End of the Year/Beginning of the Year Reading Report.

This past year, I decided to keep track of all the books I read in 2010. It went well enough, until I lost the notebook, started keeping track elsewhere, then found the book and wasn't terribly consistent. I have some written down for previous years, but, like the lost notebook of this past year, I wasn't consistent enough to really make it a list. My intention was to post a "Quarterly Reading Report." That passed. Then it was to become the "Bi-Annual Reading Report." But summer was too much fun. I probably don't need to mention I missed the 3rd quarter, too. So, here it is, my reading list for the past year. I won't editorialize too much, unless I feel the book warrants it.



Wild Things by Dave Eggers--the novelization/book behind the movie "Where the Wild Things Are"--kept much the same feel as the movie, which was pretty dark.

Confess, Fletch by Gregory McDonald
Fletch's Fortune by Gregory McDonald
Fletch Reflected by Gregory McDonald
Fletch & the Widow Bradley by Gregory McDonald
Everyman by Phillip Roth
Fletch Won by Gregory McDonald
The Brave by Gregory McDonald
Flynn______ (didn't get the title--one of the Flynn books) by Gregory McDonald

So, you can see I had a Gregory McDonald streak, briefly interrupted by a Phillip Roth book I had probably started before all the Fletch books, but that I must've finished off while waiting for the library to get the other Fletch books in. I've discovered that I like mysteries. I like the Fletch books--they're fast reads, generally clever, and I still kind of imagine Chevy Chase in the role of Fletch. The Brave was definitely not a comedy or a Fletch book--it was depressing, occasionally disgusting, but also moving. It was about a slum-dweller Native American guy who basically signs away his life to appear in a snuff film to make some money for his family. Disturbing.

The Ghost Map by Steven Johnson--one of my favorites this year. It is non-fiction and pieces together a cholera outbreak in London, following the men who figured out how the disease spread, etc. I would definitely recommend it.

The Maltese Falcon by Dashiel Hammett--also very enjoyable. I had read a number of Raymond Chandler novels, which I liked immensely, and I figured I had to read this one. I was not disappointed. I like the mystery, the dialogue, and the general mood of them.

The Lost Symbol by Dan Brown. Had to read it ( having read the other two big ones). Kind of wish I didn't have to. It was occasionally interesting, but mostly painful--some of his phrasing is so tortured, so clunky.

Spook by Mary Roach. Non-fiction semi-investigation of the supernatural from a scientific standpoint. Light, sassy, enjoyable.

The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time by Mark Haddon. The story of a teenage boy somewhere on the autistic spectrum who solves the mystery of a dog that was killed in the neighborhood. Interesting perspective, interesting storytelling. Lots of language to offend the sensitive reader. I liked it.

The Secret History of the English Language by M. J. Harper. Investigates the notion that English "descended" from Anglo-Saxon. Rewrites history, or at least asks the reader to rethink what we've always been told. Enjoyable.

Slam by Nick Hornby. Teenage British skater gets a girl pregnant, talks to his Tony Hawk poster about it.

The Name of this Book is Secret by Pseudonymous Bosch. Kid mystery in a Lemony Snicket vein. If you can get past the occasional similarities, it's funny and fun and clever.

The Bumblebee Flies Anyway by Robert Cormier. As per usual, kind of depressing.

If You're Reading This, You're Too Late by Pseudonymous Bosch. Part II.
This Book is Not Good for You by Pseudonymous Bosch. Part III.

I am Not a Serial Killer by Dan Wells. LDS author, gruesome subject. Book starts out with a great premise, takes a hard right turn into the supernatural, which bothered me for a minute, then by the end, I ended up enjoying it. Gory.

The Last Dickens by Matthew Pearl. Historical fiction--I've read the other two he's done, The Dante Club and The Poe Shadow and have really enjoyed them. This one was also fun--about the Dickens' last serial/book and some of the characters in the dark underbelly of the publishing business.

Uglies
Pretties
Specials by Scott Westerfield. Teenage sci-fi/dystopia about a future where everybody gets plastic surgery and is happy. Many of my students had read them, so I thought I'd give them a whirl. Good-ish, but if the author uses the phrase "gained purchase" one more time, I'll track him down and gain purchase of his face with my fist (which, I know, technically doesn't make sense, but I thought of other parts of an author where I might gain purchase, and none of them sounded all that appealing to me).

Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain. I'd read Tom Sawyer, but never this. Maybe I should spend more time reading real books.

The Bradbury Report by Steven Polansky. Future world where everyone is cloned for spare parts for when they break down during old age or by other mishap. Protagonist is confronted by the clone of himself 40-ish years previous and gets involved in a plot to take down the gov't program of cloning.

Deadeye Dick by Kurt Vonnegut. Hadn't read it, but don't remember much about it. I like Vonnegut, though.

The Talented Mr. Ripley by Patricia Highsmith. Never saw the movie, but found the book at a thrift store and thought I'd try it. Decent mystery/suspense novel about Matt Damon taking over Jude Law's life.

Bluebeard by Kurt Vonnegut. My second time reading this one, about an aging artist who helped move along the Abstract Expressionist movement. Some very interesting thoughts about art, artists, talent, etc.

No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency by Alexander McCall Smith. Fun. Really liked the perspective on the Botswanan (?) culture. Of course, written by a white dude, but still...how often do you read about Botswana?

All 5 Percy Jackson books by Rick Riordan. Fun, occasionally annoying, occasionally clichéd action and dialogue, semi-Harry Potter ripoff. However, having taught Mythology for five or six years, it was nice to revisit the stories and see how Riordan had modernized them. Watched the movie disaster that Disney made, and other than seeing Pierce Brosnan flip his long hair as a centaur, it wasn't worth seeing. At all.

Teacher: the one who made a difference by Mark Edmundsen. I bought this at Tower Records as they were going out of business. Occasionally, I like to read little pick-me-up teacher memoirs to make me feel good about what I'm doing. Don't know that it always works (Teacher Man by Frank McCourt is honest and depressing, but worthwhile), but this one had a good balance of storytelling, theory, and investigation into why one teacher specifically connected with Edmundsen, who is now a professor himself. Good food for thought for me.

Word Nerd by Susin Nielsen. The only book on the list set in Canada, I believe. About a kid who gets moved around a lot, has a peanut allergy, and has no friends. Likes to play Scrabble, though, and gets into a Scrabble club w/his ex-con upstairs neighbor secretly. Broaches some teenage topics, has some language (Canadian!), but fun enough.

Killing Bono by Neil McCormick. Technically finished after the New Year, but I'll count it anyway. A memoir of a guy who went to school with the guys who eventually became U2--talks about his own attempts (mostly failed) at getting into the music industry while narrating U2's rise to success simultaneously. Interesting look at the music industry and all the many, many hoops people have to jump through. It's amazing anyone gets a record deal. And amazing that the ones who do actually do. Lots of language (Irish!), but if you're a music fan (I used to like U2 once upon a time), it's good reading.

On Being a Photographer: a practical guide by David Hurn and Bill Jay. Recommended (to the internet universe) by Justin Hackworth as a good book to read for aspiring photographers. Includes some very good advice--these guys are pretty hardcore. But, it sparked some things in my brain and made me think more about how I go about taking pictures (or "creating images", if you're into the lingo).

I'm sure there's something else in there, but it's hard to write things down when the notebook disappears for a couple of weeks at a time. I think I made it to around 40-41 books. I was hoping to bump it up to one per week, but that just didn't happen. My parents have cable.

Best book I read in 2009? (And not only because it was probably the last one I read): The Devil in the White City: Murder, Magic, and Madness at the Fair that Changed America by Erik Larson. Non-fiction told in a fiction-y sort of way. Simultaneously tells the stories of the coming together of the Chicago World's Fair in 1893 and the serial killer who lived just around the corner from it. If you like the arts, World's Fairs, or serial killers, this book is gripping. Larson takes all the dialogue from letters written between characters, and the information about the fair is fascinating. The killer is gruesome and awful, but equally fascinating. Apparently to be played in a theater near you by Leonardo DiCaprio. Hmm.

So, here's to a new year and a bunch of new books (actually, most of the ones I read are used). I'm working on three or four right now (well, not RIGHT now, but you get the idea). I hope to be more up to speed this year with the Reading Reports.

Gotta go--Percocet is kicking in.

Brief list of words that don't really mean anything, but which are used frequently in this post: interesting, fascinating, nice, enjoyable, good, Canadian.