#1 - The Black Stallion

My paperback edition of Water Farley's first novel -well, my brother's paperback edition- of The Black Stallion bills it as the best horse novel of the twentieth century. I believe Black Beauty was written in the nineteenth century, so I am inclined to agree.

The Black, the most beautiful and wild stallion in the world, it seems, saves a little boy from a shipwreck. Unfortunately, they end up stranded on an uninhabited island, on which the boy gradually is able to ride the horse. They get rescued, of course, (the boy will not leave without the horse) but that is not the end. They go to New York City, the boy's home, and find a way to keep the Black. The boy, and his neighbor in whose barn the Black is staying, decide they should race the Black. At the end, the Black enters a match race with the best horse of the east and the best horse of the west.

While on the surface, the book is about a racehorse, in reality it is about the bond between friends, even if one of them is an animal. The book is full of suspense, and could be finished in less than a day if you have the time. While reading, at several points I noticed the book was written for a child audience. Other than that, it is a seamless good read.

50 book challenge

Inspired by my friend Jose (www.mayornot.com), I have decided to take on the 50 book challenge - that is, to read 50 books (outside of require ones) in one year. I made this decision after finishing 4 books so far in 2006.

I will be presenting my 2006 Fifty Book Challenge book/progress reports in this blog.

A further word of explanation:
Part of my initial goal in reading books this year was to clear some space on my bookshelf to make room for the ones I inherited, so some of the books are childrens' novels which are of high quality and thus must be read before donating. I am restricting counting these books to counting ones which are over 100 pages long.

Perfect Description

I've been reading The Thurber Album, which is a collection of stories about people by James Thurber. This morning, I discovered, in his essay about his favorite English teacher, that He nry James actually has some merit. Thurber quotes him:

"When she touches a thing the ugliness, God knows how, goes out of it."

When I came to this line, I thought of my love, because this is such a perfect description of her.

The URJ and RJC

Yesterday, the New York Times ran a full page add by the Republican Jewish Committee stating that the Union for Reform Judaism does not speak for them regarding the War in Iraq. This is fine, the two organizations are independent bodies and therefore do not have to agree. However, the add is misleading to the point of absurdity. It states in large type "Freedom is Worth Fighting For" which the URJ absolutely agrees to. The URJ's resolution focused on encouraging a clear exit strategy in a way that maintains and strengthens the peace and stability in the region. Furthermore, it makes it seem like no Jew opposes the war, which is false. (In poles, about 2/3 of American Jews oppose the war.) The add also states "We support our troops," insinuating that the Union does not. However, the resolution passed explicitly mentions that the Union supports the troops and funding should be used to provide troops with the maximum security possible. The add also states that the RJC supports the War on Terrorism. The War in Iraq as part of the War on Terror is based on false information at best, and manipulation at worst. In fact, the URJ supported the invasion of Afghanistan as a response to September 11th. Furthermore, resolutions passed by a specific body do not necessarily reflect the opinions of all of its members, let alone non-members. This is commonly understood. Take as an example bills that congress passes.

Another Reason to Hate My Hometown

I hate South Bend for numerous reasons, but I want to focus on the latest one in this entry.

During February the past two years, Notre Dame has hosted a Queer Film Festival. The Festival is scheduled for its third iteration in February. Last year (or earlier this year, if you don't think in terms of an academic schedule), the Festival made national news because of its suprising location. So, this year, the newly inaugurated President John Jenkins, C.S.C., appointed a committee to consider the fate of the Festival. Currently, the spoken objection is simply that the word Festival conjures up a support for a certain side of a debate, not an exercise in academic freedom. The identity of members of the committee is being kept secret, and in the end, Father Jenkins can do what he wants. However, the ranking of Notre Dame as the No. 1 place for unqueerfriendliness will only be solidified if the Festival is eliminated.