Books, books, books

What to read next? This perennial question seems like one that shouldn't come up at all. We're bombarded with suggestions from everyone, everywhere, every day. Just recently, I cleaned out a desk drawer at work and found upward of 50 little slips of paper with titles that I, at some point, thought I would like to read.

I do pay attention to my little slips of paper, so these strays represented good books that were compelling enough for me to make a note, but somehow never quite compelling enough for me to actually seek out and read.

Land of Enchantment

Recently I had the good fortune to spend nine days in New Mexico. I had never been to the state before, so naturally I did some reading before I left. This proved useful, but, as often happens, I came home with a deeper interest and even more questions than I had before I went.

My first inclination in a situation like this is to look for a cookbook. I found a true classic in our stacks: "The Feast of Santa Fe: Cooking of the American Southwest" by Huntley Dent. Born in Mississippi and educated at Harvard, Dent was apparently seduced by travels in the Southwest and eventually settled there permanently.

A Hell of Different Words

I think of myself as a very traditional reader of fiction. I don't like experimental stuff, I just want a good story.

That said, I must admit that my love of many novels is based more on the use of language than on the plots. Take "Motherless Brooklyn" by Jonathan Lethem, for example. This novel is a detective story in which the private investigator suffers from Tourette's syndrome.

"Motherless Brooklyn" doesn't really work as a mystery story. There's action and suspense, the usual climactic scene followed by a tying up of loose ends, but that's not what keeps the pages turning.

The main character and narrator does that. I don't suffer from Tourette's syndrome and, presumably, neither does Jonathan Lethem, but his character's narration sounds authentic and is absolutely compelling. This is not achieved through description, though — it is found in the voice of the novel.

I was thinking about this recently while reading "Pigeon English" by British author Stephen Kelman. This is his first novel, and it has won awards in his home country. Set in the Tottenham district of London, recently in the news, it is the story of Harrison Opuku, an 11-year-old immigrant from Ghana.

Twisted

Journalist Jon Ronson specializes in weirdness. In "Them: Adventures with Extremists," he explored the political fringe, populated largely by conspiracy theorists. "The Men Who Stare at Goats" examined the U.S. military's venture into the world of psychological warfare and weaponry. And now, in "The Psychopath Test: A Journey Through the Madness Industry," he takes on modern psychiatry.

Ronson is a marvelous storyteller, with a comedian's gift of timing. Given his chosen topics, the results are often hilarious.

Darkness

As I've told you before in this column, I'm a fan of international fiction. Naturally, I was excited to discover the novel "On Black Sisters Street" by Chika Unigwe.

Unigwe was born in Nigeria and now lives in Belgium; her novel was originally published there under the title "Fata Morgana."

The original title is perhaps more descriptive. "Fata Morgana" refers to a special type of mirage — something akin to a fairy castle or other "false land" that lures sailors to their death.

Graphic Love

Some time ago, I shared with you my progress toward appreciation of the graphic novel format. With some help and education, I was able to recognize David Mazzucchelli's acclaimed "Asterios Polyp" as a masterpiece. Complex, sprawling and noted for its expressive use of color, "Asterios Polyp" went on to win several awards.

Despite my hard-won appreciation of this format, I haven't read many more graphic novels since that column. Now, though, with the help of my colleagues, I have found another masterpiece.

Mother Love

My thoughts have turned eastward recently. It began with a viewing of the film "The Last Train Home." This 2009 documentary looks at the amazing demographic shift in China from rural villages to large manufacturing cities.

There are now more than 130 million immigrants in China — people working away from home to support their families; parents work in urban factories while their children and aging parents remain in remote villages.

Once a year, over the New Year's holiday, they are reunited — if they are able to buy a ticket and make it on the train.