What are you reading?

[Honeybee]

I teach narrative nonfiction writing, so I mostly read long form narrative nonfiction stories.

I recently taught and reread Susan Orlean's profile called Orchid Fever - about a redneck guy who steals very valuable orchids out of the swamps of Florida. You might be familiar with the story if you've seen the film Adaptation with Nicholas Cage.

The article is great. If you like it, you can read her book - The Orchid Thief, which expands on it.

But Orchid Fever is just one of the best magazine profiles ever.

[JiNX-01]

Right now, I'm working on ST:ENT Kobayashi Maru. Then I have to get The Romulan War.

No spoilers, please!!

[Aquarius]

Text books.

[Mistress Euclid]

I'm reading Michael Chabon's novel - The Mysteries of Pittsburg.

[Aquarius]

Right now, I'm working on ST:ENT Kobayashi Maru. Then I have to get The Romulan War.

No spoilers, please!!

How are you liking it so far?

[crystalswolf]

Rereading "Deathly Hallows" to prepare for the movie (close enough to remember the bigger details, but not enough to have the diffs ruin the movie for me).

Not to mention it's my favorite of the HP books (except for the last chapter ) I pretend it doesn't exist.

[Honeybee]

Spoiler bars for those who haven't read or seen last HP book:

CW, which last chapter?

The last chapter that tells everybody what happened to everybody? (Still clinging to Harry/Luna here). Or the whole "Harry Potter is Jesus" heavy-handed climax?

[EntAllat]

What am I reading?

Fiction: "Water for Elephants" by Sara Gruen. I just started it so Id don't have many comments on it.

Nonfiction: "Chainsaw, Slackers and Spy Kids: 30 Years of Filmmaking in Austin, Texas"

[crystalswolf]

below spoilers are in white...

The chapter where it tells what happened to them years later. I really didn't like how the events unfolded. Until then, relationships and feelings were never said explicitly but from the descriptions of actions you could feel it all the same. But suddenly, in that chapter, "I saw so and so snogging so and so" type of dialog left a bad taste in my mouth.

If it was like that throughout the series or even the book I might have accepted it more.

There were parts that I did love like "Albus Severus" and Ron's comment about his father's hopes of a Muggle in the family.

When you say Harry as Jesus, do you mean his resurrection? I thought that was fitting for the history of Harry, personally, because it was always hinted that he kind of had a death wish. The whole "obsessed with dead loved ones" thing. Finally he was confronted directly with the choice of life or death once and for all and surprisingly he chose life.

It seems like I'm the only one that has a problem with it though because everyone I know that has read it loves it.

[Honeybee]

Harry Potter spoiler answer to CW below:

Ah, I see. I hear she wrote that last chapter long before she finished the series and kept it in a safe. That might be why you didn't think it was up to snuff.

I always thought Ginny Weasley was the closest thing to a Mary Sue in the HP series, so I shipped Luna/Harry against all odd.

I actually liked the Harry as Christ Figure too, since the christ figure is part of the hero of a thousand faces mythology - and the HP series does fit in right with that.