When I was nine years old at Powells they had grabs bags of ten sci-fi books for five dollars. My bag had Stranger in a Strange land. At nine… I did not understand àny of it.
That’s the best and what a great book for a happy mutant 9yo to start grokking. I found a collection (different store) called the Science Fiction Hall of Fame. I think I only understood every 10th word.
Joyce is one of those writers I love and haaate. For me, and this is a major complent to the alive one, is palaniuk. Joyce would go down holes in kind of a slitherly, slimey way. Chuck just puched down. But they still both seem to want to elevate (even though you don’t get it)
I have a book I keep on the nighttable as a joke.If I ever cannot sleep I read the same page and by the end of it I am dozing off. Maybe 5 times a year. Been on the same chapter for nearly 10 years now. Different night tables. Different partners. Different lives. Same soporific effect. The book is irrelevant, but it’s one I decided would be fine to never finish.
I’ve have a copy of Getting Things Done that I had for six years before cracking the first time. I’ve started on the first chapter about three or four times. I’ve had it about ten years now. But I’m really going to get to it some day.
Guns, Germs, and Steel. I’ve read it through before, it serves like a piece of string around my finger, reminding me to not even get in bed until I am ready to do one of the two things that beds are best for. If I just can’t sleep I turn on the light and make it usually a whole page before zzzzzzz.
Ah, good old Jared Diamond. I’ve only read Collapse by him. But given his interesting although dense writing style, I understand why it puts you to sleep. And thanks for revealing it!
You’re lucky it was soporific for you. I sold my copy, since I’d hate-read it. Not like Ayn Rand hate-reading, but still my blood pressure would increase as the broad strokes morphed to hand waving and I’d feel the rant forming.
A book can calm an anxious mind. Doesn’t it work too with books you’ve loved enough to read over and over? My situation now is that all books seem to work better than ten years ago.
News and text on a monitor doesn’t usually work so well before sleeping either.