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Bibliophiliac is the space where one passionate, voracious reader reflects on books and the reading life. You will find reviews, analysis, links, and reflections on poetry and prose both in and out of the mainstream.

A book must be the axe for the frozen sea within us. Franz Kafka

Monday, January 14, 2013

It's Monday! What Are You Reading?


It's Monday! What Are You Reading! is my comfortable, go-to, coffee-klatsch meme for when I want to connect about books but can't gather the brain cells for more than a list. It's so nice just to hang out with the other readers on Monday and talk about what we are reading! All this is courtesy of Sheila at Book Journey. She is Wonder Woman (check out her blog...you'll see what I mean).

So: this Monday was my first day back at work after being out with the plague since last Wednesday. No, it wasn't the Black Death but it kind of felt that way sometimes. Now when I look at my classroom I see an environment for a teeming mass of squirming viruses.

After starting the new year out with the amazing All the Pretty Horses (Cormac McCarthy) I was feeling like an immortal reader. There were no bad choices. I was all ready to read The Crossing, the second book in McCarthy's Border Trilogy, and suddenly this virus would not let me read McCarthy's sentences. McCarthy is a miraculous stylist: you will be reading along, and come to a period and suddenly go: "Hey, when was the last time I saw one of those?" You retrace your steps and find that the sentence you just read was half a page or more (no commas, by the way). Of course McCarthy's next sentence will contain just five words. Anyway, this wasn't working for my plague-ridden brain. I picked up/put down half a dozen books and then it hit me!

And I started reading this:
Brilliant! From Cormac McCarthy to Diana Gabaldon! What a leap!

When I was a bookseller customers used to rave about this series. Readers of all kinds: male, female, young, old. A male customer who also worked as a substitute teacher spent a good twenty minutes earnestly persuading me to please pick up this book.

Then a student literally put this book in my hand (in that same bookstore where I used to work). A lovely, sweet and smart girl (I'm absolutely positive she will be an English teacher or professor/novelist). So now I'm finally reading Outlander, and finding it every bit as entertaining and addictive as promised.

Also on my list for the next week or so:

Wanderers, a book of short stories by Edward Belfar. This one is for TLC Book Tours. I requested it because I love short stories, and always jump at the chance to review new collections.

The Tell by Hester Kaplan, also for TLC Book Tours

I'd like to get back to The Border Trilogy too, but I'm not sure that will happen this month.

Hope you are all staying healthy. I can't help thinking of that movie Contagion, which I have watched far, far too many times. It seems as though when we came back from Winter Break the viruses were just laying in wait....

It's Monday...what are you reading?

10 comments:

bermudaonion said...

I know a lot of people who love that series but I haven't tried it yet. I hope you love it.

Marie Cloutier said...

I keep going back and forth about whether I want to read Outlander. People I really respect love it (like you!) but then I hear about all the glamorized rape scenes and I'm like, um, maybe not! We'll see. I'm glad you're enjoying the book. I 'm reading a crime novel called Ratlines and a March ARC by Rebecca Miller. Fun!

bibliophiliac said...

@bermudanonion-Well, I promised my student I would read this book!

bibliophiliac said...

@Marie-I haven't gotten that far in the book (p. 168 out of over 600). It is definitely more romance that what I usually read....I can't say more, yet, but I hope it will be worth my while.

Lindsey said...

It seems like everyone has been sick lately, doesn't it? I'm pretty sure that my son's school is running out of ink printing all those notices to go home - someone has the flu, someone has strep...oh goodness.

I have Outlander on my tbr shelf too. I hope you enjoy it!

bibliophiliac said...

@Lindsey-Schools are the breeding ground for disease! Not to sound alarmist! Like most teachers, I have built an immunity to practically everything, but this one got me. Hoping Outlander will make it all better!

Andi said...

I laughed out loud at your description of McCarthy's punctuation. So so true. And I'm ridiculously glad that you're enjoying Outlander!!! It's a lot of fun.

bibliophiliac said...

@Andi-I stopped reading All the Pretty Horses several times to do the punctuation search...literally asking myself, when was the last time I saw a period? I'd like to know how long his longest sentence is....

Looking forward to Outlander. If I end up liking Gabaldon, there are thousands of pages of fun ahead!

Priya Parmar said...

McCarthy's punctuation always reminds me that grammar is brilliantly elastic stretchy stuff. I have been circling Gabaldon forever! I hope it is wonderful!

bibliophiliac said...

Priya! So good to see you here again! I hope the 2nd novel is going well...