a thousand good reads

A recent conversation with some writerly folk yielded a plethora of fringe culture art references from steam punk, to webcomics, to you-name-it. As a result I ended up reading all 1000+ comics at Questionable Content.

I highly recommend–it’s like watching Friends only with grunge, swearing, and indie music references. Start with #1 so you get the whole saga. And if you click those two QC links, you’ll see how much J. Jacques, the writer, has changed in his drawing style in the couple of years he’s been at this.

I love that he is supporting himself doing it. The internet is awesome! Artists can connect with fans directly and distribute their work practically free, allowing Mr. Jacques to support himself and his girlfriend doing something he loves. Cool.

I also just finished re-reading Barbara Kingsolver’s Animal Dreams.

I think it was about fifteen years ago that I read it the first time, so I had forgotten most of the details. When I was in my twenties and worked in a bookstore, I could not fathom how these people could come in to buy something and not be able to remember if they had already read it, or if they had, how it ended. Now I am one of those people. Age really does seem to fill one’s brain up. Things fall away. I didn’t understand that before. What would it be like to be 100? Awash in a sea of almost-accessible memories….

Animal Dreams takes on big themes, but keeps them so personal that it never feels preachy. I really enjoyed, this time, how all the pieces fit together. No references was a throw away–if peacocks are mentioned in the beginning, then peacocks are important to the whole. The characters are all loveable and the sense of place is detailed and gorgeous.

One of the most interesting parts of reading it this time was noticing how I had changed. For example, the lost baby stuff kind of blew past me the first time–no frame of reference in my early twenties. Now, with two babies of my own, that part of the story was devastating. (And no, I didn’t give anything away, there, it’s all near the beginning.)

But the thing I remembered most from my previous reading was Loyd (not a misspelling), one of the the hunkiest literary boyfriends you’re going to find, right up there with Mr. Darcy, only with muscles and long black hair. Yum. Not to be missed.