Meeting Pi

To begin my journey, I have started with the fictional book, Life of Pi. Typically, I have my doubts about the entire lives of fictional characters. In middle school, I read David Copperfield for Battle of the Books. It was Dickens and let me tell you, Sir Copperfield was not the most interesting of characters in my opinion. That being said, I really rather like Pi and his peculiarities in how he views the world. Even the name Pi and how it came to be speaks to that geeky math part of me. I've only read up through Chapter 17, but I like the philosophical themes in the book.

Two big themes/statements that I have found applicable to life:

The need to establish dominance and control in a given situation (Chapter 13). If you've ever stood in front of a middle school classroom (or probably any classroom for that matter), you would understand this statement. In Pi's example, it is in the context of a lion tamer who needs to establish dominance in order to survive. I have found that the same is true in the classroom. If there's a day you don't start out strong, the kids pick up on that and they get you. Aside from the classroom, I think this can be applied to a broader perspective in education in terms of students. When you're learning a new skill, it's important to establish dominance in the early stages. What is called "having a strong foundation" actually means having the awareness and confidence to master the specific skill challenge. I read an article today that stated reading support is best when given early in development or much later. To me, this is probably because if you start early, you're still establishing the relationship of dominance so it can become part of your nature, but if you're late on the upstart, you need to wait until you've gained enough experience and insight to have learned the confidence.

The interplay between reason, knowledge, and religion. Pi retains a profound respect for different schools of thought. He doesn't find that reason and knowledge inhibit his spirituality, rather the atheist scientists are just another voice to be heard. This openness also allows him to find beauty and comfort in Christianity, despite his upbringing as a Hindu. The story of his meeting Jesus Christ is really fascinating, from the initial disdain to the final fascination and love that he comes to understand, and yet he doesn't lose himself, only discovers new truth and information. Some people argue that there is no worth in philosophical questions, seeking out the divine, or finding the truth, but I think there is an error in this negative view. We may not be able to arrive at "facts," but life is much more than that--it's also emotion, intuition, and hopefully wisdom.

So far, I like where Pi is going.

It Started with a Trip to Barnes & Noble

Originally, I was only supposed to be looking for a graduation gift, but browsing a bookstore can be dangerous territory for me. There I was, browsing the titles, when a book caught my eye, then another, then another. I came out of the store with no actual gift but lots of titles of things to read for myself. My goal is that by the time I am 25, I will have completed this reading list. I have about 3 and a half years to accomplish this considering I turn 22 in November.

I'm starting this blog for a couple reasons:

1. I need a way to keep track of the books I read and the lessons I learn from them. I believe books are highly instructive and informative (even the fictional ones). They all speak to life and our development as individuals and as a global community. Plus, I really like quotes and this is as good a place as any to record my thoughts.

2. I have spent the last year working for an education reform organization known as Citizen Schools that impacts student learning after-school and during extended learning time. This year, I have noticed the detest a lot of my students have had for reading. As the Academic Lead for my campus, I want to be able to have this in the open forum for them to see how reading can impact one's life and to promote discussion about literacy in different communities.

With all this back-story, here is the list of books from perusing the local B&N with a few additions of books that have been on my shelf that I need to read:

Fiction

Les Miserables (Viktor Hugo)

Catcher in the Rye (J.D. Salinger)

Cry the Beloved Country (Alan Paton)

Dawn (Elie Wiesel)

Brave New World (Aldous Huxley)

1984 and Animal Farm (George Orwell)

Crime and Punishment and Notes from the Underground (Fyodor Dostoevsky)

The Secret Life of Bees (Sue Monk Kidd)

A Prayer for Owen Meany (John Irving)

The Maltese Falcon (Dashiell Hammett)

The Handmaid's Tale (Margaret Atwood)

The Woman in White (Wilkie Collins)

Lolita (Vladimir Nabokov)

Don Quixote (Miguel de Cervantes)

Life of Pi (Yann Martel)

The Complete Sherlock Holmes (Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)

The Wrinkle in Time Quintet (Madeleine L'Engle)

The Lord of the Rings Trilogy (J.R.R. Tolkien)

The Hitchiker's Guide to the Galaxy Trilogy (Douglas Adams)

Christian Thought (predominantly Catholic)

Miracles, The Great Divorce, The Problem of Pain, A Grief Observed, The Abolition of Man (C.S. Lewis)

Little Talks with God [simplification of The Dialogue] (St. Catherine of Siena)

Imitation of Christ (St. Thomas a Kempis)

A Civilization of Love (Carl Anderson)

Compendium of Social Doctrine of the Church (Pontifical Council of Justice and Peace)

Caritas in Veritate (Pope Benedict XIV)

Love and Responsibility (Pope John Paul II)

Three to Get Married (Archbishop Fulton Sheen)- really this one before I'm married

Memoirs and Biographies/Non-Fiction People

All Creatures Great and Small (James Herricot)

Perks of Being a Wildflower (Stephen Chobsky)

The Woman Behind the New Deal (Kristin Downey)

Mary Todd Lincoln (Jean H. Baker)

Persepolis I and II (Marjane Satrapi)

Reading Lolita in Tehran (Azar Nafisi)

Long Walk to Freedom (Nelson Mandela)

Posterity: Letters of Great Americans to their Children (ed. Dorie Lawson)

Non-Fiction General

Guns, Germs, and Steel: The Fates of Human Societies (Jared Diamond)

The Omnivores Dilemma: A Natural History of Four Meals (Michael Pollan)

The Art of War (Sun Tsu)

Five Cities that Ruled the World (Douglas Wilson)

Book of Firsts (Peter D'Epiro)

Lost Classics: Writers on Books Loved and Lost (ed. Ondaatje, Redhill, Spalding)

Medicine and Victory (Mark Harrison)

Fires in the Middle School Bathroom (Kathleen Cushman)

The Romantic Economist (Richard Bronk)