Book 3 - A Visit From the Goon Squad

A Visit From the Goon Squad

by, Jennifer Egan

288 pages - 4.5 stars

If you're a fan of books (like I am), you've probably heard of Jennifer Egan. She kept popping up in various NPR podcasts talking about her newest book, A Visit From the Goon Squad, and at some point I added it to my Amazon wishlist (for the record, my Amazon wishlist is not for the faint of heart - I am constantly adding books to it and not remembering why) and then chose to purchase it for my Kindle App - not an insignificant feat given the number of books I weed through to choose one.

Not really remembering much about this book (or the author, for that matter), I went into the book without a lot of expectation... and was blown away. This was a book chosen for my commute (thus, the Kindle purchase) but it quickly sucked me in and I was reading it at home - on my phone. Nevertheless, the book pushed on and made me forget I was reading it on a 3.2 inch screen. It was really quite a wonderful book. I'll admit I'm a bit of a snob with books sometimes so an author's popularity can work against them in my mind - but I stand corrected with Jennifer Egan (on at least this book). The fanfare is warranted, the interviews reasonable - this book is really quite good.

Now, who should read this book? Well, the book chronicles a group of folks (punk fans) across multiple decades. Everyone is connected in some way (whether it be obvious or founded on the thinnest of hairs) and their stories merge and disconnect across the years in ways that alter others' course - or not. It's a wonderful portrayal of life in a way - some people "make it", some people don't; there are losers and victors, villains and victims; and each character is multi-dimensional so that one minute you're on board with them and the next, aghast at their decisions. You get sucked into the minutiae of their lives - because this book isn't really about grand events or anything like that; it's the story of multiple lives intersecting in various ways. Do you like music? Read the book. Do you like books? Read it. Do you like music and books? Stop reading this and go to the bookstore.

All that said, it's good. The characters are real and solid - you want to know what happens to them. You're invested in their lives and you're happy (or sad) with them. It's a real story with real people in it. I liked this book so much, I wanted to find people to give it to (Hi PVG!).

And, I guess I'm not alone, because A Visit From the Goon Squad won the Pullitzer Prize for fiction. Congrats Jennifer Egan, I'd like to see more!

Bob's Sandwich Challenge: Round 2

Happy Memorial Day Dear Readers! A very happy holiday found Nate and myself at Bob's Italian Food Imports once again for the resurgence of Bob's Sandwich Challenge. According to our pre-determined sandwich bracket, Round 2 found the mighty Meatball Parm facing off against the underdog Seafood Salad. Anticipating a win in favor of Meatball Parm, we camehome with a small Meatball Parm and only a roll of the Seafood Salad.

Though I don't want to spoil the results for you, I will tell you that the Meatball Parm was pretty delish - the meatballs are mighty and nicely browned, clearly homemade. I prefer a bit more sauce on my Meatball subs but this one wasn't hurting for much. The Seafood Salad too was pretty good. It surprised both of us when Nate actually finished off his half of the roll. From what I can tell, the Seafood Salad is comprised of some shredded "crab" (probably whitefish) with chunks of lobster and crab in a mayo dressing. They do a really good job of n

ot letting the seafood get overwhelmed by the mayo (as is always the risk) but the shredded "crab" was mostly distracting - not adding much to the sandwich expect bulk. The sandwich was much improved by the addiction of tomatoes, pickles, and hot peppers - adding the contract between salad and condiments that made both that much better.

I admit we'd both sort of written off the possibility of a Seafood Salad victory but it put up a fight.

In the end, we had to go the route of meat and cheese (shocking) as the Meatball Parm was pretty damn good.

The contenders:

Meatball Parm		Seafood Salad
Meatball Parm (cross)		Seafood Salad (cross)

Book 2 - The Aquariums of Pyongyang: Ten Years in the North Korean Gulag

The Aquariums of Pyonyang: Ten Years in the North Korean Gulag

By, Kang Chol-Hwan and Pierre Rigoulot

272 pages - 3.0 stars

After reading Nothing to Envy last year, I got on a bit of a North Korean non-fiction kick. I've got a stack of new books and started it all off with this book. The story of North Korea, the gulags, and all of the stuff that's been going down there is really interesting to me, especially given how little I knew about it before reading Nothing to Envy.

The Aquariums of Pyongyang was a bit different in style - more of one person's experience with and account of spending a decade in the prison camps of North Korea. It was an interesting perspective and did have details that Nothing to Envy didn't but I have to say that I didn't like it as much as Nothing to Envy. The story was very powerful and it was interesting to get a single person's perspective but I appreciated the journalistic style of Barbara Demick's book and the many interviews that were included in that.

If you're into personal accounts of terrible things (no judgement, just calling it like I see it!), this book is probably in your wheelhouse. If you're looking for more of a report on North Korea, I'd check out Nothing to Envy.

New Book Goal!

I know May seems like a little late in the game to introduce a 2011 book goal but here's the caveat - this isn't exactly a 2011 goal (mostly because it'll definitely take me longer than one year).

So where does one go when they've crushed 10,000 pages and blown 52 books out of the water (sometimes you have to toot your own horn)? I'm instilling a little bit of culture into this piece and focusing on nobel prize winners.

I've read a few books written by nobel prize winners in my day but I want to cover them all! In no particular order I will be working my way through all of the Nobel Prize winners in Literature. Just for the record, I'll be reading a book by EACH of the Nobel Prize winners, regardless of past books read. And since an author wins the prize based on his/her body of work, I'll be allowed to choose the book.

If you don't have all of the Nobel Prize winners committed to memory (ahem-me-ahem) check out the official stats here: All Nobel Prizes in Literature.

I'll keep you all posted as I read my way through the prizes - I hope you will join me!

Bob's Sandwich Challenge: Round 2... Er, Cake

I know what you guys are thinking. That looks like a cake, not a sandwich. You're very astute.

Nate and I are still pursuing the Bob's Sandwich Challenge but sometimes... the best laid plans and all that jazz. Yesterday, instead of heading into Medford for Round 2, we headed down to CT for some exciting family togetherness. An impromptu barbecue resulted in two very full people with no room for sandwiches.

The good news? I got an early birthday cake (funfetti is my fave - see above!) and we'll be ready for sandwiches next week.

Do not despair!

We Love Bookshelf Porn!

Okay, I know what you're thinking - what the F is Bookshelf Porn?

Well, dear readers, let me clear it up for you. Bookshelf Porn is a wonderful, magical tumblr blog (you know tumblr? home of -mostly- photo blogs with no real purpose except to entertain and delight?) that I have in my reader and that, no joke, brightens my day. The wonderful folks (folk?) over at Bookshelf Porn collate and aggregate the most wonderful images of books, bookshelves, and libraries from all over the world. Some of the images are actual photos and some are more artistic renditions or even simple "metaphorical" images that make you think of books.

Whatever your fancy, Bookshelf Porn is magnificent. Any good bibliophile (like yours truly) will drool over this blog.

And oh, they have a Twitter too. (Of course they do!)

Book 1 - Boy: Tales From Childhood

Boy: Tales From Childhood

by, Roald Dahl

176 pages - 3.50 stars

Is it just me or did everyone have an obsession with Roald Dahl when they were kids? Anyone? No? Alright. Well, for me, Roald Dahl books were amazing! Matilda, BFG, etc. I loved them all. In my adulthood, I've heard a lot more about Roald Dahl as a person and I don't think anyone will be shocked that he was a little weird, but that doesn't bother me. Weird is good, weird makes you not average.

Boy is the story of Roald Dahl's childhood which is appropriately weird and bleak but also comical in a way that you can see influenced his writing. I see the genesis of a number of his characters and it's a reminder that Dahl is from a different time. He feels contemporary to me but he really isn't. He was born in 1916 after all.

For anyone who is a fan of Roald Dahl, the book is a good read. It is a nice snapshot of his childhood and is extremely digestible. And if I can recommend it for nothing else (which is not the case), it did instill in me a brief obsession with travelling to Norway. Anyone care to join me?

Bob's Sandwich Challenge: Round 1

For those of you who don't know Nate (or me!) personally, you might not know how much sandwiches are loved in our household. I'll admit that Nate's love of sandwiches makes mine look trivial but still, sandwiches are pretty fantastic.And for those of you who didn't go to school in, live in, or work in Medford, MA, you might not be aware of the haven that is Bob's Italian Foods Imports. Bob's is amazing and authentic; with amazing food cooked on site, every type of olive you could want, a vast assortment of imported Italian goods and... the sandwich menu. OH, the sandwich menu.

In the new house (see: We Love.. the Journey?) we're even closer to Bob's than we were before and it's led to frequent visits and the birth of a fantastic idea.

I present to you, the Bob's Sandwich Challenge - a bracket style assessment of ALL of Bob's sandwiches to find the ultimate winner. Okay, I know what you're thinking - these kids have too much time on their hands - but seriously, the menu has 48 sandwiches on it. LOVE.

We started the tournie off last night by comparing the Italian Deli Combo with the Deluxe Imported Italian Combo (the rest of the pairings were determined at random by assigning numbers to each sandwich and then using a random integer generator). This round was fairly easy for us to determine - both Nate and I preferred the Deluxe Imported Italian Combo with it's 4 meats (compared to 3 in the Italian Deli Combo) and prosciutto (oh how I love thee). Future rounds will be trickier as Nate and my personal preferences come to light but it'll be interesting to see which sandwich wins out. Stay tuned for weekly battles.

For now, Round 1 goes to the Deluxe Imported Italian Combo.

Some pics:

Deluxe Imported Italian Combo	Italian Deli Combo
Deluxe Imported Italian Combo	Italian Deli Combo