Books I read in 2005 - with mini reviews
Fraud by David Rakoff
Non-fiction - A series of essays where the author does things where he inevivitably ends
up feeling totally out of place - hiking up a mountain, attending a new-age workshop, working at
a kibutz, serching for the Loch Ness monster, or learning how to survive in the wilderness.
Very funny. I laughed out loud quite a few times, especially the story about pretending to be Freud
in a New York City Christmas window display. Similar to David Sedaris, which is never a bad thing.
River Out of Eden: A Darwinian View of Life by Richard Dawkins
Non-fiction - I'm trying to understand evolution better so I can explain it to my
son when he DOESN'T learn about it in school (we're in Texas, after all). This book
was very interesting but still a bit over my head (I majored in art so I wouldn't have
to do math, but I do miss the science). Anyway, I will be reading more of Dawkins' work
in the future. I'll let you know when I figure it out.
website
Born to Buy by Juliet Schor
Non-fiction - An expose of advertising and how it hurts kids.
I have to admit that nothing really surprised me, but it was still
pretty horrible - some of the tactics are quite sleazy and underhanded.
I came away initially feeling really guilty about how permissive I've been
as a parent. But now I feel empowered - to be on the lookout and to know
better how to combat the messages. She lists organizations that are working
on some of the issues that she brings up.
Our Lady of the Lost and Found by Diane Schoemperlen
Fiction - I have to admit that I was drawn to this book by the title.
It's about a 40-ish writer, living a comfortable life, not necessarily religious,
who one day finds the Virgin Mary standing in her living room, suitcase in hand.
Mary asks to stay for a week and she tells lots of stories about her life.
The book includes lots of history of Marian sightings. (I found it interesting
to read after reading The Secret Life of Bees, which features a group
of women who worship Mary.) I was a little disappointed that the main
character didn't ask Mary any of the "big questions." But I enjoyed the book.
It deals with faith, doubt, friendship, history, truth, and even some science.
The Prize Winner of Defiance, Ohio by Terry Ryan
Non-fiction - Terry Ryan was one of 10 children growing up in
the 50's and 60's in rural Ohio. Her father was an alcoholic
and her mother supplemented the family's income by entering
(and quite often winning) contests. Her mother was smart,
articulate, witty, optimistic, and extremely persistent.
website
The Best Awful by Carrie Fisher
Fiction - The sequel to Postcards from the Edge, a book that I loved
when I read it what? 15 years ago? I even read it two or three times
This book is also based on her life, this time dealing with her bipolar
disorder. Interesting to learn a little about what that must be like. She's
still quite funny through it all, though. She wonders, "How serious a disease
can be whose symptoms are spending sprees, substance abuse, and sexual
promiscuity? Just sounds like a typical weekend in Vegas."
website
The Namesake by Jhumpa Lahiri
Fiction - Pulitzer Prize winning novel about a family coming to America from
India. I can only imagine how hard it must be for a woman to marry a man
she's just met, travel halfway around the world and not have her family with her.
It deals with culture, identity, family.
website
The Glass Castle by Jeanette Walls
Non-fiction - It seems like I've read 20 memoirs this year that deal with alcoholic
fathers and inept mothers. This one is well-written and intriguing. Her parents
were extremely smart - her father had a degree in engineering and her mother was an
artist and had a teaching degree. They seemed content to live from paycheck to paycheck,
often throwing the family in the car and leaving town in the middle of the night to escape
creditors or the law. The parents loved the kids but didn't seem to know how to do what was
best for them. Reminded me a little of The Liar's Club by Mary Karr.
I read something that Amy Sedaris wrote about this book, something like, "I like to
read about the poor. She writes poor really well." Or something like that...
website
Under the Tuscan Sun by Frances Mayes
Non-fiction - More like a travelogue than the movie - she tells of buying
and renovating a house in Tuscany with her second husband.
Rich descriptions of the landscape, people, food, wine, and amazing discoveries.
I often found myself staring into space, wishing I were in Tuscany...
Pride and Prescience by Carrie Bebris
Suspence and Sensibility by Carrie Bebris
Fiction - Great fun! You definitely have to be a Jane Austen fan to appreciate these.
Pride and Prescience begins at the wedding of Elizabeth and Darcy from Pride and Prejudice.
Something strange is happening to Caroline Bingley, so the Darcys set out to solve the mystery.
Sort of a Regency-era Nick and Nora Charles. It's fun to imagine the characters having
adventures beyond the Austen books. Suspense and Sensibility was much the same, but still
quite fun. The characters from Sense and Sensibility meet up with the Darcys. I just found out
that there's another one coming out in March of 2006 - North by Northanger! I can't wait...
website
The Secret Life of Bees by Sue Monk Kidd
Fiction - This was a book group book. We all loved it. Beautifully written
coming of age story about a girl named Lily living in the south in the 1960's.
It deals with racial issues, memory, guilt, forgiveness, spirituality, family, and friendship.
I loved Lily - she had such a matter of fact way of looking at life.
It reminded me a little of Ellen Foster by Kaye Gibbons. Karen in our book
group suggested that it's a female version of Huck Finn.
One of my favorite books from this year.
website
The Mermaid Chair by Sue Monk Kidd
Fiction - I probably would have liked this book better had I not read The Secret Life
of Bees first. Well-written story of a woman going through a sort of mid-life crisis
or empty nest syndrome - trying to find herself, her voice, her purpose.
Similar themes - spirituality, guilt, memory, forgiveness.
It's the best book I've read that features a hot, sexy monk!
website
Lydia Cassatt Reading the Morning Paper by Harriet Scott Chessman
Fiction - I loved, loved, loved this book! So beautifully written.
Told from the point of view of Lydia Cassatt, Mary Cassatt's older sister and frequent model,
the book touches on how exciting it must have been to be in Paris during the time
of the Impressionists. Lydia appreciates art and has wonderful insights on her
sister's paintings. I thought it was interesting that although she IS the woman in
the painting, Lydia longed to BE the woman in the painting - to inhabit the world
that her sister had created. Color reproductions are included. Beautiful book!
website
Blink by Malcolm Gladwell
Non-fiction - Really interesting book about how the subconscious mind works.
It's about snap judgements or first impressions or intuition - how little things
that we don't consciously notice can influence us and our impressions of things.
Diverse topics such as crime, advertising, marriage, psychology, tennis...
A thought-provoking book.
website
The Tipping Point by Malcolm Gladwell
Non-fiction - Another great book by Malcolm Gladwell. This one deals with
fads, trends, and epidemics - what it takes to take something over the top.
Also deals with diverse topics such as crime, advertising, history, the music industry,
suicide, and teenage smoking. Also quite thought-provoking. A good fiction book to read
in conjunction would be Bellwether by Connie Willis. She deals with some of the same
things in a humorous way.
website
Bleachy Haired Honkey Bitch by Hollis Gillespie
Non-fiction - Hilarious, short stories or essays reminiscent of David Sedaris.
She, too, had an alcoholic father and an unconventional mother, although I don't think
it was extremely detrimental (compared to the other books I mention here). I loved that
her mother was literally a rocket scientist but dreamed of being a hairdresser.
website
Running with Scissors by Augusten Burroughs
Non-fiction - Another horrible childhood with an alcoholic father and crazy mother,
this time from a boy's point of view. Well-written and gripping. He seemed to find
humor among all the craziness. Something about his writing style reminded me of David Sedaris.
website
The Idiot Girl's Action Adventure Club by Laurie Notaro
Non-fiction - This is the funniest book I've read in a long time. Absolutely hilarious.
I'm definitely an Idiot Girl. Sign me up.
website
Autobiography of a Fat Bride by Laurie Notaro
Non-fiction - Even funnier than the first one. Wait. I said THAT one was the funniest
book I'd ever ready - until this one...
website
Everything Bad is Good for You by Stephen Johnson
Non-fiction - This book is very thought-provoking. Even argument-provoking. The premise
is that popular culture (video games, tv, movies) is making us smarter. He makes some pretty
persuasive arguments and backs it up with science. In the end, I sort of agreed with him.
This would be a great book group book.
website
On Bullshit by Harry G. Frankfurt
Non-fiction - Tiny, short little book about bullshit. A philosophy of bullshit, really -
what it is and how it differs from lying. And how it is more harmful...
website
Freakonomics by Steven Levitt and Stephen Dubner
Non-fiction - Interesting take on economics. They deal with some interesting topics -
parenting, crime, sumo wrestling, and if drug dealers are so rich then why
do they live with their mothers?
website
Misfortune by Wesley Stace
Fiction - Another long book that I couldn't put down. Set in England in the early 19th century,
it's about an abandoned baby boy found by a childless Lord. He decides to raise the child as his own,
but as a girl. Deals with gender, identity, love, and family. And it all gets tied up so very nicely at the end.
btw - Wesley Stace is also the singer/songwriter John Wesley Harding.
website
The House on Mango Street by Sandra Cisneros
Fiction - Beautifully written, short stories from the point of view of a young Hispanic girl
growing up in Chicago. Funny, heartbreaking, and beautiful. There are some sentences that I still
think about, like, "I'm a red balloon tied to an anchor."
website
The Eyre Affair
Lost in a Good Book
The Well of Lost Plots and
Something Rotten by Jasper Fforde
Fiction - These books are so funny and clever. When I started the first one, The Eyre Affair, I
have to admit that I was a little confused. It's set in England in the 1980's, but it's a parallel
universe where dodos are pets, time travel is the norm, and literature is revered. So much so that
our heroine, Thursday Next, is a member of a literary policing agency that deals with literary crimes.
A horrible criminal manages to enter Jane Eyre and hold Jane hostage. Tons and tons of literary references.
One of my favorite scenes is the weekly performance of Richard the Third that is put on by the audience
much like a midnight showing of The Rocky Horror Picture Show. And then when we get to The Well of Lost Plots,
Thursday is invited to the 937th Annual Book Awards. My favorite category is Shakespeare Character You'd Most
Like to Slap. Something Rotten ties it all up nicely. Great fun and silliness. You have to just go with it.
Trust me - it's worth it. Lots of silliness on his website, as well as a guide to help explain the literary
references and all things British.
website
Encyclopedia of an Ordinary Life by Amy Krouse Rosenthal
Non-fiction - Short, little snippets of everyday observations, in encyclopedia form.
Funny, sad, thought-provoking. Check out her website where she talks about leaving
copies of the book around for people to find. Cool idea. I had read another book by her
years ago that I thought had the greatest title: "The Same Phrase Describes My Marriage and
My Breasts : Before the Kids, They Used to Be Such a Cute Couple...Notes While They Nap"
website
Take the Canoli by Sarah Vowell
Non-fiction - Short stories/essays. She's compared to David Sedaris a lot, probably
because they're both on This American Life quite often. Very funny. Some dark humor.
Sarcastic and cynical. You have to listen to her read. She's got a great voice.
website
Life of Pi by Yann Martell
Fiction - Beautifully written.
Makes you question everything.
website
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© 2007 Deanna Wood