Libros, libros, y más libros

BOOKS, BOOKS, AND MORE BOOKS
I've been back for 3-4 weeks now, still dealing with culture shock, and have been burying my free time in books, wonderous books. Here's the low-down of the books I've loved, lobbed over my shoulder, or changed my way of thinking:

The White Castle, Orhan Pamuk
Translated from turkish (rather horribly), in Istanbul, tells the story of a christian man and a muslim man, seeminly identical, and struggles with identity and separating themselves from each other. My take? Either it was way too deep for me to get, there was nothing to get, or I couldn't get past the absolutely wretched translation I was reading. Do not recommend.

My Name is Red, Orhan Pamuk
Decided to give the dude another chance, I mean, he's been compared to Jorge Luis Borges, my favorite short story writer of all time. Translated from turkish, it's a journey through ancient Istanbul, addressing the questions of signature, style, and ownership, all those things that Derrida holds so dear and María Salvador salivates over. This book was a huge success compared to the "White Castle." Changing points of view with every chapter, including allowing inanimate objects to talk, the book takes you through a murder mystery in the heart of Turkey, giving you glimpses of the culture and philosophy of illustrating. My take? Recommended for long trips, it's takes awhile to get through.

Ignorance, Milan Kundera
Translated from Czech, I was in Galicia when I couldn't pass up reading another Kundera, my favorite author. I was hooked on him when I read "The Unbearable Lightness of Being" and have been reading him every since. Even though I hold the habit of getting tired of authors quickly, his style never bores me, with compelling and mind-blowing ideas and characters that say and think things that I've always wanted to say but never had the courage to do so, breaking social ideas and customs. "Ignorance" tells the story of immigration, but the journey back to one's home country after many years abroad. Whereas I don't empathize directly with immigration, as I've never had to immigrate, the ideas of alienization in one's own country hit home, especially after coming back to the United States after 6 months in another country. My take? Read any Kundera you can get your hands on.

The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, Stieg Larson
The newly famous Swedish mystery novel captured my attention and I read it on the plane ride back to the US. Whereas I can see why it was so famous, it certainly does engage you, I found the first 5 and last 5 chapters quite boring. Generally it's a bad literary technique to end the main plot before ending the subplot. I deemed the last 5 chapters utterly useless. BUT the middle is fantastic. Be ready for some explicit violence and intriguing plot twists. My take? Read it. It's a great book to pick up and down.

A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius, David Eggers
Read it. A memoir/work of fiction in prose, stream of consciousness, a raw look and read at how we all think, without barriers, while going/have been through constant tragedy. A heartbreaking work of someone wanting to create when they're trying so hard to not let their life destruct. Read it. Read it.
The Lost Symbol, Dan Brown
I was out of books to read while on Cape Cod, so I picked up Dan Brown's latest. Remember "The DavVince Code," "Angels & Demons," "Deception Point," and "Digital Fortress?" This one is exactly the same, but now it's in...WASHINGTON DC! His style is the same, his plot and characters without change, but hey! The quest and location has changed! This is a new novel, right? Right? It is engaging and has cool tidbits about religion and Masons and symbols, but Robert Langdon presents nothing new. My take? Just re-read DaVince Code.

Currently reading:

The Hotel New Hamphire, John Irving
From the author of "Cider House Rules," I've read about 3 chapters and it's captivated my interest. It came highly recommended by Kanda Books (PS. click on the link), the second hand book store that I was frequent customer of in Valencia, and so far it's living up to it. We'll see how it goes!

Los Cuarto Acuerdos, Don Miguel Ruiz
For english speakers: "The Four Agreements." I'm not one for professed 'self-help' books, but this one is seriously sparking my interest. I'm already half-way through (and thoroughly enjoying reading in spanish) and it's planted some seads of thought. So far, I'd highly recommend it, even if you are like me and don't like self helpers. I think this book will be shipped off to Spain for some of my friends, to spread the Toltec wisdom, sabídura tolteca.