Friday procrastination

It's been awhile since I've done a links post, but a few things have recently caught my eye, so here you go.

The biggest Updike fan I know, RabbitReader remembers the late author.

Speaking of great authors I don't particularly enjoy, someone's found a great way to make Jane Austen a bit more palatable. The awesomeness continues with other titles if you're interested. (Via GalleyCat)

Feeling unmotivated this Friday? Allow Vonnegut to give you a motivational kick in the ass. (Via Literary Kicks)

Jacket Copy discusses the most beautiful words in English. Surprisingly, Jennifer didn't make the list. I call shenanigans.

And finally, if you need to appear to be working today (yet don't really feel like doing so), try an online novel. The Telegraph is presenting Corduroy Mansions, an online novel by Alexander McCall. I haven't yet undertaken it (it's already up to chapter 88), but the idea of a free, online-only novel is intriguing. Anyone reading this?

This will all end in tears

The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy
Douglas Adams

My bad.

Under normal circumstances, I would have quite enjoyed The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, and the fact that I didn't is entirely my fault. Had I not already seen the movie, the novel wouldn't have seemed so stale. As it was, I knew what was coming before it came; even the narrative voice was repeated in the film, and thus offered no new enjoyment upon my encountering it again on the page. Had The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy not been yet another title in my reading resolution, I probably never would have pushed myself to finish.

Still, the fault is entirely my own. The fact remains that The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxyis a perfectly enjoyable novel that is fast-paced and unlike anything I've ever read before. Plus, Marvin is utterly adorable, and perfectly justified in his depression.

I think you ought to know I'm feeling very depressed

In a nutshell: Under normal circumstances? Woohoo! In reality? Meh.

Bibliolatry Scale: Jeez, I don't even know how to rate this. 4 for quality, 2 for impact, so 3 out of 6 stars? Ugh, whatever.

Something's rotten in Denmark...

Now You See Him
Eli Gottlieb

You can tell something's not quite right from the opening pages of Gottlieb's Now You See Him, but it's impossible to quite put one's finger on it. Now You See Him is yet another title in my reading resolution. This reading train is outta control, I tell ya! It's only a matter of time before this bitch jumps the tracks.

Anyway, back to the novel. As I was saying, it's clear from the onset that something's rotten in Denmark, although the exact nature of the stench isn't quite clear. Is it simply the murder-suicide that's bothering our narrator? Surely, that would be enough to send even the toughest minds reeling. Or is something else afoot? That remains to be seen.

The novel opens as our narrator, Nick, opines about his late best friend, a writer who has just murdered his ex-girlfriend before killing himself. The loss of Rob sends Nick into a tailspin, and it's only a matter of time until Nick is going to have to face his demons. As the novel progresses, the suspense increases, and it becomes clear that a reckoning is at hand. I was pleased to see that I didn't anticipate the final twist, and I enjoyed watching Nick deal with both his and Rob's pasts.

The novel's design is also worth mentioning, as the hardcover itself features black-and-white trees, and the dust jacket is made of thin tissue paper that allows the hardcover to be seen through it. The design doesn't really add anything to the book itself, but it sure made this gal's eyes pop.

In a nutshell: Riveting story, pretty jacket. Oooh, tissue paper. Pretty.

Bibliolatry Scale: 4.5 out of 6 stars

Two uptight ninnies make for a good read

On Chesil Beach
Ian McEwan

On Chesil Beach is yet another title in my reading resolution adventure. Others have remarked that it's a fast read, and it was. After only a few hours, and badda bing! Another title down!

The novel begins as Edward and Florence embark upon the first night of their honeymoon. A newly married couple, the two are both anticipating The Big Night. Unfortunately, both have different opinions of the event. Edward, not surprisingly, can barely contain his excitement. Florence, on the other hand, feels only dread at the prospect of consummating her marriage.

insert frigid joke here

While the conflict that arises between these two is attributed mainly to their differing opinions regarding sex, the bigger (and more common) problem faced by the two is due to a lack of communication. As the conflict reaches its peak, feelings are hurt, irrevocable decisions are made, and both lives are forever changed. On Chesil Beach is a simple novel, but is one that speaks volumes about how rash decisions have life-long implications.

In a nutshell: Not my favorite of McEwan's novels, but definitely worth the time.

Bibliolatry Scale: 4 out of 6 stars

Sunday Sonnet

SLEEP
by Thomas Bailey Aldrich


When to soft Sleep we give ourselves away,
And in a dream as in a fairy bark
Drift on and on through the enchanted dark
To purple daybreak, little thought we pay
To that sweet, bitter world we know by day.
We are clean quit of it, as is a lark
So high in heaven no human eye may mark
The thin swift pinion cleaving through the gray.
Till we awake ill fate can do no ill,
The resting heart shall not take up again
The heavy load that yet must make it bleed;
For this brief space the loud world's voice is still,
No faintest echo of it brings us pain.
How will it be when we shall sleep indeed?

Love is an action you must repeat ceaselessly

The Gargoyle
Andrew Davidson

Another day, another notch in my reading resolution belt. I hope I don't jinx myself by saying that so far, I've enjoyed an unusually high number of excellent reads, and The Gargoyle was no exception. Although I had read some negative reviews on this novel, I ultimately loved it.

The Gargoyle begins as our narrator -- addict, pornographer, and all-around swell guy -- drives straight off a cliff, becoming a "Crispy Critter" in the process. (It should come as no surprise that he was highly intoxicated while driving.)

His recovery is long and painful, and for awhile, doctors doubted he'd he'd even survive. But survive he does, and soon he is visited in the hospital by Marianne, a patient from the mental ward. Marianne is not put off by our narrator's gruesome appearance, especially as it becomes clear that she knows him. Or at least she believes she does. You see, Marianne believes that she and the narrator share a love that has spanned lifetimes. Naturally, the two develop a friendship, especially since our narrator is hardly attracting friends to his bedside.

The Gargoyle follows the narrator's recovery, both his physical and emotional one. Marianne helps the narrator grow as an individual just as his doctors help the narrator cope with his burns. As the novel progresses, we learn more of their "past lives" (or, one might argue, Marianne's delusions). Davidson allows the reader to decide whether Marianne is delusional or not, but I prefer to believe her story.

The Gargoyle is not a slim book, but the prose is not overly dense and the story held me rapt until I reached the end. I found myself reading it at every opportunity, so engrossed was I. Every part of the story interested me: from Marianne's stories of their past together to the narrator's discussion of his treatment, it was clear by the attention to detail that the author did his research. We are treated to an intense look at the recovery of burn victims, as well as the physical, psychological, and emotional toll such a powerful change has on an individual. However, never did this information bog down the story.

In a nutshell: Entertaining, gripping -- all those hackneyed words. I loved every bit of it, and I couldn't recommend The Gargoyle more.

Bibliolatry Scale: 5 out of 6 stars

She had me at one-handed orphan

The Good Thief
Hannah Tinti

The Good Thief marks another reading resolution title -- I'm well on my way!!

The Good Thief also has the honor of being my latest review for the good people over at Pajiba. I've heard nothing but praise for this book, so naturally I was afraid it would suck. Fortunately, I was wrong. Click here to read my review.

If you're interested in reading more about Tinti, you may follow this link to an interview in which she discusses, among other things, Junot Diaz. Click here to visit One Story, of which Tinti is the Editor-in-Chief.

In a nutshell: Fun, thought-provoking, and a romping good time.

Bibliolatry Scale: 5 out of 6 stars

Sunday Sonnet

XIV
by Elizabeth Barrett Browning


If thou must love me, let it be for nought
Except for love's sake only. Do not say
"I love her for her smile--her look--her way
Of speaking gently,--for a trick of thought
That falls in well with mine, and certes brought
A sense of pleasant ease on such a day"--
For these things in themselves, Beloved, may
Be changed, or change for thee,--and love, so wrought,
May be unwrought so. Neither love me for
Thine own dear pity's wiping my cheeks dry,--
A creature might forget to weep, who bore
Thy comfort long, and lose thy love thereby!
But love me for love's sake, that evermore
Thou mayst love on, through love's eternity.

Happy Friday! Here's some links.

I haven't done a link post in a while, both because I haven't found any good links and because I haven't had the time to look. Here are a few that tickled my fancy the past couple of days:


IO9 presents the best science-fiction published in 2008. Have any of you read these titles? Any recommendations? (For after I've completed my reading resolution, naturally!)

Speaking of my reading resolution (and of sci-fi), I've returned to DailyLit, as Accelerando, one of my RR titles, is available. I've added it to GoogleReader, so I don't have to slog through via email. The last time I tried DailyLit, I quit after a few days, so hopefully the added incentive of finishing a RR title will push me through.

Now here's an interesting idea: psychologists say Victorian novels helped us evolve into better people. What do you think? I can't speak for the Victorians, but surely Rock of Love Tour Bus is helping me evolve somehow, right? Right?

Speaking of evolution....HOLY SHIT!!

And finally, I'm glad to see someone else can relate to minds and memories that have invented their own memories. A lovely poem for your Friday.

The beauty! The beauty!

The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao
Junot Diaz

The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao marks the second of my reading resolution titles for 2009. I had heard nothing but praise for this novel, so I expected it to either a) be absolutely astounding, or b) be a piece of crap. Surprisingly, neither option ended up happening. Instead, I found I liked Oscar Wao much more than Oscar Wao.

The novel follows Oscar, a Dominican nerd who lacks the lady skills Dominicans are known for. Instead of being a lady killer, girls either run from Oscar or mock them. It doesn't help that Oscar is hugely overweight and has a penchant for fantasy. Any young man who enjoys Dungeons & Dragons and openly discusses The Lord of the Rings will have a problem getting laid.

Unfortunately Oscar grows up in a culture that values virility in its men. Unwilling to die a virgin, Oscar is determined to experience love -- that is, reciprocated, not unrequited love -- at least once in his life. The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao follows Oscar in his quest.

As we follow Oscar in his quest, we are also treated to the histories of his older sister, mother, and other relatives, the lives of whom all had some influence on Oscar's current situation and on his future. At times these digressions felt absolutely necessary to the text; other times, I felt frustrated by being denied Oscar's story and I craved some editing to shorten what felt like unnecessarily long passages. Diaz also includes long asides about the history of the Dominican Republic, and again, at times these asides were welcomed and at others they were anything but. I admit to skimming many of these historical passages, eager to return to Oscar and his personal story.

Besides the character of Oscar, the other best aspect of the novel was, for me, the narrative voice. Oscar Wao is narrated by a friend of Oscar's, a friend whose voice is a blend of urban slang, Dominican vocabulary, and all-out hysteria. There were a more than a few times that I laughed out loud at one of his comments. My only complaint about the narration was the large frequency of times that Spanish was used without any indication of its meaning; I did my best to figure it out, using both contextual clues and my knowledge of French, which did help a little...nevertheless, there were still times when I was unable to discern what was being said, and that annoyed me.

In a nutshell: Oscar Wao itself could have affected me more, but Oscar Wao himself stole my heart.

Bibliolatry Scale: 4 out of 6 stars

Curse schmurse!

The End of Mr. Y
Scarlett Thomas

The End of Mr. Y marks the first of my reading resolution novels for this year. The reason I chose it was simple: its design. The pages are edged in black, and there's a "feel" to the book that grabs one's attention immediately. Plus, the premise sounded intriguing. There you have it.

The End of Mr. Y follows Ariel, a PhD student studying an obscure author whose most famous work (the aforementioned Mr. Y) is cursed. Is the novel truly cursed, or is this just literary myth? Ariel is unlikely to ever find out, since no copies of the book exist. When Ariel unexpectedly comes across The End of Mr. Y in a used bookstore, she spends her last cent to purchase it. Knowing that reading the book will bring the curse upon her head, she does what pretty much any bibliophile would do -- she reads it.

(Speaking of which, would you read a "cursed" book? I have to say that I probably would.)

Ariel is immediately drawn into a world that contradicts all that she has previously known about the nature of reality. Things get weird, and then they get weirder.

At times Thomas more than stretches the limits of my imagination, and towards the end, the plot becomes a bit silly. The first half of the novel was solid, however, so I was a little dismayed to see how some of these elements were tied together at the end.

In a nutshell: The End of Mr. Y was a fascinating read that was both thought-provoking and fast-paced. Were it not for the end, I'd have rated this one a solid four stars.

Bibliolatry Scale: 3.5 out of 6 stars

Sunday Sonnet

WONDER AND JOY
by Robinson Jeffers


The things that one grows tired of--O, be sure
They are only foolish artificial things!
Can a bird ever tire of having wings?
And I, so long as life and sense endure,
(Or brief be they!) shall nevermore inure
My heart to the recurrence of the springs,
Of the gray dawns, the gracious evenings,
The infinite wheeling stars. A wonder pure
Must ever well within me to behold
Venus decline; or great Orion, whose belt
Is studded with three nails of burning gold,
Ascend the winter heaven. Who never felt
This wondering joy may yet be good or great:
But envy him not: he is not fortunate.

Twitter?

It seems like I've been hearing about this newfangled Twitter everywhere I've turned for the past few months. Seems like, much like methamphetamine, everyone is doing it. Always one to join the crowd, I'm now on Twitter too.

The problem? I have no idea what I'm doing. Please help. Or friend me, or whatever one does on Twitter. Is Twitter basically a facebook status thingee? What are the advantages to Twittering? Is this another worthless website I've gone and become a member of?

Oh brother.

I'm neither thinking nor feeling this one

No One Belongs Here More Than You
Miranda July

Another day, another disappointment.

I'd heard so much about No One Belongs Here More Than You, and I was eagerly awaiting it to appear in paperback so I too could join the cool kids in praising July from the mountaintops. She's so quirky! So profound!

Obviously, I didn't enjoy No One as much as I expected. Nor can I even say I can recognize its merits; all in all, I was thoroughly disappointed.

The only strength of this collection is July's voice, which is both unique and compelling. Were it not for her prose, I never would have gotten through some of the stories.

Upon further reflection, I might give her another go one day. I mean look at her: she's seems like someone I ought to like. Quirky. Profound. Perhaps the Beast of Overhype has struck again, making my disappointment all but inevitable.

In a nutshell: I feel "uncool" not liking this book (it seems all the bright young things are digging it) but I just didn't connect.

Bibliolatry Scale: 2.5 out of 6 stars

Is knowing better than feeling?

What makes a good book, well, good?

Recently, I wondered whether knowing a book is good is better than feeling a book is good. What is better in the grand scheme of "good books"? Is one better than the other? Or are both elements necessary when judging the value of a book?

Which is more important to a book's being "good": intellectually recognizing its merits (but remaining emotionally unaffected by it) or being emotionally moved by it (despite its lacking intellectual, "literary" merit)? Or are both elements necessary to making a book "good"?

What do you think?

Sunday Sonnet

OF HIS LADY'S OLD AGE
by Pierre de Ronsard

When you are very old, at evening
You'll sit and spin beside the fire, and say,
Humming my songs, "Ah well, ah well-a-day.
When I was young, of me did Ronsard sing."
None of your maidens that doth hear the thing,
Albeit with her weary task foredone,
But wakens at my name, and calls you one
Blest, to be held in long remembering.

I shall be low beneath the earth, and laid
On sleep, a phantom in the myrtle shade,
While you beside the fire, a grandame gray,
My love, your pride, remember and regret;
Ah, love me, love, we may be happy yet,
And gather roses, while 'tis called to-day.



Translated by Andrew Lang

Bummer

Travels in the Scriptorium
Paul Auster

Note: This novel was read in 2008.

Hm. This is one of those books that I know is good, but I don't feel is good. Does that make sense?

I've read that Travels in the Scriptorium shouldn't be one's first encounter with Auster, and I have a sneaking suspicion that I should have heeded this surely wise warning. I can appreciate the intellectual value behind Travels, but I wanted to be more moved by the reading.

I'll catch up with Auster again, I'm sure...but most certainly NOT before the end of 2009.

In a nutshell: Intelligent, but mostly blah overall.

Bibiolatry Scale: 3 out of 6 stars

Jane Austen shouldn't have so much power

Jane Austen Ruined My Life
Beth Pattillo

Note: This novel was read in 2008.

This little book was quite literally a surprise: an ARC showed up at my door one day, despite my not having requested one. I didn't expect to like it, as it seemed a little "chick-litty" to me. However, I've never been one to look a gift book in the mouth, so I thanked the bookish gods and read away.

I was pleasantly surprised. Despite its flaws, I truly enjoyed Jane Austen Ruined my Life. (I still take issue with anyone, real or fictional, giving Jane Austen so much power over her life, but whatever. Just because I can only stomach Austen once every few years and only after some libations to help ease 'er down doesn't mean I can't appreciate her place in the canon. But ruin my life? C'mon.)

Anyway, our narrator Emma doesn't agree. Emma is so affected by Austen's work that she's dedicated her life to its study. In fact, even her life seemed to be moving along just like an Austen novel: she's married, teaching, and planning a productive, peaceful life. Unfortunately, Emma soon finds her husband in flagrante delicto, forcing her to realize life is not always as Austen would have written.

Left: In lieu of an author photo, please except this lovely illustration entitled "Disco Jane Austen"

Professional problems ensue as a result of her husband's affair, and Emma takes flight to England. Her purpose is more than just to escape from her problems, though; she also intends to follow up on a scholarly lead. A Mrs. Parrot has recently contacted her, claiming to possess rare Austen letters that scholars had long considered destroyed. Thinking that such a discovery would end many of her troubles, she sets out to find whether Parrot speaks fact or fiction.

Her quest for knowledge will not be an easy one, however. Mrs. Parrot makes Emma jump through several hoops before giving her the information Emma desires. In the end, Emma learns as much about herself as about Jane Austen.

Jane Austen Ruined my Life is not a perfect novel, but it is a perfectly enjoyable one. There were a few predictable moments, but the prose is engaging and the plot flows quickly and smoothly.

In a nutshell: A light, fun read that provides a few hours of entertainment, even if one predicts how things will end long before our protagonist does.

Bibliolatry Scale: 4 out of 6 stars

Reading Resolution

I don't, as a rule, join reading challenges, preferring instead to read what I please, when I please. This won't really change in 2009, but I am hereby naming 2009 the year of my Reading Resolution. (Admittedly, it is rather like a challenge, except that it is for me alone and doesn't follow a theme.)

The following is a list of every unread or unfinished book currently in my possession. Some titles are new, others I've been meaning to read for years, and still others I've been in the process of reading for longer than I care to remember.

My reading resolution for 2009 is to read most, if not all, of these books. Can I do it? How long until I add a title to this list? Will I go mad from the effort? I suppose we'll have to see.

I'll be adding this post to my sidebar, and I'll be crossing off each title as I complete it. Please feel free to post with recommendations, ideas, or even some simple encouragement.

TITLES IN MY 2009 READING RESOLUTION

Adams, The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy
Ahmed, The Land of Invisible Women
Bachelder, Bear v. Shark
Balzac, Cousin Bette
Balzac, The Unknown Masterpiece
Bambara, The Salt Eaters
Bolano, The Savage Detectives
Cather, Death Comes for the Archbishop
Cervantes, Don Quixote
Chabon, The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Clay
Collins, The Moonstone
Conescu, Being Written
Connolly, Nocturnes
Coupland, JPod
Davidson, The Gargoyle
Davis, The Thin Place
Diaz, The Brief Wonderous Life of Oscar Wao
Dick, Martian Time-Slip
Dick, Dr. Bloodmoney
Dick, Now Wait for Last Year
Dick, Flow My Tears, the Policeman Said
Dick, A Scanner Darkly
Dostoevsky, The Brothers Karamazov
DuMaurier, Rebecca
Eco, The Name of the Rose
Eliot, Daniel Deronda
Ferris, Then We Came to the End
Fforde, The Fourth Bear
Freund, I Never Saw Paris
Gilbert, Eat, Pray, Love
Gottlieb, Now You See Him
Groff, The Monsters of Templeton
Hall, The Raw Shark Texts
Hardy, The Mayor of Casterbridge
Hickey, The Painted Kiss
Hill, 20th Century Ghosts
Hugo, Les Miserables
Hyde, The Abortionist's Daughter
Irving, The World According to Garp
Keret, The Girl on the Fridge
King, The Girl Who Loved Tom Gordon
Largo, Final Exits
Lehane, Mystic River
Lippman, What the Dead Know
Mabanckou, African Psycho
MacDonald, Fall on Your Knees
MacLean, Why the Long Face?
Mann, Death in Venice
McCabe, The Butcher Boy
McEwan, On Chesil Beach
Meek, The People's Act of Love
Millhauser, Dangerous Laughter
Moody, Right Livelihoods
Moore, Fool
Oates, We Were the Mulvaneys
Oates, Because it is Bitter, and Because it is my Heart
O'Nan, Songs for the Missing
Oyeyemi, The Icarus Girl
Parker, Ovenman
Peace, Tokyo Year Zero
Pears, The Dream of Scipio
Pirsig, Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance
Powers, The Echo Maker
Price, Clockers
Przekop, Aberrations
Pyncheon, V
Radcliffe, The Italian
Radcliffe, The Mysteries of Udolpho
Rice, Blood and Gold
Russell, St. Lucy's Home
Sijie, Mr. Muo's Travelling Couch
Stewart, The Ivy Tree
Stross, Accelerando
Sturgeon, Selected Stories
Teuthold, The Necromancer
Thomas, The End of Mr. Y
Thomson, Soft
Thomson, The Book of Revelation
Tinti, The Good Thief
Tolstoy, Anna Karenina
Tolstoy, War and Peace
Trollope, Barchester Towers
Wallace, Oblivion
Wharton, The House of Mirth
Wharton, The Buccaneers
White, The Aunt's Story
White, Voss
Zweig, Beware of Pity


Whew -- that's quite a list! Wish me luck!


CURRENT PROGRESS: 33 / 88

The Second Annual Bibliolatry Awards

In keeping with last year's recap post, below I've linked to all the reviews I completed during 2008. (I still, unfortunately, need to review a couple more books finished in December.)

At the end of my recap, I'll give out some awards. All links are internal, and will take you directly to my review.

Enjoy.


JANUARY

1. 180 More: Extraordinary Poems for Every Day, edited by Billy Collins
2. The Fall of the House of Bush, by Craig Unger
3. King Dork, by Frank Portman
4. The Dogs of Babel, by Carolyn Parkhurst
5. Tom Cruise: An Unauthorized Biography, by Andrew Morton


FEBRUARY

6. Three Dollars, by Elliot Perlman
7. Immortal, by Traci Slatton
8. Fragile Things, by Neil Gaiman
9. The Invention of Morel, by Adolfo Bioy Casares
10. The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie, by Muriel Spark
11. Lady of the Roses, by Sandra Worth
12. The Soul Thief, by Charles Baxter


MARCH

13. The Terror, by Dan Simmons
14. Enduring Love, by Ian McEwan
15. Larryisms: Book One, by Larry John
16. Olive Kitteridge, by Elizabeth Strout
17. Rape: A Love Story, by Joyce Carol Oates


APRIL

18. Amnesia Moon, by Jonathan Lethem
19. Beautiful Children, by Charles Bock
20. Soldier's Heart, by Elizabeth Samet
21. Dead Star Twilight, by Chez Pazienza


MAY

22. The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian, by Sherman Alexie
23. The Wentworths, by Katie Arnoldi
24. The McSweeney's Joke Book of Book Jokes
25. Armageddon in Retrospect, by Kurt Vonnegut
26. Cake, by Doreen Fitzgerald
27. Emotionless Souls, by David S. Grant


JUNE

28. The Book of Air and Shadows, by Michael Gruber
29. Loose Girl: A Memoir of Promiscuity, by Kerry Cohen
30. Shutter Island, by Dennis Lehane
31. Snuff, by Chuck Palahniuk
32. Brasyl, by Ian McDonald
33. When You Are Engulfed in Flames, by David Sedaris
34. Neurotica, by Elva Maxine Beach
35. Kockroach, by Tyler Knox
36. World War Z, by Max Brooks
37. The First 30 Days, by Ariane de Bonvoisin


JULY

38. The Answer is Always Yes, by Monica Ferrell
39. The Stone Gods, by Jeanette Winterson
40. The Enchantress of Florence, by Salman Rushdie
41. Child 44, by Tom Rob Smith
42. The French Lieutenant's Woman, by John Fowles
43. The Interpretation of Murder, by Jed Rubenfeld
44. A Wolf at the Table, by Augusten Burroughs
45. Apples and Oranges, by Marie Brenner
46. Moving Forward: Taking the Lead in Your Life, by Dave Pelzer
47. The Abstinence Teacher, by Tom Perrotta (abandoned)
48. My Sister, My Love, by Joyce Carol Oates


AUGUST

49. PS, I LOVE YOU, by Cecelia Ahern (abandoned)
50. Elephants on Acid, by Alex Boese
51. The Other, by David Guterson
52. A Clockwork Orange, by Anthony Burgess
53. Queen of the Road, by Doreen Orion
54. Runaway, by Steve Simpson (abandoned)
55. Marie-Therese, Child of Terror, by Susan Nagel
56. Soon I Will be Invincible, by Austin Grossman
57. In the Woods, by Tana French
58. No Country for Old Men, by Cormac McCarthy
59. boring boring boring boring boring boring boring, by Zach Plague


SEPTEMBER

60. A Good and Happy Child, by Justin Evans
61. The Rising, by Brian Keene
62. The Book of Lost Things, by John Connolly
63. The Power of Flies, by Lydie Salvayre
64. Hurry Down Sunshine, by Michael Greenberg
65. Tomato Girl, by Jayne Pupek


OCTOBER

66. Who By Fire, by Diana Spechler
67. The Story of Edgar Sawtelle, by David Wroblewski
68. Capote in Kansas, by Kim Powers
69. The Development, by John Barth
70. Months and Seasons, by Christopher Meeks
71. The Dragonfly Secret, by Clea and John Adams


NOVEMBER

72. Death With Interruptions, by Jose Saramago
73. Heart-Shaped Box, by Joe Hill
74. The Shape of Mercy, by Susan Meissner
75. Perfume, by Patrick Suskind
76. Just After Sunset, by Stephen King
77. The Tutu Ballet, by Sally Lee


DECEMBER

78. Living Dead Girl, by Elizabeth Scott
79. Being Dead, by Jim Crace
80. A Mercy, by Toni Morrison
81. The Missing, by Sarah Langan
82. Dirt, by Mark LaFlamme
83. The Interloper, by Antoine Wilson
84. Winterwood, by Patrick McCabe
85. Asylum, by Patrick McGrath
86. Jane Austen Ruined my Life, by Beth Pattillo
87. Travels in the Scriptorium, by Paul Auster (review forthcoming)
88. No one belongs here more than you, by Miranda July (review forthcoming)


First, I'm glad to say that I read more this year than I did last year, although I'm still not too pleased with these numbers. So I read 88 books this year, but abandoned three, bringing my net total to 85. Not too shabby, I suppose.

And now, without further ado, I give you the Second Annual Bibliolatry Awards!!


THE BEST: The Terror
Runners Up: Olive Kitteridge, Kockroach, Child 44, The Interloper


THE BEST (NONFICTION): Elephants on Acid
Runner Up: Loose Girl


THE WORST (FICTION)

There was a five-way tie in this category, folks. I couldn't choose which of these turds was the worst:

The Rising
Snuff
The Abstinence Teacher
PS, I LOVE YOU
Runaway


THE WORST (NONFICTION): Moving Forward
Runner Up: Larryisms: Book One


MOST DISAPPOINTING: Fragile Things
Runner Up: The Soul Thief


MOST SURPRISING: The Book of Air and Shadows
Runner Up: Immortal

Happy New Year!

Happy New Year!

May 2009 bring you much health and happiness -- and, of course, many, many great books.