<p>Does there seem to be a lot of <a href="http://www.lunagraph.com/blog/2007/06/meals_i_miss.html" target="blank">missing</a> <a href="http://www.lunagraph.com/blog/2007/05/bands_i_miss.html" target="blank">going</a> on around here? I seem to be <a href="http://www.haverford.edu/psych/ddavis/p109g/proust.html" target="blank">
biting into madeleines</a> frequently these days, and with my time unstrung as it is (unstructured, I mean), there's no reason not to let my mind go where it will. And having done that, why not share? </p>
<p>In addition to elaborating <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Involuntary_memory" target="blank">involuntary memories</a>, I've read a couple of books. The first was a disappointing novel by Thomas Hardy, <em>A Pair of Blue Eyes</em>. I have read several of Hardy's novels and liked them all; <em>Jude the Obscure</em> is one of my all-time favorite novels. <em>A Pair of Blue Eyes</em> is not. I think this was Hardy's second novel, and it's just not very good. I didn't care about any of the characters. They all seemed shallow and uninteresting, especially Elfride, a woman with whom the two main male characters are completely smitten and obsessed for some reason that I could not fathom. She is no Tess or Eustacia Vye or Sue Bridehead, not by a long shot. Because I am stupid and have a grad school hangover, I stuck with this 400-page tome until I finished it, even though I knew after the first couple of chapters that it wasn't doing anything for me. I don't guess I will bother reading Hardy's first novel. I do still need to read <em>The Mayor of Casterbridge</em>, which is supposed to be good.</p>
<p>After finally finishing the unpleasant Hardy, I started in on my birthday books. First up was <a href="http://www.villagevoice.com/books/0717,hand,76423,10.html" target="blank"><em>Easter Everywhere</em></a> by Darcey Steinke. I've read two of Steinke's four novels and liked one of them, <em>Jesus Saves</em>, quite a lot (the other, <em>Suicide Blonde</em>, wasn't bad, just not as compelling to me). <em>Easter Everywhere</em> is a lovely book, although it feels a bit truncated in parts&mdash;perhaps appropriately so, given its episodic structure. While I enjoyed the first part of the book, I found the latter sections more engrossing, probably because in those sections Steinke makes her reflections on her religious life and spiritual seeking more explicit. Steinke is a very good writer, and if you enjoy reading thoughtful explorations of the religious impulse, free from orthodoxy or proselytizing, I recommend this one.</p>
<p>Now a dilemma: What to read next? I have a couple more birthday books, one a novel and one another memoir. I'm not sure which to choose. They're both fairly short, so neither will involve a major time commitment. I'll probably go for the novel. </p>