books – MANNIECURES

“Joyland” by Stephen King

Joyland

Confession: this is the first Stephen King book I’ve ever read. Whatever, I read a lot of books. I don’t feel bad. Anyway, this was a bargain buy. I like to hit up my neighborhood Barnes & Noble every so often to see how sad it is, for one, and to pick up any clearance deals. I judge these books by their covers as they’re often haphazardly stacked on a cart. Obviously this cover was amazing.

Color me really fucking excited when this book turned out to be an emotional rollercoaster of awesomeness. I liked it so much, I immediately mailed it to my mom for her to read. I don’t think I’ve ever done that before.

I don’t like to blab on too much in my posts because who wants me to ruin the experience? I will say that this book will make most grown people cry. There is a sense of magic in this book that I haven’t experienced in while. You have an incredibly vivid world full of unique characters, and on top of that, a murder mystery!

“Dollhouse” by Kourtney, Kim, and Khloé Kardashian

I have a lot of love for these ladies. They don’t give two fucks. Actually, they don’t give any fucks. I respect that. I also happen to think they’re hilarious and entertaining as hell. Do I think they’re good at writing novels? Not really. To be fair, they didn’t write this shit.

I’ll say this – have you ever seen an episode of Passions? It was a Soap Opera in the early 2000s that had a fantastical vibe – there were witches and magic and shit. Anyway, I would equate this book to that show. It’s a quick read, it’s pretty funny for the most part (as you can see by the quote I chose) and you don’t really have to be paying attention while you read to put it all together in the end.

And I had to know. I had to.

“Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me?” by Mindy Kaling

This was a fun read. There was a lot of great shit in here. I particularly enjoyed the bit about playing frisbee. I’ll make you read the book to find out what I mean. It’s never a good idea to retell a joke. This is a great book to keep around because it’s essay style. You can pick it up and put it down freely without feeling like you’re ignoring it. I do think Mindy Kaling is super talented, and a refreshing personality to have in pop culture right now. She proves you can be smart, witty, super successful, and yet still prefer to read Shopaholic books on a Saturday afternoon to relax instead of playing frisbee with a group of people in the park.

I was given this book as a gift – great gift idea, btw. Not too dirty or R-Rated, but something that would appeal to a lot of people. Here, I’ll spare you the search time – http://amzn.to/1FzWrHR

“‘I’ is for Innocent” by Sue Grafton

Another barn-burner for Kinsey Millhone! I was kind of distracted while I read this, but then at the end some serious shit went down and I was back in it! Never a doubt, though. On to J!

“The Snow Queen” by Michael Cunningham

Michael Cunningham and I have quite a long-standing relationship. In my angsty teenage years, I discovered The Hours and the rest is history. The Snow Queen is Cunningham’s latest. I actually heard about it before it came out and got that shit pre-ordered. I’m usually two years behind.

In typical Cunningham fashion, The Snow Queen is a portrait of family and relationships. This time, we’re with four New Yorkers who are well into adulthood. They struggle with illness, death, heartache, phenomenon, poverty, and a lot of cocaine.

I love the way Michael Cunningham creates his worlds. He’s not afraid to address the craziest, most unique relationships, but when I read his books, they never seem unbelievable. Life isn’t all sunshine and rainbows, and he has a great way of portraying that without getting too depressing that you don’t want to read it anymore. Even if I’m not really into the story, his language and composition of sentences is some of the most beautiful I’ve ever read.

Another thing The Snow Queen shows is Cunningham’s love affair with New York City. New York is his city. He knows it backwards and forwards and he uses it as a character in each story. They live in a particular neighborhood for a reason and experience specific things because of that. (Side Note: this is one of the reasons I love Nora Ephron’s script for You’ve Got Mail. It’s a love letter to NYC and it shows.)

I wouldn’t put The Snow Queen at the top of my list of favorite Cunninghams, but it didn’t disappoint. I look forward to the next and the next. Keep ‘em coming, buddy.

To get your own copy of one of Michael Cunningham’s lovely novels, click here.