Ulysses by James Joyce

1/10

I finished this book today. It was the worst book I have ever read in my life. And I dare say that it is the worst book that I will ever read in my life. It is pure nonsensical gibberish. For 768 pages. I was amazed that a person could write so incomprehensibly. When you think about it, it is probably pretty hard to write sentences without having them make any sense. So to do that for 768 pages is a pretty spectacular feat. The book reads like it was written by a mentally challenged person who is drunk. It's bad. Don't let anyone tell you otherwise. In fact, if you like this book, I cannot be friends with you. It's that simple. A person who likes this book is not a person I ever want to have a conversation with. Chapter 13 was the least terrible chapter. If every chapter were written like chapter 13 then it would still be the worst book I have ever read, but I could maybe be friends with a person who liked that kind of book. Chapter 17 started with some potential but quickly spiraled downward into the all-too-familiar pointless gibberish. I'm excited to move on and read my next book. This one wasted two months worth of reading. And it wasted two minutes worth of posting this on my blog.

Perelandra by C.S. Lewis

4/10

So here's part 2 of the C.S. Lewis space trilogy books. I posted about the first book not long back. I read this some eight or nine years ago and don't really remember too much about it. I remember being slightly disappointed which is probably why I still have not read the third book. Seems like I should just read the third book already, but I haven't been able to bring myself to do it. I remember thinking this book was better than the first as far as the story line and the cool Christian symbolism that Lewis does. But I also remember thinking it was worse than the first book because it was twice as long as the first. And the third book appears to be twice as long as the second which is probably another factor scaring me away from it. Seems like other people like these books much more than me though, I must say.

Some quotes:

"As long as he did his best...God would see to the final issue."

"A stone may determine the course of a river."

"He died not for men, but for each man. If each man had been the only man made, He would have done no less."

The Tolkien Reader by J.R.R. Tolkien

4/10

This book is a collection of essays and short stories. I read it back in the fall of '05. I remember because the binding of my book has a crack in it after I slammed my fist on it after BYU lost to Boston College after one of the worst offensive performances I've ever witnessed and when Bronco Mendenhall inexplicably decided to punt halfway through the fourth quarter when they were down by three scores. It's true.

I wasn't crazy about most of it. My favorite short story in here was "Leaf by Niggle" which is about this artist who makes this beautiful and perfect painting. But he just can't stop adding to it. He keeps adding more and more trees and individual leaves to the painting. As I read it I couldn't help but think that it was kind of an allegory to his Lord of the Rings stuff and his Middle Earth creation. He writes these amazing books and he is so obsessed that he cannot help but keep adding to it by creating this world with an insane amount of detail. Just look at the Silmarillion with it's extreme amount of detail about the creation of Middle Earth, etc. It was an interesting short story and more happens in it beside him just painting.

This book also contains Tolkien's famous essay, "On Fairy-Stories." It's pretty interesting at times, but  I'm just not much of an essay guy.

I recall liking parts of the short story "The Homecoming of Beorhtnoth Beorhthelm's Son" as well.

Teachings of Presidents of the Church: Heber J. Grant

7/10

Another church manual book. I think this one was in use while I was on my mission. I think I read it shortly after my mission. And I think Heber J. Grant looks like Sean Connery. "Indiana, let it go."

Not much more for me to say other than that I continue to believe that these books are awesome.

Some quotes:

"You will find that those who do not do their duty, are always complaining about somebody that does"

"The real secret of happiness in life and the way in which to prepare ourselves for the hereafter is service."

"If the devil applies for baptism, and claims that he has repented, I will baptize him."