Books?

Here's some book talk in honor of the book section at the Catlin Gabel Rummage sale going on this weekend. If you haven't been, check it out. There are tons of great books out there. The following is an excerpt from Don DeLillo's short novel White Noise. The book uses the daily life of a small town college professor to explore themes of consumerism, popular culture, novelty intellectualism, the modern family, and fears of death. It's a hilarious read and a masterpiece of contemporary fiction. It's also the only book I've ever read twice. There was a rumor of this being made into a movie but all reference to it recently disappeared from imdb.com.

"I'm sorry you didn't bring the kids. I want to get to know small kids. This is the society of kids. I tell my students they are already too old to figure importantly in the making of society. Minute by minute they're beginning to diverge from each other. 'Even as we sit here,' I tell them, 'You are spinning out from the core, becoming less recognizable as a group, less targetable by advertisers and mass-producers of culture. Kids are a true universal. But you're well beyond that, already beginning to drift, to feel estranged from the products you consume. Who are they designed for? What is your place in the marketing scheme? Once you're out of school, it is only a matter of time before you experience the vast loneliness and dissatisfaction of consumers who have lost their group identity.' Then I tap my pencil on the table to indicate time passing ominously." -Don DeLillo, White Noise