Hiatus....again....

So, after a fairly successful summer and definitely productive last 2 weeks, I'm going on hiatus from this project again because....
a) I lack the motivation to read The Two Towers
b) I am in the middle of Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins and I need to finish that before anything else. (It's fantastic...a little slower to start than The Hunger Games or Catching Fire, but great nonetheless...if you haven't read those, YOU NEED TO!!)
c) This weekend I'm going out of town for a few days
d) School is starting again soon...blah

As a heads up, though, this fall I'm definitely going to read The Two Towers, and hopefully Return of the King, if there's time. Then I'm going to have a winter of Dickens to hopefully get a good chunk of that out of the way. I'm starting in November with Oliver Twist (because I know that story) and then A Christmas Carol in December. I'll spend January on Dickens too. In February (because of Valentine's Day, mostly, even though I am not a huge fan of that holiday) I'm going to read some Austen. I'll definitely read Pride and Prejudice and maybe Emma too. I'm hoping to get a chunk of that out of the way as well. Then next spring I can pick some that I think sound interesting, maybe get some that I've never heard of before. In the meantime, I'm going on hiatus until...
a) I finish Mockingjay
b) I feel motivated to read The Two Towers
c) I get back from my mini road trip
d) Life calms down and I have a "real" schedule and/or "real" free time
The end. This project is definitely more involved than I thought it would be when I started 6 months ago, but it's a good challenge, and a perfect opportunity to broaden the mind and fill up my bookshelf with impressive volumes.

Until next time....

Four Legs Good, This Book Bad!

I just finished Animal Farm. Not my favorite. I didn't like it any more than I did the summer before 9th grade when I had to read it for school (which explains why I own it, haha).



I am going to skip all talk of allegories to Communist Russia because I feel like it's been beaten to death by common knowledge, sparknotes, and my 9th grade English teacher. So, what is left to talk about? In my opinion, not much. I'm exhausted and this book did not interest me in the slightest, so I'll keep it brief.

1) Title: Animal Farm: A Fairy Story. WHAT? A fairy story? I'm guessing Orwell meant fable or folk tale or something because there was no fairies, magic spells, etc. Some fairy tales are indeed gruesome, but I'd rather read my (nonexistent) children those than Animal Farm.

2) I did appreciate the last chapter, when after many years none of the new animals understood the procession by the boar's skull and had no idea about what the purposes of the old rituals were. So often histories get lost so that the original meaning is no longer understood. I think that's somewhat of a universal. After many years, it's to be expected that meanings get transposed and altered.

3) There is a creepy Animal Farm animated movie that I found on youtube while I was looking for the picture of the book shown above. I watched 10 minutes of it and was extremely creeped out. The fact that an animated movie exists for this, though, means two things: a) that people are willing to subject themselves to this story in their spare time, and b) children are probably watching it because it's animated. AHHHH!!!! (The part where they're supposed to be singing "Beasts of England" is extremely weird...everyone just starts making noise in strange rhythms).

So...not my first choice. Definitely toward the bottom of my list. Would not recommend, etc. Next up: The Two Towers (unless this weekend involves a lot of driving, which it very well might, in which case it might be the first in the Narnia series, the Magician's Nephew). Cheers!

Charlotte's Web

"How about 'Pig Supreme'?" asked one of the lambs.
"No good," said Charlotte. "It sounds like a rich dessert."
"How about 'Terrific, terrific, terrific'?" asked the goose.
"Cut that down to one 'terrific' and it will do very nicely," said Charlotte. "I think 'terrific' might impress Zuckerman.
"But Charlotte," said Wilbur, "I'm not terrific."
"That doesn't make a particle of difference," replied Charlotte. "Not a particle. People believe almost anything they see in print."
p.87-89

Templeton was down there now, rummaging around. When he returned to the barn, he carried in his mouth an advertisement he had torn from a crumpled magazine
"How's this?" he asked, showing the ad to Charlotte. "It says 'Crunchy.' 'Crunchy' would be a good word to write in your web."

"Just the wrong idea," replied Charlotte. "Couldn't be worse. We don't want Zuckerman to think Wilbur is crunchy. He might start thinking about crisp, crunchy bacon and tasty ham. That would put ideas into his head. We must advertise Wilbur's noble qualities, not his tastiness. Go get another word, please, Templeton."

The rat looked disgusted. But he sneaked away to the dump and was back in a while with a strip of cotton cloth. "How's this?" he asked. "It's a label off an old shirt."

Charlotte examined the label. It said PRE-SHRUNK.

"I'm sorry, Templeton," she said, "but 'Pre-shrunk' is out of the question. We want Zuckerman to think Wilbur is nicely filled out, not all shrunk up. I'll have to ask you to try again."

"What do you think I am, a messenger boy?" grumbled the rat. "I'm not going to spend all my time chasing down to the dump after advertising material."

"Just once more--please!" said Charlotte.

...When he came back he had a strip of blue-and-white cardboard in his teeth.

"There!" he said, triumphantly. "How's that?"

Charlotte read the words: "With New Radiant Action."

"What does it mean?" asked Charlotte, who had never used any soap flakes in her life.

"How should I know?" said Templeton. "You asked for words and I brought them. I suppose the next thing you'll want me to fetch is a dictionary."

Charlotte's Web, published by E. B. White in 1952, is one of the most beloved children's stories of all time. I myself, being an avid reader in childhood as well as a teacher of elementary children, had never actually read it until today. I loved the animated movie as a child and I liked the Dakota Fanning version. I'm not sure why it never occurred to me to read it. I do remember starting it, reading part of the way through, and abandoning the book because I didn't like it. Compared to other children's books I've read, many of them published more recently, E. B. White is wordy, and some of the larger themes are not easily grasped by children.

In the beginning of this book, I was not too impressed. I knew the story, but I was not really sure why this particular story resonated with readers more than other ones (Because of Winn Dixie, for example, which is my personal favorite). Toward the end of the book (which took me less than a day to complete), I realized that it wasn't the plot of the story itself, but the message it sends. The book bursting with second chances, friendship, loyalty, miracles, life and death, and new beginnings. It certainly wouldn't be an easy book to teach, but it would be worth it simply for the messages. It also has innocence everywhere, no thwarting of plans, betrayals, just a simple story full of good morals.



I love all the characters in the book; Charlotte and Wilbur have a special place in my heart, but my favorite character is Templeton the rat. Now, I have not special affliction toward rats, I don't think they're cute, I would be horrified to find one living in my house. However, Templeton, for his rough exterior, is really kindhearted and good. Sure, Charlotte, Wilbur, and the gander have to bribe him with food to get him to do anything, but I'd bet he would have done it anyway. I think he prefers to act put out by any request they have. However, in the end he has a breakdown moment where he feels unappreciated. Clearly he's not in a good place here; his speech reeks of self pity, but I don't blame him after the treatment he got. It's not that the other characters are particularly mean to him, but they have been bribing him rather than thanking him. In the end, whether he meant to or not, he saved Wilbur's life many times over.

"So!" he said, in disgust. "So it's old Templeton to the rescue again, is it? Templeton do this, Templeton do that, Temple please run down to the dump to get me a magazine clipping, Templeton please lend me a piece of string so I can spin a web...Ho, ho. And what thanks do I ever get for these services, I would like to know? Never a kind word for old Templeton, only abuse and wisecracks and side remarks. Never a kind word for a rat...My, my! I notice that it's always me you come to when in trouble. But I've never heard of anyone's heart breaking on my account. Oh, no. Who cares anything about old Templeton?...Who made trip after trip to the dump?" he asked. "Why, it was old Templeton! Who saved Charlotte's life by scaring that Arable boy away with a rotten goose egg? Bless my soul, I believe it was old Templeton. Who bit your tail and got you back on your feet this morning after you fainted in front of the crowd? Old Templeton. Has it ever occurred to you that I'm sick of running errands and doing favors? Who do you think I am, anyway, a rat-of-all-work?"

Lots of quotes today. Mostly ones that I liked; things that were funny, things that were full of emotion, things that were absolutely true, things that were just adorable. Regardless of this being a children's book, it's worth a read no matter what your age. I'll leave you with a couple more quotes I enjoyed.

"What do people catch on the Queensborough Bridge--bugs?" asked Wilbur.
"No," said Charlotte. "They don't catch anything. They just keep trotting back and forth across the bridge thinking there is something better on the other side. If they'd hang head-down at the top of the thing and wait quietly, maybe something good would come along. But no--with men it's rush, rush, rush, every minute. I'm glad I'm a sedentary spider."
p.60

"What a gamble friendship is!"
p.41

Life of Pi: CHECK!

Just finished Life of Pi. Unfortunately, this book was kind of a let down. It was claimed "A story to make you believe in God" but I am not convinced. It's possible that I read it with an overly critical eye (I can do that when it comes to religion), but for me it was just another story of a teenage boy surviving in the wild. It also reeked of The Old Man and the Sea, which I read in high school and HATED. The middle got tedious...there are only so many ways you can describe fishing and butchering fish.

A few quotes I enjoyed:

"I speak in all modesty as I say this, but I discovered at that moment that I have a fierce will to live. It's not something evident in my experience. Some of us give up on life with only a resigned sigh. Others fight a little, then lose hope. Still others--and I am one of those--never give up. We fight and fight and fight. We fight no matter the cost of battle, the losses we take, the improbability of success. We fight to the very end. It's not a question of courage. It's something constitution, and inability to let go. It may be nothing more than life-hungry stupidity."
p. 148

"The worst pair of opposites are boredom and terror."
p. 217

"What a terrible thing it is to botch a farewell...It's important in life to conclude things properly. Only then can you let go. Otherwise you are left with words you should have said but never did, and your heart is heavy with remorse."
p. 285


So, overall, disappointing, but it held my attention for the most part. The beginning section was my favorite. I think I am beginning to become very interested in India. According to the man at the bookstore the other day, Midnight's Children also deals with India so I may be reading that one soon. Immediately next up: The Magician's Nephew (first of the Narnia books, #33). That one I have as a book on tape, so I'll be listening to it as I run. In print form, maybe Charlotte's Web. I need something light and uplifting.

Life of Pi: halfway done

I am almost halfway through Life of Pi. Where I have stopped, Pi has just listed all the things that he has found in the lifeboat. I've never been a person who is into survival, camping, anything in that realm, and so I skimmed the list and moved on. I can always reference it later.

My biggest problem in this section, Pi in the middle of the Pacific Ocean with a hyena and a tiger that he just discovered, is HOW DID HE NOT KNOW THE TIGER WAS IN THE BOAT!?!? I mean, maybe his lifeboat is larger than I am picturing it, but still, I feel like it would be impossible NOT to know there was a tiger in there. Pi says his boat is about 100 square feet, which is approximately the size of the room I am in. I can say with absolute certainty that if there was a 450 pound Bengal tiger in here, I would know it.

Additionally, I am having a hard time trying to picture what the lifeboat looks like. I can understand the size and shape of the boat, and that it has seats across similar to a row boat, except one was broken by the zebra. It seems like there is a tarp that is going across the top of the boat, or maybe under the seats, and the tiger is under the tarp, but then wouldn't you know that the tiger was under there? You would either see a large lump, or you could peek under and see a tiger. I just don't get it.

And whatever happened to this being a story about believing in God? I think I admitted in the last post that I am not particularly religious or spiritual, but I am extremely interested in that topic in general. I usually only can see the bad in religion (politics, intolerance, hypocrisy) but if there arguments for its good, I like to hear them. This story especially seemed like it would be one of those arguments, but not in an overbearing way. Episodes about why Pi chose to convert to several religions at once, and the conversation between the three holy men were interesting and something that was new to me. However, Pi vs. a hyena and a tiger does not seem so very close to that story. I'm sure it will come together. This story has had quite a bit of foreshadowing already so I'm sure the religious piece will come full circle. Pi's lesson about how animals are vicious, and that omega animals perform for trainers because they have nothing to lose, are already beginning to relate to the tiger, Richard Parker, haha. Thirsty None Given, haha.

I hope the survival part of the book, which lasts for 140 more pages either goes quickly or gets more interesting. Me and intense survival books generally do not get along.

Life of Pi: First Impressions

I decided to go with Life of Pi because for whatever reasons I am still procrastinating LOTR. I have read the first seven chapters, which takes me approximately 8% through the book. So far this book is about an Indian boy who was named after a pool and enjoys swimming. Thrown in there as well is a defense of zoos, which I found very interesting.

Pi's father runs a zoo, so he takes a few pages telling his reader why zoos are not as inhumane as people believe them to be. He starts by saying that zoo enclosures are to animals what houses are to people; a condensed environment that has everything necessary all in one location. Both bring security to its inhabitants. While Pi recognizes that people think animals should be out running free, he believes that the animals have everything they need in the zoo, including abundant food and lack of predators. He also cited examples where animals who had escaped their enclosures eventually returned to them because that was their home. In the wild, Pi notes that predators are around, animals are always fighting over turf, and food is scarce. The zoo solves all of those problems for animals. He also says that the animals have rituals that they do daily, and noticing a change in the pattern and timing can help alert a zookeeper that an animal is feeling ill or that something is wrong. It was a very interesting and compelling argument, and while I agree with much of what Pi argues about zoos, I also believe that most animals belong in the wild.

Some quotes I especially liked:

p. 6 "I have nothing to say of my working life, only that a tie is a noose, and inverted though it is, it will hang a man nonetheless if he's not careful."

WORKAHOLICS BEWARE!!

p. 19 "The Pondicherry Zoo doesn't exist any more. Its pits are filled in, the cages torn down. I explore it now in the only place left for it, my memory."

Connection to my life: I attended a high school that was in pretty rough shape, and although it was not the best conditions for learning (windows that were welded open so the snow could come in, the smallest gym and auditorium in the county, cafeteria not able to fit all the students assigned to lunch at that time, no track, trailers outside for extra classroom space, etc.) it holds a special place in my heart because despite its flaws it had character. Sure, I got snowed on almost daily for a few months during English class, but eventually such frustrations became jokes. It did not have the facilities to compare with the other area high schools, but it was my school. In my senior year, the district started a fairly intense renovation project that began to change the look and layout of the school. The floors and ceilings were stripped, sections of the school became forbidden due to men in haz-mat suits getting rid of asbestos, and lights were dangling from wires giving the look of a mine shaft. This too, became more character for the school. They ripped up the parking lot, the fields, the hallways. There were construction vehicles all over the place. Our homecoming game was a home game an hour away because we didn't have a football field. My sports team played at an elementary school instead of the field normally used. For graduation, we wanted to wear hard hats. Anyway, you get the picture. The last memories of me at my high school included this construction vehicle, mine shaft, dust and gravel picture in my head.

The picture in my head does not exist anymore. My freshman year of college, the rebuilding of the school began. A wing was added, the gym was changed, the library moved into the auditorium, the auditorium moved into the old gym, there was a new gym wing built out the back, the bus loop changed from the front of the building to the side, and the old back of the school was now the front. There is a state of the art track with a football field inside and new bleachers and a circular amphitheater in front. The old trees and ivy covered brick is gone and was replaced by a monster that has no resemblance to the old school and does not fit the location anymore (in a historic village). For this reason, I do not go in the school and prefer to remember it as it was. My younger sister attended this school too, but the updated version. If I was forced to attend something at the school, a concert or game, perhaps, I had to force myself to pretend that she was going to a different school, and that this school was not mine. For some reason this made me feel better, even though I know it is irrational and it's the same school only renovated with none of the charm of the old building. So, from this very long digression, I can understand what Pi is going through with his zoo from his childhood gone. And although this quote, very short and at the end of the chapter, hardly amounts to much, I am made to believe that it causes him great pain.

So, that was a longer and way more involved entry than I meant to write, but from this I think it's clear that Life of Pi is going to be a very thought provoking book. The Author's Note claimed that it was a story to make you believe in God. (I'll be honest, I don't really know what I believe. I know that organized religion is not for me, that praying seems irrational, and that you have to work hard and not take for granted that someone will help you out. However, I'm convinced that coincidences don't exist and that ghosts are real.) So, this book is clearly going to take on religion as a topic, which will be interesting given that Pi studies religion as well as zoology at university. Religion discussed with science will be something interesting and new for me, and it will be interesting how Pi will be able to balance these two partially opposing ideas.

Anyway, that's the beginning of Life of Pi. I'm anxious to keep reading. It'll be dense and thought provoking but I hope enjoyable at the same time.

The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time

I just finished reading 'The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time.' This book, besides being a fabulous vacation book (defined as interesting, small, and not a page turner that has you reading all of vacation when you are supposed to be out and doing things), was a really interesting book that had a lot of new perspectives on many different things. I realize that is vague, so I'll go into a little more detail. Essentially, this is the story of a teenage boy who sets out to figure out who has stabbed his neighbors dog. In the process, his story becomes one of family and truth and independence. I'm sure there are a lot of stories like this. However, this book is told in the first person by a teenage male speaker with autism. I think the fact that I am a special ed teacher drew me into the book, but you do not have to have any background in autism to appreciate the book. The speaker, Christopher, tells his story of his investigation into who killed his neighbor's dog. However, about half the chapters have nothing to do with his story. Instead, they are about math problems, his beliefs about various subjects like science and math, and his past. Christopher is an extremely logical person who does not dwell on sadness and has very unique and not always acceptable ways of dealing with his problems. Here are three quotes I especially liked:

"All the other children at my school are stupid. Except I'm not meant to call them stupid, even though that is what they are. I'm meant to say that they have learning difficulties or that they have special needs. But this is stupid because everyone has learning difficulties because learning to speak French or understanding relativity is difficult and also everyone has special needs, like Father, who has to carry a little packet of artificial sweetening tablets around with him to put in his coffee to stop him from getting fat, or Mrs. Peters, who wears a beige-colored hearing aid, or Siobhan, who has glasses so thick they give you a headache if you borrow them, and none of these people are Special Needs, even if they have special needs" p. 42=43

"Mr. Jeavons said that I liked maths because it was safe. He said I liked maths because it meant solving problems, and these problems were difficult and interesting but there was always a straightforward answer in the end. And what he meant was that maths was not like life because in life there are no straightforward answers in the end." p. 61-62

"And whenever I thought about the future I couldn't see anything clearly in my head and that made a panic start. So Siobhan said I shouldn't think about the future. She said 'Just think about today. Think about all the things that have happened. Especially about the good things that have happened.'"

Those excerpts give an accurate look at the writing style of the book. It is easy to follow along but sometimes when Christopher starts to explain math problems it gets a little tough, although I understood most of those parts. Additionally, they were not vital to the story so if it was problematic those parts could be skimmed or skipped.

So, interesting perspectives, unique protagonist, chapters labeled by prime numbers, etc. Pretty cool stuff in this book. I highly recommend. And I'm ranking it between Anne of Green Gables and Alice's Adventures in Wonderland.

Next up: ? Before vacation, I was thinking about resuming Lord of the Rings with The Two Towers, but I think I'm still in the mood for something lighter. And after reading Haddon, I think I'm in the mood for another coming of age type story. So, I may start instead with Life of Pi. Although there are still a great many books that are on my shelf that have yet to be read so you never know...

Books I've read to date (and their ranking order)

I am 17% done with this list (as in, I have read 17 books from the list). I feel like after finishing Gone With The Wind I am accomplished and victorious and almost done but that is far from the case. As far as Gone With The Wind is concerned, 17% is 176 pages in where Scarlett just becomes a widow and moves to Atlanta and hardly anything has happened yet! Clearly I have a LONG way to go (especially considering that some of the list items are multiple books, such as Lord of the Rings, Narnia, and His Dark Materials). Now that I think of it, I read Gone With The Wind as a break from Tolkien but it may be several books before I return to LOTR because it's so dense. Even though Gone with the Wind was long, it did not require a ton of concentration.

My next book, from the list, anyway, (I have a couple that a friend gave me to read that are not on there) will be #59 The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night by Mark Haddon, which I have deemed worthy of bringing on an airplane. It looks interesting, sounds interesting, reads quickly, has pictures, equations, and diagrams, and last but not least has a cutout of a dog on the front cover. If that doesn't scream fun book, nothing does! And the narrator has Autism, which will be interesting for me because I am a teacher and a nanny and that kind of thing interests me. I love that this list has some contemporary books, like that one and the Lovely Bones to break up all the Dickens and Austen and Steinbeck.

Another one(s) I may be tackling simultaneously is/are #33 and #36 Chronicles of Narnia/The Lion The Witch and The Wardrobe, which is a part of the Narnia series. I have those on books on tape from the library which I may be listening to on vacation or perhaps when I'm exercising. (I did that to finish the Great Gatsby and it worked out pretty well.) I'm also thinking a plane ride coast to coast is the perfect opportunity to watch Gone With The Wind as a reward for my accomplishment.

Ok! Without further ado, here is my list from favorite to least favorite. From now on when I finish a book I will be ranking it on this list as well so that when I finish this project I'll have all the books in order. Here it goes:

21 Gone With The Wind
31 Anna Karenina
4 Harry Potter Series
5 To Kill A Mockingbird
7 Wuthering Heights
40 Winnie The Pooh
42 The Da Vinci Code
46 Anne of Green Gables
29 Alice's Adventures in Wonderland
9 Charlie and the Chocolate Factory
16 The Hobbit
22 The Great Gatsby
94 Watership Down
98 Hamlet
6 The Bible
70 The Inferno
61 Of Mice And Men

It was actually harder than I thought trying to figure out which books I liked more than others, especially in the middle, and especially since I read some of them a long time ago. But here it is for now, and others will be added as I finish. Eventually I'll publish the revised list with the extra books my friend and I added that we thought should be included in this list but were not for some reason. I know of a few of them, but once that gets finalized, that will be up here too, and probably in the list section on the right of this entry. But I won't think about that now, I'll think of that tomorrow, when I can stand it :)