A Couple of Quickies

OK, I've got a couple of non-reviewed books staring me down. For a number of reasons, I didn't feel I could do a full review on any of these so I'm clumping them together in little mini reviews for you.

First up is 1984 by George Orwell. I feel like I'm the last person on Earth (or at least the last person in America) to have read this book. I think most people are assigned it in high school. Somehow this has been on my list of books for several years and I'm finally just now getting around to it. Since most people have already read this book, I don't feel like I have to say much. Let's see, if you've ever wondered where the term Big Brother came from and haven't figured it out yet, read this book.

I'm kind of glad I waited until I was an adult to read this one because I think I caught a lot more than I would have if I'd read it when I was younger. Orwell has done a wonderful job of constructing a totalitarian world that makes the sane people feel insane for noticing the government's constant hand in the daily lives of its people. Our world may not be as dreary, but we certainly have the televisions telling us what to think and how to behave on a constant basis. This book will make you wonder where we're headed...

Oh, interesting side note: I never knew George Orwell was a pseudonym. His real name was Eric Arthur Blair. How crazy is that?

Other reviews of 1984:
Beastmomma

OK, next up is Something Borrowed by Emily Giffin. I read this book because my boyfriend's mom gave me her copy after she'd finished and I knew it would be a quick read. I personally was not a fan of this book. Not only was it typical chick lit, but the heroine of the story is sleeping with her best friend's fiance. Granted, her best friend isn't super great, but still. I don't know how you can get a heroine out of a situation like this one. In addition, I didn't feel like the main character, Rachel, grew as a person by the end of the story. I kept waiting for her to finally speak up for herself or call out her best friend on her bad behavior, but she never does. *SPOILER COMING* Even in the end when Rachel finds out her best friend had been cheating on her fiance the whole time with the guy she's supposed to have been dating, Rachel still feels bad and let's her best friend freak out at her without saying anything. This book just left me feeling empty and hating the way some women let their friends (and the rest of the world) treat them. I don't plan to pick up another Emily Giffen book anytime soon.

My last mini review is of Last Chance to See by Douglas Adams. It was a book I really enjoyed, but that I didn't think I could do justice with in a book review. Nymeth at Things Mean A Lot did a way better review, so I suggest you hop on over there and take a look at what she had to say about this one. As for me, I wish Adams was still alive so he could update this book.

Last Chance to See was written in 1990 and is about an around-the-world trip Adams took with a zooligist in search of critically endangered species. We are introduced to the white rhino, of which there were only 22 left when Adams visited, the Komodo Dragon, several species of endangered birds and a the baiji dolphin (which I'm fairly certain became extinct a couple years ago when the Yangtze, it's only known habitat, was dammed by China)

Adams uses his well-known humor to add some lightness to this heavy subject. His writing reminds me much of Bill Bryson, and made me wonder if he was one of Bryson's early influences. The book was well written and an intriguing subject. Despite its being nearly 20 years old, I think this is still a great book and important to read for those of us who are concerned about the environment and our effects on it.

More info about Last Chance to See:
A Year of Books (check this one out for updates on the animals in the book)

Things Mean A Lot (check this one out for a great review)

Another Chance to See (a blog about what's being done for these animals today)

July Selection and Interview with Jonathan Evison

As I mentioned a few weeks back, this month we'll be reading All About Lulu by Jonathan Evison. All About Lulu is a debut novel put out by Soft Skull Press, an independent publishing house in New York. The books follows the life of a boy who's mother dies of cancer when he is 7 years old. His father remarries and Will falls in love with his stepsister, Lulu. I haven't read the book yet, but it has gotten some great reviews and I'm really looking forward to it. I've been reading Evison's blogs on myspace and The Nervous Breakdown for some time and if his book is anywhere near as funny as his other writing, I'm sure I'll enjoy it.

For those of you who aren't familiar with Jonathan Evison, I thought I'd give you a little introduction by way of a short e-mail interview with him:

Let's start with a few questions about you. First, what's your favorite beverage?

Unquestionably, beer. Not even close.

What are some of the job titles you've had in the past?

Syndicated talk radio host, rotten tomato sorter, road-kill-butcher-and captive-bear-feeder.

Captive-bear-feeder?

. . . for awhile I was volunteering at a wildlife refuge in Merlin, Oregon, which I totally loved because I got to be around all theanimals; cougars and wolves and bears and foxes and owls and eagles and otters and beavers . . . the downside was, I got a lot of the dirty work – cleaning cages, etc. People would bring fresh roadkill in, and one of my jobs was to hack it to pieces with a machete and feed it to the bears, a job which I had neither the stomach nor the heart for, but undertook for the pleasure of the bears . . .

Tell me something about All About Lulu that I won't read in the
press.

My wife wrote it. You’ll never read that in the press. Joking, of course. James Frey wrote it.

What have readers liked most from All About Lulu?

Will’s voice, I suppose. Or the characters. People really seem to like getting to know Gerard and Eugene and the twins.

What has been the most surprising part about the publishing process for you?

How civilized and generally nice people in the publishing industry are, compared to say, film and radio. Also, how ass-backward most publishing models are. Could there be a connection here? I’m not sure. I don’t think so.

Why did you choose to query Soft Skull publishing? What was it that attracted you to a smaller publishing house?

Two words: Richard Nash. One of the great editors working today. Richard not only has excellent taste, he’s got guts, heart, and he’s a madman— the dude e-mails me at two in the morning, sleeping baby in his arms, typing with one arm. The biggest advantage to Soft Skull, and other great indie presses, like Dzanc, or Hawthorne, or Greywolf, is that they actually concentrate on building readerships for their authors, putting all their intellectual resources and energy behind them, instead of trying top catch lightening in a bottle, like many of the corporate houses.

I've been reading your stuff on myspace for awhile now, and I was just wondering if you plan to publish a book of essays in the future (your Sketches of People I Hardly Remember)? I know you've got some other books waiting in the wings, what do you think will likely be the next thing we see from you?

Probably the next thing you’ll see from me is the big shaggy beast of a book I just finished called “West of Here,” which is either a six-hundred page world-beater, or just a very eccentric novel by a guy who should maybe watch his reefer intake on the next draft. But I do have two earlier novels that I haven’t physically burried, as well as the aforementioned “Sketches of People I Hardly Remember; A History of the World As I Found It,” all of which I would like to see go to press eventually. Or not. Who knows?

Why do you bury your books?

I don't bury all of them . . . I just bury the bad ones, which in my case meant the first three novels I wrote . . . and when I say bury, Imean literally dig a hole, salt the earth, the whole nine yards . . . I also dispose of all my rejection notices, although burning is my preferred method for this . . .confidence is indispensable to the writer if he or she is to make the right decisions . . . I don't like to have any reminders around of past failures . . .

Also, there seems to be a general buzz surrounding All About Lulu, how did the book get recognized so quickly?

A combination of things, luck being one of them. The right publisher. The right readers. The fact that Lulu is a trade paper original (which has really helped in terms of getting enthusiastic booksellers on board). And also, the book just sorta’ feels like the right book at the right time, kinda’ thing. I think a lot of people can relate to the family stuff. It’s good for group discussion, methinks. And of course, I’ve been very fortunate to have amazing advocacy and support all around me.

How do you feel about all of this (the book, the film, the recognition)?

Like a very grateful man. Incredibly grateful-- often of late, wistfully so. Like I was already lucky to have been dragging my bumper all over town all those years with no dental insurance, just because I had writing as a way of life, but now I can devote even more time to it, and make a living (sort of).

Lastly, where can readers go if they want a taste of your work?

Just about any bookstore, or Amazon, or whatever. Oh, you mean free work? Ha! There’s some personal essays archived at the nervousbreakdown.com— Brad Listi’s thriving literary co-op, which, as you know, is an excellent venue for dozens of great writers.

OK then, thanks so much Jonathan and I hope you make it out to Sacramento.

My pleasure, thanks to you, Becca! I also hope to get my ‘Sac on’, as it were . . .

Jonathan Evison likes rabbits. His work had appeared in Orchid, Knock, Opium, Quick Fiction, and other journals. All about Lulu is his first novel.

P.S. Check out Powell's Books for another interview with Evison.

Book Club Discussion: Animal, Vegetable, Miracle

I really enjoyed Animal, Vegetable, Miracle by Barbara Kingsolver. For those of you who haven't read the book, it's a memoir-ish book about Kingsolver and her family's year of living strictly on food they'd grown in their own garden or, when it was something they couldn't produce themselve, bought locally.

For several years now I've wondered what it would be like if I had enough money to buy up some land and live off the earth. I have a grandmother and an aunt very much like Kingsolver. They had their own gardens and chickens and were very strict about what they would and would not eat. When I was younger I thought they were completely crazy, but now that I'm older I find myself wanting that way of life more and more. My parents also took up major gardening and animal raising after I'd moved out of the house and now I finally understand what they were trying to get to.

I really liked that Kingsolver's book was not just a memoir, but also had pertinent information that might sway someone to decide to try eating locally or growing their own food. The informational boxes by her husband and the short essays and recipes from her daughter were some of my favorite parts of the book.

I also enjoyed her defense of farmers. I've been a newspaper reporter in two small towns, both filled with farmland, which gave me a lot of opportunities to meet and interview farmers. I grew to really admire their way of life and their ability to keep at it despite the numerous factors standing in their way. To someone who has never been on a farm, nor talked to farmers, Kingsolver's descriptions may seem a little too poetic, but if you've ever been there you'd know that she's pretty dead on. She mentions this in the book too, after going on vacation to meet with some of her Amish friends, one of her city friends teases her about how she described the farm as if there were no worries just because the farmers had time to commune with nature.

In the book there were also some parts that really stressed me out (the chapters about squash and tomatoes covering every surface of the house while they desperately tried to store and consume them). I currently have five tomato plants to take care of and have already been giving dozens of them away (luckily I don't live in a rural place where everyone else is trying to do the same). I don't know how I would cope with 50 tomato plants' worth of tomatoes to deal with. This and learning to butcher animals would probably be the most difficult things for me if I decided to try living for a year off of food I produced myself. I think it would finally be the thing to push me into vegetarianism for real.

I think what I loved most about Kingsolver's book is that it made me feel normal. Sometimes I think my friends think I'm crazy, like the year I decided to learn how to make jam and proceeded to give it to everyone as Christmas gifts. Reading about making your own cheese or canning tomatoes makes me want to rush out and buy all of the tools necessary so I can do it too.

Also, I loved Kingsolver constantly bringing up her issues with California produce. Kingsolver lives in Virginia and refuses to buy California produce because of how far it would have had to have been trucked in order to reach her supermarket. To her it's upsetting that people think they can have produce all year round by trucking it in from far and wide. And I agree wholeheartedly. However, it's easy for me to agree because I happen to be one of the lucky thousands to live IN California. That means I get fresh local produce, and a wide variety of it too, almost year round. Reading this book made me realize just how lucky I am to have that.

So what did you think? Did you like the book? Did you hate it? Do you think it would be possible to live this way in a city? What parts of the book did you like/hate? What would be the hardest thing for you to give up if you decided to eat only local foods? (For me, it would be bananas or pineapple.)

P.S. You can read a review of this book at:
The Hidden Side of a Leaf

Read-a-Thon Coverage Take 3

Update: 12:53 p.m., Sunday
I managed to read until almost 2 a.m., but I didn't have the energy to come back and check blogs anymore, nor to update mine. Sorry! I didn't mean to fall asleep either. I was reading and then thought I'd just rest my eyes for a second ... and didn't wake up until 7 a.m. I read again until 8:30, when I left for my long run. So, I think all together I did 15 hours of reading and 183 pages. Not such a great total, but at least I have something to beat for next year. Thanks everyone for cheering me on. The comments made my heart smile in a big way.

Update: 10:43 p.m.
I spent the last section of time reading one of my friend's blogs, which she just began posting on. It's a little risquee compared to my little book blog here, but she makes me laugh and I don't see here nearly enough so I'm glad I now have a connection to her through her writing. I also read more of David Sedaris' new book, which I've really enjoyed so far. I'm now up to 141 pages. Still kind of low, but definitely improving. My enthusiasm was wavering there for a bit, but I just took a shower to wake me up so I'm feeling refreshed and ready for the second half.

Update: 8 p.m. (hour 11)
Still reading Animal, Vegetable, Miracle.
I managed to read 28 pages in the last couple of hours, which puts me at 105 pages for the day. I feel like this is really low compared to other readers. I never thought I read this slowly.

Anyhow, since my last update I also ate dinner and went for a walk as part of one of the mini-challenges. The walk was really nice, and Coco was really happy to have gotten out of the house. I haven't taken her running at all this week because she had a limp earlier in the week. She was walking fine today so I'm assuming her paw is healed. There was a nice breeze despite the 90-degree weather. And the best part was that I could finally see the sky! Here in Sacramento we've had a depressing haze of wildfire smoke suffocating us for nearly a week so I was glad to see blue skies again. Also, it smelled like jasmine outside. To me it's the smell of summer in California. I loved it. Oh, and the crows were cawing overhead. I think they were coming in to roost. Anyway, it was a nice break, so I was grateful for that challenge, and little Coco was as excited as ever to go for a walk. OK then, back to reading...


Update: 5:24 p.m. (hour 8?)
Still reading the same books, mostly Animal, Vegetable, Miracle this hour.
I'm up to 77 pages now (yes, another hour with only 11 pages read).
On the plus side I've managed to wean myself of checking the computer and reading all the blogs instead of focusing on my books so that's good, right? However, all this reading about food has gotten me hungry. I made banana-oatmeal muffins during a recent break (really, it doesn't take that long and I read while I was waiting for them to bake). Now my house smells delicious and I had a yummy snack before dinner. Next hour I want to read more than 11 pages and then I'm going to stop for a bit to prepare and eat dinner with my boyfriend. I should be back around 8:30. See you then!


Update: 3:51 p.m. (going on to hour 7)
What I'm Reading: When You Are Engulfed In Flames by David Sedaris and Animal, Vegetable, Miracle by Barbara Kingsolver
Pages Read This Hour: 24
Total Pages Read: 66
Books Completed: 0
Mini-Challenges Participated In: 2
Minutes Spent Blogging (reading and writing): 65

Updated 2:48 p.m. (Hour 5 - almost 6)
What I'm reading: Animal, Vegetable, Miracle
Pages read this hour: 11
Total pages read: 53
Books completed: 0
Mini-Challenges Participated in: 2
Minutes Spent blogging (total throughout read-a-thon, reading and writing): 60

This last 1.5 hours was spent reading Animal, Vegetable, Miracle. I really like the chapter I just finished, which was about how Kingsolver learned to make her own cheese and why. I never realized how easy cheesemaking could be. I've always been interested in it, but was worried I'd make some fatal mistake. It seems though that you can make cheese just using milk from the carton and cheese cultures. Somehow I'd always though I'd have to get it directly from the cow, sans pasteurization (don't ask me why I thought this, considering pretty much everything in this country is pasteurized). Anyway, I was super excited and plan to get the book she recommended about cheesemaking. Also, reading about food made me hungry so I took a short break to pick some tomatoes and basil for a tomato-mozarella-basil salad. Yum!

Updated 1:11 p.m. (Hour4)
What I'm Reading: When You Are Engulfed In Flames by David Sedaris and Animal, Vegetable, Miracle by Barbara Kingsolver
Pages Read This Hour: 31
Total Pages Read: 42
Books Completed: 0
Mini-Challenges Participated In: 2
Minutes Spent Blogging (reading and writing): 50

I was reading Animal, Vegetable, Miracle, in the beginning of the day, but the pressure of the clock was making it difficult for me to concentrate so I decided to switch over to the new David Sedaris because the essay format would make it easier for me to break away if I wanted to check up on challenges and whatnot. Hopefully I'll get back to Kingsolver's book soon though.

In coming hours I will update this post unless a mini challenge comes up, in which case I'll write a new post.

Hope the rest of you are faring well!

24-hour Read-a-Thon Coverage Take 2

OK, so rules are made to be broken, right? I was just going to keep adding to my original post, but then I realized how LONG that would end up being, so now you're stuck with tons of posts from me on your Google Reader. I'm sorry. Please forgive me.

Moving on...

So far I have read 11 pages and 1 hour (unless reading blogs counts, then I'm up to almost two hours...) Woot!

And I have another suggestion for first-timers, or participants in general. And that suggestions is: Don't read from home OR get everyone out of the house before you the read-a-thon begins. My low page count this hour is partially due to my boyfriend's constant interruptions as he prepared to leave for the afternoon. "Sweetheart, have you seen my climbing shoes?" "Hey, are your climbing shoes 5.10s also? No, oh, then I guess these are mine." "Have you seen my keys anywhere?" "Hm. I think we'll be back in a couple of hours. I might get lunch while I'm out. Do you need anything?"

Gah! Do you not see the book?! The whole point of me forcing you to leave today was so I wouldn't be interrupted in my attempts to read for 24 hours! Now get going!

Um, OK then, on to mini-challenge number two, in which we were asked to read web comics and write about our reactions to them. I chose xkcd for my web comic. I used to read this a lot and am sorrily behind on it. I love this comic because it's clever and has a lot of funny observations about modern life and the tech generation. The guy is a mathemetician and a computer coder so some of his stuff I don't get, but, having a computer geek boyfriend, I do get most of the stuff even if only on a very basic level.

I spent about 20 minutes reading through the archives that I've missed and looking for a good one to post for you all. Here's the one I chose:

Cheap GPS

24-Hour Read-a-Thon Coverage

OK, so I'm a total slacker and missed the first hour of the read-a-thon. Somehow, even on this important day, I couldn't say no to the snooze button. But now I'm up, I'm ready and I'm reading! I'll be updating this blog every couple of hours with information on how many pages I've read and whatnot. I'll also be doing the mini-challenges and other fun stuff that goes along with the read-a-thon. FYI I will only be updating this specific post, rather than adding a new post every hour. This will keep from clogging your readers, but please do check back throughout the day. It will make my heart smile in a big way :-)

OK then, first mini-challenge:

Where are you reading from today? My boyfriend's parents' house in Galt, CA. I'm housesitting for them at the moment. I plan to read on the sundeck for the early morning hours (if the smoke/haze has cleared up), then move indoors to either the giant cushy bed or to the couch. I tend to move back and forth between the two as I see fit.

3 facts about me …
* I hate writing facts about me. It makes me nervous because I worry I'll either sound boring or I'll sound like I'm bragging.

* When I run only half of my face sweats and turns red. The other side stays cold and looks perfectly normal. I got made fun of in gym class A LOT. Now I kind of like the freakish nature of it.

* My favorite sport of all time is Rugby. I fell in love with it when I lived in Paris and I've never really recovered.

How many books do you have in your TBR pile for the next 24 hours?
I have 18 books and a copy of Time magazine in my stack right now. I think I'll finish the magazine and possibly three of the books. But maybe only two. I'm a pretty slow reader, but I'm already halfway through Animal, Vegetable, Miracle so I'll for sure finish that one.

Do you have any goals for the read-a-thon (i.e. number of books, number of pages, number of hours, or number of comments on blogs)?
My goal is to read at least 18 of the 24 hours.

Any advice for people doing this for the first time?
Um, this is my first time! My advice so far would be to NOT hit the snooze button. I'll add to this as the day goes on and I learn more about what it means to be a read-a-thon-er.

Winner! And Reminders

The drawing for All About Lulu is now closed, as I've selected the winner using Random.org. AND the winner is (drum roll please) Allessandra. Please send me your mailing address to bexadler at yahoo dot com and I'll get the book out to you as soon as possible.

Also, everyone remember we'll be having our book club discussion about Animal, Vegetable, Miracle on June 30 (Monday). As always I'll post my review that day and I hope to hear what you all thought of the book. In addition, if you've already reviewed the book, you can leave a comment on that post and I'll include a link to your review.

One last thing: I've already mentioned it, but since it's almost here, I thought I'd bring up the 24-hour Read-a-thon again. We'll be raising money for Reading Is Fundamental and you can contribute by pledging to donate a set amount for each hour or page I read ($1 an hour for instance or 10 cents a page) or you can just donate any amount you wish (I think lowest donation amount is $10). Go here for more information on donating to the organization. And I'll be updating my blog throughout the day on Saturday with information on where I stand. The read-a-thon starts at 9 a.m. Saturday and ends 9 a.m. Sunday. Something tells me I'll be doing a lot of sleeping on Sunday....