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BRAD
BREECK
Musician, The Mae Shi
http://www.mae-shi.com
5
BOOKS I ENJOYED IN 2008
Confessions of an Economic Hitman by John Perkins
On Directing Film by David Mamet
Panic In Level 4 by Richard Preston
Schrader on Scrader & Other Writings by Paul Schrader
The Dark Side by Jane Mayer
AIMEE BENDER
Author, Willful Creatures
http://www.flammableskirt.com
TOP
FIVE BOOKS OF THE YEAR
I haven't read nearly enough of the new 2008 books, but here
are a few standouts. And Netherland has been recommended
to me enthusiastically three or four times, so it's something
I'll be reading soon. But here are a few I can vouch for directly:
 Dangerous
Laughter: More wonderful, precise, wrenching
short stories from Steven Millhauser.
What It Is: Amazing talent Lynda Barry takes
on the writing process with collage, comics, instruction,
gallons of permission.
Matthea Harvey's latest book of poetry, Modern Life,
which riffs at length on the words "future" and "terror" and
continues her great work combining unusual parts, like giving
a character Robo-Boy a photo of the Michelin Man because they
are both hybrids and he needs mentors.
Man on Wire: A documentary which is about
art of all kinds and a lot more. It captures something hard
to articulate, that is both shocking and transcendent, and
I wanted everyone to go see it.
All the blogs and papers on November 5, and the last paragraph
of The New Yorker's endorsement of Obama before the
election, which kept choking me up even after I'd read
it several times through.
 JACOB
BORSHARD
Musician
http:// www.creebobby.com
TOP
FIVE BOOKS I READ IN 2008
You've caught me! I think 2008 has been my least readingest
year ever. Shame on me. I've been drawing a lot, and as a
result I've read mostly comics and picture books this year.
Next year will be the year I finish the Bible and read some
very long Russian books, I promise.
1.
The Complete Peanuts: 1950–1952: V. 1 by Charles
M. Schulz
I've always loved prototypical versions of things that later
became very important, and the first two years of Peanuts
has exactly that appeal. The drawing is careful and pretty,
and Snoopy is nothing more than a cute little puppy. What's
wrong with that?
2.
The Sonnets by William Shakespeare
Each sonnet is its own word puzzle. It takes work for me to
read them, and they help to sharpen the word part of my brain,
which seems to dull so easily these days. Thank you, Shakespeare!
3.
Will and Abe's Guide to the Universe by Matt Groening
This cartoon book is a beautiful treatise on the logic of
kid thinking. I also re-read all the Life In Hell books
I hadn't read since middle school. Yes, they're all good.
4.
The Annotated Lolita by Vladimir Nabokov
I actually prefer the regular version, since part of the novel's
effect is that you don't understand all the narrator's references.
But if you're nerdy for this book, and darn it you should
be, the annotations lift the veil—or should I say, lift
the skirt—just a bit.
5.
The Story of Babar the Little Elephant by Jean De Brunhoff
This is the first Babar book and probably the best. The feeling
of the drawings is perfect. What is more simple and perfect
in the whole world? It's hard to think of anything.
 WENDY
MOLYNEUX
Writer, Everything Is Wrong with You
http://fakeinterviewswithrealcelebrities.blogspot.com
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FIVE LISTS I DIDN'T WRITE FOR THIS WEBSITE (AND THE REASONS
I DIDN'T WRITE THEM)
Top five of my children I actually like. (Do not like any
of my children)
Top five secrets I am keeping from my husband. (Hate ruining
surprises.)
Top five things I ate this year. (Only ate three things.)
Top five horrible crimes I committed this year. (Define "horrible.")
Top five top five lists on this website. (Lists were not yet
published at press time; worried that publication of same
might cause time and space to collapse.)
RIDER STRONG
Actor/Director/Writer, Irish Twins
http://www.irishtwinsfilm.com
THE
TOP FIVE THINGS THAT KEPT ME FROM READING IN 2008
Like most years, 2008 was a process of hearing great recommendations,
compiling countless "to-read" lists, buying books, and not
reading half of them. This is what happened instead. So while
I wish I could tell you about Robert Bolaño and Toni
Morrison's latest masterpieces, I can't. Blame some of these
things, and check them out in the meantime.
Texas
Hold 'Em for the iPhone
I remember before I had an iPhone, the concept of downloading
apps—not to mention calling something an "app"—was
laughable. Now I have the greatest distraction in my pocket
at all times. This is a fantastic game. It has made me a better
poker player, and I don't actually lose money. I just lose
reading time.
 Bon
Iver, For Emma, Forever Ago
A life changing album; I couldn't stop listening to it. And...
I can't listen to music while I read.
Podcasts
On
the Media and The
Skeptic's Guide to the Universe. This was the year
I got into podcasts. These are very different productions—one's
a major, self-reflective NPR show, the other is a no-frills
gathering of some insightful nerds (I use that term with nothing
but love) to combat the forces of superstition—but these
two podcasts are the ones that consistently robbed me of my
time this year.
Netflix
Come on, once they added instant watch it was all downhill.
Movies I rented that you should too: This is England,
Street Fight, Boy A, and The Devil and Daniel
Johnston.
Running
Charades
I know, it sounds like exercise or torture (or both), but
it's not. This is basically a relay race version of charades.
I started hosting biweekly games at my house this year, and
it killed many a cozy reading night. Running charades has
a reputation for being Hollywood or "actory," but actors are
typically terrible at it (we tend to want to talk). It's as
much a trivia game as a performative experience (this blog
has the rules) and being a book geek can be a real advantage.
After all, if your team's never heard of it, can you imagine
having to charade Absalom, Absalom!?
That's all for now. My new year's resolution is the same as
last year: read more. But
hey, I'm confident you've got good taste and don't need a
guy like me to tell you all about Junot Díaz, or that
we should rush out and re-read Infinite Jest in memoriam.
2008 was an amazing year for literature, and one day, I will
definitely, totally, without a doubt, get around to reading
some of it.
(January, 2009)
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