Books I Have Read Since Christmas (Part 1)

Chronic City by Jonathan Lethem

This book had a bit of a slow start. It definitely took me a while to get into it. However, once I got into the flow it was a terrific novel. It is set in Manhattan and follows Chase Insteadman, a former child actor whose fiance is stuck on a space station. He becomes obsessed with a culture critic names Perkus Tooth and most of the novel involves their antics and puzzling obsessions.

The first half of the novel I wondered, "Where is this going? What is the point of this?" At some point, I let it go and enjoyed the free-flowing narrative that is a strange mixture of fact and fiction. Several times I had to Google things in the book to check to see if they actually existed. He would intertwine fiction with real New York places, people and events. For example, the weird maple syrup smell that occurred a couple of years ago and WNYC's Brian Lehrer were in the book. However, the book also talked of a strange tiger terrorizing the city and vases called "chaldrons," neither of which exist to my knowledge. That combination of the real and imaginary gave this book a very surreal feeling and halted my ability to stereotype and predict the plot.

Overall, I enjoyed it. Maybe you will too.



Assassination Vacation by Sarah Vowell

This book was terrific. The prologue made me laugh so hard I cried. The book tells the story of Vowell's journey to visit relics of presidential assassinations. I learned fascinating facts about Lincoln, McKinley and Garfield and their assassins. I am already anticipating reading it a second time.


Ice Land by Betsy Tobin

I don't know much about Iceland as a country and I know even less about it's myths and the myths of the Norse peoples. With that in mind, I loved this book. It is a modern remix of Nordic mythology. It had a touch of magical realism. I recommend it if you like Neil Gaiman (it was similar to American Gods and Stardust), mythology or fantasy.


Thunderstruck by Erik Larson

I really loved this book. I even took it on the subway with me, something which I never do with a hardcover book (it's too hard to hold hefty books with one hand while trying to hold the pole). This may be due to the fact that I am a telecom nerd and this book tells the story of Marconi, the man who perfected wireless telegraphy. Just like Erik Larson's other famous work, Devil in the White City, this book also tells a related tale of murder in addition to Marconi's story. It is riddled with great anecdotes and details of the times. You are given a complete picture of the era and the struggle to make wireless a viable commercial product. If you like narrative history, give this book a go.


Check back tomorrow for part two of my thoughts on books I've read in the last month.