Part of my dissertation examined the work of Margaret Atwood. She published this book after I completed that project, just when I had given up reading--taking a sort of well-deserved rest. I've read all the rest of her novels, and I usually quite enjoy them, so I wanted to complete the task she has set. And now I find out about the Penelopiad. Nevertheless...I didn't enjoy Oryx and Crake as much as her other dystopia, The Handmaid's Tale. But O&C did make me think about something--in the end, when you have no need for language, what bits and pieces will be caught in your head? What stories will you remember how to tell? What words will keep you company? Me, I'll probably remember totally useless things about cooking with an oven and all the episodes of Seinfeld and The Simpsons.
I know I said the rest of the books had to be recommended in Nancy Pearl's Book Lust books, but I broke the rule already. I read A History of the African-American People [Proposed] by Strom Thurmond. I know Jim Kincaid, and I wanted to read it. It was funny, but the scary crazy character who proposed the book reminded me of my old boss, so there was a lot of dis-ease as I read. Some laughter. How come there aren't as many good satires as there ought to be? We all love Jon Stewart and Steven Colbert so why don't we have those types of voices on paper? Writers? Get to work!
Fiction: 4 down
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