Challenge: 50 Books discussion
*Retired* 2008 Lists
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lisa pf's list
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Huh...I'm part way through book #2, and I'm noticing that reading a dense, long, challenging book suddenly worries me. If I keep reading like this, I'll never get to 50!Wait just a darned minute here...there's no reason I can't count a book I read for professional reasons. Ding! Book #2:
2. The Explosive Child (2nd edition), Ross Greene http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/12...
This is the book that, for me, turned Empirically Supported Treatment from a dirty word (okay, dirty words) into a valid way of operating. It's smart. It's doable. It's family-friendly. It's therapist-friendly. And it's not a lesson-by-lesson manual, it's a way of thinking and interacting. I'm totally on the Collaborative Problem-Solving bandwagon.
Finally, book #3! What Is The What, by Dave Eggers. Totally different than his other books, not in the least self-absorbed or self-referential. It's rare to even find passages where I recognized Eggers' voice. I kind of like Eggers, but this story really needed to be entirely about the character, and it was. Moving, powerful, and fascinating.
Got a little behind in my recording of books!4. Set This House In Order, Matt Ruff http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/71...
Fascinating, complex, and (for a book this complex, I consider this high praise) incredibly internally consistent. It's such a rare (and controversial) diagnosis, I have no idea if Multiple Personality Disorder really works anything like this, but Ruff makes it believable.
5. Dicey's Song, Cynthia Voigt http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/11...
The 1984 Newbery Award winner. I remember reading a few books from this series when I was a kid, and loving them. This one's still pretty good from an adult perspective, and pretty complex in the ultimate messages it conveys. Basically, the main theme is that after you've been through a tough time, you should try to go ahead and be a typical kid your age, but if you've been parentified, you're really not going to be able to give up that sense of responsibility completely and it's okay. See? Complex.
6. Dialectical Behavior Therapy In Clinical Practice: Applications Across Disorders And Settings, Linda Dimeff and Kelly Koerner http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/12...
I don't know if I can pull this off. It's a really tough method of doing therapy, but it's for really tough clients. And it requires more of a behavioral, reward-and-punishment view than I feel comfortable doing with any ease. But it's also got a much more humanistic, empathetic view than any other behavioral approach. I'll let you know how it goes in six months or so...
7. The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency, Alexander McCall Smith http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/70...
This one was just kind of dull. Everything was predictable except that I expected something unpredictable to happen at any moment, and it never did.
8. Good Masters! Sweet Ladies! Voices From A Medieval Village http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/60...
Eh. I understand how it could be considered by the Newbery Award committee to be a 'distinguished contribution to children's literature.' But really, if it's not fun for kids to read, in the end, it's just a distinguished contribution to teachers' curricula. I put it on hold at the library, waited for it, went and picked it up, and read it cover to cover. But I didn't expect to like it much, and I can't say I did any of these things for any reason other than to have read the 2008 Newbery winner. I actually found it more engaging than I thought I would. But I didn't love it.
I'll start with today's completed book:
1. In Defense Of Food, Michael Pollan (no link, because Goodreads is a bit wonky tonight). ETA: Here it is: http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/31...
Interesting and worthwhile, and a needed antidote to lots of "nutrition" information out there, but at times contradictory, and at other times a bit preachy. Overall, though, a good reminder that it shouldn't be that difficult to make better food choices, and that my health, the health of the planet, and the health of society are all interrelated.