What I'm Reading...

BOBOS IN PARADISE (1998)I don't usually write about my literary pursuits, but I've been endeavoring to read more lately and thought I'd fill you in. My dad, through his friend, turned me on to this delightful book. I usually stick to novels (case in point, I just reread Persuasion - so fabulous and a quick read at 225 pages) but this fantastic portrait of current society is much more amusing that your usual sociological write-up. A "bobo" is a term combining traits of the bourgeois with those of the bohemian, and much like yuppie stood for "young, upwardly-mobile professional," "bobo" stands for a member of the social and educational bourgeois that subscribes to certain, decidedly bohemian ideals. David Brooks book is basically an examination of the current elite class, one powered by academic standing and not as rooted in WASP geneology, as in the 1950's. It also takes a sharp look at the current trend to cherish the "lived-in" and reject the "brand-new." These are not absolute terms, but in reading Brooks prose, it is easy to understand how certain trends have developed and why they have attained social significance.

I'm sure this sounds like a book no one is interested in reading - I certainly wouldn't have picked it up on my own. I was sitting around with my dad one day and he had this book with him. I originally just looked at the cover, but on opening the book to a random page in the middle, I was delighted by the clever prose within. I found myself laughing aloud and reading entire passages for my dad and was bound and determined to read the whole thing. What makes the book wonderful is that it adeptly combines insight into current social attitudes, and a profound understanding of economic history, with a wit and humor that makes the subject hilarious as well as educational. It helps me understand social standing and the current American drive while also making me laugh. I would urge you to please just check it out. At least read the chapter on consumerism which so deftly underlines our bizarre need to buy brand new furniture that looks weathered, or to decorate with antique tribal masks even though we are white Protestants. The reasons will amaze and amuse you.