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.
No, my sadness at the passing of the father of our country was because, as another Washington reader told me a few months ago, "I didn't want the book to end. " I have read so much about Washington, by many other authors, but Chernow's book is the first to humanize George, to get through the "myth', and present him as the ambitious, type-A leader who could have been King in everything but name. He had the popular support AND the support of the army, and though that would have diminished had he attempted a monarchy/dictatorship, it's not hard to think of that movement succeeding. And he rejected it, didn't even give it a second thought. There are not many men who would have lived juggling supreme popularity with the difficulties of birthing a new government and not made a powergrab at some point. To his everlasting reputation, George Washington did everything he thought necessary, with as much of a sense of fairness and propriety as he could, and when it was time to step down....he stepped down. He wanted to step down. Do not belittle that, because there are not many people who could do the same, who could do the work until, and not before, it was done, and then stop at the right time. Honestly, I can't even tell you Lincoln would have done that, not with any conviction.
John Elway did, though. And that's pretty heady company to be in.
The Last Kind Words by Tom Piccirilli- Assigned to me, I really enjoyed reading the story of a family of cat burglars and grifters from Long Island, all named after Dogs and lead by the two brothers of the family; Collie, the brother who went to the "dark underneath" and committed a string of gruesome murders which he is awaiting death row for, and Terrier, the brother who left town right after the murders and is now back to see his brother's sentence and reconnect with the family. I loved that Piccirilli makes the characters feel appropriately fleshy, so that you like them even when they prove themselves unlikable. Understand, it's not a Robin-Hoodesque family that steals from the rich blah blah blah, they are thieves, working for themselves, and they have real vices and flaws: Terrier's reason for deserting the family is not so much the hideous crime by his brother, but more the miscarriage that his girlfriend suffers shortly after and his inability to deal with the loss.
As I was reading LKW, I thought back to another terrific book I have read this year: The Corrections by Jonathan Franzen. Both books portrayed families dealing with a lineage of mental illness, specifically the males of the families, though told in polarizing storytelling manners. (Franzen's book is a philosophical look at how modern America deals with it's problems {spoiler: not well}, and Piccirilli's is a more straightforward thriller where Collie enlists Terry to prove that one specific murder was committed by somebody else) Both throw the younger members of the family into a psychological guillotine, where some day, at some point, they will lose their minds. The tension created by knowing that there is an unreachable clock ticking down for you somewhere weighs on the readers in both books, and ups the anxiety of LKW as Terry tries to figure out who to watch, and who is watching him. I am not usually a mark for thrillers and mysteries, but I recommend anyone who is to read The Last Kind Words.
And now, the movie....
Brief Interviews with Hideous Men- Based on the David Foster Wallace book, which I have not read. But since, we are America's unofficial DFW blog, I should say something, right?
First of all, for a movie directed and written by Jim-from-The-Office, this is surprisingly good*. It's a total indie movie, done on the fly with little budget, but very well written (mostly) and with enough flair and kicks to feel like a David Foster Wallace creation. Yeah, I can say that having read one DFW book in my lifetime**. The movie is the journey of one female grad student's numerous interviews with random men to find out the aftereffects of Feminism on the male population, all while dealing with her failed relationship with an ex who cheated on her (Jim-from-The-Office!!!!!) And it's interesting how the disorienting problems of why-Men-are-such-assholes is boiled down to the insecurities and phobias of everyday life and interaction, even those not dealing with females***. Unfortunately, I was knocked off the rails at the end, when Jim-from-The-Office gives a long monologue explaining why he cheated. It's an impassioned, intelligently worded reasoning, but it's also stupid, annoying, and made not a lick of fucking sense. And I slowly realized that was probably what JfTO was going for, to present that men often use sledgehammer rationalizing to distance themselves from inexcusable decisions, but... I can not see past the haze of inept bullshit. Despite that, I would recommend the movie to anybody that is remotely interested in what I've said so far. If you like the ending (and based on the internet, many people do), then I will admit I was wrong and bid you the winner****.
*= Yes, I love The Office, and yes, I did not trust Jim to make a good movie at all, let alone one based off of a DFW book.
**= I am an expert now, America. Climb aboard or get the fuck out of the way
***= There is a section that Joe warned me felt like it had nothing to do with the rest of the movie. It's the interview with a black man, who is bitterly recalling his father's job as an old-school washroom attendant. Though he does not mention any relationships, or involvements with women, I argue that it was exactly in tune with the rest of the film, as being truly ashamed of what your father did when you were a child is exactly the kind of crippling emotional stunt that will hamper how you treat women.
****= HAHAHAHAHA....NO. I'm not going to do that. You are wrong.
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