Alice in Wonderland Meets the White Rabbit: A Little Golden Book

I've had this Little Golden Book, an adaptation of the Disney movie adaptation of Alice's Adventures in Wonderland, since I was probably about five years old (give or take). I know I've had tons more but this is the only one I kept.

As a simplification of a Disneyfied version of the book, the story is of course a far cry from the original, but I've kept this for the illustrations, which have a great 50s look since they're based off of the 1951 animated movie. (Even better, though, are the concept drawings for the movie painted by Mary Blair, a good selection of which can be seen here.)

I knew someone who collected Little Golden Books, and I must say that the thin silver spines looked great all in a row on her shelf. But I think I'll just stick to this one.

Hot Water Music by Charles Bukowski

The stories in this collection are all exceedingly short (ten pages at most, but typically more like four or five), which is fine with me. It's not Bukowski's best, but certainly worth reading if you're already a fan (I wouldn't recommend starting there though). The first sentence of the first story in the book is "'Balls,' he said." Which I love. I'm also happy that this title hasn't yet been repackaged, though I'm sure that will come. I only wish I could look at it without conjuring up thoughts of the band that named themselves after it.

Tumble Home by Amy Hempel

Amy Hempel was the writer-in-residence at Pratt my senior year. She visited our class once, and while that in itself was not particularly momentous, the photocopied interview with her from the Paris Review that was distributed prior to the visit was quite illuminating. I underlined passages and referred to them again and again while working on my thesis. She was able to clearly explain the hallmarks of good writing that had before seemed so mysterious and somehow unteachable. So while writing style--precise, poetic, and minimalist, the stories giving the impression of being pieced together from bits of conversations and images ("Joy's designated runner, Cousin Zeke, ran to first, the ice cubes in his gin and tonic clacking like dog tags in the glass..."It's not who wins--" their coach began, and was shouted down by some of the boys, "There's first and there's forget it.")--was not a direct influence on me, her advice and insight absolutely were.

Journey to the End of the Night by Celine

Charles Bukowski referred to Journey to the End of the Night as "one of the best books written in the last two thousand years," which is what led me to seek it out a number of years ago. According to the back of the book, "Written in urgent and explosive language, Journey to the End of the Night is a literary symphony of violence and cruelty. The story of the improbable travels of the petit-bourgeois antihero Bardamu--from the trenches of World War I, to the African jungle, to New York and the Ford factory in Detroit, and finally to life in Paris as a failed doctor--takes the reader by the scruff as it hurtles toward the novel's inescapable conclusion." Despite that rather compelling description, I find that I can't remember much about reading this book, but regardless of Celine's questionable politics, after looking over the first few pages I think I'd like to try it again sometime (sure, just add it to the list).

The Complete Untitled Film Stills by Cindy Sherman

This very nice hardcover book collects all 69 photographs in Cindy Sherman's "Untitled Film Stills," a series of images designed to look like stills from imaginary movies. Sherman dons wigs, makeup, and costumes--and she really does an impressive job of disguising herself--creating invented worlds that one can really envision being out of some forgotten noir film or B-movie. I love the grainy quality of the stock, made to resemble the cheap 50-cent publicity photos of the day.

I always like to imagine the plots of the "movies"--a troubled Hollywood starlet on a bender? Having an affair at some secret seaside hideaway?

This woman is either being stalked or followed by a private eye. Or maybe she's on her way to deliver a mysterious package (ransom money?). I could go on.

Many of them almost recall a particular style of film. For some reason this one reminds me of early Woody Allen movies.

This one evokes for me the British "kitchen sink" dramas of the 60s.


There's a Hitchcock blonde if I ever saw one.

Zazie in the Metro by Raymond Queneau

In this short novel by Raymond Queneau (of Exercises in Style fame), the precocious pre-teen Zazie stays in Paris with her Uncle Gabriel, who happens to be a drag queen, for two days while her mother visits with her lover. The only thing that Zazie, who has a mouth like sailor and a mischievous streak to match, really wants to do is ride the metro, which is shut down because the workers are on strike. Disappointed, she manages to evade her uncle's watch and sets out to explore the city on her own.

This slim little book is hilariously silly and charming. Queneau's use of word play, puns, and phonetic spellings make for a veritable linguistic adventure.

An illustration of Zazie in the first pages of the book. That striped shirt is so French.

Wise Blood by Flannery O'Connor

This Southern Gothic novel is peopled by heretics, bogus preachers, and fake religions ("The Church of Christ Without Christ"—hilarious), not to mention killers in gorilla suits. Overall I prefer O'Connor's short stories to this novel, but it's certainly worth reading if you haven't already.

Just came across this image of the first edition—looks pretty good.