December, 2007
December 2nd, 2007, 5:19 p.m. - Thank you, Judgy Von Holier Than Thou (TM Ross Gellar)
41. God's Harvard (Hanna Rosin)
Ironically, Rosin's tone in this book about Patrick Henry College, a conservative Christian college for aspiring politicians, comes across as very close-minded judgmental - that's ironic because she basically accuses them of being close-minded and judgmental. (Of course, in my experience, the people who accuse you of being judgmental often do so in a judgmental way.) The subject matter interested me, mainly because I went to a Christian school (though by Patrick Henry standards it would be a secular school - or possibily a den of blasphemy), but Rosin's voice was distracting. That and the fact that she consistently misspelled "Loudoun." I'd read another book about those students, but not one written by Rosin.
Up next: The Vanishing Act of Esme Lennox (Maggie O'Farrell)
11:23 p.m. - Man, I love that Yoda picture
"'Do or Do Not - There is No Try'"
December 6th, 2007, 11:30 p.m. - I subbed for ANTM and all I got was this lousy final three
December 8th, 2007, 1:24 p.m. - Look, I branched out!
42. The Vanishing Act of Esme Lennox (Maggie O'Farrell)
I don't often use the word "wonderful" (except sarcastically), but this book really is wonderful. It's definitely one of my favorites from the year. O'Farrell weaves together the stories of three women - Esme, a woman institutionalized for more than 61 years; Iris, her grandniece who never knew of her existence; and Kitty, Esme's sister who now suffers from Alzheimer's and harbors secrets about Esme's life. Through Esme's flashbacks and Kitty's fractured memories, we learn exactly what happened to Esme and how her situation shaped Kitty's and Iris' lives. O'Farrell tells the story both beautifully and compellingly. I just wanted to keep reading.
Up next: The Darkest Evening of the Year (Dean Koontz)
December 9th, 2007, 10:58 p.m. - A bad week for nice people
"Riding in Cars With Some Guy"
December 10th, 2007, 11:03 p.m. - Maybe I need a life if I'm reading books this quickly
43. The Darkest Evening of the Year (Dean Koontz)
Koontz finally combined his love of freaking people out with his love of dogs. It's better than it sounds.
Up next: Look Me In the Eye (John Elder Robison)
December 17th, 2007, 8:34 p.m. - Slow week
December 21st, 2007, 10:02 p.m. - An early Christmas present
If you read Entertainment Weekly, check out the "must click television" sidebar on page 19 of the "Best of the Web" insert in the new "Best & Worst 2007" issue. (Enough directions for you? You can also see it here, seventh down on the list, though it's much more exciting in print.) RNO is mentioned as "the place for post-elimination interviews with reality contestants." Yay! I think that's the first time I've seen us mentioned outside of the Internet. Plus, we're on a page with pictures of Phil Keoghan, Kristen Bell, and Amanda Seyfried. Double yay!
December 22nd, 2007, 1:57 p.m. - Merry freaking Christmas
Dear woman in the bookstore parking lot who raised her voice at me because she felt I took her parking spot (even though her right blinker was on and I took a spot on the left side), and felt entitled to a spot because she had kids in the car and I didn't (no, seriously), and who felt I should be considerate and read her mind to discover that she wanted that left-side spot and not a right-side one, even though her right blinker was on for at least two minutes, and who caused me to wish a Merry Christmas and walk away (while she was still yelling), fearing she would key my car when I was gone,
Uh, Merry Christmas. Get some help. Are you seriously that upset about a parking spot? It's three days before Christmas. Stop yelling at strangers in front of your children and go have some egg nog. Maybe spike yours first.
9:32 p.m. - Yeah, whatever
44. Look Me in the Eye (John Elder Robison)
Meh.
Up next: Don't Let's Go to the Dogs Tonight (Alexandra Fuller)
December 23rd, 2007, 10:48 p.m. - Look, it was this or "Under the Tuscan Sun"
December 25th, 2007, 9:19 p.m. - Merry Christmas! And also, shush
45. Don't Let's Go to the Dogs Tonight (Alexandra Fuller)
Don't Let's Go to the Dogs Tonight was Entertainment Weekly's best non-fiction book of 2001, but honestly, I found it tedious and repetitive. (We get it. The tea was milky and sweet. Seriously, we get it.) I really just wanted it to be over. Better luck next time, Fuller.
Up next: Punching In (Alex Frankel)
December 29th, 2007, 7:09 p.m. - The year in books
I did this last year, and here's the full list of the books I read this year and my take on them (with some new categories):
1. Sharp Objects (Gillian Flynn)
The best: Lisa Lutz's The Spellman Files, Maggie O'Farrell's The Vanishing Act of Esme Lennox, A.J. Jacobs' The Year of Living Biblically
The worst: Marisha Pessl's Special Topics in Calamity Physics
Book that Entertainment Weekly named one of the ten best that I disagreed with the most: I only read one of them (Joshua Ferris' Then We Came to the End), and it wasn't that great, so I'll have to skip this one
Best returns to form: Dean Koontz's The Darkest Evening of the Year
Books that most lived up to their hype: Khaled Hosseini's The Kite Runner and A Thousand Splendid Suns
Book that least lived up to its hype: John Elder Robison's Look Me In the Eye
Book I was looking forward to that didn't disappoint: J.K. Rowling's Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows
Book I was looking forward to that really disappointed: Carolyn Parkhurst's Lost and Found
Good book, good title: Katrina Firlik's Another Day in the Frontal Lobe, Bob Harris' Prisoner of Trebekistan, Josh Wolk's Cabin Pressure
Good book, bad title: Karin Slaughter's Beyond Reach
Bad book, good title: Steven Hall's The Raw Shark Texts, Janette Turner Hospital's Due Preparations For the Plague
Bad book, bad title: Mindy Schneider's Not a Happy Camper
Books I'm most looking forward to in 2008: I want to say Jodi Picoult's Change of Heart, but we all know I'll wind up at least partly disappointed, so assuming there's a new Karin Slaughter coming out, I'll say whatever that is. Also, Kevin Brockmeier's The View from the Seventh Layer and Lisa Lutz's Curse of the Spellmans (yay, a sequel!)
December 30th, 2007, 11:13 p.m. - Which one's Itchy and which one's Scratchy?
2. Forever Odd (Dean Koontz)
3. Brother Odd (Dean Koontz)
4. Prisoner of Trebekistan (Bob Harris)
5. Another Day in the Frontal Lobe (Katrina Firlik)
6. The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down (Anne Fadiman)
7. Lost and Found (Carolyn Parkhurst)
8. Nineteen Minutes (Jodi Picoult)
9. Special Topics in Calamity Physics (Marisha Pessl)
10. Grace (Eventually) (Anne Lamott)
11. Driving With Dead People (Monica Holloway)
12. Then We Came to the End (Joshua Ferris)
13. Committed (Dan Mathews)
14. I Love You, Beth Cooper (Larry Doyle)
15. The Kite Runner (Khaled Hosseini)
16. The Woods (Harlan Coben)
17. Hypocrite in a Pouffy White Dress (Susan Jane Gilman)
18. The Spellman Files (Lisa Lutz)
19. A Thousand Splendid Suns (Khaled Hosseini)
20. The Good Guy (Dean Koontz)
21. New England White (Stephen L. Carter)
22. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows (J.K. Rowling)
23. Not a Happy Camper (Mindy Schneider)
24. Cabin Pressure (Josh Wolk)
25. Beyond Reach (Karin Slaughter)
26. The Glass Castle (Jeannette Walls)
27. Kabul Beauty School (Deborah Rodriguez)
28. The Raw Shark Texts (Steven Hall)
29. Ivy Briefs (Martha Kimes)
30. Fun Home (Alison Bechdel)
31. Here If You Need Me (Kate Braestrup)
32. Lottery (Patricia Wood)
33. Autobiography of a Face (Lucy Grealy)
34. The Year of Living Biblically (A.J. Jacobs)
35. The Sleeping Doll (Jeffery Deaver)
36. If I Am Missing or Dead (Janine Latus)
37. Heartsick (Chelsea Cain)
38. Escape (Carolyn Jessop)
39. Due Preparations for the Plague (Janette Turner Hospital)
40. The Center Cannot Hold (Elyn R. Saks)
41. God's Harvard (Hanna Rosin)
42. The Vanishing Act of Esme Lennox (Maggie O’Farrell)
43. The Darkest Evening of the Year (Dean Koontz)
44. Look Me in the Eye (John Elder Robison)
45. Don't Let's Go to the Dogs Tonight (Alexandra Fuller)