Not much new to report today except for this…
On the topic of “What I’ve Been Reading…”
I’m sorry to report, I tried to read Rupert Holmes’ “How to Murder Your Employer.” I tried, I really did. Mostly out of respect for Rupert’s double-platinum hit “The Piña Colada Song.” But I couldn’t finish. And I don’t think it has anything to do with the fact that I’m now retired and thus have no employer worth murdering. Well, not anymore.
A lot of us read murder mysteries out of a basic longing for justice. You know, to see bad guys get their due, and to see the PI protagonist triumph despite all their flaws and foibles. So, when there’s a murder mystery written as farce, and there’s an institution of higher learning dedicated solely to training murderers-in-the-making? It just doesn’t sit well, y’know? At least, not with me. Call me old-fashioned, I guess.
The other book I just started reading is John Irving’s “The Last Chairlift.” Set in Aspen and New Hampshire, it’s about the illegitimate son of a female ski instructor. Now if you know anything about John Irving – let’s say you’ve read “World According to Garp” and “Cider House Rules” – you’ll have learned a thing or two about illegitimate sons. And I’m okay with that. I really am.
But you know how there are some authors who write one good book, and then over the course of a literary career, they keep on writing the same basic story over and over? Yeah, well, this is it. Enjoy it if you can. Me personally? I’ve got better things to do. Like eating Doritos. Also: No weirdos!