Thoughts of LoWriter

June Book List

Here is the book list:

The Antelope Wife by Louise Erdrich: This book was part of my quest to read more "literature" this month. In true form, it was dark and depressing, but it had moments of beauty, and I enjoyed parts of it because it was about NW MN Native Americans. It is largely about the legend of "The Antelope Wife," but it is also the story of a girl trying to discover what her name means. Basically, it's about identity, which I can enjoy. It made me decide to rename myself.

The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle: This has definitely become my "candy reading." I read this right before bed in order to convince myself that going to bed doesn't suck so much. This is a collection of short Sherlock Holmes stories. This means that they are full of mystery. If you can get beyond the outdated language (and the lack of real violence that we seem to crave today), you will enjoy these a great deal. They have all the mystery and danger but without the "getting shot at in the streets" of Law and Order. Another interesting fact is that I think this is the book that contains the single time Sherlock ever utters the phrase "elementary." And for the record, he does not follow it with "my dear Watson." So much for pop culture mythology.

Four Souls by Louise Erdrich: This is another story about Native Americans. The main character tries to get revenge on another of the main characters by taking back her land from him (he stole it). It doesn't work out quite the way she'd planned. I would say that the most powerful scene comes near the end when Four Souls is back with her people, and her best friend tells her that she should be sorry (not for revenge, but for the way she's treated her children, etc.). This powerful scene also deals with names and identity. I recommend it, but again, this is "literature."

Dave Barry Slept Here by Dave Barry: This is typical Dave Barry stuff. It's a messed up history of the U.S. in which he changes many of the details, but it's funny because it sounds like a high school history paper. All in all, I enjoyed it--especially his take on Nixon.

Across Five Aprils by Irene Hunt: This is a juevenile lit book, but I enjoyed it. It's about a young boy growing up during the Civil War. It tells about how his life is changed and how the lives of those around him are changed by the Civil War. It shows him having to grow up quickly in order to take care of his parents. On the whole, it's a quality book. I cried. I'll admit it.

Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? by Phillip K. Dick: This was an OK science fiction book. It's a pretty disturbing take on the future of Earth, as well as the role of androids in it. It was extremely well written. The only reason I call it "OK" is that I get a little worn out with things that dipict the future negatively, which is what most sci fi does. On the whole, it's about a bounty hunter who hunts androids on an Earth that has been destroyed by nuclear fallout. Androids end up being pretty horrible because they seem to feel no empathy. At the same time, you spend the whole book wondering whether or not they do actually have feelings. Fairly good book, but I just wasn't in the mood for it this month.

The Memoirs of Sherlock Holmes by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle: More candy. The only significant difference between this book and others are that it ends with "The Final Problem." (*WARNING* Spoiler ahead) In "The Final Problem," Doyle "kills off" Sherlock Holmes because he is sick of writing Sherlock Holmes stories. This isn't really a spoiler because when you read the introductions, it talks about this fact. In an interview after he'd killed Sherlock off, Doyle actually says something to the effect that if he has to write any more about Sherlock Holmes, he will be sick. You feel really bad for poor Watson. The other good story in this collection is "The Naval Treaty," where the last quote I posted came from.

The Hound of the Baskervilles by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle: (*WARNING* more spoilers) Doyle decided, some years after killing of Sherlock Holmes, to write another book about him. He set the time back "pre-death." It's the classic story of the "spirit hound" chasing the owner of the mansion in an effort to kill him. It's pretty interesting. Again, the stuff about Holmes dying isn't technically a spoiler, but I thought I should mark it as such.

Hogfather by Terry Pratchett: This is about the Discworld equivilant of Christmas. This is one of the Death series. I believe it comes just before Thief of Time, but I can't be sure. Death and his granddaughter (Susan) have to save Christmas from the Auditors and an assassin called Teatime. The faculty of Unseen University also has quite a bit of page time, which I always enjoy. It's pretty entertaining. I really don't like Christmas stories or specials of any kind (they always make me want to vomit a little because they are so sentimental, and I think they cheapen the experience of Christmas itself), but I liked this, so I recommend it highly. I went into it with a very bad attitude, especially because I was reading it in June, but I came away happy.

Well, that's it for the book list. Enjoy!

Posted by LoWriter at July 5, 2005 09:14 AM