Summer Reading Roundup: Eating Animals

I'd never read anything by Jonathan Safran Foer before, but I was always drawn to his cover art. Eating Animals was no different, plus it was on a topic that matters to me, and I may have bought it for Robert this Christmas because I wanted to read it. Well folks, I finally got around to reading it, a mere 7 months later!

I get preachy enough on JOP that I'll spare you a point-by-point summary of this book, but you should know that it is really good, really thoroughly researched, really well written, and I am vividly sicked-out by the bacon that just a few weeks ago I (a "vegetarian") ate.

The premise is that we all know animal slaughter is disgusting; we all know factory farming is wrong. The information is there for all of us and nobody doubts how awful factory farms are for us, for the environment, for communities, and finally for the animals. So why do we ignore that and keep eating meat? "Because it tastes good." Weak! Don't start with the "protein" junk, either. Americans get way too much protein and it has a lot to do with our cancer incidence.

But don't take my word for it! Eating Animals, which is a quick, page-turning read, gets the solidest A.

Summer Reading Roundup: Mattaponi Queen

I've been on a short story kick recently, starting with some McSweeney's books I read while I was housesitting, going through Alice Munro's Runaway (which really deserves its own post), and winding up with Belle Boggs' Mattaponi Queen.

I bought Mattaponi Queen a few weeks ago, then when I was at Quail Ridge last weekend I saw that the author was coming this week! So for a few days I was reading Alice Munro's stories and Belle Boggs' simultaneously. I don't recommend this. The stories in Runaway pack a bigger punch and are better-constructed, but that is also a career-topping collection for Alice Munro. Belle Boggs, who is much younger, writes like the recent MFA that she is. Which isn't a bad thing, but I couldn't keep from comparing the two as I read. Maybe just don't try to read two similar books simultaneously in general!

The stories in MQ are really nice vignettes (or longer arcs) and the rural Virginian scenery is laid out beautifully. The characters are believable if not so heart-grabbing as Munro's; the pace is also not as quick, or it feels slower, which is sort of what I mean by the MFA style--the characters take a little longer to get in your head, and the overall feel is not so dynamic as it is ruminative. But I would recommend it. Did I grade the other book(s) with letter grades? If so, MQ gets a B+.

And! Belle Boggs was at Quail Ridge last night and I went to see her read. She and her mom pickled some stuff and made jams to pass out at her readings, so here is a jar of "Loretta's hot bread & butter pickles" (the pickles and jams were all named after characters...maybe there will be another collection of their recipes and cooking habits?) pictured next to the book. Isn't the cover art beautiful?? Obviously I brought my copy for her to sign. She asked if I was a writer, to which I replied "uhh...well..." because I don't know if "yes" is an honest answer to that, but neither is no. You know.

"Well, I teach high school," she said, and signed my book with all best wishes. She also pressed a four-leaf clover into the title page.

Read this book, everybody.

Coffee shop review!

I'm new in town and I don't know very much, and so on my walk home from class today I stopped in at Jessee's. This place never looks crowded, but I walk/ride by it often and I was curious. I also didn't want to go to Open Eye (I am increasingly not really into Open Eye).

This place is really nice and clean and well lit with a breezy feel, and most notably of all it has a 99 sanitation grade. Which is crazy for Chapel Hill/Carrboro! (side note: can anyone tell me what the deal is with all the ~90 grades around here?? it's UNCANNY and sort of weirds me out how pretty much every restaurant has an identical grade) The point is that they "get it," and they're eager to please. The staff was really friendly, as part of that; they were also competent. My mushroom-and-garlic quiche was delivered with a little green salad, which was nice, and the coffee is real good too.

I like this place and I want it to succeed, so I'll give it a 9.0!

Psyched to Become a Librarian

Most of the time, my biggest joy about leaving work for grad school is leaving work. But sometimes, things like this make me anxious to get my degree going so I can go out and work again! And I have a hunch: I'm going to be the best librarian ever.

This book, Weetzie Bat, is something I've written about before, and it was one of my very favorites around the time I was in 8th-9th grade. There are a few books written after this one, about the same characters, and one of those is Baby Be-Bop. And right now, a member of the "Christian Civil Liberties Union" (pffffft) is suing a public library in Wisconsin for displaying Baby Be-Bop and "$120,000 in compensatory damages ($30,000 per plaintiff) for being exposed to the book in a library display, and the resignation of West Bend Mayor Kristine Deiss for 'allow[ing] this book to be viewed by the public.'"

Baby Be-Bop is just about as innocuous as it sounds. I've read everything Francesca Lia Block wrote about the Weetzie Bat characters, and it's right in line with the rest of the books. It focuses on Dirk, Weetzie's best friend, and his relationship with his grandmother. Dirk knows he's gay and he thinks about what that means and he falls in love, and that's pretty much it. It's a good book and I'd gladly let my kids read it. Or the kids of the community! Or anyone! I would never "seek the right to publicly burn" it, that's for sure!

And honestly, nobody has ever suffered $30,000 worth of emotional damage by looking at (not even reading!) a book in a display. Not to mention all the crappy implications of deciding your civil liberties supersede everyone else's, or of appointing yourself moral judge of a community. And are they serious about this asking-the-mayor-to-resign crap? Not on my watch, they wouldn't be! I can't wait to get out there and start defending our freedom, information-wise, right in line with the legit ACLU.

Time for some advice!

It's been a while, but we're still hacking away at the huge backlog of questions we've been receiving (keep 'em coming! we can always use more. gchat is the preferred medium). This week, we deal with some sensitive mother-daughter issues.

Dear Jar of Paperclips,

I am a reasonably attractive middle-aged woman, but i am nothing compared to my stunning seventeen year old daughter. Men turn to jello when she walks into the room.
While i am proud of her on the one hand, i am also insanley jealous of the affect she has on them. Am I a sick person for feeling this way?

from, horrified in Hartford

Your first responsibility, Horrified, is to be a good mom.
This means you shouldn't be jealous of your daughter's male attention, but protective of her during this vulnerable time. Make sure she knows what's what, sex-wise, and with a good dose of self-esteem to protect her in relationships as well. That said, you are not a sick person for feeling this way. Try a new hairstyle, or take some pottery classes. Honestly, it sounds like you're in a rut and that your daughter's just a symbol for your past youth and exuberance. Get out there, meet some new people, and have fun! After all, the apple doesn't fall far from the tree--your daughter had to have gotten her looks from somewhere!

The Island

A fun read! Maybe we could make his blogroll?