May 24, 2006 - 10:18 AM

Just Take a Look, Inside a Book

The bookworm returns. I've finished two books in the past month. TWO! WHOLE! THINGS! WITH! PAGES! AND WORDS! And, no, they weren't Richard Scary books. Hmm...I wonder what Lowly Worm is up to these days.

No, I started reading Blackhawk Down back when I saw Lissa Schneckenberger (hee hee...so fun to type) at the Coffee Gallery last month. While I was waiting for them to open up the seating, I browsed through the bookshelf of donated reading materials in the cafe area, and that book was peeking up at me. So I picked it up, cracked it open, and began reading. I'd run through a couple chapters by the time I laid it back on the shelf at the end of the night. As soon as I got home, i resumed reading, this time with the copy that I'd had collecting dust for about 5 months on my shelves. I read at home instead of surfing the net; I read at work while things were slow; I read on a plane, in a train, on a moose, in a caboose.

It was so well-written and well-plotted, it's hard to believe that it's a non-fiction book. I'm glad that I saw the movie first (which I've watched at least 10 times) because, as much as I love the movie, it pales in comparison to the book. One of the writers for my show, when he saw me reading the book, would only say "the book's really good", even when i asked how he liked the movie. I now understand his view. So much of what makes the book an engaging read is the way the viewpoints of all parties are given voice: you get the Army Rangers, elite grunts of the ground forces, all gung-ho, yet green; they look up to the Delta Force and other Special Forces boys, true professional warriors who are constantly shaking their heads at the incompetence of the Rangers; then there are the officers in command of the increasingly chaotic operation, trying to accomplish the objectives while saving their troops; the ambassadors and diplomats working on resolving the situation in Somalia; the wives of the soldiers; and most importantly, the Somalis who are caught up in the warfare, from the bystanders to the participators to the instigators.

Sometimes, you can get lost with the jumping back and forth in time as the author tries to get you caught up on what was happening at building B while events he just took 6 chapters to explore were happening 4 blocks away at building A, or he explains what happened 6 months before that led to a specific decision on that particular day. And there are so many names, soldiers, and stories crammed in that it's easy to forget who everyone is. But he does a good job of reminding you of who did what, of keeping you in the game and involved. The movie had to scale back on characters, pretty much dropping the Somali viewpoint and combining characters into composites, and it still took me 3 viewings to finally get a sense of who everyone was.

The other book I read was the second novel by Anne Ursu, entitled "The Disapparation of James". Like her first one, "Spilling Clarence", which I devoured over Thanksgiving Break, this is a beautifully done character study. Again, the mystery and conflict that gets the story moving isn't important; sure there is some sort of resolution by the end, but that's not what the book is about. It explores the heart of family, what it means and what it takes to be a mother, a father, a sister, a brother. Ursu works her magic, creating characters that you fall for, people with cracks and chinks in their armor who manage to be human. Lovely lovely lovely.

Check out the website for her new book, Shadow Thieves, which is the first in a trilogy of stories for "kids". The website alone would make me want to buy the book. The fact that she's an awesome writer only ices the cake. Oh, and here's a funny bit of coincidence. You know how I've told you that I found Anne via her Batgirl website, and that Anne went to Brown with my Berklee friends Mike T (the guy who co-produced Victoria's album with me) and Kristie (whose cats I occasionally tend to)? Well, she is moving to Amherst this fall because her husband is going to be a visiting professor at my old college. Small world.

Now Listening To : Eva Trout- Eva Trout
Random Thought : Why is May almost done?

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