Highlights from a down year for reading... [Updated]



I've been disappointed about my ability to make time to read in 2005. This has been bothering me for weeks now and was exacerbated recently by my inability to make a late push at the year's end, by measures of both quantity and quality this year has been my poorest showing for reading since 1998. I somehow got away from literature, which is something I'd like to remedy in the next year.

That said there were some highlights (in roughly chronological order).

"People who have stolen from Me" (2004) by David Cohen was a fascinating look at a furniture shop in downtown Johannesburg and the relationships that developed/devolved in post-Apartheid South Africa.

"Methods of Discovery: Heuristics for the Social Sciences" (2004) by Andrew Abbott had moments that made me want to give up all this senseless agony and become an academic. (Note: I've taken many classes with Professor Abbott at UCHICAGO)

"Fight Club" (1996) by Chuck Palahniuk read surprisingly well. There are notable differences between the book and the film.

"Chronicles: Volume 1" (2004) by Bob Dylan showed that the writer can project a voice as distinctive as that of any singer. Something about the way the story was told was terrifically compelling... unusual.

"Memphisto" (1977) by Klaus Mann should be considered a "high school classic" for it's trek through major themes while set in the Nazi German theater community.

"Brunelleschi's Dome" (2000) by Ross King was a great history of the renaissance and about the story around an architectural marvel. (Note: This was a gift from Cousin K)

"The Polysyllabic Spree" (2005) by Nick Hornby was an exciting look at the reading list of quality author.

"Hatless Jack: The President, The Fedora, and the History of American Style" (2004) by Neil Steinberg was much more than I expected. It painted a fantastic picture of a different era of America and taught me more about hats than I had ever hoped to know. (Note: Birthday gift from SV)

"Losing Nelson" (1999) by Barry Unsworth took a while to develop but really left you feeling for the poor soul that lives outside himself entirely. It has extension to the collector, the role player, the fantasy-camper, and a number of other all-too-familiar contemporary characters. (Note: Thanks CLJO!)

"Division Street" (1967) by Studs Terkel was a collection of interviews done with Chicagoans about the vietnam war, race relations, and other pressing issues of the day. Looking at it almost 40 years afterwards, one sees stasis on a surprising range of issues.

"Banker to the Poor: Microlending at the Battle Against Poverty" (2003) by Muhammad Yunus was the book that most left me charged up and ready to try to change the world. The first few chapters look at how the microlending idea emerged and how this idea was given structure, those chapters could offer great insight to those with other ideas or in different industries.

"In the Shadow of No Towers" (2004) by Art Spiegleman (of Maus fame) was an intensely personal meditation set in comic form. It made me want to try to write about September 11th.

I'll try to post my entire list of books read in 2005 sooner rather than later.

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Note: My 2004 list and my 2003 list are archived.

Posted: Sun - December 25, 2005 at 10:36 PM      

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