The Book Meme
Lots of stuff to catch up on today - writing, editing, toilet scrubbing (literal and metaphorical), so I thought I'd do the book meme that Dana posted ages ago.
1. One book that changed your life.
It's hard to pick just one, but I've got to say The Sound and the Fury , by William Faulkner. The former postman of Oxford, Mississippi blew my little 15 y.o. mind with his complex characters, heavy dialect and the way he teased out the story line. Did I mention that I grew up in Mississippi? Or that I knew a few families that were truly Snopesian?
2. One book you have read more than once.
Hmm. Guess I'll have to say Alice's Adventures in Wonderland, by Lewis Carroll. I still love how the book works on so many levels. And then there's the surrealism and super-loaded symbolism of the characters. Love this book.
3. One book you would want on a desert island.
That's easy. To Kill a Mockingbird, by Harper Lee. One of the finest books ever written. Atticus Finch, Boo Radley, Scout, Jem, Dill (aka super young Truman Capote!) - all characters I really enjoy spending time with. And, of course the story.
4. One book that made you laugh.
Skinny Legs and All, by Tom Robbins. Hey, a writer who turns a can o' beans, a dirty sock and a painted stick into anthropomorphic characters is all right with me. Not to mention the not-artist artist who turns an Airstream trailer into a giant turkey sculpture on wheels and devises a "spy" coat with a hundred slips of paper that say he loves Ellen Cherry Charles in a hundred different secret codes. Then there's Salome & the secrets of the Middle East conflict. Damn. Love this book.
5. One book that made you cry.
Just one? I guess there's always Sylvia Plath's angsty, beautiful classic, The Bell Jar . One of the most powerful written depictions of depression and straight up hopelessness I've ever read. *Sniff.*
6. One book you wish had been written.
Guess I'm working on that one already.
7. One book you wish had never been written. Can't think of one. Okay, there are books I hate, that I think are dangerous, but that doesn't mean I don't wish they'd been written.
8. One book you are currently reading.
Sacred by Dennis Lehane.
9. One book you have been meaning to read.
Oh crap. I can think of about twenty. Still waiting for The Perfect Storm to arrive. Guess I'll stick with that one.
10. Now tag five people!
Er, tag yerself if you want to do this one.
posted by angie @ 6:00 AM
6 comments
6 Comments:
You mentioned Sound and the Fury and the Snopes in one posting. No wonder you can mimic a Southerner so well.
I LOVE Dennis Lehane!! LOVE. HIM!! I reread his books all the time. The angie and patrick books are my faves. I really loved Darkness Take My Hand.
OK- Case you're interested:
1. CHANGED MY LIFE-
"Word According to Garp" John Irving. Made me want to be a writer.
2. READ MORE THAN ONCE-
"The Stand" Stephen King. And I was disappointed by the ending every time.
3. DESERT ISLAND-
"The DaVinci Code" would make for great kindling.
4. MADE ME LAUGH-
"Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy" Douglas Adams. Of course, I was 15 and a total geek the least time I read it.
5. MADE ME CRY-
"We Were the Mulvaneys" Joyce Carol Oates. Saddest freakin' thing I've ever read.
6. WISH HAD BEEN WRITTEN-
Isn't this why we write? To create the books we want to read that nobody else is writing?
7. WISH HAD NEVER BEEN WRITTEN-
"The Bible" God. Just kidding, but I do wish people wouldn't take it so seriously or literally.
8. READING RIGHT NOW-
"The Demon" Hubert Selby, Jr. It's about a sex addict, and if it's true to the Selby form, the man is headed for a bad end.
9. MEANING TO READ-
I've never read "Moby Dick." I hear it's about a big fish or something.
Oooo. If you like Alice in Wonderland, you'll LOVE Robert Sabuda's popups. They're pretty amazing!
~Nifty~
It's always fun to read what books people found life altering or great or remember fondly from childhood.
The book that changed me as a writer --changed how I thought about writing was Ondaatje's The Collected Works of Billy the Kid True magic.
1. One book that changed your life.
None yet.
2. One book you have read more than once.
None.
3. One book you would want on a desert island.
Anything by Thomas Harris or Michael Connelly.
4. One book that made you laugh.
Something beginning with, by Sarah Salway.
5. One book that made you cry.
All the Dave Peltzers.
6. One book you wish had been written.
Silence of the Lambs, Red Dragon, Hannibal.
7. One book you wish had never been written.
Any that I've put down after page one!
8. One book you are currently reading.
Fast Friends, Jill Mansell.
9. One book you have been meaning to read.
Angels and Demons, Dan Brown.
:o)
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