#20
At last I've found a book of short stories I enjoy! Normally, short stories either bore me or depress me. They bore me because there's not enough time to really get attached to the characters and I can't seem to get invested. They bore me because they tend to be dark and depressing; how else do you make a short story punchy enough to carry any kind of message. Happy short stories seem to end up in one Chicken Soul book or another.
Changing Planes by Ursula K. LeGuin was fantastic. The premise being that, if trained, when you are bored and frustrated at an airport you can slip between dimensions and travel to other planes. Half travel book, half fantasty novel, the short stories each deal with a different world and approaches each descriptively or historically. Interesting, sad, funny; each world deals with issues very much present on Earth. This is the kind of short story book I'd like to write. I can imagine Ursula lying in bed, dreaming up histories of make-believe planets and those that didn't have potential for a full novel, got into this anthology. This novel was all the more potent since I was reading it on an airplane!
#21
An Uncomplicated Kindness by Miriam Toews was a difficult read for me. The story is told from the perspective of Nomi Nickel, a teenager whose mom and sister have both run away, leaving her and her dad trying to survive and understand what happened. Set in a small, Mennonite town in Manitoba, I thought that it would be very relevant to my perspective and understanding but I found the dark depressing tone and the lack of anything positive in regards to the Mennonite lifestyle rather jarring and at odds with my experience. I've seen a lot of negative things in the Mennonite world but I've also seen a lot of positive things such as the emphasis on family and good food and a holistic, frugal lifestyle that is akin to many hipsters today.
Things that seemed eerily familiar from her book:
- the whispers of shunnings that happened or might happen if you don't toe the line
- the expression "oba yo!" (only understandable by Plat Deutsch speakers)
- the idea of humility and "only God will judge" contrasted with rampant judgement and critisism of individuals and of the whole entire world
- the use of "silly" as an uncontrolled and negative action (as opposed to "goofy")
- cult-like leaders
- the non-aggressive but un-socialized staring, rather like what babies and young children do but somehow continuing on to adulthood.
Things that didn't resonate with me or remind me of my childhood:
- the rampant drinking, drugs, cynicism (probably because I was seven when we left..would be interested to hear what my older siblings would have to say about this book)
- the divorce (that just didn't happen!)
- the ignoring of "worldly clothes". In the culture I grew up on, that was cause of shunning!
- the tv (although she does mention that it was frowned upon; not cause for shunning however).
#22 Bossypants by Tina Fey
I've been wanting to read Bossypants by Tina Fey for a long time and perhaps the build up is partially to blame for my disappointment but, even though it was a quick entertaining read, I didn't think much of the book and will stick to her screen appearances from now on. Fey skirted away from any juicy content or new revelations, wasn't particularly funny, jumped around in a very organized fashion that made it hard to follow and wasn't at all inspiring.
#23 Strangers by Anita Brookner
I've really enjoyed Anita Brookner's books in the past, notably Hotel du Lac but I was disappointed in Strangers. I liked that it was set from the viewpoint of someone older, socially awkward, and introverted. It was a nice change from the normal young, beautiful protagonist.
#24 The Secret of Platform 13 by Eva Ibbotson
This was a cute whimsical read full of fun new imaginary creatures, kind of like a modern-day Narnia. Would recommend to any kid or kid-at-heart.
#25 The Best Laid Plans by Terry Fallis
I LOVED this book. Perhaps a little heavy on the workings of the Canadian parliament for some people, it reminded me of my time working in the political system. I found it funny and nerdy and, surprisingly, touching.
#26 Middlesex by Jeffrey Eugenides
This book was incredibly potent and within a few pages, I was completely hooked! I don't know that I would recommend it for everyone but the personal story of a young child with intersex conditions as well as the family history was fascinating.
#27 Pink Sugar by O. Douglas
This was an old tattered book on my childhood bookshelf. A sweet story about a world weary woman who is delighted to settle into a small town and make a home for three children whose mother just died. This is exactly the kind of simple book that Scott always makes fun of my reading, since I'm such a city girl who would probably hate this kind of rural utopia, but there is something about this style that brings me back again and again to L. M. Montgomery and Jan Kaaron of the Mitford series and the Irish County Village series by Patrick Taylor. Sometimes, when life is stressful, you don't want your reading to be stressful as well.
#28 Geisha, A Life by Mineko Iwasaki
Many people have read or seen the movie, Memoirs of a Geisha by Arthur Golden. The fact that a book about a long-standing and deeply honoured part of Japanese culture was written by a Western man who, in the process, betrayed sources that wished to be anonymous is offensive to many Japanese people. Geisha, A Life is an attempt at telling the true story and is written by one of the most sucessful Geisha of all time. Although perhaps not as entertaining or plot driven as The Life of Geisha, Mineko's telling is more authentic and realistic and therefore, worth reading.
#29, #30, #32 and #33
I honestly and truly don't consider myself a book snob. I have books in almost every genre that I love and I don't read based on Oprah's list or the New York Times Bestseller list. I love simple books (See #27) and sci fi (#20) and family history (#26) and memoirs (#28) and self-help (#19) and children's books (#16) and random collections of intersting facts (#13) and many more. However, I do believe that some books will make you a better person and will inspire you and challenge you. Other books might not do more for you than a soap opera and I do try to avoid those.
Part of this list was to challenge myself to not read books that I'd be ashamed to post here. But sometimes, when you're at the beach, or when you're sick and you have a Kobo that has free books available you slip into an easy novel that doesn't require much thinking and I fell into this a bit the last week when I was both at the beach and subsequently, sick. So four books on this list, I'm not even going to bother talking about. They were all the same; they all had stereotypical gender roles and sickly happy endings and titles like "Melt with Me" and "Wedding Belles". (If you really want to know, you can head over to my Goodreads account)I'd like to say, I'm not even going to be ashamed...but despite my desire to not be a book snob, I can't help but be a little bit ashamed for wasting my time on these when I know there is much better material out there.
#31 The Perfume Collector by Kathleen Tessaro
While some might deem this "light summer reading" I really enjoyed The Perfume Collector and, unlike my previous reads, I'm not ashamed to post it here! Split into two different timelines, it is the story of two women from two different times joined by a mysterious will. Poignant, sad but with a classic touch of flying the coop: a mysterious benefactor sets things in place for one to leave a stagnant position and find freedom, joy and meaning in a new environment. Something I could really relate to and probably something most of us still desire: something more and something better!
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