penguin dust

what joey is reading: 2005

I'm usually reading several books at once. It's not my fault I have ADD.

Currently in progress as of 28 October 2005:

• Judaism, Physics and God: Searching for Sacred Metaphors in a Post-Einstein World, Rabbi David W. Nelson
  

• The Jewish Holidays: A Guide & Commentary, Michael Strassfeld
  This is ongoing, as I'm working through the cycle of the Jewish year.

On hold right now, meaning they were due back at the library or I temporarily lost interest:

• Mississippi: An American Journey, Anthony Walton

• Allies in Healing: When the Person You Love Is a Survivor of Child Sexual Abuse, Laura Davis
  

• Your Money or Your Life, Joe Dominguez and Vicki Robin
  Sort of a "how to get your shit together financially" book, which I can always use.

• Getting a Life: Real Lives Transformed by Your Money or Your Life, Jacqueline Blix and David Heitmiller
  Haven't picked up the original "Your Money or Your Life" yet, but this was at the library, so I decided to check it out and see how it is.

• The Courage to Heal: A Guide for Women Survivors of Child Sexual Abuse, Ellen Bass and Laura Davis
  Don't get all excited... I'm reading it for a friend.

• To Pray as a Jew: A Guide to the Prayer Book and the Synagogue Service, Rabbi Hayim Halevy Donin
  Written from an Orthodox point of view, this is considered the gold standard of books on how to pray Jewishly.

Finished in 2005:

• Miss America by Day: Lessons Learned from Ultimate Betrayals and Unconditional Love, Marilyn Van Derbur
  If you've ever known someone recovering from sexual abuse, you need to read this book. It helps.

• Jewish with Feeling: A Guide to Meaningful Jewish Practice, Rabbi Zalman Schachter-Shalomi
  Extraordinary book about infusing your Jewish practice with meaning. I like that it doesn't assume you already believe in God. I really can't describe this book very well (obviously), but I just finished it and I'm going to read it again to let it sink in some more. It's changing the way I think, yet at the same time, it's affirming what I always knew. Yeah, one of those books. Scary.

• Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, J. K. Rowling
  I had to; it's the law.

• The Golden Compass, Philip Pullman
  Very interesting sci-fi/fantasy novel about a troublemaking English girl who manages to get herself in the middle of a battle for the survival of life as we know it. It starts out slow, but picks up towards the middle of the book and by the end I couldn't put it down.

• Exploring Judaism: A Reconstructionist Approach, Rebecca T. Alpert and Jacob J. Staub

• Redemption, The Plaid Adder
  The fifth book in the Women on Fire "trilogy". Mmmm, Ideire.

• Fight Club, Chuck Palahniuk
  Come on, we all know this book. I've been meaning to read it since I first saw the movie, and I'm finally getting around to it.

• The Woman Who Laughed at God: The Untold History of the Jewish People , Jonathan Kirsch
  Great book about various countertraditions in Judaism. Kirsch calls them "Judaisms", revealing that Judaism has never been a monolithic religion. Covers everything from Caananite goddess worship by early Israelites to modern Zionism. I like it as an antidote to the sometimes tiresome Orthodox view that if you ain't Orthodox, you ain't Jewish.

• Voluntary Simplicity: Toward a Way of Life That Is Outwardly Simple, Inwardly Rich, Duane Elgin
  The bible of the voluntary simplicity movement.

• The Portable Henry Rollins, Henry Rollins
  Compilation of Henry Rollins' writings from the early 80s to the late 90s. Pretty decent stuff, although the angst of his younger years gets a bit repetitive at times. Still and all, a good, dark read.

• Darkness Bright, The Plaid Adder
  The third (and best, in my opinion) book in the as-yet-unpublished Women on Fire trilogy, which is now at five books and growing.

• The Rituals & Practices of a Jewish Life: An Introduction for Personal Spiritual Renewal, Kerry M. Olitzky and Daniel Judson (editors)
  Mostly essays exploring different basic practices. Some are more practical than others; the section on laying tefillin actually shows you the mechanics of wrapping it. Very useful book if you're looking to increase your daily observance.

• To Those Who Can't Believe: Overcoming the Obstacles to Faith, Harold M. Schulweis
  Nice book for skeptics from a Jewish perspective, which means it doesn't try to address doubts and questions with, "Just believe and all will be well."

• My Name is Asher Lev, Chaim Potok
  Written in spare yet descriptive prose, this is a novel about a Chasidic boy who grows up to be a great artist and how his community and family deals with that.