95 Books In 2006, George W. Bush read 95 books. We will do better.

70. The Location of Culture - Homi Bhabha

Picks up the threads left by Anderson and Fanon to build a model for resituating culture as both arbitrary and politically motivated, regardless of which side of the colonial debate you start from. Think of the stereotype in colonial discourse as “fetishistic, scopic, imaginary” (79) and you’re in for a ride. 

71. Mrs. Dalloway - Virginia Woolf

This is required reading. The use of stream of consciousness to build character is done nowhere better than in this book - Woolf shows a craft that’s superior to, I think, any of her contemporaries - including Joyce whose efforts to imagine gendered voices comes up short in the face of this book. 

72. Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man - James Joyce

While I remain highly enamoured of his development of voice from the “tuckoo” lines through the placement of time and planet and Dedalus, I frankly admit that I enjoy this book a bit less every time I read it, while I consistently find more in Woolf’s to appreciate. The Catholic stuff here is dull and inaccessible and while I appreciate the purpose in that, I never feel as though I’ve been invited to actually participate here the way I am in Woolf’s equally alienating work. 

73. Ulysses - James Joyce

I swore I wouldn’t read this book until I finished my PhD. Harry Vandervlist made a liar of me. Having to read 2/3 of the book for class, I figgered what the hell and finished it off. The damn thing is, I’ll have to read it again. There’s just too much happening for a single ride and I expect this book will be pissing me off for a long time to come. BTW, if you haven’t got this on your list for the year, you’re probably a sissy. :0)

74. Waterland - Graham Smith

The big po-mo comes screaming at you as Thomas Crick delves into the fens of his youth to question history, authority and relevant voices (with a bit of magic realism thrown in for shits and giggles). His brother has a massive cock and turns into an eel. Spoiler alert. Go read Rushdie.

75. A History of the World in 10 1/2 Chapters - Julian Barnes

The secret? Everything happens in boats. Now you know. I started off this book extremely peeved about the way that Barnes rips off Findlay’s _Not Wanted on the Voyage_ but the book gets better in later chapters and the narrative of woodworms throughout the text, in contemporary and renaissance translation, is hilarious and awesome. Fly on the wall? Try fly in the wall. 

76. Reading in the Dark - Seamus Deane

I wonder what it says about me as a reader that I don’t see Irish lit as poco. I mean, it obviously is and they were Europe’s niggers for generations…but wait. They aren’t black and, frankly speaking from my asinine position of white privilege(with a good dose of Irish in me) even when they were Europe’s niggers, Europe had other, more obvious niggers already anyway. The book’s well written - I just don’t care. 

77. MLA Handbook - MLA

Hmm…it occurs to me that this is a book and that I’ve read it through two or three times this year as I realize teaching it means I should probably know it. Hunh. 

78. APA Style Guide - APA

Same deal, different students. 

~ Colin