August-October 2009 books

Oh hello. I’ve still kept a list of books I’ve read. It’s just that motivation takes a very long vacation around the halfway mark. In the meantime I’ve acquired a taste for YA fiction and Diana Wynne Jones, not necessarily in that order. If you read Diana Wynne Jones (of Howl’s Moving Castle fame– trust me when I say the novel is much, MUCH better than the movie), please do not be discouraged by the covers of her books. They are not really very accurate of the tone of her novels (she’s mostly fantasy, but of a fun and amusing kind, not the eyerolling- cliche-plotholes kind. and sometimes the books she writes are parodies of the genre itself).

Books Read:
73. The Little Giant of Aberdeen County, Tiffany Baker (fun read. a bit of letdown near the end, i think.)

74. Ex Libris, Anne Fadiman * (finally finished this collection of amusing essays about, what else, books.)

75. The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane, Kate Dimillo (YA- this sounded a LOT like the velveteen rabbit. it also had extremely strong Christian overtones that I was not overly fond of, but then again, I’m a pretty cynical reader who got subjected to velveteen rabbit ad nauseam at bible studies.)

76. House of Many Ways, Diana Wynne Jones * (YA- love, LOVE this book. it’s got a dog and magic spells for conjuring a meal out of thin air. among other endearing situations only DWJ would think of.)

77. Tide, Feather, Snow, Miranda Weiss * (started out beautifully, has a lot of vocabulary words (mostly describing nature of Alaska), but got a little depressing near the end. )

78. Castle In the Air, Diana Wynne Jones * ( YA- really entertaining and feel-good.and has a very cute kitten named Whippersnaper)

79. Odd and the Frost Giants, Neil Gaiman * (YA- fun, short story about a boy who outwits the giants.)

80. Asterios Polyp, David Mazzucchelli * (GN- I really liked this, though I must admit I skimmed the art/architectual/visual explanations.)

81. Hunter (Richard Stark’s Hunter), Darwyn Cooke * (GN- really well done graphic novelization of Richard Stark’s hard-boiled? ham-handed? highly unnecessary but also highly effective cold, ruthless violence? novels.)

82. The Chronicles of Chrestomanci, Vol. 1, Diana Wynne Jones * (YA- first volume in Chrestomanci series, includes Charmed Life and Lives of Christopher Chant, and you will understand why cats say “Wong!”)

83. A Reliable Wife, Robert Goolrick * (Wonderful flow and gripping story.)

84. F-stop, Anthony Johnson and Matthew Loux (GN- older graphic novel, kinda okay, amusing to read.)

85. The Eternal Sunshine, Gene Yuen Lang and Derek Dirk Kim (GN- fun three short stories to read)

86. (partially finished, had to return to library) Don’t Cry, Mary Gaitskill (some of the stories were over my head. some of them were quite good. take your pick!)

87. Prayers for Sale, Sandra Dallas (fun read, quilt-bee type of story)

88. Graceling, Kristin Cashore * (YA- love LOVE this book. I call it the anti-twilight. and no vampires. and oh yes, there’s sex, but it’s not gratuitous or hinted at in 2000 different annoying ways. It’s a cross between Buffy (in terms of strong female roles) and a myth-fantasy genre.)

89. Girl with a Dragon Tattoo, Steig Larsson * (good. intense. make sure you have a free weekend to read this, because you will not put it down.)

90. The Diary of a Part time Indian, Sherman Alexie * (YA-really great YA- about identity and finding yourself, on an Indian reservations. Also made me giggle b/c of the illustrations)

91. Alex and Me, Irene Pepperberg * (touching story of a parrot who literally changed the word birdbrain. also, wonderful human-animal interaction)

92. Fire, Kristin Cashore * (YA- prequel to Graceling, can stand alone on its own. A darker story of Fire (still a strong heroine, though not necessarily strong in the most stereotypical way). Lovely complicated situations (no, really, it’s done very well)..)

93. Catherine, Called Birdy, Karen Cushman * (YA- Corpus bones, this is a really great book. seriously. Also, any book with a curse called “God’s Thumbs” gets my vote.)

94. The Entomological Adventures of Augustus T. Percival: Petronella Saves Nearly Everyone, Dene Low (YA- this almost got a star except for the ending, which fell rather flat. It’s not that ending itself was bad, it was fine, it’s just that it was rather abrupt, stylistically.)

95. (Re-read) The Graveyard Book, Neil Gaiman * (YA- It’s one of these books that get better the more you read it- the story is familiar but you pick up the more amusing nuances. Absolutely perfect October book.)

96. The White Queen, Philippa Gregory (grown-up historical fiction to make up for all the YA historical fiction I’m about to read. Story of Henry VIII’s grandmother, whose sons mysteriously disappeared while in the Tower. )

97. The Perilous Gard, Elizabeth Marie Pope * (YA – wonderful, wonderful book about a legend. Also the perfect Halloween book. The ending is one of the most perfect I’ve read.)

98. The Chronicles of Chrestomanci, Vol. II, Diana Wynne Jones * (YA- the first is a spoof off Romeo and Juliet, involving white and black cats, the second is about witch week, which i think is pretty self-explanatory)

99. Ballistics, Billy Collins (good, makes me want to look up his earlier works)

Currently Reading:
About Grace, Anthony Doerr
The Serial Garden, Joan Aiken (so much fun!)

Bought Recently:
-an embarassing amount of used books at Wonder books (great used bookstore in Fredericksburg, MD. really wonderful selection of old, seconds, and used.) Most were older works by Diana Wynne Jones (her works are hard to find because they are primarily sold in UK).
-Persephone books: Someone at A Distance, Dorothy Whipple; Mariana, Monica Dickens; Good Evening. Mrs. Cravens, Molly Panter-Downes
-Bright Wings: An Illustrated Anthology of Poems About Birds, Billy Collins and David Sibley

Whew. That should teach me to delay blogging for so long.

May 2009 Books

Guide:
GN= graphic novel
YA= young adult/tween
* = recommended
[]= on hiatus

Books Read This Month:
44. Memorist, MJ Rose
45. Not Becoming My Mother, Ruth Reichl
46. Verses, Ani DiFranco*
47. Love Comes First, Erica Jong*
48. Local, Brian Wood and Ryan Kelly
49. Pretty Little Monsters, Kelly Link*
50. The Sweet Life in Paris, David Lebovitz*
51. Izzy and Lenore, Jon Katz*
52. A Year in Our Gardens: Letters, Nancy Goodwin & Allen Lacy*
53. Evidence, Mary Oliver*
54. The Time Traveler’s Wife, Audrey Niffenegger
55. The Color of Earth Kim Dong Hwa (GN)
56. BlackJack Vol. 5, Osamu Tezuka (GN)
57. Valeria’s Last Stand, Marc Fitten*

Currently Rotating Reading list:
Tunneling to Center of Earth, Kevin Wilson
Coop, Michael Perry
The Astonishing Life of Octavian Nothing, M. T. Anderson (YA)

Bought:
BlackJack Vol. 5
The Color of Earth, Kim Dong Hwa
Moomin Vol. 3, Tove Jansson

Currently tempted by:
Last Night In Montreal, Emily St. John Mandel
The City & the City, China Mieville
Wicked Plants, Amy Stewart

Notes/Observations:
1. I read a lot (maybe faster) when I am sick and don’t feel like moving around. Hence the longer list this month.

2. Some of the books in this month’s list would make for interesting movies: The Time Traveler’s Wife (in a sort of Benjamin Button way, only sweeter ending), Valeria’s Last Stand (sort of like Chocolat, but without the chocolate.)

3. Valeria’s Last Stand is what I’d call comfort reading, kind of like comfort food. It’s not going to make you smarter or wiser, but it’ll make you feel good and respect old women. Not to mention, it is really meant to be read for fun. I highly recommend it if you are looking for a book to ease into the leisurely world of summer reading.

4. I can’t listen to music when running. So I bring poetry books instead, and if you like Ani DiFranco’s music you would probably like her Verses (some of them are songs, some of them are not). Mary Oliver’s newest book of poetry is already a favorite.

5. David Lebovitz will make you laugh, and he will also leave you feeling very, very hungry. Unfortunately, he also has a blog. Why unfortunately? Because given the scary number of blogs that I subscribe to I have pretty much given up catching up on anyone’s blog. Though it is nice to have a reference.

6. Jon Katz has somewhat restored my faith in him with his latest book. I thought his last book was a little trite, but his newest book is simply beautiful. And no dogs die in that one- though a lot of people do die (such is nature of hospice work). And dogs get my respect, again, for their extreme sensitivity and ability to provide people with just exactly what they need. And yes, he has a blog (sigh), with incredibly nostalgic photographs of the farms and the dogs.

7. It’s that time of year– a pile of books by the reading chair for the summer, along with a tall glass of iced herbal tea, or a long summer reading list, or even simpler, summer fiction issues (looking forward to the new yorker one, and the granta one looks interesting). I’m not sure there’s a specific requirement for summer reading– it doesn’t necessarily have to be light-hearted or be easy reading. It just has to be a good story, the one that you are most comfortable listening to and want to listen to. Do you have special requirements for summer reading?

April 27: The Flaw

The Flaw

The best thing about a hand-made pattern
is the flaw.
Sooner or later in a hand-loomed rug,
among the squares and flattened triangles,
a little red nub might soar above a blue field,
or a purple cross might sneak in between
the neat ochre teeth of the border.
The flaw we live by, the wrong color floss,
now wreathes among the uniform strands
and, because it does not match,
makes a red bird fly,
turning blue field into sky.
It is almost, after long silence, a word
spoken aloud, a hand saying through the flaw,
I’m alive, discovered by your eye.

–Molly Peacock

April 25: The Coming of Light

The Coming of Light

Even this late it happens:
the coming of love, the coming of light.
You wake and the candles are lit as if by themselves,
stars gather, dreams pour into your pillows,
sending up warm bouquets of air.
Even this late the bones of the body shine
and tomorrow’s dust flares into breath.

– Mark Strand

April 23: Courage

Courage

It is in the small things we see it.
The child’s first step,
as awesome as an earthquake.
The first time you rode a bike,
wallowing up the sidewalk.
The first spanking when your heart
went on a journey all alone.
When they called you crybaby
or poor or fatty or crazy
and made you into an alien,
you drank their acid
and concealed it.

Later,
if you faced the death of bombs and bullets
you did not do it with a banner,
you did it with only a hat to
cover your heart.
You did not fondle the weakness inside you
though it was there.
Your courage was a small coal
that you kept swallowing.
If your buddy saved you
and died himself in so doing,
then his courage was not courage,
it was love; love as simple as shaving soap.

Later,
if you have endured a great despair,
then you did it alone,
getting a transfusion from the fire,
picking the scabs off your heart,
then wringing it out like a sock.
Next, my kinsman, you powdered your sorrow,
you gave it a back rub
and then you covered it with a blanket
and after it had slept a while
it woke to the wings of the roses
and was transformed.

Later,
when you face old age and its natural conclusion
your courage will still be shown in the little ways,
each spring will be a sword you’ll sharpen,
those you love will live in a fever of love,
and you’ll bargain with the calendar
and at the last moment
when death opens the back door
you’ll put on your carpet slippers
and stride out.

–Anne Sexton

April 22: Thirteen Ways of Looking at a Blackbird

Apologies to Wallace Stevens for uhm, liberal use of the word blackbird.


Thirteen Ways of Looking at a Blackbird

I
Among twenty snowy mountains,
The only moving thing
Was the eye of the blackbird.

II
I was of three minds,
Like a tree
In which there are three blackbirds.

III
The blackbird whirled in the autumn winds.
It was a small part of the pantomime.

IV
A man and a woman
Are one.
A man and a woman and a blackbird
Are one.

V
I do not know which to prefer,
The beauty of inflections
Or the beauty of innuendoes,
The blackbird whistling
Or just after.

VI
Icicles filled the long window
With barbaric glass.
The shadow of the blackbird
Crossed it, to and fro.
The mood
Traced in the shadow
An indecipherable cause.

VII
O thin men of Haddam,
Why do you imagine golden birds?
Do you not see how the blackbird
Walks around the feet
Of the women about you?

VIII
I know noble accents
And lucid, inescapable rhythms;
But I know, too,
That the blackbird is involved
In what I know.

IX
When the blackbird flew out of sight,
It marked the edge
Of one of many circles.

X
At the sight of blackbirds
Flying in a green light,
Even the bawds of euphony
Would cry out sharply.

XI
He rode over Connecticut
In a glass coach.
Once, a fear pierced him,
In that he mistook
The shadow of his equipage
For blackbirds.

XII
The river is moving.
The blackbird must be flying.

XIII
It was evening all afternoon.
It was snowing
And it was going to snow.
The blackbird sat
In the cedar-limbs.

– Wallace Stevens

April 21: Sestina

Sestina

(for more information about this unique structure, go to the wiki page about sestinas)

September rain falls on the house.
In the failing light, the old grandmother
sits in the kitchen with the child
beside the Little Marvel Stove,
reading the jokes from the almanac,
laughing and talking to hide her tears.

She thinks that her equinoctial tears
and the rain that beats on the roof of the house
were both foretold by the almanac,
but only known to a grandmother.
The iron kettle sings on the stove.
She cuts some bread and says to the child,

It’s time for tea now; but the child
is watching the teakettle’s small hard tears
dance like mad on the hot black stove,
the way the rain must dance on the house.
Tidying up, the old grandmother
hangs up the clever almanac

on its string. Birdlike, the almanac
hovers half open above the child,
hovers above the old grandmother
and her teacup full of dark brown tears.
She shivers and says she thinks the house
feels chilly, and puts more wood in the stove.

It was to be, says the Marvel Stove.
I know what I know, says the almanac.
With crayons the child draws a rigid house
and a winding pathway. Then the child
puts in a man with buttons like tears
and shows it proudly to the grandmother.

But secretly, while the grandmother
busies herself about the stove,
the little moons fall down like tears
from between the pages of the almanac
into the flower bed the child
has carefully placed in the front of the house.

Time to plant tears, says the almanac.
The grandmother sings to the marvelous stove
and the child draws another inscrutable house.

-Elizabeth Bishop

April 16: Going Blind

Going Blind

She sat just like the others at the table.
But on second glance, she seemed to hold her cup
a little differently as she picked it up.
She smiled once. It was almost painful.

And when they finished and it was time to stand
and slowly, as chance selected them, they left
and moved through many rooms (they talked and laughed),
I saw her. She was moving far behind

the others, absorbed, like someone who will soon
have to sing before a large assembly;
upon her eyes, which were radiant with joy,
light played as on the surface of a pool.

She followed slowly, taking a long time,
as though there were some obstacle in the way;
and yet: as though, once it was overcome,
she would be beyond all walking, and would fly.

Rainer Maria Rilke

April 14: Sleep

Sleep

I love to go to sleep,
when bed takes me like a lover
wrapping my limbs in
cool linen, soothing
the fretfulness
of day glaring like
the Cyclops’ eye
in a forehead
of furrows.

More of the poem in Love Comes First by Erica Jong

April 11: He Wishes for the Cloths of Heaven

He Wishes For The Cloths Of Heaven

Had I the heavens’ embroidered cloths,
Enwrought with golden and silver light,
The blue and the dim and the dark cloths
Of night and light and the half-light,
I would spread the cloths under your feet:
But I, being poor, have only my dreams;
I have spread my dreams under your feet;
Tread softly because you tread on my dreams.

– W. B. Yeats