I haven't done this list in a while since the Washington Post has not kept its end of the deal to provide me with stimulating and interesting Short Stack topics. Instead, we've gotten "Books with a Moral Purpose," "Books that Tell More About D.C. Than You Might Think," and "Books with Memorable Graduation Scenes. " Blah. I'm not big on moral purposes in leisure reading (I prefer escapism), haven't read a lot of books that reveal much about D.C., and I can't think of one book with a memorable graduation scene. So, instead, I offer you "Five Books to Turn Your Brain to Mush."*
(1) Warped Passages by Lisa Randall. I heard an appearance by Randall on NPR's Talk of the Nation and I was enthralled by her descriptions of her particular area of physics, string theory. She was on the show to promote Warped Passages, and the book was billed as a sort of string-theory-for-the-common-man. Yeah. I've made it through about the first 50 pages. Turns out there's a reason I'm a lawyer.
(2) Omnivore's Dilemma by Michael Pollan. This book makes the list because after you read it you'll wonder how humanity has survived the last 50 years of food production and you will realize that, if you are what you eat, your brain (and the rest of your body) are already pretty much corn-based mush.
(3) Cryptonomicon by Neal Stephenson. Now, I know you're saying, "Wait a minute! You already used that book in a previous list!" I did. It's a big book and I devoted a substantial portion of my reading life to it. Thus, I feel justified in using it on more than one list. This book was dense and intricate story with lots and lots and lots of words. And lots of words I didn't know and have since forgotten. Thus the mush.
(4) Paul Revere's Ride by Shana Corey. This is an early reader version of the Paul Revere story that Garion chose from the library a couple of weeks ago. And he LOVES it. And I have had to read it about a 745,390,234 times in the last two weeks. Did you know that Paul Revere's dog was small because during that time in Boston there was a law that no one could have a dog over 11 inches tall? Yes, that is one of the terribly important historical facts now etched into by brain, FOR ETERNITY.
(5) Midnight Bayou by Nora Roberts. Some time ago, we were visiting our friends Chris and Anali and Chris revealed that he had just finished a Nora Roberts book. Chris has a masters degree in English Literature and Nora Roberts is about the last thing I ever expected to hear him talk about. He said he picked up the book because Nora Roberts sells so well and he wanted to see what her books were like. So, of course my curiosity was piqued and then I wanted to know what Nora Roberts' books are like. So I checked this one out from the library and it was exactly what I expected her books to be like. There were two main characters--a man and a woman--and, guess what? They get together at the end. I think there was also an old spooky house and some ghosts. And now we are all up to speed on Nora Roberts.
Okay, your turn--what books turn your brain to mush? Or, if you prefer, toss in some titles that fit the (ahem, crummy) Washington Post themes.
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*Just to clarify, these aren't necessarily bad books. I'd still recommend reading Warped Passages, Omnivore's Dilemma, and Cryptonomicon. They are great books that just happen to induce mushiness.
1) Literary theory. Sometimes they are good to slog through and sometimes they are just slogging. And I still have too much of it in my apt.
ReplyDelete2). The Simpsons and Philosophy. Which you would think that I would be fine with as it's dealing with the tv show the Simpsons, but some of the philosophy I just don't care. And it's too abstruse and they bury their points in long-ass sentences. And I took an upper-level philosophy class in college and have read theory. See above. They have a tendency to have a good essay every second one.
3. A.S. Byatt who I love, but her prose seems to go on for freaking' ever and her books are voluminous and intense. But some of her stuff is very much worth it.
4. Housekeeping vs. the Dirt by Nick Hornby. Much as I like Hornby's books like How to be Good and A Long Way Down, I cannot cope with reading his thoughts on books. It's too precious and too pretentious or what have you.
5). Second rate mystery novels written for a female audience. You know, not the good kind, but the ones where it all becomes so bloody predictable. The person who did it is the one the woman detective could date, she meddles, and she may or may not be hooking up with a colleague. And there's always a spunky teenage daughter. Whether it's hers or a friend's or whatever, it gets old.
And maybe I have used this as a place to vent my frustrations regarding books that move so freaking slowly. And I'm okay if they go somewhere cool, but if they don't, ugh.
Oh, I meant to contribute to this a while ago! Guess I'm catching up on my commenting!
ReplyDelete1) Godel Escher Bach, the Eternal Golden Braid, by Douglas R Hofstadter. I am still slogging through this and am determined to finish by the end of the year. It makes my brain hurt.
2) Anything by Dostoyevsky, or maybe just Russian lit. I read Crime and Punishment, hated it, then read The Idiot on the insistence of someone who actually bought me the book, in hardcover no less, because he thought I would prefer it over Crime and Punishment. It still made my brain mushy.
3) Have to agree with Babs on the mystery novels, and will totally get specific on The Cat Who... series by Lilian Jackson Braun. Siamese cats solving mysteries. Named after characters from the Mikado. If that doesn't turn your brain to mush, your brain is made of sterner stuff than mine. Librarians eat this stuff up.
4)Snow, by Orman Parmuk. I only made it through this book because it was for book club, only to find out I was the ONLY person who made it through. Ack.
5)One Hundred Years of Solitude by Gabriel Garcia Marquez. I wanted to read this book, and actually gave up. I couldn't keep anything straight. Everyone has the exact same name! Thank goodness I DID make it through Love in the Time of Cholera so I can keep my lit cred.