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With my reading pace, as feverish as it has become, I’ve been limiting my comments on the literature I’ve launched head-long into. I will recap what I have pranced, strolled, and, sometimes, trudged through over the past weeks and months.

Fast Food Nation - This is a fantastic work. I can assure you that it is not politically-sided propaganda, but, rather, it states exactly how presidential administrations have tried to tackle or let loose the fast food industry. There’s near endless ways in which this form of commerce affects our lives - from the food itself and health considerations, to wage control and high job-turnover. When East Germany was open in 1989, the first business to plant itself behind the destroyed wall was… you guessed it… McDonald’s.

The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time - I’ve been weary about looking into modern fiction - I understand that modern, fiction best-sellers are on the list for a reason, but I’ve been bored to tears by certain praised works that graced The New York Times’ best-seller list. However, Curious Incident is captivating. Told by a child who knows no emotion, can’t understand figurative language, and who is frightened to death by other people touching him, this novel will be a burden to rip from your hands after you’ve picked it up. The scary thing is, however, that I can relate to so many of this kid’s syndromes. He even wets the bed; err… I mean, I can relate to some of his syndromes.

To Engineer is Human - Granted, it was written in the 80s, but this book really takes a prejudiced stand against technology in engineering, almost fearing its inclusion. Not to say the entire book is fear-laden, but Petroski evidently was cautious of engineering efforts being overrun by computers. Overall, it’s a respectable piece to get through; the author covers many aspects of how failure in engineering designs contributes generously to future design attempts. It’s kind of bland, though; I have a feeling this is one of those engineers who coveted his slide-rule to the very last moment before it was torn from his blood-sweaty hands.

The Map that Changed the World - Exploring the geology of England was never so fascinating. Told more as a legend instead of a biography, this book covers the life of William Smith and his ceaseless efforts to beat back the religious dogmas of his time. When he had scientific proof that the Earth was millions (or more) years old, religious leaders and scholars continued to impress that the world and all within was created exactly at 9 am on October 23, 4004 B.C., a Monday, no less. I like Simon Winchester’s books, and I truly enjoyed this one.

Inferno - There are many, many translations of this book, but I was sure to the link the specific one I read. Oh, wow! this book is fantastic. I think I read it all in just a few days. But at times, I had to put it down, because it became too real, too frightening, and too provoking. Dante travels to Hell, with the aid of Virgil, and what Danta sees changes everything about his character. As you enter each dank and horrible ring of Hell with Dante, you will under the ghastly fear that causes him to faint on several occasions; this book is dreadfully magnificent, even if you have no reverence for the divine.

Invisible Man - Believe me, I gave this book a shot. A real chance, not some phony humoring. After reading one-quarter of it, I had to put it down. In my opinion, the writing was so banal and manufactured that I came to the point at which I was forcing myself to pick it up to plow through a few more pages. Yes, there was a decent plot, but I was having to escape the darts and arrows of never-ending metaphors and similes. You’d think Ellison had just found out about this wonderful thing called “figurative language” - nearly every description requires some fantastical hyperbole to go along with it. Ugh, I did not want to drown in superfluous writing, so I backed out. Oh well.

The Grapes of Wrath - I was forced to read this for high school AP English. At that point, I had no appreciation for literature, although throughout the year, books would grow on me (this was also the year I fell in love with the writing of Krakauer). My second time, however, and I ardently favored it. Steinbeck was brilliant. His jumps from pure dialogue to narration are perfect. I would dare say that the Depression era has no better piece of literature depicting the suffering of agricultural Americans than Grapes of Wrath. Hard-working “folk” built America, and let’s hope that will not be an endangered species as generations move on.

I hope your taste for literature (aka knowledge, aka power) is not satiated by my summaries and opinions. Vadate! Legite!

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