This is a really fun thread - thanks to whomever bumped it.
I go through phases with my reading & recently I feel inspired again. These are the 3 books I've got waiting for me on my shelf: 1) Thumbsucker (a funny, well written book about a young man's dysfunctional family & his experience as an outcast b/c of his thumbsucking habit - I'm a therapist, so the whole thing interests me. Besides, it is really funny. I also heard that it recently was made into a movie) 2) The Year of Magical Thinking (Joan Didion's memior of the year following the death of her husband) & 3) Julie and Julia (a book about a young woman's committment to make every recipe in Julia Childs French cookbook over the course of a year).
I LOVE this time of year - Fall & Winter usually inspire me back into my "indoor sports"...reading, knitting, watching movies. Good times.
I just got my second essay back from my expository writing class. So far all A's/A-'s. That makes me glad, as it's difficult to keep up with all the writing so far, especially for second year classes (can't wait for third and fourth year...whee!). I just barely got my paper for my lit class done in time last night though - 35 minutes before the deadline. I hated cutting it so close; I felt like it still needed work. But I was just completely stuck for a topic until Sunday night, so there wasn't much I could do. I spent much of last week critiquing other people's papers (of varying quality - many fairly iffy but some not too bad). If only the others were so good about offering critiques back (she laments)! Although one person who has been consistant (though late) in responding to requests for critiques would be better of in a first year class - her grammar is atrocious! I hate it when people incorrectly correct my grammar! Argh!
I remembered last night what I'd been reading when the quarter started: _The Tao of Pooh_. It's a lot of fun. When I'm done with that, _The Te of Piglet_ is waiting for me.
kyemom - remind me, what are you majoring in? I'm sure I read it in a post somewhere, but I can't remember.
I'm not a regular on this board, but I couldn't resist commenting on this post.
Roxy, Thumbsucker sounds awesome! At first blush, I thought of Running With Scissors by Augusten Burroughs. Also, Julie and Julia sounds like something I would really enjoy.
I'm currently reading Staying Connected to Your Teenager: How to Keep Them Talking to You and How to Hear What They're Really Saying by Michael Riera, Becoming Madame Mao by Anchee Min, and Affluenza: The All-Consuming Epidemic by Scott Simon.
Last edited by phantastica; 10-26-2005 at 03:34 PM.
Hey Phantastica!! I am so totally digging Thumbsucker. It is tragic & funny all at once. I read Running with Scissors & although I could not put it down, I found it to be really disturbing. Thumbsucker has a bit more humor or levity to some degree!! Sounds like we have similar tastes.
I just noticed the other day that Amy Tan has another novel out. It sounds like a total departure from her first 4 novels, but I love her writing so much that I plan to give it a read anyway (when I get time, that is - maybe spring break).
Laurie - just saw your question; sorry I didn't reply sooner. Tan's new novel is titled "Savign Fish From Drowning." Here's a link to the description at Amazon.com: http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg...glance&s=books
Which of her novels is your favorite? I'd be really hard pressed to choose one myself, but if I absolutely, positively had to pick just one, I'd probably go with "The Hundred Secret Senses." I had so much trouble getting into it at first, but once I did, I just loved it. I loved the juxtaposition of the past and present, and how they come together.
