Purple Haze
Currently reading:
The Book of Love by Kelly Link
Secret Servants of the Crown: The Forgotten Women of British Intelligence by Claire Hubbard-Hall
Night Sky with Exit Wounds by Ocean Vuong [ongoing]
Books finished this week: 1
★★★★☆
Where this book came from: Ordered from Kew & Willow back in fall 2023, after a workshop professor suggested it.
Why this book: Because I am addicted to purchasing books about the craft of writing, and also because I still respect this professor immensely.
Thoughts: I made the mistake of reading some Goodreads reviews while I was maybe halfway through this book, and I do agree with some of the lower-starred reviews about the tone. Does this sometimes sound overly self-important and pretentious? Oh, absolutely. But I also really liked seeing examples of new narrative structures and how the structure can really enhance the story being told and the themes and ideas the author wants readers to take away from their work. I also got some good book and story recommendations out of it, personally, so I recommend this book for any writers who want to explore alternative examples of how to plot, structure, and present their work to the world.
Library updates:
Though I like to give myself periodic breaks from the Library, especially if things get busy or I know I’ll be out of town, I had every intention of writing and posting a missive last weekend.
That didn’t happen, but here are some things that did:
I went to Mardi Gras again, but more importantly, I got to spend a week in one of my favorite cities in the world. It’s slightly embarrassing, but I think my obsession with New Orleans stems from a lot of pop culture——let’s be real, it’s mostly because of Gambit——and our cultural understanding of the city. The history is so rich, the traditions so specific to the place and the people; it just has such a different vibe from New York, despite a lot of big-city similarities.
I had an étouffée hot dog and an Abita Purple Haze at Dat Dog in the Marigny one of my nights there, and then immediately texted Britt (hi, Britt!) to double check when it was we had our first Purple Haze. It was definitely some time in college, when we went out for dinner on Long Island at what seemed like a very cool outdoor restaurant that, we realized later, was absolutely meant for middle-aged people to pretend they were on vacation at a beachside resort on a much nicer island. They had a server walking around with samples of Purple Haze——maybe it was a new release from Abita?——and it was the best thing I’d ever had. It’s still one of my favorite beers.
It just feels like a lot of things come full circle for me in New Orleans, since my first trip down for Mardi Gras for spring break in 2014. That Purple Haze, a muffuletta by the Mississippi, the renewal of my friendship with Matt (hi, Matt! You aren’t reading this lol), for whom I will always be Katie Fromhighschool. I always seem to find myself traveling down to New Orleans alone, which makes it feel like my own city in a way New York doesn’t. New York carries a ton of family history, and it will always be home. But I like traveling to a place I get to meet anew, a place I can wander at my leisure, a place I can tell others about when I get home and plan to bring people I love to visit someday, with a little bit of expertise under my belt.
I love the French Quarter (after Mardi Gras). I love the bookstores. I love the twisted history, which has all blended to create the culture today. I love the food——the food! I ate so much gumbo this trip and my heart is so happy. I love meeting strangers and having them become friends for the night. This time around, I had fun accidentally gallivanting with a group of guys whose friend was very drunk at Pat O’Brien’s. (Here’s to you, Darren from Manchester!) And then I met two wonderful women at the Sazerac Bar, only to run into them at dinner at the following night, because they’d taken my recommendation to stop in at Bayona (the recommendation stands for everyone, by the way).
I just get to be a stranger in New Orleans, a stranger who wants to learn and have adventures and get to meet interesting people along the way. I can have a great conversation with a Lyft driver or someone at a bar. I can read my book in a quiet coffee shop. I can walk forever. I find all that easier to do in New Orleans, so I’m very grateful to have been able to get down there again.
Closing thoughts:
Be wild, be quiet, be whatever you need.
Total books read from the Moratorium Library: 134
(Total books added to the Moratorium Library: 270)
Got this Kafka edition at the end of February from the Morgan Library, where there is currently a very cool Kafka exhibit!
I also somehow found time to get to five independent bookstores while in New Orleans and, listen, I regret nothing!! I have no recollection of where, exactly, each of these came from, but books were purchased from Crescent City Books, Faulkner House Books, Dauphine Street Books (linking their Instagram, because their website is coming up as a phishing site for me . . . ?), Frenchmen Art and Books, and Beckham’s Bookshop.
(Also, the Springsteen book is a silly little gift for my mom, so it doesn’t count, SO THERE.)
