July 13, 2013

discomfort reads

Notes:

- We moved in completely. Nearly every artifact that was stored in this loft, in wrapped in ancient newspapers and nested in dusty cartons, has been discarded. I am as sentimental a fool as any, but something in me has ... shifted? ... enabling me to discard so many things I never dreamed I'd be able to chuck into a dumpster. Things that I know were precious to my mother, things I loved when I was a child, things my brother made when he was in preschool. We've kept the most important things of course, but we purged to make room for the future. It was sad but it did not break my heart. This surprised and worried me at first ... but I remind myself, we carry her in our hearts, not in these moldy boxes. She would approve. God, I hope she'd approve.

I kept the books. And some stupid things I found like a "Sand Breeding Kit" that was no doubt a gag gift to one of my parents from their friends, back in simpler times. And some things that I will keep forever, or at least until the next shift, like the shoeboxes of old 35 mm slides and the Christmas ornaments that used to scare me.

- Thought I'd devour Wild by Cheryl Strayed as quick as I did A Walk in the Woods, but find myself picking it up maybe once a week. I am enjoying it, though, and I know I'll finish.

- Hit the 2013 FOTL book sale last month. Scott bought more books than I did. So. Weird. I bought nothing of note.

- Currently reading with much fascination The Wave by Susan Casey. I bought it because I wanted to be able to talk to my husband about surfing and the ocean, which he loves, but now that he is deep into his new (and what I believe to be a deeper, truer) love - hunting - I am just reading it to read it. I am deathly afraid of the open ocean and a good portion of my nightmares involve large waves or being forced onto a boat. Reading this book is like going to the zoo and standing behind the glass while an aggressive lion paces back and forth. You know you're safe but it's still a thrill.

- I just finished The Bright Forever by Lee Martin. Reminiscent of The Lovely Bones, and don't worry, that doesn't really spoil anything. You'll know what happened to the kid from the get-go. The juice is of course the who and why. It's written with the easy prose that is the only kind I can digest in large chunks these days. Which is not to say it's trash, like so many things I read (on purpose, because trash is so easy to read, and I don't even pretend to feel bad anymore about seeking out Easy.) It's a compelling story and even as the protagonist/antagonist is giving you the heebs, you never feel too far above or separate from him. (He does invite you to, though, by suggesting that if you can't handle hard truths, you turn away or put down the book.)

Some stories you have to wash down with Archie Comics or a Golden Girls marathon, and this would be one of them.

Here's hoping I don't go another year without reading something worth writing about.

Ta ...

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