Just Like Me
I was noodling around Amazon.com this morning, looking for interesting books to add to my Wish List and presents to buy for family members, when I stumbled across a link that said, "Just Like You" in a place called Lori's Store. I was dying to see what someone Just Like Me would look like, so I followed the link. "Crushing disappointment" is about the best thing I can say about it; in fact, I might sue for libel.
The page was arranged in three columns: the left contained items that the person Just Like Me (only from Texas) and I had both bought and/or rated; the middle column contained recommendations based on what the other person also liked; and the right contained items that only I had bought or rated (in other words, things I didn't have in common with the person Just Like Me in Texas). If the column on the right had been on the left, I would have said, "wow, this person is just like me!" Instead, the column on the left could have belonged to any Harry Potter-reading, Soprano-watching average Jane... and thus, the middle column was wildly off-base, containing as it did the following:
- In Love and War ~ I like Sandra Bullock just fine, but I didn't just not make it to the theater for this one; I actively avoided it.
- Drumline ~ Never heard of this one. All the reviews seem to rave about it, though.
- The Santa Clause 2 - The Mrs. Clause ~ SO not interested.
- A Chorus Line ~ Loved the stage play. Hated the film.
- Two Weeks Notice ~ Again with the Sandra Bullock!
- The X-Files - The Complete Seventh Season ~ And again with the sequels! Seeing as how I didn't buy seasons 1-6 of this program, and how I watched maybe 3 episodes when it was actually on the air, it's not a perfect fit.
- The Ghost and Mrs. Muir ~ This could be the one hit on the list.
- Joe Versus the Volcano ~ OK, I admit, I'm a sucker for cult films, so this one might be on target, too. I'll check it out on TBS or TNT first, though.
- Star Trek - Nemesis ~ That's my husband, not me.
- Steps to the Altar ~ Quilting mysteries aren't really my thing.
- Carl Hiassen's South Florida Three-Book Set ~ No comment.
- Absolute Rage ~ Hope the book is easier to follow than the synopsis.
- The Associate ~ OK, I read mysteries occasionally. Usually ones with some kind of hook, though—a sleuthing Jane Austen, genX noir—not just Grisham-type legal thrillers.
- Star Trek - Insurrection ~ Again, you're thinking of my husband.
- The Summons ~ See 13, above.
Ok, maybe I don't have a case for libel. But really, is there no one out there with whom I have 10 of the following items in common?
- And the Band Played On: Politics, People, and the AIDS Epidemic
- Hybrid Theory (Linkin Park)
- Dr. Atkins' New Carbohydrate Gram Counter
- Pride and Prejudice: The Original Soundtrack from the A&E Special Presentation
- Piano Classics from the World of Jane Austen
- Creative Wedding Florals You Can Make
- C Primer Plus
- Anti-Bride Guide: Tying the Knot Outside the Box
- So~You Want to Be an Inkeeper
- How to Start and Run Your Own Bed & Breakfast Inn
- JavaScript: The Definitive Guide
- Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone (Audio CD)
- Jane and the Man of the Cloth
- Jane and the Wandering Eye
- The Two Towers (Audio CD)
- The Return of the King (Audio CD)
- Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (Audio CD)
- The Fellowship of the Ring (Audio CD)
- Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (Audio CD)
- Healing with Whole Foods
Of course, Amazon doesn't know about the books I've bought at Tower Books, or Books Inc., or Book Buyers, or any number of other bookstores I seem to be inexorably drawn to. Perhaps if I rate a few of the titles I've bought elsewhere on Amazon, it will find someone more like me. Somehow, I doubt she'll be from Texas.
Comments (4)
I've listened to the first two LOTR books on CD and they're excellent! I have Return of the King waiting until I finish the actual book to start listening to it.
Rob Inglis (The guy that reads the books) does excellent, very distinct voices for each character and you can easily tell them apart in short time. He also sings all of the songs in character which makes them much easier to handle than reading them and trying to sing them in your head.
I bought Fellowship of the Ring before driving back from Seattle with my GF and we barely spoke the whole way back while we were listening so intently to the CDs. Excellent road trip material. Time just flys by.
It's just hard to find time to listen to them. Fellowship is 20 hours! Two Towers is 14 hours I think. Totally awesome though. Worth every penny if you're a LOTR fan. It's SO much more than some random Brit reading a book out loud.
Posted by goalie jason | April 21, 2003 2:48 PM
Posted on April 21, 2003 14:48
I totally agree on all points -- especially the singing of the verses. You definitely need a long trip to appreciate these books on CD, too. We used to listen to them on the trip back and forth to Truckee, but since we only went up every two or three weeks, we'd lose our place very easily. Next cross-country road trip we go on (and I hope we'll be going on one soon), I'm bringing our LOTR CDs.
Interestingly, I find the Harry Potter CDs much easier to listen to in short bursts, like during my commutes by train. Although the stories are complex for kids' books, they're not nearly as complex as the Tolkien series. Consequently, I've listened to the HP CDs at least twice each (and I've also read the books).
Posted by Lori | April 21, 2003 2:54 PM
Posted on April 21, 2003 14:54
Interesting Amanda Davis's book is on your wish list. I was on an online chat with her very briefly and went to a reading in New York that was scheduled way before her death. Various pals got up and read from her novel. Usually the reading is a bit of a triumph, full of hoots and hollers. This was still very much a celebration, but has changed the way I've read everything since, I think. Something I haven't been able to decode or unravel in any way -- now three months ago I guess.
How do you do it, Lori?
Let me know when you're open for reservations -- the Northwoods sounds a wonderful place to stay wherever it may be exactly.
Posted by clemster | April 23, 2003 6:58 PM
Posted on April 23, 2003 18:58
I can't remember how I got to that Amanda Davis book -- it might have been from one of those "Customers Who Bought This Book Also Bought..." links, so I guess Amazon's personalization isn't all bad. There was one other truly hilarious Just Like You list: apparently, from the things we had in common Amazon deduced that I must also be a right-wing nut. I did find one list that was actually a pretty close match... and--now I must eat my words--the person Just Like Me was from Texas.
Posted by Lori | April 24, 2003 1:18 PM
Posted on April 24, 2003 13:18