Books Read In February 2011

February was not a great month for me to get any sort of reading done. I spent most of the month trying to finish one book only to finally give up on it and complete 2 books and start another. 

Books Read (Or Mostly Read):

1. Aurorarama by Jean-Christophe Valtat
Rating: ??
Comments: I'm not really sure how to rate this book or even talk about it since I didn't finish it.  I thought about not including it all on the chance that I do finish it but I don't see that happening soon.  I wanted to like this book and the story was a very good story told in a very fascinating way but picking this up and continuing felt more and more like a chore each time.  I think steampunk is one of those things I want to like more than I actually do or I just need to give myself more of a chance to warm to.  I think this is a great book and one that will connect with people who are already familiar with and enjoy the style it was told in but for me reading it became a crash course in too many different things all at once.

2.The Beautiful Things That Heaven Bears by Dinaw Mengestu
Rating: 5/5
Comments: Oh this book.  This our book club book for March so once again I need to be careful what I say here and what I save for then.  I started to read this after downloading it not meaning to really start reading it but within two very enjoyable long reading sessions I had finished the whole thing. Logan Circle was the first part of DC I really got to know after moving down to this area. I worked just off of it and one of my coworkers/best friends lived there so it became my DC neighborhood even though I didn't live in it myself.  This book painted such a beautiful, semi-tragic, politically charged portrait of it that I could easily picture the whole time.  All the places the author describes are real places and even when the book ventures to Dupont Circle or Georgetown this path of factual geography remains in place.  Even more importantly the spirit and attitude of the city are perfectly captured.  DC doesn't get much written about it that isn't Capitol Hill-centric in nature and I think this book is a perfect example of why more authors need to tackle the other parts of the city.

3. Talking To Girls About Duran Duran: One Man's Quest for True Love and a Cooler Haircut by Rob Sheffield
Rating: 5/5
Comments: I talked about this book a little bit in my last blog post and I'm not sure what to add other than I loved it and I love everything Rob Sheffield writes.  I wish more people wrote about pop culture with the humor and heart that he does.  If the music or movies of the 80s meant anything to you than reading this book is a must.  It explores why the teen culture of the 80s was so powerful not just to the teens of the decade but each generation of teens that have come after and Rob is one those great biographical authors who manages to inject parts of his life into everything he talks about it without it seeming exploitative or self-centered.

And that's it for February!  The fourth book I started will be finished soon and will go on March's list.  March might be another light month for reading new material.  I'm looking for a new place to live and the impending premiere of the Game of Thrones television series is making a reread of the book series an absolute must.