Thus Concludes 2012: A Very British Reading Year

Well, 2012 ends today.  It's hard to believe; each year seems to pass more and more quickly.  It must be my age.  Anyway, I read more in 2012 than the past five years combined-  72 works in all.  Being honest, though, a few works were hardly lengthy- some could even be read in under an hour, the most notable examples being the Magna Carta, a selection of Shakespearean sonnets, and Rime of the Ancient Mariner.  There was a healthy dose of graphic novels and ghost stories, too- always quick reads.  So, don't think that I reeled off 72 War and Peace-like tomes.  Still, I am pleased with my achievement.  In fact, so pleased I need to take a tangent here.

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TANGENT
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72 books in one year.  Sounds like a lot, doesn't it?  But, it's really not.  Let's look at the math.
366 days in 2012/72 books equals about 1 book every 5 days.  I don't know the average pages per book- but let's say it's 350.  350 pages/book * (1 book/5 days) = 70 pages/day. I think I read about 1 page per minute, so that means 70 minutes a day reading.  Sound like a lot?  Well, how much time do you spend on the Internet or watching television each day?  Not to mention I can read on the bus to work (10-20 pages, generally, on the bus each direction).  So, while it may sound impressive, it's quite achievable. 
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END TANGENT
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As you'd expect, the vast majority of my reads- 63- were from my British reading list.  Here were my
Top 10 British books of the year:
Excalibur by Bernard Cornwell.  (the third book of the Warlord trilogy)
The Man Who Was Thursday: A Nightmare by G.K. Chesterton
A Study in Scarlet by Arthur Conan Doyle
Watchmen by Alan Moore
The ABC Murders by Agatha Christie
Murder in Retrospect by Agatha Christie
The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde by Robert Louis Stevenson
Your Mind Matters by John Stott
Animal Farm by George Orwell
The Crusades by Thomas Asbridge

Not every selection was peachy, though.  Here are 3 of my biggest disappointments (note that they're all from centuries ago):
Historia Brittonum by Nennius
The Ecclesiastical History of the English People by Bede
The History of the Kings of Britain by Geoffrey of Monmouth

I love doing this British reading list "thing"- I highly recommend it, especially to those who find themselves living in the British Isles.  It's heightened my understanding and enjoyment of the overseas experience.  I have struggled, though, with keeping to the original intent.  At first, my British list was intended to give me a wide sampling of the famous British tomes from every genre.  I find myself, however, turning it into a list of every book by a Brit I ever want to read.  Thus, the number of books on the list swells easily- and then I have to do some pruning to keep it tenable.  I read one book, and discover five more in the same genre that I want to explore.  It's fun, but bad for keeping goals realizable.  I need to learn to stay on target.

It wasn't all about the Brits this year.  On the non-British side, I thoroughly enjoyed:
The Da Vinci Code by Dan Brown
Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter by Seth Grahame-Smith

While I enjoyed the journey, 2013 will see me reading fewer works.  72 is unsustainable- my goal is no more than 36 works in 2013.  Yes, it's odd to have a "maximum" goal in this area, but I've found I can turn the most worthy pursuit into an unhealthy obsession, so things must be done.

Happy reading in 2013!

Every Living Thing (James Herriot)

After a few clunkers, I wanted to end 2012 on a high note, so I turned to a reliable source: James Herriot.  Every Living Thing is the fifth and final story collection the vet/author produced about his life working with animals (and their eccentric owners) in the Yorkshire Dales.  This time, we're in the 1950s- television has just become a common household item, Herriot's kids are growing, and there are plenty of medical advances in the field- but it's the same old Yorkshire.  

Like the other collections, this one is full of heartwarming and amusing tales.  Herriot's contentment and enjoyment of his life is contagious- he's one of those authors that just makes you feel blessed to live on this good earth, even when (as was frequently the case with him) you have your arm in a cow's rectum.  I'd recommend any of his works, especially to animal lovers or those fortunate enough to live in Yorkshire.

If you've read any of Herriot's works and do live in northern England, I'd recommend checking out Skeldale House, the home where Herriot worked and lived for a time.  Located in Thirsk (Herriot's "Darrowby"- he always changed the names of the towns in his works), it helps you visualize a variety of scenes put forth in James' literature. Oh, and regarding changing the names of towns- his oft-mentioned "Brawton" is none other than Harrogate, so keep that in mind when you read.

My only disappointment here was that it ended.  I thought, as his final collection, that it would conclude with an overall look back on his life, but it appears to end right in the '50s or '60s, which means memorable deeds of the last few decades of his practice was never committed to paper (or, at least, published).  Or, perhaps, some of the tales do cover the later period, and he just never makes mention of it.  It was written in 1992; Herriot died just three years later.  He lived 78 years, and appeared thankful for each moment.  I wish we all lived like that.

Rating: A

Brave New World (Aldous Huxley)

I was blessed with many books for Christmas, and in keeping with my "minimization" goals, that means I have to clean out my shelves and make room for the new.  One casualty is Brave New World by Huxley.  A great work, it pains me to get rid of it, but such is life.  I read it a few years ago, so my memory isn't 100%, but I wanted to give a quick review before I got rid of it.

In Brave New World, we see a future where, essentially, everyone's drugged to be happy.  Technology is god- and the people praise "Ford" for his breakthroughs in this arena.  Any form of attachment is discouraged, as attachment can cause pain down the road, and so frivolous, uncommitted living is highly encouraged.  Techniques have been developed to minimize the effect of aging (though people are still mortal), and anyone thinking sad thoughts is given (what I call) happy pills.  Oh, but here's the thing- without sorrow, there's no joy, either.  Life's just a series of events designed to keep people in an almost catatonic state of happiness.  Don't question, don't think, just be happy.  Are they really free?  I think not.

Several characters in the story exist outside of this bubble, and age normally, as well as experience all of life's ups and downs like we do today.  One of them issues this classic line: "I don't want comfort.  I want God, I want poetry, I want real danger, I want freedom, I want goodness.  I want sin."  The basic point of the book is that true freedom, and true life, entails both the good and bad, and if you take one, you take the other.

I loved this book- and the scary thing is, though it was penned 80 years ago, it's almost coming true in our society today.  A variety of drugs exist to help people through sadness and, while that's not always bad, it is (in my opinion) over-used.  Will the future hold something similar for us?  I hope not.

Rating: A+

Dabbling in the Mediocre

My readings of the last few days have been frustrating.  I've hit on several consecutive mediocre works, and decided to read selections from each- 25-33% of each work- rather than feel pressured to read them all cover to cover.  As such, I won't give in-depth review on each, but just a one-liner on the work and what I think of it:

West Highland Tales (Fitzroy Maclean)
A collection of tales from the Highlands of Scotland, the tales are told without much flourish, and are marginally interesting at best.

Rating: C-

Ghostly Tales and Sinister Stories of Old Edinburgh (Alan J. Wilson, Des Brogan, and Frank McGrail)
A few interesting tales mixed with boring or downright stupid ones.

Rating: C-

Idylls of the King (Alfred, Lord Tennyson, with art by Gustave Dore)

Ack!  I really wanted to like this, but call me uneducated- I just can't stand unrhymed verse.  A retelling of the King Arthur legends, Tennyson has skill, but it's just not for me.  The art by Dore, on the other hand, is outstanding; he's one of my favorites.  Note that this particular work is abridged; only selections from Idylls were taken.  Still, I couldn't take much more than 25% of it.

Rating (verse): C-
Rating (art): A+

Politically Correct Old Testament Stories (Robert Martin Walker)

The title sums this one up nicely- this is a collection of Old Testament stories modified to be politically correct for the modern age.  The intent, of course, is to be humorous.  Does it succeed?  Kinda.  This book is, at times, amusing, but gets repetitive (and annoying) quickly.  Words like "womyn," "_____-enhanced", and "_____-gifted" are used so frequently it makes it hard to slog through this slim, 86-page volume.  Perhaps that's the point- that if you go "fully PC" you get really annoying, really quickly- but I think it could have been done a bit better.

Rating: C-

Batman, Noel (Lee Bermejo)

The story of Dickens' Christmas Carol, but featuring characters in the Batman universe?  Yes, please!  Batman, Noel is just that- a twist on the classic tale, with ol' Batty himself as . . . the scrooge!  He gets visits from 'spirits' of the past (Catwoman), present (Superman), and future (the Joker), which each play their part in showing him how far astray he's gone from his original days.  He is, indeed, the Dark Knight- but perhaps his decades-long fight against the underworld has made him just a little too dark, and it takes some frightful experiences to snap him back to reality. 

It's hard to cross classic stories like this into such an 'alien' universe, but overall, it's well done.  There are obvious liberties and interpretations taken to make the match fit, but it's forgivable.  Bermejo's art is top-notch; I think he's my favorite comic artist.  Each page is amazing- the details are everywhere, and the characters beautifully done.  The final produce is quite good, and well worth a read.  Like most graphic novels, it's a quick read, too- easily done in about an hour.

Merry Christmas, Gotham!

Rating: A

The Hobbit (An Unexpected Journey)

Can it be 11 years since Middle-Earth first ventured on the big screen?  In 2001, Peter Jackson released The Fellowship of the Ring, the first in the Lord of the Rings saga- a movie trilogy that went on to be wildly successful and extremely respected.  Fast forward to 2012, and at long last, we get the first Tolkien story in the saga- The Hobbit.  Why did it take so long?  The director changed a few times, and different studios owned the rights to make and distribute the movie, respectively, so it took a while to work out those squabbles.  But, finally, Jackson returned to helm the saga- and decided to break The Hobbit into three movies, the first of which was released a few weeks ago.  How did the first installment turn out?  Read on, my friend- read on!

I won't get into detailed plot review here; I'll just say that The Hobbit is a story of how Bilbo Baggins joined a small band of dwarves (and Gandalf the wizard) on their quest to reclaim their homeland (the Lonely Mountain- an ancient kingdom called Erebor) from the dragon Smaug.  On that journey, Bilbo encounters Gollum, and obtains (quite by accident) the one ring that gets his nephew Frodo into no small degree of excitement many years later in the Lord of the Rings.  This time around, since three movies are covering just one novel, Jackson throws in a lot of back-story, too, which is (I'm told) true to Tolkien's universe, but not necessarily discussed in the novel.  He's been criticized for that, but I think it's justified (more on that later).

As I watched the movie, I couldn't help but appreciate Jackson's plight.  He had a massive following from the first three movies, which raised expectations to wild heights.  Now, he had to go back and tell the "origin story" to an audience brimming with anticipation.  I think he did a good job- here are a few thoughts (in bullet form, for some reason):
- the movie has many similarities to The Fellowship of the Ring.  It features a grand, epic journey, starting from Bag End (the Baggins home), passing through woods, mountains, underground mines, and encountering many people (like dwarves, elves, orcs, goblins, giant eagles).  
- the movie is extremely epic.  Some say "melodramatic"- and that may be the more appropriate word- but I'll use the word epic.  Everything is epic- extremely grandiose.  At times, I confess, I thought it overdone, but as I look back on the original trilogy, it mirrors what was done there.  So, anybody complaining about that forgets that it's simply a continuation of style from the first three movies.
- some have complained about telling The Hobbit in three parts.  I can see two parts, easily- three might be a stretch, but time will tell.  It gives Jackson a chance to delve more into this amazing world, and visually present back story only mentioned (or implied) in the books.  The Lord of the Rings movies, by necessity, had to omit a large amount of material, so here Jackson gets a chance to include more of the story.  I, for one, enjoyed that, and I think fans of Middle-Earth will, too.
- critics have panned this movie, calling it sprawling, overdone, etc.  Are they justified?  In a sense, I understand, but I think The Hobbit suffers primarily from one thing: overblown expectations.  I saw it in the Star Wars prequels, in the final Batman movie (The Dark Knight Rises), and I see it here. When a director produces a movie (or several movies) that blow people away, people expect more, and more, and more.  If that same director then creates a movie of the same quality as the others, people are (for some reason) disappointed.
- here, Jackson has a problem- The Hobbit story clearly has less at stake than The Lord of the Rings.  In the latter, the fate of Middle-Earth is in the balance; in the former, a small band is trying to reclaim their home.  In a sense, I can see people being disappointed for this reason, but again, that's the story, so don't blame the director for that.

Conclusion: if you loved The Lord of the Rings movies, you'll like this one, too.  If you found the first three offerings overly dramatic, drawn-out, or boring, you'll feel the same about The Hobbit.

One final comment: a good review (which discusses much of the above in a better manner) can be found here.

Rating: A