The year 2010 saw my total number of books read drop again for another year, and I really don’t have much excuse for it. Video games have something to do with it, as does an inconsistent work schedule, but one factor that shouldn’t go ignored is the simple fact that I’ve simply become a pickier reader throughout the last few years. Tired am I, of the repetitive drivel from authors that are Korean, British, gay, over-the-top chick-lit, or any combination of the above. I still don’t have much interest in collections of short stories, nor have I been financially capable of going to Borders and taking random leaps of faith with books with questionable reputation this year. All this being said, I still completed 17 books in 2010, but looking back at the list of things I read, I’m a little disappointed in some of the things I’ve allowed myself to waste my time reading. Nonetheless, as is the norm, bringing in the new year, is the list and brief reviews and overall rating of all the things I read in the previous year.
Word Made Flesh
by Jack O’Connell
LOSS – This book was absolute rubbish. It started off hauntingly and captivating, but it was all downhill from there. This has the dubious task of being the oldest of the books I read this year, meaning the least freshest on my memories, but it’s basically about a former cop-now-taxi driver, who does a lot of bullshit, while people are getting skinned and/or murdered around what is I guess a transitional time period in the New England area. Without question, this was one of the most difficult books I’ve ever had to struggle through in my entire life. Already in a pile of books prepared to be donated (read: gotten the fuck out of my house).
The Total Money Makeover
by Dave Ramsey
LOSS – This book was actually a “gift” from my brother-in-law, whom like most of my family, can’t really seem to comprehend my financial situation, and often assume that I’m scraping through life. I know that I didn’t make a whole lot of money in 2010, but the truth of the matter is that I still managed to stay out of debt throughout the entire year, and kept myself afloat without going into the red. Suffice to say, I was a little insulted at the gift, but as gesture of respect to family, I read it anyway. Conclusion is that apparently if I wrote down my methods, I would’ve been on the cover of this book instead of this hack – everything read was nothing revolutionary to me, and were all things that I’ve already done, and used before, to escape my debt in the past. Long story short – attack your smallest debts first, get them out of the way, be aggressive, even if it means scrimping and suffering in the interim.
High Bloods
by John Farris
LOSS – This book sounded interesting enough, and I was curious to see what the werewolf genre could do, to refresh me out of the mockery that the vampire genre has become these days. Unfortunately, this book turned out to be a steaming pile of shit that was a lot more difficult than it should’ve been to get through. The sad thing is that every reference to werewolves could have been replaced with references to vampires, and it would’ve been just like every other vampire mockery story out there already. I’ll admit that the endorsement from Stephen King on the cover of this book was a little influential, but I guess that in the future, I’ll have to ignore what Stephen King himself has to think about books, and come to my own conclusions.
The Faithful Spy
by Alex Berenson
Finally, a WIN – And to think this came from the discount bin at Borders, did I find the first good book of 2010. Long story short, a well-written, exciting fictional story about a soldier, long-sent to the Middle East to “infiltrate” al Qaeda, becomes a Muslim of his own accord, and loses touch with American life, to the point of when he ultimately comes back, he resents what America has become, and struggles between his duty as an American solider, and his newly Muslim beliefs. I was also very amused at all the settings of the story used in America, because it was all Atlanta, Georgia, or parts of Northern Virginia. So very familiar.
Tell-All
by Chuck Palahniuk
WIN – I’ll be the first to admit that this isn’t my favorite Palahniuk story of all-time, but given the experimental turn from Pygmy that was kind of “eh,” Tell-All felt more of a refreshing return to the circumstantial irony and humor that Palahniuk delivered in previous works. Not nearly as thought provoking, but an entertaining read at least. But now I’m kind of concerned that the next work might be a downer, given the alternating successes and failures of recent novels. But regardless, I can still confidently say that my favorite author out there is Chuck Palahniuk, and I’ll likely purchase and read any book he releases.
Perfect I’m Not
by David Wells with Chris Kreski
WIN – I’m not really a David Wells fan, but he’s an entertaining enough personality to warrant putting out an autobiography about his life and career up to 2002, when this was initially released. From his childhood, growing up with Hell’s Angels bikers, to his minor league life, and eventual rise with the Toronto Blue Jays, and a whole lot of fellating towards the New York Yankees and all the stories in between, Wells’ life and career is an entertaining story, to say the least. As far as books go, I was entertained, and didn’t struggle at all to read through this book.
The Ghost War
by Alex Berenson
WIN – Typically, I don’t like to rush into the sequels of a series so close after finishing the preceding book, but I simply ran out of things to read in between. I enjoyed The Faithful Spy so much, I was excited to get into The Ghost War, which featured many of the same characters from the first book. But instead of fighting a bunch of hajis this time around, the story revolves around Asian adversaries, notably North Koreans and Chinese, while touching on a very realistic scenario I think about every now and then, when thinking about the fate of the world – what is China doing behind all these closed doors?
Fugitives & Refugees: A Walk in Portland, Oregon
by Chuck Palahniuk
NO-DECISION – This book is essentially unrankable, since it’s not so much a story as it is a book-sized tour guide for the eccentric, of Portland, Oregon, that just happens to be written by Chuck Palahniuk. I still read it from cover-to-cover, in order to take in Palahniuk’s words, but it didn’t really leave much of an impression as far as books go. Although, I will admit that I went through this book again, prior to my day-trip to Portland, during the baseball season, and I did find a few nuggets of interest as a result of this book, which is noteworthy.
Imperial Bedrooms
by Bret Easton Ellis
NO-DECISION – Honestly, I was a little disappointed with Imperial Bedrooms. Like many of Ellis’ previous works, it’s got the same nihilistic feel to the story, and a morbid mind like mind is satisfied with the lack of discretion when it comes to depicting sex, violence, or graphic scenes in the story, but I can’t really explain it, but this book was just simply missing something. Maybe it’s the fact that it’s a supposed sequel to Less Than Zero, that makes it err on the side of unfulfilling. A few times while reading through this book, I couldn’t help but wonder why Ellis wrote this; I heard a few times that Lunar Park was to be his last published work, and when things like this are released that break from the speculated, I can’t help but wonder if someone’s just being pressured by publishers, or if they’re out to make money.
Bright Shiny Morning
by James Frey
WIN – A total stab in the dark, I picked up this book from the discount rack, simply because the cover caught my attention, and reading the synopsis on the sleeve didn’t bore me to death, so I gave it a shot. I was pleased with the 4-5 concurrent stories, and not one of them were any weaker or stronger than the others. From the rise and fall of the fictional version of the Golf ‘N Stuff arcade/amusement center, to the Hispanic maid who falls for her bigot client’s son, the stories were all entertaining and well-written.
Atomic Lobster
by Tim Dorsey
WIN – I’ll admit that I purchased this book for dirt cheap at a second-hand book store, because I had store credit, and c’mon, it’s called “Atomic Lobster.” Apparently, it’s a part of a series of books featuring reoccurring characters and ideas, and not having read any of the previous books, there is a little bit of an adjustment period to understanding some of the references. Either way, I didn’t have a whole lot of expectations for this book, considering the whimsical nature in which was purchased, but after getting through the first third of the book, it turned out to be a pretty fun read. It’s not necessarily memorable, and I’ve already forgotten the characters’ names, but the main guy, I envision with like a Big Lebowski laid-back aspect, with a Dexter-like killer’s instinct. Entertaining, suffice to say.
Phantom Prey
by John Sandford
WIN – Another book purchased from the Borders’ discount rack, that apparently is also a part of a series of stories, but the synopsis sounded interesting enough to want me to purchase. Despite the sequel nature of the story, Sandford is good about not letting the reader feel alienated about the back stories and backgrounds of the characters that a new reader wouldn’t understand. Otherwise, the story was a good mystery, with not nearly the thriller that I thought it was going to be, but overall, was still an adequate book that I didn’t feel like I wasted my time after completion.
The Loving Dead
by Amelia Beamer
LOSS – I can’t blame the book so much as I blame myself for purchasing it. After reading S.G. Browne’s Breathers, I figured zombie love stories can’t be so bad after all, but after reading The Loving Dead, I realize Breathers was the exception. The Loving Dead essentially turned out to be the raunchy lesbian fantasy with zombies mixed in of the author. Sprinkle in some nerdy references meant to appeal to the nerdy demographic, and a lot of sex and zombies, and you’re left with a story that tries too hard, and has quite the abomination of an ending. I had to give the book away immediately after completion; there was no way I was going to keep this in my bookshelves.
Are We Winning?
by Will Leitch
WIN – An entertaining telling of a single baseball game between the St. Louis Cardinals and the Chicago Cubs, between a father, son, and friend, but mostly a reminiscing of why fathers and sons are brought together by the game of baseball, and how it does what it does with such simplicity. Also, a lot of funny baseball-related anecdotes that nerds like me appreciate, but by the time I was finished with the book I couldn’t wait until the next time I could take my dad to a ballgame. Overall, it’s an entertaining read about sports, and baseball more importantly, and seldom does such a combination go unappreciated by someone like me.
Dexter is Delicious
by Jeff Lindsay
WIN – But not by much. I’ll be honest, as much as I love the Dexter series, both television and novel, I have to admit I get the feeling that books like this one are more of a pressure from the publishers to keep the story moving along, because there’s just a feeling I get sometimes when reading sequels of a continuous series, that things feel a little forced at times. Nonetheless, Dexter is Delicious was still an entertaining read, and it’s the major differences from the television show that are fun to think about; LaGuerta is dead, Rita isn’t. Debs knows about Dexter’s dark passenger, and the kids are being trained to be killers too. Some genuine laugh-out-loud parts, as well as classic Dexter-isms, but the biggest mistake I ever made was reading the jacket’s synopsis before actually starting the book; it gives away something a seasoned reader will pick out immediately if they’re familiar with the other books.
The Dragon Factory
by Jonathan Maberry
WIN – If I had to pick out of all the books I’ve read in 2010, this one would be considered a strong candidate. I didn’t even know this book existed, until I wandered into the horror section at the store, to see if there was anything else by Maberry, since I really enjoyed Patient Zero so much. Little did I realize that The Dragon Factory was a sequel, and I purchased it right away. It’s not the crowning achievement in literature in the world, but as far as entertainment, these books have been right up my alley. Now I find the character Joe Ledger to be a little too much on the invincible side of things, but when not fighting, he’s still a very captivating, interesting character. From an emotional standpoint, seldom have any of the prior books read this year elicited the emotional response of shock or upsetting as an event from The Dragon Factory did, which I have to admit is a good thing, since it got me so hooked into the story without my realizing just how much.
Countdown to Lockdown: A Hardcore Journal
by Mick Foley
NO-DECISION – As a person, and an author, I really do admire Mick Foley. But four memoirs is really, really stretching things out, and it’s even worse when he acknowledges it himself in the book. After the third book, I already felt that it was going downhill, but the fanboy in me wanted to continue to support Mick Foley, which is why I purchased Countdown to Lockdown. The charm and amazing result of the first book were chronicles of basically his early life, all the way up until almost 1998 – a whole fuck ton of years, in other words. His second was the span of maybe three years, tops, and a lot more stories of the past, and of his peers. Still entertaining. By the third book, his well of stories was pretty dried up, and the subject matter of the book itself seemed to only encompass half a year’s worth of buildup for storylines. If not for the vested interest I had in those stories and wrestling in general back then, I probably wouldn’t have been so interested. But this book literally encompasses a few months, for a TNA match against Sting, whom like Foley, at this point in their careers is kind of washed up, as wrestlers. It’s not so much the wrestling stories that Foley writes that are interesting, it’s the personal, heart-filled things that are the most appealing. It’s the no-pulled punches, since this book was not published through WWE about WWE that were great. The thoughts and re-telling of the Chris Benoit tragedy that were great, and haunting at the same time. But otherwise, the rest of the book was his weakest yet, and for the sake of his integrity as an author, I hope he doesn’t release a fifth memoir, for at least ten years.
In conclusion
My reading record for 2010 was 10-4 with three no-decisions. It started off poorly, but recovered adequately, and more or less serviced its year, like a perfectly acceptable fourth starter. As mentioned, the sheer quantity of books isn’t as voluminous as prior years, but I guess my literary tastes have become a little more refined, and I think I have a better understanding of what I like more, these days, and don’t really want to waste time or money on bad books.
I can’t promise to myself that I’ll read more, because I think I already read plenty to this day. I don’t spend my Sunday morning at Starbucks like I used to, nor work a schedule that afforded me the ability to lounge at Starbucks in the mornings for a few minutes to read a couple chapters before going to WCW, which could easily contribute to the drop-off in completed books, but back in those times, I was reading some pretty forgettable stuff.
But no matter, reading is still reading, and I implore more people to get back on this seemingly lost hobby. Reading is sexy.
