Reading is Fun(damental) …best joke ever!

Lately I’ve been trying to stem my television addition with some real life book readin’. I mean, I will never let go of my first love, that flickering screen full of drama and ridiculousness, as I have laundry to fold and drafts to write and I can’t do that while immersed in a good book. But for those relaxing moments, I’ve been trying to get my brain back into reading mode. Which, let’s face it, is good and bad. There is a reason most television shows are only a half an hour to an hour long. Because I NEEDZ ZZZZZZs! I have this problem with books where I get a teeny, tiny bit obsessed with what will happen next and then BOOM it’s 2 a.m. and I have to get up in three hours and I spend the next day looking about 110 years old with a mainline drip of iced coffee. (This recipe, in case you’re wondering.)

Back to the point, what I’ve been reading! About two weeks ago I finished The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern.

This book was a perfect transitional one for me, since I’ve spent most of my reading time in the last year reading about vampires and children fighting to the death. Seriously, get a life, weirdo! This book was finally one not written with 13 year olds in mind, and even though it had a touch of supernatural craziness, it was more of a mystery/drama. And also, no one sparkles. So there’s that.

Some favorite passages:

The circus arrives without warning. No announcements precede it, no paper notices on downtown posts and billboards, no mentions or advertisements in the local newspapers. It is simply there, when yesterday it was not.

Hector Bowen takes his daughter’s face in his gloved hand, scrutinizing her expression for a moment before releasing her, his fingers leaving long red marks across her cheeks. “You might be interesting,” he says. The girl does not reply.

While he cataloged each element of the circus in shaky handwriting, he could not manage to record his encounter with the red-haired girl. He never told anyone about her. He looked for her at the circus during his two subsequent visiting during proper nighttime hours, but he had not been able to find her.

They think it is simple to pit any two people against each other. It is never simple. The other person becomes how you define your life, how you define yourself. They become as necessary as breathing. Then they expect the victor to continue on without that.

This book is complex and layered and even when you think you understand it all, you don’t. It was a good one, highly recommended.

And now for something completely different!

Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me? (And Other Concerns) by Mindy Kaling is a perfect, quick read. It’s in the same realm as Tiny Fey’s Bossypants, but written for a younger crowd. Her ruminations on being a comedy writer, girlfriends, boyfriends, family and growing up a bit of a nerd were seriously funny. I hear she is writing her own pilot, and I can bet it will be hilarious. I’m sure she will be using that as a blurb for her next book. “Hilarious!” – A random blogger no one cares about

Some quoteables:

From Best Friend Rights and Responsibilities:

I Can Borrow All Your Clothes – Anything in your closet, no matter how fancy, is co-owned by me, your best friend. I can borrow it for as long as I want. If I get something on it or lose it, I should make all good faith attempts to get it cleaned or buy you a new one, but I don’t need to do that, and you still have to love me.

I Must Be 100 Percent Honest About How You Look, But Gentle – Your boyfriend is never going to tell you that your skirt is too tight and riding up too high on you. In fact, you shouldn’t have even asked him, poor guy. He wants to have sex with you no matter how pudgy you are. I am the only person besides your mom who has the right (and responsibility) to tell you that.

I Will Try to Like Your Boyfriend Five Times – That is a fair number of times to hang out with your boyfriend and withhold judgement.

I Will Hate and Re-Like People for You – But you can’t get mad if I can’t keep track. Robby? Don’t we hate him? No, we love him. Okay, okay. Sorry.

No Two People Are Better Than Us – We fucking rock. No one can beat us.

Also, this little gem, that I want to print out on fancy letterpress and frame for all of my married friends:

My parents get along because they are pals. (Note: they are pals, not best friends. My Mom’s best friend is her sister. A best friend is someone you can talk to ad nauseam about feelings, clothing and gossip. My dad is completely uninterested in that.)

YES! YES YES YES!!! I’ve always cringed a bit when people describe their husband as their best friend. I get the sentiment, and I think it’s really awesome if that’s the truth, but for me, a best friend is someone TOTALLY different than a lover/partner/husband/wife. And now that I’ve been validated by Mindy Kaling, successful writer and actress, I will assume everyone should agree with me. You’re welcome.

Anything you’ve been reading lately? I am currently a few pages into some crappy Nicolas Sparks book I purchased solely on the fact that the movie stars Zac Efron and as has been mentioned here before, I’m totally creepy when it comes to La Efron. Save me! There’s got to be something better.

Editor’s Note: The Nook/Kindle movement seems to be great for books and reading in general, but is not so good when you finish your last novel and have had a glass or two of wine and see a movie commercial on TV and think, “THAT LOOKS SO ADORABLE I HAVE TO READ THE BOOK!” and then the next day you want to throw yourself off a bridge because it’s so awful. Damn you, instant gratification!