Book Update #1: One down, one added

First off, I finished David Carr's "The Night of the Gun," the first volume on my Books I Vow to Read list.

Pretty solid memoir with a twist -- New York Times reporter Carr supplemented his own memories of addiction, recovery, re-addiction and re-recovery by interviewing the people who witnessed his fall and rise (and fall and rise), including family members, friends and co-workers. He also includes several police reports, medical documents and clippings written both stoned and sober. Like many such memoirs, "The Night of the Gun" was most fascinating when it was most harrowing, with Carr risking his own life (and the lives of his twin daughters) in the pursuit of the next high. When he turned the corner and got sober, it loses a bit of that lurid appeal. But -- SPOILER ALERT -- when Carr relapses late in the game (described in a chapter wittily titled "Additional Research," the book regains its grim power and hangs onto it until the final pages.

The verdict: Worth reading, especially if you're interested in this sort of subject. I found it especially intriguing after spending a year or so working in the marketing department of a business focused on addiction recovery and mental illness.


Don't let that list of books-to-be-read fool you: I'm still buying new books. Thanks to an Amazon gift card, I'm the proud owner of the above volume, which is a thick encyclopedia focusing on things that "used to be funny," in the words of author Christopher Miller. Subject matter covered includes such vintage comic elements as "alley cats," "pants," "limburger," and "yes men." But what fascinates me about is that the book isn't just a lighthearted stroll down memory lane, it's also a serious examination of what made previous generations chuckle, even if they shouldn't have -- other entries cover topics like "black people," "physical infirmities" and "rape." More than just about anything, I love offbeat excursions into forgotten pop culture, so, in other words, the book seems like it was written specifically for me. Can't wait to dig in.

(It wasn't until I ordered the book, by the way, that I realized author Christopher Miller was the same guy who wrote "Cardboard Universe: A Guide to the World of Phoebus K. Dank." That book, which told the life story of (fictional) sci-fi writer Phoebus K. Dank via hundreds of (fictional) entries in a (fictional) encyclopedia dedicated to his life and works. Inspired by (actual) sci-fi writer Philip K. Dick, "Cardboard Universe" is one of the most imaginative books I've read in years (Miller creates dozens and dozens of stories and novels Dank supposedly wrote.) Consider that one highly recommended.