Reading What is the What by Dave Eggers. It is in all ways excellent. It's being called a novel, though it's really a freely fictionalized autobiography of Valentino Achak Deng, one of Sudan's Lost Boys and a friend of Eggers. Not sure why Deng isn't credited as at least co-author, but I have to assume the reason's acceptable to both parties as it's Deng's likeness on the cover and all proceeds are going to his foundation for helping the Sudanese in America. [March 4: Just noticed inside the book that the full title is What is the What: The Autobiography of Valentino Achak Deng, which I think is a pretty clever thing to call a novel like this.]
A couple nights ago I read an advance copy of The Reluctant Fundamentalist at my boss' behest. It was disturbing. Not deeply troubling, but something in it is still gnawing at me. I think it was the form: a 180-page conversation in which the second person doesn't speak at all but is assaulted with politeness and hospitality at a little restaurant in Lahore. I won't spoil it for you; you should read it.
After this it's going to be Ondaatje or McEwan; both would be regarded in work circles as job-related as each has a new book coming out, but the truth is I've got stuff by both that's sat uncracked far too long.
Watched Primer this afternoon. Perhaps a touch too obtuse, but they landed all the emotional points and the story makes a kind of sense even if you can't map out exactly what's gone down. Wonderful feeling of being overwhelmed by the pace and wanting to go back just a bit, and then feeling a kind of guilt for doing so blithely what these characters are struggling with.
Also watched the last X Men movie. Awful, awful, awful. I can imagine the hostile reaction it must have been met with in theatres on opening weekend. I never did figure out why I should be sympathetic to the cause of the "good guys" in this one. They were like the Jewish Warsaw police force of occupied Poland. But maybe that wasn't the storyline I was supposed to be following. What a mess.
Looking forward to writing for a friend's sitcom. Not yet sold to anyone (or finished editing) but pregnant with possibility. The way I feel about the work, I don't care if the pilot doesn't go anywhere (though for Claudio's sake I hope it does). I just want to get back to writing, and it seems the only thing that drags me back to it is collaboration.
A couple nights ago I read an advance copy of The Reluctant Fundamentalist at my boss' behest. It was disturbing. Not deeply troubling, but something in it is still gnawing at me. I think it was the form: a 180-page conversation in which the second person doesn't speak at all but is assaulted with politeness and hospitality at a little restaurant in Lahore. I won't spoil it for you; you should read it.
After this it's going to be Ondaatje or McEwan; both would be regarded in work circles as job-related as each has a new book coming out, but the truth is I've got stuff by both that's sat uncracked far too long.
Watched Primer this afternoon. Perhaps a touch too obtuse, but they landed all the emotional points and the story makes a kind of sense even if you can't map out exactly what's gone down. Wonderful feeling of being overwhelmed by the pace and wanting to go back just a bit, and then feeling a kind of guilt for doing so blithely what these characters are struggling with.
Also watched the last X Men movie. Awful, awful, awful. I can imagine the hostile reaction it must have been met with in theatres on opening weekend. I never did figure out why I should be sympathetic to the cause of the "good guys" in this one. They were like the Jewish Warsaw police force of occupied Poland. But maybe that wasn't the storyline I was supposed to be following. What a mess.
Looking forward to writing for a friend's sitcom. Not yet sold to anyone (or finished editing) but pregnant with possibility. The way I feel about the work, I don't care if the pilot doesn't go anywhere (though for Claudio's sake I hope it does). I just want to get back to writing, and it seems the only thing that drags me back to it is collaboration.
VIEW 4 of 4 COMMENTS
So say we all.
What is the What was indeed excellent.