What I'm Reading/Listening To

Books I'm currently reading (or have recently read):

Something Wicked This Way Comes - Ray Bradbury. A beautifully dark tale about two boys who grow up a little too soon. This book is phenomenal--it is written almost as a long poem and deals with issues and themes such as good vs. evil, desire vs. restraint, fear, aging, and friendship. I highly recommend it.

Phantoms in the Brain - V.S. Ramachandran. A great book about strange neurological cases written by one of the greatest neurologists/neuroscientists of this generation. Rama dictates each case in story form, likening his solving of each case to a Sherlock Holmes adventure, i.e. portraying the diseases almost as criminals and doctors as sleuths (which is not really an inaccurate analogy for neurologists if you think about it). Although there's a lot of medical terminology, the author does a wonderful job of not overburdening the reader with excess jargon. He also doesn't just discuss science, but devotes much attention to each patient as a whole, identifying not only what they are like as people, but relating their neurological issues to human nature and philosophy. If you're interested in how your brain works and are fascinated by cool neurological studies, this book is definitely for you.

Uncle Tungsten: Memories of a Chemical Boyhood - Oliver Sacks. A beautifully written autobiography by perhaps one of the most famous neurologists and writers today (one who has written over ten acclaimed books--one of which was adapted to the screen). This book is very inspiring, as it tells the story of a child who was intensely passionate about science and how even today he continues to satisfy his curiosity and pursue his dreams. There is also a great passage regarding the wonder of numbers and mathematics that was so eloquently written that it was better than anything I could ever articulate regarding my love for math. I will post an excerpt later.

JLA: Year One - Mark Waid, Brian Augustyn, Barry Kitson. This book continues in the the spirit of all DCs "Year One"s, a trend set by Frank Miller in the late 80s with his hugely successful "Batman: Year One." Although this book is entertaining and has some great character development, I think Waid resorts to many corny scenarios that I didn't expect to come from someone who has written one of my favorite graphic novels, Kingdom Come. Still a good read for someone who is interested in the origins of the Justice League.

Seven Soldiers of Victory - Grant Morrison. An incredibly entertaining and imaginative story that weaves together seven separate characters, all who eventually connect, including a medieval knight, a witch boy, Frankenstein, an escape artists, a magician, etc. What's particularly interesting about this book is the way that each character develops very different and each story evokes different emotions Therefore, the novel as a whole spans a wide variety of moods--which is something not everyone would enjoy, but I think is very creative. One minute I'd be feeling adventurous and excited, and the next I would feel somber and melancholy.

Music I'm currently listening to:

Mew - And the Glass Handed Kites.
Brian Eno - Here Come the Warm Jets
Botch - We are the Romans
Asian Kung-Fu Generation - Sarufa
Meshuggah - Destroy Erase Improve

I'm actually not enjoying the Meshuggah album, which has been hailed by many critics as a "genius" math metal album, as much as I'd thought. The rest are absolutely fantastic.

Anyone have any recommendations of books to read or music to listen to?