NOT ON FIRE BUT BURNING
Greg Hrbek

I saw this on some end of 2015 book lists so I put it on my amazon wishlist and on Valentine's Day my mom sent it to my kindle. Thanks mom! I mostly read it in the middle of two different nights when I was feeling lonely and despondent for reasons that I no longer remember. The book is about memory, the future of memory, the future of Amerika, and the futility of friendship. I don't actually think friendship is futile, but when it feels like it is maybe it's good to read something that agrees with you; the ending of this book made me feel like humanity is DOOMED and I cried and cried in my big empty bed. The next morning an aborted bbq seemed to symbolize a collapse of every form of community and communication that I have found here, but whaddya know, an easy afternoon with Erin and Abdulfattah made it all alright again.

MY FATHER'S HOUSE
Orhan Kemal trans. Cengiz Lugal

One day in my speaking & listening class I tried to kill some time by making everyone fill out a chart about different genres of music and books and movies and asking them to talk about how their tastes have changed since they were younger. This was not particularly successful, but I did get a few recommendations of Turkish novels, including this one which Samet likes. A kid is born in Adana, his asshole father moves the family to Beirut, and the kid escapes back to Adana. I've only been in Adana for like ten minutes, walking quickly with Ramazan from one bus station to another one. It's good to read about someone growing up in a different time and a different place, and there are several scenes in here that I'll remember for a while, and several events in Turkish history that I need to learn more about. Thanks Samet.

other books I read this month:
THE PRISONERS - Orhan Kemal