Argh!! I love talking about books but when Johnny D tagged me to narrow my discussion to five…It’s like he asked me which of my children I love the best. Sure, easy enough of a question to answer when you only have one but almost impossible to answer when you have hundreds (books…er…not children). But since I never back down from a tag (insert Michael Jackson’s Beat It into the soundtrack for the rest of this blog) here’s my answer at this moment.
How many books do you own? Hundreds, not thousands. Maybe a few less in the US than here in Africa.
The last book I bought: Locally - Some Sweetly Held Thoughts by Rahel Asgedom.
The author is a good friend and colleague and the book is her first collection of short stories and poetry. Plus, at less than two bucks I had to buy it.
Books from the States are almost impossible to buy here but we do some shopping through the internet. Real Questions, Real Answers About Sex should be arriving shortly. Here people don’t ask their parents about sex and are about as likely to talk to their priest or Muslim religious leader so the white married couple with a child get a lot of questions.
Last book I read: I just reread Kurt Vonnegut’s Cat’s Cradle. There go four hours I’ll never get back. Because we don’t have access to many new books, I find myself going back to some of the classics to reread – Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy, The Chronicles of Narnia, Where the Wild Things Are, Charlotte’s Web, The Things They Carried...
Last book I read for the first time: The Revolutionary Communicator by Jedd Medefind and Erik Lokkesmoe. Good discussion of communication techniques used by Christ written by experts who understand communications without pretending to know absolutely everything about God.
Oh, and I finally got around to reading Brave New World which was kind of a letdown. The hype set me up for a fall.
Five books that mean a lot to me…: Ok, I can’t do this one directly so I’ll group.
Invisible Man by Ellison, The Intuitionist by Colson Whitehead and Native Son by Richard Wright. All three gave me a new perspective on race and race relations. The Intuitionist is definitely on my all-time-favorites list. If you like allegories centered around elevator inspectors, this is the book for you.
A New Kind of Christian, Where Do We Go From Here? and Blue Like Jazz. I don’t always agree with everything in them but all three had me reevaluating my faith. Also introduced me to the idea of thinking about Christianity and its function in a postmodern age. (For those of you who think “Post-Modern Christianity” is blasphemy, read them and then if you still think so please accept my apologies.)
The Great Brain, A Series of Unfortunate Events, The Chronicles of Narnia, A Swiftly Tilting Planet and Harry Potter. Great children’s books. The Great Brain is the first series of chapter books I remember reading on my own. Most are also viewed as blasphemy by some.
This Side of Paradise, The Great Gatsby, The Sun Also Rises. I love Lost Generation Literature. Is there anything better than books filled with people who are miserable because there is nothing to really be miserable about? Plus I’m still hopelessly in love with Lady Brett Ashley and Daisy Miller.
King Leopold’s Ghost, The Last King of Scotland, A Passage to Africa and Things Fall Apart. Especially the first and last books are great introductions to understanding Africa. King Leopold’s Ghost may be the best book on African history I’ve ever read – it is certainly the most readable and most graphic.
Eighteen books instead of the suggested five. No wonder I only lasted about six weeks as a journalism major…
But the literature discussion isn’t done yet. I haven’t even touched on “books I once thought were great but have now learned better,” “books I know I should read but haven’t/can’t,” “favorite literary villains,” “books I wish I hadn’t have read,” “books my spouse likes but I can’t stand” etc.
Anyone have suggestions for books on marriage and relationships? If Amanda and I are expected to be the resident experts, we need some help.
And is Ben Miller blogging? Or Phil, Yes Phil? I’d love to see their literature lists.
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2 comments:
You win the prize for listing the highest number of books found also on my son's bookshelf. (I meant that in a good way. He knows a good book when he sees it :) I would have guessed, "The Sun Also Rises," and "Things Fall Apart," for you, but I was surprised not to see, "A Separate Peace." I read another book recently by John Knowles called "Spreading Fires." It was entirely strange.
Yep. A Separate Peace is great but it just didn't fit into a category well. We're trying to organize a "One Book - One City" type thing here and if the British Council would fund it, I may suggest that one. (British money probably = British author).
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