What I read over Christmas

I remember in college as it neared the winter break and all I could think was, "I am not going to read a single book. I have been reading all semester and could care less about books." Cut to a day after coming home after finals and I am well into book number two of the Christmas holiday book glut. And this holiday season was no different. So, instead of forgetting to write about any of the books, here is my quick recap of all of them.

Dexter in the Dark - I began reading this series before the television show Dexter started on Showtime. The books are a dark comedy following a serial killer (Dexter) who only kills those who meet a strict code of also being killers or other extreme criminals. Thing is - Dexter works at the policy department as a blood spatter specialist. So, the books are his journey to figure out who he is as a killer, evade getting arrested and finding people to kill. Amazingly enough, I think the TV show is better than the books - it has a great black comedic take to the story. However, both the book and the show have a bit to a lot of language. If you want to read a good crime novel, I would say stick with Grisham.

Under the Banner of Heaven - I wanted to get a different book (Into Thin Air) by Jon Krakauer, but it was checked out of the library. However, I am perfectly content that I got this one instead. This exploration of the history, beliefs and sects of the Mormon Church is framed around the 1984 murder by Dan and Ron Lafferty of the wife and infant daughter of their brother Allen. Learning about the beginnings of the Mormon church was fascinating and admittedly a little odd. Krakauer interviews Dan Lafferty as well as a number of people who are or were a part of polygamist, fundamentalist Mormon sects. Not only does the book explore what these people believe, but also why they believe and how they directly impact the governments, schools and law enforcement. Perhaps one of the parts I found most shocking was the amount of federal government money fundamentalist Mormons receive. Since they are polygamous, the additional wives qualify for government money, schools get additional funds, airports are built in the middle of nowhere due to strong influence, money they take willingly even though they largely refuse to pay taxes to what they believe is a corrupt and evil government. A book that is part history, part In Cold Blood -intriguing from first page to last.

The Golden Compass - I wanted to read this book more because of all the hoopla it had when the movie was released than because I heard it was a good book. While there was more mention toward of the close of the book about religion and such that must have caused said hoopla, I cannot recall anything that shocked and aghast. Or I just did not understand well enough what "dust" is in order to see how blasphemous this book has been claimed to be. Or the blasphemy comes in the final two books of the trilogy - stay tuned! (What attacks the book does lob at religion seems to be more focused on those such as Roman Catholic and Greek Orthodox - ones centering around an ingrained tradition and ritual.) Overall, The Golden Compass was a decent fantasy novel - not even close to The Chronicles of Narnia or The Lord of the Rings, but decent. It follows a orphan named Lyla and her daemon/animal companion thing Pan as they help to save children captured to get "dust." The thing that bothered me most about this book is the daemons. There are several different "species" of daemon - cat, dog, rodent, bird, monkey, fish, bug, etc - but it never flushed out what each daemon represents/echoes from their owner. The one flushed out the most, dogs, was only mentioned once when it was stated that all the servants had dogs. Each daemon is supposed to be a reflection on the personality of their human counterpart, and I wanted to know, in general, what each type of daemon meant. Alas, none such list or explanation was given.

A Thousand Acres - This was a rich book. Set in Iowa in the late '70s, this novel follows a family whose father wills his land to his three daughters. One of the daughters is taken out of the deal because she is less than thrilled at getting the land. After the apportioning, the remaining two daughters and their husbands try to figure out how to farm this land best all while dealing with the father who gave up the land before he was done controlling it, a man with a harsh personality made harsher with alcohol and the relative ease his daughters "move on" without him. The larger theme of the book is taken from King Lear and it is both heartbreaking and indulgent to read. Through the summer after the father gives his land, the families must face infidelity, visions of different lives, faithfulness to one another and the land, and resurfacing of painful memories. The only thing I did not like about this book was when I read it. It is so descriptive that I expected to walk out my front door and feel the squelching heat on my face.

I think those are all of them. I started another on my flight back east, but am not far enough into it to give any meaningful report. What did you read over the holiday?