Downtime with Caryn Hirshleifer
For Much of my early life, I imagined two things: first, that I was mistaken for another baby at birth, taken home by the wrong set of parents from the cocoon-like safety of the hospital’s maternity ward; and second, that any day, there could come a knock at my front door and my true parents would reveal themselves. It’s not that my mom and dad were uncaring; it’s just that retail and business consumed every waking hour of their attention, and I simply didn’t get what was so intriguing about those subjects. In fact, I found them downright mind-numbing, especially when the world around me was in flames — draft-cards were burning, bras were burning, Watts and Detroit were burning. No way I could focus on a Norell dress when the fabric of society was in tatters.
My survival strategy? Books. During those days when I could not abide talk of the clothing business, and retail was the only channel with reception in my kitchen, I would hide away and read. Reading took me places I’d never been and helped me understand life. And even though I’ve grown up, and have come to appreciate how creative and fulfilling business can be, reading remains my favorite way to unwind. A list of my top ten all-time-favorite escape hatches follows. Cheaper than travel, fat-free and easier to deal with than people – what more could you want?
Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close by Jonathan Safran Foer
Everything Is Illuminated by Jonathan Safran Foer
The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Clay by Michael Chabon
Bridge Of Sighs by Richard Russo
American Pastoral by Philip Roth
The Things They Carried by Tim O’Brien
As A Driven Leaf by Milton Steinberg
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