January Book Review
I got my five books in this month – and halfway through a sixth!
- Pale Blue Dot: A Vision of the Human Future in Space
by Carl Sagan
This was really interesting, but a little sad, since Carl Sagan died shortly after it was finished. I wish that there was a Sagan-written sequel about how he felt about the Mars Explorer missions – because of course, it hadn’t happened yet when this was written. I really liked his vision of how space travel & exploration would advance over the next hundred years, and loved the scientific/sci-fi look at everything. There were some really awesome quotes that I neglected to write down before returning it to the library – which is just stupid! - Interpreter of Maladies
by Jhumpa Lahiri
This was a beautiful collection of short stories. Her use of language was impressive, and I loved the way she could look so penetratingly into so many different people and what makes them unhappy. I really like short stories, but don’t read them often enough. I was so glad to read this – this was a recommendation from Leslie! - The Fifth Elephant by Terry Pratchett
This was a holiday gift from my younger sister. I thought I’d read it before, but I hadn’t – so it was a pleasant surprise. I really love Terry Pratchett & the Discworld series – I don’t think there’s been a single one I haven’t enjoyed. If you haven’t read anything by Terry Pratchett, I absolutely recommend him. - Such a Pretty Fat: One Narcissist’s Quest To Discover if Her Life Makes Her Ass LookBig, Or Why Pie is Not The Answer
by Jen Lancaster
Jen Lancaster I are myspace friends, so we’re totally tight. We would hang out on the weekends more if she wasn’t in Chicago. I really enjoyed her first book “Bitter is the New Black” and this was just as fun. She has an easy style of writing, and I totally dig the footnotes. Also it’s nice to see that she agrees with me on many less savory aspects of the diet industry (the parts where some foods are “bad” and that they’d rather just make you eat their pre-packaged nasty food than learn to eat smaller portions of real food). Nice bathtub reading! - Dead Watch (Night Watch)
by John Sandford
My mother-in-law left this at our place after her visit last October. It was a light, easy read – but didn’t have a lot to recommend it in terms of literary merit. There were points where the writing was so silly/over-the-top that I just laughed. If you’re looking for a decent story-line and can deal with the silly writing, it’s not bad for a weekend read.
Next up in the queue: The Selfish Gene by Richard Dawkins (reading this now); The Meaning of Liff by Douglas Adams, East of Eden by John Steinbeck (I’m on the waiting list), Infinite Jest by David Foster Wallace (I’ve been on the waiting list since September for this one), Special Topics in Calamity Phsyics by Marisha Pessl & Hope of My Fathers by Barack Obama. I also have Cryptonomicon by Neal Stephenson that I haven’t yet finished….and I’m going to give it another go.
I’m also currently reading Pride & Prejudice for book club – I’ve read this before, so it won’t count towards my 5 books/month goal, but it’s been a while.
Any other suggestions of things to add to my library queue? What good books have you read lately?
