Friday, May 16, 2008
Big Fish by Daniel Wallace
Ok, so let me start off by mentioning where I first heard about this book...or movie, I should say. It was a few years back during my humanities class (the very one in which I met Jake). Our instructor was somewhat of fruit loop. She had just gone to see the movie with her husband and absolutely hated it because it dealt solely with a father-son relationship (she was very Feminist). So, of course, I had to go and watch the movie to see what all the fuss was about. I rather liked the movie, just one of many things I did NOT have in common with this instructor. :P Plus, its a Tim Burton film...how can you go wrong?!
So recently I was browsing my favorite bookstore, the one that is just down the street from my new apartment, and I came across the Big Fish. Admittedly, I did not know the movie had been a book prior. It was on sale, so I scooped it up on my way to check out. As I neared final season of school, I wanted to read something light, fun, and entertaining. Big Fish fulfills all these expectations. It is a quick read and easy to pick up, read a few excerpts, and set down until you have time to pick it back up again (which sometimes expanded into weeks for me). It is about a father-son relationship, and the ups and downs that goes along with it. The father is on his death bed and his son is re-living all of the stories that his father has told him throughout his life. The son reflects that several times, when he has wanted to have a serious heart-to-heart with his dad, he instead hears a joke or tall tale. However, instead of being resentful and angry, the son accepts his father for what he is, bad jokes and all. Overall, this was a delightful read, and of course, I now want to watch the movie again!
God Bless You Dr. Kevorkian by Kurt Vonnegut
So this was an interesting choice for my first Vonnegut. This book of small excerpts Vonnegut did for a New York Radio station. He allows himself to go under with the help of Jack Kevorkian in order to go to heaven and have short interviews with various individuals ranging from Hitler to Shakespeare to a random constructor worker who died to save his schnauzer from an angry pit bull. Vonnegut's writing is witty, sarcastic, and entertaining. It's a short, but wonderful read.
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