02.) Hotel du Lac by Anita Brookner :: This is a slow rambling of characters as a woman takes a vacation at a hotel. There are some gorgeous descriptions, and the characters, although pretty stock as far as the kind of women you’d imagine staying at a hotel for a summer, are well imagined. I don’t understand how it won the Booker Prize. Perhaps because her last name is quite similar to the prize? And people got confused?

03.) Under the Volcano by Malcom Lowry :: All through out my first semester I kept hearing about writers who were influenced by this book, so I thought, “Well if David Markson loves it, perhaps I will too.” And guess what; it’s pretty freaking awesome. I’m about halfway through now and wow. Loving it. [update: amazing! His use of language is superior. The amount of myths/lit he touches upon is remarkable. Every detail is in tune with the purpose of the story. Cannot say enough that it's amazing.]

04.) The Edible Woman by Margaret Atwood :: This book isn’t as “deep” as I would’ve liked, much of it was a little pointed and obvious, but it kept my attention and I flew through it and I was happy with the ending. I doubt I’ll be reading it again, but glad I read it.

05.) I Remember by Joe Brainard :: It’s literally a list of things he remembers. Some are mundane, some are perverse, some are funny, some are long-ish. Very repetitious, but does give you a good sense of the life he’s led.

06.) Collected Prose by Elizabeth Bishop :: Ugh. I don’t find her writing style to be inspiring or helpful. Nor do I think her memories and stories are anything to write home about. I wish we didn’t have to read this for class.

07.) My Father and Myself by JR Ackerly :: Ugh again. Another book we had to read for class that was so poorly written I wanted to throw the book against the wall. ALL of it is “told” not “shown” and it’s just a sketchy history of his father as a philander (not that it affected him because he didn’t know until after his death) and his own story of a gay man. I don’t really know how or why these two stories are put together or why the style is so boring. But I stuck it out because apparently the ending is scandalous and the whole thing was published after the author’s death, so I thought it would be something exciting at the very end. Not to ruin it for you, but NOTHING HAPPENS IN THE END. Ugh. I’m starting to hate that we’re reading such lame books.

08.) Swann’s Way by Marcel Proust :: Well, he is detailed, I’ll give him that. This is a great book to read before you go to bed and also first thing in the morning when the light is streaming through the windows and you’re still tired and not willing to think to hard but just ride the wave of words. (note on 9.14.08 – rereading it is so much better. I am picking up on so many themes and humor that I missed the first time around.)

09.) The Power of Now by Eckhart Tolle :: I’m loving this book. You can look at the main blog to see why.

10.) Welcome to My Country by Lauren Slater :: I read this book when I was in undergrad taking a creative writing class. I loved it but it has been sitting on my shelf since then. Once I had finished #8 & #9 I needed something to read on the subway and picked it up on my way out the door. And damn. It’s such a good read. Creative & Insightful & True. I’m a little in love with Ms. Slater.

11.) The Golden Notebook by Doris Lessing :: I figured if it won the Nobel Prize I should give it a read. And so far it’s pretty amazing. But I’m not that far in, and it is a THICK book, so it’ll take me a while and I’ll come back and update. Update #1 (4.4.08) Now that I’m through the African/Communist section and more into the personal lives I’m loving it so much. I got through over 100 pages the other night. Update #2 (5.11.08) I finished. And it’s amazing. Then end sort of wraps itself up quickly, but yeah, it was enjoyable.

12.) Go Tell it on the Mountain by James Baldwin :: After reading the essay “Notes from a Native Son” I didn’t think I was going to like this, so I went in with very low expectations. But he has an amazing skill of weaving in other literary texts, the bible, and I found I was completely drawn into the text and flew through the story. Ended up loving it.

13.) A New Earth; Awakening to Your Life’s Purpose by Eckhart Tolle :: I’m only on Chapter 2, but I’m loving it as much as the first one and I’m sure I’ll be blogging more. Update #1 (4.4.08) I’m realizing that while I love love love what he has to say, there’s only so many ways to say it. I’m on Chap 6 or 7 now, and I’m like I GET IT! But I mean, it is still pretty amazing.

14.) Blue Hour by Carolyn Forche :: This is a book of poetry. And I don’t get it all. Maybe once we talk about it in class I’ll have more to say about it. I do think, however, that the blue hour is the best hour and a perfectly acceptable topic on which to base a book of poetry. I’m also smitten with the last poem that is structurally pretty amazing. Because it’s alphabetical. And boy do I love when things are organized like that.

15.) So Long, See You Tomorrow by William Maxwell :: I loved this slim little book. It’s a memoir that becomes fiction about a small town murder and loss and families. Much is packed into 138 pages.

16.) Minor Characters by Joyce Johnson :: Sigh. How much do I love this book. I love Jack Kerouac. I love great writing. I love enterprising women who have something to say. She wins. And rumor is she is coming to speak at my school this semester, and I will knock down anyone who tries to prevent me from going. And also, apparently, she TEACHES at my school. It’s a shame that she doesn’t teach fiction. Or that she does and took this year off. Maybe someday…

17. To the Lighthouse by Virgina Wolfe :: I think someday I’ll reread this and like it much more than I did the first time. I certainly didn’t LUUUUUVE it like my teacher does. Pshaw.

18. The Lover by Marguerite Duras :: Have you seen the movie Hiroshima mon amour? I had to watch it in film school, and absolutely loved the disjointedness and the beauty. I had no idea that Marguerite Duras wrote it, but after reading The Lover and finding it out, it made perfect sense. This is a moving novel about colonization, love, the sexes, madness, jealousy, coming of age, memory, etc. A collage of emotional images.

19. Overlord by Jorie Graham :: This is an amazing collection of poetry that touches upon The Now, identity, war, peace, etc. I learned all about line breaks and even though I’m not a huge poetry fan, I really enjoyed working my way through her language.

20. Housekeeping by Marilynne Robinson :: Wow. The language. The images. The characters. The heartbreak. The laughter. This is a new favorite.

21. The Emigrants by W G Sebald :: So bad. I’m not even going to comment on it. Ugh.

22.) Dreams from My Father: A Story of Race and Inheritance by Barack Obama :: Great storytelling. Great points. Great lessons in growth and understanding. Traces his early life and how he learned from different events. I’d highly recommend to anyone interested in him.

23.) Never Love A Naked P.I. by “Elizabeth Maynor” :: One of my friend’s boyfriend’s dad wrote this book and when we went to their Christmas party we started talking and he was so excited about it that he handed it to me. I haven’t had a chance to start it until now, but I’m pretty excited. A girl leaves Pittsburgh and moves to NYC and as far as I can tell falls in love with a naked model. Suspense & Romance. I’ll let you know when I’m done with it.

24.) The Pillars of the Earth by Ken Follett :: Um. Seriously. This book is huge and I had no idea I was going to love it as much as I did. It takes place in, like, 1140 and follows a few villages of people through the tribulations of building a cathedral. You must read this if you like good, character driven stories and don’t mind commitments.

25.) The Art of Racing in the Rain by Garth Stein :: This book took me all of 1 night to read. It’s a family story told from the POV of the dog. My dad said it best, “It’s only got published because it is told through the dog’s view.” The story did make me cry at one point, but the writing is a bit atrocious.

26.) The Stand by Stephen King :: I picked this up as a good beach read. I realized about 3/4 of the way in that I’ve actually read it before. Sigh. But it was good and effectively frightened me into believing that anytime anyone coughed we’d all die. The end was “eh” which is probably why I didn’t remember it. Maybe some day I’ll invest some time into watching the movie.

27.) Tin House Spring ‘08 :: I normally love Tin House. This one is not so good. I’m finding a lot of the writing to be boring and uninteresting… and for the topic of Off The Grid I was expecting so much more.

28.) The Bishop’s Daughter by Honor Moore :: A memoir about family, sexuality, and the church. Descriptive, it sweeps you up and carries you along on Honor’s journey. I’d wait for paperback, but it was good.

29.) The Waves by Virgina Woolf :: Uh, does it count if you barely got through it, and only did because you thought your writing group would look down on you if you couldn’t finish. Seriously, I could hardly get through an entire page without my mind wandering multiple times. Never got into the waves of her writing, if you will, like some of my writing group did.

30.) Cell by Stephen King :: A quick read. What you will expect of Stephen King. He is able to tell a tale, that’s for sure. If you’re worried about cell phone usage, this book might not be for you.

31.) The Voyeur by Alain Robbe-Grillet :: I got swept up into the language of this one. A slow moving and jumpy mystery story with a classic “A Man Comes To Town” set up. I was definitely intrigued and hooked until the ending.

32.) The Melancholy of Anatomy: Stories by Shelley Jackson :: If you’re into the body and it’s functions and amazingly written stories, then this book might be for you.

33. Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep by Philip K Dick :: You know, after watching BladeRunner I was really excited to read this book and it was a bit of a let down. A quick read, but not nearly as exciting as the movie.

34. Brideshead Revisted by Evelyn Waugh :: So good. Loved it. Can’t wait to see the movie. Also, the cover art is amazing.

35. Handful of Dust by Evelyn Waugh :: Not as good as Brideshead, mostly because I hated all of the characters the whole time… until the end when they all get what’s comin’ to ‘um. That was pretty awesome.

36. Jesus Saves by Darcey Steinke :: I felt a little bit that I was being hit over the head with the themes of suburbs, religion, awkward teenagers. But some passages were beautifully written and it was a great way to pass some time on a bus to Boston.

37. Twilight by Stephanie Meyer :: As I stated on the actual blog, I thought that a lot of the dialog was horrible and the writing less than admirable. But there’s something about the plot and what you want to happen to the characters that you will finish it in no time flat. I wish I hadn’t gotten sucked in, but I did. Sigh.

38. New Moon by Stephanie Meyer :: The second has better writing, but I don’t think the plot is that amazing, and super predictable. And the ending! Grrr. Counting down until I can get my hands on #3. Damn to-be-continued…

39. Valley of the Dolls by Jacqueline Susann :: Classic tale of three women trying to make it in the world of entertainment and their longing for love and acceptance and what they do to cope. Definitely a page turner, with good messages and lessons of the time that can still hold true. Glad I read it, but I’m not sure I’m going to hurry to read it again. The reading group seemed to love it.

40. Paris Stories by Mavis Gallant :: This collection of short stories is amazing. All centered around travelers, those out of place, ex-pats, and characters in flux. Mavis is a Canadian who has lived for years in Paris. It gives a certain sense of Europe and through many of the situations are flawed and sad, this really made me want to travel. I can’t wait to discuss them in class.

41. Ava by Carole Maso :: This poem-novel is amazing. I’m so in love. It’s completely inspiring and I’m trying to read it slowly so that it’s not over.

42. Hard-Boiled Wonderland and the End of the World by Haruki Murakami:: Another great work my Murakami. Not much different from his other works, but if you have a pattern that works, why fuck with it? 2 stories that alternate chapters with cliff-hangers that definitely keep you reading. A good quick read, but less depth than I had hoped. In class no one really had anything to say.

43. Pedro Paramo by Juan Rulfo :: This is a beautiful book. A man goes on a quest to find his father and encounters a ghost town. Beautiful imagery.

44. Hour of the Star by Clarence Lispector :: A female author with a male writer writing about a female led to lots of discussion about The Patriarchy. I think it had a lot to do with characters an the little control we have over them as writers. Honest and meta, and a little boring.

45. Swann’s Way by Proust. See #8 above. I re-read for another class and since it’s so dense I figured I could count it twice. Better the second time around. I can see how people spend their whole lives studying the volumes.

46. Written on a Body by Severo Sarduy

47. The Echo Maker by Richard Powers

48. An Anthropologist on Mars by Oliver Sacks

49. Measuring Time by Helon Habila

50. The Daydreaming Boy by Micheline Aharonian Marcom

51. The Red Tent by Anita Diamant

52. All I Really Need to Know I Learned in Kindergarten by Robert Fulghum

Also, I’ve read 3 Post Secret Books, and 14*3*2 short stories.

Success!