Friday, November 30, 2012

Monkey Learns to Fly


On the Shelf Reading
1.       Scar Tissue – Anthony Kiedis
As the lead singer of my all time favorite band, Red Hot Chilli Peppers, Anthony Kiedis takes his fans on a roller coaster of a ride with his personal memoir containing a wide gamut from the live accounts of his time as a heroin and marijuana drug addiction to the difficult path towards sobriety. Scar Tissue is a wonderful autobiography I have been able to pick up and was instantly attached to because I have always wanted to read more about his life and how he became a drug addict. Considering myself quite the avid fan of the historic band who continue to rejuvenate the widely considered, washed-up genre of punk rock. Only 23 pages in out of 464, this memoir is already considered at the top of my shelf.
2.       Rules For My Unborn Son – Walker Lamond
I live by the aphorism of “never judge a book by it’s cover,” but when I found this book, I had a feeling that cliché would be broken as it became an instant classic of mine. A short read of 206 pages, this coming-of-age novel covers all of the rules and guidelines in which ever young adult should follow as they eagerly approach manhood. There should be a federal mandate which requires each 17-year old to read this entire book before they turn 18 because it entails so many truths about life and how to succeed as a well functioning man. I was a boy at 9 o’clock in the evening when I turned to the first page, but I became a gentleman, a fellow contributing citizen for this great country after I flipped to the last page where the blank page was facing my eyes with a silent message entailing “welcome to adulthood.”
3.       No Country For Old Men – Cormac McCarthy
Instead of reading the book, I began to uncover this story from the Academy Award winning film at my home. The tale was quite riveting and powerful;  so I decided to then begin reading the book. Not only is the book more suspenful than the film itself, but I am often haunted by a panick attack each time I look out at my window each night. The paranoia that rises up inside of me troubles me as I often envision myself as Llewelyn Moss, the man who captures $2,000,000 dollars from a disastrous drug deal exchange who is chased after by a hired hitman, Anton Chigurh. This book should be read by anyone who is interested in a compelling story where the mystery keeps you on your feet for days.
   On the E-Shelf – The Hard Life of an NFL Longshot – Charles Siebert
The dreaded date of April 28th finally approaches a packed house of blue-collar inhabitants near the Elgin, Illinois surburbia with an unpredictable turn of events. A dream could become reality at any moment  on that tiny 20” TV in the crammed living room as Pat Schiller awaits for his name to be called by one of the 32  franchises in this year’s NFL Draft in New York City. With an entire town devotedly torturing themselves through a two-day, seven-round nightmare, they appear to emplify a greater form of dedication than the curly headed, die-hard,  Green Bay Packers fan from the “Discount Double Check” commerical. However, all of the Red Bulls and coffees drank in order to hear this hometown hero’s name on the big screen suddenly becomes a waste as he was never called, with his name behind the likes of Chandler Harnish, the very last pick of the draft. Schiller is crushed, his dreams remain a fantasy  as he is officially an undrafted free agent.But if one thinks the journey ends here, they would be called a fool. The dream never dies unless the dreamer decides to wake up, but Pat Schiller, an Outside Linebacker out of Northern Illionis University, remains asleep. 

No comments:

Post a Comment