Friday, July 15, 2011

well, no one ever said I didn't have eclectic tastes.

I had a B&N gift card left over, probably from my birthday, which was in November (thanks, Mom and Dad!). So here's what I bought:

Home, Marilynne Robinson: I enjoyed Gilead, so I figured this one was worth a shot, too.
The Pre-Occupation of Postcolonial Studies, edited by Fawzia Afzal-Khan and Kalpana Rahita Seshadri: No, I'm not in grad school anymore; yes, I'm still a nerd.
Perdido Street Station, China Mieville: recommended by a friend whose literary judgment I trust.
For Colored Girls Who Have Considered Suicide...., Ntozake Shange: have been meaning to get to this one for a while and haven't.
Conversations with Isaiah Berlin, Ramin Jahanbegloo: uh. Looked interesting. And I haven't read Berlin since freshman year of college.
Special Topics in Calamity Physics, Marisha Pessl: Also looked interesting, in a completely different way from Conversations.
Parable of The Sower, Octavia Butler: If it's half as good as Kindred, it'll be plenty good.

And...stuff I've read recently:
Sister Outsider, Audre Lorde
Losing Battles, Eudora Welty
Good Omens, Neil Gaiman and Terry Pratchett
Haroun and the Sea of Stories, Salman Rushdie
The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian, Sherman Alexie

 Also, I'm going to see Harry Potter tomorrow, and that makes me happy. I should really re-read #7, or at least the last 1/3.

5 comments:

  1. let me know what you think of Perdido Station - I'm trying to decide if I want to read it or not.

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  2. I'd be interested to know, too; I tried it once and didn't get past the first chapter, but it was years ago and I can't remember why.

    So I looked at your list and thought, "I haven't read any of it!" But then I got to Good Omens and the Sherman Alexie...good books both.

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  3. As the person (I assume) who recommended Perdido, I'm interested to hear what you think as well!

    Currently re-reading The Name of the Rose, but I'm always on the lookout for new recommendations. I should read some Gaiman. I'm not very well-acquainted with his non-comics work.

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  4. I'm currently reading How Not To Write A Novel, because someone recommended it to me on Facebook. (I have the best iFriends ever.) It's... hilarious. Also insightful, and really useful. It's not writing advice, precisely; it's more like anti-writing advice.

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  5. Perhaps I'll write a review (and usually review means "rambling thoughts") on Perdido after I finish it.

    @Rebecca--you are indeed the one who recommended Perdido. As for Gaiman, American Gods is pretty wonderful, and Good Omens is hilarious.

    @Michael Mock--Have you read Anne Lamott's Bird by Bird? It's one of my favorite books on writing.

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