What's Your Summer Reading List: A Guest Post by Dan Desanto

For this guest-post, I thought I might write about something incredibly informative, like a statistical journey through the UVM Libraries. Then, I thought it would be better to do a piece that is entertaining, like “Name-the-baby-DeSanto” contest. I went on to toy with the idea of focusing on a resource, office, or event. In the end, though, I wrote something that is marginally informative, not very focused, but hopefully entertaining. The key though, is that it is INTERACTIVE! So please contribute in the comments section!

I thought I would share my summer reading list, since everyone in the library seems to be reading interesting things, and I always enjoy talking about books with people around the library. Then, you all could share your planned summer reading, suggest books, and make it easier for the justice department to track what you read. Granted, I’ll probably do what I do every year and read three New Yorkers and half of a novel, but with better intentions, I give you my low-brow, not very organized, mildly interesting summer reading list:

Sea of Poppies - Amitav Ghosh

A few years ago, I read Ghosh’s The Shadow Lines, which I absolutely loved. I tend to read a lot of Indian writers, and the things that attract me to Ghosh are the same things that attracted me to (the much better known) Salman Rushdie: multiple story lines woven through generations, the trauma of schism, and fascinating relationships between characters. The book takes place in 1838 Calcutta, and the story revolves around a former slave ship named the Ibis and its new multifarious inhabitants. I’ve been looking forward to reading this book ever since I heard it profiled on NPR. http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=98804204/story/story.php?storyId=98804204

Street Gang: The Complete History of Sesame Street - Michael Davis

I first saw this on the Bailey Howe new book shelf. Since then, I’ve seen it pop up on lists and reviews everywhere. The book covers the history of Jim Henson’s Sesame Street, complete with photos and interviews. Laura Haines and I were talking about this book and a time in the first season or two of Sesame Street when Oscar the Grouch wasn’t garbage-can-bound; he had legs and the power of locomotion. And then there was the pivotal episode where we all found out that Snuffleupagus wasn’t imaginary and that Big Bird wasn’t delusional. From flipping through it, there seem to be some very interesting sections dedicated to Henson’s decision making process and how those decisions shaped the show we’ve come to know. All this, peppered with tales of cast parties and “more risqué” muppets will hopefully make this an intriguing summer read.

The Golem’s Mighty Swing – James Sturm

This graphic novel is set in the 1920’s and tells the story of a Jewish baseball team trying to eke out an existence by going town-to-town and taking on the local team. The ball players encounter anti-semitism in every town, during every at-bat. I’ve heard this book-talked a few different times, and the story seems fascinating. From my brief perusal at Google Books, the illustrations also appear to have a sharp eye for subtlety and period detail. Since we don’t own this book, I’m counting on Daisy to lend me her copy (ahem). This should also be a quick read for those of you looking for plane or beach material.

That about rounds out my list for the summer. What are you all planning to read?

And now, as part or our new guest blogging feature, Dan gets to pick the next blogger!