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Sunday, June 05, 2005
Book 'Em, Dano
Ok, Kinsella passed this book thing along, so here it goes ...
Number of books I own: A little over 200 in number, and the oldest of those are a little over 200 in age (they're worth zilch, but they look nice on the shelf). But I'm not that interested in numbers, so I'm adding the next thing to the list ...
Reading style: I'm a dabbler, so I tend to have three or four things going at once. Some books I never finish, some take ages to finish and a few I'll finish in a night.
Last book I bought: The whole Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy. I hated the movie, so I wanted to see if I'd still enjoy the books. I read them in university and enjoyed them except for the one where Arthur and Trillian fall in love, it was a little light on the laughs.
Last book I read: Last book I finished was Time Out of Joint, a weak Phillip K. Dick story with a disappointing ending. Right now I'm enjoying Love in the Time of Cholera, which was lent to me, an annoying (so far) Marx Brothers biography by Simon Louvish and I keep a copy of the first Maakies collection by my bed just in case I ever need a jolt.
Five books that "mean a lot" to me:
 I started reading AKU-AKU: The Secret of Easter Island in 1982 and still haven't finished, even though I still read a few pages every few years. I can't finish it 'cause I'm enjoying it so much, I couldn't bear the separation anxiety. I still have my original bookmark, currently resting at page 265, an Atari Owners Club Official Bulletin -- hey, Brian Brand won the National Asteroids Championship at the CNE!
The book tells the story of Thor Heyerdahl's exploration and excavation of the island during an expedition in the 1950s.
 I made lots and lots of Super8 films as a kid and Aunt Maggie gave me this copy of Adventures in the Screen Trade by William Goldman for Xmas, also in 1982. As you can see, its been read and reread and is in rough shape. It's funny but it also sets a good example of how to approach your own work critically ... as Goldman does, with help, on a sample script he provides.
If I'm ever mean to you in your comments, blame Goldman.
 Curnoe: Life and Stuff is the book/project catalogue that accompanied the retrospective of his work at the AGO several years ago. I went to art school at Beal in London and hung out with Curnoe's son, Galen and Mark Favro-- I was coming from a small rural village and they were the first group of people I met who also grew up making lots and lots of Super8 movies. We used to swap films and it was weird seeing which conventions we both used (such as scratching 'lasers' on the film) and which ones were unique (in a couple of films, they used fireworks for "laser guns"). This book is now a reminder of what it means to live a full, creative life (Curnoe was an active artist, local historian, cyclist, skier, etc etc etc ...).
 The Shape of the Cityby John Sewell takes a passionate look at the battles that mostly saved Toronto from many of the indignities that afflicted American cities: rampant expressway construction, horrible public housing projects and the destruction of heritage buildings. It connects local democracy to planning issues and does a good job of exposing the quackery that led to North American suburban car culture.
 I did a book report on The Black Donnellys in grade 6 and reread it a few years ago. It really gives you the flavour of some of the harshness of that area's rural culture. I grew up in the London area and even went to school with Donnelly descendents (Jenny Donnelly moved to Glencoe after the murders). This story really rings true on a frosty November night when you're taking the dog for a walk to the back of the field ... or if you're paying a visit to the local arena or hotel.
Those are my books. In the spirit of the exercise, I'm passing this on to:
Adina, Brett Lamb OZ, Christie, Day in the Life (for fun, just to piss him off) and elanamatic.
I'm free, I'm finally free!
9:54 PM
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