Day 49

Day 49- A passage from a book that has touched you

Hmf. I feel like I write about this all the time. But recently one quote from Song of Solomon by Toni Morrison has been in my brain. It's "You're not a serious person." I know that doesn't sound like much, but in the context of the book it was a lot. Like it's all about taking yourself and the world around you seriously. It's about taking all things into consideration. And I strive to be that way. For some reason that sentence just hit a chord with me.

Book #10 Normal People Don't Live Like This

"She had a recurring fantasy of being struck by a bus. The bus would knock her into a coma for many days. All she'd have to do was breathe."

So this book was interesting. It had a lot of things I liked. I mean a lot of the ways I think and feel were portrayed in this book. Like the beauty in ugliness. Also some of the social anxiety. There isn't really much to say about it. It was intense, and I think when I reread it, I'll find a lot more.

Book #9 Life of Pi

"It's important in life to conclude things properly. Only then can you let go. Otherwise you are left with words you should have said but never did, and your heart is heavy with remorse."

Wow. The end of this book has thrown me for a loop. So, Pi, gets shipwrecked and he gets stuck with a Bengal Tiger on his life boat. The whole book is about how he deals with this. It's amazing. But then at the end, when Pi is telling his story to some insurance types of guys, they say they don't believe him and that he needs to tell them the truth. He says fine I'll tell you a story you will believe even though it's not the truth. And so he tells a shorter story where the animals he is stuck with are actually people. Like, the zebra is a Japanese sailor, the hyena is the french cook, the orangutan is his mother and he is the Bengal tiger. And the way he tells it, it is exactly the same way things happen, just with the people in place of the animals. And now I don't know what to think. I mean the core of me really believes it was the people. That his way of dealing with it was to turn these people into animals. Plus, a few times in the book, he claims he acted animalistic. And maybe him seeing himself split off as the bengal tiger versus the human part of himself helps him cope with some of the things he had to do. But then another part of me is calling the core part of me a disbeliever and too logical. But truly, I really do think it was the people. And that makes it so much sadder. I'm not really sure how to deal with it. It just makes so much more sense with the people. And it would make sense for Pi to rationalize it that way. IT was a really good book. An amazing story. It is supposed to have religious importance but I didn't pay much attention to it. I liked this book a lot, and I feel like the next time I read it I will pick up on a lot more.

Book #8 The Book Thief

"It kills me sometimes, how people die."

"'Don't punish yourself,' she heard her say again, but there would be punishment and pain, and there would be happiness, too. That was writing."

I have never read a book that has made me cry as much as this book made me cry. It was heartbreaking. Liesel is a young girl who loses her brother, and then is given up to a foster home. Thankfully she bonds with her foster father, from then on known as Papa. And this story is about her survival through World War II. She is a german girl, and her foster parents are hiding a jewish man named Max in their basement. It is an amazing story. Oh, and did I mention, Leisel steals books? And the narrator is Death? It's a different twist on things, but it is amazing.

The end is heart shattering though. Her town gets bombed, and she loses basically everyone she loves. Rudy, who is her best friend, and has been bugging her for a kiss since she met him, dies. He dies just after she begins to realize that she loves him and that she finally does want to kiss him. He was begging for a kiss throughout the book, and he never got one, until he was dead. It was probably one of the saddest things. And when her Papa dies, it's even worse. She was the person she loved most in the world. All of her books are ruined, the ones she stole, and the ones people made for her. I was bawling. It was an amazing book, and I would reccomend it to anyone.

Book #7 Nightlight: A Parody

"About three things I was absolutely certain. First, Edwart was most likely my soul mate, maybe. Second, there was a vampire part of him-which I assumed was wildly out of his control-that wanted me dead. And third, I unconditionally, irrevocably, impenetrably, heterogeneously, gynecologically, and disreputably wished he had kissed me."

Ok, so this book was hilarious. The beginning was much better than the end though. I feel like it kind of tapered off at the end. But, the beginning was so freaking worth it. So Belle Goose loved Edwart Mullen, and she's convinced he's a vampire. He's not really. Also, Belle's traits are exaggerated from Bella Swans. For example, she is so freaking clumsy. It's hilarious. Also, she thinks the world is like in love with her. She is so cocky. Like she'll say something like, "The whole class was looking at me, but probably for a different reason- I had a hologram patch on my backpack." Haha, so funny. There are so many parts where I wrote "Haha" in this book. However, as I said before, the ending wasn't as good. Like eventually she meets a real vampire and tries him out. But she realizes she really loves Edwart. It was sort of lame. Still funny, but not as funny as the beginning. It was definitely worthwhile.

Book #6 Dawn of the Dreadfuls

"'Oh, we can't have that, can we? We can't go around being impolite when we're about to be overrun by reanimated cadavers! Egad- the English! How can we face a problem squarely when we can't even bring ourselves to name it?'"

"And he continued to give Elizabeth looks that lingered so long that Mary even asked him once if he were attempting some Oriental form of mesmerism."

So this is like the prologue of "Pride and Prejudice and Zombies." It was written after, but it takes place before. It was also so hilarious. I read it yesterday on the plane ride home. This one is different because I didn't already know the plot, but it was in keeping with the whole style. I liked how there was still love interests, even though they went no where. Also, I liked how Lord Lumpley was so gross. It showed another side of nobles in this type of book. It was very funny. There isn't much more to say about it really.

Book # 5 How I Became Stupid

Hm. i have mixed feelings about this book. I love the idea so much. It is about a guy who is sick of being intelligent to the point of exhaustion and instead decides to "become" stupid. This idea is amazing, and even though I am not the genius like the main character, sometime I feel the same way. However, I think SO much more could be done with this book. I feel like the road to becoming stupid was too small. Like all he did was start taking anti-depressants and then ended up getting a job at a stock brokerage company and get rich. I mean technically when he was "stupid" his life was more of a success in American standards. I guess that message is great though; that the ideal life isn't exactly ideal, that maybe a messed up life is better.

See, I am just unsure about this book. Even though I like it, if it was a little different and maybe a little longer, I could see myself LOVING it. I'm going to let myself ruminate on this.

Book #4 Reflections in a Golden Eye

Ok, so I don't have a quote, because I finished this book last night at work and left it in Iowa. But I'm still going to write about it. So Carson McCullers is one of my favorite authors. I love her dark writing style. She's the bomb to say the least.

This one wasn't my favorite, but parts of it were just juicy in their oddness. Like the fact that Major was relieved when his daughter died. Also, the little tid-bits about the Captin and his expressions of anger. I kind of wish that the characters could have been a little bit more developed, because I did grow attatched to them. I really liked and pitied Alison, as she was crazy and sick and no one by Anteclo seemed to really care about her until she died. I bet she was a lovely woman before her daughter died.

The character I really didn't like was the Major. He didn't have much of a personality, but what I really disliked about him was that he would convince himself of things so thoroughly even if they were obviously not true. And he only began giving a shit about Alison after her death. He irked me.

I did like how Leonora was kind of the power in her relationship with the Captin. Even though she wasn't as smart as him, she still had power over him. It was a nice dynamic. I liked this book, and I feel like whenever I reread it, I will like it more.

Book #3 The Awakening by Kate Chopin

"She felt as if a mist had been lifted from her eyes, enabling her to look upon and comprehend the significance of life, that monster made up of beauty and brutality."

Ok, so quickly before I divulge into my opinions of this book, I would just like to say that this isn't really my third book of the summer. I've read like 9 books in between this one and the last one, I just don't feel like writing about them because they are flighty time-passing books. Not that they are bad, they just are surface-y.

So, divulging begins now. This book is about a woman who kind of awakens from her life of dull housewifery and begins to notice her own wants. She begins to recognize herself as an important and separate entity. This is awesome. And I would like to applaud Kate Chopin for writing this book at the time. For the time it was written in, this book was very controversial and very gutsy. So, for the time, I am totally down with this book.

For the present though, not so sure. There are some issues I have, that I won't blame Kate Chopin for, because honestly during the time she wrote this, it was more than enough. However, there are issues all the same. Ok, so Edna Pontellier is the main character who is awakening out of this stupor of a life she has been holding. But, we need to look at her and realize that throughout the novel, she is constantly portrayed as being other-ly. She is not the same as everyone else. Almost as if she is special.

"A casual and indiscriminating observer, in passing, might not cast a second glance upon the figure. But with more feeling and discernment he would have recognized the noble beauty of its modeling, and the graceful severity of poise and movement, which made Edna Pontellier different from the crowd." This is what I'm talking about, not to mention the fact that the watcher is even pointed out as a "he," making it all the obvious that what men think about Edna is important. But back to what I was saying, she is pinned down as special and different. This makes it seem like only some women can claim this feat, that only special women can be awakened. I don't like this so much. Another thing that bothered me was the fact that she was awakened by a male. Edna wasn't able to shake herself out of the lie she was living until she met an ultra-fabulous male. So that blows. I mean by way of this novel, only super special women who meet and fall in love with super special men can be awakened to become their own person. Kind of sad. But again, not really blaming Chopin for this.

Ok, so that bummed me out, because all women have the ability to wake up and recognize themselves. They shouldn't have to be special or have to meet men that inspire them in order to find themselves.

A thing I did like though, was that in the end, she didn't end up with Robert (the guy that inspired her). She was able to live her life by herself, caring about her children and herself. In a way, it is awesome, because in this book, the man has become the tool for creating a better vision of a woman, whereas traditionally women are the ones being used to make men look better. Overall, I did like this book. It was neato. And forgiving the few things I mentioned, it really is a good story about a woman finding herself.

Book #2 Pride and Prejudice and Zombies

"She remembered the lead ammunition in her pocket and offered it to him. 'Your balls, Mr. Darcy?' He reached over and closed her hand around them and offered, 'They belong to you Miss Bennet.'"

This book literally made me laugh out loud too many times to count. There are loads of one liners like this one that killed me. This book is AMAZING! Besides the sheer kickass-ery of combining Pride and Prejudice with zombies, the changes in the plot were so great. Like the fact that Charlotte Lucas only married Mr. Collins because she was 'stricken' or turning into a zombie. And how she was slowly changing, and how her speech became labored. It was hilarious. And then how Mr. Collins killed himself! that was awesomeeee! This sounds like I'm crazy, but it's ok. One of the parts I loved the most was that Wickham was crippled by Darcy. So much better. Also, Darcy's reasoning for not wanting Bingley to marry Jane was so much better in this book. He thought that Jane was stricken! Soo much better. This book was fantastic. I love the shit out of it.

On another note, THERE IS GONNA BE A FUCKING MOVIE!!!!! And fucking NATALIE PORTMAN is going to be Elizabeth Bennet. It already sounds like the best movie ever. I am so excited.

Another great thing about this book is the back. This is what it says:

JANE AUSTEN is the author of Sense and Sensibility, Persuasion, Mansfield Park, and other masterpieces of English literature. SETH GRAHAME-SMITH once took a class in English literature.

Hahahahah. I love everything about this book. I mean sure, it's not exactly class A type literature. And it kind of is just adding bits about ninjas and zombies into Jane Austen's work. But you know what, Kudos to this guy! It's funny, and people that don't like it are probably just taking it too seriously. It's a joke, it's supposed to be a joke. It's obvious he knows that he isn't Jane Austen, but he's putting a playful spin on it, and I give him props for that. Not too many people would have the balls to do something like this. I like it.

So next is Moby Dick. It might take me a bit longer.

Ok, "Pride and Prejudice and Zombies"

I know I will love this book already. First sentence: "It is a truth universally acknowledged that a zombie in possession of brains must be in want of more brains." Bahaha. I laughed out loud on the first sentence. This book will be a winner.

Book #1 Rant by Chuck Palahniuk

"'My life might be little and boring, but at least it's mine- not some assembly-line, secondhand, hand-me-down life'" -Rant Casey

First book of the summer is done. And I like it. I was surprised how it ended up, with all the time travel, but it was very enjoyable. I figured there had to be something fishy going on when I realized Chet had all the same scars as Rant. It was interesting. But what I really loved was learning about Rant's childhood. Like that his mother would put little random things, like stones, or tinfoil, or thumbtacks, in food, to make people eat slowly and REALLY taste her food. I think that is so funny, and I have no clue how Chuck comes up with that. It's almost like "Well if you and society are going to force me into this role of house-wifery, then I damn well better be appreciated for it, so I'll stick stuff in my food so that you HAVE to taste it." Haha, I think it's hilarious. And that Rant would purposely get bitten by anything and everything. So crazy. It really amazes me that some one can think this stuff up. Chuck and Toni are the reasons why I feel so inadequate, because I sincerely doubt I will ever be able to think up the shit they've got going on in their brains. It is so awe-inspiring.

And I liked that Echo wasn't some sort of perfect vision of beauty. And that she was a virgin even though everyone thought she was a sex worker. Funny. But I'm wondering, if both Chet and Green were Rant, how did they get split? I know at one point they say that time splits if you try and kill your ancestors, but I don't remember anything about people splitting. Well, actually, Chet is Rant after he time travels through the crash. Green is Rant's father and grandfather and great-grandfather. So Green isn't Rant, he's just related to Rant. Hm. It is a very interesting story.

Next I'm going to read "Pride and Prejudice and Zombie," which very well may be hilarious.

Companionship

❝She is a friend of my mind. She gather me, man.

The pieces I am, she gather them and give them

back to me in the right order. It's good, you know,

when you got a woman who is a friend of your mind.❞

- Sixo from Beloved- Toni Morrison

So I know I said that I would wait until the weekend, but I am procrastinating, so I figured I might as well do something worth-while. So, companionship. I read this quote from Beloved, and I fell in love with it. And I realized, this is what I want more than anything in another person. I want a friend of my mind. And I think this is a problem in a lot of relationships today, people don't take the time to really learn some one's mind. Like if you take the time to understand some one, then it should be a lot easier to be with them. Now, I'm not saying that I want to be with some one that I will always be able to know what they are going to do, or vice versa, but I want to understand them. I want them to know me, and for me to know them. Does that mean we have to know everything about each other? Definitely not, but I just want some one who is a friend of my mind. I want some one who wants that. I think that's why I really didn't like those guys who came onto me at the Kum&Go, because they don't want to know me mentally. I just want to feel understood.

I think these expectations are why I think I'll never get married. I don't know if it is at all possible to have a friend of the mind. I hope it is, but I don't know. I think companionship is luck, and the people who find their perfect companion, whether friend, or lover, are luckiest. So, yea. That's how I feel. Now I just got to get out there and find the friend of my mind...or not. I'll probably wait a bit hah.

Carson McCullers

"We are homesick most for the places we have never known."
— Carson McCullers

If there was ever an author I wanted to meet, Carson McCullers is the one. She is my inspiration