A few years ago I attended my company's Christmas party and left with a white elephant gift named Would You Rather?. This is a game where players are asked "to choose between two uncomfortable choices". One example is "would you rather die drowning or suffocating". Another (more creative) example involved using a wood rasp to sand down the hump of a camel.
Camels have large humps.If you're the kind of person who likes asking these questions, this game is a terrific idea. If you're not, it's not, and most people aren't. Consequently, the first party I took the game to was also the last.
But I like asking questions like these. Well, I
liked asking them. I always believed this to be the result of a healthy and natural curiosity. Initially Kelley indulged me. It wasn't long before she started to cut me off as I was explaining the options with a playful - but insistent - "I don't answer hypotheticals!". As her tone progressed to annoyance and then to hostility, I realized my curiosity was neither healthy nor natural. In the interest of domestic tranquility, I made a change. I've stopped asking these questions, but I'm constantly thinking of them.
The Interrogative MoodSo it was with great enthusiasm that I learned about
The Interrogative Mood: A Novel?, Padgett Powell's new book. Immediately I showed Kelley
a book review. Her response was "It's you!" And then she reserved the book for me from the Brooklyn Public Library.
Powell will be reading at
192 Books on Wednesday, October 21.