December Reads

BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOKKKKKKKKKSSSSSSSSSZZZZZZ.

I Was Told There’d Be Cake - Sloane Crosley: The reviews of this book compare Crosley to David Sedaris, to which I say, “Eh. Maybe.” At its best, the writing is funny and fast, and it mostly stayed in that realm. Still, it was too fluffy to stick with me at all. Good for a light, mindless, but entertaining read.

The Man Who Mistook His Wife for a Hat - Oliver Sacks: Sacks is a neurologist who writes here about his oddest cases. He's a wonderful storyteller and his tales here are deeply human and richly insightful. Great read.

Otherwise Known As the Human Condition - Geoff Dyer: If you enjoy magazine features, this would be a good book for you. It’s a thick collection of Dyer’s pieces, running a wide gamut of topics, all written with clarity and humor. Tough to just sit and read it through straight, though.

& Sons - David Gilbert: Excellent dysfunctional-family novel about the relationship between, you guessed it, fathers and sons. It gets a little fantastical at points, which is fun, and it's so self-aware, sharp and funny that it all works together beautifully. It reminded me of Tropper’s “This Is Where I Leave You”; if you enjoyed that, or if you liked “The Corrections” but wanted a touch less solipsism, I think you’d like this.

The Story of My Teeth - Valeria Luiselli: Weird, wonderful little book about a weird, wonderful little man who collects and auctions oddities like famous people’s teeth. Magical realism-lite, with beautifully drawn characters and landscapes. It’s a slim thing, and very enjoyable.

Daily Rituals - Mason Currey: I’d flipped through this book a few times at bookstores and was excited when it finally came into the library. It’s a collection of famous artists’ (past and present, mostly past) daily work habits and routines, and it’s fascinating. What I learned: writers take a lot of naps. Also, it seemed like most of the artists featured worked for only 3-4 hours each day, but did it consistently and filled the rest of their time with things they loved. I can get behind that. Also, though, the vast majority were supported financially by someone else, and had spouses who kept up the household and kept the children occupied and quiet.

Can't and Won't - Lydia Davis: A collection of short stories, many of them micro, many of them bizarre and hilarious, all of them super entertaining and extremely well-written.

Bark - Lorrie Moore: You know how I feel about short stories. These were EXCELLENT.

The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian - Sherman Alexie: Awesome YA novel about an Indian who decides to go to a high school outside his reservation. Drama and insights ensue. Growing up happens. There’s a lot of language for a YA book, so I’d recommend parents read it and approve before giving it to kids.

In Cold Blood - Truman Capote: This book has been haunting me for years, as I have this enormous fear of living in the country where no one could hear me screaming were a couple of murderers to barge into my house. And yes, it's a story about the Clutter family being killed, but it's not the horror story I was anticipating. Instead, it's a fascinating portrayal of the killers and of the town following the crime, and a peek inside the strange mind of Capote, who is not a visible presence in the book but is clearly an unreliable narrator nonetheless. But you all know this, because this is another one of those books everyone but me has already read.

Discover Your Inner Economist - Tyler Cowen: A sort of Malcolm Gladwell-lite, self-help-y behavioral economics book, of the sort I usually find interesting and helpful on some level. Pretty good.

Cities Are Good For You - Leo Hollis: Really interesting scholarly book about all things city: urban planning, the dynamics of crowds, the myths around city living, etc. If reading Jane Jacobs appeals to you, you’d probably like this too.

The Solitude of Prime Numbers - Paolo Giordano: This book was recommended by a reader I usually agree with, but I didn’t like it at all. It’s a coming-of-age story that marries unrealistic childhood trauma to over-indulgent, selfish lifelong behavior. Its main characters are surrounded by people who love them even though they exhibit no redeeming qualities, and the whole thing is topped off with an unsatisfying, too-neat ending that I didn’t buy at all. The writing is fine, but it’s not self-aware enough to provide any insight. If you liked “A Little Life”, you’d probably like this. I thought “A Little Life” was basically trauma porn and while this didn’t even approach the same levels, it still wasn’t a good read. And no, Paolo Giordano, I don't find it believable that the female lead could be anorexic for 20 years, subsisting on 100 carefully measured calories a day and suffer no consequences except a strained relationship with her husband who is, of all things, a handsome doctor. Please.  Come on.

Schindler’s List - Thomas Keneally: Good book, but rough reading, not only because the content is so horrific, but because it’s chock full of German and Polish names/locations. It made the reading slow and I confess I never really got into it.

Someone - Alice McDermott: A coming-of-age tale done beautifully. It follows a very ordinary life and it’s written very simply, and its power comes from its plainness.

Colors Insulting to Nature - Cintra Wilson: A hilarious book about a mother and daughter bent on achieving fame. The content probably wouldn’t agree with everyone, but it is incredibly funny and sharply written. The blurb on the front calls Wilson “the thinking woman’s David Foster Wallace,” which is confusing because I think David Foster Wallace is the thinking woman’s David Foster Wallace, but genuinely this book reminded me in some ways of “Infinite Jest”.

Celebrating a Christ-Centered Christmas - Emily Belle Freeman: A little book with ideas for spiritual family nights that center around each nativity figure. I didn’t read it in time to incorporate much into our celebrations this year, but I’m excited to use it next year.

Stiff - Mary Roach: I gave this book to my brother-in-law for Christmas, so I hurried and read it first so I knew what I was recommending him. Roach writes hilarious and weird science books; this one is about the various things that happen to dead bodies. It’s a bit morbid, but never crass, and always interesting and funny.

Treasure Island - Robert Louis Stevenson: Adding it to the list of books I’m dying to read to Graham and Margi when they get a little older.