Midwest Bookworm

Since my life has been terminally boring since my last post (yesterday's activities included jogging, grocery shopping, a two hour nap, and making a lasagna from scratch), I decided to create the first ever Midwest Princess Book Club (like Oprah's but WAY better). Since most of you readers probably have way less free time than I do, I thought I would do you all a service and bring you up to date on what I think you should be reading. (Some of it is admittedly girly, but most of it is really excellent literature).

1. The Namesake by Jhumpa Lahiri: This is one of the best new works of fiction I've read in ages. The author has won a Pulitzer, and her prose is captivating. It is a story of an Indian family who comes to America and attempts to assimilate themselves to American culture. It is beautiful and a bit melancholy, and I felt like a better person for having read it.

2. Prep by Curtis Sittenfeld: Also won some sort of award, though not as prestigious as the Pulitzer (I don't think it gets more prestigious than that). The main character in this book, a girl from South Bend, IN who attends a prep school in Massachussettes, has been likened to J.D. Salinger's Holden Caulfield. I'm not sure how she did it, but this author managed to caputre exactly the feeling of being an angsty teen. Maybe if you were the coolest cat in school you won't get this book, but then again I can't think of anyone who hasn't felt like an outsider at some point in their lives.

3. Of Human Bondage by W. Somerset Maugham: Maugham is one of my favorite authors. He also wrote "The Razor's Edge", which is another of my favorites and the short story that the movie "Being Julia" is based on, which is one of my favorite movies. This book took me a while to get through, but it was worth it. Maugham really gets inside the soul of his characters and delves into the basest and deepest of human emotions. I loved it.

4. A Year in Provence by Peter Mayle: This English gent writes hysterical books. I love travel memoirs, and this book is based on his experiences owning a house in the south of France. Basically the language barrier and attempting to renovate a house causes hilarity to ensue. A lighthearted yet witty read.

5. A Moveable Feast by Ernest Hemingway: His memoirs of his years in Paris. If you love Paris, you'll love this book.

Now, get to work on that and then we'll talk. I just started In Cold Blood, and already I can't put it down. I welcome anyone else's suggestions for what I should read next!

Happy Reading!