Figure I should document my reading while in Thailand, which has been rather extensive, just to remember the details and my impressions of the books.

When I am writing, I’m reading. The two are inseparable to me now, despite thinking the two couldn’t exist at the same time at one point.

I thought I may have brought too many books initially, but as it turns out I’ve torn through more than I thought possible. Here’s the breakdown:

Then We Came To The End, by Joshua Ferris
This was the first book I read on the vacation, since I knew it was about corporate America and layoff culture, as a team of people sit around watching as one person after another get called into the office and leave the building. Fun stuff, and a good one to kick off the reading extravaganza.

Catfish and Mandala, by Andrew Pham
This is about a Vietnamese guy who returns to the homeland he and his family left after the Vietnam war, and his bike trip around the country and he tries to reconnect with his roots and the life he left years ago. Good stuff, interesting read, and also helps for whatever reason that all of the action takes place ‘next door’ in Vietnam.

Vernon God Little, by DBC Pierre
This is an interesting book, although I do have a slight issue with books that seem not to take place in reality. Like, he’s considered a potential accomplice to a school shooting that leave his friend and many others dead, but his actions don’t line up with that. His mother and friends seem to not care about the tragedy or his involvement, the cops don’t seem to want his side of the story, and as a result it all seems off. But worth a read.

Bangkok 8, by John Burdett
This was a great choice, given the Thailand setting and it being just a straight forward thriller with an interesting case. The touches of Thai culture were nice, as was the contrast with the Thai Buddhist police officer working with the Western counterparts, and each at odds with the others method of investigating crime, based on their different cultures. Easy, fun, worthwhile read. Highly recommended.

Clown Girl, by Monica Drake
Strap in for this one, it’s quite a ride. When I started reading this, I wasn’t sure I’d like it. It just seemed so off the wall, crazy, and taking place in a parallel universe that only seemed like our reality, that I didn’t know if I wanted to spend time in this world or whether Drake could pull this crazy book off. The answer to both ended up being yes. From religious balloon tricks, missing rubber chickens (for which she puts up lost chicken posters around town and offers a reward), this is a book that needs to be experienced to be understood. Drake’s fearless voice pushes through, and really makes you glad you read it. Drake studied with Chuck Palahniuk in Tom Spanbauer’s workshops, and you can see some of that influence here.

The Book of Revelation, by Rupert Thomson
A male dancer is kidnapped and forced to be the sexual slave of three hooded women for 18 days. The writing is blunt and beautiful, and even though the story is unconventional, you’re never bored the whole time in a richly realized book.

Lisey’s Story, by Stephen King
I saw Stephen King on book tour for this, and for some reason had it in my head this was a somewhat conventional book, and a love story. I have no idea why I would think such a thing, as this book is pretty out there by any standard. I always love King, though. For whatever reason, you just get the sense that he loves telling stories, no matter how off the rails they might seem to be.

The Breakdown Lane, by Jacquelyn Mitchard
This book infuriated me for a strange choice made by the publisher. The book is about a disease that isn’t revealed for 124 pages. But for whatever reason, the ackowledgments from the author appeared before the text for the book, in which she thanked people for their help researching the disease, which she names. So, the whole first third of the book, as the character is trying to figure out why things are happening to her, if you read the ackowledgments you knew the answer, robbing it of any mystery. Beyond this, I didn’t really connect to this book. The book was also written in two voices, but they seemed to similar to me. And the epilogue mentions things that try and turn what you just read on its head, I’m guessing, although by that point, I could only shrug.

This Book Will Save Your Life, by A.M. Homes
Wow, I know this book won’t be everyone’s cup of tea, but it certainly was mine. Just a blunt, subtle delight of a story. When you have blurbs from Stephen King and John Waters, you know you’re in strange territory, but the book delivers. It’s a simple story with some crazy scenarios, but for whatever reason it works, and this was definitely my favorite book of the trip.

Gutterboys, by Alvin Orloff
Since I’m on an island without a gay scene, I figure I should bring one all-out gay book, and I just saw Orloff perform recently in SF before my departure, and enjoyed him immensely, so I brought Gutterboys along. He didn’t disappoint. Set in New York City at the height of New Wave, this book was a fun trip of unrequited love, bohemian living, and great observations.

Snark, by David Denby
This is actually a non-fiction book about snark, and how it is pervading our culture with negative ramifications. I have said that Facebook has surfaced some snark in me, which I do not find desirable, so I wanted to explore the roots of snark, and see exactly where the borders are with its more desirable cousins, irony and satire, so I am better prepared to not cross them. It’s a small tome, but I’m guessing not something most people would run out and read. Certainly interesting, though.

The books I have left for my remaining week and a half on Thailand are:
– Brief History of the Dead, by Kevin Brockmeier
– Being Dead, by Jim Crace
– Remainder, by Tom McCarthy
– Excuses Begone, by Wayne Dyer
– Speak, Memory by Vladimir Nabokov
– Brideshead Revisited, by Evelyn Waugh

The latter three are coming back to San Francisco with me, so I’m reading those last. The others are not huge books, so I should finish them up before departing Phangan.

I thought I brought too many books at first, and that I was overly ambitious to drag this many on the plane, but it worked out great. Some I liked more than others, but no regrets, which is the best you can hope for… so I’m coming home with a heavier brain and lighter luggage.

This entry was posted on Sunday, July 26th, 2009 at 8:57 am and is filed under diary. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.