Garrett M. Vonk

I’m going to do a post on London and Ireland, as I should, but I always feel like recaps of grand adventures should themselves be grand–or at least comprehensive–and thus I’ve been unable to find the time to post an adequate one.

For now, here’s what I’ve enjoyed lately-

• Empire, by Orson Scott Card - It’s not anything like Ender’s Game, which is my only other exposure to OSC. He’s got a pretty rabid fanbase, and it seems like this book polarized a lot of his fans. Empire is the story of a hotshot, ex-special forces U.S. Army Captain who gets caught up in a fierce battle between the right and the left that results in bloodshed and chaos. The machine-gun pace reads like an episode of 24 or a Die Hard movie, but the speed doesn’t detract from the story too much. Ultimately, if you ignore some the ludicrous plot points (the left takes up arms against the right and takes military control of Manhattan, for starters), it’s a pretty good, thrilling read.
• Earth Abides, by George Stewart- This is a pretty good book. It’s a tale of a man who survives a plague that wipes out 99.9% of the population that was written nearly sixty years ago. With only a few exceptions (including a reference to those Negroes and their jazz), it aged very well and is just as compelling as when it was written. Considering that I also read The World Without Us and I Am Legend earlier this year, it seems like I’ve kind of been on a morbid, last-man-on-the-planet kick lately. The only thing that hampered my enjoyment of this book is that a coworker actually ruined the ending for me, nonchalantly. There’s a touching scene at the end of the novel that I wouldn’t dream of ruining for you. It’s not a plot twist, but it’s probably the most important scene in the whole story, and my coworker just kind of said “Oh yeah, I listened to the audiobook of that. He _____ ___ ______ __ ___ ___ at the end.” Um, thanks, dude.
• Guitar Hero II - Just beat it on Expert. Yep, including Free Bird. I’m a rock star.
• Guitar Hero III - Finally beat it on Hard. This game is like a full 50% harder than GHII, so it’s going to take a little longer to beat it on Expert. I’m only four songs away, though! As long as it took me to beat the devil on Devil Went Down to Georgia on HARD, I don’t know if I’ll ever do it on Expert.

• Going to vote in the primary tomorrow after a week of trying and failing to find time to advance vote. Ron Paul needs all the help I can give him, especially given that his buzz has waned quite a bit on the internet. It seems like Ron Paul Fever is giving way to the ever growing Obamania. Obamassacre? Obamanslaughter? I guess I’m just not as good at coining neo-bama-logisms as Ken Jennings. Segue alert!
• Going to meet Ken Jennings (again) at the Margaret Mitchell House tomorrow evening to hear him discuss–and see him sign–his latest.
• Finished The Birthday Party last week. I finally read this on a year-old recommendation on boingboing.net. This is a very good story, recounted chillingly, if a bit amateurishly, by the federal prosecutor who was kidnapped in 1998. A stellar example of an unputdownable book, this one had me up until 2am finishing it the same day I got it from the library.
• Also read Then We Came to the End, completely on the recommendation of Tony Simon’s metaphorical pizza of literature. This is not the kind of novel I usually read. The summary wouldn’t have piqued my interest in the least: “A group of copywriters and designers at a Chicago ad agency face layoffs at the end of the ’90s boom.” But this is something substantial. It’s about office life, something which which I am intimately familiar, and about cancer, with which I am not. The book will resonate clearly, as it did with me, with anyone who works in an office.
• Currently checked out: Altered Carbon and The World Without Us. Not sure which I will finish first.

• Don’t forget that The Daily Show and Colbert will be back on the air tonight. I’ve missed them, but I’m a little confused about what will comprise their usually incredibly well-scripted shows if the pair, both guild members, are prohibited from writing material for themselves.
• I’d used it before, but I’ve been requesting a lot of books lately and I’ve found that the Atlanta Public Library’s site is actually quite helpful. Sure, some anchor tags contain layers of obfuscatory Javascript and their search leaves a lot to be desired, but it’s quite handy to hold a couple of books, wait for the email confirmation, and stop by after work (the Central Library is across the street from my office).
• Recent diversions include Assassin’s Creed, Rock Band, Scene It: LCA, and The Golden Compass (Er, the book, not the game).
• What, was I gone for a while? Sorry. Didn’t really have much to say. Nothing personal. Let’s see… The holidays went well. Work is good. Heather got me an iPhone for Christmas (in October). We’re going to Dublin and London in March. Can’t wait.

We listened to the first half of the audiobook version of Jarhead on the trip. I’m impressed (so far) by the content, but the execution falls a little short for me. As Amazon was so kind to explain, Jarhead is written with words that contain, on average, 1.5 syllables. So, I’m really enjoying the story, but the writing is a little basic. There are enough complex motifs, metaphors, and situations that the writing could have been spruced up a little more by the editor/co- or ghostwriter.

Halfway through, I think I’m done with the audiobook–if I want to finish the book, I’ll get a print copy. I think it was a bad decision for the author to read his own work. While he is a decent writer, his delivery lacks the authenticity he probably wanted because he is, in my opinion, just not a very good reader. His publisher should have recognized this and hired a seasoned reader to record the book. Some authors (especially comedians) have the talent for both the content and the delivery, but most of the more heralded writers of the last decade usually opt to hire a Broadway vet or similar, and with good reason. I recommend Jarhead, but in paperback form (or possibly the movie, which I haven’t seen).