Book Meme

Got team-tagged for the infamous Book Meme -- both by Patrick Nielsen Hayden of ElectroMakingLite, and by James Martin of the wheatblog.

Total number of books owned:

About 1,500. (The total number of books owned and read would be somewhat smaller.)

Last book bought:

Perfectly Legal: The covert campaign to rig our tax system to benefit the super rich -- and cheat everybody else, by David Cay Johnston.

Last book read:

"Neverwhere," by Neil Gaiman. I'd always suspected something like that.

Five books that mean a lot to you:

Infinite Jest, by David Foster Wallace. One of the funniest and saddest books I've ever read. It's also probably my favorite book on ecclesiology (the Gately parts). It's 1,400 pages, and when you finish, you flip back to the front and start over again.

Home Economics, by Wendell Berry. And also What Are People For? and Sex, Economy, Freedom and Community and Berry's Collected Poems, especially the Mad Farmer poems. And the novels and short stories. My mom loved those stories and we used to talk about Port William, Ky., as though it was a real place we used to visit.

A Prayer for Owen Meany, by John Irving. It seems at first to be another sprawling, messy, bittersweet John Irving novel, something like Garp or Hotel New Hampshire. But then you realize that it isn't. Bittersweet, yes. Sprawling and messy, no. In his review of Hotel Rwanda, Roger Ebert wrote, "Deep movie emotions for me usually come not when the characters are sad, but when they are good." That, I think, is precisely why I read a new copy of A Prayer for Owen Meany every few years, having given away the old ones.

The Chronicles of Narnia, by C.S. Lewis. It still astonishes me that the fundamentalists I grew up among actually encouraged me to read these books. Yes, they are full of religious allegory. And yes, Aslan is a Christ figure. But, as Mrs. Beaver and Lewis himself repeatedly remind us, he is not a tame lion. What could have been more subversive, growing up among the Telmarines, than reading Prince Caspian? I still wonder if any of the legalistic fundies who thought they approved of that book had ever actually read it themselves. (If they did, they must have stopped before they got to the Bacchanalia at the end.)

Left Behind, by Timothy LaHaye and Jerry B. Jenkins. This is a book that gets absolutely nothing right. It is bad on every level -- instructively bad. In contrast, everything else I read now seems luminous.

Tag five people to continue this meme:

Susie Madrak of Suburban Guerrilla

Bellatrys of Nothing New Under the Sun

Mike Todd of Waving or Drowning?

Carl of FoolBlog, and

Joshua Kaufman Horner of Generosity Without Borders (a/k/a the only person I've ever banned from my comments section)

Comments

[Ray]

Judging by your last book bought, you might be interested in this article http://www.lrb.co.uk/v27/n11/runc01_.html from the LRB, about the campaign to repeal the estate tax.
Infinite Jest is the only one there that might also show up on my list. My wife loves Owen Meany, but it didn't bowl me over. And I used to love the Narnia books when I was too young to recognise the allegories (ie, very young) but wow did they bug me when I reread (some of) them last year.

("you see, I can do more than fill up the comment threads with insanely long arguments" he pleads, unconvincingly)

[Meri]

You read Neverwhere? That's one of my favorite books of all time. No matter how much I read it, I never get tired of it.

[wheat]

Cool man. I figured you didn't have time for this silliness. But I'm glad you did, if only because I'm finally going to read Infinite Jest. I've been meaning to give David Foster Wallace a try for a long time. I've read an interview or two and a few short pieces, but I've never tried one of his novels.

[Donald Johnson]

The end of A Prayer for Owen Meany was a big letdown for me. Too contrived.

[Wakboth]

"I still wonder if any of the legalistic fundies who thought they approved of that book had ever actually read it themselves."

Aren't they the sort of people who cling to a "literal reading" of the Bible, with very weak understanding of what, exactly, is in the Bible?

I think this would be perfectly in character.

[Dan Lewis]

I too, like Ray, confess to long-comments-on-threads-itis. So far as I know, though, this disease has few ill effects in a properly guarded host. Thank you, Fred, for being generous with your time and virtual space.

I missed the whole Josh thing at the time, but he has asked on his blog for comments on his behavior here, so I duly read and read and read this one, where it appears to have started, and this one, where it all ended.

There are two words I would not use to characterize Josh's posts here: "humble" and "courteous". I realize once in a while arguments here get heated anyway, and calling those courteous would be an outrageous compliment. Did Josh have a responsibility to rise above that, as a Christian? I think so, as another Christian... even one who loves to argue now and then.

[Mike]

Done, Fred. Thanks for the kick in the pants.

[Jeff G.]

I found Neverwhere disappointing actually. And I've read a lot of Neil Gaiman's work. I would highly recommend his most recent novel, American Gods.

[Ray]

American Gods isn't bad, though its particularly relevant here to point out the peculiarity of writing a book about gods in America without having a 9000 foot tall Jesus blundering about the landscape. (Sure, the plot isn't one that would involve JC much, but its stated several times that America is inhospitable ground for gods, and always has been, which sounds kind of odd. Especally since you'd think Gaiman, as a Brit in America, would have been struck by its religiosity)

[emma goldman]

[Gasp] I can't believe you love Owen Meany that much! I HATED that book. I was never an Irving fan--I also despised Garp--but Owen Meany put me over the edge. IMHO, it was a big shaggy-dog story, and not a very good one, and I've managed to erase most bits of it from my memory. But I might have to go find some of the other things on your list. (I did get the Narnia books for my stepson, though he's only now just barely old enough to start reading them; I've never read them myself, but we can start soon, I hope.)

[Ray]

Don't do it Emma! Read him His Dark Materials instead!

[grenadine]

Emma-

Ray is correct. Pullman's "His Dark Materials" trilogy is a superior fantasy/allegorical series for the young'uns (and the older'uns).

[grenadine]

Emma-

Ray is correct. Pullman's "His Dark Materials" trilogy is a superior fantasy/allegorical series for the young'uns (and the older'uns).

[John Stein]

Roger Ebert wrote, "Deep movie emotions for me usually come not when the characters are sad, but when they are good."

Yep, I have to agree with this 100%. Probably comes from all those years of constant guilt in Catholic elementary school. Rarely -- damned rarely -- were we ever praised for goodness, but we certainly did feel that we could be sent to Hell at any moment. I still hate that school with a passion. It was an intellectual vacuum as well. Huge class sizes, no control of the bullies, no music classes (unless you had a good enough voice to make the choir). Yeech! They had a "reunion" a few years back; I said, "I'll go if I can push the detonator." But I see I'm a bit off topic here.....

[Dan Lewis]

I was thinking about Jesus in American Gods recently too. Since gods have more than one "incarnation", maybe the Galilean didn't make the transition to America without being transformed into unrecognizability, or say rather that his most true American image is not like Jesus, the Jew, at all.

Along those lines, when Wednesday says Jesus was just incredibly lucky (IIRC), maybe that is the Americanization of grace.

Anyway, read American Gods.

[Ray]

Everyone knows the American Jesus is a blue-eyed blonde hippy (like the Irish Jesus, actually, though maybe without the exposed internal organs). I have to say, I didn't really notice the absence of Jesus when I was reading the book, it was only later that I realised how illogical the absence was. But now I've pointed it out to you, you won't be able to ignore it. Oops.

[Donald Johnson]

I loved His Dark Materials and the Narnia books. Children should read both.

[Falstaff]

While I am a confirmed lurker -- typing this at all gives me a fit of butterflies -- I delurk for a moment to second the praise both for Neverwhere and what is (at least at the moment) my favorite novel, American Gods -- and to make one small point, if you please, about the absent Jesus therein.

I forget which character it is -- it could be Mr. Nancy or Ibis -- who mentions that they just haven't seen Jesus at all in a long time (and then something akin to a friend of mine saw him twenty years back, hitching by the side of the road in Afghanistan). I'm not saying that that adequately covers the absences of any pseudo-Jesus from the manuscript -- but it is interesting, and maybe that's as far as Gaiman wanted to take it. Leaving threads hanging would hardly be a new thing for him.

[clay]

Blech. I didn't care for His Dark Materials at all. And not just because of the blasphemy. I found them to be about as deep as a puddle of spit.

[clay]

Blech. I didn't care for His Dark Materials at all. And not just because of the blasphemy. I found them to be about as deep as a puddle of spit.

[Dan Lewis]

Huh? I noticed Jesus was missing from American Gods when I read it; I thought it was odd, but maybe appropriate because of the under-Christianity of our so-called "Christian nation". I didn't shed too many tears over his absence.

Besides, the American Gods comprise a polyolatry of lesser spirits that the monotheist's God might destroy, but never fit into. You'd have to turn Jesus of Nazareth into a lesser god too; maybe it was too hard to pull off. Or who knows, maybe Christ would love Internet, Bilquis, Hinzelmann, and Wednesday and the rest to the end (somehow), but that was too heavy and off-topic for Gaiman to get into. Maybe Christ doesn't receive enough true sacrifices in America to exist. Maybe the real Christ has been forgotten since the early church quashed theophany (Ted Sturgeon says something like this in the postscript to Godbody). Anyway, Gaiman's reasons are his own.

I didn't remember the reference that Falstaff paraphrased, but that would put Jesus in Afghanistan when the Soviets were fighting the mujahideen.

[Ray]

I think the main reason Gaiman didn't fit Jesus into AG was that it would make the book impossible to write. It would have brought the real world far too near for the fantasy to survive, like having London Underground workers doing renovations in Neverwhere.

The Narnia books and the Dark Materials books are both very flawed. Pullman loses control of the plot altogether by the third book, and it feels disjointed, and badly paced. But the first two are good kids books, fast-paced, exciting, and deep enough as these things go. The Narnia books are for younger readers, and I enjoyed them as a kid. But I couldn't read them to my son, because some of them at least are incredibly preachy (I'm thinking particularly of The Silver Chair). The last two books aren't very good, and The Last Battle is incredibly mean-spirited (something I felt even at 10 or 11 when I read it first).

The Weirdstone of Brisingamen, by Alan Garner, is great, as are all the E Nesbit books. (The Story of the Treasure Seekers is definitely one to read to kids, because its written to be understood by two different audiences.)

[cjmr]

The Silver Chair and The Last Battle were also my least favorite of the Narnia books--not necessarily because they were preachy, but because they were overly long for the amount of plot they were given.

And as an adult I am left wondering which of the denominations of the Church C.S. Lewis was alluding to with the donkey in lion's clothing...

[Ray]

I'm guessing its supposed to represent "Science" or "Humanism". Haven't read it in a long time though.

[ProfessorPlum]

Puzzle in The Last Battle is George W. Bush - dressing himself up in Aslan's skin. Shift is Karl Rove.

Isn't it obvious?

[cjmr]

I'm guessing its supposed to represent "Science" or "Humanism".

I thought that Science was represented by something else, so perhaps it is Humanism. Just hoping it wasn't supposed to be the Catholic Church. Guess I'll reread it this evening. I haven't had a chance to get to the library since I got home, so I was looking for something to read. I even have a Christian home-school study guide to the whole series, so maybe I'll crack that as well.

[David]

I would very much doubt Puzzle represented the Catholic church. Lewis was an admirer of Catholicism, stating that if it wasn't for a couple of it's doctrines (the veneration of Mary, and the infallibility of the Pope, I think), he'd be very tempted to join. This springs, at least in part, I think, from his relationship with JRR Tolkein who was a Catholic and a very strong influence in Lewis' becoming a Christian.

[David]

I read His Dark Materials a little while ago, and they were a decent read. They weren't nearly as virulent as I had been told, but I'd say they're as biased as the Narnia books, albeit in the other direction. FWIW, I'd be happy to let any children of mine read either.

[cjmr]

Thanks, David, for the insight. For some reason I always assumed that Tolkien was Anglican...

[Ray]

HDM is definitely biased, Pullman is quite upfront about that, but I don't recall anything as awful as the scene with the witch in The Silver Chair. I wouldn't stop my kids from reading it, but I don't think I'd be able to read it aloud to them without my contempt coming through.

[clay]

It's been awhile since I've read Narnia. Anyone want to remind me what happened with the witch in The Silver Chair?

[Ray]

Basically, the witch has captured Prince Caspian's son, and bewitched him to be her willing slave (except for an hour a day when he is bound to the silver chair). When the kids turn up to rescue him, she tries to brainwash them too, something like "The sun? What is the sun? A big lamp in the sky, you say? Ah, obviously you are imagining it - you have seen a lamp, and so you imagine a bigger one.... Narnia? What is that? Ah, obviusly you are imagining it - you have seen.... Aslan? A talking lion? Ah, obviously...."
The kids are saved when their companion, Puddleglum, breaks the spell, saying "I don't care if I am imagining them, I don't care if they don't exist, I believe in them anyway!"
Subtle, Clive, subtle.

[Lila]

I loved the first two books of His Dark Materials and absolutely hated the third one. I think the Narnia books are very uneven--Voyage of the Dawn Treader is my favorite and The Silver Chair my least favorite. I heartily concur with the E. Nesbit recommendation--she deserves to be more widely read.

OT, but while we're recommending things for kids, if you haven't seen Hayao Miyazaki's films you're missing a treat. For kids, I particularly recommend "My Neighbor Totoro" and "Spirited Away" (the latter should be previewed by an adult because it can be really scary).

Back on topic:

Total number of books owned: Somewhere in the range of 1000. It's hard for me to remember which are mine and which are the kids'.

Last book bought: Every Second Counts, by Lance Armstrong

Last book read: ditto

Five books that mean a lot to you:

The Mismeasure of Man by Stephen Jay Gould (a history of intelligence testing)

The Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. Tolkien (left an indelible impression on my imagination)

Silent Spring by Rachel Carson (a constant reminder that one person, by tireless and meticulous work, can change the world)

Greenwillow by B.J.Chute (I believe it's out of print, but this is the sweetest book I've ever read)

The entire Discworld series by Terry Pratchett. (HOW can this man still be writing funny and insightful books? How can they keep getting better? Incidentally, there are also kids' books in the series.)

[clay]

Ah yes, now I remember. I never connected that speech by the witch with any sort of blatant preaching. I just thought it was a clever way to try to trap the children. I mean, it can't be a direct parallel to faith in God; after all, the kids actually *had* seen the sun, and Aslan, etc.

I should probably amend my earlier statement re: His Dark Materials. I did enjoy the first book. I started having qualms somewhere in the second when I realized that I was supposed to root for a man who knowingly and willingly sacrificed an innocent child to further his own ends. And the third one, frankly, was a mess. I have no idea why those books are so loved.

And I second the sentiments on Pratchett. I've only read a handful of the Discworld books, but they are quite good. I would highly recommend Good Omens by Pratchett and Neil Gaiman. It would actually make a great counter-balance for those who are slogging through Left Behind. It's the funniest, and yet most theologically thoughtful, take on the Apocalyspe I've read.

For those unfamiliar, basically an angel and a demon team-up to try to stop Revelations from happening. They encounter resistance from both sides, meet the Four Horsemen, meet the *other* Four Horsemen, and learn some serious lessons about what it means to be human and what it means to be God. (Basically, God has a plan, but we don't/can't know it.)

[cjmr]

Dunno, I've read just about everything that Terry Pratchett has written (there's a couple I haven't been able to get my hands on and he released a new book just this week) and I thought Good Omens was the least coherent book he has written/co-authored. I felt like I should be keeping a time-line and a diagram of characters like I had to do when reading Russian novels in high school. At least I wasn't tested on it...

[cjmr's husband]

Strange, I didn't have any trouble following Good Omens; but then, I *have* had tapes spontaneously turn into Queen's Greatest Hits in my car...

[cjmr]

That would be because at least half your car tapes have at least one of Queen's greatest hits on them. Do the CDs do it, too?

[Donald Johnson]

Ray's retelling of the witch scene in Prince Caspian wasn't very good. The book was better.

[Itea]

If you're going to read a John Irving book, read The Water-Method Man. Far and away the best of his works.