the road

cormac mccarthy’s portrayal of a man and a boy struggling across a desolate america is an understated and moving depiction of tenderness, love, and human connectedness.  it’s also simply written and under 300 pages, so get yourself a copy a read it today.  literally.

into the wild

for the person in longing of the weary road, read this book. 

and watch this move.

illustrated recommendations

art spiegelman’s maus is a part biographical, park autobiographical account of the author/artist’s strained relationship with his father, a survivor of the Holocaust. 

this tale of survival is heart-pounding as it is heart-wrenching, and the portrayal of the strained relationship between father and son as honest as there is.  maus is a classic, and if you’re a dolt like me, you may not have read it until the urgings of a friend.   hopefully you can call me a friend today. 

“sometimes all we need are colder nights and warmer thighs.”  those are lyrics from a saves the day song called “hold,” and they are befitting of craig thompson’s autobiographical blankets. 

whether it’s dealing with the insecurities that come with the awkwardness of high school to fighing for the warm security of a blanket with a younger sibling, to the impermanence of an innocent and perfect first love.  . . blankets  is the perfect companion for those quiet nights with nothing but a blanket and a cup of hot chocolate to keep you warm.

we are all theologians

Ernest Becker’s The Denial of Death is one of the few books that i’ve managed to get through this year.  it took me several months, but if you pick up this read, you’ll understand why. 

drawing heavily from such intellectual giants as the saddeningly obscure Otto Rank (whose life work concluded this post’s title) to the more prominent Freud and Kierkegaard, Becker attempts to explain human beings and our behavior in light of the impending reality of death.  Becker expounds on the idea of the denial of death as means to living in and maintaining the programming of our society’s culture.  such a denial, according to Becker’s astute analysis, produces the spectrum of behaviors that are known to man. 

in other words, this piece of nonfiction should be required reading for all people.  do yourself a favor and get a copy of this book.  my short synopsis hardly does Becker’s simple and eloquent ruminations any justice.