I read The Book of Strange New Things because amazon kept telling me about it again and again. I decided it was time to finally sit down and try to tackle it.
And it required so much work to get through this book.
It was strange and strange and strange.
It’s one of the most unusual books I’ve read in…. maybe ever.
It was strange enough that I couldn’t even decide if I liked it or didn’t like it, in the end. But I will say that I am glad I read it. Not even sure why, though. I just feel like I am glad I stuck with it.
I listen to the podcast Books on the Nightstand and they had recommended this book, noting particularly the lovely physical characteristics of the first edition — I’m a sucker for gilt-edged pages. So I purchased it in hardcover and read it. After I was done, I wasn’t sorry I had read it, but I felt like I wouldn’t ever want to reread it and gave it to my public library as a donation. (I’m trying to let go of books I don’t think I will reread . . . and couldn’t think of anyone to give it to. . .) It was odd and sad and thought-provoking.
The Book of Strange New Things was one of the best reads in a decade for me. The story still haunts me. It is a book that I will never give away because I have to read it again someday.