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Tuesday, July 22, 2008

A note on books not finished

Recently I have had a little run of bad novel reading. Two of those books I read almost all the way through-- one sort-of sci fi and the other a 90s noir (which was just as awkward as that sounds). Both suffered from wooden dialogue and too much time inside uninteresting characters' heads. Why do I waste my time on these things when I have a million other books at my disposal, some just steps away in my cluttered bookshelves or in one of the numerous piles on the floor?

I used to think I could only have an opinion on a book if I read it all the way through. In the imaginary cocktail party of my collegiate nightmares, not only am I naked, I am out-litted too. Now that I realize that most cocktail parties require only a black dress and good balance, it is still somehow hard for me to give up on a book, no matter how wretched it is.

These books certainly helped me continue to get over that ridiculousness.

Luckily, because of MoCCA, I have been reading incredibly great comics. I rarely write about single issues here. Should I?

On top of that, a trip to a small bookstore on Court St. in Brooklyn netted three books that should be good reads, all for under $10.

5 comments:

Anonymous said...

Every time I abandon a (horrible) book I feel like I need to explain, "I never leave books unfinished..." or "I always finish the books I start, but..." But, if a book is bad, why feel do I obligated to see it through?

I gave up on one just the other day. There I said it! On to the next one!

Carrie said...

I know! Why the reluctance? Do we want people to think we stuck with crappy things just to see them through? Strange message...

LOOKA said...

I get the feeling you wouldn't hit hard without a reason, but somehow I'm hesistant of sending you a collection of my comic shortstories I'm working on at the moment...

Ah whatso, good critisism is better than lame acceptance!

Carrie said...

Lame acceptance is not allowed in tryharderland!

One can feel free to send me whatever, but I don't always have time to (or care to) give in depth criticism; editing is something I get paid for.

For buddies, and you can include yourself, Simon, I do what I can.

LOOKA said...

Thank you for regarding Carrie -

I know, I know working don't work when it's for free - I was just flashing some insecurities...hehe

The professionalism here (and I like the clean cuts you take on the books, 'cause I don't want bored time spent in my shelves either) comes with an easy nonchalance that gives your writing easy access.