Archive for the 'polysyllabic spree' Category

Books Purchased:

To Begin Again by M.F.K. Fisher
The Best of Frank O’Connor edited by Julian Barnes
Legendary Ireland: Journey Through Celtic Places and Myths by Eithne Massey
Questions About Angels by Billy Collins
44 Irish Short Stories edited by Devin A. Garrity
The Gentle Art of Domesticity: Stitching, Baking, Nature, Art & the Comforts of Home by Jane Brocket
Sailing Alone Around the Room by Billy Collins
Finny by Justin Kramon

Books Read:

Never Let Me Go by Kazuo Ishiguro
Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone by J. K. Rowling  (re-read)
Packing for Mars by Mary Roach
Pride & Prejudice (Graphic Novel) retold by Nancy Butler (library)
Molly Fox’s Birthday by Deirdre Madden (library)
Carnet de Voyage by Craig Thompson (library)
Wilson by Daniel Clowes (library)

Books Purchased:

The Bible According to Mark Twain edited by Howard G. Baetzhold & Joseph B. McCullough
The Innocents Abroad by Mark Twain
The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larsson
Never Let Me Go by Kazuo Ishiguro

Books Read:

The Irresistible Henry House by Lisa Grunwald (library)
How Did You Get This Number by Sloane Crosley
The Lovers by Vendela Vida
The Summer Before by Ann M. Martin (library)
A Secret Map of Ireland by Rosita Boland
I am the Messenger by Markus Zusak
A.D: New Orleans After the Deluge by Josh Neufeld (library)

As you can see, I’m once again very late on posting my Polysyllabic spree posts. :) I haven’t even done May, and I must get caught up on June as well. Oy! Let’s get started.

The Books Purchased stack for May is incredibly large, and (alarmingly) does not include the 25+ books I acquired at BEA. But it’s full of goodies, and that’s all that matters, right?

Books Purchased:

Woman Hollering Creek by Sandra Cisneros
World War Z by Max Brooks
About Alice by Calvin Trillin
In the Neighborhood by Peter Lovenheim
A Cook’s Tour by Anthony Bourdain
Birds of America by Lorrie Moore
Built of Books: How Reading Defined the Life of Oscar Wilde by Thomas Wright
The Bolter by Frances Osborne
The Book of Idle Pleasures by Tom Hodgkinson and Dan Kieran
The Secret Life of the Lonely Doll: The Search for Dare Wright by Jean Nathan
I Know I Am But What Are You? by Samantha Bee
How Did You Get This Number by Sloane Crosley
Read Me: A Century of Classic American Book Advertisements by Dwight Garner
Classics for Pleasure by Michael Dirda
A Traveler’s History of Ireland by Peter Neville
A Secret Map of Ireland by Rosita Boland
Bryson’s Dictionary for Writers and Editors by Bill Bryson

Books Read:

The House on Mango Street by Sandra Cisneros (library)
About Alice by Calvin Trillin
The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain
World War Z by Max Brooks
The Principles of Uncertainty by Maira Kalman (re-read)
In the Neighborhood by Peter Lovenheim
Picnic Lightning by Billy Collins

Books Purchased:

Mathilda Savitch by Victor Lodato
Irish Folktales by Henry Glassie and Francine Kass
Dead End Gene Pool by Wendy Burden
Backing into Forward by Jules Feiffer
A Summer of Hummingbirds by Christopher E. G. Benfey
Third Helpings by Calvin Trillin
The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie by Muriel Spark
Candide by Voltaire

Books Read:

Auntie Mame by Patrick Dennis
Round Ireland With a Fridge by Tony Hawks
Mathilda Savitch by Victor Lodato
Dead End Gene Pool by Wendy Burden
Diary of a Wimpy Kid by Jeff Kinney
Alice, Let’s Eat by Calvin Trillin
The Postmistress by Sarah Blake
The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie by Muriel Spark
77 Love Sonnets by Garrison Keillor

Previously reviewed: Auntie Mame, The Postmistress, and 77 Love Sonnets

Round Ireland With a Fridge is a very fun travel writing memoir, about a man who takes a bet to hitchhike the full circumference of Ireland with a fridge. I read it in preparation for my trip to Ireland this summer, and it gave me a lot of good ideas of where I’d like to visit. Worth a read if you like travel memoirs and/or Ireland, and especially worth a read if you’re planning a trip there.

I saw Mathilda Savitch for the first time at Barnes and Noble while I was in Michigan last month; it won their Discover Award in 2009. I really enjoyed the unique narrative voice of the main character, Mathilda. I would have enjoyed the book more if it had a stronger ending with more of an emotional impact, I finished the story feeling underwhelmed.

Dead End Gene Pool is a memoir by Wendy Burden about growing up in a wealthy, prestigious (and disfunctional) family (the Vanderbilts). Not a particularly life-changing memoir to read (it isn’t trying to be), but a fun romp that makes for a good summer pick.

I read Diary of a Wimpy Kid to my brother while I was in Michigan (which is why it’s not pictured in the above photo). It’s a very fun book for kids, and Benny loved it. He likes being read to, but doesn’t much like reading on his own. This book changed that completely. He finished the book on his own, and then wanted the other books in the series. My parents got them for him, and he finished them in record speed. So awesome!

Alice, Let’s Eat is the second book in Calvin Trillin’s Tummy Trilogy of food writing essay collections. I enjoyed this one just as much as the first (American Fried), and looking forward to the third – Third Helpings.

I’d never read anything by Muriel Spark before reading The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie. I enjoyed this short novel a lot, and now I really want to watch the movie adaptation with Maggie Smith. I’d like to read more Muriel Spark as well – does anyone have a recommendation for which of her books I should read next?

This is officially a new record in lateness putting up a Polysyllabic Spree post. :) Life has been too busy to keep up with lately, and I apologize for my absence here.

Books Purchased:

Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins
About Town: The New Yorker And The World It Made by Ben Yagoda
Round Ireland with a Fridge by Tony Hawks
Beatrice and Virgil by Yann Martel
Auntie Mame by Patrick Dennis
Around the World With Auntie Mame by Patrick Dennis

Books Read:

Alice in Wonderland & Through the Looking Glass by Lewis Carroll
Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins
American Fried by Calvin Trillin (library)
Caddy Ever After by Hilary McKay (library)
Forever Rose by Hilary McKay (library)
How Proust Can Change Your Life by Alain de Botton
Olive Kitteridge by Elizabeth Strout
The Rights of the Reader by Daniel Pennac (library)
Beatrice and Virgil by Yann Martel

Previously reviewed: Alice in Wonderland & Through the Looking Glass, American Fried, Beatrice and Virgil

I read the second book in The Hunger Games trilogy, Catching Fire, and just like the first book… I could not put it down. I’m really glad that I got into this series in time to join in the excitement building up to this August’s release of the third and final book, Mockingjay.

Caddy Ever After and Forever Rose are the final two books (that have been written so far) in the Casson family series by Hilary McKay. I adore this series. Forever Rose seemed to tie all lose ends up nicely, but I read that Hilary McKay is planning on writing a prequel. If you enjoy children’s literature, you’ll likely love this series too.

In March I re-read How Proust Can Change Your Life. It was not quite as fantastic as I remembered it being, but it was still good. It makes me want to Stop, Drop, and Read Proust.

I’d been meaning to read Olive Kitteridge ever since it came out, and I’m so glad I got a copy for Christmas. It’s a novel told through 13 interwoven stories, all featuring (sometimes front and center, sometimes in the background) an older woman named Olive Kitteridge. Elizabeth Strout’s writing is incredible, she pulls you into the lives of people in Olive’s small community, and you feel at home there as a reader. You find Olive to be a friend, despite her somewhat grumpy temperament. This is a novel to read when you’re craving the type of story that feels like a windowpane into people’s lives, a movie almost. The stories are moving, honest and beautiful and it was a pleasure to read.

The Rights of the Reader is a book by a French author about children and reading. It’s for adults – it talks about the perception that kids don’t read anymore, and how it often seems like they don’t enjoy reading either. It presents very good ideas about why certain kids don’t seem to like reading, and what you can do to help them find an interest and love of reading. If you are a teacher, or if you have children of your own, this is a fantastic book to read with a lot of good ideas.

Books Purchased:

More Six-Word Memoirs edited by Smith Magazine
The Road to McCarthy by Pete McCarthy
Ireland: True Stories of Life on the Emerald Isle edited by James O’Reilly
Little Bee by Chris Cleave
The Sixty-Eight Rooms by Marianne Malone

Books Read:

Inklings by Jeffrey Koterba (library)
Stitches by David Small (library)
Permanent Rose by Hilary McKay (library)
Nine Stories by J. D. Salinger (re-read)
The Help by Kathryn Stockett
The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins
Little Bee by Chris Cleave
The Sixty-Eight Rooms by Marianne Malone

Previously Reviewed: Inklings, Permanent Rose, The Help, The Sixty-Eight Rooms

Stitches is a graphic novel memoir by one of my favorite children’s book authors, David Small. Stitches is everything that his children’s books are not: dark, angry, and sad. Like his children’s books though, it’s fantastic. A graphic novel was the perfect medium for his story, the illustrations give you a unique look into his memories and experiences. While the story of his childhood is sad, it’s not a depressing book. The story ends with forgiveness, and it from what I know of his life now it seems happy and successful. I enjoyed reading Stitches, and it’s one of the best graphic novel memoirs I’ve read.

I re-read Nine Stories for our February book club, and it was interesting to revisit it now that I’ve read (and re-read) all of his other published work. Teddy and The Laughing Man were my favorites this time around.

Also in February – I finally read The Hunger Games. I’ve been hearing awesome things about this YA Dystopian series for over a year. It did not disappoint… I literally could not put the book down. I’m glad that I read it on a weekend so that I didn’t have to. :) It effortlessly brings you to that highly coveted reading place where you’re completely engrossed in a true adventure on the page.

Little Bee was an impulse purchase and read. It has a lot of critical acclaim and I’d read many positive reviews. I enjoyed reading it, and appreciated the insight into the experiences of a refugee. The point of view changes back and forth between the two main characters, and I enjoyed the narration by the refugee, Little Bee, much more. I thought it was an interesting and well written novel, but it didn’t move me the way that I expected it to, and when it ended I felt surprisingly indifferent to it, which was disappointing.

Books Purchased:

The Left Hand of Darkness by Ursula K. Le Guin
The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins
A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens
Kitchen Essays by Agnes Jekyll
The Help by Kathryn Stockett
Miss Hargreaves by Frank Baker

Books Read:

Shades of Grey by Jasper Fforde
A Concise Chinese-English Dictionary for Lovers by Xiaolu Guo
Wishful Drinking by Carrie Fisher
The Left Hand of Darkness by Ursula K. Le Guin
44 Scotland Street by Alexander McCall Smith
Indigo’s Star by Hilary McKay
McCarthy’s Bar by Pete McCarthy

Previously reviewed: Shades of Grey, Wishful Drinking, The Left Hand of Darkness, McCarthy’s Bar

A Concise Chinese-English Dictionary for Lovers: This novel was shortlisted for the Orange Prize, and was reviewed very well, so when I saw it in a bargain books section for $5 I couldn’t leave it there. It’s an unique book, it’s written from the perspective of a young Chinese woman who moves to England to attend school to learn English. She doesn’t know a lot of English when she arrives (the beginning of the novel) and so her writing voice is in choppy, ‘beginner’ English. As her English improves, the writing throughout the book gets cleaner, with a lovely simplicity. She writes about the discoveries she makes about the language, and what things confuse her. It’s a really interesting look into what it’s like to learn a new language by leaving your comfort zone and immersing yourself in it, along with the loneliness and struggles that come from being on your own in a foreign country. As the title suggests, the book is centered around a romance with an English man she meets shortly after moving to London.

44 Scotland Street: This is my first Alexander McCall Smith book, and I liked it. It was originally serialized in a newspaper, so the chapters are very short. It switches perspectives from character to character and back again, and that made for a very quick, fun read. I have the second book in this series out from the library right now, Espresso Tales. It’s still a bit shocking to me how much/fast Alexander McCall Smith writes, and the number of different series he has going right now.

Indigo’s Star: After loving the first Casson family book, Saffy’s Angel, I had to get the second book and continue reading about these great characters. Indigo’s Star was just as enjoyable, and now I’m reading the third, Permanent Rose.

Books Purchased:

Shades of Grey by Jasper Fforde
The Fantastic Mr. Fox by Roald Dahl
Animal Vegetable Miracle by Barbara Kingsolver
The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne (present)
I am the Messenger by Markus Zusak (present)
Olive Kitteridge by Elizabeth Strout (present)
The Pursuit of Love & Love in a Cold Climate by Nancy Mitford (present)

Books Read:

Great Expectations by Charles Dickens
A Room With a View by E. M. Forster
The Geography of Bliss by Eric Weiner
Saffy’s Angel by Hilary McKay (library)

December was my worst reading month of 2009, due to too much holiday fun. :) On the plus side though, I was able to post full reviews for every book read – each title above is linked to its review.

Books Purchased:

A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens
Ethan Frome by Edith Wharton
Cathedral by Raymond Carver
Funny Business: Conversations With Writers of Comedyby Leonard Marcus
Eat, Memory edited by Amanda Hesser
Secret Ingredients: The New Yorker Book of Food and Drink edited by David Remnick
The Paris Review Interviews vol. IV edited by Philip Gourevitch
Up the Down Staircase by Bel Kaufman
Bright Lights, Big City by Jay McInerney
The Geography of Bliss by Eric Weiner

Books Read:

Franny and Zooey by J. D. Salinger (re-read)
The Magicians by Lev Grossman
The Mating Season by P. G. Wodehouse
Ethan Frome by Edith Wharton
Time Was Soft There by Jeremy Mercer
Funny Business: Conversations With Writers of Comedy by Leonard S. Marcus

Previously reviewed: Time Was Soft There.

I re-read Franny and Zooey for book club. I didn’t think it was going to be possible, but it was even more spectacular the second time. I’m happy that the other members love Salinger as much as I do, and want to re-read his other books for book group as well. Also, even upon a second reading, my favorite line remains:

Lane spotted her immediately, and despite whatever it was he was trying to do with his face, his arm that shot up into the air was the whole truth.”

I’ve been meaning to post about The Magicians for a while now. I haven’t yet because I didn’t really like it and the thought of writing a whole post about it never seemed that appealing. The novel seemed to drag quite a bit, but it mainly came down to the reason I’ve come up with for most novels that I don’t like: I didn’t like the characters. I can get through just about anything happily if I care about the characters, most crucially the main character. The only character I remotely liked was Alice, but thought she was underdeveloped. Also, there was a piece of the plot that was unresolved, which bothered me.

One of the best things about the universe must be that P. G. Wodehouse wrote so many books while he was alive. Whenever I need a dose of awesome, I read one of his novels. The Mating Season, like every other Wodehouse novel I’ve encountered, did not disappoint. Here are a few of my favorite lines:

He shimmered out, and I subjected Catsmeat to a keen glance. I am told by those who know that there are six varieties of hangover  -  the Broken Compass, the Sewing Machine, the Comet, the Atomic, the Cement Mixer and the Gremlin Boogie, and his manner suggested that he had got them all.”

“What with one thing and another, singing a bit too much in the bath and so on, I was about five minutes behind scheduled time in reaching the post office, and when I got there I found Gussie already at the tryst.”

I had never read Ethan Frome before, and I’m not sure why someone didn’t find out and whack me over the head. This is a fantastic book, and it’s so short that there’s really no excuse for not reading it. I enjoyed every aspect of this tidy little classic, but I think what I appreciated most right away was that it felt so much like a dark Gothic tale. The beginning reminded me somewhat of Wuthering Heights - the fact that the person who finds out the story and is able to tell the tale is someone who is unrelated to and not present in the events of the plot. Instantly when I started reading it I was transported into a different world: the world of a great story. I could tell I was in good hands, and I settled in for the adventure. It’s hard to describe how a good novel transports you into another place and state of mind, but it’s wonderful when it happens.

I’m planning on doing a full post about Funny Business by Leonard S. Marcus, because it’s a unique book that deserves some more attention.

Also… Funny Business was the 100th book I’ve read this year, so I’ve officially hit my goal. :)

Books Purchased:

The Queen of the Tambourine by Jane Gardam
The Man Who Ate Everything by Jeffrey Steingarten
Look at the Birdie by Kurt Vonnegut
The Mysterious Benedict Society and the Prisoner’s Dilemma by Trenton Lee Stewart
Fire by Kristin Cashore
The Wild Things by Dave Eggers (fur covered edition)
Bright-sided by Barbara Ehrenreich

Books Read:

Her Fearful Symmetry by Audrey Niffenegger
The Jungle Book by Rudyard Kipling
The Mysterious Benedict Society and the Prisoner’s Dilemma by Trenton Lee Stewart
Juliet, Naked by Nick Hornby
The Secret Lives of People in Love by Simon Van Booy
The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman (re-read)
Look at the Birdie by Kurt Vonnegut
Cherries in Winter by Suzan Colon
Making Mischief by Gregory Maguire
The Wild Things by Dave Eggers

Previously reviewed: The Mysterious Benedict Society and the Prisoner’s Dilemma, Look at the Birdie.

It was a good reading month, thanks to a trip to DC with a great, long bus ride, and the Read-a-Thon.

This month I read two books for my book group. The Jungle Book served as inspiration for Neil Gaiman, so it was interesting to read it before I re-read The Graveyard book. The Jungle Book is completely different from the Disney movie, and absolutely worth reading. They transport you straight back to childhood and the magic of listening to adventure stories read aloud to you before bed.

If you have ever smelt the night air and felt a sudden urge to race out into the darkness and howl at the moon and dance wild in the shadows, then The Jungle Books is the book for you. -from the introduction by Christopher Paolini

I’m behind on book reviews, but look for posts coming soon for Her Fearful Symmetry; Juliet, Naked; The Secret Lives of People in Love; Cherries in Winter; Making Mischief; and The Wild Things.