4.07.2006

I like to think that I'm eclectic, but it may be that I'm just schizophrenic.

I looked around my bathroom today and realized that just about every usable inch of counter space was covered with books. And then I looked at the large Chinese urn sitting next to the bathtub and realized that the pile of books balanced precariously on top of it is almost taller than the urn itself. I keep books in the bathroom because the bathtub is, of course, the absolute best place in the world to read. At least, it's my location of choice after a long day. I'm in the middle of no less than six books at the moment, which is a little high even for me. And it's not so much the number that makes me think I'm crazy, but the various titles and genres. Here's what I'm reading:

The Bible (my one year Bible - I'm currently about 10 days behind, which is the most caught up I've ever been)
Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistlestop Cafe by Fannie Flagg (this is such a good cathartic book, because it's easy to read, but impossible for me to read without crying, on average, every other chapter)
Caddie Woodlawn by Carol Ryrie Brink (won the Newbery award in 1936. My mom spent my entire childhood trying to get me to read this book, and I never did. So I'm making up for it now...)
Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy (because I felt like I should. But I may have to postpone: we're past the time change, and Russian lit isn't really spring or summer reading. It's more like for fall or winter. In the dark. With bread and water. And no heat. And a gun at the ready for suicide when it gets too depressing to bear anymore.)
Women's Diaries of the Westward Journey by Lillian Schlissel (amazing stories of the Oregon and California trails. It's so crazy and a little heartbreaking to think that it used to take 6 to 8 months to get from Missouri to Oregon and now it takes 5 hours.)
The Biographer's Tale by A. S. Byatt (amazing author, but it's taking me FOREVER to get into this one)

That's the list at the moment. And there are three more books still in the bathroom that I've either finished or given up on. Time to do some cleaning up, I think. And if you need to find me, you know where I'll be.

2 comments:

the cowells said...

either the bathroom or the trunk of your car...

Melissa P. said...

Ok, the comment you made about Anna Karenina just cracked me up. So true!