I Saw You on the Manhattan-Bound Brooklyn Q Train

This delightful short story comes from an inventive missed connection found on Craigslist. It is beautiful in its simplicity and lyrical in its musings. Enjoy.

 

 

I saw you on the Manhattan-bound Brooklyn Q train.

I was wearing a blue-striped t-shirt and a pair of maroon pants. You were wearing a vintage red skirt and a smart white blouse. We both wore glasses. I guess we still do.

You got on at DeKalb and sat across from me and we made eye contact, briefly. I fell in love with you a little bit, in that stupid way where you completely make up a fictional version of the person you're looking at and fall in love with that person. But still I think there was something there.

Several times we looked at each other and then looked away. I tried to think of something to say to you -- maybe pretend I didn't know where I was going and ask you for directions or say something nice about your boot-shaped earrings, or just say, "Hot day." It all seemed so stupid.

At one point, I caught you staring at me and you immediately averted your eyes. You pulled a book out of your bag and started reading it -- a biography of Lyndon Johnson -- but I noticed you never once turned a page.

My stop was Union Square, but at Union Square I decided to stay on, rationalizing that I could just as easily transfer to the 7 at 42nd Street, but then I didn't get off at 42nd Street either. You must have missed your stop as well, because when we got all the way to the end of the line at Ditmars, we both just sat there in the car, waiting.

I cocked my head at you inquisitively. You shrugged and held up your book as if that was the reason.

Still I said nothing.

Warm Bodies by Isaac Marion

Book: Warm Bodies

Author: Isaac Marion

Why I Read It: My little sister loves romance movies and I love zombie books, so this was the perfect entertainment for us to share. We agreed to read the book and then see the movie together.

First Line: "I'm dead, but it's not so bad."

First Impression: Huh. I am genuinely surprised by how funny this guy is. I'm liking the zombie sense of humor.

Last Impression: Oh, so close! There was a great idea here but just not enough follow through. They keep saying they are going to change the world, but have no ideas, no direction and no clue that it is already happening.

 

Ratings

Overall – 3 Resting Heart Rate As a huge zombie fan, this felt like a combination of the movies Fido and Wasting Away, with a little bit of Shaun of the Dead sprinkled in. I love the dialogue about humanity. What makes us human? Is it the desire to connect with one another or the blood in our veins? Here it's the desire to connect and embracing the idea that love can heal all wounds; even being undead. It's not on the same level as other zombie texts, such as World War Z, but it's playful and unique. 

Characters – 4 The main character, R the zombie, is definitely a 5 for me, but Julie, her father and other main characters were 2s and 3s, so we're settling on 4. R is an engaging, funny and refreshing protagonist. Everyone else is mainly around to keep him company.

Story –  3 The story was a bit typical for the zombie overridden post apocalyptic world. She's the daughter of the deranged general running the zombie-free zone, he's a zombie. It's not stretching very far beyond the typical tragic archetypes, but it works.  

Narration – 4 I loved the language. I was not expecting much in terms of elegant phrasing from a teenage zombie love story, but Marion continually surprised me. The tone was somber yet light-hearted and felt genuine. The main character, R, related social faux pas, the daily routine, and emotional experiences of the zombie world.

Read Again? No. There is only enough substance for one read through, but it was a great read.

Tell Others to Read? If they are zombie or romance fans, yes. If not, then no. 

Excerpt: "No one I know has any specific memories. Just a vague, vestigial knowledge of a world long gone. Faint impressions of past lives that linger like phantom limbs. We recognize civilization - buildings, cars, a general overview - but we have no personal role in it. No history. We are just here. We do what we do, time passes, and no one asks questions. But like I've said, it's not so bad. We may appear mindless, but we aren't The rusty cogs of cogency still spin, just geared down and down till the outer motion is barely visible. We grunt and groan, we shrug and nod, and sometimes a few words slip out. It's not that different from before.
     But it does make me sad that we've forgotten our names. Out of everything, this seems to me the most tragic. I miss my own and I mourn for everyone else's, because I'd like to love them, but I don't know who they are."


Excerpt content property of Simon and Schuster.

A Grown-Up Peeta

I loved the character of Peeta in The Hunger Games series; he's loyal, caring and flat-out adorable. But, he's also under 18, which makes thinking he's adorable just a teeny bit weird. So, for all you adult women out there who liked the idea of liking Peeta, may I present the non-creepy grown up version: Geraden from Stephen R. Donaldson's series Mordant's Need.

The first book, The Mirror of Her Dreams, is the very first book I ever judged by its cover and I was completely thrilled that I did. It is now one of my life rules because it's usually quite successful. But I digress. It's a fantasy series, about a young woman named Terisa Morgan who suddenly has a strange young man, Geraden, arrive in her living room through her mirror. He comes from a world where mirrors serve as doorways rather than reflectors and he convinces her to travel back with him. The masters of mirrors are destroying the kingdom of Mordant and he thinks she can help stop them. It's a riveting story with well-crafted and memorable characters and I can't recommend it highly enough.

But we're here to discuss Geraden. He's initially described as having an undeniable inherent goodness and "the type of loyalty that is usually ascribed to puppies," an eagerness that outpaces his actions, which causes him to frequently embarrass himself. Throughout the first book, he is honed from a lovable, fumble-footed boy to a strong, protective and determined man and in the second book, this man grows into his strength. Re-reading the series (again) I found more similarities between Peeta and Geraden than I expected:

• Their first concern is always the girl. Terisa and Katniss are ridiculously lucky to have these two looking out for them.
• Each possesses an inherent goodness that he himself seems unaware of. The girls, of course, notice it right off the bat. Everyone loves a good guy.
• They are honest and dependable. If they say they'll be there, they'll be there. And that's commitment.
• They have a sense of humor that is just darn adorable. Not only are they good guys who aren't afraid of commitment, they're funny too.
• Neither of them ever fails to make the right decision no matter how difficult. Both Peeta and Geraden find themselves in tough spots, but they always do what is right, not what is easy.

Donaldson's books are adult novels, so the romance is fully developed, less one-sided, and thus a bit more satisfying than the flirty hand holding of The Hunger Games. Not that there's anything wrong with hand holding. But grown ups have a little more imagination than that. So, for your grown up readings, I give you Geraden. Enjoy ladies!

PS - Guys, there's war and intrigue and betrayals and all kinds of other good stuff. You'll like this book too. Just like you liked The Hunger Games.