Kindle Konfusion

I wrote in a previous post about Kindle fails -- book samples I download but find I don't like. But sometimes I'm not sure whether I will like a book or not after I've read the sample. Consequently, I build up a multi-page list of book samples that I might or might not decide to purchase. Yesterday, I decided to purge my Kindle of some of those titles. I'm not sure what inspired me -- maybe the fact that I've been having trouble finding a book that really draws me in.

After looking through all nine(!) pages of samples, books, and various other downloads, I came up with a list of samples I have downloaded and either never read or hadn't decided to buy immediately. I find that, often, if I don't buy the book right after reading the sample, when I go back and look at the title I don't recall what the book was about. Solution: I went through my list title by title, looking up each one online and, if I was somewhat interested, I downloaded the Publishers Weekly write-up about the book.

Once I had refreshed my memory about each book, I then color coded them (I know, I'm crazy). If I knew I would never read them, I highlighted them in red. Those that I might consider reading got a yellow highlight, and those that I definitely want to read got green. This wasn't actually just busy work; I really needed to jog my memory about why I had at one time thought these books might interest me. Plus, the way my memory has been performing lately, I might even download the same sample again and not recognize that I've already read it. This way, before making that mistake, I can check it against my list (an ongoing project) and see if I've already sampled the book.

Final count:

I will definitely read five of the books.

I might read forty-one.

I definitely will not read seventeen.

Two that I will definitely read are: The Flight of Gemma Hardy by Margot Livesey, which sounds like a modern-day Jane Eyre. Gemma is orphaned when her father drowns and she has to leave her native Iceland to go live in Scotland with a kindly uncle and his family. The uncle, of course, also dies and she's sent to live in a strict private school. She ultimately winds up the au pair to an 8-year-old on the Orkney islands. Sounds like fun to me.

Lapsing Into a Comma: A Curmudgeon's Guide to the Many Things That Can Go Wrong In Print -- and How to Avoid Them by Bill Walsh. This one's pretty self-explanatory, but the sample was funny and I want to read more.

A Reader's Confession

I have a confession to make -- I can't seem to finish a non-fiction book. On occasion, I race to the end of a well-written memoir...probably because it tells a story, and I'm all about the story. I also like well-drawn characters, and in the right hands that's just what a memoir presents. But other non-fiction books just don't seem to hold my attention for some reason.

Right now, I'm trying to finish Buddha's Brain: The Practical Neuroscience of Happiness, Love and Wisdom by Rick Hanson. The subject interests me and the book is well-written. But each time I have a chance to do some reading, I reach for a novel instead. I will finish this book because I'm anxious to learn what it has to say, which is that breakthroughs in modern neuroscience coupled with the wisdom of thousands of years of contemplative practice, make it possible for people to shape their thoughts to achieve greater happiness, love, compassion, and wisdom

Two n-f books I did finish were: Buddhism Plain and Simple by Steve Hagen and The Psychopath Test: A Journey Through the Madness Industry by Jon Ronson. Both of these books fascinated me from start to finish. I'm not sure what that says about me.

Some memoirs I really enjoyed were:

The Liars' Club by Mary Karr

Mennonite in a Little Black Dress by Rhoda Janzen

American on Purpose: The Improbable Adventures of an Unlikely Patriot by Craig Ferguson

I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings by Maya Angelou

What about you? Do you read non-fiction and fiction? Do you prefer one over the other?

Not Enough Dog

Just to follow up on my previous post about I Thought You Were Dead.  After finishing the book, I would give it four stars. I liked it, but it got a bit whiney in the middle. But mostly, I would have liked to hear more from the dog. If you're a dog lover, I recommend it. But be sure to keep some tissues handy.

I Love "Talking" Dogs!

I think I first fell in love with books that featured talking dogs years ago, when I read Harlan Ellison's classic novella that included A Boy and His Dog. The dog didn't actually talk, but he communicated with his human pal telepathically. It was a post-apocalyptic story that was made into a somewhat horrifying movie.

I remembered that book recently as I fell in love with another talking-dog book. In I Thought You Were Dead by Pete Nelson the dog actually talks. Stella, a german shepherd/labrador mix listens to her owner Paul's woes and offers some wonderfully amusing and wise advice.

A typical exchange:

Paul is explaining to Stella that his father has had a stroke. He says, "They don't know how bad it is. I was talking to a guy at the bar who said if they get to you in time, they can limit the damage."

"A guy at the bar said that?

"Yup."

"Always a good source for reliable medical information," she said. "I'm sorry for you." I love this dog!

Another dog I fell in love with is Chet from the Chet and Bernie mysteries by Spencer Quinn. Chet doesn't actually talk, but he narrates the stories. The first one, titled Dog On It, finds Chet and his owner Bernie investigating the disappearance of a teenaged girl who may or may not have been kidnapped. From Amazon:

"Chet might have flunked out of police school (“I’d been the best leaper in K-9 class, which had led to all the trouble in a way I couldn’t remember exactly, although blood was involved”)...And that's what I love about these dog books - the dogs may be special (talking, telepathic, novel-narrating) but they're still very much dogs. They eat, poop and love a good scratch. And they're ever so loyal.

(Thanks for the idea, Em.)

Questions, Questions?

Would you read a novel composed entirely of questions? "The Interrogative Mood: A Novel?" by Padgett Powell is just such a book  and a very intriguing book it is. Although the questions seem to appear in no significant order, reviewers who have read the entire novel (I am not one) say that it actually has themes and a pattern to the seeming chaos.

One section asks: "How is your health? If it might be fairly said that you have hopes and fears, would you say you have more hopes than fears, or more fears than hopes? Are all of your affairs in order? Would you have the slightest idea, if we somehow started over, how to reinvent the radio, or even the telephone?"

Then there is this question, which I confess I have actually pondered myself: "Why won't the aliens step forth to help us."

I haven't yet purchased this book because I think it might make me crazy, but it might not. I'm still asking myself: "Do you want to read this book?"

Two for One

I love to peruse lists of books that one group or another, or some writer or celebrity, thinks I should read. So today, I followed a link to an AARP list of 21 novels that Jacquelyn Mitchard thinks I should read.   21 Novels to Read

It was an interesting list. I had already read several of her suggestions, but she also had some rather interesting books I have never read that she considers must-reads. So I was able to add some titles to my list of books to consider reading. But the more fun part of this journey was the video they had posted on the web page of Peter Greenberg talking about hotels for book lovers. What a great concept!

Wish I was planning a trip soon to NYC, Maryland, or Oregon. These places sound like the perfect place to read the day away without feeling guilty about dirty dishes and undone chores.

Hotels for Book Lovers

Good story or good writing? Can't I have both?

I sometimes find it hard to remove my editor's hat when I'm reading for pleasure. But there have been times... Dan Brown's The DaVinci Code comes to mind. The writing was certainly less than stellar, in my opinion, but the story managed to grab me up and sweep me along all the way to the finish. Many readers turn up their noses at this book, and I can sympathize. But doggone it, that was a fun read.

On the other hand, I have sometimes run across authors who can write beautiful prose, but they can't really tell a story. It thrills me to discover an author who can do both, one who can use chill- or sigh-inspiring prose to tell a page-turning, awe-inspiring, or heartwarming story -- and sometimes all three of those in one.

I'm currently reading Ann Patchett's State of Wonder. I've read  a couple of her books before (The Magician's Assistant and The Patron Saint of Liars) and found her talented but not stunning. This book is different so far. I'm finding that I want to go back and read certain sentences or paragraphs and then mark them with a sticky note so I won't forget to bring them up at my next book club meeting when we discuss the book. Here's an example:

Hope is a horrible thing, you know. I don't know who decided to package hope as a virtue because it's not. It's a plague. Hope is like walking around with a fishhook in your mouth and somebody just keeps pulling it and pulling it.

What about you? Do you want story and sparkling prose or are you okay with just one or the other? What authors have you discovered that can provide both?