Currently Reading...

• A Massive Swelling : Celebrity Re-examined as a Grotesque Crippling Disease and Other Cultural Revelations by Cintra Wilson

Synopsis, courtesy of Donna Sherman at the American Library Association: Warning: do not read this book at a wake, on a precipice, or with a full bladder. Unless you're a humorless fan of Cher, Michael Jackson, Barbra Streisand, or Mick Jagger, Wilson's turbo, heat-seeking essays about fame, the bane of our commodified culture, will induce bent-double, breathless laughter. A columnist for Salon and the San Francisco Examiner, Wilson, a latter-day Dorothy Parker without the self-hate, writes about the psychoses the lust for fame induces in the stars, their fans, and countless pathetic wanna-bes. In writing about boy bands, like the New Kids on the Block, Wilson reports on the disturbing fan mail they receive from women old enough to be their mothers. Excessive cosmetic surgery in pursuit of perfect bodies elicits blisteringly hilarious commentary on the likes of Courtney Love and Celine Dion. Smart, supercharged, ethical, and talented, Wilson also takes on the ersatz worlds of the Oscars and Las Vegas, and the malignancy of racism and sexism in Hollywood.

Comments: Being, well, ME, I was initially drawn to this book because of it's pop culturesque cover. I know, I know. They say "don't judge a book by it's cover," but I can't help it. I do. Anyway, once I found out what the book was about and read the entire title, I knew I would enjoy it. And I am! A really fun read so far, I know this will be one of those books I'll keep in my collection and recommend to friends.

• Encyclopedia of an Ordinary Life
by Amy Krouse Rosenthal

Synopsis, courtesy of Daphne Durham: Rosenthal has collected a lifetime of thoughts, observations, and decisions, and created an alphabetized personal encyclopedia, complete with cross-referenced entries and illustrations. Rosenthal reveals the minutiae of her life, from pumping gas ("Every. Single. Solitary. Time I go to get gas I have to lean out the window to see which side the tank is on"), to witnessing her son's accident ("I saw with front-row-seat clarity, just how quickly, randomly, and mercilessly your child can be taken away"), and engages the reader in effortless and stimulating conversation.

Comments: A friend of mine recently sent me this book (thank you very much!). Written on a postcard inserted inside were the words "You could do better than this!" And you know what? I could! Don't get me wrong, the book is a lot of fun to read and is well organized, but after a few pages I can't help but think "Why didn't I think of doing something like this?" It's totally something, had I had the forethought...dedication...wherewithal, that I could have written myself. It inspires me to want to give writing a book a chance, just to see what I'd come up with. Unfortunately, I've convinced myself that I can't be "truly creative" until I acquire one of those (now defunct) Tangerine iBooks. Lol. Sad, ain't it? The things (read 'excuses') that hold us back. My justification is that if I had one, I could take it with me and write whenever the mood strikes. Oh the crazy things I convince myself of.