A List To Pass The Time by Dave and Joe

We like to make lists.  It can be a sickness, really.

This one is about books that made an impact on us. It started as "books that changes our lives" and became more like "books that changed how we feel about books." I'll just call it "books that made an impact."  Although there will be some overlap for top-books-ever lists we've made, these lists include some surprising entries.

We each picked 10 independently.  Our lists are below and include only two overlaps (one of them being The Watchmen, which gives me a reason to post this trailer!).

Fathers, Sons, and Why Men Suck

I've run through a few books without posting, so I'm coming back to a couple of them, for a quick blurb. Also, BONUS MOVIE REVIEW!

Washington by Ron Chernow- When Washington died at the end of this book, I was hit with a wave of melancholy. Joe, as my record-keeper of historical feelings (an important, if unpaid, job), pointed out that I was also sad when Lincoln died while reading Team of Rivals (still #1, btw). That is true, but the emotions came from different places. When reading Lincoln's death, I couldn't help thinking about how much he went struggled, how many people were against him at various points of his presidency, and then how his life was ripped away right when all the work was finally paying off. Washington's passing, on the other hand, came when the job was essentially done, as far as George went.

Plans, Notes, and Randomness

An update of where we are at, book related and otherwise.....

• The final Big Book of the YEAR OF THE BIG BOOKtm has been decided. Starting on Oct 1st, Joe and I will begin reading Gravity's Rainbow by Thomas Pynchon. I bought my copy today, and will finish my Civil War trilogy by the end of September. That may be a stupid promise to make, but stupid promises are what we are all about here. The other 3 (2???...1????) members are welcome to read Pynchon with us, all we ask is that you finish it by the end of the year. BOOM executive decision made.

Infinitely Impactful

Infinite Jest will eventually invade any reader.  If you stick with this book (and I realize that is asking a lot), there will be a point when David Foster Wallace will infiltrate your being.

That moment came for me when a drug addict gave birth to a faceless baby.  I received a warning, so I braced myself, but DFW had a talent for invasion of personal space.  This scene impacted me personally based on two cases of mine, and, much like his manipulative quiz/essay/mind-f#@k from Brief Interviews with Hideous Men, I felt abused afterward.