2 movies and a book

I have finally reached the end of the semester (almost, that is, I have one more paper to write by Friday), so I have been pretty busy and haven't had much time to devote to pleasure reading, but I did manage to finish one of the books I was in the middle of: Angels All Over Town. This was my book club book and it's a romance novel, which I don't ordinarily read, but it wasn't terrible. It definitely meets the genre criteria: a love story is at the center of the plot despite anything else going on, and the ending is a happy one. This characteristic, the guarantee of a happy ending, is the primary reason I don't like romances, but is the main reason people who love them do so.

Aside: I saw an interesting report printed at the library where I volunteer that listed books with 0 checkouts in the past 5 years grouped by genre, and in romance there were only 8. 8! That's incredible in a section that contains thousands of books. It was by far the section with the least number of unused books.

Anyway, this book is about three 20-something sisters, close friends who each fall in love and get married over the course of the novel, and supposedly live happily ever after (yea, right). I personally think these books should be in the fantasy section, but that's just me.

I did take the time to watch a couple of movies with my husband this week. We recently discovered Netflix and the huge catalog of films it contains and we're having fun with it. It's a little embarrassing how few modern movies (last 15 years) we've seen, but on the bright side, it means we have a lot to look forward to.

The first was House of D (2004), a touching movie (translation--a real tear-jerker) about an American living in Paris, who, on his son's thirteenth birthday, decides to tell his wife about his own thirteenth birthday, the fact that he is actually American and not French, and the tragic events that led to his subsequent pretense. It's a story about facing your past and yourself, and I recommend it highly. Robin Williams has a role as a mentally handicapped janitor who was an important part of the hero's childhood past, and as usual, he gives a great performance.

The second movie, Walk the Line (2005), is the story of country singer Johnny Cash's early years as a performer, but more importantly, the childhood experiences that influenced his personality and his decisions for many years. I'm not a big country music fan, I don't own anything by Cash, but I did seem to know all the songs that were performed (and there were a lot of them) and I thought Joaquin Phoenix (Cash) and Reese Witherspoon (June Carter) were great. This movie is as much about relationships as it is about music though, and I also recommend it to all.

stuck in the middle

My book club met tonight and for the second time this year I had not finished the book. We meet monthly, four of us who have stuck together for five or six years, but despite our efforts, rarely have all four of us completed the books we choose. That means the discussions get carried over month to month and sometimes we never get around to them at all. I'd rather it didn't happen that way, but we all have busy lives and we do our best.

My problem this month has been a heavy reading load for school. I am currently in the middle of six books, suffering from an inability to finish things that I don't usually experience. I like to have 2 or sometimes 3 books going, but 6 is too many. These are the books I'm trying to get through:

~The Memory Keeper's Daughter by Kim Edwards (page 113 of 401) This is one of the book club picks, as well as an optional read for one of my classes. I think the subject matter might hit a little too close to home and that is bogging me down.
~Angels All Over Town by Luann Rice (page 248 of 309) While romance is probably my least favorite genre, this is the second book club choice and I tried to finish it but ran out of time. I will finish anyway; it's not a bad book. Rice is a good writer, there just isn't much happening in the book to move it along.
~Saving Graces by Elizabeth Edwards (page 107 of 337) Another case of subject matter causing distress that I am not willing to deal with right now.
~Alice Munro's Hateship, Friendship, Courtship, Loveship, Marriage: Stories (page 186 of 323) I was required to read 3 short stories from this collection and they were excellent, so I want to finish the book, but don't have the time!
~Laura Lippman's Baltimore Blues (page 31 of 290) I expected to whiz through this highly recommended mystery, but it hasn't pulled me in.
~A Reading Diary by Alberto Manguel (page 116 of 205) I am intentionally reading this book slowly because it is so interesting. In fact, it is my inspiration for this blog. Manguel keeps a diary, almost a commonplace book, as he rereads 12 of his favorite books, recording his feelings and thoughts on the effects of the readings at a different stage of his life. I am thoroughly enjoying this book, and don't want it to end.

On a more positive note, I bought 6 more books tonight for this summer. Is it possible I have a book fetish?

OKeefe 1925 Lake George

just because

april is national poetry month

a poem I feel:

Grief Calls Us to the Things of This World
by Sherman Alexie

The morning air is all awash with angels . . .
- Richard Wilbur

The eyes open to a blue telephone
In the bathroom of this five-star hotel.

I wonder whom I should call? A plumber,
Proctologist, urologist, or priest?

Who is most among us and most deserves
The first call? I choose my father because

He’s astounded by bathroom telephones.
I dial home. My mother answers. "Hey, Ma,

I say, "Can I talk to Poppa?" She gasps,
And then I remember that my father

Has been dead for nearly a year. "Shit, Mom,"
I say. "I forgot he’s dead. I’m sorry—

How did I forget?" "It’s okay," she says.
"I made him a cup of instant coffee

This morning and left it on the table—
Like I have for, what, twenty-seven years—

And I didn’t realize my mistake
Until this afternoon." My mother laughs

At the angels who wait for us to pause
During the most ordinary of days

And sing our praise to forgetfulness
Before they slap our souls with their cold wings.

Those angels burden and unbalance us.
Those fucking angels ride us piggyback.

Those angels, forever falling, snare us
And haul us, prey and praying, into dust.

from Thrash, © 2007 by Sherman Alexie (found at http://www.poets.org/)

web 2.0 (library 2.0 is next)

Kurt Vonnegut 1922-2007

In the early 70's when I was in junior high I discovered Vonnegut and fell in love with his irreverence, his humor, his unique style and his amazing imagination. I read his books, one after the other, never disappointed or bored with his ideas. The book that I reread though, the one that I can't get out of my head is Slaughter-House Five. I will read it once again tonight in his honor. He will be missed. So it goes.

reading diary

No, I’m not Italian. I appropriated “piccoli segreti” from Sophia Loren’s Recipes & Memories. She was referring to the “little secrets” simmering on her stovetop, and the pleasure they bring to others, but I view it as a challenge. I am too private, too safe…that’s right, boring. But maybe her phrase will inspire me to write with an openness I usually avoid, to share a little of myself.

My feelings might change about this, but for now I want to use this space as a reading diary, entering my thoughts and feelings about what I’m reading and sometimes maybe, the movies or the plays I see.

I finished Ann Patchett’s Bel Canto last night and I loved it. She creates characters that one would rarely meet in real life–South American terrorists fresh from the jungle; the world’s most talented soprano; foreign diplomats and business leaders–and shows us their passions, their desires, their dreams, their hearts. It’s a lovely and painful book. I look forward to reading more of this author.

Today I went to Davis and checked out a few books to read this summer. I already have a stack of 67 books (I counted them) I have bought since last summer to read this summer, but I always seem to want more.

Two of the books that I didn’t get but whose titles I came across: Don’t Just Do Something, Sit There and Wherever you Go, There You Are. What great titles! Both of them are on the topic of mindfulness which I am interested in, and I did select a book on the topic, but it’s title isn’t so cool. More about that later.