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 1. House of Leaves by Mark Danielewski - finished 1/11/08 My first finished book for the new year! I was glad to finally read this book, as it's something I've been wanting to do since I first heard of it a couple of years ago. At some point, I started to worry that my expectations of the book would lead to the inevitable disappointment when I finally encountered the thing itself. The only thing that was a let-down was that as a horror novel it's not all that scary. Sure, there's a creeping darkness which threatens to engulf all who approach it, but it's all too cerebral. The thing never "rises from the page" and remains an "abstract monster of metaphysics," to quote Thomas Ligotti's brilliant "Nethescurial." The most admirable thing about the book is it's gothic approach to post-modernism, trying to swallow up Borges, Cortazar, Pynchon, Nabokov, et al. Similair to, though more ambitious and less playful than, Vandermeer's City of Saints and Madmen. 1 down, 63 to go. Message edited by its author, Mar 30, 2008, 4:55pm.  2. The Castle of Otranto by Horace Walpole - finished 1/18/08 Inspired in part by Lovecraft's Supernatural Horror in Literature, I've decided to spend some time this year on the classic works of the gothic genre, which can be considered the literary precursors to the modern horror story. In terms of novels, Otranto is pretty much the granddaddy, the first gothic novel which set the pattern for what was to follow. Foundational works often feel very cliched because their elements tend to be heavily borrowed/robbed by their sucessors, and certainly there are elements of that in Otranto. However, the work actually feels more transitional than foundational, perhaps because it strives towards anachronism. (It was originally published as a translation of a medieval Italian manuscript.) The plot elements (including royal usurpation, ghostly visitations, wrongful deaths) seem like they could have come from Elizabethan drama, and the narration never creates that feeling of ominousness and impending doom one associates with the exemplars of the gothic genre. Sadly, Walpole is no Shakespeare when it comes to writing or dialogue; the style leaves very little impression whatsoever. The characters don't fare better. (As far as malevolent, somewhat tragic nobles go, Manfred is no Macbeth.) Still, if the story is slight and the work lacks much to distinguish it, it is at least fairly brief which makes it much more palatable. Message edited by its author, Jul 17, 2008, 2:21am.  3. Nombre Falso by Ricardo Piglia - finished 2/2/08 A collection of short stories, some more experimental than others. The story which gives the book its title is a novella built around the supposed discovery of a lost Roberto Arlt manuscript. Though the false manuscript itself is an interesting, if somewhat minor work, the speculation around it is fascinating. Piglia's got some interesting tricks and can create some fascinating accounts, as a story of love gone wrong or of a lunkheaded boxer named "The Viking" who cherishes his one fleeting moment of almost-glory. 3 down, 61 to go. Message edited by its author, Jul 17, 2008, 2:22am. 9. Wuthering Heights by Emily Bronte - finished 3/5/08 This is the kind of book that I would have actively avoided when I was younger, and I have to admit even nowadays it probably wouldn´t be on the top of my TBR list. But it ended up that way because perusing Lovecraft´s Supernatural Horror in Literature got me interested in checking out some of that old-time Gothic literature. (Incidentally, Lovecraft has high praise for it, which came as a bit of a surprise to me. Not because it´s a bad book, but because it´s so unlike anything he ever wrote.) As far as Gothic characters go, Heathcliff is pretty damn fascinating. He´s not quite realistic--true characters never are--but he puts his more conventional predecessors to shame. (Manfred, from The Castle of Otranto, wouldn´t last five minutes against him.) Catherine, his doomed love, seems to exist as equal yet opposite, their conflict driving the dark underground currents of the novel.  10. The Man in the Mirror of the Book by James Woodall I´d recommend this one for anyone intimidated by Williamson´s more exhaustive (but also much thicker) Borges: a life. While that one ertainly goes much more in depth into Borges´ love life (or lack thereof) and tries to get farther into his head (not always successfully), Woodall´s book sticks closer to Borges´ life and literary career.  11. Cuentos Fatales by Leopoldo Lugones - finished 3/10/08 Lugones was a predecessor of Borges, though he ends up getting less credit for it than he might deserve. The first three stories in this collection all share the rather Borgesian touch of being supposed accounts told to Lugones by another party and present an odd mix of Orientalism, speculations, and romance. The fourth seemed a little difficult to follow, but the fifth story of doomed love was fascinating and ends with an ambiguous note that would not be out of place in Borges. Message edited by its author, Mar 30, 2008, 4:59pm.  12. Cien años de soledad by Gabriel Carcia Marquez - finished 3/29/08 Really enjoyed this one! Marquez' story of a family and a town whose fates are intertwined is just really great, creating a pretty solid sense of fable or myth. Yet in incorporating real events from Colombian history into the myth, Marquez has created a story of one family that is also the foundation myth of Colombia. Thankfully, Marquez' stylistic chops are up to so ambitious a task. Message edited by its author, Mar 30, 2008, 4:56pm.  13. H.P. Lovecraft's Book of Horror by various - finished 3/31/08 A pretty nice anthology for anyone interested in Lovecraft's influences or even just some classic works of horror. It starts off with Lovecraft's "Supernatural Horror in Literature" which is definitely worth reading. The editors have drawn from Lovecraft's essay to pick out the short stories in the volume. There are some real standouts here, including the well known "The Great God Pan," "The Fall of the House of Usher," and "The Yellow Sign," as well as lesser known gems such as "Fishhead" and "Lukundoo."  14. Los siete locos by Roberto Arlt - finished 4/1/08 Remo Erdosain gets caught up in a criminal enterprise headed up by a sinister character known as "The Astrologer." A sort of existentialist crime novel. Sometimes rather surreal and filled with some very odd characters.  15. Formas Breves by Ricardo Piglia - finished 4/3/08 Piglia's short pieces are like a cross between literary essays and diary entries. Fascinating insights into writing and Argentine authors written along the lines of Borges. Among the subjects: Macedonio Fernandez, Roberto Arlt, Borges and the relationship between writing and memory.  16. Gringo Viejo by Carlos Fuentes - finished 4/11/08 A fictional account of the final days of Ambrose Bierce in Pancho Villa's Mexico. Fuentes paints a fascinating picture of Mexico, realistic yet always hovering on the edge of the surreal, which mirrors to a certain extent both the strangeness of a traditional society in the middle of a revolution and that feeling of a foreigner wandering a foreign land. Fuentes has Bierce meet up with another American, Harriet Winslow, as well as Tomas Arroyo, a general in Villla's army. Fascinating look at revolutionary Mexico as well as a meditation on fathers and sons, Mexican-American relations, and the role of the past. 16 down, 48 to go. I'm one-fourth of the way through! (Of course, I've still got some of those bigger books to tackle...) Also, I made a few changes. I've dropped two of my general non-fiction titles for Joseph Stiglitz's Globalization and its Discontents and Making Globalization Work. Message edited by its author, Apr 12, 2008, 10:01pm.  17. Globalization and its Discontents by Joseph Stiglitz - finished 4/17/08 Stiglitz' account of the late 90s failures of the IMF, concentrating largely on their bungling of the East Asian downturn and their botching the post-Communist transition of Russia. Though it scores some pretty good punches against the IMF, it's a prettey level-headed, some might say even-handed, approach to the failings of the the instituion. (Especially for a book with flames on the cover) The most frightening thing was how a lot of Stiglitz' criticisms of the IMF would apply equally well to the failures of the current administration: secretive, out of touch, thinking they didn't have to pay attention to what was going on, too dependent on ideology. What was that statement about those who forget history? Message edited by its author, Apr 21, 2008, 2:30am.  18. El Gaucho Insufrible by Roberto Bolano - finished 4/20/08 A collection of short stories and two essays, all of which are simply brilliant. In Bolaño, one sees the influence of some of the best of the Latin American literature (Arlt, Borges, Cortazar) but Bolaño's style is completely his own. Included is the story of a murder investigation among a colony of rats, the curious encounter of a boy and a muderer, the account of the saddest man in Mexico, and the story of an author who finds himself plagiarized by a foreing filmmaker. The collection is finished off by two essays, which together leave quite the impression. One was written while Bolaño was dying, and is unsparing in its treatment of death and literaure. The other is given the rather odd name of "Los Mitos de Cthulhu" ("The Cthulhu Mythos") and is a searing take on contemporary hispanic literature. Message edited by its author, Apr 21, 2008, 2:29am.  20. Los Detectives Salvajes by Roberto Bolaño - finished 5/18/08 Um, wow! Awesome book, I'm almost at a loss to describe it. It's basically the story of two poets (or wannabe poets) who call themselves "visceral realists" and their stories across twenty years and four (or five) continents. Their lives are narrated through a series of personal accounts by people who knew or had run-ins with the poets, which gives the work a real documentary feel, and that narration is bookended by the diary entries of a young Mexican's adventures among the "visceral realists." (The structure manages to be postmodern without coming off with that "Hey, look at me; aren't I clever?" feel you get with too many pomo works.) Easily one of the best novels of the last decade.  21. Intuitive Body by Wendy Palmer - finished 5/28/08 Though this wasn't quite what I expected, this turned out to be a pretty good book. I expected it do delve more deeply into the way aikido philosophy extends into the practice of the art (both on the mat and off). Instead, it's more about Palmer's own adaptations of aikido principles to mindfulness meditation. Still pretty enjoyable and one I suspect I'll find myself referring to for some inspiration. Message edited by its author, May 31, 2008, 10:59pm.  22. The Other Nineteenth Century by Avram Davidson - finished 5/31/08 Fascinating collection of stories from an author who is probably too erudite and original to ever be anything but obscure. Davidson's short stories are an eccentric (though sublime) combinations of science fiction, fantasy and historical fiction (with the occassional Borgesian metafictional reference or Lovecraftian cosmic dread thrown in for good measure) and reading them yields some genuine surprises. Message edited by its author, May 31, 2008, 11:00pm.  23. La fascinacion de las palabras by Omar Prego Gadea - finished 6/1/08 Compiled from a series of interviews that Gadea conducted with Julio Cortazar the year before his death. I always enjoy reading about authors, especially their view on their own fiction. Among other things, Cortazar talks about his transition from short stories to novels, about the influence of music (especially jazz) on his fiction, and about the relationship between writing and politics. Highly suggested for anyone who is a fan of this author. Message edited by its author, Jun 15, 2008, 12:56am.  24. Waking Nightmares by Ramsey Campbell - finished 6/2/08 A collection of short stories. Campbell's writing is pretty good, but I have to admit I was not as moved by his stories as I hoped to be. The best ones were probably those told in a first-person point of view, where Campbell really manages to crank up the paranoia and get us to wonder if the protagonist is completely insane or not. Message edited by its author, Jun 15, 2008, 12:58am.  25. Cuentos Completos I by Julio Cortazar - finished 1/24/08 I think I had gotten overly ambitious in deciding to count all three Cortazar short story collections as one book, especially considering the first collection is made up of four books in itself. (Of course, this won't keep me from tackling the monstrous Poe collection as one book. At least that does all fit into one physical book.) So, I read this one back in January. Not much to say, except that Cortazar is brilliant. These early stories, which are pretty high on the surrealness and fantastic factor, are excellent. Message edited by its author, Jun 15, 2008, 12:59am.  26. Development as Freedom by Amartya Sen - finished 6/13/06 Sen develops a pretty fresh take on development theory, which he does a good job of showing as an extension of economic theory going back to Adam Smith. I think the most powerful idea here is the concept that economists (and those working in development) should look to enhancing freedom as the goal (not just a byproduct or means) of development. It is a little heavy on the theory front, which would keep me from recommending it to anyone not already interested in the subject.  27. The House of the Seven Gables by Nathaniel Hawthorne - finished 6/22/06 I had to read The Scarlet Letter in 10th, a task I was unable to complete because I kept falling asleep. Since then I've sort of had a pretty low opinion of Hawthorne, which I was pleasantly surprised to have changed. This is probably the 3rd work of 19th Century fiction that I was found surprisingly enjoyable, and I'm starting to think I've neglected the era far too much. Not that this is a perfect book. For one thing, it is a piece of 19th Century fiction, so the narrator can take far too long to describe a scene. The story does drag in the middle, with a couple of descriptions of daily life at the house that had me kind of bored. But even though the passages weren't particularly exciting, there was a certain lovely brilliance to his writing that made them enjoyable. I've also been reading one of my Cat VII picks, The Hollow Man, which I hope to be finished with next week. It was pretty intriguing, but then last Thursday it hit something of a snag for me. In a chapter where the protagonist is reminiscing about his saintly dead wife and their time trying to figure out why they can't get pregnant, the narrator describes what should have been a kind of neat little scene of his wife getting undressed in order to help him, um, "providing a sample." Anyway, we get a really cliched description of how beautiful and sexy she is. I don't get it. Simmons seems like a pretty bright guy. He can talk about Quantum Mechanics and Thomas Aquinas, but he didn't stop to think (and this is something I had realized in high school) that "finely chiselled features" is something of a cliche? And here's the real "Oh, no you didn't place that near the emotional core of your narrative" moment (or the "Koontz' Noh" moment for short): when describing the sensual yet innocent quality of his dead wife's smile, he compares it to Mary Lou Retton's. (Incidentally, "Koontz' Noh" moment comes from The Key to Midnight wherein Koontz's Marty Sue protagonist who has been unable to love due to the abuse suffered at the hands of his parents, suddenly has an emotional transformation thanks to watching a Noh drama.) Anyway, maybe I'm being overly harsh, but when it comes to the emotional core of a novel, the presence of cliche or ridiculous elements makes me feel a little cheated. Like, well, if you (the author) is going resort to idiotic shorthand in trying to get me to feel something, I'm just not going to play your game. Message edited by its author, Jun 22, 2008, 8:14pm.  28. The Hollow Man by Dan Simmons - finished 6/28/08 Despite some speed bumps (see above), this ended pretty satisfactorily. Still, for Dan Simmons, this seems like a lesser work. It has all of the ideas and action of, say Hyperion, but doesn't quite mesh together as well. Somehow the narrative seemed a little silly, and the protagonist's bad luck (despite being a telepath) almost seems like a running gag. (OK, he does eventually wisen up a little bit.) Message edited by its author, Jul 31, 2008, 9:59pm.  29. Shadowland by Peter Straub - finished 7/1/08 Outside of a short story in Prime Evil, this is my first introduction to Straub. Fascinating story about two private school boys who go to study magic under tutelage of the eccentric uncle of one. Pretty nice story. Does bring up questions about the horror genre, but I won't get into these now. Message edited by its author, Oct 30, 2008, 2:06pm.  30. The Monk by Matthew Lewis - finished 7/8/08 Easily the world's first horror novel. Though written in 1795 in a style more Jane Austen than Stephen King, the book has not lost a certain lurid, outrageous quality. It's also just a great read, full of adventure, humor, and terrible things happening to people. I'd have to say if you're going to read one Gothic novel, make it this one.  31. Ring by Koji Suzuki - finished 7/10/08 The book that started it all. Which admittedly seems kind of ironic given the theme of the work, that it would "spawn" so many "offspring." Even though I've seen the movies, I enjoyed the book. There's some major character differences, and the book gets into more detail about the nature of the curse. I particularly liked how Suzuki develops the theme of contagion. Message edited by its author, Jul 17, 2008, 2:26am.  32. Making Globalization Work by Joseph Stiglitz - finished 7/18/08 Halfway there! Woo Hoo! As much as I liked Globalization and its Discontents, this book really makes that one seem like just a warm-up. For one thing, this work is quite a bit more ambitious, moving beyond the failures of the IMF to a pretty comprehensive inventory of the various problems with the current process of globalization. After describing each issue, he then moves on to discussing possible solutions. A little of these struck me as a bit optimistic, considering the current state of politics in the world. But I have to give Stiglitz for attempting to address the issues in a constructive manner, and his proposals seem smart enough to make a good jumping off point for constructing a better trade system. After this and Development as Freedom, I almost feel as if I should read something by a conservative to balance things out. I'll have to do some research and might further revise the nonfiction section. If anyone has any suggestions, I'm open to input. Message edited by its author, Jul 19, 2008, 7:01pm. I finished July off with two rather dark books:  33. Los Lanzallamas by Roberto Arlt - finished 7/31/08 The sequel to Arlt's Los Siete Locos--I actually liked this one a bit better. Or perhaps it's just that the two books really should be one volume. Locos sets everything up, but the story sort of stops halfway. Very dark look at lower class life in Buenos Aires. A lot of fascinating characters in here. Among them, Remo Erdosain, who's obsessed with chemical warfare and undergoing a serious existential crisis; and the Astrologer, a cult leader/communist revolutionary with a strange convoluted scheme to overthrow the government. There's something creepily prophetic about Arlt's work.  34. Haunted: Tales of the Grotesque by Joyce Carol Oates - finished 7/31/08 An interesting collection of horror stories, sometimes really subtle yet creepy, others out and out disturbing. Some really great stories, including a couple of interesting homages to Edgar Allen Poe and Henry James. I'll have to seek out more Joyce Carol Oates. (Incidentally, this was much better than the other collection of horror stories named Haunted written by a contemporary author.) Message edited by its author, Oct 30, 2008, 2:07pm.  35. The Botany of Desire by Michael Pollan - finished 8/3/08 This was a really fun and thought-provoking look at the plant-human relationship (aka domestication) and how it's changed both plants and human culture. This is done through the lens of four particular plants: apples, tulips, marijuana, and potatoes. I thought Pollan's style had a nice balance between lyrical (ie. airy-fairy) and scientific which was perfect for the material.  36. Desolation Angels by Jack Kerouac - fnished 8/8/08 Before I started this book, I couldn't help but wonder if at 33 I was too old for Kerouac. I guess I was expecting some romantization of a life of aimless travel, meaningless sex, and drug use, which can all well be and good but could also be incredibly shallow. But really, Kerouac is much more complex than that. What comes across is a certain crazy wisdom, both for Kerouac and among the other beats, a certain hunger for art, for life, for religious transcendance, which really overwhelms them and prompts them to crazy seeking. I've actually had this one since high school (15+ years) without ever reading it, which I think makes it my oldest TBR of the pile. Woo hoo! (My friend Alex, who wanted to be a poet and songwriter at the time, had given me his copy.) Message edited by its author, Aug 8, 2008, 9:46pm.  37. Danse Macabre by Stephen King - finished 8/15/08 I didn't technically "finish" this book, but when a book packs 300 - 350 pages of material into 411 pages, I tend to consider the last 50+ pages as optional. The degree of self-indulgence on display certainly decreases my interest in reading King doorstops in the future. How self-indulgent is it? Try this on for size: "Have you ever stood in a bookshop, glanced furtively around, and turned to the end of an Agatha Christie to see who did it, and how? Have you ever turned to the end of a horror novel to see if the hero made it out of the darkness and into the light? If you have ever done this, I have three simple words which I feel it is my duty to convey: SHAME ON YOU! It is low to mark your place in a book by folding down the corner of the page where you left off; TURNING TO THE END TO SEE HOW IT CAME OUT is even lower. If you have this habit, I urge you to break it...break it at once!" (And, yes, the use of all caps sentences is copied straight from the book.) I'm not sure where to get started, except that it's always nice to see someone unleash their inner Puritan. (Sadly, there were no digressions in which King scolded his readers for chewing gum in libraries or casting aspersions on the name of American Literature.) Or perhaps King was ahead of his time by being seriously into Kabbalah (take that Madonna!) and felt that if you read the letters in a book out of order, it's only a matter of time before YHWH will melt your face off. I'm sorry, I know some people like his digressions, but frankly they just bore me after a while. It was early in his career, so perhaps I should be a little more forgiving. Then again, it was early in his career, so he didn't waste much time in developing a big head. (And a chip on his shoulder.) And I couldn't help that notice that compared to Michael Pollan, King's use of the Apollonian/Dionysian dichotomy seemed kind of tone-deaf. Message edited by its author, Aug 16, 2008, 2:06am.  38. The Other by Thomas Tryon - finished 8/21/08 Man, I cannot believe I picked this book up at a thrift store for $2.00. This has got to be a classic! I was originally planning to read Harvest Home, which I had heard good things about. It was actually King's Danse Macabre, which describes this novel, along with Rosemary's Baby and The Excorcist, as one of the key works in popularizing the horror novel that made me change my mind. (Seeing as how Baby and Excorcist were already part of my challenge.) I think King actually rated Baby higher than Other, which I think is wrong, but that's neither here nor there. As with Rosemary's Baby, I had a rough idea of the plot outline when I started reading this. Even so, I still found it completely absorbing and really suspenseful. Tryon has this way of setting up a really nasty relevation, where you know when something bad is about to happen a few beats before it happens. But instead of killing the suspense, the effect is akin to those few seconds in a car accident between losing control of the vehicle and the actual collision. A terrible feeling of inevitability.  39. Gravity's Rainbow by Thomas Pynchon - finished 8/28/08 Um, I don't really know what to say. This is the second Pynchon book I've read, and I didn't really know what to think after the first one either. Brilliant, erudite, beautiful writing, but I'm beginning to see what people mean about his works resisting interpretation. I feel like I should really read this again, but I also feel like I should wait at least a year.  40. The New Weird by Ann VanderMeer and Jeff VanderMeer - finished 8/30/08 A pretty decent anthology, which felt like it wasn't as strong as it could've been. The VanderMeers seem to have tried to go easy on definining the concept of the New Weird with too heavy a hand, perhaps lest their colleagues protest, but the overall result feels a bit, well, muddled. For example, the first section is devoted to the influences on the New Weird, but it includes two stories which seem like they could already be part of the movement itself. The other stories are decent, but I wouldn't have minded if A&J had tried to connect the dots a little better in showing how those stories influenced the New Weird. The second section is better, with selections from authors considered solidly in the New Weird vein. Good stories by China Mieville, Alaister Rennie, Jeffrey Thomas, KJ Bishop, and Jeffrey Ford. Then there's a non-fiction section, with a couple essays and a web discussion regarding what exactly the New Weird is. Again, it'd have been a little nicer to see this tied into the stories in the anthology. (Especially, since a lot of these definitions of the New Weird tend towards "combination of science fiction, fantasy and horror elements while striving to be literary.") Also some short pieces about New Weird in Europe. Finally, Paul Di Fillipo begins a New Weird story about a terrorist in a fictionalized India, which is then taken up by some not quite New Weird authors in a round robin/exquisite corpse experiment. Not bad. So, I liked the collection, but it seemed like it could have been a little more cohesive.  41. The Alienist by Caleb Carr - finished 9/6/08 A serial killer is stalking New York in 1896, targeting boys who have been forced by poverty to become prostitutes. The narrator, a journalist, is drawn into an effort to apply modern criminology methods, including psychological theories, to solve the crime and stop the killer. Interesting work of suspense and investigation, with a lot of wonderful period detail. Though all of the main characters are fictional, several historical figures play roles, both major and minor. (The biggest being Teddy Roosevelt, as then head of police.) Pretty nice, although the book could have done a better job of combining exposition with action/dialogue.  42. Antologia de la Literatura Fantastica by Borges/Casares/Ocampo - finished 9/11 A really great anthology put together by Jorge Luis Borges, Adolfo Bioy Casares, and Silvina Ocampo. The stories of fantasy collected here range from old folktales to modern twists, like Kafka's "Before the Law." Also included are some pretty good stories from Argentine contemporaries of B/C/O. I especially liked Santiago Dabove's "Ser Polvo" ("Being Dust").  43. Tai Chi Dynamics by Robert Chuckrow - finished 9/13/08 An Early Reviewer book. (Replaced Sigmund Freud's Civilization and its Discontents on the challenge.) Interesting book, which gets into more advanced concepts of Tai Chi. Admittedly, I've only done Tai Chi a few times, so a lot of the terminology was new to me. However, since I've done Aikido for several years, I think I had enough of a grounding to get a lot out of the concepts outlined in the work. I wouldn't recommend it for anyone just curious about Tai Chi, but would suggest it for anyone looking for more advanced/conceptual material.  44. The Unabridged Edgar Allan Poe - finished 9/28/08 Wow, reading all of Poe's work was something of a revelation, especially since Poe has become so identified with gloomy stories of people being buried alive. Sure, there were the gloomy stories and the downbeat poetry, but also some really great (sometimes twisted) humor, some interesting works of proto-science fiction, some interesting "essays" that seem like direct forebears of Borges' fictional essays. I did find some of his stories a bit dull, partially on subject matter. (The exploration of uncharted territories doesn't resonate with me very much.) But overall, totally worth the time it took to read this very long collection. Message edited by its author, Dec 11, 2008, 2:42pm.  45. The Dispossessed by Ursula K. Le Guin - finished 9/29/08 This is one I'd meant to read for ages, since it's regarded as a classic work of intelligent science fiction. I think one of Le Guin's strengths is her tallent at creating alien cultures that are strikingly alien and yet plausible, and then using those cultures to explore issues in our own societies. It's an approach that sometimes threatens to get a bit pedantic, but when it's done well, as in this book, the results can be downright sublime.  46. The Exorcist by William Peter Blatty - finished 9/30/08 Pretty entertaining tale of demonic possession. Features some pretty disturbing imagery, as per the movie, but overall didn't really scare me all that much. Still, I enjoyed it and was pleasantly surprised at how well the religion element was used. (The story of an atheist whose daughter becomes possessed by demons could easily become a bit heavy-handed, but Left Behind this ain't.) I realized that I should have probably read this for Halloween. Well, I still have my Gothic Classics category which is appropriately Halloweeny, so I may be polishing that off this month.  47. The Weather Makers by Tim Flannery - finished 10/13/08 A really good balance of scientific substance and readibility. Flannery does a good job of laying out all the evidence in a very convincing manner without descending into jargon. Recommended for anyone who might be on the fence about global warming or its causes. (Like a certain governor who will remain nameless.) :)  48. Melmoth the Wanderer by Charles Robert Maturin - finished 10/18/08 Elsewhere I said Gothic Classics had been my favorite category. I liked that it was narrowly defined enough for me to do contrast/compare as I went along. So when reading this book, I was able to appreciate it as a novel, but also think of it in terms of its relation to The Monk (an earlier work) and Wuthering Heights (a later work). (As well as other works, both earlier and later.) Melmoth the Wanderer is the wonderfully convoluted story of a strange figure who appears to people during their most dire circumstances and offers them a bargain so terrible that they dare not even discuss it. It is told from the perspective of a young student who may possibly be the descendant of this malign figure. With a labrynthine plot containing stories within stories and descriptions of horror, both physical and psychological, this book really drew me in.  49. The Etched City by K.J. Bishop - finished 10/23/08 In a word: awesome! It's almost hard to believe that this is Bishop's first novel, as it is so powerful, so accomplished. It resonates with the power of myth, and there are moments and scenes that I still find haunting me. This is New Weird at its best, new and strange and haunting.  51. Lord of a Visible World by S.T. Joshi - finished 10/31/08 For Halloween, I finished the "autobiography" of H.P. Lovecraft compiled by S.T. Joshi and David E. Schultz out of his letters. HPL was a prolific letter writer, and the volume put together was very fascinating. HPL was quite an eccentric (a species of human for which I have a certain fondness) and his letters can be quite entertaining, even funny at times. I can't help but wonder what he would have been like had he not died relatively young.  52. Carrie by Stephen King - finished 10/18/08 Though enjoyable, it didn't really strike me as a great horror novel. Despite being fairly short, the pacing was kind of off, with the narrative breaking for pseudo-science or backstory. It probably doesn't help that I've seen the movie. However, the deaths of most the characters are pretty much telegraphed, so I'm not sure I would have found it suspenseful even if I hadn't seen the movie. There were two strong elements, though. One was the portrayal of Carrie as a lonely young woman dying for social connection. The other was the way the story shows how a community tries to make sense of a terrible tragedy. I liked that there were no simple heroes or villains.  EC. Off Season by Jack Ketchum - finished 10/23/08 A novel about a group of city slickers terrorized by some inbred hillbilly types. This was written around the same time as Carrie. In some ways, Ketchum isn't quite as strong a writer as King, at least not in terms of style or characerization. (Though I have complaints about neither.) However, in terms of a good horror story, I found Off Season way ahead of Carrie, certainly much more visceral an experience. The straightforwardness and conventionality actually help to emphasize the savagery and horror of what happens in the novel. And with that Category VII has been completed! Yay! Message edited by its author, Nov 20, 2008, 12:32am.  53. For Whom the Bell Tolls - finished 11/10/08 I haven't read Hemingway since The Sun Also Rises, which I had to read for English class in high school. At the time Hemingway didn't leave that strong an impression for me, and in the years hence I've sometimes wondered if he might be overrated. I can't say if I was just dense so many years ago, but I feel a bit embarassed now in expressing my previous suspicions. Which is a round about way of saying that For Whom the Bell Tolls deserves all the acclaim it receives. There's a very wistful and magical aspect to this story about duty, about fighting for what one believes, and about the redemptive power of love. Message edited by its author, Nov 20, 2008, 12:33am.  54. The Secret Life of Puppets by Victoria Nelson - finished 11/15/08 Oh, blessed puppets, receive My prayer, and teach Me to make Myself in thy image. -- Thomas Ligotti, "Mad Night of Atonement" It still feels wrong to me somehow that a book published in the year 2000 with the name "The Secret Life of Puppets" which deals with simulacra, demiurges, Bruno Schulz and H.P. Lovecraft doesn't once mention Ligotti, but perhaps it's just me. Anyway, I found the book fascinating and thought-provoking, even though I found myself mostly skeptical of the author's conclusions. The argument here is that after the Enlightenment, Platonic thinking has been largely relegated to the background, a consequence of which is that Aristotelian, empirical philosophies have pretty much dominated ever since. However, Platonism and transcendental philosophies provide people with a sense of connection to the greater cosmos, which has been lost in our embrace of rational materialism. Platonic and neo-Platonic thought has found an outlet in culture, both high and low, and the recent conflation of neo-Platonism with technology (as exemplified in movies like "The Matrix") shows that we may be on the verge of a great return of Platonism or new religious reawakening. As I said, it's an intriguing thesis, and I must admit I find myself mostly in agreement, at least with the way pop culture and art have adopted some of the roles/functions that used to be exclusive domains of religion. But I'm skeptical about the notion of the reawakening. The Matrix and its sequels have come and gone, and we've lost a large part of our obsession with virtual worlds. I'm almost tempted to bring out the old cliché of "9/11 changed everything," which like all clichés does have some element of truth. Anxiety and mystification of technology have been replaced by more conventional anxieties of violence by cultural outsiders. Of course, Nelson had no way of knowing that the western world would receive such a large shock, but at least for the moment the nature of cultural anxieties has shifted. Another (lesser) criticism is the Lovecraft chapter, which I found interesting but pretty flawed. Nelson appears to be wanting to engage in a psychiatric reading of Lovecraft, which I could understand, but she relies too heavily on some broad generalizations. The impression I get is that Nelson is just trying to hard to find evidence of schizophrenia or syphillis trauma and is cherry-picking from Lovecraft's fiction to do so. Those complaints aside, the book presents an intriguing look at philosophies of gnosticism and hermeticism, and their expression in popular culture and high art, as well as the way those have developed over the years. Nelson's approach has a certain playful ecclecticism, which is fun to read even when it's not entirely convincing. Message edited by its author, Nov 20, 2008, 12:33am.  55. The Mysteries of Udolpho by Ann Radcliffe - finished 11/19/08 I feel as if I should do a little dance. In part because I've closed out another category. Woo hoo! And also because I finally finished this book! I wouldn't say it was a slog, but it was definitely slow. I have to admit my reactions are a bit mixed. Overall, I enjoyed it. I felt some sympathy for the romantic leads and their travails. I thought there was some nice atmosphere and enjoyed Radcliffe's scenic descriptions. On the other hand, even allowing for the standards of the era, the plot is kinda whack. There's plenty of mysteries, some of which could be solved if one of the characters would just open their mouths and stop unnecessarily witholding information. And structurally, it feels like a bit of a shaggy dog story. (But unintentionally, not like Melmoth the Wanderer which is so rife with incomplete texts and stories within stories within stories that it seems clear the author was creating a labrynthine text, which admittedly kinda appeals to my perverse pomo heart.) Spoilers up ahead There are several moments that are so anticlimactic that I felt a bit cheated. After Emily and co. escape from the castle, Montoni only reappears in a short passage where we learn that he has died in the custody of the authorities. This happens with a good 100 pages left to go. Since he's the main villain, it took a lot of the tension out of the story, making the later conflicts seem a bit contrived. Also illustrative is a veil in Udolpho the Emily looks behind and faints. She then occassionally learn that she is recalling that there is something awful behind the veil, but are never told what she thought she saw until the last 40 pages, where we learn that what she saw wasn't even what she thought she saw. A bit of a disappointment. End spoilers But, nonetheless, I was moved by the happy ending and overall enjoyed the novel, though I don't know if I'll be picking up another Radcliffe anytime soon. EC. The Vampyre; a Tale by John Polidori - finished 11/2/08 I actually finished this one before Udolpho but didn't really decide to count it, because I thought it might look a bit silly to take extra credit before finishing the category. I could have just counted this instead of Udolpho but a) I'm stubborn and b) I feared if I swapped Udolpho over to extra credit, I might end up neglecting it and not finishing it. Since it's seems to have been such an important work, I really wanted to finish it. It's basically a really short novel (novella? novellete?) which is the first published English-language story about vampires. It's a decent story, though pretty predictable by modern standards. Still, there's a nice build-up of dread, which leads to a somewhat over the top final line. But my favorite thing about this novel is probably the back story, because Polidori apparently ripped most of it off from Lord Byron. (He was Byron's doctor at the time.) And to boot, his portrayal of the vampire appears to be based partially on Lord Byron himself. Byron never actually finished his vampire story, but the fragment still shows up in anthologies, often alongside this story. Still, it does take some chutzpah to steal your patron's story and then make him the bad guy in it!  56. El beso de la mujar araña by Manuel Puig - finished 11/22/08 Also known as Kiss of the Spider Woman. Almost mesmerizing in its simplicity. The bulk of the story is a dialogue between two men sharing a jail cell in an Argentine prison. (That surprised me, because I'd seen about half of the movie, where they never identify the nation the two are citizens of, but there's no missing that this is Argentina in the book.) Valentin is a revolutionary being held to glean information; Molina is a homosexual convicted of "corrupting a minor." To pass the time, Molina recounts his favorite movies to Valentin. As the story progresses, the dialogue allows us to see how the men's relationship changes each of them. Though they perhaps never come to fully understand each other, they do come to appreciate the point of view of the other. It makes the ending all the more moving. Spanish-language category now closed. And I'm creeping up on Non-fiction, too. EC. 'Salem's Lot by Stephen King - finished 11/21/08 Since it was available on audiobook at my local library, I figured I'd continue on from Carrie along with some of the other readers on the King's Dear Devoted Readers group. This is definitely a stronger work than Carrie, more self-assured and with a better sense for place and characterization. It's a solid entertaining story about vampires taking over a small New England town and merits its status as "horror classic." I rather think this is the sort of novel Stoker would have written if he had been a New Englander living in the latter half of the 20th century. Still, it never really got under my skin. It had its moments of tension and fright and some plot twists, but it never really surprised me. Perhaps King is a victim of his own success. Though this is only the second of his novels that I've read, I've seen several of movies and miniseries of his work. (It, Needful Things, Storm of the Century, to name a few) The concept of the small town, realistically portrayed confronted with some terrible, ancient horror is for me something of a well-worn plot element. Ditto with the precocious and pop-culture knowledgable young boy and the writer--who always appears to be a would-be chronicler of social realities who goes unappreciated by critics and who writes some genre fiction to earn the wealth and comfort that escapes him through serious writing. And as good a job as he does of presenting us with all the characters of the town, they never really rose from "potential cannon fodder" to "real life people" for me. Still, I enjoyed it and can see why this work was such a hit.  57. A History of the World in 6 Glasses by Tom Standage - finished 11/23/08 A look at the origins and history of six different beverages: beer, wine, spirits, coffee, tea, and Coca-Cola. It's overall a fun and breezy read, not particularly in-depth but covering pretty much what you'd need to know to have a good idea of, say, how the British came to be so tea-fixated or why wine is considered more high class than beer. I also liked how it really makes one aware of the way that these beverages have both reflected and guided the societies in which they originated and were adopted. Very fun, engaging book! And with that, yet another category is closed out. It's a really good feeling when they come in a roll like this. :) Message edited by its author, Nov 27, 2008, 12:21am.  58. Dangling Man by Saul Bellow - finished 11/26/08 I inherited this book from my sister. I think she may have to read it for high school english class or something, so that was at least 10 years ago. I sort of held on to it by default and because I figured Saul Bellow was one of those important authors I should read at some point. The story is pretty straightforward. The protagonist, Joseph, is living in Chicago during World War II. He's been selected by the draft but not called up, so he's basically waiting around to hear that he needs to report. In the meantime, he's quit his job and not really doing much of anything. The boredom and tension of waiting with nothing productive to do seems to intensify some preexisting sense of disatisfaction with life and society that he already has, and he seems to become somewhat combative with the people around him. It was an interesting portrayal of ennui and alienation, which in some ways reminds me of Kerouac. Bellow really captures a certain sense of alienation sliding into unreality. Still, I think I felt a little underwhelmed, though before I judge too harshly, I feel I should perhaps let the experience "sit" for a while. Oh, and there's an interesting bit very early in the book, where Joseph talks about how he's a reflexive person, not a "hard-boiled man" at all, Hard-boiled men do things like "fly planes or fight bulls or catch tarpon"--which I couldn't help wondering if it was intended as a Hemingway reference. (emphasis mine) Message edited by its author, Nov 27, 2008, 12:47am.  EC. Northanger Abbey by Jane Austen - finished 11/25/08 I was inspired to pick up Northanger because I knew it referenced Udolpho and the gothic craze quite a bit. I admit I actually found it a little disappointing. It didn't seem quite as sharp as some of Jane Austen's other works (although I must admit that I've only encountered those in adaptation) and I thought it didn't really play that much off of Udolpho. It doesn't help that Udolpho is a work which almost sadisticly maintains secrets, constantly teasing you with them. On the other hand, Northanger seems to suggest something menacing could be going on, but resolves it relatively quickly, which ends up feeling like a missed opportunity.  EC. Gothic Classics: Graphic Classics Vol 14 - finished 11/28/08 Are gothic works addictive? Why has this category ballooned so? (And I'm now listening to Frankenstein on audiobook, because I want to squeeze one more in before the end of the year.) I figured this would be fun after reading all those gothic works, some of which are rather long. The collection was okay overall. The first three stories, Carmilla, The Mysteries of Udolpho, and The Oval Portrait seemed to be the strongest of the bunch, both in the adaptation and in matching the art to it. Carmilla's art has a nice sense of decadent sensuality, and Portrait's doll-like figures add just the right touch of creepiness. Udolpho is relatively straightforward, but I felt the art had the right feel of shadows and melodrama that really captured the feel of the original novel. The other two stories, Northanger Abbey and the short story "At the Gate", were a bit weak. I've already mentioned my disappointment with Northanger, and I thought the art for it, which was realistic but on the cutesy side, didn't add very much. "At the Gate" seemed an odd choice. A story about dog spirits waiting in the afterlife in front of the gate for their masters to show up, there's definitely the connection with death and spirits. But it's barely a ghost story and seems only tenously connected to gothic works. It was a sweet story with the art lending a certain touch of innocence to it, but didn't really seem right.  59. Girl with Curious Hair by David Foster Wallace - finished 11/29/08 My first exposure to the late David Foster Wallace. The first few stories really blew me away, with an intoxicating mix of lyricism, originality, and humor. After that, the book seemed to settle into some solidly good, though not mind-blowing, stories, though I thought the last story (which may count as a novella? novellete?) had some really sharp moments, though it sort of let off near the end. And, with that, Short Story Collections is done!  60. Death of a Salesman by Arthur Miller - finished 11/30/08 Really depressing, which was not unexpected. I have to admit I feel a little ambivalent about this. On the one hand, it did move me and seems quite well written. On the other hand, it seems a bit, well, artificial, too pat, almost as if it was written so sophomores could write their term papers on it. I'm not sure if that's an entirely fair criticism. Sometimes I have a hard time approaching widely acclaimed works, whether in "literature" or the less-reputable genre stuff I read. (I admittedly have run into a similar problem with Stephen King.) It's not that there's anything wrong with the work, but there's an element of surprise missing. Oddly, I actually thought this was really powerful just after I finished it, but in the last few hours, it's sort of faded. Perhaps, it just didn't get under my skin enough. EC. Frankenstein by Mary Shelley - finished 11/30/08 The classic tale of the scientist undone by his creation. Honestly, just top-notch. There's a nice balance between plot, evocative scenery, and psychological dread. I was pleasantly surprised at how ambiguous it seemed; it never completely sides with either Frankenstein or the monster.  61. A Prayer for Owen Meany by John Irving - finished 12/6/08 I've had this one for 6 or 7 years without cracking it. It was lent to me by my friend Steve, along with Magician: Apprentice and Magician:Master books. I can't help but wonder if he was just pawning off his underwhelming works on me. In all fairness, Owen Meany is significantly better than the Feist books, but I felt like I had an idea of where the novel was trying to go--emotionally, intellectually--yet it never really got there for me. It certainly has its moments, but the overall architecture of the novel was a bit creaky. And what do I mean by creaky? Overburdened, perhaps. Imagine an overly complicated, multi-level stage manufactured from old boards and second-hand nails. A play is being performed on this stage, some musical extravaganza with a huge cast and some really acrobatic dancing. And every time the entire cast comes out to do a rousing number, you can hear those old boards creak and find yourself concerned that the whole thing is going to collapse in on itself. I'll admit it's probably an inellegant strategy, but I hope it expresses what I mean by creaky architecture. Because there's a lot going on in the novel: the story of a young boy who's angry about not knowing who his father is, his peculiar best friend, faith, God, literature, politics, the 60s, sex. Just because the novel is about 600 pages long doesn't mean those elements are well put together. This novel really made me wished I had just read the last 30 pages first so the buildup to the final reveal would feel less like a slog. (And this takes me back to Danse Macabre and reinforces how I think Stephen King is wrong.) I had a pretty good idea about the final twist about 100 pages before it happens, which meant all that text just felt like dithering I needed to get through to see if I was right. (And I wasn't 100% right, but close enough that nothing felt shocking.) And since this is a novel that deals with faith, that final twist is pretty central. But since it is imbued with little mystery, it felt more like the machinations of an author than the work of an all-powerful force. And I quickly became bored with the narrator's observations on American foreign policy. I actually agreed with most of them but felt they didn't add anything to the story and were just an excuse for the author to unsubtly vent his own frustrations. At this point, I've dwelt a bit much on the negatives. I think I tend to be harsher on novels that have lofty ambitions than on those that are content with providing good entertainment. If Irving's ambitions had been scaled back a bit (less religion, less politics) this would have been a pretty enjoyable novel. His style is pleasantly unadorned. He comes up with some interesting characters. The adventures of the two boys are pretty amusing. But when you try to get God and US foreign policy on that stage, the way those boards sag just makes you cringe. And Owen Meany is right: you will be disappointed when you find out who Johnny's father is.  EC. Graphic Classics: Edgar Allan Poe - finished 12/9/08 Illustrated adaptations of several of Poe's stories and poems. There are the obvious suspects, of course, (The Raven, The Fall of the House of Usher, The Tell-Tale Heart...) but I was glad to see some lesser-known works adapted as well. One pleasant surprise was that "Never Bet the Devil your Head" was included. That's a fairly neat story which shows Poe being incredibly, though disturbingly, funny. A pretty solid collection which were overall well adapted. The adaptation of "The Raven" is perhaps a little out of left field (It made me think of a cyberspace nightmare), but it is intriguing to see the artist attempt something different than the usual gothic cliches. Message edited by its author, Dec 11, 2008, 2:41pm.  62. The Last Temptation of Christ by Nikos Kazantzakis - finished 12/14/08 Sort of as with Fight Club, it was seeing the movie that got me interested in the book. And just as with Fight Club, I did roughly diddly-squat in terms of actually seeking out the book for many years. Judging by the receipt I found within its pages, I did finally buy a copy of Temptation in 2002. And so, now, another 6 years later, I finally read it. It is a powerful book. I can see why some Christians object to its portrayal of Jesus, since this Jesus seems so very human, but I think without that aspect, the story becomes just a series of set pieces. There are some intriguing artistic choices, such as having Joseph be paralyzed or Judas commiting his betrayal at Jesus' request. What really comes out is the portrayal of Jesus as a man trying to reconcile opposites, not just human and divine, but physical and spiritual, mercy and justice, love and judgment. It may not be orthodox, but it sure is compelling. I particularly liked the physicality of this novel, the way Kazantzakis has of making you feel the crowds, the poverty, the sun. It's a vivid portrayal, which makes Jesus' struggle to transcend the flesh all the more tangible. Admittedly, I think Scorsese did an excellent job of adapting the book, so it doesn't have quite the same impact for me to read the book now as it did for me to watch the movie so many years ago. And with that, one more category is closed out, leaving only Long Books. (And I've already started on The Magus.) I think I'll also try to do some summaries of the categories, my general impressions, favorite books, etc. A little retroactive extra credit on Libros en español:  EC. Vampiros y Actrices by Horacio Quiroga - finished 7/13/08 A collection of four stories inspired by Quiroga's fascination with the movies. Prior to this, my only experience with Quiroga was the excellent collection Cuentos de locura, de amor y de muerte, which reflects the influence of Poe and Maupassant but with his own South American spin on things. The stories in his collection don't really live up to his best stuff. The first three stories deal in some interesting ideas regarding film as a medium for vampires and ghosts, but the conceit wore thin a bit quickly for me. The final non-supernatural story, wherein the narrator falls in love with a movie star and moves to Hollywood to romance the movie star, is sort of a fun lark that goes kind of metafictional. Overall, a fun collection, if lacking some of the spare and visceral element that makes his darker stories more memorable.  EC. Cuentos sobrenaturales by Carlos Fuentes - finished 8/24/08 A collection of supernatural tales from Mexican author Fuentes. A pretty good collection, with most of the stories leaning more towards gothic or weird fiction than magical realism. Two of the stories incorporate dead Aztec gods to very creepy effect. The novella-length "Aura" is a particularly unsettling story of gothic entrapment. One that stood out really strongly was "Letanía de la orquídea," very surreal and disturbing.  EC. Nuevos cuentos de Bustos Domecq by Jorge Luis Borges and Adolfo Bioy Casares - finished 8/31/08 The combination of Borges and Bioy Casares seems to yield a voice that is unlike either of them. I was reading this as sort of in-between my other books, which I think was a bit of a mistake. The stories are well written, but sometimes the language escaped me. While reading it I got a sense of the quality of the writing, and every once in a while some passage would sort of leap out at me for its power, but I otherwise felt a bit lost. I need to re-read this with more attention and a dictionary at hand.  EC. Cronica de una muerte anunciada by Gabriel Garcia Marquez - finished 9/2/08 The story of a murder in small town Colombia and one man's investigations into it. Which probably makes it sound like a murder mystery, which it in many ways is, though unlike most murder mysteries the following are already known: the culprits, the murder weapons, the time of death, the motive. It's less of a whodunnit or whydunnit than an exploration of violence and relations in this small town. (An explorationintoviolenceandrelationsinasocietydunnit? No, doesn't work.) A Hundred Years of Solitude shows Marquez using his narrative skills to bring to life the history of Latin America, but this novel shows he can be just as adept when focusing those same skills microscope-like on one episode of violence. Message edited by its author, Dec 19, 2008, 2:29am.  63. The Magus by John Fowles - finished 12/26/08 Kind of a letdown. I'm going right into spoilers, so if you're planning to read this book, skip ahead. (Or check out my relatively spoiler-free review of it here.) It's basically the story of a moderately intelligent British cad--prick, womanizer, callow, disaffected, detached, selfish, pick your noun/adjective--who is put through some complicated psychological games by an older Greek man so that he will achieve some degree of self-awareness/self-honesty and grow up. If it had been shorter, I might have gotten really into it, but the profusion of plot twists and new characters tired me out. Some books should be like good cons--you should be too invested in the con to notice that what appears to happen by chance is in fact happening by design. If this book had been a con, I would have realized I was never getting my initial investment back and just walked away. Don't get me wrong. The writing is lovely and some of the characters are interesting and its full of allusions to myth, literature, etc. But I really felt this book should have been entrancing but ended up being sort of clinical. Watching a mostly unpleasant people being manipulated by slightly less unpleasant people isn't necessarily a terrible thing, but it never quite gets beyond that. Ironically, near the end, when our callow youth is trying to figure out what is happening to him, he points out that the detective genre is the lowest genre of fiction. I'm not sure whether the reader is meant to take that at face value, but it did get me thinking: Raymond Chandler's novels may not be as literary as those of John Fowles, but his twisty plots and femme fatales are about as equally plausible and significantly more entertaining than those in The Magus. With that, I'm down to one book left to go. Five days to finish off Perdido Street Station!  EC. Prime Evil - finished 6/23/08 An anthology of short works from some of the better horror writers of the late '80s. There's a pretty nice selection, including King, Barker, and Straub. The Barker piece is surprisingly low-key, at least compared to some of his Books of Blood stuff. The King and Straub didn't seem to be their best stuff, though. King's has some clever frightful moments, but too much time is taken up with a rather dull tabloid reporter. Straub's story was actually pretty intriguing but a little too obtuse--more coming-of-age story with an undercurrent of dread. A couple of the stories--Ligotti's "Alice's Last Adventure" and Campbell's "Next Time You'll Know Me"--were pretty good, but I had already read them in other collections. I also discovered a couple of authors I hadn't heard of before whose stories were pretty good: David Morrell and Jack Cady. On this, the last day of 2008, at approximately 2:30 PST, I finished my 888 Challenge.  64. Perdido Street Station by China Miéville - finished 12/31/08 Out of a desire for some degree of dreadful symmetry, I decided to end my 888 Challenge, which began with a book about a monstrous house, by making my last book be about a monstrous city. Perdido Street Station is the central hub of the city of New Crobuzon, it's Grand Central, so to speak. And though the station itself plays a minimal role in the story, it serves as a solid metaphor for the work itself, into which flow all the varied tracks of fantasy, horror, and science fiction. It is a city in which are juxtaposed magic and technology, in which corrupt governments punish offenders through terrible resculpturings of flesh, and one in which monstrous drug lords cut and sell the essence of nightmares for a quick buck. It's a fascinating milleu in which the characters, not quite outcasts, yet not fully at home in the everyday, find their daily struggles giving way to deadly threats. So, this was quite a good read, a solid genre adventure where a group of people team up to take on a menace. Mieville makes interesting Le Guin-style use of the various races, working in the way different societies construct concepts of justice or loyalty. Some of his conceits, from the alternative science to the more secretive dwellers of the city are quite fascinating. If this novel had one weakness, it's the exposition. Exposition is, of course, a large problem with sci-fi and fantasy works, one in which the old dictum "show, don't tell" often gets discarded. Though Mieville does an overall good job with the exposition--it's never clunky or gratuitous--it's still exposition, and I wished there were less moments I would have realized I was reading exposition. Still, it's a great work, and it reminded me of when I was younger, before I was quite so jaded, and could just get absorbed in a sci-fi or fantasy novel. And with that, I bid farewell to both 2008 and the 888 challenge. Except for an overtime addition--a very short collection I've already started--I'll be switching over to the 999 challenge now. Anyone interested can check out my progress here: http://www.librarything.com/topic/49164#... Happy New Year, everyone! Message edited by its author, Dec 31, 2008, 6:41pm.  EC & OT: El cocdrilo y otros cuentos by Felisberto Hernandez - finished 1/1/09 A collection of six short stories by Felisberto. All the stories are somewhat similar in that they are first-person accounts of someone encountering something just a bit off. There's an interesting variety to what happens, so the stories don't feel repetitive at all. They range from a little boy whose homemade ball might have a mind of its own to a man whose eyes shine in the dark who becomes fixated on a sleepwalker. Intriguing in its subtle use of the weird. Debug test: your member name is: |
Touchstone worksTouchstone authorsAnne Bronte & & Emily Bronte Roberto Arlt Jane Austen William Beckford Saul Bellow K.J. Bishop William Peter Blatty Roberto Bolaño Roberto Bolaño Jorge Luis Borges Bram Stoker Emily Brontë Ramsey Campbell Cass Canfield Jr. Orson Scott Card Carlos Fuentes Caleb Carr Raymond Chandler Robert Chuckrow Gadea Cortazar Julio Cortázar Mark Z. Danielewski Avram Davidson Jennifer Donnelly Umberto Eco Sheridan Le Fanu Raymond E. Feist Tim Flannery John Fowles Sigmund Freud Thomas L. Friedman Carlos Fuentes Gabriel Garcia Marquez Marquez Garcia Gabriel Philippa Gregory Nathaniel Hawthorne Ernest Hemingway Ernest Hemingway Felisberto Hernandez John Irving Stephen Jones S. T. Joshi Nikos Kazantzakis Walter M. Kendrick Jack Kerouac Jack Ketchum Stephen King Dean R. Koontz Manuel Mujica Lainez Ursula K. Le Guin Ira Levin M. G. Lewis Thomas Ligotti Howard Phillips Lovecraft H. P. Lovecraft Leopoldo Lugones Borges Jorge Luis Gabriel García Márquez Yann Martel Lewis Matthews Charles Robert Maturin Herman Melville China Mieville Arthur Miller Victoria Nelson Kazantzaki Nikos Joyce Carol Oates Silvina Ocampo Chuck Palahniuk Wendy Palmer Straub Peter Ricardo Piglia Edgar Allan Poe John Polidori Michael Pollan Manuel Puig Thomas Pynchon Horacio Quiroga Ann Radcliffe Mark Richard Parama Roy Kevin Rushby David E. Schultz Amartya Sen Mary Shelley Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley Dan Simmons Sir W. H. Sleeman Tom Standage King Stephen Joseph E. Stiglitz Peter Straub Koji Suzuki Philip Meadows Taylor Thomas Tryon Fernando Uria Ann VanderMeer Jeff VanderMeer Various Jules Verne David Foster Wallace Horace Walpole Joss Whedon Edwin Williamson Douglas E. Winter Martin Wolf James Woodall |
