The books I read in 2005
I’ve read only a few books this year, since I’ve been so busy, but I figured it’d be neat to do a short review of each one that I was able to finish.
Eragon
Also known as Inheritance Book One, by Christopher Paolini.
Paolini, though only about sixteen when he wrote this book, has a great idea of story line. What I mean by this, is that the adventures of Eragon are fairly detailed, rich with all types of emotions, and feel very real. It’s hard to nail down Paolini’s specific style of writing, since I believe that his editors did most of the legwork on this book being he was so young (he did graduate high school at fifteen).
This book reminded me a lot of The Lord of the Rings by J. R. R. Tolkien, simply because the story takes place in a very “middle-earth” type of time period and geographic locations. There are elves, dragons, and dwarves - which also lends to the similarities.
I’m looking forward to reading book two which just came out late 2005, called Eldest.
Call of the Wild
Written by Jack London.
I’ve read this book a few times in my life, the first being when I was very young. When Eliza and I went to the Strawberry Festival in New York last year we stopped at a few garage sales, I was able to pick up a very early edition (not first) for only $1.
I’ve always loved this story, and the way that London tells it. The pace of the book is amazing, and - if you are a decent reader - the action of the book really flows very, very fast. Somehow reading this book again, in such an old hardcover version, makes it all the more enjoyable.
Sorry I don’t have a cover for this book, but I can’t find it anywhere online (the exact cover I have). I’ll have to take a few photos of this someday to get it online.
The Merchant of Venice
Written by William Shakespeare, edited by Louis B. Wright and Virginia A. LaMar.
I mention the editors because this isn’t an ordinary copy of The Merchant of Venice. This edition comes from The Folger Library, which includes detailed descriptions of everything within the screen play. This book contains double as many pages as the screenplay does, because the left-hand page always describes, in modern English, what is going on within the right-hand page. This really added to the experience of reading Shakespeare for me.
Being a screenplay made me read it like subtitles in a movie, very fun to read for sure. I actually ended up not finishing the very end of the book, since the movie was released on DVD at almost the same time - and I ended up watching that.
Napoleon
Written by Stanley Kubrick.
I was able to get a PDF version of Stanley Kubrick’s “best movie he never made”, Napoleon. Kubrick began writing this film very early on in his career. He poured countless amounts of money into research, counsel, and resources to make sure the screenplay was accurate. I know I am not alone when I say that I wish that he was able to make this movie.
Napoleon was one of those reads that you just can’t “put down” once you start. I finished it as fast as my eyes would allow, and I’m thinking of reading it again.
The way Napoleon was captured is really awesome. You can feel his tension, you can feel his pain, you can feel his glare when he is looking at someone in the story - and overall you can feel his patriotism and desire to succeed.
Those were the books I had the time to read this year, as I said, not as many as I would have liked to have read. I’ve just started a new book the other day, also a screenplay: Pygmalion by Benard Shaw. I’m only through Act II and this book is already becoming one of my favorites. I’ll probably write a review about this book specifically, but Shaw was very wrapped up in Phonetics as were his peers, which is why he wrote this book. To give a public view of the importance of Phonetics. This struggle reminds me very much of programming languages getting exposure online simply due to it being exposed by the proper people, not because its a superior language. Very interesting to compare.
Throw into this list every edition of MacWorld magazine, and you have a pretty good idea of what I read this year.
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Nice list. I’ve been reading a lot of books on Diane Arbus, my favorite photographer.
Dale Cruse on December 29th, 2005 11:13 am
Dale: Thanks. I look forward to branching out in 2006 a bit with my selections. I wouldn’t mind reading about real people, such as Arbus - I might just do that.
Colin D. Devroe on December 29th, 2005 12:14 pm
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I’ve been on a real reading kick lately. I recently read “A Hippo in the Garden”. I forget the author, but the book was about God speaking to us. The author says that God speaks to us all the time, most of the time we’re just not listening. Sometimes through dreams (and nightmares). Sometimes through other people. Sometimes, inside our spirits. Kind of cool to think that God wants to talk to me.
Bradley on December 29th, 2005 2:01 pm
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My biggest regret in 2005 was that I did not read a single book. How shameful is that??? Bring on 2006 I say.
Anthony on December 29th, 2005 7:18 pm
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It is amazing that Paolini wrote this book at only 16 years. At 16, my energy was funneled into constant argument with my parents about who should drive the family car; my brother or myself. I loved this book.
If you are looking for another book to read, I have one that I recommend highly.
The book is titled “The Fall of Lucifer”, written by Wendy Alec.
The book opens with the three Angelic brothers, Lucifer, Michael and Gabriel, in heaven before the fall. Over the course of the book, the essence of the angels is developed. The controversy arises when God created man to be higher than the angels, in that we are created in the image of God. Lucifer was embittered to the point of rebellion.
Various historical events are incorporated, and the plot offers the perspective of an angel into the events. The novel develops the beauty of heaven and the grotesque quality of hell, the depths of evil, and the beauty of grace. It communicates these themes through beautiful imagery and an intriguing plot. The beautiful imagery would make for amazing scenery!
This is a fast read, 300-page novel that is consuming to the imagination and penetrating to the heart. I hope they make this book into a movie. It would be amazing. If you have time, I hope you enjoy it!
Lin on January 5th, 2006 2:59 am
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The Lucifer book may be a bit much if you take into consideration the way we believe in things
Jacky and Robert Devroe on January 11th, 2006 7:40 pm
Lucifer book?
Colin D. Devroe on January 12th, 2006 2:37 am