Something odd happened to me yesterday. I finished my work at around 5:30pm-ish and was all set to write a new blog post when I decided to throw caution to the wind and read a book instead. I’ve been reading a new book since last Saturday and it’s so enjoyable that I’ve found it hard to be motivated to do anything but read it. I’ve had a lot of late nights this week because of this book.
It’s called Such a Pretty Fat by Jennifer Lancaster and it’s amazing. She’s one of my favorite authors and this is her third memoir. I randomly picked up her first book at an airport on my way home from California and fell in love with it. She’s hilarious, bitingly sarcastic, and forthcoming enough to make reading her memoirs poignant and sincere.
She’s been one of my role models ever since I read her book because she is now a hugely successful novelist but she started off as a blogger. I’m not saying I want to follow in her footsteps exactly but I have definitely taken some notes from her.
Anyway, the odd thing that happened to me was that when I finished reading Such a Pretty Fat I was hugely disappointed…because it was over.
That’s never happened to me before. I normally feel a sense of accomplishment and closure when I turn the last page of a book but this time I was just sad that it was over. I hollered down to Wes that I was so sad to get to the end and he recommended that I send her an email to alert her to this fact.
I may have been fortified by a cosmo martini at this point so I went upstairs and did just that. In the bright, harsh light of morning I feel I may have been a bit brash. I just emailed one of my writing role models while tipsy and I’m not entirely clear on what I wrote to her.
Here’s to hoping it wasn’t too flowery and fan-girl gushy, shall we?
(for Kindle)
(printed book)
10 comments
Comment by Delisa on September 27, 2008 at 8:31 pm
I know exactly what you mean! There have been several books that I have been upset about finishing. There was even one time when I cried because the book was over, that’s how darn good it was. This seems to happen to me a lot since I am very picky about what I read, so almost every book that I do read is a winner.
Comment by Erika on September 28, 2008 at 9:00 am
-Del, I’m super-curious about which made you cry when it was over. Do tell!
Comment by Delisa on September 28, 2008 at 9:37 am
It was The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini. Have you read it yet? Technically the contents of the book were making me cry too, but I cried more because there weren’t any more pages!
Comment by Perception on September 28, 2008 at 1:46 pm
I agree with Del, that book sure touches the soul. Another one of his is “A Thousand Splendid Suns”.
Comment by Erika on September 28, 2008 at 2:08 pm
-Del and Perception, funny enough, you have both told me, in no uncertain terms, that it is in my best interest to read this book. The only problem is that the waiting list for it at the library is about a mile long. I’m on the list, though, so once the 150 people in front of me finish it it’s my turn!
Comment by Delisa on September 28, 2008 at 6:00 pm
Silly rabbit, it’s called Barnes and Noble!
Comment by Erika on September 28, 2008 at 7:07 pm
-Del, If I ran out and bought every book on my must-read book my husband, in no uncertain terms, would have me committed because it would be cheaper in the long run ;)
Comment by Mrs. Higrens on September 29, 2008 at 4:53 am
Maybe it was you who suggested I read the Jen Lancaster books? (Blogger trackback is a little sketchy)
Luckily *thanks to the roulette of the library wait list* had read the 2nd one first and enjoyed it so I cracked the 3rd one when the library released it to my hands. (If I had started with the 1st one I wouldn’t have read 2 or 3, so it’s lucky for me I started with 2.)
I was actually inspired enough to look for a local gym w/ personal trainers. Not that I’ve joined or made an appointment, but she made it seem so doable.
Comment by Erika on September 29, 2008 at 6:17 am
-Mrs. Higrens, I know what you mean about her making it seem so doable! I would be sitting there reading the book, drinking a martini and thinking, “Wow, I should really get off the couch…” I take it you didn’t care for her first book…?
Comment by Mrs. Higrens on September 30, 2008 at 4:54 am
I couldn’t get past the first 10 pages or so…probably more about me and my deep-seated sorority girl and financial status issues than her writing.
If her 2nd book had started out the same way I probably wouldn’t have read it either.