1. Read this first:
Because I know that you, like me, are a hopeless romantic masquerading as some sort of level-headed realist. This book is absolutely beautiful..Nebraska desolation, childhood freedom, the crushing way of the world, and redemption through the deepest love: friendship. I actually clutched it to my chest for a moment after I finished the last page. Get a hold of this book and read.
2. Read this next:
Especially if you've lived in Los Angeles. And double-especially if you've spent vast quantities of time in desolate, cracked-out, crumblingly beautiful downtownL.A.. walk in the shoes of Arturo Bandini, a romantic to the maxx. No one finds the sheer absurd joy in pathos, suffering, life, and the human condition quite like Fante!
3. Make soup, and eat it.
4. Find a dog, and pet it.
5. Tell me about this book:
I had wanted to read Murakami for a long time, and this was the only book of his checked in at the library. I couldn't really get into it. I finished it, because I hate abandoning anything halfway. It just seemed kind-of sucky compared to all the accolades I've heard for him. Was it the English translation? The dialogue seemed especially clunky.
6. Find a trail, and walk it.
