What was the most unusual (for you) book you ever read? Either because the book itself was completely from out in left field somewhere, or was a genre you never read, or was the only book available on a long flight… whatever? What (not counting school textbooks, though literature read for classes counts) was furthest outside your usual comfort zone/familiar territory?
And, did you like it? Did it stretch your boundaries? Did you shut it with a shudder the instant you were done? Did it make you think? Have nightmares? Kick off a new obsession?
I like this topic! My mind immediately went to those novels I’ve read that truly broke ground or re-visioned the usual, like Mrs. Dalloway, The Good Soldier, The Brief, Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao, and even The Post-Birthday World.
The first time I read Mrs. Dalloway I couldn’t put it down. The ability of Virginia Woolf to recreate the circuitous movement of the mind was stunning… Ford Madox Ford’s The Good Soldier was similiar, if not quite as artful or enjoyable, with regard to the movement of time and memory… Junot Diaz expressed the dichotomy of the immigrant experience by merging disperate cultures through language… and Shriver’sThe Post-Birthday World examined how choices we make in life affect, well, everything and nothing…
Now, did I love reading all of the above? Well, my mind certainly did! My heart or soul may have been restless or irritated or impatient — allowing my mind to satisfy it’s insatiable curiosity, but hoping for a Pride and Prejudice or a de los Santos around the corner…
Which reminds me of one of my favorite aspects of participating in a book club — stepping outside of my comfort zone. One summer my friend chose a physics book — In Search of Schroedinger’s Cat – and I faithfully read it (and actually enjoyed the concepts, but have not picked up a similar tome yet).
So, what’s the most unusual book YOU’VE ever read? And sorry about the premature posting of Delaware’s Diva, by the way. This is my first week teaching online and so I wrote my posts for the week and scheduled them to publish (incorrectly)…!
I forgot to list Mrs. Dalloway, and of course it is a perfect example to use. Come visit to see my answer. Happy BTT!
I really want to read both The Post Birthday World and Oscar Wao!
I haven’t read any of those. The strangest one for me was Slaughterhouse 5 by Kurt Vonnegut.
Good call, Shannon! I agree! And maybe The Metamorphosis by Kafka, too….
Please do! Both are worth reading…
I completely agree about Oscar Wao – a nonfiction stuffed inside of a fiction – via footnotes . Speaking of non-fiction – Twinkie, Deconstructed is kind of an odd book that I thoroughly enjoyed – each chapter exams each of the 29 ingredients found inside a Hostess Twinkie. The chapters are in the order of the ingredient on the label.
I long for the days when Twinkies were stuffed with whipped lard (sigh) – My reaction to this book was rather unexpected – I’m sworn off of Twinkies (wasn’t too hard after the formula changed in the late ’80s) but I also choose my dietary supplements with more prejudice because of this book. Iron comes from pickeled steel? Ick! I’d rather eat a spinach salad with pickeled beets!
Hi Cynthia! I just read In Defense of Food — sounds like it would be a great companion to Twinkie!
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