Concerned and waiting for a shoe (or perhaps a boot, or a piano) to drop. 23 hours ago
ABOUT-ME BLATHER
My life is a firmly-held contradiction. I grew up in the middle of the country, where I have come to believe that people calculate the exact center of every political issue or social problem, and plant their feet firmly there – fringes scarcely being tolerated – in ideas or people. I suppose conformity would have been a nifty goal, but I struggled to remain somewhat true to myself, wandering and pondering, sometimes my tendencies and actions not easily understood, even by me. While I would consider myself private, reticent, enigmatic, and intentionally veiled; occasionally I am daringly-comfortable exposing more of myself than others would. Contentment comes from that newness found in exploration of the mental and physical world, pushing myself, unprepared for the luster to fall from the fruit as it consistently does.
Those listed are what I can remember reading in 2009. Sometimes years just meld together; I will update as memory allows. Incidentally, I unsuccessfully attempted Say You're One of Them, something recommended by Oprah, and I have to say the book, actually a collection of short stories, was hideously terrible and just plain crap; as were my two readings of Revolutionary Road, where I was snubbed by the Gatsbyesque selfishness of the characters and couldn't have cared less about what their fate entailed.
And although they are somewhat interesting, I will never read another Dan Brown novel. His plots are so twisty and turny, that they give me a headache. C'mon Dan, the guy was immersed in a tank of "water" but didn't drown? Jesus H...give me a break.
The World's Greatest Books, Volumes I - VI took up a lot of time and were well worth it. I was introduced to many new authors and their works, and found most of the material captivating.
Before you get all elitist about some of my chosen material, don't. After spending a lot of my time reading pretty boring texts, I just need the ease of a vampire, laugh of an Evanovich, or the rampant romping in a Victorian romance. Granted, it is not classic literature, but must Americans who claim to "read" wouldn't know the difference, anyway.
My favorite of the year were Outliers by Malcolm Gladwell (non-fiction), and Let the Great World Spin by Colum McCann (fiction).
2009 includes:
The World's Greatest Books, Volumes I - VI
The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo
Outliers: The Story of Success
Revolutionary Road (2x)
Fearless Fourteen
Finger Lickin' Fifteen
Plum Lucky
The DaVinci Code
El ingenioso hidalgo Don Quijote de la Mancha
The Lost Symbol
The Picture of Dorian Gray
Let the Great World Spin
Rick Steves' Spain 2008
Spain in Literature
Touring Avila and Segovia
Green Your Work
The New Financial Capitalists
The Secret History of the Pink Carnation
The Masque of the Black Tulip
The Seduction of the Crimson Rose
The Deception of the Emerald Ring
Henry VIII: The King and His Court
Angry Candy
Glass Soup
The Book Thief
A Child Called It
Fast Food Nation
A Meaningful Life
New Moon
2010 will bring more texts and hopefully some Irish novels to preempt the August trip.