#1 - As I Lay Dying by William Faulkner

I started my 2013 goal a little early.  I'm blogging my first book review of my 100 books goal :)  I don't care that it's a few days early...I'm reading 100 books, give me some slack.  So, here it goes...

I've read a lot of reviews on this book.  They basically state that Faulkner is not an easy read and this book is difficult to understand.  I went into the book with this in mind.   Faulkner is not the easiest to read and parts of this book were difficult to understand.

One of my reading pet peeves is an author writing as someone would speak.  Example: ere = even, outen = out and, hisn = his and.  I understand it's for effect, but it bothers me and my interpretations may not even be right.  This book has A LOT of that.  They are simple country folk, and Faulkner makes them sound like the simplest of the simplest.

The book is broken out into chapters narrated by the main characters.  The premise is the mother of a country family has passed on.  The father has promised that she would be buried with her kin in a city a few miles away.  The mother was placed in a homemade casket of pine and put onto the back of a mule-pulled wagon.  For over 9 days the family struggled to get the deceased to the city.

NINE DAYS.

A fun-filled adventure did not ensue.  It was a trying time for all involved.  There was flooding, injury, madness, arson, selfishness and female troubles.  The best chapter of the entire book came from the deceased's point of view.  It made, at least to me, the rest of the book ironic. And perhaps that was what Faulkner was trying to do.  Or maybe not.  I'm still trying to interpret the most famous line from this book "My mother is a fish."

In full disclosure, I read this book because it's always on the "must-read-before-you-die" list.  I feel like people who say this is their favorite book is either pretentious or a PhD in Literature.  No one can love this book.  I did find myself shaking my head at the last line.  Apparently Faulkner had the last line in mind when he wrote the book.  It was effective.

So, should you read it?  Sure, it's Faulkner!  Are you going to love it?  I doubt it.  But hey, you can say with pride "I read As I Lay Dying by William Faulkner."  Now please tell me what "My mother is a fish" means...

Wonder by RJ Palacio (aka, my first review)

January 1, 2013 I officially start my goal of reading 100 books in one year.  I’ve been gearing up for the event by creating my list and trying to come up with a strategy for reading so many books!  My list is tentative, as I know new books will be published that I’ll be dying to read.  I have some ‘empty’ spots as well for book club picks.  In doing some research about ‘must read books’, I came across a 2012 release titled Wonder by R.J. Palacio.

As an adult in her mid 30s, I rarely - if ever - read juvenile fiction.  With the exception of Harry Potter, the last time I read a children’s book was when I was actually a child.  Even Young Adult books have a hard time grasping my full attention.  But this book was different.

This book had me hooked from the very first page.  August Pullman was born with severe facial abnormalities.  As Auggie puts it, “whatever you’re thinking, it’s probably worse.”  He’s of middle school age and has always been homeschooled.  With a medical condition that warrented multiple surgeries in early childhood, it made sense.  However, mom has taught him as much as she could.  It’s time to go to school.  A real school.

Imagine middle school as the new kid.  Terrifying, right?  Imagine middle school as the new kid with an abnormality.   The cruelty of children can be astounding, but so can their kindness.  This is why the book resonates so deeply with me.  I wasn’t different and I wasn’t teased.  But I witnessed it happen on many occasions and my heart ached for them.  I’m a sensitive artist type, my heart breaks for a lot of reasons.  But with everything going on these days from shootings to bullying, this type of book is must read material.  Empathy.

This book has several narrators and they each bring their own different perspectives.  Auggie: a child wise beyond his years.  Via: Auggie’s older sister who starts her own life anew as a high school freshman. Jack: a young man who befriends August, but not without some bumps in the road.  Summer: a free spirit who befriends Auggie and doesn’t want to grow up too fast.   Justin: Via’s first high school boyfriend, who is a natural talent, and a very caring young man.  Miranda:  Via’s ex-best friend whose secret is both embarrassing and crushingly honest.

You follow these main characters through a very challenging time in their lives.  At these vulnerable ages, you’re still trying to define yourself.  Figure out who your real friends are.  Make new friends.  Balance new friends and old friends who may not get along.  On top of that, you may have to hear insults like “nerd”, “ugly”, “different”, “fat”, “insert label here”, etc.  Perhaps there is a support system at home.  Perhaps there is not.  These characters all have their own inner struggles.  Hearing these struggles  from their perspective makes this book stand out.  You understand exactly where they are coming from; because let’s face it, we’ve all been there before.  You laugh when they laugh.  You cry when they cry.  

This book truly is a wonder.

Looking towards 2013

Wow, well, it's...um... been awhile.  I last posted in July and a lot has happened since that time.  I graduated in August with my MLS.  I left my insurance job.  I now work part time in two different libraries (one is rural; one is suburban).  I also volunteer at the city library.  A full-time position has opened up at one of these libraries, and I put my name in the hat.  I'm waiting to hear about an interview.  Anyway, so that's an abbreviate update.

This blog was meant to get me back on the horse.  I know I've slacked big time on updating my blog. A current and consistent blog is something I should have, especially as an aspiring librarian.  And now, I'm setting my sights on 2013.  For the remainder of 2012, I'm going to blog once a week.   This is just to get me into the habit.  In 2013, I'm not going to do anything crazy like blog everyday.  No.  That would be boring.  I have given myself a goal to read 100 books in 2013.

WHAT?
I KNOW!
HOW?
IMPOSSIBLE!

Well, I'm going to try.  The goal is 100 books, but it doesn't specify what kind.  Children's, YA, Adult, mystery, comedy, bio....everything and anything.  And I'm going to blog my progress, my reviews, and my thoughts.  Hopefully I'll say something profound in one of these blogs.  I need followers...

So, there you have it.  My personal goal, out on the interwebs, for the whole world to see.  I will try not to let anyone down.  Including myself.

Sigh...

As everyone knows, yesterday was the Fourth of July.  I woke up on the early side and did what I haven't been able to do in almost a year...  read a book, for pleasure, for over two hours.  SIGH....  It felt so amazing to just lounge on the chaise and read, read, read.  I missed it.  I wanted to cry.  In fact, I did have a few tears in my eyes.  

I haven't been able to concentrate on a book since I started down my library science path.  I've been reading the same Neil Gaiman book for about a year (American Gods, if you're interested).  I'm looking forward to having some free time.  I'm looking forward to reading.  I'm seriously interested in finding new authors.  I have a habit of finding a book I love and reading everything by that author in succession.   

If anyone has any suggestions, I'm open to them.  In five weeks, I'll have all the time in the world :)  I also would love to follow some reputable blogs that review books.  Again, suggestions are welcome. 

I'm Gearing Up

It's late here in PA, at least late for me, and I've been gearing up for my media blitz.  In less than 7 weeks I will graduate with my MLS degree from Clarion University.  I am determined to find a job.

I hope with perseverance and a positive attitude I can land a job in my field.  I've been studying up on how to make my resume and cover letter sexy.  I've found some great ideas.  But incorporating those ideas into my resume takes time and unfortunately I count each minute I have.  I'm making time this weekend, though.  If I don't make the time, my dream job won't come true.

As I said, I'm gearing up for my full on media blitz.  I started with Twitter.  If you're interested it's ortenzio77.    I followed fellow librarians and many libraries, museums, archivists, and associations.  I need to keep up-to-date on what's going on in the information science world and network, network, network.  My next adventure is to beef up my Linked-In account.

You'll be seeing a lot more of me in the future; like it or not :)   This librarian is here to stay!

The Waiting

Is is the hardest part.  Tom Petty got this right.

I'm waiting for three things: 1. My final grades to be posted; 2. Vacation to start, and; 3. FOR IT TO STOP RAINING!  I usually love the rain, it makes Pennsylvania very green and luscious, but it has been too much.  I fall asleep to rain on the roof... and I wake up to rain on the roof.  It's gray, it's dull, and I loathe driving 50 minutes in it.  Because around here, people drive like assholes when it rains.

Back to the waiting.

I'll find out my final grades on Thursday, but I think my 4.0 has been compromised.  My cataloging class ended with a 88.  Unless my prof decides to bump me to 89.5, my perfect record is gone.  But oh well, 3.8 overall ain't bad either.

Vacation starts Saturday and I cannot wait.  Hopefully I'll have some funny and amusing stories to tell.  I haven't really spent a lot of time on here writing about my days.  It's mostly about obtaining my goal, which I guess right now is my days.

anyway...

The only fun and interesting thing I can say right now is that a friend and I have been throwing out ideas for a book.  We plan on writing it together, a collaborative effort - that was a obvious statement, and I'm keeping it here to punish myself for saying something so duh.   But we have some great ideas right now and we just need to get pen to paper....or keystrokes to virtual paper, really.

well, i'm running out of time.  off to work...

Finals Week

Just a boring ol' post for me this morning...

Today marks the start of finals week.  I have two papers due and one final.  Surprisingly, I'm not freaking out.  At least not yet.

This semester was probably the most challenging, but also the most informative.  I had no 'Intro to' classes, so everything was more in depth.  I also had more projects and papers.  Cataloging is challenging.  That I learned the hard way.

I finish this week up and can relax for 5 weeks, then onto my summer courses.  Once August 9th rolls around, I can call myself a librarian.  In theory I guess, since I don't have a librarian position yet.  However, I'm working furiously to rectify that!