Thursday, December 4, 2008

Literary Dissapointment

Do you ever worry that you're spending too much time wandering around the Christmas market and not enough time expanding your cultural horizons? I mean, it's certainly optimistic to expect me to keep up with say, the art or music scene. I have limited abilities to grasp the full complexities of these subjects. But I thought I might be doing better with current literature. It turns out I'm not.

Actually, I have this sort of crisis every year when the NY Times publishes it's list of 100 notable books. This year I have read exactly 0. Last year was a little better - at least I had read the seventh Harry Potter book. But since no Harry Potter book was published this year, I can only say that I've read other works of seven of the authors. At this point, I'm really over Philip Roth (and frankly, I don't care if he ever wins the Nobel Prize). Both Annie Proulx and Toni Morrison make me want to throw myself off a bridge (not necessarily a bad thing, but I have to save up emotional energy for that). And - does it count that I listened to Jhumpa Lahiri read from her latest book on NPR? I swear I'm going to read it! But see, um, I have to order English books from the internet here, which limits spontaneous book buying.

Anyway, I'm just now getting around to reading "A Man in Full" and that's partly because I'm borrowed it from Georg at the same time I borrowed one called "Just Friends" with flying pigs on the cover. I don't know if you've read that one, but here's the spoiler: Freya and Jack end up together in the end.

Are other people doing better? On the plus side, since MTV is mostly in English here, I'm more up to date with my pop culture than I was in the U.S.

5 comments:

Reforming Soccer Mom said...

I read about 2 books a year that aren't for school. One in the summer and one over Christmas. Summer is fiction and Winter is something like I am America and so can you or something by Sarah Vowell...political satire I guess. I don't think I have ever read anything by Toni Morrison. i heard that NPR thing too, and I think it sounded very good.

Anonymous said...

Okay, well, I didn't even know the New York Times published a most notable books for the year list. I guess that REALLY makes me illiterate... oh well...I'm sleep deprived also, and to tell you the truth, catching up on my sleep seems a better way to spend my time, if I had to make a choice.

anaeromyxo said...

John le Carre, Curtis Sitenfield, and Toni Morrison: That's the list of authors on the list that I've heard of and read books by. Add to that John Updike, whom I've also heard of, and you have the complete list of anything on that list that means anything to me... I'd like to do better. Maybe we should book club one over Christmas! I feel that I should get bonus points for actually being in the middle of my Curtis Sitenfield book (Man of my Dreams), and having read another one (Prep).

anaeromyxo said...

If we do Unaccustomed Earth, Amisha would probably join us.

biophd said...

Sounds like fun. Do you have time for a book club? And Katy - are you in? I'm impressed. I haven't heard of John le Carre or Curtis Sitenfield, but I do remember you telling me about Prep. OH! Wait! I think I read "Man of My Dreams." My copy has a frog on the cover. Does that sound right? I'm going to check at home today.

Okay people, gotta go catch the night train for Paris. Yes. My life is very exciting and romantic.