KOH PHANGAN, THAILAND

Books I've read in the past week:

The Silmarillion by J. R. R. Tolkien: Yes, Tolkien fan that I am, it's taken me all these years to finally get around to reading this. And truth be told, sometimes it did feel a little like a chore (especially when I was already feverish). Because it's not a simple story like The Lord of the Rings; rather, it's all the background stuff. In fact, it's really like the Bible of Middle Earth, in that it starts with a creation myth, then has pages and pages of who begat whom for hundreds of years, and which cities were laid waste and which lands were rent asunder, and all that fun stuff. But there are some really poetic parts in there, too--the tale of Beren and Luthien, for example. (Did I just say that? Wow, I am a geek.)

A Brief History of Time by Stephen Hawking: 'Cuz I likes the science, I does. (And in case you needed further proof of my geekdom....) Mostly a very accessible account of what we know about the Big Bang and black holes and such, but I still may have to read this again, because the part about the universe only being explainable using a model that incorporates imaginary time made my head explode.

Life of Pi by Yann Martel: I have to say, this was the best book about being stranded on a lifeboat with a Bengal tiger that I've ever read! Actually, it was a really good read, although there was a point towards the end where I was like, this is getting so unbelievable it's ridiculous. But then the ending totally redeems it, so I was happy again. Check it out; it won the Man Booker prize and everything.