I Read More Maps Than Books

Read: S. E. Hinton 'The Outsiders'
Listen to: Underoath 'Some Will Seek Forgiveness, Others Escape'

After one of those really late night conversations with Greg last night, he told me he doesn't really read anymore, and I got home and looked at all my dog-earred, well-thumbed shelf of novels, poems, short stories, biographies, diaries, notes and a book called 'Japanese For Busy People' (whiiiiich i will confess i've yet to get beyond 'konnichiwa,' but i will make the most of this summer) and realised that i don't really read either. Not like I used to. There is something truly blissful about curling up with a pot of tea, chocolate and a book. Recently, all I've read are historians criticisms of Honest Abe Lincoln, the texts for English and the Shopaholic series. Oh, and I really should just change my name to Becky Bloomwood and be done with it. So, long story short, I'm piecing together the ultimate reading list, hellz yizzle.

Best 'Literary' Books:

Zola, Nana Not as cute as it sounds, highlights include (but are not limited to) the following: she's a Parisian prostitute, gets rich then loses it all, gives up her son, every man that falls in love with her ends up bankrupt or dead, Nana then catches syphallis and "decomposes" whilst Paris is rioitng below...Charmings!

Wharton, The Age of Innocence Set in New York, and is a story of love, scandal and betrayal, but is better than the Danielle Steele predecessor i just made it out to be.

Green, Brighton Rock This book is so frigging good. Anything written, ever, by Greene is, but this is a little disturbed, but you almost don't mind. Pinkie is the greatest evil creation, with the worst name. And it's set in Brighton, which is a little added bonus!

Stoker, Dracula Don't believe the hype about Dracula. The book is less scholck horror, more nail biting suspense and THAT chapter alwasy raises those little hairs on the back of my neck.

Mitford, Love in a Cold Climate Everyone in possesion of XX chromosomes should fall in love with the Mitford sisters and thier novels, they are perfect in every way.

Joyce, Uylesses Don't believe half the people who say they've read this. It's mental, started the entire modernist genre and i've only ever got halfway through then lost my patience.

Hemingway, For Whom The Bell Tolls You'll want to sit in the rain after having read this- the Smiths are the sonic Hemingway, meloncholy in the best way possible.

Plath, The Bell Jar I love Sylvia Plath. Every pseudo feminist nerve ending bristles whenever I read this book, its incredibly unsettling but worth a read.

Fitzgerald, The Great Gatsby However, how I feel about Plath pales into insignificance when you compare it to how i feel about Fitzgerald. Set in New York in the 'Jazz Age' start with this, and I guarantee that Tender Is the Night, Diamond as Big as the Ritz and Benjamin Button (yesss, he wrote it) will surely follow

Falkner, The Sound And The Fury I'm not sure where to begin, just read it.

Burgess, A Clockwork Orange Even better than the film, I promise.

The Interstate My Home Tonight, For One More Long Night

Read: Jack Kerouac 'On the Road'
Listen to: MGMT 'Electric Feel'

Here we go again, with my deuxieme blog finally underway (well, OFFICIAL second one, the others are either deleted by me or blogger) and I'm a little excited. The recurring theme of this 'un is designed to pretty much be me musing on the delightful topics of music, fashion and books obviously making lists as i go as a side dish to the rather meatier 'emotional' issues I'll address in the other.

I'm getting this irrepressible itch to travel right now. Not because I'm unhappy here - every things actually pretty peachy here right now- but more that i get like this every so often. I just become restless with my corner of the world and these places i know too well. And somehow familiarity slips into something more wide eyed, and i just want to pack a bag and go! I would say drive, but that's not something I'm fortunate (or perhaps skilled) enough to have accomplished yet. I'm so excited about the idea of this summer, this is (as it stands) a rough idea of my itinerary:

The North:

New York City, NY - yes, the Big Apple, the quintessential big city. Can barely wait to experience all it in all its seedy glory.

Ithica, NY- small town (well, relatively) upstate, where friends reside, and its generally pretty quaint in its New England-ness

Trenton, NJ- New Jersey is often referred to as the 'arm pit of the USA' but my optimism primes me to be intrigued by it none the less

Washington DC- Capitol Hill, the White House, need i say more?

The South:

Atlanta, GA- Home of the Coca Cola museum (yes, that was what i thought too) and birthplace of R.E.M

St. Simons Island, GA- really beachy and lovely, from what our friends who live there tell me...i'll wager it beats Camber Sands

Nashville, TN- the home of country music! I've listened to enough Bob Dylan (<3)

Chattanooga, TN- Fort freaking Mountain. Yes, i'm nerding out over the Civil War memorabilia, Ms. A would be oh-so-proud

Tallahassee, FL- Less gross than Miami or South Beach, but still the Sunshine state

Charlotte, NC -anyone who's read Bill Bryson (and really everyone should) will be drooling at the very idea

(OH! and freeeaking Dollyworld)

Trying desperately to sort out some gap year stuff involving AIDs orphans in South Africa, because i've registered the memo from the big man upstairs and realised that I'm wanted out there...