The Petting Zoo, by Jim Carroll
When I was visiting San Francisco last summer, I remember heading over to a bookstore that was just across the street from the restaurant I was eating at. I picked up The Petting Zoo because the cover art was incredible. After reading the brief description of the book I was mesmerized.
Not usually one for fiction, I was surprised at how much I could relate to the words of Carroll. The book really requires you to think, to question things, to not just find the meaning of things but to give things meaning. The book highlights the life of an artist specifically, but can be translated to any area of creativity.
The artist is pressured after having an abundance of success in the industry to create something not just as good, but even better. The months alone in his New York apartment cause him to really think about what he wants, what he craves, what he contributes to the world, and what he holds back from the world. Unsure if he has gone crazy, or if it has become a reality, a black crow begins to visit him and guides the lost artist into finding answers to all his questions. I know a book is good when every other page I feel like I need to jot down quotes from the book because I want to reread them later on. Below are some of my favorite quotes.
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"That's how it goes on these morning walks in Manhattan. You take the good with bad. It's a sensation, peculiar to New York, that even a native can momentarily feel lost, and that around the next corner awaits the throbbing possibility that anything can happen"
"Surrounded by so much suffering, he thought, there must be some wisdom to be found"
"I don't believe that human beings have the luxury of time now. The information overwhelms you, and the earth has grown small"
