The Ghost In Love by Jonathan Carroll

The Ghost In Love by Jonathan Carroll

The Ghost In Love by Jonathan Carroll is a story about love, death, and responsibility. It is not a traditional ghost story, it is more of a paranormal romance with a healthy piece of philosophy added in. The novel is about changing the natural order of things.

Ben Gould falls and hits his head while walking his dog. He is supposed to die, but chooses not to. This is a glitch in the program of the natural order of things. Something has changed inside him and made the world different for him.

The novel is wonderful and lyrical. Characters remember their most magical moments in life, a policeman remembers eating cheeseburgers with his friend after winning a shopping spree in a toystore, Danielle Voys remembers going on a date with her boyfriend at a chinese restaurant, an old lady dances for her lover.

Ben Gould's ghost named Ling, German Landis Ben Gould's girlfriend, Pilot the talking dog, Danielle Voy's are all very memorable characters. The angel of deaht is a minor character is as well. Many of the characters are in love with each other. Pilot was Ben Gould's girlfriend in a past life, Ling is in love with German Landis, and Ben Gould is having a tough time loving German Landis.

The setting is the modern era with some starkly contrasting fantastic elements. Cats and rats work together, there is a magical taste called ofi; ofi symbolizes the pure love between childhood friends.

The novel is nonlinear; it moves back and forth in time. This nonlinearity seems to state we are all composed of many different parts of our past all trying to vie for our current attention. In order for us to function well we must reach consensus inside ourselves.

This novel helped me feel a lot more positive about myself after reading it. It aims to help you realize the deeply satisfying moments in life. I think it is a bit more than just a novel; it is a statement about finding happiness in everyday things and taking responsibility for your life.

Daily Thoughts

Library of Congress, Washington, D.C.

New York Times articles on the Library of Congress
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/01/16/arts/design/16cong.html?partner=rss

I put another book on hold, The Devil's Eye by Jack McDevitt. It is archaeological science fiction which can be kind of entertaining.

Today has been another quiet day. I finished the weeding of the social science books, now I have to do the oversize social science books. We have a selection of quarto titles. I'll probably help my colleague with shifting the 400's, 500's and 600's first to create space in one aisle of shelving units.

I did some weeding in the Job Information Center. I'll be working on getting updated titles for there as well as a variety of updated computer books for the new Windows Vista. People are still getting books focused on XP mostly.

I folded 100 service brochures for the public. This is the first batch that is going out to the public.

On the way home, I scanned through a bit of The Ghost In Love by Jonathan Carroll. I almost think it is more of a philosophical statement about what brings happiness and a sense of fulfillment in life than a novel. I will write a review about it tomorrow. It put me in a very good mood when I finished reading this book. I think I understand a bit more than I did before. There are a few things in it which might change a persons life for the better.

I am now reading Getting Things Done When You Are Not In Charge, How To Succeed In A Support Position by Geoffrey M. Bellman. This is a book about being productive and doing a good job in a support position.

Daily Thoughts

I just liked the heraldic symbol, I am not sure where it comes from.

Daily Thoughts

This morning, I finished reading The Ghost In Love by Jonathan Carroll on the train. I am thinking of rereading the book. It is the kind of book which is worth reading more than once. It is hard to know what is happening in the book until you finish it. Rereading it will give a better sense of the story.

I think by the end of the day, the shifting will be done in the social sciences section. I also updated some of the law books with inserts, and did some other minor activities like keeping the central display in order.

There is the usual back and forth for creating flyers. I have been working on getting a flyer done for a forclosure workshop at the library as well as a business workshop at the library. I am also trying to help with a flyer for a living wills workshop as well. I sent an email contact to SCORE (Service Corps of Retired Executives) about doing a workshop on how to set up a home office. Hopefully, they will be able to do this in April.

Two books came in for me to read, Anthony Kiedis with Larry Sloman, Scar Tissue. This is the story of the lead singer of The Red Hot Chili Peppers. Also The Breath of God by Harry Turtledove came in for me to read.