2 down, 50 to go...

So we’re on week 2, and I’m already behind. Ironically, yesterday was annual ‘Break Your New Year’s Resolution Day’, so those of you who have fallen off the treadmill- either figuratively or literally- don’t feel so bad. Admittedly it’s been an intense week, but I haven’t been as diligent as I’d like. Though I am finding covert ways to make it look like I’m watching extemp while reading. I finished up The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo today on the flight home from Austin (Texas, I miss you!) and plan on getting back on track this week- that means nailing one out sometime in the next 72 hours (I just reread that sentence and it sounds shockingly graphic).
Anywho, back to the text.
So I’m not going to lie- about 200 pages in I thought I was going to give up and chuck it out the window. It’s hard to follow and has more characters and subplots than any feasible human can keep up with. The Vagner family- which plays an integral role in the plot- is huge with an extensive web of relationships. Where do these people think they’re from? Kentucky? (that comment is slightly ominous, but read it to find out why).
Once you settle past enough exposition to make you feel like you’re reliving the entire Obama campaign (which, in my mind started in 2004 at the DNC), it’s actually quite an engaging read. The premise is strikingly simple despite the complexity of the set-up. Harriet Vagner has been missing for over four decades and a journalist- recently discredited in a libel indictment- has been hired to write the Vagner family biography and see if he can solve the mystery of Vagner’s murder or disappearance. Now that I’m writing this, this kind of sounds like an absurdist Eastern European version of Jason Glass’s life, which arguably got more popular once it was discovered his work was rooted in as much truth as a Harry Potter novel.
The author could do a slightly better job clarifying exactly what is going on at times, but about midway through the text, I was hooked. It’s a great read at that point and had a hard time putting it down.
So now for Book #3- if I’m following my schedule, I need something classical in nature. I’ve got a copy of On Liberty in my bag- which admittedly I’ve never read cover to cover. I may just do that on this flight…