For Valentine's Day, I got Jack a pasta maker.

Now cooking feels like arts-and-crafts time.

We're both excited to try our hands at different noodles and meals!

And so I’ve received several issues of Rolling Stone magazine (among others), and will continue to do so for the foreseeable future. One year, to be precise. The good news is, it’s not so bad.

The biweekly magazine is slim and shiny, with short, flashy stories to match. This is perfect reading on my commute, with a mix of music news and artist briefs combined with longer-form offerings. I enjoy flipping through the pages, but–unlike other publications–I don’t feel guilty if I skip the big stories, because I know another issue will arrive in no time.

The one thing about Rolling Stone that I knew about ahead of time, but was not entirely prepared for, is its strong liberal bias—especially anything by Matt Taibbi. My fear in reading very liberal publications is that I am setting up an echo chamber; perhaps I am too sensitive to the fear, but it makes me take current affairs pieces with a grain of salt. All coverage of Occupy Wall Street, for instance, feels very slanted, but even a piece about Michele Bachmann’s high school suicide zone feels biased against the very conservative politician. On issues of great importance to me, I don’t want to have to worry whether I am getting a certain “version” of the facts.

That being said, however, there are still many things to like about Rolling Stone. While coverage is tilted toward the rock greats that gave the publication its reputation, the magazine also focuses on a range of artists from many genres. I’ve enjoyed learning more about Florence and the Machine, Lana Del Ray, and the Black Keys, to name a few–even if I don’t end up becoming their biggest fans. (OK, I realize that those examples aren’t exactly busting up genre, but those are the profiles I’ve read most recently.)

Interviews with celebs like George Clooney strain to be racy, but I still liked hearing about him. And if the worst thing they can say is that he feels immense pressure to succeed–like so many others that the magazine profiles–well, that’s not so bad.

And every once in a while, I find a journalistic gem–a unique story that makes me perk up and forget what time it is. “Santiago’s Brain” is a good example. It is a profile of a 13-year-old genius–er, “exceptionally gifted” student–named Santiago Gonzalez who programs apps and reads math textbooks for fun. Beyond simply reveling in the mind-blowing power of this kid’s brain, the article also addresses a dearth of programs in the United States for gifted–much less exceptionally gifted–children.

Other stories catch my eye as a writer on the lookout for new ideas. A one-page article about Silk Road, a mysterious e-commerce site for black-market goods that puts Craigslist to shame, piqued my curiosity in the heretofore unheard-of online sale of illicit materials and substances–not, of course, because I am interested in using their services, but because I would love to profile someone who has! That’s a clip to be filed away for later.

More than anything, Rolling Stone is a magazine to entertain and titillate, and it does so more or less reliably. I never read it in its heyday, when rock ruled the radio, but I imagine the comparison would not be favorable to today’s publication. But it is still a fun guilty-pleasure read on the metro, and there’s nothing wrong with that!

The Verdict

Subscribe for a Year | Buy an Issue | Read at the Library

Subscription Saturday is a way for me to keep track of the print and digital publications that I’ve been reading lately.

Interested? Read it for yourself! Buy an issue or subscription to Rolling Stone from Amazon.

I receive a very, very small commission when you purchase a magazine through the above links. Thank you for helping to support my site–and my book addiction!

Happy Friday! This is the funniest thing I have seen in a while; big ups to Ron Charles and The Washington Post for supporting innovative ways to talk about books. Which phrase is your favorite?

Jack often buys my flowers--usually on the days when I am least expecting them--and I love coming home to a gorgeous bouquet in bloom. Valentine's Day was no different. What a guy!

The period of time between Christmas and Valentine’s Day is the worst. You can’t swing a cat without hitting some diamond ad. (Sorry, Kizmet.) It would appear that it’s not love if he didn’t go to Jared, and it won’t last forever if it wasn’t designed by Jane Seymour. Let’s not even talk about eHarmony.

Needless to say, in the weeks leading up to the holiday, the last thing I wanted to hear were corny stories about love. Luckily, Dave Isay’s volume of real-life love stories, All There Is, is the opposite of all that.

Dave Isay is the founder and president of StoryCorps. A little more about that:

StoryCorps is an independent nonprofit whose mission is to provide Americans of all backgrounds and beliefs with the opportunity to record, share, and preserve the stories of our lives. Since 2003, StoryCorps has collected and archived more than 40,000 interviews from more than 60,000 participants. Each conversation is recorded on a free CD to share, and is preserved at the American Folklife Center at the Library of Congress. StoryCorps is one of the largest oral history projects of its kind, and millions listen to our weekly broadcasts on NPR’s Morning Edition and on our Listen pages.

In this collection of stories, men and women from all walks of life share their experiences with finding, losing, and recapturing love. Bobbi and Sandi, who committed to each other at age 19 and then again many years later when gay marriage was legalized in Massachusetts, allow their tenderness for each other to shine through their words. Martha Ward’s optimism is impossible to miss; she just knew that she would meet someone special after she went to a voodoo priestess. Lauren Weitzman creatively proposed to Stuart Drescher by tucking a note under a seat in the airport they would often fly through, sending him a map so he could find it.

The narratives are long enough to tell a good story, but short enough to keep me interested in the love stories of strangers. These are gripping, wonderfully human stories that struck emotional chords in me.

There are sweet stories, like that of Rachel Perez Salazar and Ruben Paul Salazar. They began writing to each other after an errant email was sent to the wrong RP Salazar. Despite the distance between Texas and Thailand, they became best friends, eventually marrying!

There are heartbreaking stories. In 1990, shortly after Cindy White met Eric Ernsberger, she found out that he ex-husband had infected her with HIV—and she had passed it along to her new boyfriend. But when she told him the news, he said, “It’s a blessing that I’m HIV positive, because we can do this together.” After years of caring for each other through healthy and sick times, he passed away, but he never lost his positive outlook. Cindy concluded,

The truth is, falling love doesn’t save us from the big, bad, icky things that can happen in the world. But the thing I’d want for people to know the most about Dan and I is that we had an incredible love story despite a horrible virus. And I don’t believe I’m here because of anything less than his love for me.

And there are bittersweet, uplifting stories. Leroy Morgan remembers his wife, Vivian, and six things they always said to each other to have a happy marriage: You look great, Can I help?, Let’s eat out, I was wrong, I am sorry, and I love you.

It’s impossible to read these stories and not think of someone you’ve loved and lost. But the stories are ultimately optimistic, even when they don’t end perfectly. As Elliot and Hunny Reiken say, “Being unhappy is part of being happy.” Leave it to me to find the dark side of love, but there is plenty here for the more romantically inclined.

Dave Isay and StoryCorps have done an excellent job capturing the stories and voices of real people. I’m very interested in reading more volumes from this project.

Quote of Note:

“Where you used to be, there is a hole in the world, which I find myself constantly walking around in the daytime, and falling into at night. I miss you like hell.“
- Edna St. Vincent Millay, quoted by Granvillette Kestenbaum, whose husband of thirty-one years lost his life in the World Trade Center attacks

Interested? Read it for yourself! Buy All There Is from an independent bookstore or Amazon (Kindle edition).

I receive a very, very small commission when you purchase the book through the above links. Thank you for helping to support my site–and my book addiction!

Don’t just take my word for it. Check out what other reviewers on the tour have been saying:

January 31: Amused By Books
February 1: A Bookish Way of Life
February 2: Amusing Review
February 3: Book Hooked Blog
February 7: Layers of Thought
February 10: Chick Lit Reviews and News
February 15: Suko’s Notebook
February 16: The Book Chick
February 20: Reviews from the Heart
TBD: Teresa’s Reading Corner

2011 Stats

Books read: 62
Pages read: 18,731
Books reviewed: 62
Total posts: 152

2011 was a very exciting year for me. I was able to travel to Thailand and Indonesia, Jack and I moved into a new house, I began ice skating lessons again, and I started a graduate program in writing. I’ve certainly stayed busy!

I also began experimenting with new things on this site, including Top Ten Tuesday lists, the biweekly Subscription Saturday feature, Wordless Wednesdays photographs, my Bookshelf ROWDOWN challenge, and book giveaways. I will continue to fine-tune the kinds of posts that work best on my site in the coming year; if you have any feedback on what you’ve seen so far or what you would like to see, please contact me! I love hearing from readers.

Speaking of readers, let’s talk about what you guys liked this year. My most popular post in 2011 was Top Ten Rebels in Literature, and the most popular reviews were of Zeitoun by Dave Eggers, The Kid by Sapphire, Yoga for Emotional Balance by Bo Forbes, and The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain.

Many of my site’s visitors came from the United States. Readers from Canada and the United Kingdom were not far behind, followed by book-lovers in Germany, France, Australia, New Zealand, India, Pakistan, the Philippines, Brazil, Argentina, and many more countries.

Here’s to another great year in reading!

January 2012 Stats

Books read: 4
Pages read: 1,388
Books reviewed: 4

Though my stats aren’t terribly high for January, I had a truly enjoyable month reading and reviewing some great titles.

Books Read

Note: Clicking on any of these four books to purchase them through
Indiebound helps to support my site. Thanks!

This year, I am particularly interested in participating in reading challenges, beginning this month with Orange January, a challenge centered around the Orange Prize. In addition, I’ve been keeping my ears perked for book awards in 2012, including the National Book Critics Circle Awards.

This month, I highlighted the top ten books I’m most excited to read in 2012, and I also chose the top ten books I’d recommend for book clubs. I began another nonfiction writing class at the end of January, so my mind was occupied with thoughts of the best books on writing; the best authors of one of my favorite genres, fairy tales; and the best tote bag a writer could ask for. I also received quite a few nonfiction books in the mail that I’m hoping to learn a lot from.

Why is that when everyone else in the country goes on a diet in January, I begin eating more? Someone’s gotta pick up the slack, I suppose. This month, I posted photos of our first attempt making pizza, and I shared what may be the cutest sushi ever made.

However, I also tried to use my website for good by protesting SOPA–including a blackout of my entire site on January 18.

Books reviewed

5 out of 5 stars (click on covers for complete review)

4.5 out of 5 stars (click on cover for complete review)

4 out of 5 stars (click on cover for complete review)

Publications reviewed

Subscribe for a Year (click on cover for complete review)

It began on Twitter with the hashtag #fridayreads, and quickly spread to other social networking sites, including Facebook. The idea is delightfully simple: Tell your friends what you are reading each week, whether it’s a book, magazine, newspaper, report–anything!

While the founders recently came under fire for promoting certain authors’ books through the meme, I can’t stay mad at FridayReads for very long. After all, what can be better than encouraging people to read–and to share their opinions with their friends?

That brings me to my February reading plans. This month, I’ve already begun All There Is, a collection of love stories edited by Dave Isay, and War by Sebastian Junger on audiobook. Next, I’m planning to take on The Lantern by Deborah Lawrenson and The Taker by Alma Katsu. February is a short month, but I’m hoping to round it out with Lionel Shriver’s We Need to Talk About Kevin.

In addition, I’m planning to get caught up on my National Geographic Traveler subscription, and begin reading this month’s Esquire–featuring none other than President Bill Clinton.

What about you–what are you reading?

I receive a very small commission when you purchase the book or publication through the above links to Indiebound and Amazon. Thank you for helping to support my site–and my book addiction!

If I did, however, I would look for books that have a lot of complexity, so that there will be many angles to approach a discussion about the book. They also have to be memorable–the kind of books you can’t stop thinking about long after you’ve put them down.

10. The Beautiful Things That Heaven Bears by Dinaw Mengestu
This is a quintessential D.C. book (my review here); more than simply preserving familiar sights, Mengestu captures the feeling of a D.C. community caught between two worlds, which would in itself make for very interesting discussion. But the main character’s experience—as an immigrant, a man, an American— and his place in society also leaves a lot open to interpretation.

9. Push by Sapphire
Push is not an easy book to read or even talk about. But it’s totally worth it. Sapphire exposes the pain of abuse and neglect, but more importantly, she presents a strong black heroine who takes her own life into her hands. This book came highly recommended from many of my friends, and it is guaranteed to get a reaction from book-group readers.

8. Holy Ghost Girl by Donna M. Johnson
In her memoir (my review here), Donna Johnson offers insight into the complexity of faith and why people choose to follow charismatic leaders, all without without being judgmental—a seemingly Herculean task that Johnson manages without even breaking into a literary sweat. Book group members will enjoy teasing out the complexity of the black-and-white world of big tent revivalists.

7. Faith by Jennifer Haigh
In Faith, Jennifer Haigh reveals an entangled world of secrets and beliefs, pain and joy, identity and desire, and the enduring ties of family and faith. She tackles a difficult topic, but she does so with grace and aplomb (my review here). This is a timely book that is sure to inspire a meaningful conversation.

6. Next to Love by Ellen Feldman
Next to Love is moving and beautiful, rich with the pain and the joys of vivid and believable men and women (my review here). The book delicately handles sweeping topics such as war, love, grief, and equality, which almost certainly lead to a great conversation.

5. The Lotus Eaters by Tatjana Soli
Tatjana Soli paints a vivid picture of 1960s Vietnam in The Lotus Eaters (my review here), and her prose reflects the jarring hardness of war, the allure of obsession, and the tenderness of love in turns. I think Soli’s exploration of the emotional and physical effects of the war on all sides—Vietnamese and American, soldier and civilian—would elicit strong reactions from all ages.

4. The Illumination by Kevin Brockmeier
Brockmeier’s characters are painfully insightful and wonderfully human, and I think readers from all walks of life will identify with some, if not all, of them. (I did.) The journal that passes from person to person makes them greater than they were—a brilliance greater than their loneliness and pain.

3. Camp Nine by Vivienne R. Schiffer
In Camp Nine, Vivienne Schiffer shows readers a hidden side of the Delta, when racial tensions cracked the surface of a small town’s placid surface (my review here). Schiffer expertly teases out various themes of family and history in a world where little is forgotten, and her portrayal of the vast chasms within its society in the forties is fantastic. I think I would’ve enjoyed the novel even more if I’d discussed it in a group; it’s a short book, but there is a lot at play in the story.

2. The Glass Castle by Jeannette Walls
Jeannette Walls’s account of her less-than-idyllic childhood is a must read, and I would love to get a group together to talk about this engaging memoir. Her story inspires pity and incredulity at some points and joy and optimism at others. This book was highly recommended by several women I know, and after I tore through it, I passed it on to other women, all of whom agree that Walls is a powerful storyteller. I’d love to hear a guy’s perspective, too.

1. The Personal History of Rachel DuPree by Ann Weisgarber
This book covers so much ground–race, class, women’s rights, war—without feeling sluggish or heavy. As I described it in my review, “It’s as though Little House on the Prairie grew up and developed a racially and culturally aware conscience.” Weisgarber offers many topics for discussion while also crafting a thoroughly enjoyable story.

Creating this list makes me wish I were a more active part of a book club. What do you think–should I finally start taking attendance seriously?

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly feature created by The Broke and the Bookish. Each Tuesday, bloggers create top ten lists about reading, writing, blogging, and more!

I receive a very small commission when you purchase the book through the above links to Indiebound. Thank you for helping to support my site–and my book addiction!

Short and sweet: Uncover the history of a family with both painfully obvious and deeply hidden vices
Bonus points: Jennifer Haigh has been heralded as one of the greatest living contributors to literary fiction—superlatives usually reserved for men.
Hollywood sibling: “Doubt”

Late in life—long after their tumultuous childhoods—Art Breen and Sheila McGann became friends. As half-siblings, they were separated by more than a decade, and their different paths in life sometimes seemed like an unbridgeable gulf.

Art felt called to the priesthood at the early age of fourteen, and he experienced a modicum of success as a member of the clergy. When he meets Aidan, the oft-suppressed regrets of a life not lived clamor in Art, and he begins treating the eight-year-old boy as his own son. It’s a pretty convenient arrangement for Aidan’s young mother, Kathy, who is overwhelmed at the idea of carrying on a normal life on her own, without the support of a man or a narcotic.

Sheila, in stark contrast to Art, quickly lost the faith imposed on their family by a well-intentioned but domineering mother. She, too, hides years-old wounds of loneliness and lost love; but unlike Art, her biggest weakness may be that she’s never allowed herself to heal.

Mike, Sheila’s full sibling and Art’s half-brother, kept his faith; but his wife’s resentment of Catholicism threatens to rip apart his relationship—and the respectable life he’s finally found.

When Kathy accuses Art of molesting Aidan, however, everything that the three siblings believe is put to the test. The secrets that they discover—about each other and about themselves—yank them from the comfortable groove of adulthood and threaten to tear the family apart at its already-fragile seams.

In Faith, Jennifer Haigh reveals an entangled world of secrets and beliefs, pain and joy, identity and desire, and the enduring ties of family and faith. She tackles a difficult topic, but she does so with grace and aplomb.

In this book, Sheila, the narrator, attempts to put into words the story of her disgraced but beloved Brother Father. She pieces together the earth-shattering events that shook Art’s world, and she attempts to defend her own faith in Art—even when that faith wavers. “It was a thing I’d always known but until recently had forgotten: that faith is a decision,” Sheila writes. “In its most basic form, it is a choice.”

Having a somewhat distant, admittedly prejudiced narrator adds layers and complexity to the novel. But for me, the novel lacked some of the resonance and depth I was expecting–especially after the book received rave reviews by Greg (The New Dork Review of Books) and Carrie (nomadreader), among others.

Here is my central gripe: I know a fair amount about Catholicism, and I was raised in a deeply religious household. But I was baffled by the wedge the Church drove into Mike and Abby’s marriage. He’s Catholic and she’s Lutheran—so what? It’s all Christianity. Abby argues that the priesthood is inherently flawed—that such an unnatural lifestyle attracts pedophiles—which I’ve certainly heard before. But the position of Abby, the only non-Catholic main character, comes off as a weak reduction of non-Catholic views on the abuse scandals in the Church.

Perhaps I simply don’t feel the deep connection that Art, Sheila, and Mike have to Catholicism. This distance from their visceral emotions toward the Church was the only flat note of the book for me, but it was a point upon which the book hinged.

All told, however, Haigh crafted a compelling, timely story with flawed and deeply human characters; I’m looking forward to reading more from her.

Quote of Note:

We are too much ourselves, the people we have always been.

Interested? Read it for yourself! Buy Faith from an independent bookstore or Amazon (Kindle edition).

I receive a very, very small commission when you purchase the book through the above links. Thank you for helping to support my site–and my book addiction!

Don’t just take my word for it. Check out what other reviewers on the tour have been saying:

January 17: The Lost Entwife
January 24: Book Hooked Blog
January 26: Amusing Reviews
January 31: Write Meg!
February 2: Broken Teepee
February 6: Unabridged Chick
February 7: Take Me Away
February 15: Book Club Classics!
February 22: Veronica M.D.
February 23: Life is Short. Read Fast.
February 27: The Scarlet Letter