Suggested Summer Reading.
yay! you’re on tumblr! (took you long enough) And you can borrow Snow. I probably won’t get to it for another few weeks anyway.
And The Namesake is ok, but not great. Interpreter of Maladies is much better. If you haven’t read it, I’d recommend it over The Namesake.
So much do I love summer reading lists that I felt it was necessary to create a Tumblr just for the sake of responding. I’ve wanted to read Snow for a while too, but feel weird spending so much for a book just because it won the Nobel prize. I did the same thing with Soul Mountain and haven’t come close to finishing that yet. I’m pretty impulsive when I actually get to a book store though, so I’m sure I’ll get it eventually. Sooner if Amanda reads it and recommends it I suppose.
Without further ado, the books I plan to read this summer:
For Whom the Bell Tolls, because I’ve always loved Hemingway. Sure, he had a lot of character flaws, his style can be a bit over the top, and he has no idea how to write women, but something about his no-nonsense approach appeals to me. Michelangelo wasn’t that great at painting the female figure either, but no one calls him less than a genius.
The Mysterious Flame of Queen Loana, Here’s an example of a book I bought on a whim. I had it in my mind I wanted to read something by Umberto Eco, and this one seemed the more interesting of the two they had at the store that day. From what I’ve read out of it so far, I’m not impressed. Very preachy in a not-interesting-at-all sort of way.
A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius. It seemed my whole group of friends was reading this at the same time last year, so I’m surprised it took me this long to pick this one up. I like it so far when he doesn’t get metaphysical. The book has some great dialogue and fun characters. I read this one at work and don’t get as long of breaks these days, so it might take me all summer to finish.
Short list of books I may or may not pick up when I have the time: The Namesake, The Bear, To Kill a Mockingbird (not sure why I haven’t read this yet), King Lear (ditto), short stories from Haruki Murakami and Raymond Carver, A Million Little Pieces. Going into law school next year, there are a ton of books they recommend I read before I start, so maybe I’ll try to read one of those as well. I like my freedom too much to handle more than that. I will miss reading freedom…
Anyone looking for a good book recommendation, pick up something by David Mitchell. I just finished reading all of the books he’s written so far, and all of them are terrific.