Sunday Salon: Choices

Here I sit at my computer, wondering what to write. I thought of going off on a rant today, talking about an annoying bit of book snobbery I encountered recently, but I do not feel like it. It is such a lovely day outside and my mood is relatively high. There is no point in getting myself worked up just now.

My husband and I ventured out to the movie theater yesterday, after a leisurely lunch at the California Pizza Kitchen. We settled on seeing There Will Be Blood, a movie neither one of us was particularly excited about, but with all the Oscar buzz and the talk around town that it was a must see movie, we could not resist. The movie is based on the book Oil! by Upton Sinclair, a novel and author I have never read. While our stop at the bookstore after the movie did not find me searching out the book, it may be one I look into reading at some point in the future.

I did not feel so bad when I discovered that I was not the only one laughing at the end of the film as the credits started to roll. I am not sure that was the most appropriate reaction to have, but I could not help myself. I was not certain if I liked the movie or not yesterday, but today I am pretty sure I did. It certainly was different.

Moving on to the actual topic for today, I would like to start by posing a question to you. After reading a powerful or especially moving book that not only has you thinking but feeling strong emotions too, how do you choose that next book to read? In instances like this, is it better to pick up something light and funny (or perhaps light and suspenseful) to offset the seriousness of the book just finished? You know, to lighten the mood. Or is it better to continue along a similar line?

I was faced with this very quandary earlier this week after reading Daoud Hari's The Translator. I did not pick up another book to read right away. In fact, I did not read anything the day after I finished the book. I was reluctant to pick up another book to read right away.

Feeling obligated to work my way through several books I have sitting on my desk that I have committed to reading and reviewing, I decided to limit my selection to choosing one of those, limiting my choices considerably. I nearly picked up A Grave in Gaza by Matthew Rees because, while it is a completely different type of book altogether, it still appears as if it will not be quite as light or free of politics as some other books on my immediate shelf might be.

As I often do in situations like this, however, I instead went with Blood Poison by D.H. Dublin. It looked like it would be a fast paced suspense novel, something different and on the lighter side. Unfortunately though, being the follow-up to a book like The Translator is bound to have some repercussions. And it has.

I think it might have been wiser to stay with the momentum of the first book and ridden it out until I craved something different. However, as I sometimes do in situations like this, I jump ahead and force myself into doing something before I am ready because I can see where it will lead eventually. I over think the situation and end skipping lunch because I am thinking only of supper. That isn't to say that reading something lighter or less serious after the more serious book is not appropriate. There are times when it most certainly is. But there are also times when it is not. I am still learning the difference between the two when it comes to my own reading.