Here is what is currently on my reading pile. And all of them were new additions to that never-ending pile.
The first book I finished was Code for Failure: A Gas Station Novel by Ryan W. Bradley. This book was based on a recommendation from Ben at Dead End Follies. I had never heard of this author before. And there was a good reason this was his first novel. It was also time to read something that was “off the radar” for a change. This is a story of young man who through failures ended up by chance working a gas station. I think many of us can relate to sense of dread we get from a job that is needed for the only purpose of paying bills. I think we can all draw from these jobs to make observations on people and circumstances. This book avoids what I have seen in a lot of first time authors which is lots words and over description of things. Each chapter is only a page or two so each one is concise. The plot as a result of this structure seemed to me to be of meandering pace. It was later on I realized that the main character to this book is also meandering through his life. He does not realize he is searching for that “unknown sparkplug” that will be the catalyst to moving forward.
It is a good read for those trying to find “meaning to this job”.
This book also made me think of what I can draw from in regards to my own employment history. And that is enough for a future posting.
Some readers may think a book must contain almost every word in the dictionary. Sometimes “condensed and precise” language makes a work a better read. He may be in another genre but the late author Robert B. Parker used the same technique in his work. I liked his Spenser series. It is a good example of simple structure and good dialogue used together to make interesting and deep characters along with gripping plots.
The second book came to me from the site LitReactor. There was posting list the works of Douglas Coupland. I had read his first book Generation X: Tales of An Accelerated Culture when it was released back in 1991. It was the “buzz” book being publicized by magazines like Spin. It was the book that would “define” the generation. I was young at the time and was looking for a definition to my generation that would be more realistic than that of the mainstream media. I liked the book for the time but it really did not stick with me over time. The part that did was the various “Neo-Logos” used throughout the book. The book did not define my generation but then it was hard to when I have never met anyone who has read the book or even heard of it. This is not to be a “slam” on the author. Just my circle at time has never been broad in the literary field. It is also something I realize now that with all the media outlets that there will never be that overall “voice of the generation” again. However, I am beginning to suspect there never really has been “one” for any generation. Plus defining yourself within a generation “as a whole” is like being asked to be “paint with a broad brush”. That method avoids the specifics of your “own being”.
I was reading the list and thought I should give this author another shot.
This is the book I am currently reading. It is the story of high school shooting as told by four different characters. I know I wanted to get away from the “dark world at an end” scenarios. However, the premise of this book intrigued me. It is a very touchy subject. I like a “risky” story for a premise. Plus there are times when you want to see how a writer gets out the “tricky situation” or how they really “get into it”. Each of the four characters narrates their own chapter. This is another example of using various “Points of View” to tell the story over a period of 15 years.
I finished the first chapter. Here is a bit of preview. The first chapter is written from the view of Cheryl who is a victim of the shooting narrates her own death. She is a church going girl secretly married to her boyfriend. The chapter is about how she is wrestling with “faith” along with “life and death” even from beyond. I know this type of character is handled as just a “stereotype” in many books and films. So far that handling is not in this book. I hate when writers embrace “stereotyping” characters. I see it so many times in movies. It is just a “lazy mentality” to create with.
And finally, the next book I will be reading.
Nick Cave is a“voice” people should get more familiar with. He is one of the best songwriters too many people have “never heard of”. He wrote the screenplay for the movie The Proposition. It may take place in the Australian Frontier. It is one of the best of the “westerns” out there. I had read his book And the Ass Saw the Angel many years ago. (This might be one of those “to be read again” selections for “The Pile”) His writing is like his music. It does not “hold your hand”. It goes for “The Throat”. (Listen to the albums Henry’s Dream, The Murder Ballads, or Live Seeds)
Plus I like people who do not want to be “pigeon holed” in their work in order to create it.
By the way.
Always looking for more book recommendations.
And let me know if you have checked out any of these books.
I have to close this post with a song from Nick Cave. Or two.
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