Fail blog

In an unprecedented move, I have quit three books this month, almost right in a row. Fail. Total fail. I come from a long line of non-book quitters. That isn't to say we aren't sometimes quitters in general. I have quit sports, diets, New Year's Resolutions..pretty much things that require physical discipline. But books? Usually I see the bad ones through to the end, just in case they redeem themselves.

Not this time. I don't know if it's me or the books. Actually, it's probably my kids. Let's blame them for my divided attention and lack of grace. It's hard to spend precious alone-time reading a book I don't like, and hard to have patience with unrelatable characters when I practive patience with actual live small people all day long.

So here's the list: three fails and one goody. Judge for yourself whether they are worth your precious time.

The Antiquarian

Novel by Gustavo Faveron Patriau

I think this is some kind of intellectual murder mystery. The beginning was so much character development, though, that I lost interest. Also I think the author is from South America and in my experience those books usually have an intense emotional quality that I can't understand or appreciate, like The Alchemist. With the exception of Isabel Allende, I think I'm just not smart enough for these books. So I only got a couple of pages into this one and decided it was not for me.

The Financial Lives of Poets
Novel by Jess Walter

What a disappointment I am. This author is amazing. Beautiful Ruins? Absolutely loved it. One of the best books I read last year. We Live In Water  was great for a collection of short stories (which is just not my favorite genre). The thing about this book, though, is that it opened like one of his short stories. Too much reality. I read to escape worries about money and jobs and every day life in general. I imagine that this book gets better and that I'm majorly missing out by not reading it, and maybe I'll come back to it (not likely) but for now, pass.

A Thousand Splendid Suns

Novel by Khaled Hosseini

Don't freak out on me-- I didn't quit this one. Almost...but it grabbed me. I read Hosseini's The Kite Runner at the recommendation of my cousin who was stationed in Afghanistan and while both of these books are just so devastating, they are worth it. The complicated history of Afghanistan is made comprehensible to me for the first time, but it's far from just a history lesson. The harsh reality of the country is wrapped up in a lovely, heartbreaking, bold story of two women and their unlikely relationship. There is disgusting, horrifying hatred that is tempered and eventually destroyed by deep love. I was reading this as the news was coming out about the violence in Iraq and it made both events more real to me in my safe little home. The world is so horrible at times but those that help others in the worst of times are what make those events bearable. I would love to talk in more detail to someone who has read this book and compare reactions.

The Girls
Novel by Lori Lansens

Another quitter. Sorry, Grandma, but I just can't stomach the weirdness of the conjoined twins. It's such an interesting premise and I think at another time I may have enjoyed the book. But readers know that I have a lot of anxiety about my kids that comes and goes in waves and right now it's peaking a little. While conjoinment is clearly not something I need to worry about now that my kids are born, it still makes me anxious about all the things that can go wrong in their delicate little bodies. Plus, you just know that there can't be a happy ending to this story. So again, not right now.

And with that list of failures, I don't actually have anything to look forward to reading. I am currently reading a book by Brian McClaren about changes in the church (A New Kind of Christianity), and I have the other true story of Downton Abby book, plus I think I'm going to request Where'd You Go, Bernadette from the library because I've heard such good things about it. I'm interested in The Boys in the Boat for the same reason. But I'm also looking for some light hearted reads while school is starting up. My ego can't take too many more failures.