I finished a wonderful novel last night called Household Saints by Francine Prose. I think you all would like it. The first sentence is a zinger: "It happened by the grace of God that Josheph Santangelo won his wife in a game of cards." How could you not want to read the rest? Ms. Prose explores, in her own quiet way, themes as broad as God and love, and as unlikely as the possibility of modern sainthood. It's quite moving and very thought provoking.
I am also reading a book called Real Presences by George Steiner, a literary critic/philospher who argues in this book that perhaps art is not possible without the existence of "the Other." It's a dense book, but very good. He is inspiring, especially in my thinking about a Mennonite approach to the arts (which is abysmal, if it is anything at all—we could learn a few things from the Catholics here) in general, and painting and writing in particular. One of my goals this coming year is to work on an apologetic for a Mennonite approach to aesthetics. There isn't one, and we need one! I think it could revitalize the life of the church.
Another book I just started is called Beauty and Being Just by Elaine Scarry, who is a philosopher of aesthetics at an Ivy League school. Not much to say about that except that I'm only a few pages into it, and that she ties beauty with social justice.
And finally, I'm reading a book about Modernism (1890s-1930s) in literature. Yawn.
I'm going nuts at Amazon. I haven't bought any books lately, but there is almost two hundred dollars worth of books in my shopping cart waiting for a nice warm home and a loving caretaker!
What are you guys reading?
Well, Lily wants toast, so I'll sign off now.
By the way, Radiohead has a new disc out, Gretchen. You have to order it from their website. It's called In Rainbows.
Chad
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