I’ve been moving recently. Moving is one of the most annoying things a person can endure. One positive thing that moving entails is looking through all of your old crap, trying to find those few little gems you just can’t help but throw out. I think I did more wading through crap and finding maybe one or two decent things than actually moving any of my possessions. While looking through all of my old children’s stuff I found one of my best memories: Dr. Seuss’s The Lorax. I absolutely adore The Lorax, and now that I’ve been getting into more of the fine arts rather than digital art-forms, when I looked over Seuss’s illustrations again I fell in love. I can’t believe how I’ve grown so ignorant of Seuss’s work as I’ve grown older, it really irks me. After finishing The Lorax, I decided to make a promise to myself to complete my collection of Dr. Seuss books. Sadly, I can’t find any of the other books I used to own by Dr. Seuss, so I’m going to have to start all over, starting with The Lorax. I’m going to keep this post updated with each and every purchase that I make regarding Dr. Seuss’s works. I don’t know how long it’s going to take, but it’s going to be completed.

The collection so far

1. Lord of the Rings
2. Harry Potter
3. The “classics”

There are very few books that you will find me enjoying that don’t exactly fit into these categories. The list for these select few are dominated by one author, and that’s Chuck Klosterman. Witty, cultured, and cynical, he’s delivered some of the best works regarding pop culture in recent years. Chuck Klosterman is finding himself straying from his own path, and his first piece of fiction, Downtown Owl, is being released this September. To have one of the few authors I love delving into a new world is a great experience. I can’t wait to devour whatever it is that Chuck Klosterman has penned for his pop-culture savvy readers. The description posted on Amazon is nothing short of hilarious and is doing nothing to help the fact that hibernating until September 16th is becoming more and more of a wise choice.

Somewhere in North Dakota, there is a town called Owl that isn’t there. Disco is over, but punk never happened. They don’t have cable. They don’t really have pop culture, unless you count grain prices and alcoholism. People work hard and then they die. They hate the government and impregnate teenage girls. But that’s not nearly as awful as it sounds; in fact, sometimes it’s perfect. (read more)

The excerpts to be found on Amazon are also a great look into the style of writing Klosterman has used for the book. While different from his style used in his previous books, it’s great to see him using new writing styles for a new type of writing. I have a feeling this book will surprise those few people who don’t find Chuck’s work to be the best thing since sliced bread (unlike me), and hopefully provide Chuck with a fresh group of minds to spew his pop culture inspired essays to.

I remember having a conversation with a friend about this same topic, and he told me that the human brain’s taste for sound can evolve over time, and eventually some sounds become boring to the brain, and it seeks something almost completely different. This seems like it would be the case for me, but I’m wondering if it’s all black and white, due to the fact that I can still listen to some of my old favorites and find them just as enjoyable, if not more enjoyable than when I used to have them on repeat for days. Is this merely the margin of error in this theory, or is there a definitive science behind why the brain changes it’s love for certain types of music over time, developing a taste for new sounds instead. Is this simply just the human brain’s positive reaction to new things and change? I just wish I could find some resource online that would answer my questions.