Books, glorious books

Since the trip began one of the biggest changes in my daily life is the emergence of reading as entertainment. Back home I would read a book every now and then. I always loved immersing myself in a story, but the TV and Internet was always there to divert my attention from the written word.

One of my goals for this year was to get back into reading as pleasure. And with the lack of TV and the numerous times that reading a book was the only option available to me, I have accomplished my mission. We left the states August 1 and in almost 6 weeks I have read 11 books. I’m like a batter on a hitting streak, a craps player with hot dice, or even Tom Hanks during his Forest Gump, Apollo 13 and Philadelphia run. I can’t control my appetite for books.

I thought I’d run down the list, giving you all quick reviews of the 11 books, in hopes that some of you may decide to put down the clicker and pick up novel. Mostly I am being judgemental of my previous habits. It was so easy to click on the boob tube and watch pop culture unfold in 30 minutes. With books, the opposite is true. Reading takes time and that is a luxury I have and one that I am using to explore writers and their different styles. I can’t stop reading and I’ve never felt like this before. (note to reader, this posting is kind of long and I won't be hurt if you skip this one. Really, I won't be hurt)

“The Alchemist” by Paulo Cahlo – Andy was amazed I had never read this book and after finishing it, I understood why. This book was made for me. It had inspirational passages on almost every page. The story is of a shepard who decided to give up the security of his job and current life for something that he wasn’t even sure existed. He went on what many would deem a fool’s search for gold. It was the first book I read on our journey and it set me straight. Andy and I had made the right decision to go on this trip and that we didn’t want to spend our whole life wanting and never doing. Just like “Travels with Charley” by John Steinbeck, this book energized me to see new things, talk to strangers and experience the world. If you’re looking for a push, then read “The Alchemist.”

“Diary of Anne Frank” by Anne Frank – We bought the extended version of her diary and after lumbering through Anne’s dislike for her mother and teenage fascination with the boy who was hiding with them, I am glad I read it. It wasn’t the most entertaining book I’ve read so far and I don’t even know if I would recommend it, but I must say it was amazing thast the person who wrote it was only 13 and that she had the energy and will to document her life so vividly. Occassionally she described the political discourse between the adults in the house but mostly she focused on her family’s annoying habits. It read like a 13 year old girl’s diary.

“A Long Way Down” and “Fever Pitch” by Nick Hornsby – You may know the writer from his novels “High Fidelty” and “About a Boy.” Hornsby is the writer I aspire to be like. He is funny, simple and his stories are enthralling. “A Long Way Down” is about 4 completely different people all deciding to commit suicide on New Years Eve on the same roof. A bond is instantly created and the story unfolds with them helping each other cope, in some hilarious way, with their unique problems. I read this quickly and despite it being about suicide it was actually a very uplifting tale about the rollercoaster that is life. The other book by Hornsby was an autobiographical look at his obsession with Football (soccer to us Yanks). I knew very little about why people in Europe, and all over the world for that matter, are obsessed with football. But now I get it. He describes life lessons set against a backdrop of monumental games. For anyone that loves sports in general, you will eat up this book.

“Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep” by Philip K. Dick – To begin, I am a huge Sci Fi fan. I always thought that if I read enough about the future and earth’s inevitable downfall I would be prepared when something drastic occurred. For example, if the earth is hit by a huge meteor and it is not instantly destroyed I know to first head for the hills, conserve your dried meat and fruits and that gasoline and a gun will be your saving grace for the short term. So when I read Sci Fi novels I am always aware of the lessons they teach me in the present times. So to the review, Electric Sheep was awesome. I’ve always loved Dick’s writing style. The dude is weird, to say the least. He is from the Bay Area and has always harbored a sense of paranoia about government and was a big drug experimenter. Read “A Scanner Darkly” if you really want to experience a Philip K. Dick novel. Electric Sheep is the story behind the movie Blade Runner (which I now really want to see) and it is a great post-apocalyptic detective novel about androids that escape slavery on Mars and head back to earth. They begin to feel human and they want to be left alone. On earth there are no living animals, only android representations of animals. To own an animal is a status symbol. I don’t want to give too much more away, but I just want to say that it is an amazing book, one of my favorites so far on this trip.

“Way of the Peaceful Warrior” by Dan Millman – Set in Berkeley this new agey, spiritual novel follows the life of a gymnast searching for more out of life than the normal motions we all go through. Like in “The Alchemist,” Millman sets up our character for a fall and then unfolds his enlightenment through unexpected twists and turns. I have been evoking the peaceful warrior side of me on this trip so far. I am trying very hard to let what happens just happen. If it rains, then I laugh and say, “Yeah, it’s raining!” If someone pushes me while in line to get on a bus with limited seating, I try to smile and say, “go right ahead, dear.” The book was good. Nothing life shattering for me but it was fun to read about a human’s struggle and ultimately his success.

“Invisible Monsters” by Chuck Palahnuik – This is from the guy who wrote “Fight Club” and “Choke”, two books I loved. Also, this one did not disappoint. It’s the story of a model who is horribly disfigured in a car accident and then about her subsequent life on the run with two prescription addicts. One is a guy who wantes to be a girl and the other is her boyfriend who she keeps feeding estrogen pills secretly to get back at him for dumping her once she became a “monster.” I guess from that sentence you can tell that this book is about as random and weird as they come. I recommend it only because you will have never read anything like it, ever!

“Mr. Paradise” by Elmore Leonard – I read this in a day. It is a crime novel from the guy who wrote “Out of Sight” and “Get Shorty.” Very urban and real and gritty and the dialogue he puts together is so solid, I envied Leonard after the first chapter. It’s about two models/slash hookers who get caught up in a scheme to steal inheritance money from an old, rich guy. I love all the plot twists and again, the dialogue was where it was at for me. I can’t wait to read more of his work.

“The Night Garderner” by George Pelecanos – I found this book in our room in Split, Croatia and it was an unedited manuscript. It is a crime novel about a serial killer in the DC area. I read it quick and didn’t really enjoy the ending all that much. I also was unsure why he had a separate plot line going for the entire novel that only vaguely touched the main storyline. I imagine the edited version came out by now and I wonder if it is different than the version I read. But I would not recommend this book.

“Night of the Fox” by Jack Higgins – This is a story of an undercover american spy who goes into German occupied territory during WWII to save another american soldier who has knowledge of where and when D-Day will occur. Despite the hokiness of it, I really enjoyed reading it. It had that “Exodus” by Leon Uris feel to it. Fiction based in fact can be entertaining and educational at times. The writing was good but nothing to write home about. Oh wait, I guess that’s what I’m doing. Well, you know what I mean.

“The Kite Runner” by Kaheld Hosseini – I don’t really know where to begin with this. Out of the 11 books I have read so far, this was, in my opinion, the best of the bunch. It is a story of a father and son from Afghanistan and how their fortunes rise and fall with their homeland’s fate. First off, I have never read a book so quickly. I literally couldn’t put it down. I woke up at 10 a.m. and began reading it and I did not put it down until 4 in the morning. I even tried to go to sleep at 2 a.m., figuring I would save the ending for the next morning. But after 30 minutes of laying in bed, wondering how it would all pan out, I put my headlamp on, trying not to wake Andy, and read until the last page. I even cried. I don’t think I have ever cried while reading a book until this one. It was such an intense journey for the main character. I started out hating him for his prejudice and lack of goodness and in the end, with all the numerous plot twists and nail biting, I grew to understand his plight. Forgiving yourself for your past is something that I think everyone struggles with at some point in one’s life. God knows I struggle with it. This book has received a lot of great press and I avoided reading it because I didn’t want to follow the masses. I sometimes get like that. Don’t ask me why. I also didn’t want to read about war in Afghanistan and about all the pain and suffering that I can’t do anything about. But what I gained from reading this sweet, sensitive novel was that I knew nothing about Afghanistan and its history. I learned about the Taliban regime before September 11th and what their people have been going through since the 70’s when the Russians came rolling in. Your past plays in your head like a one-man show and honesty about it rings in your ears for only you to hear. If anything this novel taught me about forgiving yourself, redemption and about how life constantly moves forward. Hosseini writes, “After all, life is not a Hindi movie. Zendagi migzara, Afghans like to say: Life goes on, unmindful of beginning, end, kamyah, nah-kam, crisis or catharsis, moving forward like a slow, dusty caravan.”