Moral Disorder

This is the book I read for the book club I didn't find. I did find the location today. Who knew that Vroman's had expanded to the other side of the movie theater? I do now. The sad thing is that I really liked this book. I would have liked to discuss it with a bunch of fellow readers. This tells a semi-autobiographical (it is persumed) story of Margaret Atwood, her life with her married lover, over-active sister and scientist parents. It is short stories that are about the same people. My favorite story was her fascination with an English teacher who helps her learn about reading poetry. It almost tells why book clubs are good. Sometimes the poet or the author has hidden meanings. Sometimes you get it, most of the time I don't. I wish I had her teacher with me when I was listening to this book. I enjoyed it on whatever level of understanding that I got to. I also liked that fact that she broke up with her boyfriend because he just didn't get the poetry thing. Been there.

I'm usually so caught up in reading non-fiction that I need a break to clear my mind. Mysteries and espionage are the usual suspects. It's difficult to find a novel without the help of a book club. But I've been reminded how much I enjoy them. I guess I need to take a look at The Times Book Prize nominees for fiction. They probably have some good stories there.

I'm listening to the podcast of this week's New Yorker. One of the articles is "Just the Facts, Ma'am", by Jill Lepore: Fake memoirs, factual fictions, and the history of history. That was interesting. And I've been thinking about incomplete histories and how easy it is to distort history (even unintentionally.) Two of my current history books have intersected. They are, of course, Mencken and Charlatan. Charlatan is about medical con men in the beginning of the last century, especially one named John Brinkley. Brinkley is pursued by an editor from the Journal of the American Medical Association, Morris Fishbein. Fishbein's confederate in in this pursuit is none other than H.L. Mencken. That is never mentioned in the very long book I'm reading about that man. Nor does the author mention that he is an A-1 hypochondriac. I am learning about his over zealous libido. So, the biography is not really distorted, it just doesn't cover this long chapter in Mencken's life. Or, probably more truthfully, how his life interesected with this very long chapter in Fishbein's life.

I spent yesterday at The Times, meeting with a bunch of people who are leaving due to the buyout. And one who isn't because David Hiller, the publisher talked with him and thought he should stay. Yes, that is a familiar story with a different ending. Many people are leaving at the end of next week. I'll be back next Wednesday to say goodbye. Then it's off to Mark's wedding. Woo-hoo!