The Sea, The Sea
Iris Murdoch
I'm so glad to finally be done with this book. This was one of those that I was hoping would have a big payback at the end, but in the end was just disappointing. Long books have no right in being so.
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2005
A Series of Unfortunate Events
Lemony Snicket
I read The Bad Beginning several years ago and never continued with the series, which turned out to be a good decision, as I just spent the last couple weeks reading almost the entire series, up to The Penultimate Peril, published this year. It might have been even smarter to wait for them all to be in print, as now I have charged through twelve books and am left hanging until the last one is available, most likely not for another year.
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The Case of the Not-So-Nice Nurse
Mable Maney
I've been spending all of my reading time with school-related texts lately, so it seemed like time for a little break. What luck that this book came up in conversation the day I finished the Bringhurst book.
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The Elements of Typographic Style
Robert Bringhurst
Parts of this book are so poetic and idealistic about typography and other parts are technical to intense mathematical degrees that it's sure to be a good reference for both inspiration and precise guidance. If you have a nerd-level interest in typography, that is. There's a whole section about page proportions derived from the chromatic scale, and half the book is devoted to detailed appendices concerning typefaces, designers, foundries, etc.
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A Short History of the Printed Word
Warren Chappell
This book is likely to retain its place as a design classic, as Chappell recorded a uniquely specific point in history, balancing at the point before computers completely infiltrated design, leaving printing presses and typesetting machines to archaism. This is a history of printing starting with the earliest alphabets evolving through the advances of the printing press, with due given to major contributors to typographic design.
It's hard not to wonder what Chappell (who died in 1991) would think of the world of design today when he closes, saying,
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The Time Traveler's Wife
Audrey Niffenegger
I kept hearing this one mentioned by various people with that certain weighty esteem that only favorites get, so I wanted to know why people loved it so. It is, quite simply, about a time traveler's wife, or really, a time traveler and his wife, as the story seesaws between their perspectives. Despite the vague incredulity of a person's chromosomes making him shift in time, the book has a similar delightful mindfuck quality as Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind.
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Hotel of the Saints
Ursula Hegi
It's been a long while since I even tried to read a short story collection—I read a lot of short stories in 2003 and I daresay it burnt me out. So I was glad that Melanie sent me this Ursula Hegi collection for my birthday. A nice reminder of my appreciation of the short fiction.
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When Things Fall Apart
Pema Chödrön
I started reading this Buddhist self-helper a couple of years ago and just wasn't in the place for it at the time. I thought of it again suddenly this summer and felt like it would be a good time to revisit it. I tend to get into these patterns of reading where I have lists that I am trying to charge through as fast as possible—skimming and gleaning more often than immersing myself fully. So it was nice to take some time to settle into this and read slow and not think about the pile of books sitting on my bookcase.
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The Secret Life of Bees
Sue Monk Kidd
I've always wondered how bad this book actually was.. It reads like a sad attempt to recreate To Kill a Mockingbird, except this one is set in the Civil Rights Era and topples in on itself with its didacticism. I can't say I really cared about the characters, even the ones who weren't as annoying as the 14-year-old white heroine. Maybe the adolescent voice is just that convincing?
I am appreciating Kafka on the Shore much more now.
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Embroideries
Marjane Satrapi
From the author of Persepolis (1 and 2) comes this (all too) short, gossipy chronicle of Iranian ladies talking love and sex.
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