Date Started: July 24, 2015
Date Finished: July 25, 2015
Book Acquisition: Carrollton Book Exchange
Overall Rating: 2/5
I was all hyped for this book but it turned out to be very boring. More frustratingly, I was left with a billion questions about the Mennonites and Amish so I may have to purchase some books on the topic. Maybe they will be more interesting. The writer was moderately engaging but it was still pretty meh. Perhaps the constant soul-searching is what bothered me? I really don't like to read homilies and that was I swear the entire last twenty pages.
I mentioned to Will that I was annoyed with the preachiness of the book and he's so taken to calling me a heathen (much like my mother). It's said almost with affection though, so I'll take it. In any case, it's much better than when he calls me 'baby'. Baby feels infantilizing and makes my skin crawl and I know he doesn't mean it that way but I hate it so damn much. Bruce suggested I beat the baby out of him but I think that's a little drastic. He's not a person who expresses emotion (or affection) really ever and I like affection from him so it seems like shutting him down over this relatively minor issue would be counterproductive. When he gets very whiskey drunk he calls me his darlin' and I much prefer that.
Wednesday, July 29, 2015
Tuesday, July 21, 2015
Killing Yourself to Live: 85% of a True Story by Chuck Klosterman
Date Started: July 17, 2015
Date Finished: July 20, 2015
Book Acquisition: Borrowed from Will
Overall Rating: 4/5
Apparently I mostly read on planes this summer. Started it while traveling to Texas, finished it the day after returning. I did have to reread most of the parts I read while on the return flight, though, as I didn't sober up until I was somewhere over Alabama.
Anyways, here are a couple standout quotes from the book...
1. "It always fascinated my that the people who liked George Strait and Billy Ray Cyrus were equally enamored with linear, highly structured dance choreography that offered no spontaneity whatsoever. Line dancing reminds me of the way Great Britain used to fight land wars." (
2. "how to properly fire an employee...concede that you've both made mistakes, but stoically admit that you can't fire yourself."
3. “Thomas Jefferson is, hands down, the coolest president in American history. Now, this is not because he wrote the Declaration of Independence, although I will concede that has merit; Thomas Jefferson is history’s coolest president because of the advice he gave to Meriwether Lewis and William Clark before they explored the Northwest Territory in 1804. One of the many things that Jefferson warned Lewis and Clark about was mastodons. "You dudes need to watch out for potential mastodon herds,” he told them (I’m paraphrasing). “If you see any mastodons, make sure you tell me about them, because I need to know.” Tragically mastodons had become extinct 10,000 years before the expedition started. However, this is still solid advice. I mean, I’m taking the same path Lewis and Clark took (more or less), but nobody told me to watch out for mastodons. Where is the love?"
I also learned that a man named Gutzon Borglum is responsible for both Stone Mountain and Mount Rushmore.
Overall, I liked this book enormously. I read Sex, Drugs, and Cocoa Puffs a couple months back and now I just love Chuck. He is incredibly self-centered but in an amusing way. I think that's partially because I like his writing style and partially because he's so damn unapologetic about his vanity. This entire book is framed around his relationships with women (past, present, and imaginary), which seems highly relate-able. It's easy to obsess about relationships. Although, honestly, I'm finding it easier to not obsess about my relationship with Will than I thought it would be. Perhaps there was some benefit to my many months of alone time post-Thomas? Or maybe it's because I didn't expect to end up in a relationship with him? Whatever the reason, I'm quite glad I did stumble into this relationship. Will kisses me with such purpose. Purpose might not be the right word, but there's something about the way he kisses me that makes me wonder if I've ever been well kissed in my life. Even those bullshit goodbye kisses on Monday morning (when it's early and I'm generally hungover and always mad that he gets to sleep for a thousand more hours) he manages to rouse himself enough to kiss me in a way that makes me want to crawl back into bed and not sleep.
Date Finished: July 20, 2015
Book Acquisition: Borrowed from Will
Overall Rating: 4/5
Apparently I mostly read on planes this summer. Started it while traveling to Texas, finished it the day after returning. I did have to reread most of the parts I read while on the return flight, though, as I didn't sober up until I was somewhere over Alabama.
Anyways, here are a couple standout quotes from the book...
1. "It always fascinated my that the people who liked George Strait and Billy Ray Cyrus were equally enamored with linear, highly structured dance choreography that offered no spontaneity whatsoever. Line dancing reminds me of the way Great Britain used to fight land wars." (
2. "how to properly fire an employee...concede that you've both made mistakes, but stoically admit that you can't fire yourself."
3. “Thomas Jefferson is, hands down, the coolest president in American history. Now, this is not because he wrote the Declaration of Independence, although I will concede that has merit; Thomas Jefferson is history’s coolest president because of the advice he gave to Meriwether Lewis and William Clark before they explored the Northwest Territory in 1804. One of the many things that Jefferson warned Lewis and Clark about was mastodons. "You dudes need to watch out for potential mastodon herds,” he told them (I’m paraphrasing). “If you see any mastodons, make sure you tell me about them, because I need to know.” Tragically mastodons had become extinct 10,000 years before the expedition started. However, this is still solid advice. I mean, I’m taking the same path Lewis and Clark took (more or less), but nobody told me to watch out for mastodons. Where is the love?"
I also learned that a man named Gutzon Borglum is responsible for both Stone Mountain and Mount Rushmore.
Overall, I liked this book enormously. I read Sex, Drugs, and Cocoa Puffs a couple months back and now I just love Chuck. He is incredibly self-centered but in an amusing way. I think that's partially because I like his writing style and partially because he's so damn unapologetic about his vanity. This entire book is framed around his relationships with women (past, present, and imaginary), which seems highly relate-able. It's easy to obsess about relationships. Although, honestly, I'm finding it easier to not obsess about my relationship with Will than I thought it would be. Perhaps there was some benefit to my many months of alone time post-Thomas? Or maybe it's because I didn't expect to end up in a relationship with him? Whatever the reason, I'm quite glad I did stumble into this relationship. Will kisses me with such purpose. Purpose might not be the right word, but there's something about the way he kisses me that makes me wonder if I've ever been well kissed in my life. Even those bullshit goodbye kisses on Monday morning (when it's early and I'm generally hungover and always mad that he gets to sleep for a thousand more hours) he manages to rouse himself enough to kiss me in a way that makes me want to crawl back into bed and not sleep.
Sunday, July 12, 2015
Sereste & Ruth by Wild and Trish Mbanga
Date Started: July 11, 2015
Date Finished: July 12, 2015
Book Acquisition: Purchased after reading Whatever You Do, Don't Run: True Tales of a Botswana Safari Guide by Peter Allison
Overall Rating: 3/5
This book is not a sophisticated history of the famous couple. It was clearly well researched, but it also was ineptly written. Literature snottiness aside, I really enjoyed this book. Sereste and Ruth were a remarkable couple and reading about the formation of modern Botswana was surprisingly interesting. I don't tend to gravitate to African history, honestly. I think in school I actually subbed out my African History requirement for one of the Middle Eastern classes.
A couple years ago I did read a book called Cocktail Hour Under the Tree of Forgetfulness that was the author's account of growing up in Rhodesia/Zimbabwe, Malawi, and Zambia at about the same time that Botswana came into existence. I would totally go back and reread that right now because I'd be interested to see what it says about Botswana but some asshole kept the book in a bad breakup (fuck you, Montana).
Anyways, I don't have a lot to say about this book. It was good, I liked it.
Side note: I've done a poor job of updating this blog (and even reading) recently. The last book I finished, before this one, was read on the plane back from visiting Chris and Rachael. Then like eleven seconds later they were out here for a visit so I've been pretty busy. And I got that boyfriend thing happening which occupies the Sundays I used to spend reading. He did just lend me a Chuck Klosterman book, though, and I am super looking forward to it. Maybe that will be next? I did just purchase The Far Pavilions but I had completely forgotten that the damn thing is literally a thousand pages long and the print is super fucking small.
Back Sheep by Georgette Heyer
Date Started: June 21, 2015
Date Finished: June 21, 2015
Book Acquisition: Acquired for my by Aunt Vicki
Overall Rating: 5/5
I am willing to blanket statement that this is the one of the best Georgette Heyer's out there. I would have said it ranks in the top five, but now I'm having trouble believing that. Definitely top ten, maybe? In no particular order, at off the top of my head:
Allison Top Ten Georgette Heyer Books (maybe, it's hard to say)
1. Venetia
2. The Reluctant Widow
3. Faro's Daughter
4. The Grand Sophy
5. Devil's Cub
6. Frederica
7. Regency Buck
8. Sylvester, or the Wicked Uncle
9. Bath Tangle
10. Black Sheep
Ugh, wait. That list is impossible. But Georgette Heyer will creep up again and again this year so there is time to revisit. My Aunt Vicki has spent some time and effort tracking down used Georgette Heyer books so that I can have my own library (a Myers girls tradition). It's made me feel like an adult to have my own copies of these books instead of having to constantly borrow them from Mother.
The common thread in my top ten is that they're all actual adult women being taken seriously and autonomous individuals, as apposed to being nineteen and flighty and dear god, I cannot tell you how it annoys me to read those books now. Nineteen year olds are too quick to give up their autonomy to the authority of random men in her world. Ugh. The worst.
I somehow hadn't read Black Sheep before even though I've been reading Georgette Heyer books for nearly fifteen years and have completely worn out multiple copies of Venetia with constant re-readings. I liked it enormously. I like their relationship. Five stars all around.
Date Finished: June 21, 2015
Book Acquisition: Acquired for my by Aunt Vicki
Overall Rating: 5/5
I am willing to blanket statement that this is the one of the best Georgette Heyer's out there. I would have said it ranks in the top five, but now I'm having trouble believing that. Definitely top ten, maybe? In no particular order, at off the top of my head:
Allison Top Ten Georgette Heyer Books (maybe, it's hard to say)
1. Venetia
2. The Reluctant Widow
3. Faro's Daughter
4. The Grand Sophy
5. Devil's Cub
6. Frederica
7. Regency Buck
8. Sylvester, or the Wicked Uncle
9. Bath Tangle
10. Black Sheep
Ugh, wait. That list is impossible. But Georgette Heyer will creep up again and again this year so there is time to revisit. My Aunt Vicki has spent some time and effort tracking down used Georgette Heyer books so that I can have my own library (a Myers girls tradition). It's made me feel like an adult to have my own copies of these books instead of having to constantly borrow them from Mother.
The common thread in my top ten is that they're all actual adult women being taken seriously and autonomous individuals, as apposed to being nineteen and flighty and dear god, I cannot tell you how it annoys me to read those books now. Nineteen year olds are too quick to give up their autonomy to the authority of random men in her world. Ugh. The worst.
I somehow hadn't read Black Sheep before even though I've been reading Georgette Heyer books for nearly fifteen years and have completely worn out multiple copies of Venetia with constant re-readings. I liked it enormously. I like their relationship. Five stars all around.
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