84. magical realism inspires magical procrastination

I think books are my crack.  I really do.  Instead of facing my blasted homework as I should... finals week is looming closer and closer, I said to myself, "i'll just finish my book, then i'll feel better."  if that isn't an addict's statement, i dont know what is.  I am nearing the end (as in 30 pages away) of Gabriel Garcia Marquez's One Hundred Years of Solitude and it was an interesting, albeit confusing read.  I think I can see in this book the style that must have taken some part in inspiring the strange salman rushdie.  while it is confusing and sometimes grotesque, magical realism is the bomb.  the author describes a normal person's day, in an average portrayal of the world, then BAM! somebody just floats up into the air into infinity while they are helping someone fold a sheet in the courtyard.  you never see these instances coming, nor do you really know what has happened while you are reading it, but then you think "wait a second..." and re-read a few lines and realize that the book is crazy (in a good way).  there were gypsies (give me your tears..... oh borat, how you slay me), flying carpets, massacres, butterflies (yep, rushdie had definitely read this before becoming a writer) that appeared around one person and their memory, 200 year old people, glowing gold, and my favorite so far, a pool filled with champagne!  so delightful.  i have no idea what surprise awaits me in the next 30 or so pages as the book ends, although pretty much every one of the family members has locked themselves up in some form of solitude and died (or lived for hundreds of years)*sorry, but this wasn't a spoiler, if you haven't read it, you definitely know that most of the characters will die at some point.  and, as i still have 30 pages, not everyone has died.  so there.  i will disagree with the critic who said that this book should be required reading right after the book of Genesis, though.  that's kind of sacrilidge.  not cool.  nor did i think it was that over-the-top required reading fantastic.  but what do i know? 

64. and 65. what a productive weekend (for reading at least)

since i have spent so much of my weekend reading things that i didn't necessarily need to read for school, i do not have much time to write out my thoughts and feelings on Eyes Up Nose Down by Merrill Mekoe, and Persepolis by Marjane Satrapi.  Persepolis was actually for a lesson plan assignment for my media literacy class..... apparently "graphic novels" are the next big thing in teaching.  I think i would have hated having to read and dissect this sort of thing in high school.  i don't do well with comics and graphic reading- there's too much going on.  give me the words and let me picture it on my own.  although i will admit that the graphics were pretty um word word word... i can't think right now.  it's a sunday morning and i'm distracted by the fact that my room is (still) a disaster.  and i also am upset that i didn't do this homework last night when i was motivated.  granted, its not due til wednesday, but i feel that i will be much relieved the more i get done today.  i, as of yet, have no misconceptions about how much will actually get done today though.  i have played this game many a sundays before.  im no stranger to the procrastination game (as you can clearly see- i am writing about what i have read this weekend in lieu of actually doing anything....) persepolis was kind of scary and im not sure how appropriate it would be in a classroom because of the violence, anti-government critique, religion, and curse words in it.  they say fuck a few times, which stands out a lot more in a "graphic novel" than in a regular novel because there are fewer words.  anyway, it was a good history lesson for me at least.  i had no idea of how or why or what went down in the islamic revolution of iran.  now i have some idea.  yay me.  i don't regret spending my saturday nigth reading this book and would recommend it to anyone because it was sort of intriguing.  i also liked the little veiled women pictures.  they reminded me of a darker side of madeline picture books.