Post 384: a general update

So I decided not to blog about the "I Hate the 21st Century" Reader. To be honest, many of the topics covered were startlingly out of date. I was sort of hoping for more of a speculative look at where we might be headed. Instead it was kind of, "It's only 2005 and here's why things suck," with a few notable exceptions. It was okay, but I would have ended up reflecting on the somewhat recent capture and death of Osama bin Laden, and I just don't feel like making that corpse dance any more than it really needs to. I also finished up The Sparrow by Mary Doria Russell on audio recently and was pretty much blown away by it. Once again, this is one of those books I don't really feel the need to blog about, but if someone wanted to have a discussion about via email or in the comments section, I'd be all for that.

Uh... I had an interview on May 11th (today for me, not so much for you). I'm excited about the prospect of working again, even if it will only be part time and minimum wage. Sigh, where are all those librarians who were supposed to retire/die, ALA? Huh? Oh well, maybe I'll figure something else out in the meantime. Anyway, you don't read my blog for that kind of thing. Books! 

Amityville Horror by Jay Anson.
I don't feel like I read enough horror stories and the movie was decent enough. I haven't read something cheesy in awhile either, so if it ends up headed in that direction I will not be overly disappointed.  

The Art of Racing in the Rain by Garth Stein.
I added this to my list because Greg over at The New Dork Review of Books really liked it. And uh, I gotta say, this is a REALLY appealing cover to me. I think there must also be some nostalgia factor to this for me as well. Pet books in general bring me back to reading The Yearling which was my first real adult sized book and also the first that didn't make me feel like I was being patronized. It had complex topics and emotions and fully expected me to cope with them. So, yeah, I've been wanting to read this for almost a year now. 

The Earth Moved: On the Remarkable Achievements of Earth Worms by Amy Stewart.
I have always liked earth worms. My favorite thing to do is go outside after it's rained and just watch them. Their movements are so...earthy. And I find it interesting that a creature that moves so sensuously is hermaphroditic. I mean, if you translated those movements to a lithe young woman, you'd be calling her a slut in seconds and then rushing to find an ATM that dispenses dollar bills. Not to say that worms are sexy, but that are infinitely fascinating for a creature so basic and underfoot. It is easy to imagine that they are hiding something from us in their dark underground world. 

The Evolution of Bruno Littlemore by Benjamin Hale.
I saw this on the shelves of the Kent Free Library when I was returning a DVD after visiting my fiance. It's the story of a chimpanzee who develops human-level communication as well as the ability to express deep thoughts and emotions. He falls in love with his researcher. I'm interested to see how far this book goes with this premise and how delicately it's handled. I could see this going from "aw" to "ew" very quickly...but then, how wrong is it to love an animal that reaches that level of sentience? I'll let you know if I was grossed out.