I have always imagined that Paradise would be a kind of library.
– Jorge Luis Borges
What I’m reading right now:
- Ravens, by George Dawes Green
- 1984, by George Orwell
- Front Row at the White House, by Helen Thomas
What I’ve read this year:
- Atonement, by Ian McEwan
- This book is so good. I had already seen the movie, but I wanted to read the book, too – it’s gorgeously written. And now I can say that the movie is a very true adaptation of the book.
- A Diamond as Big as the Ritz, by F. Scott Fitzgerald (short stories)
- Joe Jones, by Anne Lamott
- Supreme Courtship, by Christopher Buckley
- When the Emperor Was Divine, by Jule Otsuka
- This book was a beautiful, quick read. It’s about a Japanese family sent to an internment camp during World War II.
- Baltimore Noir, by Laura Lippman
- This is a collection of short stories by Baltimore authors. There are a number of different cities included in the Noir series; you should check them out if you have an affinity for a particular city.
- Lessons from the Fat-o-sphere: Quit Dieting and Declare a Truce With Your Body, by Kate Harding and Marianne Kirby
- I’ve been reading “fat acceptance” blogs for over a year now, and this book is written by two of the leading bloggers in that area. I don’t know that I agree with everything they’re saying, but I certainly think the message that you’re worthy of love (and other good things) no matter what size you are is a good one.
- How to Be Lost, by Amanda Eyre Ward
- Why Love is Not Enough, by Sol Gordon
- This is another one from my mom; it made me feel much better about things. I ordered my own copy so I can re-read it and write in it.
- The Zookeeper’s Wife: A War Story, by Diane Ackerman
- My Sister’s Keeper, by Jodie Picoult
- I’m Not the New Me, by Wendy McClure
- Things I Learned About My Dad (in Therapy): Essays, edited by Heather B. Armstrong
- Certain Girls, by Jennifer Weiner
- I’ve read everything she’s done, and I love them all, though Good in Bed – her first – is still my favorite.
- The Appeal, by John Grisham
- A Year of Pleasures, by Elizabeth Berg
- The Girl on the Couch, by Lorna Martin
- Now You See Him, by Eli Gottlieb
What are you reading?
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January 14, 2008 at 3:29 pm
kylydia
I need to start reading, again. I feel the pull nearly daily, now, but have yet to make the time. I have two novels on my bedside table that could only be categorized as “escapism entertainment reading.” I need to read. Lunchtime reading is something I might be able to get down with.
January 24, 2008 at 8:57 am
Spike
I started “The Accidental Buddhist” yesterday. Loving it. I’m also in the middle of “Managing Humans” by Michael Lopp, also love it (see his incredibly witty blog here: http://www.randsinrepose.com/).
I recently finished “Clarke County” by Allen Steele. Before that it was “Spindrift” by Steele as well. In the recent past was Neal Asher’s, “The Skinner”, “Thirte3n” by Richard Morgan.
And of course an ongoing string of psychology research articles (because I have to) and the better part of “Observing the User Experience” by Kuniavsky.
I just ordered “The Inmates Are Running The Asylum” and “About Face 3: The Essentials of Interaction Design” by Alan Cooper. Snoozers maybe, but we’ll see.
April 11, 2008 at 7:15 am
kylydia
I saw the “84, Charring Cross Road” movie. It has Anthony Hopkins in it and I cannot remember the actress’s name. I think it would be a better book.
April 11, 2008 at 9:38 pm
Lyrically Me
I love anything by Jodi Picoult. Her new one “Change of Heart” is amazing also.
Right now I’m reading “The Almost Moon” by Alice Sebold. Very different that “The Lovely Bones”. I’m still not sure what I think about it.
June 5, 2008 at 6:14 pm
yaketyyak
Jane Eyre is one of my favorite books. Right now, I’m reading The Third Angel, by Alice Hoffman, and Kate Chopin’s The Awakening (that one’s a re-read, actually). Recently finished Gods Behaving Badly. It’s a hoot.
July 7, 2008 at 10:16 pm
Michael Todor
The End of America: I keep seeing this book come up on must read lists…think I’ll give it a gander. Does it make you want to get more active about working for change, or does it confirm some suspicions? Are you a serial reader, meaning you only read one book at a time, or do you, as I do, have many books open and being read at once and don’t necessarily even feel compelled to finish them all?
Michael
ps. like your blog and your interests…
July 7, 2008 at 10:24 pm
Melanie
Thanks for reading, Michael. The End of America made me feel . . . scared, quite frankly. It feels like such a huge thing to deal with, one that a lot of people would rather not be out in the open. It feels unbeatable in some ways, too, at least without a change in administration. But I think it’s also hopeful in a lot of ways, too.
I used to only read one book at a time, but in the last several years, I’ve started to read more than one. Now, because I commute using public transportation, I always have a book in my bag, which is why I’ve been able to read so much this year – I read one book during my commute and a different one at night before I go to bed. I need to pick a new commute book since I finished the Mark Haddon book on the bus home tonight.
And oh – I feel compelled to finish them all. I rarely feel ok stopping for good in the middle. I’ve put books down for months at a time, especially this year for some reason (Portrait of a Lady and Straight Man come to mind), but I always come back to them.
August 28, 2008 at 12:19 am
Tig
A quick question about the baseball fan book by Zack Hemple (well, alright, a couple questions): Who is Zack Hemple? I mean, is he a journalist, a sportswriter, some other kind of writer, something else entirely? Also, what kinds of things did you learn? What about baseball did he teach you?