The Murder of Roger Ackroyd, Into the Wild
Awhile ago my friend and pastor, Marcus, sent my roommate and I a couple of books, and although it took me a while to get around to reading them, I'm sure glad I did!
The Murder of Roger Ackroyd by Agatha Christie
For some reason, I thought Christie's language and execution of story was going to be over my head. I wasn't quite sure as to when or where her stories were written and/or set, and so I think that is why in my mind I had labeled her as a little unreadable. It is really amazing the kinds of misconceptions we have about things- any things, and how that shapes what we choose to do.
But that's off the subject. Murder mysteries have never really been something I've sought out. I used to read The Cat Who... series when I was quite a bit younger (middle school/early high school) and some Mary Higgins Clark, but never much else. Mysteries always annoy me a little bit because I'm so anxious to know the answer that I don't bother to try to figure it out myself. Instead, I rush through the book to find the answer and, in return, I think, end up missing a lot of the joy of reading a mystery.
Which, might have happened this time. I enjoyed Christie's book for the setting, and the different (to me) world it represented. I also enjoyed the complexity of the crime. I suppose the complexity is required, but I liked it nonetheless. It was a good, fun read.
Into the Wild by Jon Krakauer
The story of Chris McCandless's life is the kind you tell your friends about. The kind of folklore that is passed through acquaintances and family. Bravery, foolishness, mystery are all markers of the kind of tale that lures people in, and that, in essence, is Into the Wild.
It is, mostly, the story of the young man who left his family, traveled around the country, hitchhiking and making friends along the way, and ended his journey with the goal of surviving in the Alaskan forest. His ideals high, Chris tried to leave behind that which he thought entangled people: the lure of money and bad relationships. He wanted a simple life of exploration, loving the outdoors and constantly pushing himself to see what he could accomplish.
His life ended unfortunately, and Krakauer pieces together a wonderful look at his life. I was most impressed with the information Krakauer found, how he personally identified with McCandless, and the profile he painted. I see McCandless in a couple of young men I know, and I admire the desire for something beyond the ordinary, and the reverence for the outdoors that they have. McCandless read Thoreau, Tolstoy, and Jack London, among others, and longed to live the life that was written out in these books.
I'd like to think that everyone, inside, has a bit of McCandless in them, a questioning of authority and expectations set upon us by society. I certainly related to some of the things he wrote, and picked out from the books he read, albeit in a different way. Still the most touching part of the book for myself was the account of McCandless's parents visiting the site of his death ten months after, and recognizing silverware taken from their home, jeans that stilled smell of their son, and his writings on the wall. Although McCandless died a somewhat foolish death, I still think his mind and his intentions were in the right place, especially toward the end of his life.
The Murder of Roger Ackroyd by Agatha Christie
For some reason, I thought Christie's language and execution of story was going to be over my head. I wasn't quite sure as to when or where her stories were written and/or set, and so I think that is why in my mind I had labeled her as a little unreadable. It is really amazing the kinds of misconceptions we have about things- any things, and how that shapes what we choose to do.
But that's off the subject. Murder mysteries have never really been something I've sought out. I used to read The Cat Who... series when I was quite a bit younger (middle school/early high school) and some Mary Higgins Clark, but never much else. Mysteries always annoy me a little bit because I'm so anxious to know the answer that I don't bother to try to figure it out myself. Instead, I rush through the book to find the answer and, in return, I think, end up missing a lot of the joy of reading a mystery.
Which, might have happened this time. I enjoyed Christie's book for the setting, and the different (to me) world it represented. I also enjoyed the complexity of the crime. I suppose the complexity is required, but I liked it nonetheless. It was a good, fun read.
Into the Wild by Jon Krakauer
The story of Chris McCandless's life is the kind you tell your friends about. The kind of folklore that is passed through acquaintances and family. Bravery, foolishness, mystery are all markers of the kind of tale that lures people in, and that, in essence, is Into the Wild.
It is, mostly, the story of the young man who left his family, traveled around the country, hitchhiking and making friends along the way, and ended his journey with the goal of surviving in the Alaskan forest. His ideals high, Chris tried to leave behind that which he thought entangled people: the lure of money and bad relationships. He wanted a simple life of exploration, loving the outdoors and constantly pushing himself to see what he could accomplish.
His life ended unfortunately, and Krakauer pieces together a wonderful look at his life. I was most impressed with the information Krakauer found, how he personally identified with McCandless, and the profile he painted. I see McCandless in a couple of young men I know, and I admire the desire for something beyond the ordinary, and the reverence for the outdoors that they have. McCandless read Thoreau, Tolstoy, and Jack London, among others, and longed to live the life that was written out in these books.
I'd like to think that everyone, inside, has a bit of McCandless in them, a questioning of authority and expectations set upon us by society. I certainly related to some of the things he wrote, and picked out from the books he read, albeit in a different way. Still the most touching part of the book for myself was the account of McCandless's parents visiting the site of his death ten months after, and recognizing silverware taken from their home, jeans that stilled smell of their son, and his writings on the wall. Although McCandless died a somewhat foolish death, I still think his mind and his intentions were in the right place, especially toward the end of his life.
posted by Meghan at 12:46 AM
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