read 75 books in 2006

Book # 11 Never Let Me Go by Kazua Ishiguro

t first, I was a little apprehensive, the book started off to be a saacharine and sentimental story about a girl who missed her boarding school. However, as the book unfolded, I soon realized it was a science fiction book-the human side, theoretics about cloning. I won’t say anymore, but this book turned out to be more of a page turner than I expected. I wouldn’t say that it’s the best book I have ever read or the most catching, but it certainly made me think-changed my molecules around a little bit and made me think about humanity in a new light. It’s a good, quick read and I recommend it if you’re interested in the human interest side of science fiction.

Book # 12 Written on the Body by Jeanette Winterson

This is a book entirely about passion, lust, infidelity and human error. It’s been so long since I’ve read a book so emotionally heightened, I was almost unsure what to make of it. It’s something I would have loved in highschool because it was so grandiose-now I prefer less manic works-however, now that i’ve gotten into the voice of the narrator, I really am enjoying the language and fluidity of emotions. The interesting thing about this novel-the narrator has no gender cues-all you have is this seductive story, full of emotional energy and the wildness and insanity of the narrator’s affair with a married woman.

Book # 13 Perfume by Patrick Suskind

The story is about a baby born with no human smell, who grows up with an exceptional sense of smell. He can smell money in walls, distinguish a million scents, and eventually after murdering a 14 year old girl, seeks to immitate her brilliant human perfume by learning the art of perfumery. The story goes on from there, and has many philisophical elements as well as an outstandingly inventive and enticing narrative. The text is bone-chilling, gruesome and a page-turner thru and thru. Apparently, Kurt Kobain loved this book (I didn’t know until ruxxell told me) and he wrote Scentless Apprentice about the book’s murderous character. Anyway, let’s just say the book ends quite shockingly, gruesomely and deservingly.

Book # 14 Wall of Light by Edeet Ravel

This wasn’t a bad book-an easy read, for sure, and relatively short. I guess I really don’t have much to say about this book except that it’s part of a Trilogy (learned this a little to late) and I accidently read the last book. Basically in one day she “kissed a student, pursued a lover, found my father and left my brother.” Yeah, just like that. You’d think it would have been more exciting, but because I knew it was all coming-I was just like yeah. I knew that would happen, yeah, that’s her dad. Yeah that guy is going to get DONE. There were also these CHEESY letters from the Sonya’s mother and these diary entries from Sonya’s Nephew. The diary entries were o-kay but the letters, god, let’s not get started on those. I skimmed most of them because they were so long and uneventful. The book gets a C+ overall.

Book # 15 Mrs. Dalloway by Virginia Woolf

Book # 16 History of Love by Nicole Krauss

Book # 17 Atonement by Ian McEwan

Book # 6 White Teeth

This book was probably the hardest to get through out of all my present reading. It was a large book, about 700 pages, and the basic story was about two families and the problems of race in England, Islam, and Religion overall. I though it was a respectable book, intelligently written-full-and the story was powerful and had a long life span. However, unfortunately, I didn’t like the book. Perhaps it was the style, or maybe I never invested in the characters but for whatever reason, I was glad it was over.

Book # 7 White Noise

I read excerpts of this book for a Freshman class in college, but I’m surprised I never picked it up again until now. This is possibly one of the most impressive and true books about death ever written. Though there is a story which is weaved with themes of death, it primarily is a jumping off point for the author’s theories about society and culture. I think this is an excellent and sad tale about the curious nature of our relationship with death and how we learn to come to terms with the greatest loss of all, ourselves.

Book # 8 Extremly Loud and Incredibly Close

You must read this book. Written in present day NYC after 9/11 this book explores a young boy’s journey into coming to terms with his father’s death. It’s a story which understand and connects all points in time together including before the narrator was born. This book has an insane ability to touch the reader without manipulating his/her sensibilities toward the 9/11 disaster. Instead, it’s an honest, often humourous but ultimately heart-breaking account of a son who journeys past fear to learn more about his father.

Book # 9 True at First Light

This was one of my least favorite Hemingway stories. This fictional memoir is an account of Hemingways second trip to Africa with his fourth wife. Though interesting, this book ultimately leaves too much to the imagination and too much unsaid. Hemingways former delicacy of applying the iceburg principle to his writing -seems to fail here. Instead of showing the tip of the iceburg and hinting at what’s underneath-the tip isn’t even clear at all. A very shallow book from what seems to be the last writings of a very tired man.

Book # 10 Devil in the Details

I started on Devil in the Details yesterday and I’m more than halfwayfinished. Basically it’s the story of one girls struggle with Scrupulosity, an obsessive compulsive disorder which is tied toreligion. The book is hilarious and wildly manic. There are alsoseveral “how-to” guides which gives directions she used to doeverything from washing her hands to making a kosher quiche. I highlyrecommend this book because it’s much less of a pity-party and more ofan embarrassing but hilarious account of one girls manic worries andcarefully calculated “scruples.” It’s a little terrifying and therewere moments when I began to worry about certain friends of mine, andthen my father’s mild OCD (which was much worse when I was younger.)

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Books left-65-holy crap.

If you are passionate about Japan, or just mildly curious—this is a great book. The writer carefully documents her mistakes as well as her triumphs(Trust me there are more mistakes)as she journeys into Japan in search of Wa (Harmony). The reader really gets to experience the struggles of getting to know a new land, trying to understand the complexities of Japan and Japanese culture and hiearchy, and in the end, are reborn—inspired—and a little touched by how human the writer is. I was impressed at how candid she was, and though it wasn’t the best piece of writing, it has soul and a realness to it. The writer has a human voice, one we don’t hear to often in daily clutter.

There are some fantastic revelations about the Japanese, and in the end she comes to an understanding about how they’ve come to be the way they are, and the beauty in the masks they wear. It is a soulful yet human journey into the mysterious world of what it means to be a good Japanese.

Next book, I started on the T this morning, looks VERY promising: White Teeth by Zadie Smith.

1.) The Namesake
2.) Tis
3.) Hard-Boiled Wonderland and the End of the World
4.) Everything is Illuminated
5.) (Working on) Japanland

I need to step up a notch, read more than just on the T, maybe I’ll read at lunch, too. (If I can stay off the Intranet)

1.) The Namesake
2.) Hardboiled Wonderland and the End of the World

I need to try harder!

I’ll double my efforts in Feb.