To Kindle or not to Kindle: the changing nature of books and reading

My mom, sisters, and I have developed a floating library of sorts. Titles have included Beautiful Boy, The Lovely Bones, My Sister's Keeper,The Thirteenth Tale, and The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao. The library has expanded with Holly and Mom adding two of Greg Mortensen's books to the collection. And after a trip to Barnes and Noble, I've added Tracy Kidder's Strength in What Remains. In fact, over break we spent a lot of time in the bookstore. There's just something about the smell of a room full of books. The feel of the pages between your fingers. The weight of them in your hands. So when a Facebook friend posted a link to an NPR article "How E-Books Will Change Reading and Writing," I was interested.

In the article, Time magazine book reviewer Lev Grossman argues that e-books create a different kind of reading. "They scroll and scroll and scroll. You don't have this business of handling pages and turning them and savoring them. . .and likewise you don't tend to linger on the language. When you are seeing a word or a sentence on the screen, you tend to go through it, you extract the data, and you move on." There are implications for writing as well; narratives will need to hook the reader immediately, focusing less on the poetry of language and more on high-interest plot lines.

I can't help but wonder if language will suffer as a result. Who hasn't read (and re-read to anyone who would listen) a powerful line in a novel? Much of the appeal of our floating library is the discussion about the books after we've read them. The nature of e-books makes them seem very impermanent. At the risk of sounding like a traditionalist, save the Kindle for someone who will appreciate it more. I'll stick with my books.

On maps, travel, and dreams

I just stepped into the world of T.S. Spivet, the protagonist in Reif Larsen's novel The Collected Works of T.S. Spivet. The story is about his journey across America's heartland, his ultimate destination: the Smithsonian, where he will accept the Baird Award for his maps and research. T.S. uses maps and graphs in order to make sense of the world, so the margins are covered with his notes and illustrations.

Not since Scout Finch have I seen a character who is more likeable, both smart and funny. Larsen begins the novel with T.S. and his sister on the front porch, his sister shucking corn and T.S. drawing a map of how she was shucking it. It is in this scene, that he gets the call from the Smithsonian. But not before we get a glimpse into his family's life. In the time it takes for T.S. to get to the phone to take the call, we get a glimpse into the inner-workings of his family. We learn about his sister's anger (T.S. suspects she's unhinged), his mother's career (while T.S. believes she's a "miraculous woman in general," he sees her twenty-year search for an elusive beetle as misguided), and his father's loneliness (he hides in his sett'ng room watching Westerns). Unspoken is the loss they all share: the death of T.S.'s younger brother Layton. No one is willing to talk about it, except in imaginary conversations.

I sat down on the steps of the porch, bewildered, and those crafty wooden boards took this opportunity to engage me in conversation:
It's just you and me, buster—let's sing a quiet song together, the porch said.
I have work to do, I said.
What work?
I don't know...ranch work.
You are not a ranch boy.
I'm not?
You do not whistle cowpuncher tunes or spit into tin cans.
I'm not good at spitting, I said. I make maps.
Maps? the porch asked. What is there to map? Spit into tin cans. Ride the high country. Take her easy.
There is plenty to map. I do not have time to take her easy. I do not even know what that really means.
You are not a ranch boy. You are a fool.
I am not a fool, I said. And then: Am I a fool?
You are lonely, the porch said.
I am?
Where is he?
I don't know.
You know.
Yes.
Then take a seat, and whistle a lonely cowpuncher tune.
I am not finished with my maps. There is more to map.

In this same chapter, T.S. notes that "truth and beauty were never married to one another for long." And that's just the first chapter.

On to dreams. . .

Ian is going to be a storyteller one day. He was telling me this morning about the dream he had last night. He said he met someone who looked a little like his cousin, who was working at some place that looked "familiar" (he thinks Radio Shack because he remembers an R). He read his name tag and it said, "Aaron." Ian walked into the building and said hi. I guess the dream ended after that because when I asked him what happened next and he said, "We'll see tomorrow."

An open book

To feel most beautifully alive means to be reading something
beautiful, ready always to apprehend in the flow of language the sudden flash of poetry.
~ Gaston Bachelard ~

I have the perfect job. Really, I do. Where else can I share my enthusiasm for the next book in the Twilight series? Where else can I share my love for a beautifully-turned phrase? Where else can I share life lessons that you can learn through a simple mockingbird? And while I love August through May, I also love June and July. My bookshelf fills up quickly with books that I've not had time to read during the school year because I'm too busy reading books on educationing (a term borrowed from my brother-in-law).

Books to read this summer (The short list)

1. A Walk in the Woods
Bill Bryson, a natural storyteller, is one of the funniest men in America. In this book, he shares his experiences hiking the Appalachian Trail.

2. Tea Time for the Traditionally Built
This is the latest novel in the No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency series. There's usually a new novel just in time for summer. I first discovered the series after I returned from a trip to Uganda, and while it's set in Botswana, it still seems familiar to me. HBO has recently created a series based on the books. You'll love them!

3. The Red Tent
This story, based on the Biblical character Dinah, looked very interesting to me. Since Dinah is one of the silent characters in the Bible, I'm curious to see how Anita Diamant weaves her story. (Thanks, Joann for lending it to me.)

Books that Inspire Me
(The abbreviated version)

1. The Glass Castle
I love this book! A memoir by Jeannette Walls, it is full of funny anecdotes about her childhood. What I most love is the writer's voice--she grew up in poverty, but she is a when-life-gives-you-lemons-make-lemonade kind of girl. Her optimism is amazing, really. This book is so good it'll have you passing it along to all of your friends.

2. The Kite Runner By Khaled Hosseini
By now most everyone has probably read this book, so no need to say much other than it has numerous examples of the beautifully-turned phrase that I spoke of earlier. When I first read this book, Darrell got tired of my reading "just this one passage" to him.

3. A Prayer for Owen Meaney By John Irving
I love a good story, and this is one of the finest I've ever read. You may be familiar with the story if you've seen the movie Simon Burch, a loose adaptation of the book.

4. The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane By Kate DiCamillo
This children's book tells the story of a china rabbit who learns the valuable lesson that it's not all about him. It's a book about unconditional love and redemption. Oh, and your kids will like it too:-)

What should I be reading? I would love to hear suggestions. Let me know what book inspires you.

On my nightstand

A few weeks ago, a friend placed in my hands a copy of The Shack, saying that it would make you re-think all of your preconceived ideas about God. I'd heard of the book before--Holly was reading it when I saw her at Thanksgiving, and a friend of Darrell's had been asking him about it. I'd even had my name on the lengthy waiting list at the library--I was number 93.
Before reading it, I was curious to learn more about the book, so I read online reviews. They ranged from "the story reads like a prayer" to warnings to not read it because it strays from scriptural teachings. I'd been too busy to start it, so I saw my window of opportunity last week after the winter weather left us with a mini-vacation.
I'm only 3/4 of the way through, but it is a slow read. I have taken a lot of time to think about some of the ideas presented. The story centers around the life of a man who lost his daughter and becomes enveloped by a "Great Sadness" and anger with God. Four years later, he receives a strange invitation (from God) to re-visit shack where the crime took place.
While I don't agree with a lot of ideas in the book, there are some truths throughout, which are important to remember. There is a powerful conversation between the man and God, where God tells him, "The real underlying flaw in your life is that you don't think that I am good. If you knew I was good and that everything--the means, the ends, and all the processes of individual lives--is covered by my goodness, then while you might not always understand what I'm doing, you would trust me." The conversation points to the importance of trusting God for everything, even when things don't make sense.
The book also has important things to say about forgiveness and reconciliation. In another conversation, God tells the man, "Forgiveness is first for you, the forgiver, to release you from something that will eat you alive; that will destroy your joy and your ability to love fully and openly."
The book is one that, while a little "out there" on some points, makes for an interesting read. I'd be interested in hearing from you. Have you read it? What do you think?