Stephanie > Recent Status Updates

This is kicking my ass.

Loving the characterization

Im one chapter in, and this is blowing my mind. It starts out very “here’s all the scientific studies” then becomes very... cosmic consciousness, but in a non-irritating way.

I will admit that the story is picking up tension, which I had almost given up on seeing. There's moments of humour as well, or maybe I was just missing it earlier. I'm committed to finishing this!

I'm not even sure I want to finish this book, to be honest. I feel like, after chapter 1, I could say "Yeah, I get it." I'm not entirely sure what more there is to say about the topic. I wish there were more of a satirical approach. There's moments of this, but it feels like the dominant energy of the story is more like "look for cool this jetting setting, Paris-shopping crew is!" At this point I prefer Downton Abby.

It's starting out complicated, but I can easily see where this story is going.

Already really loving this book. The writing is smart and funny. Small town setting and quirky characters reminiscent of To Kill a Mockingbird. First 50 pages is strongly character driven (and perfect), but big plot stuff is brewing just beneath the surface.

Enjoying the magical storyline--it's like Harry Potter, university edition--but a little tired of Lev Grossman's commentary on female bodies. A better author could characterize a woman without needing to mention the relative size of her breasts.

Best line so far is this guy's perfect characterization of his dumb aunt: "Despite the feathers in her hat, she clearly knew nothing about about birds."

Armstrong makes it clear that no one knows what the word "dogma" actually means. Denys of the Eastern Orthodox tradition (6th century) held that "Reading the scriptures is not a process of discovering facts about god, but should be a paradoxical discipline that turns our literal doctrinal teachings (kerygma) into deeper symbolic truths (dogma). Beautiful.

I haven't even finished the editor's forward and I think I've found a new best friend in Joseph Campbell. Metaphor! Myth! Meaning! Everywhere!

So far, I'm smiling. Hoping it stays this good.

Picking this up again during Advent this year.

On page 23 and have had plenty of guffaws already--enough, I think, for the entire summer. She is a clever one, this Zippy, e.g... "Left to its own devices, my head looks like a big hair alarm going off... "Many large, predatory birds believed I was asking for a date." "My sister picked Tiger out from the Diseased and Deformed Puppy Room at the animal shelter."