Sunday, August 29, 2010

Oscar Wao Appearance #2

When: Friday 5/28/10, 6:45 PM
Where: MBTA Green Line (B Line), outbound, between Park St. and Kenmore
Who: Female, 20s
What: The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao by Junot Diaz

I do really want to read this book. It will, however, have to get in line behind a lot of others.

Salinger!

When: Thursday 5/27/10, 5:00 PM
Where: MBTA Green Line (B Line), outbound, between Park St. and Kenmore
Who: Male, late teens
What: Nine Stories by J.D. Salinger

Still haven't read this. I'm glad I read Catcher in the Rye in high school, because I have the sneaking suspicion it wouldn't hold up, emotional-investment-wise.

Celebrity books

When: Thursday 5/27/10, 5:00 PM
Where: MBTA Green Line (B Line), outbound, between Park St. and Kenmore
Who: Male, 40s
What: American on Purpose: The Improbable Adventures of an Unlikely Patriot by Craig Ferguson

I'm sure Mr. Ferguson's book is a lovely exception, but it sort of grinds my gears that any celebrity or pseudo-celebrity can write or ghostwrite a book and sell it well.

In recent fiction

When: Thursday 5/20/10, 7:45 AM
Where: MBTA Harvard Station, upper busway
Who: Female, early 30s
What: The Invisible Bridge by Julie Orringer

WorldCat summary: "An unforgettable story of three brothers, of history and love, of marriage tested by disaster, of a Jewish family's struggle against annihilation, and of the dangerous power of art in a time of war."

Tuesday, August 10, 2010

Blast from the academic past

When: Sunday 5/16/10, 12:30 PM
Where: MBTA Red Line, going toward Ashmont , between Harvard and Park St.
Who: Male, early 30s
What: The Bisexual Option by Fred Klein

I wrote a paper on this book in college! I went looking for a "primary source" on bisexuality and this was really all I could find in my college library. It was first published in 1978, and you can tell.

Monday, August 9, 2010

From the French

When: Sunday 5/16/10, 12:30 PM
Where: MBTA Red Line, going toward Ashmont , between Harvard and Park St.
Who: Female, 30s
What: The Elegance of the Hedgehog by Muriel Barbery

I didn't realize, until I looked this book up in WorldCat, that it had been translated from French. I always assumed it was British for some reason.

Thursday, August 5, 2010

Going to catch up on posting...really

When: Saturday 5/15/10, 3:00 PM
Where: MBTA Red Line, going toward Braintree, between Harvard and Park St.
Who: Female, 20s
What: Shadow of the Giant by Orson Scott Card

This woman took her book out of a Brookline Booksmith bag, one of my two favorite bookstores in the Greater Boston Area.