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Ed. Magazine

On My Bookshelf: Lecturer Shari Tishman, Director of Project Zero

Shari Tishman

shari_tishman.jpgCurrently reading: I'm almost finished with The Lacuna by Barbara Kingsolver.

First impressions: Kingsolver is a wonderful writer. I'm more of a maximalist than a minimalist in my reading tastes, and I like the great sweep of her books (anyone who has read The Poisonwood Bible knows what I mean). I also like her clarity and her compassion. The main character in the book is a young man whose unusual childhood is spent partly in the United States and partly in Mexico... . The boy eventually finds work in the household of [artists] Frida Kahlo and Diego Rivera at the same time as Trotsky and his entourage came to stay. I don't want to give too much away, but I can say that, so far, the book is very, very good.

Last great read: Two books come to mind: The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao by Junot Díaz and Waiting by Ha Jin. On the surface, these books couldn't be more different in tone. The Díaz book is manic and intense, linguistically and emotionally bursting at the seams, while Waiting is quiet, ironic, slow-paced, and wistful. But in their very different ways, both books tell fascinating stories about yearning, youth, and hope.

Favorite spot to curl up with a good book: One spot I like is a chair by a picture window in my living room that looks out onto a birdfeeder in the backyard. But the truth is that I do most of my reading for pleasure in bed at night before falling asleep. Many years ago I read a quote from a writer that said something to the effect that there is no better feeling to carry you through the day than the comfort of knowing there's a good book waiting on your night table. I haven't been able to find the source of the quote -- but it is so true!

Noneducation genre of choice: Fiction mainly, but not exclusively. To be honest, I love to read, and I enjoy good books in almost any area. My reading-for-pleasure philosophy has always been "top of the genre."

How you find the time: If there's a good book at hand, time finds me.

Photo by Tanit Sakakini

Ed. Magazine

The magazine of the Harvard Graduate School of Education

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