randomWalks books

8.30.2001

Hi, I just finished Bee Season, by Myla Goldberg. It's her debut novel, and it's about a Jewish family (mother, father, son, daughter) and their various quirks, flaws and problems they have getting along. The title refers to spelling bees, because the daughter discovers a hidden talent for spelling, and she and her father, a cantor at a synagogue, undertake a rigorous program of study to get her to win the national spelling bee--but along the way they get into Jewish mysticism. But it's also about much more than that.

It's a relatively short book (about 250 pp.) and the writing is extraordinarily tight but inventive and suggestive at the same time. I've never read anyone with a voice quite like Goldberg's, and it's especially impressive since it's just her first book.

The point of this post is to get you to read it, but also, if anyone has just by chance already read it, I'm interested in talking about it.
nedlog@11:21 AM

8.27.2001

What matters in life? Aren't the classics supposed to answer that fundamental question? Well, they don't. Instead they simply present you with options, choices, possiblities, alternatives, ambiguities. All of which can be stimulating and even useful to a disinterested mind. But if you really need to know what to do? Then they're no help at all.

The Washington Post's Michael Dirda on why we read. Worth thinking about. Also in the Post, Jonathan Yardley on regretting critical missteps.
nedlog@12:21 PM

8.9.2001

Boy, what a sad state this page is in. Whose fault is this? DJ, get to work! Take this mop and bucket of soapy water!

Okay, not fair to blame him. But look, we can talk about a book: Bobos in Paradise, by David Brooks, which I just finished last night. I forced myself to finish it. I wasn't sure I wanted to. Has anyone else read it? Overall, I thought it was well-written and amusing at times, but "deeply problematic." (See, putting a cliche in quotes makes it OK!) The problem was that he was totally excusing Bobos for their materialism and shallowness, because:

gosh they're just so cute and silly
they spend lots of money
Brooks is one

I have some Bobo tendencies, too, I admit. I shop at Fresh Fields every now and then when my local co-op is not convenient and I need some organic vegetable bouillon without MSG. And I am resolutely secular but still entertain some "spiritual" ideas now and then. But Brooks' book, despite its celebratory tone, actually made me want to be far less Bobo. As little as possible.
nedlog@11:01 AM

4.17.2001

I have the book - I read Zadie's story which was decidedly mediocre. I will finish the book in two more books.
dj@8:41 PM

Well, Ftrain.com has Herman Melville's Bartleby the Scrivener, which I read once and didn't much understand. So it's ripe for me. Yet I am reluctant to choose another book, because I chose the first one. But if dj and I are the only two players, heck, I guess it's my turn again. Perhaps "Bartleby" is appropriate, now that the film version starring Crispin Glover (one of those ten Warhols I mentioned on randomWalks) is out. Has anyone seen it?

For that matter, has anyone read the Dave Eggers and Zadie Smith stories in Nick Hornby's new collection of short stories? Are they good? Bad? The shade of mayonnaise?
nedlog@4:05 PM

why doesn't someone find a short story or some poetry that we can read off the net? That seems fairly low maintenance.
dj@3:03 PM

Maybe we could make things easy for everyone and just read an Archie comic. Speaking of which, I discovered an interesting fact last night. That awful "Sugar, Sugar" song, as you might know, was performed by the Archies, a fictional group based on the comic. The leader of the Archies went on to become the editor of the Paris Review in the '70s, and in the '90s performed the "You deserve a break today" jingle for McDonald's. What an interesting guy. These tidbits come courtesy of the wonderful Rolling Stone Encyclopedia of Rock and Roll. In fact, let's just change the name of this discussion board to randomWalks Rock and Roll. Rock and roll songs are only three to four minutes. Books are just way too long. Our first song will be something by Chuck Berry.
nedlog@10:42 AM

4.16.2001

Sadly, I am being crushed by my job. Picking books and reading them sounds overwhelming right now. But someone else go ahead and I'll keep up if I can!
hcog@7:59 AM

4.13.2001

I love those books.
adam@4:04 AM

4.4.2001

Yeah, book book book book book, to quote my 1.5-year-old daughter. hcog, I think it's your turn...?

BTW, those Sanchez poems are great -- thanks for posting them. I should dig up a few good short poems and post them.

Update on my recent reading: just finished Norwegian Wood by Haruki Murakami. Good good good. I'd say it ranks third among the books of his I've read. Now I'm reading about Wittgenstein. One of those cheezy illustrated "Introducing Wittgenstein" or "W for Beginners" books, whatever they're called. I'm always distrustful of those books. It didn't help that this one had a grammatical goof on the second page. But oh well.
nedlog@10:47 AM

someone pick a book! plz! dj!
dj@12:10 AM