I must give a little background information on my bibliophilia before disclosing the inner sanctum of my library. When I was little, and I mean pre-school age, my mom used to take me to the public library once a week for story time. We'd all sit in a little circle and listen to one of the librarians read a book to us. Its something more than just the story, its the storytelling/storyreceiving process and experience that really thrills me. I still have fond memories of the squeaky floor and musty, dusty smell of the Nevada County Library.
When I was in grade school my fondness for books continued to be fueled by great teachers and a wonderful librarian named Mrs. Gates. She was a frail little woman, no taller than five feet with a mess of dark curls and a pair of big glasses that sat low on her nose as she read to us. It wasn't the story so much as the way she read, the mischievous smile she gave and the twinkle in her eye that transported her listeners to fantastical places.
Mrs. Gates
In 5th grade, Mrs. Truman had a read-a-thon and propelled by some inner battle that girls-aren't-always-the best-students-and-I'm-gonna-prove-it attitude, I flew through as many books as I could put my hands on. I got 2nd or 3rd place and was always a bit irked that my rival, Lindsay E. was a better reader than me.
Mrs. T
My first genre of choice was mystery. I read through the entire collection of Nancy Drew novels, and then moved on to a little meatier prose found in Agatha Christie novels. About that time, my grandfather Ivo offered to give me his collection of Louis L'Amoure books, which I heartily accepted. I plowed through many of his novels until I got to the point where they all became a blur. If you have read Louis L'Amoure, you know that they all start to sound the same after a while.
By my freshman year in High School I was ready to make a switch to another genre. I dabbled in science-fiction (mainly Isaac Asimov), the classics, and some 20th century American fiction, but really didn't fall in love with any of them. That's when I picked up the first book to the Belgariad series by David Eddings. The fact that he lived just a few miles away from me and was a published author piqued my interest. By the end of the first book The Pawn of Prophecy, I was hooked. My voracious reading habit was set in stone and fantasy became my genre of choice.
My love for reading and the lack of funds to spend on my vice lead me to my first real job at a used bookstore called Grammy's Books. The beauty of the job was that I had first pick, and a discount on all the books that people brought in. I started to dabble in Anne Rice and Ayn Rand, but mostly stuck with reading fantasy novels. I read all of Terry Brooks, David Eddings, Piers Anthony, CJ. Cherryh, Raymond Feist, Terry Goodkind, Robert Jordan, Mercedes Lackey, L.E. Modesitt Jr., Melanie Rawn, R.A. Salvatore, and who knows how many others that I have forgotten. My fascination with fantasy novels took me clear through High School and beyond. I think it was my way of escaping the violently unfair reality that is High School's social diaspora.
After spending time on a mission in South America, I was eager to continue studying Spanish, but not give up reading great literature either. In college, while getting my B.A., I was exposed to fantastic prose and poetry in English and Spanish. It opened my literary eyes to wonderfully complex stories and narrations. In a way, I had made reading literature my profession.
The next logical step seemed to be continuing on to graduate school where responding to what I was reading became a skill that I would develop (and am still developing for that matter). Reading novels, poetry, short stories and drama became a laborious every-day occurrence to the point where I felt like a small dog trying to drink out of a really big fire hose. Overload doesn't even begin to describe it. Nevertheless, there have been some real jewels that have stuck with me and really changed my perspective. So here I am today, working on a PhD in Hispanic Literature with many wonderful reads under my belt and yearning for the day when I can read for pleasure again.
And finally I can disclose my 5 favorite titles, not in any particular order:
1. David Edding's Belgariad Series: Not because it is a supreme work of fiction that will withstand the ages, in fact it follows the basic "coming of age and ruling the world" plot line that most fantasy novels do, but because of the sentimental value and influence that it had on my life as a young teenager.
2. Melanie Rawn's The Exiles Series: This is not the typical fantasy novel. Characters are complex individuals with strengths and weaknesses, they aren't iconic representations of heroes and villains. Rawn has no qualms about killing off main characters at any point and continuing the story in a new direction. For me, this is the epitome of what a fantasy novel should be. Alas, Rawn never finished the 3rd book and has left all of her fans crushed that the story may never end.
3. Louis L'Amoure's Education of a Wandering Man is a wonderful non-fiction autobiography about L'Amoure's travels, experiences and how he craved learning more than anything else in the world. When I read this book, it completely changed how I look at people and my surroundings. This is another book that doesn't make the list for it's literary merit, but for it's impact on my life.
4. Ricardo Piglia's Respiración Artificial: "Artificial Respiration"is a police/crime novel written as a political commentary on the 1976-1983 Argentine Dictatorship through a theoretical lens. No book blows my mind, and continues to do so like this one. It is a wonderfully fascinating novel that takes years to digest mentally. Even if you can't read Spanish, I recommend you find a copy in English and give it a try.
5. Julio Cortázar is one of my absolute favorite authors and his short stories are awe inspiring examples of master storytelling. Though I don't think that there is one book in particular that I would recommend, there is a compilation of many of his most beloved short-stories published in English titled Blow-up and Other Stories (1985). I recommend reading him in Spanish if you can, but if not, there are plenty of translations out there. Cortázar deftly blurs the line between reality and fantasy that reminds me quite a bit of the film Inception (2010).
6. Although I haven't finished it yet, and therefore doesn't count for my top 5, I am really enjoying The Book Thief by Marcus Zusak. Delectable descriptions and a gripping narration by Death himself move the story of a young Jewish girl's life in Nazi Germany. I don't know how it ends yet, but it definitely had me captivated from the first paragraph.
7 comments:
I am envious of you (and a few other friends who can read like this). I really wish it was easier for me to read fiction. I didn't really start until AP English when I was forced to read stuff like Grapes of Wrath, 1984, Lord of the Flies, etc. At that time I really started loving fiction... I even started reading more after the class ended... but then something happened on my mission, that when I came home my desire to read fiction (and, for that matter, sit through movies) had really died. Since then I can really only stand non-fiction and some history. It took years to be able to sit through a movie even (unless it was a documentary, lol!). I have tried hard to get back into it, but not as much as I'd like. I have read The Road (Cormac McCarthy - have you read it? VERY good), Harry Potter (of course, it's so easy to get into), Brave New World... and I've listened to a bunch of James Patterson novels...you know the kind with 3-page chapters? ha! that's about it though. I just read so much non-fiction stuff that I start feeling anxious when I try to enjoy a good "story."
Anyway, yes, I am envious.
Adam, I think it may be a perceived value that you have established you can only get from non-fiction, when in fact another perception is that even non-fiction is fiction.
I say that in the sense that even raw history books only relate "facts" (people, places, dates, who was involved) of an event from one perspective. The text sits plainly on the page and does not/ or from a historians perspective, should not evoke emotion. history = objectivity.
As far as non-fiction goes, I really have a hard time believing that such a thing exists. As a psychologist, you know that perception plays a huge role in how we see the world around us and even the most interesting of autobiographies is narration of a social construction of relationships to time/space/and other people.
Next time you try to read fiction look at your relationship to the text and the emotion that it may invoke instead of just reading for information.You may find some hidden value in it. After all, good literature is art and art is created to invoke emotion. Sometimes it's not just the words on the page that you are learning from, but the experience and connection to the act of reading itself.
Interesting... I agree with you in terms of what really IS "non" fiction (although by non-fiction I'm referring more to stuff like journal articles about relationship research, therapy manuals, etc.).
I'm really NOT knocking fiction, at all. Non-fiction (the types I mentioned) just seem to be more immediately engaging/resonating.
Great advice on fiction though, I had not thought of it so up-front as "my relationship to the text" or what it brings out in me... interesting! Thanks.
"The Road" really did for me what you describe, in the sense of bringing out my own stuff and etc. I think I've tried to read other fiction books purely as entertainment or distraction, and that wasn't working for me.
Adam - I totally get where you are coming from, I have the same problem with non-fiction, especially academic articles. Mainly because in my field (literature) people try to sound scientific when in fact science has nothing to do with the field. It seems clashing and fake to me to write about art objectively. The beauty of art is that it is subjective. Which is funny since that is what I am doing for a living.
So, Ryan, didn't you name your son after a character in one of David Edding's books? I never realized that all those trips to the library and the 10 books we checked out every week had such an impact on your life. And don't forget - it was me who first read to you! - Mom
Ha ha so I am totally blog stalking forever after you wrote this but this post really spoke to me. I love reading and have read my share of fantasy. But I also don't get much time to read for fun right now. And I read The Book Thief. One of the best written books I have read in ages. I loved it and hope you did too. Have you ever read The Hiding Place by Corrie Ten Boom or Man's Search for Meaning by Victor Frankl? Both non-fiction, but inspiring stories set during the Holocaust.
Post a Comment