books! glorious books!

Before I left LA, I started and finished "Freakonomics." It was awesome. I highly recommend it.

I then moved on to "Blink," which wasn't as good. I'm not sure if it's because I had a logical reasoning overload or if it's the author, but it just wasn't as satisfying. I also think it has something to do with the structure of the book. The writer needs to break his chapters down a bit because they're really long.

I also read "Stiff," a history and use of cadavers in various scientific, practical and medical studies. Cultural, social, sometimes political. It is also very good. I stayed up many a nights trying to finish just this chapter! one more chapter! then another ... and another. Until I just had to sleep because I can't realistically finish it and still function the next morning.

I've been waiting for the "Da Vinci Code" to come out in paperback for a looong time, and it finally did, and I finally bought it. Except that it's a dud. WAIT. Before you chastise me. I read the "Rule of Four" over winter break, and it was AMAZING. Riveting, in fact. Couldn't put it down. Maybe it was Dan Brown's overly dramatic writing style that really annoyed me. Maybe it was that "Rule of Four" was written more casually. It didn't treat itself as a super-mystery. Also, I think it has something to do with the endless over-promotion of the book/movie/plagarism allegations/etc. Anyway, I was disappointed by the first 20 pages. And promptly put it back on the shelf. Sorry, "Da Vinci Code" fan. Not my cup of tea.

Read the "Rule of Four," though, if you want more stimulating reading regarding ancient codes. The London Independent called it "'The Da Vinci Code' for people with brains." Publishers Weekly wrote that the "Rule of Four" was to be compared to "Da Vinci Code," but it is the "more cerebral -- and better written -- of the two." Read "Rule of Four."

Currently, I am rereading "Shakespeare of London," a biography of the Bard from the perspective of his being an ordinary man/actor/playwright in London from fairly ordinary background. This is a book a bought at a public library used book sale and inspired me to write my USC scholarship essay on. I've read it at least three times. The intro, which I read for the first time, said that almost all biographies of Shakespeare treated him as the Bard that he is, as this towering literary figure. What Marchette Chute was trying to go is to humanize him a bit and tell about the life of the London actor from Stratford-upon-Avon.

I still have a large stack of classic literature that I need to read. I also have a three-page Amazon.com wishlist that is acting as my lifetime reading list. I love it. Reading for a lifetime! That's my dream life. To be able to sit/lie on a comfy couch and just read. :)