I have published a lot of posts entitled "Recent Read" in which I review a book that I have read. I haven't done one of those in a while for several reasons. First, I find it harder now to find time to sit down and read. It's that same crazy retired excuse that I just don't have the time to do everything I want to. Secondly, I've been reading more magazines than before. Doesn't require as much time although I will admit that I don't get the same sense of fulfillment as I do from reading a book.
A couple of months ago I started to read Studs Terkel's autobiography, "Touch and Go". Studs is a Pulitzer Prize winner for his book "The Good War" and he has written a total of 12 oral history books. I read "The Good War" and several others and really enjoyed them so when I saw that he had written an autobiography I was really looking forward to reading it.
The book had gotten wonderful reviews but I just could not slog my way through it. It was one thing for Studs to relate the stories told to him by other people. His own story, related by him just left me cold. Lord knows I tried. I know he's a good writer and a lot of high powered people said the book was a masterpiece. He was never able to "hook" me however, and after slogging through about half the book I just gave up.
Shall we say that Studs was an intellectual? A socialist? He certainly was NOT a Communist as the McCarthy camp tried to paint him but he was a very political person. I grew up in the McCarthy era and in the hippie era and maybe that's why I couldn't read all about it again. I didn't like it then either.
I don't mean for this post to discourage anyone else from reading the book....I just couldn't get through it. I have committed myself to carving out more time to read however and I'm about finished with another Lakeside Classic that I'll post about in a few days.
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