Oxford Publications and Other Books ( #AtoZChallenge )

 

Oxford Publications

     In previous posts I have offered several other Oxford Publications from my shelves.  They publish some very beautiful reference works that fill up a bookshelf very nicely.  I particularly like this Illustrated Oxford Dictionary.  It's a monster of a book that is quite lovely.  My edition is a hardback edition from 1998.  I believe I got this as part of an special introductory promo offer to a major book club.  I've gotten a lot of books as a result of those introductory promos.

Organizing

       If there is one thing I should probably read about it's organizing.  I've got plenty of books on the topic but they are unorganized scattered willy-nilly throughout the house. I particularly like the look of Organizing Plain & Simple by Donna Smallin.  I wonder what's inside?  I should look so maybe I can start getting more organized.  I need the advice.

Organized Crime: An Inside Guide to the World's Most Successful Industry by Paul Lunde

     

        Well, I may not be organized, but crime is.  I couldn't tell you where I got this book or why I got it, but I got it.  Leafing through it the content seems pretty interesting.  Probably a good reference if I were writing something about organized crime.

Joel & Victoria Osteen

     Several years ago my wife and I started watching Joel Osteen on television  He was easy to listen to though not always theologically precise.  I just liked his speaking style.  His books are also easy fare. I didn't read Victoria's book (though my wife did) but I'm sure it's more of the same.  Their books can be quite encouraging.  Become a Better You is one of the books on our shelves.

O-zone by Paul Theroux

      Haven't read this yet, but what a great book for 'O'.  This is a futuristic science fiction novel by the same author who gave us Mosquito Coast.  I have that movie on DVD and it's pretty good.  This book came out in 1985.  Not sure how or when I acquired it.  Now that I realize what the book is about I think I should move it up higher on my future read list.

       

       

Out of Control by Leslie Cockburn

       Only vaguely do I remember buying this book in Missoula MT sometime in 1987.  There's a bookmark from the bookstore inside the covers.  This political piece of journalism was being talked about on television a lot at the time and that's where I heard about the book.  Since I was living on the road at the I didn't buy too many books, but apparently I wanted this one enough to get the new hardcover release.  I might read this again, but now it would be more history than current affairs.  There's enough crazy stuff going on in our times that maybe I don't need to read the political intrigue of 40 years ago.

Omnivore by Piers Anthony

         In 1968 I bought this book from the Doubleday Science Fiction & Fantasy Book Club.   I'm sure that I read it at the time I got it, but that was over 50 years ago. Perhaps I'll read it again someday, but it's not high on my to-read list.  The book is still in decent condition considering all the moves it's made through the years.

On the Road by Jack Kerouac 

       Though I've been very aware of this book for most of my life, I did not read it until relatively recently--sometime in the past 10 years.  Finally, I purchased a copy of the book and set in reading it. Since it's a book mostly about road life it was definitely in my realm of interests.  This is the kind of book I might consider writing one day.  The book was written in my lifetime and takes place during the years right before I was born.  It's a bit of contemporary pop history which is something I really enjoy reading about.   Not the best book I've ever read, but well worth the read.

Outer Dark by Cormac McCarthy

        Did I say that Cormac McCarthy is one of my favorite authors?  I know I already mentioned him in my 'M' post, but this book is well worth getting a mention.  Published in 1968, this was his second novel.  It's dark, creepy, and a bit disturbing--all the best of a McCarthy novel.  If you like Faulknerish fiction then you might like this one.  The tale is a story of incest, mystery, and a journey of finding the secrets of a hidden truth.

Collected Works by Flannery O'Connor

        Cormac McCarthy might be one of my favorite authors, but Flannery O'Connor is even higher on that list.  My collection has several books by her with some duplication in stories.  I love her writing as well as her demented sense of humor and wacky story imagination.  I was first turned on to O'Connor by my creative writing professor Dr. Robert Drake at the University of Tennessee in Knoxville.  He was passionate about her work and filled me with that passion.  Her body of work is relatively small, but it is powerful.  If you have not read anything by Flannery O'Connor and you consider yourself a writer then you need to get something by her and delve into it.  Her short stories are her best work.   Be careful as you might be offended by her seeming racial insensitivity, but it reflects the times about which she writes and the types of characters she writes about.  I'd suggest starting off with a story like "A Good Man Is Hard to Find" or "Revelation" which are two of her more well-known stories.  They're all good though. If you treat yourself to reading something by O'Connor, I hope you'll come back to my blog to tell me what you think.

Owen Fiddler by Marvin D Wilson

        Early in my blogging days I came across Marvin D Wilson's Old Silly Blog.  I'm not sure what happened to him, but maybe one of my readers can tell me.  The blog links that I have for him don't seem to work now.  I have two books by him on my shelves including the one shown.  You can read my Amazon review of this book here.   

     Anything in this list that catches your interest?   How organized do you tend to be?  Are you a fan of the literature of the American South?  

7 people I'd like to meet

         Seven fictional or non fictional people I'd like to meet?  ...hmmm.  Probably real people.

        Oh--this is a topic that was asked a while back at Blissed-Out Grandma.   It was on one of those meme things, you know--tag you're next.  I looked at it and started to think about my picks and then just entered the idea in my blog composition list to think about later.  Well, later has come.

         What a great way to fill up a blog post.

          Here they are in no particular order:

           Jesus Christ -- This is almost a no-brainer.  Who wouldn't want to meet Jesus in person?   Where you could actually talk face to face with him?    I'd want it to be a time-travel thing too so I could see what things were like back then.   In fact that will be part of my criteria for the rest of the characters who are real or historical.  And also, I'd get to stay three days in each place.  Three days hanging out with Jesus and his disciples would be pretty amazing.

          Now, back to the list:

                     Image via Wikipedia           Franz Schubert -- I guess I'd need to learn German or have a translator, but three days with Schubert would be undoubtedly filled with music.  He's one of my favorite composers.  A biography that I read about him told about how he would perform a lot of intimate concerts and hung around with a rather arty group.  Vienna in the early 1800s sounds like a fascinating time.   Maybe I could catch Beethoven while I was there.

           Thomas "Stonewall" Jackson --He's a distant cousin and seemed like a very upright guy.  An American Civil War hero, he was also a teacher at a Viginia university.  From all I've read about him he sounds like a pretty serious guy.  I would be talking to someone who was very closely related to my ancestors who first came to the United States in the mid-1700s.

           Mark Twain--The guy was a literary genius and could say such funny things.  I wonder if he was funny all the time.  I'd say he must have been at least passably congenial since he was so popular.  Mark Twain would have some fascinating stories to tell.

Image via Wikipedia            Erik Satie--The French composer of eccentric impressionistic and minimalist music seems like a pretty strange guy and I imagine it could be entertaining to spend some time with him.  Add to my criteria the instant ability to speak and understand the language of wherever I was--I'd need this for several of my characters.

             Al Jolson--I want to know the real story about the guy.  This popular singer from the first half of the twentieth century would probably have some great tales to tell about the entertainment industry of his time.  He comes across as a pretty nice guy in both the fictional portrayal and in his films,   And if he's an ass then so be it.  It's only three days for crying out loud.

Image via Wikipedia               Jack Kerouac--After three days I'd probably be pretty drunk hanging out with this guy, but it would be cool going to jazz clubs and hanging out with people he knew.  I could get more of a feel for the beat philosophy and lifestyle, and maybe get some kind of insight from Kerouac about his writing.  Maybe three days of a cross-country drive.  I can dig that for sure.

               Now wasn't that fun?   I had fun thinking about it.  You want to do it too?   I'm supposed to tag you here, so if you want to play--go ahead.   It's an easy way to fill up a blog post.  Or did I say that already?
           


       

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