the curious incident of the dog in the night-time

I thought I'd read this book in 20 minutes it was so short, but it actually made me wonder about the way people with autism think and if this was an accurate representation, so it took a bit longer. This book was written from the perspective of an autistic teenager. The author, Mark Haddon, is not autistic but in general I found him to be believable. That being said, I think "Look Me in the Eye" was a better representation. At first I really enjoyed how he outlined the way he thought a person with autism would think. After a little while though I found myself getting sick of it and skipping the parts where he outlined his thought process. He certainly highlighted how some people on the spectrum like to talk ad nasuem about random boring technical stuff that no one else cares about. I just didn't care enough about random math principles to read 3 pages about them and look at pictures illustrating what they look like. Instead, I wanted to see some plot advancement. That being said, I thought the plot was exciting and was really shocked a few times. Unlike many conversations people with autism, this book was at times very engaging (forgiving the math principles and the pictures of clouds and so on). We followed young Christopher on his mission to discover who killed his neighbors' dog. Maybe I am slow but I was shocked when the culprit was revealed, but not nearly as shocked by the crazy twist that came before hand. Haddon wrote an engaging story with an un-engaging character, and I think that is pretty impressive.

The Help

I recently completed "The Help" by Kathryn Stockett. Why can't all books be as difficult to put down as this one? Stockett has you hooked almost instantly. The book takes place during the civil rights movement in a place that I always would have referred to as bumblefuck until reading this. Now I think this place is too scary to be bumblefuck--more like lynching land. It's from the point of view of 3 people: a young single girl who recently graduated college, and 2 black maids. The single white character really shows us that being single was even worse in olden times. The black maids would probably make anyone feel lazy and spoiled, but not in a bad way. In a "wow, those women are so impressive, how can they still be nice to anyone, and I am so happy I am not them" sort of way. Stockett is white and I think she did a god job of writing in the voice of a black woman from that era. We follow the women from their typical day to day lives through a fight against racism. All of the characters grow and evolve throughout the story and by the end of it you feel proud of each of them. I was surprised that this was Stockett's first book because it sounded like she has been writing forever! When I heard what this book was about I thought it sounded kind of boring but i figured whatever i'll read it anyway. But its NOT boring! It is the opposite of boring (i.e. Eat Pray Love)! I actually chose to read this instead of finding out why Sydney Bristow had been missing for 2 years in Season 3 of Alias (I am completely hooked on Alias right now). I don't know if that gives anyone an idea of how much of a page turner this is, but hopefully you get the gist.

The Namesake

Today I finished The Namesake, by Jhumpa Lahiri. Although this was not a book I felt compelled to sit and read through in one setting, I still really enjoyed it. It reminds me a lot of what I learned about in my Anthropology classes in college, and I wished at the end I could have discussed it in a classroom setting.

This novel was a about a couple who immigrated from Calcutta to the United States. The couple was kind of in this state of perpetual quasi-assimilation. Meanwhile their children were too assimilated for their parents to be comfortable. When they were younger the children resented their parents and their Indian cultural responsibilities, but as they grew older they came to depend on them. The main character, Gogol/Nikhil struggled with how his name related to his identity and tried changing it to feel more comfortable in America. I think it worked temporarily for him but towards the end he really grew into his old name and was stuck with the new one.

At first I was frustrated with Gogol for resenting his roots, although I'm sure I would have done the same thing. Towards the end of the book I felt like he had been betrayed by his roots and I just felt bad for him. Nevertheless I really felt for the family and I think I have a better understanding of how assimilation impacts immigrants. I have mixed feelings about assimilation, and this book helped me understand the situation better.

If you are interested in any of these themes, Indian culture, or are just looking for an interesting read, I recommend this one! If you are looking for something you absolutely cannot put down until you have read the last page and then feel disappointed that it's over, you may want to look elsewhere.

Eat Pray Love

Hello folks!

Sorry for the delay, I attribute it to Eat Pray Love. I bought this book a few weeks ago and could not wait to start it. It had been highly recommended to me by quite a few people, and I assumed it would be worth the $14 I paid for it at the Strand (expensive in comparison to the other books I have picked up there). Boy was I WRONG. I thought I would get through this book in record time. I never made it past Italy! I LOVE Italy! I was listening to this author describe one of my favorite places of all time and I was seriously struggling to turn the pages.

For anyone who doesn't know, this book is about a woman going through a messy divorce who spends three months in three countries, the first one being Italy. Now as a Social Worker in training, I am pretty much down to listen to self indulgent whining. So I think if I get sick of the bitching, there is some serious excess going on. I can see how people could finish this book...i think. Maybe it will be more compelling when Julia Roberts if flashing her big teeth and laughing maniacally. I was really determined to finish this book. Even if something sucks I am always compelled to finish it. I mean, I sat through Crossroads and the Breakup and I've finished a quiznoes pizza sub, and after 2 weeks I still couldn't get through this thing.

Now as a result I am behind in my blog. AH! We will see if I can catch up!

The Elegance of the Hedgehog

The second book I read (completed 5/26) was The Elegance of the Hedgehog by Muriel Barbery. It was very well written (i'm embarassed to admit that I had to pick up the dictionary a few times while reading--something I have not had to do in years). This novel was about a concierge at a snooty apartment building in France and one of the residents, a hyper-intelligent 12-year-old girl. I love reading novels that are written partly in the point of view of children (eg. When Love Walked In by Marisa de los Santos). I really enjoyed reading this book but I did not find the parts written from the point of view of the girl believable. It sounded to me like an adult detailing aspects of a child's day, or thoughts they might think a child would have but probably could not articulate. I know the point was that she was really smart, but being extremely intelligent and even very mature does not entirely transform a 12-year-old into a 60-year-old. Most of the book was from the point of view of the concierge. I found some of what the concierge had to say was a bit rambly but overall gave a wonderful depiction of the character. The first half of the book was a bit slow but it picked up considerably by the end. That being said, I was very disappointed by the ending. Still, this book made me think a lot about the mentality of the elite and what defines class and elegance. I'm glad that I read it and recommend it to anyone looking to broaden their vocabulary or think very deeply about social classes and philosophy.

look me in the eye

To start I should explain that this summer, in an effort to broaden my mind and elevate my thoughts, I have elected to read one book each week. I told my friend Steve about this (hi Steve!) and he suggested that I blog about it. I figured, why not? So here I am, reviewing books that I read each week.

The first book that I read (completed 5/22) was Look Me in the Eye: My Life with Asperger's, by John Elder Robison. I selected this book because I am hoping to work with children with developmental delays in the future and I thought that it would be informative. I was thrilled when I opened it to discover that not only would it be informative, but Robison is the brother of Augusten Burroughs, author of Running with Scissors (another book I really enjoyed). Lucky me! Robison's style differs from Burroughs, but still proves to be an exhilarating read. I was really impressed by how well Robison was able to convey his emotions. A lot of people assume that if someone has Asperger's, they don't have emotions or know how to speak about them. Robison showed me that while he may not understand why others have certain emotions or react in conventional ways, he certainly had many deeply rooted emotions and spoke about them eloquently. At times I was confused by his style. The beginning of his book, in which Robison is describing his past, is poignant, narrative and heart wrenching. Contrarily, when Robison was describing a current thought process or situation (conversations with his wife, or how he thought about his son's development) I was not sure if he was teasing or serious in his descriptions. Sometimes he was a deeply misunderstood, astute and thoughtful author. At others I felt like a robot was describing how his programming led to certain actions. I was not sure if this was intended to be funny (because it really was) or symptomatic of Asperger's. This observation of his disparity in writing style is not intended as a criticism. The change in voice was engaging and usually hilarious.

Overall, Robison's book was funny, thought provoking and very difficult to put down. Whether you are interested in Asperger's or not, this is a delightful read.