Book 7 of 2012

Shortly after returning from a trip to Portland, I completed this on our designated rest day.

7) The Wordy Shipmates by Sarah Vowell
The Puritans! No, wait! Don't go anywhere yet because Sarah Vowell does a really great job of not only making the 17th century Puritans interesting (despite the fact that they kind of aren't), but she relates and connects their trials and tribulations to our modern world. Just what do a collection of ragtag religious zealots have in common with today's society? Why, religious zealotry, of course!

Vowell brings her usual quirky take and nerdy sensibilities to the subject matter, romanticizing the idea that these principled folks moved from England to the harsh unknown of Northern America out of a sense of duty to their religion more so than in an effort to stick it to the monarchy, as most narratives usually frame it. Her enthusiasm is evident from the beginning and makes what would otherwise boring material come to life. The Puritan folk are interesting to her because of their opinionated and writerly ways, something I can totally respect.

BUT...

Geez, guys, they're still Puritans and it's still a lot of really snooze-worthy stuff dressed up in a really nice Sarah Vowell way. Sarah Vowell is awesome, but the subject matter is weak. I definitely didn't hate it, but it was definitely more medicine than sugar, you know? The book really comes alive towards the last 60 to 70 pages when Vowell starts to discuss Sarah Hutchinson and how she struggled (and ultimately failed) to overcome the prescribed gender roles of the period. Despite only being portrayed in negative and harsh light by her detractors who kept the records, Hutchinson still comes across as the winner in a debate with the accusers of her trial, winning her arguments with logic and being told she loses just because.

The section on Hutchinson is Vowell at her finest. She's still really good during the rest of the book, but it''s a bit more of a chore to get through than I expected.

Book 6 of 2012

Some close friends got me an iBooks gift card for my birthday, so I went on a Raylan Givens spending spree.

6) Pronto by Elmore Leonard
The first Raylan Givens story showcases a guy named Harry more than it does the hero of the tale. Harry is a bookkeeper for the mob who's been falsely accused of skimming more than the acceptable amount off the top, and it's up to Raylan Givens to save him from a Sicilian hitman. Characters shift between Miami and Italy as Harry fails to retire on his own terms. Meanwhile, Raylan makes the effort to keep Harry alive. While Harry is an interesting guy with an interesting background that includes his involvement in World War II and Ezra Pound poetry, Raylan is the most complex character in the book. He's a guy born in the wrong time who enjoys his cowboy hat and what it allows people to think of him.

Elmore Leonard's books specifically and detective-style novels in general have been a category which I've always had a keen interest but never took the time to read. Serialized books that follow a single character through his or her many adventures feels right up my alley considering my interest in comic books. Plus, of the Elmore Leonard based movies I've seen, it would take less than one hand to name the few that have disappointed. That dialogue and characterization really won me over before I picked up the book, but it's presence here is unavoidable and welcome.

Having been a fan of FX's Justified for it's now two and a half seasons, I entered into the series with a preconceived idea of Timothy Olyphant's single minded portrayal of the US Marshall who tends to have an Old West attitude. The focus on Harry, his girlfriend Joyce, and the various mobsters involved took away from what I thought would be an all Raylan, all the time story. Judging the book based off my expectations isn't fair, either, and I admit that, but it didn't kill my enjoyment completely. Raylan is still wry and stoic...and also a complete badass. It's too bad there are only two other books and another short story devoted to the character.  At least there's still Justified.

Book 5 of 2012

5) I'm Dying Up Here: Heartbreak and high times in stand up comedy's golden era by William Knoedelseder
Dealing with the standup comedy scene in Los Angeles during the 1970's, I'm Dying Up Here focuses on Mitzi Shore's The Comedy Store and the efforts of the comedians to make it big and attempt to get paid until they did. The book focuses on several different comedians, but the main character is the venue, with Pauly Shore's mom serving as the villain of the piece. Shore's argument was that the comics used the store as a showcase to hone their craft while the comedian's argued that the renovations, cocktails, meals, cover and assortment of different rooms provided Shore with enough money to pay the folks that everyone else paid to watch.

The problem with nonfiction audiobooks with a large cast of characters is that it's impossible to keep everything straight. There are at least four Steves and three Toms named over the course of the book, and keeping their stories straight considering that some play ancillary roles and others are vital to the narrative without the visual aspect of seeing how their last names are spelled creates a disconnect that makes it easy to get lost.

The last quarter of the book consists of the negotiations between Shore and the comedians to get compensated for their time on stage, and the minutiae of what each performer should receive and the accompanying back and forth was a numbers game that made me want to skip to the next chapter every time. The same applies to Steve Lubetkin's list of things he felt he required to continue his comedy career, including boots, money for singing lessons and a host of 18 other things with reasons that served to explain why he experienced the outcome he did. My audiobook experience prior to this consisted of books by comedians and fictional stories focusing on a single character's arc, neither of which asks the listener to keep track of too many things other than the narrative.

While Knoedelseder is exhaustive in his research and clearly put the time in to get the story straight, there's very little insight into why these men and women felt the need to become comedians or how they became inspired to do the jokes they did, something that would be just as important as the history of the comedy club that launched so many careers. In that regard, it falls short. The history is pretty fascinating, but keep in mind that history is pretty much all the reader gets.