The final six books of 2009
I have three books in progress on the nightstand but I didn't finish them in time to count them as read in 2009, so we end the year with 41 books. Fewer than I would have liked, but more than I expected considering the circumstances of the year. You know?
36: Pretty in Plaid: A Life, a Witch, and a Wardrobe, or, the Wonder Years Before the Condescending, Egomaniacal, Self-Centered Smart-Ass Phase, by Jen Lancaster. Jen waxes nostalgic over her childhood and fixes each event to something she was wearing at the time. This is my second Jen Lancaster book to read (the first was "Such a Pretty Fat", which was better, but kind of self-loathing), and it will probably be the last. She's not as funny as she thinks she is, and comes off as kind of a self-centered bitch. I was glad when I got through with the book.
37: When We Were Beautiful, Bon Jovi. This is the companion book to the documentary of the same name, shot to document their 25th anniversary of the band. It's very nice; it's beautifully done, and contains photos and interviews which didn't make the documentary, BUT it didn't tell me too much I didn't already know. I really want something a little more exhaustive, like a Bon Jovi anthology. I'm never going to get that, of course, since Jon's such a control freak. Re that: David's interview is a bit telling. He comes this close to bitching about his job. I wonder if he's maybe a little sick of Jon after all these years?
38: SuperFreakonomics: Global Cooling, Patriotic Prostitutes, and Why Suicide Bombers Should Buy Life Insurance, by Steven D. Levitt and Stephen J. Dubner. This was VERY interesting. I especially enjoyed the chapter on the hookers. I am being serious! This books is maybe not quite as charming as the original "Freakonomics", but that was a fluke. Now they are self-aware. However, they also have carte-blanche to do pretty much anything they want, and they produced a darn fine sequel, IMO. Two thumbs up.
39: Hungry: A Young Model's Story of Appetite, Ambition and the Ultimate Embrace of Curves, by Crystal Renn. OK, you might not think that a 23-year-old fashion model's memoirs would be worth reading. Ordinarily I'd agree with you. HOWEVER, this one is good. In a nutshell, Crystal was discovered and signed as a teen, lost a ton of weight because they told her to, developed anorexia, decided it wasn't worth it, told the model industry to go fuck itself, put the weight back on, went up to like 175 lbs, signed with a plus-size agency and became a BIG FAT SUCCESS. She also seems very smart. I especially liked that she spent the whole book writing things like, "I read once..." and "at the time I was reading..." and "I just read this book that..." and so forth. That's nice from a model. Recommended.
40: Eating the Dinosaur, by Chuck Klosterman. His latest book of essays. I heart Chuck. Recommended.
41: Nightlight: A Parody, by the Harvard Lampoon. This one was kind of stupid. You probably guessed that already, though. If you haven't read the Twilight books yet, then I recommend it for some light weekend reading. Otherwise, don't bother. You know the story and probably have already made better fun of it your own self.
36: Pretty in Plaid: A Life, a Witch, and a Wardrobe, or, the Wonder Years Before the Condescending, Egomaniacal, Self-Centered Smart-Ass Phase, by Jen Lancaster. Jen waxes nostalgic over her childhood and fixes each event to something she was wearing at the time. This is my second Jen Lancaster book to read (the first was "Such a Pretty Fat", which was better, but kind of self-loathing), and it will probably be the last. She's not as funny as she thinks she is, and comes off as kind of a self-centered bitch. I was glad when I got through with the book.
37: When We Were Beautiful, Bon Jovi. This is the companion book to the documentary of the same name, shot to document their 25th anniversary of the band. It's very nice; it's beautifully done, and contains photos and interviews which didn't make the documentary, BUT it didn't tell me too much I didn't already know. I really want something a little more exhaustive, like a Bon Jovi anthology. I'm never going to get that, of course, since Jon's such a control freak. Re that: David's interview is a bit telling. He comes this close to bitching about his job. I wonder if he's maybe a little sick of Jon after all these years?
38: SuperFreakonomics: Global Cooling, Patriotic Prostitutes, and Why Suicide Bombers Should Buy Life Insurance, by Steven D. Levitt and Stephen J. Dubner. This was VERY interesting. I especially enjoyed the chapter on the hookers. I am being serious! This books is maybe not quite as charming as the original "Freakonomics", but that was a fluke. Now they are self-aware. However, they also have carte-blanche to do pretty much anything they want, and they produced a darn fine sequel, IMO. Two thumbs up.
39: Hungry: A Young Model's Story of Appetite, Ambition and the Ultimate Embrace of Curves, by Crystal Renn. OK, you might not think that a 23-year-old fashion model's memoirs would be worth reading. Ordinarily I'd agree with you. HOWEVER, this one is good. In a nutshell, Crystal was discovered and signed as a teen, lost a ton of weight because they told her to, developed anorexia, decided it wasn't worth it, told the model industry to go fuck itself, put the weight back on, went up to like 175 lbs, signed with a plus-size agency and became a BIG FAT SUCCESS. She also seems very smart. I especially liked that she spent the whole book writing things like, "I read once..." and "at the time I was reading..." and "I just read this book that..." and so forth. That's nice from a model. Recommended.
40: Eating the Dinosaur, by Chuck Klosterman. His latest book of essays. I heart Chuck. Recommended.
41: Nightlight: A Parody, by the Harvard Lampoon. This one was kind of stupid. You probably guessed that already, though. If you haven't read the Twilight books yet, then I recommend it for some light weekend reading. Otherwise, don't bother. You know the story and probably have already made better fun of it your own self.