Years Late to the Party

When I was in college in 1998, a book for young adults was released that really caught on. A second book was released, and a third, and in 2000, the first of a series of movies. While I was of course an avid reader, I staunchy avoided reading anything that seemed over-popular. I refused to read anything with an Opera's Book Club stamp on it, a policy I later revoked as it was keeping me from books that I really wanted to read. A cult following for this book grew and grew. I couldn't ride the train to school or get through a shift working at the coffeehouse without seeing someone with one of these books in their hands. I wasn't having it.
But, it just wouldn't go away. Books and movies continued to come. It won numerous awards. It was subject to a huge amount of press, good, bad, and downright crazy. Close friends would stand in line to buy new books at midnight release parties, and would stay up all night devouring them. My own father confessed to having read and enjoyed the series. I still hadn't read a single one, however, my feelings on the books changed. They did seem to be something that I would really enjoy, rather than just a curiosity. I saw a movie or two (or maybe all of them) and liked them a lot. I don't mind how much the story has seeped in to popular culture. The theme park looks amazing. My nephews look fantastic dressed up as the characters.
The 7th and final book was released in 2007. My excuse of wanting to wait until the series was complete has been void for 4 years. But finally, after a long and serendipitous journey, I bought the complete series this week and just finished the first book, Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone, this morning. It's fantastic. I knew it would be. I look forward to reading the rest of them, and likely re-reading them often. I spent so much effort avoiding it at first, but I've desperately wanted to read it for so long now. Perhaps that's part of why my reading choices and conquests are so different now... I actively set out to read books that catch the public interest, so that I can judge for myself if they live up to the hype. I don't want stuck behind the literary times again.

With all that said, I'm still not reading Twilight.

Moving on from Machen

Well that didn't take long. Still Life with a Brass Pole was a quick read, and I'll give it a 5. Not the worst thing I've read recently, but could have been better. It purports to be "The cross-country coming of age of a TEENAGE LOVE JUNKIE" (capitalization as written on the book, not my own emphasis). While it is a coming-of-age story of sorts, there is little love to be found. Teenage sex addict would be more apt, one with a penchant for steroids and cocaine. The author Craig Machen seems to have made one terrible decision after another, often for no reason whatsoever. Perhaps that's the point? He tells of coming from a dysfunctional family, of his own molestation, and shows that most (or all?) within the sex industry that he works in have similar stories to tell. There are interesting things to be found within the book, but the story is very jumpy. Just as he delves into one topic, one relationship or job, he's suddenly off doing something else with someone else in another state entirely. It was often hard to piece a time-line together, or to realize that he often DID seem to jump right from one phase of life into something completely different. The book also seems to wrap up very quickly at the end, as though he only had a few pages left in which to draw his tale to a conclusion. He gave great detail to other events in the book, and the last few short chapters could have used more care and explanation as well. It becomes hard to envision how the teenager featured in this book would grow up to be a functional member of society, despite his keen choice of role-model:

"Arnold teaches me to have goals, and to visualize the man I want to be", - from Still Life with Brass Pole.

Swans and Strippers

It's time. I'm a voracious reader, and the time has come to keep a collection of what I'm reading, what I'd like to be reading, what I've already read, and maybe even what other people are reading. To dive right in, I'm currently reading two novels: Wild Swans by Jung Chang, and Still Life With Brass Pole by Craig Machen. The latter is an advanced reader copy from Goodreads that I've nearly completed, and the former is a yard sale find. While the word "memoir" could be used to describe aspects of each, the only other correlation between the two seems to be their shared placement on my nightstand. I'll give full reviews soon. I'll also use a rating system with a 1-10 scale, 10 being the highest. The rating will essentially be a gauge of my enjoyment level and assessment of the redeeming qualities of each respective book. Some novels are great works of literature, and others are light and fluffy, but both may be worth a read or two.