Yes, I have gained my experience.

When I started tackling this list over 16 months ago, my goal was to expand my reading horizons; to explore books that I wouldn't otherwise tackle. And for the most part, I would say it's been successful so far. I've been able to experience books I loved but had never even heard of, such as The Sheltering Sky and Lucky Jim, and I can now say that although I didn't enjoy them, I have indeed read To the Lighthouse and Infinite Jest. Without a doubt, I'd say I'm the richer for it. But as I near the halfway point (on schedule too I might add), the experience has done so much more than just introduce me to titles or authors I didn't previously know.

This summer I was fortunate enough to talk about these books on the Calgary Eyeopener on CBC radio. Not only was it a fun opportunity to discuss something I enjoy, with others, on the radio, but it was also very educational. Prior to being on the radio, my reading habits as far as this list was concerned were fairly straight forward. I picked a book, read it, wrote a blog, and moved on to the next one. The order or the speed weren't really paramount to anything. And since I was only blogging about them, I could simply spill my thoughts out onto the page and was done.

Being on the radio forced me to not only read quicker, doing a book a week, but also to pay more attention to what books I was reading. I had to make sure I was reading books from different kinds of authors and of differing styles, so as not to bore my listeners with the same thing each week. I also now had to answer other people's questions about these books; no longer was this a one-man show. This offered me a lot more insight into what I was reading, and offered me the chance to see this project from somebody else's perspective.

But most importantly, this reading project has allowed me to become more involved in the book community with people who share my passion for reading. I’ve met others who are reading and blogging their way through this same list (most notably Robert and Matt), and I’ve met people who are simply following my journey because they find it interesting, and hopefully a little educational.

I’ve also now become involved with WordFest, Calgary’s annual literary festival being held in October, as their Festival Blogger. This will give me the chance to work with other avid readers, and expose me to the world of publishing. I’ll be blogging about my experiences at WordFest, offering a behind-the-scenes look, and talking to authors from around the world. It should be a lot of fun, and I’m really looking forward to it!

It also means that I have a few more books to read. While I’ll still be continuing my journey through The List, I’ll also be exploring some of the books from WordFest. I’ve started with Funeral for a Dog, the first novel by German author Thomas Pletzinger. Also attending WordFest will be Lev Grossman, author of The Magician King and literary critic for Time magazine. He’s one of the guys who put this list I’ve been reading for the past year and a half together. I can’t wait to talk to him about it.

As for an update on said list, I have indeed started reading Under the Volcano by Malcolm Lowry, which will be my 44th book. Again, I don’t know anything about it.

#40 - "Appointment in Samarra" by John O'Hara

A book I knew nothing about, from 1934, made for a quick read this weekend, and a damn good one at that.  Appointment in Samarra by John O'Hara is exactly my type of book; focusing on realistic, interesting characters.  As I inch closer to the halfway mark of this list, I'm finally starting to realize what type of books I enjoy reading.

Set in the fictional Pennsylvania town of Gibbsville, Appointment in Samarra follows the self-destruction of one Julian English, over three days at Christmas, 1930.  A well-to-do man of 30 years, English owns a Cadillac dealership, has a college education, is member of all the best clubs, and is married to Caroline; a woman he loves and a woman that loves him.  But behind the seemingly perfect life, lives a deeply flawed man.

Julian's problems start at a party on Christmas Eve when in a drunken state he throws his drink into the face of Harry Reilly, one of the wealthier men in town, giving him a black eye in the process.  While by no means the beginning of his problems, it does begin a chain reaction that threatens to destroy every part of Julian's life.

I'm always of fan of what I would describe as 'character-driven' novels, where the setting and happenings are almost secondary to the development and growth of the central figures.  In Appointment in Samarra, O'Hara uses some of the frankest and most realistic interactions I've ever read.  Too often I find characters in novels or in movies talk in, well, a scripted fashion.  They use a formality that real people don't use and a wit real people don't have.  This naturally become even more prevalent in older books, where characters must avoid swearing or discussing sexual situations.

I remember hearing or reading that parts of Appointment in Samarra were quite 'racy' for the time, so I was assuming there would be explicit sexual scenes, or profane language.  Of course as usually is the case, there wasn't anything in Appointment in Samarra that you wouldn't see on television today.  While I suppose there would be some minor 'swearing', it certainly wouldn't be anything I'd be hesitant to use in any public setting.  As for sexual scenes, there is nothing explicit, as in Tropic of Cancer.  Everything in Appointment in Samarra is merely suggested, and not any specific sexual acts, merely the fact that adults have sex (who knew!?).

But despite the rather tameness of the sexual scenes or the 'adult situations', the characters still discuss them in a realistic manner.  They talk of sex, as something that everybody does, not as if it's something that doesn't really exist and should never be discussed.  I always have this image of earlier eras, where nobody swears, and nobody talks about anything even remotely private.  This no doubt arises from the fact that in the movies of these by-gone eras, nobody talks about sex, nobody swears, and people are always quite formal.  This is what I found made the dialogue in this book so great.  These are characters that are really just like the people of today.  They talk about sex with their spouse or with the guys, they swear when they're mad, and they talk about other people's tragedies with a touch of humor; happy it hasn't happened to them.  And I'm sure the people of the 30's were no different.  Except for maybe my grandparents, who I simply cannot picture using the word sex, never mind discussing it in any way, shape, or form.

Of course this frank treatment of everyday situations caused quite a stir at the time of publication.  The book has been described as vulgar, infantile, and crass.  Most critics seemed to enjoy the style and story, but were turned off by O'Hara's attempt to push the envelope of what was acceptable for publication at the time.  Ultimately, the book was never banned in the United States, unlike so many others of the time, so I suppose he was successful.  Reading things like this often make me thankful I don't live in an era so prudish that critics can't praise a book they enjoyed, simply because two adults had sex and one person called another a bitch.



You can read the original review in TIME from August 20, 1934, by clicking here.


To listen to my discussion of Appointment in Samarra on The Eyeopener, click here.


For my 41st book, I'm going up a couple of decades to 1961's The Moviegoer by Walker Percy.  Following a New Orleans stockbroker, it's said to combine Bourbon Street elegance with the spiritual urgency of a Russian novel.

What, longaville! and reading! listen, ear.

I've finally put my podcasts from the radio up on a page aptly titled, 'The Podcasts.'  It just seemed fitting.  They contains the book discussions I have done the past three weeks, and will do the rest of the summer, on The Eyeopener on CBC Radio in Calgary.  You can click on the menu to the right, or right here.

To date, I have discussed Gone With the Wind, Rabbit, Run, and Blood Meridian.

Tune in each Wednesday at around 7:40 on AM1010 or FM 99.1, to hear what I have to say.  You can also listen on-line by clicking here.

If I chance to talk a little wild, forgive me;

Starting tomorrow morning, I'll be hitting the airwaves for CBC Radio one in Calgary.  Each week, I'll be on the morning Eyeopener, to discuss books.  I had done an interview about my reading Time's list in April, and they've asked me to return and talk about a few more!

I'm looking forward to the opportunity to talk about books that while still highly regarded, aren't nearly as often read.  Instead of talking about the 'new and hot' titles that bombard you at the bookstore when you walk in, we'll be talking about more classic titles.  I've also promised a new book each week, which means that I have a lot of reading to do this summer.

My first interview tomorrow morning will be about Gone with the Wind.  Sure, everybody's heard of it and everybody's seen the movie, but not nearly as many have read the book.  And they should, it's great.