Currently Reading
Being an adult is great. You can eat whatever you want, stay up late, and not have to answer to anyone. You also get hangovers after having three beers. Womp womp. I'm not feeling super chipper this morning, but it was worth it to go see Sleater-Kinney last night at the 930 Club. DT's family is friendly with Carrie Brownstein, so we were able to get on the guest list for last night's show and it was awesome. It's really inspiring to see incredibly talented women rocking out to a sold out crowd. If only I was musically talented in any way. The crowd was into it, the band kicked ass, and I only wish it had gone on longer.
Revival by Stephen King - Revival follows the life of Jamie Morton, a small boy growing up in Maine, as he first meets and then subsequently keeps running into (or being drawn to?) Charles Jacobs, the new pastor in town. While not one of my favorite King books, I really can't complain about much. The story is engaging, if a little drawn out at times. Jamie is a likable character despite his flaws. Jacobs' story arc is odd, but makes more and more sense as the novel goes on. There are really good things in Revival, but it didn't quite capture me.
Dark Places by Gillian Flynn - I read Gone Girl a long time ago, so it felt like it was time to jump back into Gillian Flynn's work and I'm so glad I did. Dark Places follows Libby Day, now an adult woman, and the murder of her family when she was only seven years old. Her brother, Ben, has been in prison for the crime, but as Libby finds herself broke and desperate, she finds a group of morbidly obsessed fans who believe Ben is innocent. Did Ben do it? Was there someone else in the house that night? Libby begins to question her memories. Told through a mixture of current day detective work and flashbacks to the horrific day the murders took place, Dark Places is full of suspense. Gillian Flynn goes there (and by there I mean to the most fucked up places you can imagine) and I love that about her.
Raising Stony Mayhall by Daryl Gregory - The humanization or sexification of supernatural beings usually doesn't sit well with me (think Twilight, Warm Bodies, etc). Vampires, werewolves, zombies want to kill you, eat you, rip you apart. End of story. That being said, I really, really enjoyed Raising Stony Mayhall. During a blizzard one Iowa night, Wanda Mayhall sees a body by the side of the road. Getting out of her car to investigate, she finds a young woman, dead, but with her body wrapped around a baby. Wanda takes the baby, hoping that it can be saved. It is, but not due to any of Wanda's medical knowledge. The baby is a remnant of the zombie outbreak that occurred back East. Hiding him from the rest of the world, Wanda and her daughters take him in and raise him as one of them. There's so much more, capturing all of Stony's life as he navigates the world after he is forced to leave Iowa. It's a fascinating look at a potential crisis and its' management in a strange new world.
The Year of Magical Thinking by Joan Didion - I'm planning on doing a longer write-up on this book because it really hit me in a way that I probably should have expected, but didn't. But for now, let me just say, in the words of my mother, that Joan Didion can write the hell out of anything. She is incredibly talented, thoughtful, and a truly amazing writer. The Year of Magical Thinking is no exception. Written about the year following her husband's untimely death, Didion struggles with grief, with loss, with self-pity. If you have ever felt any of that, you should read this. She perfectly describes so many mundane moments, that are personal, but also universal. Her story is sad, moving, and powerful. I'm glad that I bought my copy so that I can turn to it again and again.
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