Saturday, August 02, 2008
Welcome to the Jungle
I just finished reading The Jungle. Yes, I did read big chunks of it in 8th grade for history class, but I figured I would give the whole thing a shot and see how it works as a novel, as opposed to just a bunch of scary stories about how they make meat. It was definitely kind of a depressing slog, what with all the death, dismemberment, and moral degradation. (All of which was proudly forecast on the book jacket.) I mean, it's not enough just for family members to die, they have to be eaten by rats or dissolved by acid. And then the last few chapters are essentially a big essay on the triumph of socialism. We all know how that worked out.
But now, in what is probably the most exciting news of all time, I am reading The DaVinci Code. I am only about fifty pages in, but I'm pretty sure it has already changed my life. For one thing, I have learned about fifty synonyms for "dark." Also I now understand that it is perfectly appropriate to launch into a two-page speech about the sacred feminine in the middle of a conversation. I will certainly keep you all posted as I read. There are sure to be lots of important personal developments.
I just finished reading The Jungle. Yes, I did read big chunks of it in 8th grade for history class, but I figured I would give the whole thing a shot and see how it works as a novel, as opposed to just a bunch of scary stories about how they make meat. It was definitely kind of a depressing slog, what with all the death, dismemberment, and moral degradation. (All of which was proudly forecast on the book jacket.) I mean, it's not enough just for family members to die, they have to be eaten by rats or dissolved by acid. And then the last few chapters are essentially a big essay on the triumph of socialism. We all know how that worked out.
But now, in what is probably the most exciting news of all time, I am reading The DaVinci Code. I am only about fifty pages in, but I'm pretty sure it has already changed my life. For one thing, I have learned about fifty synonyms for "dark." Also I now understand that it is perfectly appropriate to launch into a two-page speech about the sacred feminine in the middle of a conversation. I will certainly keep you all posted as I read. There are sure to be lots of important personal developments.
