House of Leaves

HoL is one of those books that is almost impossible to describe (though that doesn't stop me from trying). A description can't do it justice because there is only so much it can encompass. When my cousin recommended it to me he pushed it into my hands and said, "I can't describe it but you have to read it. We will talk when you are done." At times it's an extremely good, plot-driven horror story, at times it's a memoir of a strung-out Johnny Truant, at times it's movie-and those are just the obvious ones; the list could continue. But it's always deliciously, frustratingly fun. Getting lost in the footnotes that double back on themselves and finding the proper way to continue through the text that is, well, let's just say, unconventional, mimics the story so well you almost don't realize what MZD is doing until you sit back and think about it afterwards. I'm still finding stuff that I missed my first two times around.

Also, don't miss Haunted by MZD's sister, Poe. She was working on the album the same time he was working on the book and so they are both heavily influenced by each other. Not only is Haunted one of the best written albums recently, but it is conceptually very interesting (for more on what I mean read the inside of the album cover and listen very closely to everything). Much like bands from Pink Floyd to Tool, I believe that to fully appreciate and enjoy Haunted you need to listen to the entire thing. It's not a CD to where you should skip around to different tracks. That said, I'm not going to listen to my own and advice and I'm going to post one song.