Sunday, March 22, 2009

Banned From Books: A Reading List a Mile Long, Part I


I received the Early Spring 2009 Daedalus Books catalogue in the post yesterday. A book catalogue in my hands is, ordinarily, a thing at once dangerous and heavenly: it is porn, complete with alluring, tasty pictures.It is my ritual to grab a pen, throw myself into a chair, and hastily circle anything that catches my fancy or piques my intellect.The arc of my interests is wide, and ever-growing: there are many blurbs touched with ink by catalogue's end.Occasionally,when my curiosity gains the upper hand, I will add up the cost of every circled item. The figure is always embarrassing, even with a discount purveyor like Daedalus.

Even as the no-books challenge is winding down, I am still trying to quell and quash my desire--I will stop shy of calling it a need--to read, read, read! In lieu of picking up a book, I picked up that catalogue and marked my desires with a half-empty black pen, which is now drained and dry. Below is a sampler of some of the delectables, oddities and inspirations I found.


1-Bugatti Queen In Search of a French Racing Legend by Miranda Seymour (RANDOM HOUSE) I am a sucker for biographies of independent,odd and accomplished female souls.


2-Black Barty The Real Pirate of the Caribbean by Aubrey Burl (SUTTON) I have a sick fascination for all things piratical, historically speaking.


3-Eating with the Victorians C. Anne Wilson, ed. (SUTTON)I am a Victoriana nut and I love food. This tome seems like the perfect blend of sociological commentary ( food says loads about a people and culture) and cookbook. Yum!


4-Faces of Science by Mariana Cook. Intro by Gerard Piel (NORTON) While I am not a science fiend, I do find the minds and lives of scientists to be enthralling curiosities ( hello, Johannes Kepler). I also love photography.


5-Penicillin Man: Alexander Fleming and the Antibiotic Revolution by Kevin Brown (SUTTON) SEE ABOVE.


6-A Theatrical Feast in New York by Elizabeth Sharland (SUTTON) How, and where, famous thespians and playwrights pass the time before and after opening night.


7-DEAR FRIENDS American Photographs of Men Together 1840-1918 by David Deitcher (ABRAMS) Doesn't the title say it all? And, no, it is not erotica, at least not in any modern sense.


8-Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas by Hunter S. Thompson. Ralph Steadman, illus. (VINTAGE) Sometimes only Gonzo will do.


9-Wordsworth:A Life by Juliet Barker (HARPER PERENNIAL) My gluttonous yearning for biographies of writers of every stripe will never be sated. Bonus points if it gives good coverage of his famous sister Dorothy,as well.


10-Dolce Vita Style by Jean-Pierre Dufreigne (ASSOULINE) Anyone who has ever seen even 5 minutes of the Fellini film understands why it merits a book such as this.
Painting:The Reader by Jean-Honore Fragonard



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