This post isn't really about The Catcher in the Rye. I just used its book cover to lure you to my blog (busted!).
I do, however, want to talk about books.
Last night, after a particularly crappy work week, I indulged in several handfuls of dark chocolate. Couldn't help myself. The sight of the See's box on the "communal table" at work made me smile (as it reminded me of San Francisco).
I don't eat sugar, as a rule, so you can imagine the intense sugar rush & headache that ensued. I was climbing the walls. Cleaning out my refrigerator and blasting music (that my neighbors no doubt loved) were poor downer substitutes. So I climbed into a bubble bath and re-read one of my favorite books as a teeny bopper, A Wrinkle in Time.
This got me thinking of all of the books & stories I've loved over the years:
- Greek myth
- Sherlock Holmes
- Homer's Odyssey
- Crime and Punishment
- Various limericks and children's poems
- Gone with the Wind (yes, racism & all - & Clark Gable as Rhett Butler was devine)
I lied. The Catcher in the Rye isn't on my list. Despite numerous attempts, I've never been able to finish it. Just doesn't resonate with me. I know I'm in the minority here.
But there are many books I want to read between all my Cable TV viewing –BTW, I did enjoy Mad Men's season premiere last Sunday, though I have to admit I've re-watched Game of Throne's Purple Wedding more often (is Oleanna or Tywin the architect of Joffrey's murder? I think it's Oleanna.)
Today I'm going to take my new favorite ferry ride to Tribeca to do some Whole Foods shopping. Hopefully, I'll find Barnes & Noble still standing. I do like to hold old fashioned paper books in my hands. I'm looking for 1984 or 100 years of Solitude.........or maybe something more trivial. Then..........Let the reading begin!
Catcher in the Rye did not resonate for me either... years ago, I read constantly, mainly "sensational" bestsellers to my parent's chagrin (Jacqueline Susann, Harold Robbins, Jackie Collins) and celebrity biographies. 10-15 years ago was reading Wally Lamb, Janet Fitch, Joan Didion, Terry McMillan... Still like actual books, especially for travel. Light with a touch or more of humor works for me (Augusten Burroughs, Chelsea Handler, Bringing Home the Birkin). As for other reading, New York Magazine, Vanity Fair and the New York Times online round out my print media portfolio.
ReplyDeleteHi Charles! Rosalie emailed me that Catcher in the Rye didn't resonate for her either. I read Vanity Fair and online journalism like First Look Media. Also like comic books like my all time favorite Calvin and Hobbes!
DeleteHi Paula,
DeleteRead literally all the time as a kid, so lots of comic books too but my favorite was (also to my parents' chagrin) was Mad Magazine! One of my cousins in Long Beach had a collection of the paperback Mad cartoon collections and used to love reading them; plus his mother would let us eat dessert for breakfast. Heaven as a kid (and reality as an adult!) LOL. Used to read Psychology Today Esquire, and Time/Newsweek at my Dad's office as well as the "women's magazines" that Mom subscribed to. Was fascinated by the "Can This Marriage Be Saved" column in Ladies Home Journal as well as all of the advertising back then as it was in it's heyday. Oh, enjoyed the New Yorker cartoons as well as Ms. magazine (I think my Dad's secretary signed up for that one)... My grandmother gave me a subscription to National Geographic but that also did not really resonate with me either although I did enjoy the ads and some of the photography. Mademoiselle and Cosmo were racy fun to read during high school study hall... all those quizes!... and the Glamour Do's and Don'ts. Then in college came the new age of Bret Easton Ellis and Jay McInerney and the Vanity Fair relaunch... wow, guess I read a lot back in the day!
Yup, back in the day! I used to enter The New Yorker cartoon caption contests, but never won. And I used to read Reader's Digest's for the joke section (forget what it was called). Ms. Magazine was cool "back in the day" as well. Of course, Oprah's O Magazine was wonderful the first few years.
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