velvet by Sarah Waters. I wanted to read some lesbian ficiton, so I dived into the internet for some recommendations and then picked up the things the library had. I really enjoyed this romping "lesbian historical romance". Part of the joy in it was reading characters I identified with or who were just like people I know. Her writing style is delightful, a crisply creative take on writing. I am curious to know how much of the details in the book are accurate, including the society's attitude towards what we would now call gay folk. I remember when I took my class on Walt Whitman one of the things we discussed was how the idea of gay/lesbian was not an identity. I just think it is wise to caution against putting our modern understandings to historical cultures. While I'm sure that women have loved women since waaaaay back, I'm not sure they would identify as we would. Did identifying as a tom really mark you as part of that circle, as different, as identifying as gay today makes you part of a different community? That question of historical identification fascinates me. Of course there were people sexually oriented towards the same sex, but how did they see themselves?