2010 Booklist

As some people know I have kept track of every book that I have read since 1998. Pretty much everything you need to know about me can be explained via that one sentence. The only thing that would surprise people is that it is in a Word document and not a spreadsheet (though I do note how long it took me to read each book.) I finished 42 books in 2010 and thought that I would give some highlights of what was on my reading list last year.

“The World Without Us” by Alan Weisman: Ever wonder if the planet would be a better place if we all simply left and handed things back over to the plants and animals? Well here is your chance to find out. This is the book that led to the several Life After People television specials that featured wonderful computer generated images of just how everything that we have built will simply crumble to the ground in fifty years and in a few thousand years there will be no evidence that we were even here, except for some patches of contaminated soil. An interesting read though not what one might call uplifting.

“Ring of Hell” by Matthew Randazzo: As I’ve said in the past I allow myself to read one pro wrestling book each year. Otherwise my reading list could become overwhelmed with things like autobiographies by “The Million Dollar Man” Ted Dibiasie. This book looked at the life and death of Chris Benoit, someone who was one of my absolute favorite wrestlers of all time which makes the fact that he murdered his wife and son and then committed suicide all the more troubling. There are some issues with the book but it gives a view into the really dark side of pro wrestling as the wear and tear and constant concussions drive a seemingly normal person to commit the most heinous act one could ever imagine.

“In Cold Blood” by Truman Capote: This probably counts as my piece of classic literature this year. Though it starts slow this is such an amazing book as it marks a change in both the nature of non-fiction and essentially introduces the true crime genre of literature. Capote does an amazing job capturing what it is like in west Kansas and just how random the events that took place were.

“The Unnamed” by Joshua Ferris: My favorite novel of the year. The story of a man who cannot control the fact that at random points in his life he must stand up and start walking. He doesn’t know where he will walk or why or for how long. He just starts walking and cannot control it. I know the premise seems to be a bit out there but how the author ties this into how he relates with his family and relationships results in one of the most striking books that I have read in ages. I strongly encourage people to give this book a try.

“The Pluto Files” by Neil DeGrasse Tyson: Neil likes to state that it isn’t really his fault that Pluto is no longer a planet but you know what? It’s his damn fault. He’s the one who removed it from the list at the New York Planetarium so he innately approved of its removal from planethood. Well I like Pluto and feel that having nine planets in our solar system is only natural so screw you Prof. Tyson.

“American on Purpose” by Craig Ferguson: I wish I was younger and / or less employed so that I could stay up later and watch Craig Ferguson. I’ve only caught small bits of his late night show and I’ve greatly enjoyed them and his autobiography fits right in. Just an amazing story about his life as a comic and his battle with alcoholism. The guy is truly one of a kind and while I’m not one to typically recommend television personality autobiographies this is a good one to read.

“Are We Winning” by Will Leitch: I should note that Will is a fellow Illini and was a year behind me at school and was quite possibly on the team that beat me in the finals of the Intramural Sports Trivia competition. This book is about baseball and how we use baseball to bond with our fathers. It also focuses on the Cubs – Cardinals rivalry and if you are a fan of either team or have an undying hatred for either team that adds to the insight. Another good book by the founder of Deadspin and the guy whose career I wish I had.

“The Particular Sadness of Lemon Cake” by Aimee Bender: The story of a girl who when she eats food she experiences the emotions of the person who made it or even of the factory where the food came from. Also a story of what it means to be considered a genius at a young age only to grow up and find out you really aren’t that special after all. I’m still not quite sure I understood everything that went on in this book but I was glad that I read it.

“No Country for Old Men” by Cormac McCarthy: I’ll just quote something I read this week: “Everything in life is debatable except for Cormac McCarthy.”

“The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo” by Stieg Larson: Yes, I did read this book. Look, I spend half my life in airports so I feel as though I was required to read it. It is certainly a fun murder mystery that keeps you guessing throughout while teaching you more about Swedish journalism and the intricacies of Nordic legal systems than you would ever really care to know about. Even though the book has a great plot and unique characters I’m more than a bit surprised that it has become such a huge hit. On the surface it just doesn’t seem like a book that would connect with the mainstream American audience.

“Super Sad True Love Story” by Gary Shytengart: A novel that takes place in the near future where everyone is a blogger and the most important thing in your life is your credit score. I guess that means that this novel takes place next Tuesday. This is one of those books with two narrators so you spend it going back and forth and while that is an interesting literary device I have yet to find a book where that doesn’t result in you wishing this chapter would be over so you could get back to the narrator you like. Also this is quite possibly the only book that puts a precise dollar value on immortality.

“Dress Your Family in Corduroy and Denim” and “Naked” by David Sedaris: I should note that I also read “Stuff White People Like” this year and David Sedaris was listed as, well, something white people like. What I found interesting about him is that while I love him as a humorist I don’t find myself laughing when I read his work. It is funny but not in a punch line sort of way. I think this hits me because that is more along the lines of when I am best as a writer. I like to consider myself a writer of humorous essays but I do not have that natural punch line timing of a comic. Typically when I try to write that way it falls incredibly flat. I’m more suited to writing in a subdued style where the humor is there but it isn’t hitting you over the head.

“Antony and Cleopatra” by William Shakespeare: I end every year by reading a new Shakespeare play and this year it was time to go to ancient Rome where life is basically one big episode of the Real Housewives of Alexandria. In essence, Cleopatra is bipolar, Antony can’t do anything correctly including kill himself and Caesar is really Octavian though he is called Caesar the entire play despite the fact that this just confuses everyone into thinking that it refers to Julius Caesar. Not one of the bard’s best works though the scene of Cleopatra beating the crap out of a messenger for bringing bad news is all kinds of awesome.

Wednesday Night Music Club: I think all alarm clocks should be reprogramed to go off with Arcade Fire’s “Ready to Start.” No one would sleep late again.

Songs to make a grown man cry

Your Biggest Loser Update: Lindsay Lohan has checked back into rehab. Oh wait, I meant the show The Biggest Loser update. In that case, two of the contestants who were eliminated last week (in the classic “Let’s make the chronically obese run a mile in order to win the right to be on a reality show” event) were chosen by the trainers to compete on the show. Bob chose Aaron because he was the heaviest contestant and wanted to lose weight for his son. Jillian chose Eliza because she passed out in her competition, which showed grit and determination in the fact that she didn’t die. I’m sorry, but I really hate Jillian’s “work out until you pass out” philosophy because that is a wonderful way to injure yourself. I really wish they wouldn’t promote it.

Anyway, this week’s episode was your typical first week show where everyone struggles with the workouts but loses immense amounts of weight because a) they kind of fudge the number of weeks they’ve been working out and b) when you go from doing nothing to four hours plus of heavy exercise your body goes into crisis mode. Again, I still don’t consider it the healthiest way to lose weight but it is impressive to see someone drop ten percent of their body weight.

Switching gears, some music mag (PRS for Music, whatever the hell that is) put together a list of “The Top 10 Songs Most Likely to Make a Guy Cry.” Let’s break down the list, shall we?

10: Robbie Williams “Angels”: No clue what this song is. Robbie Williams is one of those British dance pop people whose career started when they were a teenager and has never ended. Think Kylie Minogue without the talent or charisma. On second thought, just think Kylie Minogue.

9: Todd Duncan “Unchained Melody”: This is the original version of the song from “Ghost”. It might make me vaguely bleary eyed but it won’t start me crying. Thinking about Demi Moore hooking up with Ashton Kutcher is a different story.

8: Bruce Springsteen “Streets of Philadelphia”: I always felt that this song was dark but not one that would lend itself to tears. I always felt that the beat gave it a bit of defiance to it. Not sure why this is on the list.

7: Elton John “Candle in the Wind”: Ok, this one I can get behind. References Marilyn Monroe and has over time been connected with alternately victims of AIDS and Princess Diana. The song has become more depressing due to these connections and the fact that you’ve probably heard it during a funeral at some point in your life.

6: The Verve “The Drugs Don’t Work”: Don’t know this one either. Sorry. I’m still not sure if The Verve and The Verve Pipe are the same band or not.

5: U2 “With or Without You”: Ok, I’m lost on this one. I have listened to this song probably a thousand times in my life and I have never been tempted to cry. In fact, as a kid I always assumed that it was a rather romantic song. I can guarantee you that people have used it as a wedding song. If anyone can explain to me why this would make a guy cry please let me know.

4: Sinead O’Connor “Nothing Compares 2 U”: Interesting choice if nothing else. I’m not sure if I would say that it would make me cry. More like it causes me to sit there in stunned silence. The song is absolutely brilliant and raw and strikes at your soul. Ok, watching Sinead shed that one single tear in the video will make you cry. That is a given.

3: Leonard Cohen “Hallelujah”: Sigh. I have listened to at least a dozen different versions of this song. I don’t even want to guess how many times I have listened to Jeff Buckley’s version (or the fact that I have maybe ten different recordings of Jeff singing it in my collection.) But amongst all that, despite the fact that it is about love gone wrong, it’s never made me cry or think about crying. Hell, k.d. lang sang it after they lit the torch in the Opening Ceremonies. Doesn’t belong on the list at all.

2: Eric Clapton “Tears in Heaven”: Ok, this one belongs on the list. I’m not even going to try writing about it because I will mist up and this is given the fact that I hate Eric Clapton with every fiber of my being.

1: R.E.M. “Everybody Hurts”: If you had me try to choose the most depressing song of all time this might make the cut. The video is as dark as dark can be but again, the song itself really doesn’t drive one to tears. That is really the problem with this list. While music has been an emotional touchstone in my life I really can’t say that it causes crying. Even when you listen to sad songs it is more of a comfort than anything else. At least you know that someone else has walked the same path as you have.

Wednesday Night Music Club: I got this list from The Onion’s AV Club and in the comments someone made the point that some songs bring you to tears not because they are sad but because they are transcendent. The example everyone used was Arcade Fire’s “Wake Up”. I really can’t disagree with the reasoning.

The only way to fly

Sorry for the missed posts the past few days. Between the holiday weekend and travel for work I have been away from the computer a bit more than usual. I’m also taking the week off from the random CDs for the week because they mainly exist for my drive back and forth to work and holiday weeks play havoc on my schedule. I end up spending most of my weekend driving around trying to get to the end of a disc I bought in 1997. At some point I need a break from the musical tastes of my early twenties. Sorry for those who missed my view of the world. I’ll try to make it up to you.

This question hit me today as I was travelling. If you spend as much time in airports as I do you will invariably go past dozens of kiosks selling things like Rosetta Stone language tapes or receipt organizers or magic pens. In all of my years of flying I have never bought anything from one of these stands. In fact, I can’t recall anyone ever standing at one of those stands in the process of buying something. All I ever see are bored, downtrodden sales clerks who must spend their entire day looking at people who ignore them as they rush to flights to go on vacation. It must be the cruelest job in the world. I can’t imagine what it must be like if they are on commission. I would hate it if the Magic Pen guy needs to make ten sales a day in order to make his mortgage payment. Maybe we should all buy something from them next time we are at the airport. Let’s brighten up their day.

The other aspect of flying that I want to get into tonight is the fact that today I got to try out my brand new Amazon Kindle. Yes, it took some cajoling and glowing reviews by people who read even more books than I do but I have broken down and purchased a Kindle after spending a decade dismissing the electric book market. Now I love the way a book feels in my hand and I will always be working my way through some “real” books but I have to say that the Kindle kicks all kinds of ass.

First off, the form factor is amazing. Incredibly thin and light with the next page buttons precisely where they should be. It still feels natural in that you think you are holding a book as opposed to a computer screen. The electronic ink is so much nicer than reading a computer screen and because of the storage on it I no longer have to have a backpack filled with books. It is incredibly easy to download new books and I have to admit that it makes reading fun. For some reason I want to read more books on it just because of the interface.

It’s not perfect though but most of my critiques are nitpicky. Worst one is that not all books, especially new releases, are available. That is a matter of price points and the conversion from physical to electronic media that will be worked out eventually. I’m more annoyed by the fact that when footnotes appear you have to scroll through the page and click on the footnote, which sends you to the end of the document to read the footnote with no easy way to get back to where you were. Given that the authors I like use a lot of informative and humorous footnotes this can become very annoying very quickly. I can’t imagine what it would be like reading David Foster Wallace’s “Infinite Jest” on the Kindle. On the plus side you don’t have to lug around a 1,000 page book but managing the 100 pages of footnotes would be a nightmare. Finally, it might just be the book I’m reading but I hate the way the font prints the letter I. Just strikes me as wrong. But when you are complaining about fonts you are basically admitting that you have such high standards that basic human emotions are unobtainable.

So thumbs up on the Kindle and say hi to your local Rosetta Stone salesperson.

4th Best Album of the Decade: Arcade Fire “Funeral” (2004): There is so much one can say about this album. There is the fact that the entire album is about death and loss and grief and ultimately rebirth. There is the fact that the band attacks music from a unique angle: not just the usual art school kids doing music but playing with instrumentation and roles as well. And there is the fact that the band is pure emotion at all times. Watch the video. It is just all out for the entire song. No wonder hockey teams used it as their entrance music.

I know a place where no cars go

Best of 120 Minutes: The following story is 100%, absolutely true. Not in my typical “even my non-fiction is 25% fiction” sense of the term true. This actually happened.

It probably doesn’t surprise anyone that when I’m in a bar I often find myself playing the bar trivia machine. This is especially true at Davey’s Uptown, as I tend to get there a decent amount of time before the show so I relax by dropping a few bucks in the machine. When I get high score (and I always do) I enter the name “Dr Wang”. This wasn’t the original name. I used to use “EC Cool” until I was told “EC Cool isn’t” and then, for a reason that is still unclear to me, it was decided that “Dr Wang” was infinitely funnier. Hence, if you ever glance at the bar trivia machine and see Dr Wang emblazoned on it you know that I’ve been there.

So, one night at Davey’s I get there early, play a couple of games, and get bored with it and move to a seat next to the machine to finish my beer before the show starts. Two girls sit next to me and start playing the game. They start playing and notice my high score. One goes, and I swear I’m not making this up, “Ok, we’re playing this until we beat Dr. Wang.” I nearly spit out my beer from laughter. They keep playing, reading the questions out loud and moving much too slowly to even challenge my score. Then comes the greatest conversation I’ve ever had in a bar.

Girl # 1: “Who sang “I never said nothing?””
Girl # 2: “I have no idea.”
EC: “It’s Liz Phair.”
Girl # 1: “Are you Dr. Wang?”

I don’t think I’ll ever be able to top that. Anyway, here is Liz Phair back when she was amazing singing “Never Said.” I might not like where her career has ended up but man, she was the coolest thing ever when I was in college.

Anyway, I went and saw Arcade Fire over the weekend and I’ll have to say the show was absolutely amazing. First of all, I need to comment on the crowd. The show was at Starlight and I’d say that it was about three quarters full. There were slightly more people for Jack Johnson but it was a bigger crowd than for either Lyle Lovett or Alison Krauss. To be honest, I was amazed that there were that many people in this town who knew who Arcade Fire were. My faith in humanity was rekindled for a little while. At least until I realized that Garth Brooks was playing the Sprint Center. Plus, this crowd stood for the entire show including the entire opening set by LCD Soundsystem. I haven’t seen that in a long time.

Arcade Fire themselves were just insane. I tried to describe their music to a friend over the weekend and used the term “orchestral rock”. I’m not entirely sure what that means but it seems to work as there are violins and pipe organs and a brass section appearing at various points in their songs. The songs are pure emotion as well. There is very little that gets me bouncing up and down but these songs do every time I hear them. I honestly want to see anyone listen to “Rebellion (Lies)” and not feel like they’ve just downed twenty shots of Red Bull.

What was even cooler is that they had an awesome light/video show as well. I almost never talk about the backgrounds that bands use because most of my favorites can’t afford lights. But Arcade Fire used a whole bunch of video projection screens, sometimes to small circular screens on stage and other times to the backdrop itself. They were often in washed out colors and vaguely out of focus and it just made for some amazing effects. That and during Crown of Love they just had this simple, ghostly image of a young girl walking holding a book that was just stunning. It doesn’t sound like much and I can’t really describe it but it took your breath away. All in all, just one incredible night with perfect weather to boot.

The five random CDs for the week:
1) Ben Folds Five “Ben Folds Five”
2) Various Artists (mainly Jay Farrar) “Soundtrack to The Slaughter Rule”
3) Social Distortion “Social Distortion”
4) The Neville Brothers “Live on Planet Earth”
5) The Clash “London Calling”