Books and Life Lessons

Okay, so, I’ll be honest, I don’t really know how to start blogging. (I am aware that it’s simple and that you just…start. Like how winning the Olympics is simple, you just…win them.) I wrote a Beginning. I wrote an Introduction. Now I need to write an Actual Thing, and it seems as if there’s a chasm to jump across—from Starting To Blog on the hither side of the river to the happy shores of Blogging In Good Earnest over yon. It seems there should be a bridge. An in-between type of post. An amorphous hybrid that has something of an introductory demeanor and yet something of a flavor of substantive content.

After much cogitation upon this problem, I have come to the conclusion that while there may well be such a genre of blog posts, I do not know how to write one. And in the interests of never stretching one’s horizons or stepping out of one’s comfort zone, I sha’n’t try to write one, either. Instead (as per the high ethical standards we hold ourselves to around here), I shall steal.

(Pray don’t be shocked, dears. It isn’t as bad as it sounds.)

it isn’t like this

As December of 2018 drew to a close and January of 2019 drew to an open and subsequently a middle and then an almost-close, I saw a lot of looking-back-on-2018-and-making-goals-for-2019 posts. They were all most inspiring.

I, like the maybe-rebellious-but-probably-just-lazy person I am, am not into yearly goals. Not specifically and arbitrarily at New Year’s, anyway. I don’t know if it’s because I think it’s silly (if you want to make a change in your life, just make it, why wait for January first?) or if it’s because I know I lack the mental energy to see the lofty goals I would inevitably set for myself through, but the long and short of it is that I haven’t any Official Goals For 2019.

However, looking back on 2018? And hopefully gaining wisdom thereby (although who knows)? That sounds fun. That’s the part I’m stealing. Today, for the pleasure of whosoever chooses to take pleasure in it, I’ve made a list of last year’s Noteworthy Books And Random Thoughts That Sort Of Go Along With Them.

so professional

 

Noteworthy Book #1:
Moon Over Manifest by Clare Vanderpool

A.k.a. the sweetest, spunkiest children’s book I’ve read in a long, long time. I loved how the Great Depression and the World War I storylines came together at the end…and I loved how it was sad but the sadness was an honest, healing sadness…and I loved the cast with all its various and varying members.

Family was as important in this book as it is in life. And while the importance of family may be rather obvious, I did gain a new appreciation for mine after spending a semester away. Coming back was joyous. Having to go away again was…not. (Nobody cried, though, so that was good.) Moral of the story: Family is nice. Appreciate ’em while you’ve got ’em.

 

Noteworthy Book #2:
Vicious by V. E. Schwab
[Fair warning: this book has lots of violence, some language (I don’t think there was a bunch, but there was some), some sexual content, and some truly awful moral decisions made by both protagonist and antagonist.]

Some people are geniuses and can take everything I don’t like (science fiction, superheroes, no real good guys) and write gorgeous books out of them.

Am I jealous of this ability?

Oh, yes. Definitely.

But like…it’s actually a good thing, you know? More gorgeous books are never bad. Resenting genius doesn’t get you anywhere, except, maybe, less gorgeous books. Which isn’t exactly a desirable outcome. The truth is, some people are really, really good at things. Way better than me. And that’s okay.

(This is pathetically hard to accept, but I’ve stopped wincing every time I have this thought, so…progress.)

 

Noteworthy Book #3:
Mistborn: The Final Empire by Brandon Sanderson

A lesson to us all that your prose may be mediocre but if you have stellar characters, cool magic, and masterful world-building, you’ll enthrall even the poets among us.  Because yeah, I really love this book. Somehow. Not sure how. (Actually I am sure how and his name is Kelsier and…and…*sobs*)

However, because I didn’t like the prose, I almost quit reading in the prologue. And I still don’t like the prose, but I’m glad I didn’t quit.  I’d have missed out on a lot, not least a strange and fascinating world, a terrifying villain, and a beautiful character arc.

At the end of last year, I went home for Christmas break, exchanging 50-degree weather for frozen fingers, giant potato coats (seriously, the best way to stay warm), icy roads, and nine inches of snow. It was…cold.

But I have, despite two separate occasions when it almost got me killed, a deeply-ingrained fondness for snow. I just like it. Whether I’m staring out the window, driving with extreme caution, or standing amidst the muffled stillness of it, it makes me happy.
So 50 degrees in winter is nice, but it does somewhat preclude the possibility of snow. And I think the snow is worth the cold.

It’s a metaphor, see?

 

Noteworthy Book #4:
The Everlasting Man by G. K. Chesterton

As you’d expect from Chesterton, a marvel of paradox, wittiness, soaring ideas, and good old-fashioned common sense.

In all of Chesterton’s stuff I’ve read (which, sadly, isn’t that much) there is a common thread of fury against apathy. In our world, so full of fantastic oddities and blazing miracles, it does seem odd that anyone could forget to care. And yet it isn’t so hard to do. But if I’ve discovered anything this year, while trying to begin to figure out what on earth I’m going to do with my life, it’s that caring is not optional. You’d better care, and you’d better do something about it.

 

Noteworthy Book #5:
100 Cupboards by N. D. Wilson

My friend recommended this because it’s a children’s fantasy with fairy-tale vibes, which he knows I like. (It’s also mildly creepy, which it turns out I also like? It reminds me of the fairy-tales I made up out of my own head when I was little and it was dark and I couldn’t sleep.) So for anyone who also likes that kind of thing: I’m passing on the recommendation! This book is amazing! Amazing, I tell you! Notable elements include:

-wonder and friendship
-cats
-baseball
-a door that won’t open, even to Uncle Frank’s chainsaw
-mysterious letters from other worlds
-the fresh air of Badon Hill drifting through the door of a magical cupboard
-heartwarming bravery in the face of ancient, sleepless evil
-and also ZEKE. Because everyone needs to appreciate Zeke and his baseball bat.

This dear of a book also showcases a most profound truth:

Baseball is the best sport.

this is probably Zeke’s glove, so let’s all take this moment to appreciate Zeke. Again. He deserves it, okay?

Kidding.

Not that baseball is the best sport—which it totally is—but that I learned this undeniable fact in 2018. It was way back in 2013 or thereabouts that I learned this undeniable fact.

The thing that truly stood out to me thematically, both in 100 Cupboards and in my own life not long after, was something else: compromise isn’t always the answer.

A whole lot of people like to say it is. Maybe because it’s easy. Sometimes, though—maybe even a lot of times—compromise just makes you miserable. It drives you into disillusionment after disillusionment and you come out the other side no nearer to where you want to be. Maybe not even sure you care anymore if you get there.

Sometimes, compromise is just another word for giving up.

Sometimes, what we need instead is courage.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

And there we have it, folks! Five books and five random thoughts. That was fun. (Or something. Maybe “disjointed” is a better word.) So tell me, have you read any of these books? Do you think they’re remarkable? Do you think they’re terrible?  Do you disagree with everything I said and want to argue? (This is entirely acceptable.  I love arguing.) Is baseball the best sport? And which is better: snow or 50 degrees?