I’m working double time on my A-Z challenge, as I only have until the end of the year to finish it. I’ve done 14 books so far, and I figured I better make a serious dent in the list so I can finish the challenge by December.
I’ve finished two more books for the challenge so far this month, and am lining up more in the coming weeks. A is for Margaret Atwood’s The Tent, a collection of short works, while J is for Kate Jacobs’ Comfort Food.
Aside from a few odd pieces here and there, I haven’t read any Atwood books yet. A lot of my book club friends are big Atwood fans, which has lead me to put either The Handmaid’s Tale or Blind Assassin (which one should I start with? Any thoughts?) on next year’s reading list, so I decided to include a warm-up book in my A-Z Challenge.
Margaret Atwood’s The Tent is a pocket-sized collection of thought-provoking works. Classifying the genre this book falls under is a challenge — it appears to be a mix of essays, fiction, fictionalized essays, poetry, and even doodles! They’re all quite short — all the pieces can very well be flash literature, as none of them take up more than two to three pages.
I liked the reflective quality of Atwood’s writing, and the intense emotions she conveys with each piece — wonder, despair, regret, rage, nostalgia, and indignation.
I liked the pieces that rewrite literature: a modern-day Chicken Little, and Hamlet from Horatio’s point of view. I also liked the selections about writing — there’s a very funny piece called “Three Novels I Won’t Write Soon,” (three absurd story drafts entitled “Worm Zero,” “Spongedeath,” and “Beetle Plunge”) and the title story “The Tent” which presupposes you are trapped inside a tent made of paper in the middle of a howling wilderness and there’s nothing you can do but write.
Of course, I also have to applaud Atwood’s prose-poem “Bring Back Mom: An Invocation,” which paints a picture of the life of an iconic (Stepford!) mom, which turns out to be not quite so perfect, after all.
Atwood writes beautifully, and I have no doubt I’ll get a better sampling when I get to the main course (leaning more towards The Handmaid’s Tale) next year.
It might seem odd to pair an Atwood, with a, shall we say, fluffy beach read, but I think this book echoes the sentiments of “Bring Back Mom” quite succinctly.
Comfort Food by Kate Jacobs (author of Friday Night Knitting Club, which I haven’t read) takes us into the world of Augusta “Gus” Simpson, foodie extraordinaire.
Gus is nearing her fabulous fifties (think a hotter version of Martha Stewart), but Gus is feeling nowhere near fab: her long-running tv show on the Cooking Channel, “Cooking with Gusto” is getting reformatted and a bimbo of a cohost is foisted on her; her daughter Sabrina is getting married to a guy she doesn’t approve of; and her financial adviser has run off with her life savings. Her new show (co-hosted by the sultry beauty queen turned culinary school grad Carmen), “Eat, Drink and Be,” a televised live cooking show (with a motley crew composed of her two feuding daughters, an ex-boyfriend of her daughter’s, a Wall Street guy turned amateur chef, and a former sports celebrity who went incognito) is fast turning into a comedy of errors, too, in a case of too many cooks in a kitchen that gets too hot to handle!
Initially I thought I wouldn’t like this book because I rarely relate to lead characters in Gus’ age group, but I was happy to see that the perspective shifted among the various characters in the novel.
It’s a very friendly novel; light and easy to read, with likeable characters and truly funny moments (hahaha, the burning kettle!). It’s not quite the chicklit that I expected (the cover is deceiving), and it’s not the foodie book that I expected either (the title is deceiving), but it’s a warm and toasty novel about life, relationships, and food for the soul.
***
The Tent, first edition hardcover with dustjacket, 4/5 stars, A for the A-Z Challenge
Comfort Food, trade paperback, 3.5/5 stars, J for the A-Z Challenge
Books # 163-164 for 2010
cover photo: sxc.hu
[amazonify]::omakase::300:250[/amazonify]
Both of your Atwoods are good reads, but go for The Handmaid’s Tale. I remember reading it and it’s very thought-provoking. Another Atwood novel that I like is Alias Grace. :)
Thanks, Will. I plan to read them all within this lifetime :D
The Handmaid’s Tale (mainly because I haven’t read The Blind Assassin yet). It’s a good book. Then again, I could say the same for all the other Atwoods I’ve read for the past decade or so.
Thanks Lightheaded. Two points for The Handmaid’s Tale!
I just procured a copy of “Blind Assassin”, being mildly curious about it because it is an award-winning novel (including the Booker Prize). I’m not exactly “voting” for it but it may be worth reading as well if it has received so much accolade. :)
Thanks Monique! One point Blind Assassin.
Whatever wins, I’ll read both eventually anyway :D I just want to see what novel is best to start with :)
Like you, I also plan to read Atwood books in this lifetime. I’ve read that “The Handmaid’s Tale” is a good companion piece to George Orwell’s “1984,” so for I have to read the former before tackling the latter.
Happy reading Blooey! :)
Another point for Handmaid’s Tale.
Thanks for the heads up re: 1984, will read them simultaneously
I’ve read the Handmaid’s Tale, not yet Blind Assassin. Also want to reread it, along with 1984, in 2011.
Will have to look for nice editions of both books