In which you read something about me reading stuff.

I've never considered myself a busy reader, but I tend to go through a pile of books in a few months. It's the case of I don't read often, but when I do, it's a pretty good chunk of the book. My problem is that I read and say to myself, "ok just a few more pages then I'm done." Then, "the chapter ends in only 10 pages? I can knock that out." So it keeps going.

Today, I'm filling you in on the six books I bought while in Seattle.

Damn.

Well let's do this chronologically. The top left one was bought in a little shop on the 2nd basement level of Pike Place Market. I walked in the store and was greeted politely by the shop owner, a 30 something metro sexual. I then asked him to pick one book out of the entire store for me to read on my flight home. He excitedly asked me questions about who and what I liked to read, and found In a Sunburned Country by Bill Bryson. I'll let you know how all of these go of course, but for now I'll admit I have not opened it.

The very next day, I took a tour of Pioneer Square. There, the tour guides were hocking this title at us. Sons of the Profits It was written by a man named Bill Speidel. He started the underground tours of Pioneer Square back in the 60's, and he wrote this book as a History book for Seattle Schools. Given that the subject matter for the book is the sketchy business leaders that started the dirtiest city in the Northwest, the Schools banned it within three years. It then became a best seller.

Next, on the way back from Pioneer Square, I stopped in a shop in Downtown and picked up their only remaining Chuck Palahniuk book, Invisible Monsters. I got this strictly because it's Palahniuk. I've read a few of his books, and the others I've heard are all really good. I'm only a few chapters into this one, so we'll see. So far it's great.

The next two, Fight Club and High Fidelity (by Chuck Palahniuk and Nick Hornsby respectively) I have already read, but they deserved a purchase. You see I borrowed the books when I read them the first time, but I never got around to picking up my own copy. I picked these up after eating Pad Thai in Fremont on Sunday. While looking for my final book...

...this little number. Lewis Carroll's Alice's Adventures in Wonderland & Through the Looking Glass. I gotta say, I've never read these. I had always heard great things, I even used Lewis Carroll's poem "The Walrus and the Carpenter" in a paper I wrote 2 years ago. To finally read this is pretty exciting. I put a hurting on it during my flight back and the wait in the airport before take off. I tried explaining it and I really couldn't. But I'll try. The book is good because it's like finally getting to eat dessert. You've heard about it, you've waited for it, and when it finally comes, and you sink your teeth into it, it's as good as they told you. Also, the style of the writing is great because it's almost childlike in it's straightforwardness. Yet at the same time, it's very metaphorical. Alice is interesting character that I never really gave any thought about before actually reading the stories. I'd check this one out if I were you.

Well that about covers it. I hope you've enjoyed reading about me reading.