The Cider House Rules – by: John Irving

A friend of mine sent me this book as a gift, knowing how much I enjoy reading an intelligently written story. I was familiar, of course, with Irving, and had read and enjoyed at least a couple of his books before (i.e. The World According To Garp, and The Hotel New Hampshire – both excellent stories). Irving is a good storyteller, and anyone interested in the art of telling a good story would be well advised to read his books to see how it should be done. And since so many people have been suggesting to me lately that I should write a «story», I was glad for Irving's example of how it should be done.

A Clockwork Orange – by: Anthony Burgess (1962, 1986)

I read this book in tandem with my girlfriend, one chapter a day over the course of twenty-one days. My girl had seen the movie, but never read the book; and I had never heard much of either until my lawyer mentioned that some of my own ideas about the importance of our «freedom to choose» seemed to be reflected in this story. My lawyer had only seen the movie himself, but since I can't just get the movies that I want to see for any reason in here I asked my girlfriend if she wanted to read the book with me (something we like to do on occassion as a way to share an experience together even though we're thousands of kilometers apart --- kind of like dating).

Burgess, the author, comes close to my idea about the importance of free choice (as opposed to a system of oppressive laws that restrict our choices). But, he only does so on his way to making another point about free will itself (i.e. personal volition). Definitely a thought-provoking book, and my girl says the book makes more sense than the movie did; but, I still would of liked to have seen the movie myself. I think it could help me better understand the «tone» of the book that I suspect is so crucial to the artistic intention.