Lily’s Literature #11

Ello ello ello! And welcome to another addition of Lily’s Lit, featuring me, Lily, and some books that aren’t nearly as important as me. I have to apologize for being away from blogging for so long. I hate leaving any comments hanging, and my loyal follower or two wondering where I’ve gone off to. Wipe those tears away, because I’m back and ready to talk about one of the most boring subjects ever–books!

My teacher friend (when you have friends that are teachers, you’re considered old, right?) lent me a photocopied version of a book called Being There by Jerzy Kosinski. I hadn’t ever heard of this book, nor was I aware that it had been made into a movie. When I told my mom that I was reading it, the first thing she said was “Oh yeah! Chauncey Gardner!” It’s obviously a pretty memorable tale.

The story is about a man named Chance who worked as a gardener in a well-to-do home for an elderly man that took him in as a child. Chance had never been outside the walls of his home, until one day when the owner died, leaving him with nothing. Having no choice but to leave everything he knew, Chance started anew. An awkward situation landed him in another wealthy home, with people willing to listen to him and ultimately hearing what they wanted to hear.

The story is crazily unrealistic, but in the best way possible. It shows how much control people have over altering conversations and view points. Chance/Chauncey is a wonderful character–simple and genuine. The movie is also very good in case you’re not in the reading mood!

After that I picked up Love, Dishonor, Marry, Die, Cherish, Perish by David Rakoff which is totally something that I never would have picked up had my friend not suggested it. This is a super short book. Actually all of the books mentioned in this post are under 200 pages! The fun thing about this one is that it’s all poetry. It still runs like a story, and feels like a story, but it flows and rhymes like poetry. The mixture is perfect. I read the entire book in two different sittings while killing time at the book store.

Rakoff does a wonderful character study of these made-up struggling people. The stories all connect–reaching highs and lows, and giving the reader a slice of life. It was refreshing and so fun to read because of the poetry aspect. There were even some great illustrations which made the book even more unique. I would suggest this one if you’re looking for something different.

The most recent book that I read was The Tao of Pooh by Benjamin Hoff. I ‘d heard a lot of great things about this one and was very interested to see what it was about. Basically, the book takes note that Pooh Bear most clearly represents the Taoist way of thinking compared to the other friends in the Hundred Acre Wood.

I learned a lot about what it is to be a Taoist, how to be calm, to let things go and unravel as they may. So many people over think things or try to prove their worth and intelligence. Pooh was the simplest of all the characters, yet he was the wisest. There were a lot of worthwhile stories and messages written throughout this little book. It’s a good read and teaches you a little something about the way life should really be.

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