What I'm Reading, What I've Read

The Lord of the Rings: Return of the Kings by J. R. R. Tolkien

I did it. I finally finished it. I started the series in June, and seven months later, I finished. I got burned out at the beginning of this book and had to take a long break, but I made it, and I’m so glad I did.

It took me so long that I couldn’t really give an accurate representation of my impressions anymore, but I will say I enjoyed it thoroughly, especially the part back in the Shire. It was wonderful for them to get to see how their experience had helped them grow. So few people get that. It made me feel like I had something to offer in the way of wisdom, and I don’t have any sort of experience! And I’m really excited for all the historic appendices in the back. Tumblr has helped me get a bunch of the base facts down enough through reiteration that I feel like I can actually follow a lot better than i would have been able to otherwise, and it’s interesting linguistically to watch the names evolve and change over time. (Especially since Tolkien never mentions it outright so I can make my own theories and see how they do.)

The Identity of Oedipus the King: Five Essays on the ‘Oedipus Tyrannus’ by Alister Cameron

These essays were, in my opinion, badly written. They were far too long, meandering and overstuffed with irrelevant information. I have no idea what any of the three I read were trying to prove. Also, he kept saying “I believe” or :at least in my opinion” which was not only distracting but made his arguments sound weak and half-hearted. I am not aware of Cameron’s standing in the academic community, but in the future I will avoid him in my research at all costs.

Sophocles and Oedipus: A Study of Oedipus Tyrannus with a New Translation by Philip Vellacott

The premise of this study is that Oedipus was aware of his identity as heir of Thebes all along, instead of discovering it during the action of the play. It’s really fascinating. Obviously, this isn’t a light read for most, as it expects you to be familiar with the action of the play, but as a translation is included that shouldn’t be a problem for anyone with due interest. If you are interested in this kind of thing, you should definitely give it a read.

Bartleby the Scrivener by Herman Melville

I didn’t like it. Maybe it’s just because I’ve been reading so much sci-fi lately that it was an abrupt transition into Melville. But I felt like the whole story was this brilliant build-up, then the ending was just a big huge NOPE. At first I thought it would be a touching story, that Bartleby was going blind or was illiterate or something they would overcome together. Then I thought Bartleby was going to be an automaton for quite a while. I mean, I enjoy a good character study as much as the next girl, but I wasn’t reading it like that because it seemed like such an event-driven story from the start. It was my first Melville, and while the writing itself was on a classic level, I don’t really believe the story was.

Ender’s Game by Orson Scott Card

I would consider this book a triumph within the science fiction genre. Most of the themes and tropes in the book have been around since the first science fiction story. Space stations, weird military training, insectoid aliens, the twist ending…in abstract it’s identical to the first science fiction short stories. But I never noticed that until after I had finished reading. The story and writing is so engaging that the fact I had read this story (in some form or other) a dozen times before wasn’t even noticeable beyond a subconscious familiarity that only enhanced the experience for me. Many sci-fi novels attempt this balance and fail, which is what makes this particular story so noteworthy. Especially since I enjoyed the book without particularly empathizing with any of the characters, which is generally a big thing for me when it comes to stories.

It’s Not Me, It’s You! by Jon Richardson

I read this book in one day. Granted, it was a Sunday, and the book is only 300 pages, but still. It’s not a memoir as is popular now, but a creative nonfiction weekend spent with Richardson inside his own head. His elegantly and hilariously expressed views are what I can only describe as pessimistically hopeful, and just make you want to make the world and yourself a better place, even if you don’t agree with him. This is a book that makes you ache with the beauty of the world around you even though that’s not what it really talks about. Or maybe that’s just me. There are some things that as you read you just become more aware of the world’s muchness, not because of what it’s about, but something grander that the author gave it. This is one of those books for me. This has gotten a bit nonsensical but I really, really enjoyed this book. And don’t let my mawkish effusions fool you - it was really very funny.

Clockwork Angel by Cassandra Clare

This book had the potential to be great. It did not fulfill that potential, but it possessed it. The story was interesting, some of the plot twists were clever, and the dialogue was very funny at times, if a bit ostentatious everywhere else. And honestly, the things I dislike about the book are entertaining enough that they were in themselves great fun. The metaphors and imagery were immature and clumsy. the attempts to establish the time frame (which is the 1870s) are superficial, and the author fails to present the views of the day in a well thought out fashion. There are too many undeveloped fantasy aspects. The romance was predictable from the first introductions. The continuity errors and prose are so obvious it’s very little effort to pick them out. The writing of this book was a trainwreck, but in the end I enjoyed lightheartedly mocking the problems more than I did the vapid and cliched melodrama. In summation, this book was like a good B-movie: The good parts were good, but the bad parts were amazing. Definitely worth a read for the fantasy fan and the lit snob both.

The Two Towers by J. R. R. Tolkien

The Two Towers is every bit as amazing as the first book. I have to admit, I got a little lost in some of the descriptions, but I’ve never been one for descriptions anyway. When the action came I got so sucked in that it more than made up for any previous lapse of attention. It doesn’t hurt that the end is filled with Sam, who being my favorite character can only leave a favorable impression.

The Fellowship of the Rings by J. R. R. Tolkien

This is not the first time I’ve read this book, but it will be the first time I finish the Trilogy. I got halfway through the second book when I was small, but I wasn’t enjoying it anymore because I couldn’t keep any of the names straight so I quit. I think it was the right decision; you shouldn’t read something you don’t enjoy, ever, and now I can read the rest of it without connotation.

This time around, I was better able to follow the flow of the story-telling. Which was magical. Also when I was little I would skip the poems, which I see now contributed to my confusion. And, I admit, a little bit of plot foreknowledge helps as well. I’m remembering things well enough to think “Ah, yeah, I loved this part!” or “Hey, isn’t he important later?” but not enough that it’s all spoiled. This is probably all a little incoherent because it’s 3 am here, but the book was wonderful, and I can’t wait to get to the point in The Two Towers where I stopped before so it really is a brand new adventure.

The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larsson

I started this book with…careful expectations. It had so much hype. My opinion of it after reading is much the same. It was a good story, once it started going. Funnily enough, the things I liked about the beginning of the book were my least favorite parts by the end, and vice versa. In the beginning, the story seemed slowed because there was so much financial background crap he throws at you, and I probably would have put it down if Lisbeth hadn’t shown up in time. By the end I was hooked on the story but getting bored with Lisbeth’s lack of character development. I take this as a sign of mediocre writing on a 7 or 8 out of 10 story.