Lauren Life List: Atwood

How much do I love Margaret Atwood? I love her!! I love her so much that last week I had a dream that she not only designed my wedding dress, but also sold it to me. In my dream I got to hang out with her in her wedding dress shop that had a lot of different types of compost buckets, because if you know anything about Margaret Atwood, you know she is both Canadian AND a huge environmentalist.

Anyways... one of my big goals on the life list is to read the ENTIRE WORKS of Margaret Atwood. And I am chugging away at it. This weekend, thanks to my real life friend Margaret, and her book swapping ways, I finished "Year Of The Flood", the 2nd out of a 3 set post apoclyptic book series. This book could easily stand alone. The characters are rich, and the plot is fresh and engaging without falling into the post apocolyptic cliche realm. Her books remind me again and again what one of my grad school professors used to ...er...profess to us: focus on character and the story will unfold. Atwood's characters are so tangible and unique, even her most bizarre plot twists seem feezable.

For my next reading adventure I need to take a little break from the Atwood, lest I overdose. I'm starting in on (finally) the 2009 Best American Short Stories. I've heard mixed reviews, but it's good to read short pieces when writing short things. It reminds you it's still doable.