oh Mr. Kidder...

So, since you last saw me, I've read one book.

Count 'em.

ONE.

This one book I read keeps coming back to haunt me. All freshmen at Messiah College have to read the same book. The book changes every year. Last year, it was A Thousand Splendid Suns (lucky!). This year we all had to endure Tracy Kidder's account of Paul Farmer in Haiti in Mountains Beyond Mountains.

Since this year is Messiah's centennial, they are making everything into a big deal. Tracy Kidder is on campus right now. I have to go to this thing tonight where we will have to sit through another two hours of Kidder boredom. Then, we get to go to the Union, eat free food, and have him sign our books.

I want him to sign my book, just because. My teacher for the class where we had to read the book says that he will talk to you about what you thought of the book. I don't want to tell this man I hated his book. I really don't have a good reason other than it was dull. I'll sound like a whiny little freshman, telling this man I couldn't find anything to appreciate about a book he probably spent years working on.

All in all, Mountains Beyond Mountains would make a better newspaper article than a book, as my roommate would say. I couldn't agree more.

Any suggestions on what I should do when I meet Tracy Kidder tonight?