Books I couldn’t finish

I hate giving up on books. If I make it past the first page, I almost always stick with it until the end. But this week I had to give up on two that were seriously slowing me down.

First: “The Hot Zone” by Kevin Sites. This dude’s a war correspondent for Yahoo! and this book’s a combination of reporting and memoir. I tried so hard to finish this one. I think I got past the two-thirds mark. But there was one really, really obnoxious thing I couldn’t get past. Every chapter is broken up with many, many subheads. Subheads that completely interrupt the action and jar your concentration. Don’t get me wrong—I totally love subheads; they’re great for building suspense or guiding the reader. But this is a subhead overdose: In one 15-page chapter, there are no fewer than 13 of them.

I think I know what the writer (or his editor) was trying to do. Sites is a blogger. If we make the chapters short and divide them up into four-paragraph chunks, that’s like the same thing right? Oh, no. No, it’s not. Also, I do not recommend reading this book before you go to bed.

Second: “The Woman Who Wouldn’t” by Gene Wilder. I love Gene Wilder, but I could not get past the second chapter of this novel. It’s difficult to explain why. It was already coming off as sexist, and the writing was simplistic, without any charm or nuance. Shame.

The Onion, “Embedded in America: The Onion Complete News Archives Volume 16″

All the fake news that was fit to print from October 2003 to November 2004.

THE LOWDOWN
Published: 2005, 320 pp.
Obtained via: Library
Date started: 3.4.08
Date finished: 3.15.08
What I liked: All the usual stuff.
What I didn’t like: No complaints.
What I learned: Learning?

Adrian Tomine, “Shortcomings”

More from Adrian Tomine.

THE LOWDOWN
Published: 2007, 104 pp.
Obtained via: Bookstore
Date started: 3.16.08
Date finished: 3.16.08
What I liked: It’s a realistic take on mid-20s relationships from the vantage point of a guy who can never say the right thing.
What I didn’t like: Said guy is infuriating.
What I learned: Got some insight into relationships among Asian-Americans.

William Golding, “Lord of the Flies”

Never read this in high school—how did that happen?

THE LOWDOWN
Published: 1962 edition, 246 pp.
Obtained via: Library
Date started: 3.2.08
Date finished: 3.8.08
What I liked: Finally being able to honestly nod in agreement when someone makes a reference to this book. But really, I liked the dystopian influences and the pacing of the story. Golding seriously knows how to build suspense.
What I didn’t like: So, making the assumption that these children were spirited away during the war to preserve England’s future… why were there no girls? I have to admit, I shudder to think of what other horrible things might have happened had it not been a single-sex island.
What I learned: What I missed in high school. I could totally pick out what would have been talking points, like what different English slang terms meant, the symbolism of the conch, what the book says about man’s capability for evil. Why do kids read this stuff? (Just kidding.)

ASPCA, “Complete Guide to Cats”

It’s exactly what you think it is.

THE LOWDOWN
Published: 1999, 368 pp.
Obtained via: Library
Date started: 3.2.08
Date finished: 3.2.08
What I liked: Nice illustrations and pictures, pleasing design, an overall easy read.
What I didn’t like: No complaints, aside from minor grossouts at birthing pictures.
What I learned: The plants cats can’t eat, facial features of tabbies, how cat babies are born.