The first third of the movie “Oppenheimer” is about Robert Oppenheimer’s academic beginnings, his pathway to becoming *the* guy on quantum mechanics, the discovery of nuclear fission, and his appointment as the head of the Manhattan project. It’s a full hour, and it’s marked by scenes of Oppenheimer thinking deeply about physics (with some corny depictions of molecules) and large groups of discussion about physics. There was so much pure THINKING going on; someone would approach Oppy with a piece of scratch paper, squiggles of a formula on it, and he would be astounded. By a simple piece of paper!
For a lot of people, reading and watching and listening all exist to entertain without the necessity of thought. Zoning out, shutting down your brain for the day because it spent so long focusing on work, chores, childcare, staring at your phone, or fixating on something irrational and spending all day dwelling :). That kind of thing rocks, I love smooth brain entertainment. But there’s also the joy of digging into a book that requires extra thought, more concentration, and even some side-research to get the full experience. This is the kind of book I want to read going into the fall, when it feels like I should be going back to school again.
I was talking to someone about the movie, and they felt they needed more historical context throughout the film. It took everything in me not to question whether they studied US history, and then I saw the movie; context was littered everywhere, you just had to pay attention. It’s a movie that you get more out of if you are alert the entire time, making connections between the time periods and character through-lines.
A lot of fiction haters think that you can only learn something new by reading nonfiction, and we all know that’s incorrect around here, but for their sake I’m only including big juicy novels in this list :’).
A Fraction of the Whole by Steve Toltz
One of my favorite authors is this Australian man named Steve Toltz. His books have their faults, the point-of-view of women being number one, but they are so filled with ideas and shenanigans and thought-provoking scenes. This one in particular is also hilarious, and takes place in Australia, which is one of my favorite countries to read about. Things there are just a little bit…different.
Birnam Wood by Eleanor Catton
The premise and cover of this book do not do it justice, because it is so much more than a psychological eco-thriller. Catton has stuffed the novel to the brim with ideas about community labor, socialism, friendship, and ecological warfare that you hardly notice it has a propulsive plot. And the ending…text me when you get there.
Biography of X by Catherine Lacey
Okay stay with me. This is a novel that is ostensibly a biography of an enigmatic artist by the name of X, written by her widow one year after the wall between the Southern Territory of the United States and the Northern Territory fell in 1998. The structure alone is meta, but then the decision to have the South become a tyrannical theocracy after WWII…so much to unpack here.
The End of August by Yu Miri
All I have to say about this door-stopper is that parts of the book are written in the cadence of someone thinking while they are running, and other parts are long seances with spirits of deceased relatives of the main character.
2666 by Roberto Bolaño
Bolaño’s last novel before his death revolves around an elusive German author and the mysterious deaths of Mexican women in the fictional town of Santa Teresa. It’s got the academic world, mental illness, journalism, and the breakdown of relationships and careers, and mass hysteria all neatly tucked inside 900 pages.
Killing Commendatore by Haruki Murakami
Highly recommend making this one your first Murakami, if you’ve never read his work. The novel is filled with his textbook supernatural happenings in rural Japan as well as plenty of cats, and to explain much more would be difficult.