September Books

Yay for actually following through on a blog "project" for once.

I only read nine books this month, and only seven if you don't count the ones I read aloud to David (and I usually don't). I realize that me fretting about finishing only nine books is kind of ridiculous, but I have 370 on my book list, and it's growing every day. So, you know. Perspective.

Wild Swans: was an autobiography/biography Jung Chang wrote about herself, her mother, and her maternal grandmother's experiences in communist China. It took me a while to get through it, but it's written really well and definitely showed me a lot of new experiences (which is what I love about memoirs). However, a lot of the material is absolutely heartbreaking; towards the end of the book, the author describes murders and suicides with a nonchalance that shows better than any narrative description how commonplace these tragedies were. Would recommend.

Love You, Mean It: is about the friendship between four widows kindled by the deaths of their husbands on 9/11. I cried almost the whole way through it. It wasn't as political as I thought it would be. It mostly focused on the widows' acceptance and recovery instead of the anger/trauma they felt about the terrorist attacks.

The Poems of Richard Wilbur: is a collection I bought for an assignment when I took American Lit with Boone. I skimmed the book for a few poems that I felt I could write about and then ignored it until this month. It does contain one of my most favorite poems, the one about laundry day (which, coincidentally, was my inspiration for the title of this blog). I'm not really a poetry person, though, no matter how much I try. So I guess I fail at being literate in that respect.
Sidenote: Pablo Neruda is one of the few poets I love, and if you haven't, you should see the film Il Postino, which is about the bff-ness between Pablo Neruda and his postman. I don't really know if it's based on a true story or not...either way, it's worth it.

I Kissed Dating Goodbye: is one of the books David and I bought to read together and...erm...make fun of. (shame face) So if you're looking for a sincere opinion about this book, go look somewhere else. I think the concept of refraining from physical affection between Christian couples can be cute and sincere and lovely, but I never really bought into it myself, and I think a lot of the time it's steeped in hypocrisy and holier-than-thou-osity. Joshua Harris' writing leaves something to be desired (ha! Cos it's about resisting desire and temptation...anyway...), to put it nicely. Some of my favorite parts were when Harris'd say something like, "Don't come off as smug and superior," cos he TOTALLY came off like he thought he deserved first place in heaven. David and I liked it enough to look for the sequel about Harris courting his wife and I totally found it cos I am the best thrift store treasure-hunter ever so there's a review to look forward to or possibly ignore if you think I'm a jerk.

Wonder Boys: I picked up because I already own The Mysteries of Pittsburgh because it's about Pittsburgh!, but this one came first on my list. Chabon's writing kind of reminds me of a toned-down Palahniuk, which is definitely a good thing. It was funny and I finished it within a few days. Would recommend.

Dead as a Doornail: was weird, even for a Charlaine Harris novel. I mean, it was okay. But it's probably my least favorite of the series so far. More vampires, fewer naked old men (wolves?) fighting to the death, please. Also fewer Sookie tragedies. It's starting to make me wonder if she'll eventually lose a limb or something to propel the plot.

Vanity Fair's Tales of Hollywood: would have been a lot better had I known about more than three movies (of the twelve, maybe?) it discussed. It was like the movie trivia on IMDB except 300 pages long. If that's what you're into.

Olive Kitteredge: was amazing, though not very cheerful. It's about an older woman and her relationship with her husband, but also about several characters in their little New England town. I probably would have identified with it more had I been closer to the narrator's situation (children getting married, growing older, accepting it), but I would still recommend it.

Influence: The Psychology of Persuasion: Fascinating. It was what it sounds like: Dr. Cialdini explains why we're influenced the way we are and how we can ignore or overcome sales gimmicks to ensure we are consumers because we want to be, not because we got tricked. Would recommend.