The Diplodocus

Julie and Julia was good Metro reading material: light, simple fluff, kind of like a good meringue.  Definitely not a book that kept me thinking after I closed it, though it certainly did a good job of making me hungry.  (And no, I’m not envious of Julie Powell at all.  Not utterly jealous of the fact that she managed to transform a blog into a career — or, perhaps better put, an avocation into a vocation.  Accidentally. Oh, and that she has a big dog.  No envy from me.) 

Now I’m torn between two (seven?) novels.  Cloud Atlas has been on my reading list forever, and I just realized I have a copy of Absurdistan buried somewhere in the basement.  The decision is complicated by the fact that I really, honestly, authentically tried to start Cloud Atlas at a time when starting a mindbending novel with six different plots was probably not the best idea in the world.  Still, I feel like I need to give it a second chance, if only to redeem myself for past lapses into intellectual laziness.  On the other hand, Absurdistan: a novel about visas!  Who wouldn’t want to read a novel about someone trying their hardest to circumvent 214(b)?  Sounds awesome to me.

Until I decide, it’s time to re-read issues of the Atlantic.  And spend Metro time idly wondering why its virtually impossible to predict how crowded the blue/orange line is during rush hour. 

Suggestions, as always, are appreciated (for both the book and the Metro thing, I ain’t picky).