Cafe Hitch-hike

2004-04-26

Book Selection

When I'm fatigued, I read to relax. Alright, that doesn't make much sense. It's during those times I'm too tired to do anything and too jumpy to sleep that I find reading is the best remedy.

I've had such a superbly productive day that I'm going to spend my last half hour dinking around on the computer and letting everyone know about the world of a librarian!

Since I have free roam of this great library, I have picked these titles:

The Outsiders, by S.E. Hinton. This is a classic story of battles between rich and poor teens. Oh, was it moving. It's told by Ponyboy, the young brother of a group of poor.

Maus, Pt. I & II, by Art Spiegelman. This is a graphic rendition of a holocaust survivor as told through his son. The most chilling part of the book was what Art's psychiatrist said about survivors and those killed:

"So, you ADMIRE your father for surviving?...Then you think it's admirable to survive. Does that mean it's NOT admireable to NOT survive?... Yes, life always takes the side of life and somehow the victims are blamed. But it wasn't the BEST people who survived, nor did the best ones die. It was RANDOM (original emphasis)." (Page 45, Maus, Pt. II).

Skyscraper: A Novel, by Zane. Picture it: modern day Washington DC, the cat fights and power struggles in a luxury car company. This novel is part comedy, soap opera, and soft porn. I cracked up in a few spots in this story aimed to an African American audience (but hey, anyone's welcomed to read). Ultimately, I don't think this book will make the world a better place, but it will give a few laughs and maybe jollies in the process. Other of Zane's titles include Nervous, Addicted, Chocolate Flava, and The Sisters of ADF: The Indoctrination of Soror Ride Dick.

Still life with Woodpecker, by Tom Robbins. Tom Robbins is zany, out-there, and a bit of a contortionist story-teller. This story marks the adventures of an environmentally aware princess who meets and falls in love with a Jimmy Buffett/Unabomber kind of guy.

I've gotten more conservative on my book selections and don't choose as aggresively as I used to. See, since the library doesn't serve the intellegensia of Wayne County, I've been told to pick titles that aren't too academic or intellectual. It pisses me off because we get college students who do their homework here, and sometimes people want or need to read a book past 8th grade reading level! People can get something out of those! I select my share of "______ for Dummies" books, I'd like to think the readers deserve a little more!

I also select award-winning titles. The Lambda Book Awards will be announced soon, but gee, we probably won't get books like those if I select them! They are about gay and lesbian themes! And we certainly don't have any of those in this community, now, do we? That's what the head book selectors seem to think! We don't have gays, smart people, Spanish-speaking adults, Asians who want to read stories about themselves, or people who want to be challenged, right??? Agh!

I read some other books (oh, yes, Nicholas Spark's A Walk to Remember, how charming!! I know I've read other's but the end of my shift is near.

Later, and happy reading!

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