Book 428: The Double Tongue

The Double Tongue, by William Golding, Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 1995.


This book did feel a bit incomplete and unfinished.  Because it was incomplete and unfinished.  Because the author died before he had a final manuscript.  In spite of that, this book is brilliant.

First he gives an incredibly sympathetic portrait of a young girl.  Then he perfectly portrays that young girl becoming the Pythia.  And finally, through the narrative, of a believing woman who was used by the gods.

I have read this book at least four, probably five times, and every time I read it, I pick up on something new.  The manuscript may just be a sketch, but it is a sketch by a master.  And every time I read this book, I want to go back and re-read C.S. Lewis' Till We Have Faces.

Book 427: Pooh's Grand Adventure

Pooh's Grand Adventure, Little Golden Books, 1997.


This is a book based on a not-very-good movie.  Even so, the book is better.  Maybe because my internal narrator sounds like John Cleese.

I do find it funny that "school" is spelled "skull", and the illustrations are delightful.

Book 426: poemcrazy

poemcrazy, by Susan Goldsmith Wooldrigdge, Three Rivers Press, 1996.


I first read this book about twelve years ago when I was housesitting for the senior partner at the law firm where I was working.  He had a house full of cats and one very needy little dog.  I was surprised to find this little book on his bookshelf, so I read it.  I was intrigued by her relationship with words, and inspired enough to consider the weight of my own words.  I liked it enough to buy my own copy.

Now, twelve years and four books and one kid later, I re-read this book.  The second reading did not impact me as much as the first, but the fault is not with the book or the author.  The fact is, my six-year-old son is a natural word-collecter.  Whenever he hears a new word, he tests it and weighs it and considers it and then uses it.  He makes up word to work with his new words.  There is a natural poetry -- the kind promoted in this book -- in his speech and writing.  And I think that is the key; this book is not so much about writing poetry as it is about loving words and how they fit together. We should all be word-collectors.  We should all know the value of the words we use.

Book 425: Hooray for Fly Guy!

Hooray for Fly Guy!, by Tedd Arnold, Cartwheel Books, 2008.


Two things about this book:

1.  This is a chapter book that my Kindergarten son can read all on his own, and

2.  This is a chapter book that my Kindergarten son wants to read all on his own, so

Hooray for Fly Guy!

Book 424: Go, Dog, Go!

Go, Dog, Go! by P.D. Eastman, Random Books, 1961.


My Kindergarten kid can read ALL of this book ALL by himself.  So he does.  Out loud.  Everyday.  It is a good thing that this book is a favorite of my husband.

It is a special book that can hold a beginning reader's interest for around 60 pages.  And this is a very special book .

Book 423: The Adventures of Beekle, The Unimaginary Friend

The Adventures of Beekle, by Dan Santat, Little Brown and Company, 2014.


After I finished reading this Caldecott-winning book, I desperately wanted a Beekle.  Someone needs to make that happen.  Until then, the best I could do was order my own copy of this book, so that I can read it over and over and over again (oh, yeah, and so my son can, too).

Book 422: Vile Bodies

Vile Bodies, by Evelyn Waugh, 1930.

I have read this book probably at least five times since I had first discovered it.  The first time, I remember being quite open-mouthed with shock at the casual references to death and debauchery.  The second time, I was struck by the humor.  Every time since then, I've read something new into this novel.  This last time I've read it, as someone who is closer to the older generation portrayed in this book than the Bright Young Things, I wondered whether Waugh was a Bright Young Thing or of the older generation.  Certainly he is liberal with his skewering, but there does seem to be an underlying fondness of the author for his characters.