TOP TEN TUESDAY | MY FIRST TEN REVIEWS

December 31, 2009

Like a Bridget Jones’ diary for cynics and skeptics, the format of the book allows an intimate glimpse into the minds of the characters as they struggle to face their lives and learn that they might not be quite as alone as they once thought.

I only vaguely remember this book (it has been a decade), but I do remember when I worked in a Staples, like the characters in this book, and I remember the feel of Coupland’s writing. This wasn’t my favourite of his books, but that doesn’t mean I didn’t love it. He is brilliant at minutia. I still agree with my assessment of this book, and I think I’d probably give it 6/10 (I didn’t do ratings back then, so I don’t know how that compares to my original impression).

Full review here.

This is the most outrageous, disgusting, gritty, perceptive, beautiful, fascinating and repellant series of graphic novels/comic books I have ever read. And every one of those descriptive words was a compliment – just to make sure we’re clear. I love how nasty and perverted the characters are, and I love the dingy world in which they terrorize an unsuspecting population.

If you’re easily offended or sensitive to smut, this will not be a series for you, I’ll tell you that right now. But if you enjoy stories that push boundaries, focus on the wrong side of town and push the boundaries of  – well, pretty much everything – you might very well enjoy Spider Robinson.

Full review here.

By turns fascinating, magnetic and despicable, Switters is one character who will not cease to entertain and surprise you. Read it. You will love it.

Oh, Tom Robbins, the voice of my teenage years. I love the vibrance and outlandishness of Robbins’ narrative voices, and how his stories are always a blend of the absurd, divine, mundane and outlandish. I love his turns of phrase (evidenced in pretty much every single title of his books) and the imagery his words produce in my head as I read. I don’t know if he’d appeal to me as much as a middle-aged reader as he did to teenaged me, but I am definitely glad I found him when I did.

Full review here.

I have often wondered what would happen if you took every sort of mishap and cliche you could dream up, created a cast of characters and threw the mishaps at them like rotten tomatoes at a stage show. This book is the answer to that query.

Coupland is one of my all-time favourite authors. Don’t get me wrong, I don’t love every single thing he has ever produced. Some of it is just plain weird. But I love that he explores and experiments, I love that he chooses to focus on my part (and his) of the world, and I love that when he gets it right, he really gets it right. This is definitely a marmite book – most people aren’t huge fans – but I loved it at the time I read it and am looking forward to finding out if I still feel the same way next time I pick it up.

Full review here.

Whether you decide to visit a local farmer’s market, grow some of your own vegetables in your backyard or a community garden, choose to buy foods marked “local” whenever you see them, or simply have an increased awareness of the true cost of your food, this book will certainly change your relationship to your meals and provide you with options should you choose to pursue them.

Barbara Kingsolver is a keen observer, and every book she writes brims with small and otherwise insignificant details she has accumulated from life happening around her and distilled down to the essence of experience. I feel like she’s someone who would be a great listener, but also give great advice. This book’s topic was well served by her particular talents, as they foster a feeling of connection to the nature she is using it to celebrate. Excellent.

Full review here.

This book is for all those who think rap is poetry, who love the rhythm and sounds of language as much as what is being said, and who wants to read poetry that will leave you sitting staring off into space for quite some time after each poem.

It has been years since I’ve read any Saul Williams. I first discovered him in the movie Slam, about a slam poet who ends up incarcerated and how he handles life from that point. His words are best heard aloud, but if you don’t have that option, are still well worth reading on the page. I love his rhythm and imagery most of all. Click on the link below to read a sample of his rhymes!

Full review here.

[S]omehow, through Cassandra’s eyes, what could be a throughly depressing situation becomes quite charming. At times whimsical, at times humorous, the book is as much the story of her own ascent into adulthood and the disappointment that often accompanies it as it is the story of the day-to-day lives of her family.

This is still among my favourite books of all time. It’s such a quiet, unassuming book, and yet its characters have stayed with me and feel as real as any of my childhood friends. There are themes in here related to pretty much every part of the human condition, and they are delicately but deeply explored. I adore Cassandra and I think this is one of the best coming of age novels ever written. Great for young and adult readers alike.

Full review here.

The written sections cover every imaginable topic related to sexuality, from the Bill Clinton/Monica Lewinsky scandal to the difference between sensualists and sexualists to the experience of being a virgin at the age of twenty-eight (proving that not having sex can be just as interesting and complicated a sexual journey as having it) to how to have a sex life as a Siamese twin.

It’s been a while since I’ve reviewed any books on sexuality on this blog, but it’s a genre I find fascinating. As individual as it is universal, sexuality is something that, regardless of how, affects everyone. I love essay format and narrative non-fiction on the topic, something full of weird or fascinating information but also readable. There was plenty to love in this book, and lots of variety. Definitely worth  read if you’re interested in to topic as well!

Full review here.

It is as easy to read and as suspenseful as the most masterful fictional crime novel, but has a dark undercurrent that will chill you to the bone.

It’s amazing to think that it’s been almost 15 years since I read this book, because I can still feel the atmosphere it evoked when I think of it. The details are fuzzy, but the feeling remains. I remember it being engrossing, horrifying and excellently written, and I think anyone who is interested in true crime or historical re-tellings would find something here to fascinate.

Full review here.

It has been said that history is written by the winners. This book shows us what history might have looked like if had it been recorded by the other side.

I’m glad this book snuck into the list, because I feel like I should probably revisit it soon. Ronald Wright is an author I have nothing but respect for, and it helps that in addition to being a wonderful writer, he’s also smart, funny and personable. I studied anthropology in university, but he still managed to teach me things I didn’t know about the “founding” of the Americas, and for that I will be eternally grateful. This book is definitely on my top non-fiction picks and one I would recommend to pretty much anyone.

Full review here.