Reading List: July

I didn't think this was going to happen, but I ended up reading a lot this month. I doubted this would be the case because I spent July traveling, first to Spain and then to San Diego, and I was surrounded by people all the time. However, I managed to find some time to read while hanging out with friends and family in Spain, and then books came in handy in San Diego when I had to wait in line for hours to get into the notorious Hall H. But let's see what I read this month.

P is for Peril
Yet another outstanding Kinsey Millhone adventure by Sue Grafton, I can only recommend P is for Peril the same way I've been doing with every book in the series. Go Kinsey!

When You Are Engulfed in Flames
This collection of essays by David Sedaris is very funny and kept me entertained on the plane while I was flying over the Atlantic Ocean. If you're looking for some humorous nonfiction, give Sedaris a try. I don't think you'll regret it!

Bringing Down the House
This book by Ben Mezrich became the movie 21 last year. The subtitle of the book, The inside story of six MIT students who took Vegas for millions pretty much says it all. The book tells the story of the MIT Blackjack Team, and what happened to them. Needless to say, I rented the movie on DVD immediately after I finished this very enjoyable book, but I think I'll save those comments for another day. I know, I know: I'm shameless.

Territorio comanche
The Arturo Pérez-Reverte novella that made the Spanish author several enemies, Reverte uses Territorio comanche to tell the reader what it feels like to be a reporter in the middle of a war. The author spent countless years as a war correspondent, and you can see there is no fiction in this book but true stories instead, several tales and events and musings and horror Reverte got to experience first hand. There is also I movie I've never seen, but the book is all sorts of good.

Corazón tan blanco
Spanish author Javier Marías explores marriage and secrets in this great book. He talks about what could have been, what will never be, what could be, and what will be. He talks about knowing when you'd be better off not knowing, and how the things we don't know about people are as important (if not more) as the things we do know. Sounds confusing? Well, Marías tends to pack lots of ideas in his novels, and he does so with pervasive symmetry, melancholy, and beautiful prose, and I usually find it difficult to summarize his stories. Therefore, instead of reading what I have to say about his work, go ahead and buy one of his books. Or three. Or seven.

The Umbrella Academy: Apocalypse Suite
I had read all sorts of positive reviews about The Umbrella Academy, a comic book written by Gerard Way and illustrated by Gabriel Ba. I had kept away from the book because the artwork looked very Mignola-esque, and that is a style I don't particularly care for. However, a friend had bought it and insisted I borrowed it, so I read the whole thing in one sitting, and came to the expected conclusion: while I enjoyed the story, the artwork simply didn't speak to me. So, if you like this style of illustration and you enjoy retro-flavored sci-fi, do not hesitate and check out this book. If, on the other hand, you don't find the pictures all that appealing, find a friend who owns the book and check it out. You've got nothing to lose, right?

20th Century Ghosts
A collection of short stories by Joe Hill, 20th Century Ghosts is packed with excellent tales by the New Englander. There are some scary stories, some melancholy stories, some unexpectedly touching stories, and some weird stories, but I didn't find a single tale I didn't like. Reading this book felt like watching a season of Amazing Stories: you knew you were going to find something off-kilter in every single story, but you never knew exactly what you were going to find. Would it be dark and creepy? Humorous? Plain unsettling? Check out this book and find out for yourself!

Mortadelo y Filemón: ¡… Y van 50 tacos!
This comic book came out last year, and it celebrated the fiftieth anniversary of the incredibly popular characters created by Spanish cartoonist Francisco Ibáñez. I hadn't read anything by him in a really long time, and I found this book truly hilarious. A great purchase!

I Love You, Beth Cooper
Larry Doyle used to write for The Simpsons and then decided to write a humorous novel, a book which has just been turned into a movie starring Hayden Panettiere, of Heroes fame. ILBC takes place on graduation night, a night that keeps making unexpected turns, especially if you are Denis Cooverman, the main character of the book and the one who professes his love for Beth Cooper in his graduation speech right in front of hundreds of people. This declaration will keep coming back to haunt him all night long, and will bring with it other, more lethal friends. I read most of it on the flight back from Spain to the JFK airport, and I laughed so much I can't wait to see the movie, which will almost certainly disappoint me. I'll keep you updated.

El club Dumas
I had actually read this novel by Arturo Pérez-Reverte when I was in High School, and I had such fond memories of the book that I made the potential mistake of reading it again. Fortunately, I loved it as much as I did the first time, and I can therefore recommend it to everyone. El club Dumas mixes reality and fiction, The Three Musketters with different characters and events, and keeps the reader guessing as to what's going to happen next. The main character, a book hunter named Lucas Corso, is tremendously appealing, and his efforts to figure out what's going on and how the many different pieces of the puzzle fit together are great fun to read about. Besides, this book kept me company while I was in line at the San Diego Comic Con for hours on end, so I have that extra something to be grateful for. Go buy this book!

And that's it for July. Come back in a month to find out what I read in August!