Clearly, I am having trouble blogging in 2011. Part of the reason is that I actually cannot nail down a particular topic, or structure to help me with the number of things I would enjoy writing about.

Last night we had dinner with two other couples and both members of one couple have read Jonathan Franzen. She has read Freedom and The Corrections and he is reading the 27th City. This kind of interaction forces me to go into crazy-dork mode. I used to be in a book club, and apparently need that outlet!

I loved Freedom. One of my outgoing email signatures is a quote from it that (I think) represents Franzen’s abilities well. “Walter hated cats. They seemed to him the sociopaths of the pet world”. Freedom is very graphic, doesn’t shy away from the potential dark sides of suburban life, and his sentences are long (so are Hemingway’s and the Apostle Paul’s, especially if you’re reading Ephesians). You can probably tell where I stand on that one.

Here is the question I want to ask about Freedom and about books. How much does your gender matter in your enjoyment (or lack) of a book? I like Nick Hornby too, and in my limited experience women think he is fine and men think he is hilarious. This is in line with my experience last night talking Freedom. What is your own experience? Obviously, the softball answer is with TV and movies – clearly there are some differences of opinion genderly-speaking when discussing action movies, romantic comedies, Grey’s Anatomy (which I am ashamed to say I watch), and others. Thoughts? Discuss…

Freedom is also a brilliant portrayal of the destruction humans are capable of when we buy into the paramount cultural virtue of autonomy. 🙂