June 2023
The Road (Cormac McCarthy)
I’m on such a Cormac McCarthy kick, and I can’t believe I just read this book for the first time. The Road, a Pulitzer Prize-winning novel, is the story of a father and son navigating a perilous and somber post-apocalyptic world. McCarthy is the master at making us guess: we don’t know what happened, where they are going, or why they are going there. I was nervous the entire time. Will the protagonists find food or shelter around the next bend or the next abandoned house? Maybe they’ll be attacked by desperate gangs of cannibals willing to to do anything for a scrap of food or supplies. The lack of chapters and short scenes make this book nearly impossible to put down. The subtext is boundless. My favorite read of the year.
May 2023
Tortilla Flat (John Steinbeck)
I really can’t get enough of John Steinbeck. The man is so incredibly talented at capturing the spirit of humanity and Americana in the early 20th century. While this novella does follow a loose plot, the chapters are better described as slices of life between Danny and his friends, poor jobless paisanos–those of Spanish, indigenous, white, and Mexican heritage–in Monterey Bay, CA who share a love of wine, women, and the hustle of life. This work was Steinbeck’s first commercial success. I’d recommend, but I didn’t enjoy this one as much as some of his later works.
Amusing Ourselves to Death: Public Discourse in the Age of Show Business (Neil Postman)
The title kind of says it all on this one. Considering this book was written in 1985, and focused mostly on the impact of television on our public discourse, politics, and ability to assess nuance, I’d say this work is highly prophetic. Everyone should read this book.
The Creative Act: A Way of Being (Rick Rubin)
Rick Rubin has proven himself as a creative genius of the recording industry, spanning time and genre to create incredible art. This book is a highly useful guide for anyone doing anything creative. After reading it I feel less stressed, more present, and even more determined to create. I listened to the audiobook just to hear Rubin’s soothing voice, but this one probably deserves a place on the bookshelf. Highly recommend.
April 2023
Stella Maris (Cormac McCarthy)
This is the follow-up book to The Passenger. This work should be read soon after The Passenger, as it does not stand on its own. That said, I really enjoyed this one. Stella Maris is presented as a transcript of a series of conversations between a schizophrenic (sister of the protagonist in The Passenger) and her therapist. The novel is entirely dialogue but is nonetheless effective in painting a genius, tortured soul. Again, I think I’ll need to revisit both of these novels to fully understand McCarthy’s message. I recommend.
Demon Copperhead (Barbara Kingsolver)
Full disclosure: I only read about half of this book before my library loan expired, so this should not be considered a full review. Having grown up in this region during the same period (the 90s), I found the character portrayals, especially all the nicknames, inaccurate and corny. I couldn’t take the story seriously. I’ll try again when my loan renews.
The Passenger (Cormac McCarthy)
I haven’t read all of McCarthy’s work, but I remember really enjoying No Country for Old Men (both the novel and the movie, a rarity). The Passenger starts with a compelling narrative of a troubled salvage diver who gets involved in a conspiracy he can’t understand. Unfortunately, there are many other distracting elements, including long and difficult italicized sections of his dead sister’s hallucinations and a series of conversations in bars that seemed to go nowhere and not add much to the more captivating parts of this story. That said, McCarthy is a master of salt-of-the-earth, blue collar dialogue and simple sensory descriptions. I just wish he could have maintained more of the thrill of the initial scenes, but I’m sure there’s a reason. This one will take more readings to fully understand. I recommend.
March 2023
East of Eden (John Steinbeck)
What a journey. While I still prefer either Grapes of Wrath or the novella Of Mice and Men, I can see why Steinbeck considered this his magnum opus. This multigenerational family saga spans space and time, with biblical references of Cain and Abel set mostly in the Salinas Valley of central California. Whatever, who am I to review a major literary classic? I recommend.
Cinema Speculation (Quentin Tarantino)
If you are a fan of film history, film criticism, and 70s cinema–and especially if you are a fan of Quentin Tarantino–you will love this book. I’ve never heard anyone talk about Deliverance quite like the author, and I’ve been trying to get my wife to watch it with me again for weeks. No such luck yet. Recommended.
Breath: The New Science of a Lost Art (James Nestor)
I don’t know what to say about this book. I have zero doubt that proper breathing is beneficial, but I found it quite a stretch to call this book science. Because Nestor put the word “science” in the title, I was expecting a host of convincing studies, meta-analyses and the like. What I got was something far more anecdotal, with fairly wild claims that a host of ailments can be alleviated or eradicated with breathing alone. I did feel better practicing some of the recommended breathing exercises, but don’t come looking for irrefutable science.
February 2023
The Nineties (Chuck Klosterman)
Klosterman takes us on a journey that extends far beyond a list of nostalgic elements from the 1990s. He does an amazing job of tying events of the past into a narrative that makes the current world understandable. Recommended.
Enlightenment Now: The Case for Reason, Science, Humanism, and Progress (Steven Pinker)
This was a reader recommendation, and I’m thankful for it. Pinker, through exhaustive documentation of studies and relevant figures, questions the commonly held narrative that the world is falling apart. My only critique was his chapter on happiness, which felt like a bit of sidestep on an otherwise very convincing portrayal of continued human progress. Recommended.
Animal Dreams (Barbara Kingsolver)
While I was blown away by Kingsolver’s Poisonwood Bible, I found this one to fall considerably short. The characters were slightly corny and Kingsolver’s introduction of her own values and ideals were a bit on-the-nose. This is by no means a bad book, but perhaps my expectations were set too high after reading PB. I’m mixed on this one.
Down and Out in Paradise: The Life of Anthony Bourdain (Charles Leerhsen)
I first read Bourdain’s classic Kitchen Confidential right in the thick of my short-lived career in professional cooking. At the time, no one was writing about the hidden underbelly of the culinary world in such raw and hilarious ways. Bourdain became a massive celebrity, and it all came crashing down with his 2018 suicide. This investigation by Leerhsen is riveting, if not a bit voyeuristic. I felt guilty knowing so much about a man’s private life. Also, Leerhsen writes in an unnecessarily complex style that bordered on pretension. If you are a Bourdain fan, though–or even just curious about the psychology of fame–this is not to be missed.
January 2023
Beautiful World, Where Are You (Sally Rooney)
I read this one immediately after Normal People. The plot involves two young women in the literary world who communicate mainly through email. Rooney is a master of awkward relationships, but I was a bit turned off by the email format, which read more like Rooney’s personal journal. She also relied on sex scenes heavily, which while captivating, feel like a bit of a cheap way to get page turns. I’d recommend this based on the character portrayals alone, but I wasn’t blown away with the plot.
Normal People (Sally Rooney)
This is a highly convincing story of two young people who love each other dearly but cannot communicate their feelings effectively. While the plot is sort of wandering, Rooney commands the ability to create characters that are socially awkward and so very relatable. I really enjoyed this one, as difficult as it is to read in parts. Recommended.
Dad is Fat (Jim Gaffigan)
I listened to this in audiobook format, which I recommend over reading. Gaffigan spends the bulk of this book making fun of his complicated existence as a father of five in New York City. Did I mention he has five children and lives in New York? One of the final chapters is spent defending his decision to have five children. I laughed out loud several times, so I recommend.
Stay tuned for more to come!
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