Atonement, by Ian McEwan

I bought a copy of Ian McEwan's award-winning book about 6 months ago, and it sat on my bookshelf, gathering dust, until I read an article in The New York Times in early December. The article was a column in the "Week in Review" section of the December 3rd paper, written by Charles Isherwood. McEwan has been accused of plagiarizing sections of the acclaimed novel, using 'experiences' based on romance novelist Lucilla Andrews' own life as a nurse in a London hospital during World War II. Isherwood's tongue-in-cheek column lashes out at those "plagiarism furies" that were unleashed on McEwan, who has been defended by the likes of Thomas Pynchon and Zadie Smith. I picked up the book as a curiosity, to see what all the "fury" was about -- and was astonished by the beautiful writing. McEwan is a writer I have been meaning to read for years (Enduring Love has been sitting on my bookshelf for at least 6 or 7 years!) and now I wish I had read him before. Atonement begins in 1935, set in the English countryside on the Tallis family estate. Briony Tallis, 13 years old, helplessly imaginative and creative, is beginning rehearsals for her play, The Trials of Arabella, in honor of her older brother, Leon, and his visit home. Meanwhile, older sister Cecelia is engaged in an innocent flirtation with Robbie Turner, the charlady's son and protege of Cecelia's father. When Briony witnesses this seduction, what ensues is a novel of misinterpretation, calculated deceit and a crime which changes all of the characters' lives forever. The novel is a metafictional narrative and the characters are so vividly drawn, you can't help but be engaged and captured from the moment you first encounter them.

100 Notable Books of the Year

100 Notable Books of the Year - The New York Times Book Review - New York Times
Another list!! This time, the top 100 of the year...

Another list...

The 10 Best Books of 2006 - New York Times
A year-end list this time from the granddaddy of all newspapers, The New York Times...

Judging a Book by Its Cover: The Best of 2006

Bookslut | Judging a Book by Its Cover: The Best of 2006
I am always a sucker for these end-of-the-year "Best Of..." compilations!
This one from Bookslut is no different...

L. A Confidential Sequel in the Works

Mystery Books: News: L. A Confidential Sequel in the Works
Awesome! LA Confidential is one of the best films of the nineties, based on an excellent noir novel. Can't wait to see the sequel...

William Styron dies at 81

Styron: A shining author with a 'dark view of life' - USATODAY.com
The author of Sophie's Choice and The Confessions of Nat Turner has passed away...

Desai wins 2006 Man Booker Prize

Independent Online Edition > News
The 35-year-old Indian writer Kiran Desai is the latest recipient of the coveted Man Booker Prize...

Finalists named for Governor General's Awards for literature

CBC.ca Arts - Finalists named for Governor General's Awards for literature
Canada's most prestigious book award announced the finalists for the $15,000 prize in seven categories...

Great bookmod: encyclopedia into scrapbook

Boing Boing: Great bookmod: encyclopedia into scrapbook
What a gorgeous idea! Take your falling apart books and make a scrapbook for that family album you've always wanted to create...

Turkish Novelist Orhan Pamuk Wins Nobel

Turkish Novelist Orhan Pamuk Wins Nobel
Controversy isn't new to this novelist, but Orhan Pamuk has caused a stir in his homeland by becoming the latest recipient of the Nobel Prize for Literature...

Fall's release of short story collections

USATODAY.com - Roundup: Short stories
Collections by Margaret Atwood and Mary Gordon headline a plethora of wonderful short story collections this fall, including the perennial favorite, Best American Short Stories 2006.

Books on the American civil rights movement (kottke.org)

Books on the American civil rights movement (kottke.org)
Jason Kottke solicited contributions to his list of books on the American Civil Rights movement. Lots of worthy titles to read here. I highly recommend Pillar of Fire by Taylor Branch. Its the second of his MLK jr. trilogy and it is an absorbing and fascinating book -- go get it.

The Scotiabank Giller Prize

The Scotiabank Giller Prize
Canada's prestigious literary award announced its 2006 shortlist today...

Some "more" on Alan Moore's controversial new work

Independent Online Edition > Features

Marjane Satrapi, author of Persepolis

Independent Online Edition > Features
Graphic novelist Marjane Satrapi is interviewed by the U.K.'s The Independent...

The New York Review of Books: Books@Google

The New York Review of Books: Books@Google
A plethora of Google books are, or have been, published...

Richard Ford review

Independent Online Edition > Reviews
Any reviewer talking about Richard Ford and Richard Yates has got my attention...

Book blues

This cassette tape image generator I found over on Boing Boing today is cool! Generate any hit band and album name you want...

A Moment With ... Jack Prelutsky, America's first children's poet laureate

A Moment With ... Jack Prelutsky, America's first children's poet laureate
Prelutsky is THE pre-eminent wacky children's poet, now that Shel Silverstein has passed on. His book, A Pizza the Size of the Sun, is one of my favorite children's book.

Murakami wins the world's richest short story prize

Guardian Unlimited Books | News | Murakami wins the world's richest short story prize

Poet Adrienne Rich gets book award

USATODAY.com - Poet Adrienne Rich gets book award

Richard Dawkins on the God Delusion

Boing Boing: Richard Dawkins on the God Delusion
Ditto the Boing Boing reviewer -- I can't wait to read this book!

Here's another review in Saturday's Guardian Unlimited...

Young Writers shortlisted for Dylan Thomas Prize

Independent Online Edition > News
The Under-30 crowd has a new prize -- the Dylan Thomas Prize, set-up to encourage cultural life in an international context. The winner will be announced on October 27th...

Graphic Novel Review: True Story, Swear To God by Tom Beland

Blogcritics.org: Graphic Novel Review: True Story, Swear To God by Tom Beland

Love of Reading

Love of Reading
Cool! Love of Reading is hosting an Online Book Fair, October 3-5, 2006, with hourly raffles and giveaways galore!

Audio book club

The October audio book club selection. By Andy Bowers - Slate Magazine
Neat! A podcasting book club for those on the go...

David Crystal: books on language

Guardian Unlimited Books | Top 10s | David Crystal: books on language
Linguist David Crystal offers his Top Ten list of books on the English language...

Unfinished Tolkien work to be published

USATODAY.com - Unfinished Tolkien work to be published
For all you Frodo fans out there -- J.R.R. Tolkien's son, Christopher, is about to complete a book begun by his father in 1918...

Seeing by Jose Saramago: Reviews

Seeing by Jose Saramago: Reviews
For those who read and loved Saramago's Blindness comes the sequel, set fours year later after national elections go fatalistically wrong -- all the ballots are blank!
Intriguing, I know...

Blogcritics.org: Manga Review: Beautiful People by Mitsukazu Mihara

Blogcritics.org: Manga Review: Beautiful People by Mitsukazu Mihara
I liked the blurb, "...manga for those who think differently from the rest of the world...".

NPR : How Sept. 11 Invaded Her Novel

NPR : How Sept. 11 Invaded Her Novel
Claire Messud's novel, The Emperor's Children, is getting good press everywhere. She's on NPR, she's in the Powell's Books Review-a-Day, she's in the Guardian Unlimited Books section -- she's everywhere!

John Updike short stories get Rea Award

USATODAY.com - John Updike short stories get Rea Award

Metacritic review site

Special Topics In Calamity Physics by Marisha Pessl: Reviews
This post isn't so much about this new book, Special Topics in Calamity Physics, but about the website, Metacritic.com, which lists reviews of books, films, dvds, music, games, books, etc. Its pretty neat and easy to use. Gives a score out of a 100 for the book and lists the publications and a quick peek at the overall mood of the book review, whether positive or negative. Cool site...

Sure signs of a budding artist: anxiety, anguish, and self-doubt

Sure signs of a budding artist: anxiety, anguish, and self-doubt - The Boston Globe
Jonathan Franzen wrote the bestselling novel, The Corrections, but is probably best known for dissing Oprah Winfrey and her Book Club when he refused to go on her show to talk about the book. What an ingrate -- but, still -- a heck of a writer!

The Man Booker Prize 2006 :: the 2006 Prize Shortlist

The Man Booker Prize 2006 :: the 2005 Prize Shortlist
The Man Booker shortlist was announced today -- Sarah Waters' new book is on the list -- yippee! If you have never read any of Waters' fiction, run, NOT WALK, to your nearest library and pick up a copy of Fingersmith, her Dickensian novel about a street thief and a rich aristocrat in England. Wonderful writer...

A sweetener to help you give up Sugar

Telegraph | Entertainment | A sweetener to help you give up Sugar

sweet!

Hodgman's book ad is a Plimpton homage

Boing Boing: Hodgman's book ad is a Plimpton homage
I love John Hodgman! This Daily Show regular and Apple's PC impersonator is a hoot -- Areas of Expertise should be a fun read if it is half as good as Hodgman in those Mac ads...

Cool reads for cooler nights

Cool reads for cooler nights - The Boston Globe
Recommendations for your upcoming fall reading. I intend to burrow myself away one of these beautiful fall Saturdays with some of these books...

You Really Should Not Read Bill Bryson in Public Places

Blogcritics.org: You Really Should Not Read Bill Bryson in Public Places
An intriguing recommendation for reading Bill Bryson...

What art has helped you make sense of 9/11? - Slate Magazine

What art has helped you make sense of 9/11? - Slate Magazine
Artists, novelists and thinkers were asked what book or piece of literature has helped them make sense of the world after 9/11...

Little Children - Todd Field - Movies - New York Times

Little Children - Todd Field - Movies - New York Times

Based on Tom Perrotta's satirical 2004 novel, Little Children...

Alan Moore's Alice/Wendy/Dorothy graphic novel

Boing Boing: Alan Moore's pornographic Alice/Wendy/Dorothy graphic novel


Why is it that if graphic novels treat sex they are considered "pornographic"? Or maybe its because the novel is about 3 famous "girls" of fiction?

Boing Boing: Top 25 stories ignored by media in past year

Boing Boing: Top 25 stories ignored by media in past year

Project Censored compiles this list and publishes into a fantastic book at the end of the year. Chock full of more stories ignored by the media, websites, references, links to alternative press and media sources, this is a must read for indy thinkers...

My workplace...

Here is my workplace:
Although I don't get to work with books every day, I am surrounded by them! Although I wish I had more time for reading, I'm glad I have a job that is challenging and busy -- no time to read on this job, I'm afraid.
Not the idea of librarian most people picture. I teach classes and work with the computer all day -- I DON'T check out books or stamp cards!

The Last King of Scotland

Giles Fodden wrote a book back in 1998 called The Last King of Scotland about a young Scottish doctor who fantastically becomes the personal physician of Ugandan dictator Idi Amin and thus, part of his inner circle, witness to the many barbarities and atrocities of this evil man. A movie starring Forrest Whitaker and Nicholas Garrigan is set to release on September 27th. It looks amazing...

Snuggle up with a not-so-popular mystery

USA Today has recommendations for mystery novels not on the bestseller charts. I was pleased to see two Janet Evanovich novels on the list.

Naguib Mahfouz dies at 94

Egyptian writer Naguib Mafouz died at age 94 on August 30th. Mafouz won the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1988, being the first Arab writer to do so.

Sweet short stories

This USA Today article emphasizes what a lot of readers have known for a long time -- that short stories are to be savored: rich, delectable nuggets which showcase a writer's gift. Short stories are difficult -- often writers who are wonderful novelists have a hard time writing a short story. Its a craft few master and many imitate.

The endless pile of books

Joe Queenan has a hilarious essay in last week's New York Times Book Review about the bibliophile's nasty habit: starting and reading multiple books at one time...

Books you can't wait for!

Kirkus Reviews just released their Fall/Winter 2006 preview issue online. Jonathan Franzen has a new non-fiction work coming out in September, humorist/travel writer Bill Bryson is releasing a new collection in October, and Neil Gaiman has a new collection of "hard-to-pin-down-in-any-genre" short stories arriving on bookshelves in September. For those crisp, cool fall days when all you want to do is curl up in front of a fire with a good book...

Epileptic, by David B

"Hailed by The Comics Journal as one of Europe's most important and innovative comics artists, David B. has created a masterpiece in Epileptic, his stunning and emotionally resonant autobiography about growing up with an epileptic brother. Epileptic gathers together and makes available in English for the first time all six volumes of the internationally acclaimed graphic work." Powell's Daily Dose reviews David B.'s Epileptic, an autobiographical graphic novel about the author's life growing up with his epileptic younger brother. Add this to the growing list of graphic novels on my "To Read" list before the fall semester starts...

Need to share the love?

Are you looking for yet another way to share your book love? I Love Books is a forum where you can share your book love with others. Topics recently posted include: Fictional Characters as Fictional Characters in Other Books, william faulkner wrote a book of mystery stories and i am surprised no one told me this. , and my personal favorite, Should I get rid of my books? (which my husband seems to think the answer is, Yes).

comics news

Here's some information you normally don't see when you are reading about comic book publishers:
"...But it’s a surprise to find that all this success has emerged as an interesting catalyst for Vertigo, which finds itself going through yet another evolution. Berger and her team of editors have recently begun expanding the brand’s literary reach with more stand-alone books far closer to novels than comics, developed by some of the best creators in the business..."
Its the second sentence that caught my eye, "..have recently begun expanding upon the brand's literary reach..." -- this seems at first glance to be a contradiction given comics' rave popularity as popular reading for the masses, not necessarily for those with a bent for literary fiction. I, for one, am glad for it, considering that most comics ARE literature, albeit a different way of telling a story.

New Poet Laureate

The Library of Congress has announced the new National Poet Laureate -- Donald Hall. Mr. Hall will read at the National Book Festival, to be held on the Mall in Washington, D.C., September 30th this year...

too long

Its been too long since I last posted! My only excuse is work -- too much of it...
Speaking of which, NPR has an audio broadcast of a story about Harper Lee's comeback to the literary world -- in O, the Oprah Magazine of all places!

judging these books by their covers

Penguin Classics has recently changed the look of some literature stalwarts with, "... cover designs {have been} executed by some of today’s most beloved and respected, dare I say “hip,” graphic artists...". These covers actually look more like comic books or graphic novels than dusty prose, but the attractive nature of the covers has the possibility of drawing in more readers to such timeless classics as Lady Chatterley's Lover or The Jungle by Upton Sinclair.
Book cover art is itself a hobby, with collectors passionate as any other bibliophile.

dystopic graphic novels

V for Vendetta is next on my list of graphic novels to read by Alan Moore, but I'm not sure I'm going to rent the movie after reading this review...

Best Book of the past 25 years is...

Beloved? I just don't get it -- the BEST work of American fiction of the past 25 years is Beloved by Toni Morrison? Runner-ups include Underworld by Don DeLillo and the Rabbit books by John Updike. C'mon people! What about Tim O'Brien, Jane Smiley, Lee Smith, Richard Russo? Admittedly, Beloved is a much better book than Underworld or ANY novel by Cormac McCarthy (have YOU tried to get through All the Pretty Horses??). The Things They Carried by Tim O'Brien would be my pick -- what would yours be?

a million little lies?

This guy has an addiction...
James Frey, the writer notorious for being busted as a liar by Oprah Winfrey, has admitted to fabricating sections of his most recent book, My Friend Leonard. His publisher has reportedly dropped him. Not a strong vote of confidence...

Short story master

Last night I read through notes from one of my creative writing classes I took while I lived in NYC. One of the suggested writers to emulate was Raymond Carver. I forgot how well Carver crafts short fiction -- arguably he is one of the masters of American short fiction. Minimalist, spare, clean -- just a few adjectives which describe his writing. "What We Talk About When We Talk About Love" is his best-known story, but "Cathedral" is another brilliant short story taught in creative writing classes everywhere.

The "Blooker" Prize

"The Lulu Blooker Prize is the world's first literary prizedevoted to "blooks": books based on blogs or websites. Awarded in three categories: Fiction, Non-Fiction, Comics...". The 2006 Lulu Blooker Prizes went to Julie Powell for her book Julie & Julia: 365 days, 524 recipes, 1 tiny apartment kitchen in the Nonfiction category; Cherie Priest for her novel, Four and Twenty Blackbirds; and Zach Miller for his comic novelization, Totally Boned. Neat concept and about time awards were given to this form of writing!

Short Fiction prize

The Ontario Review has announced a Short Fiction Prize contest for 2006. Submissions are being accepted through September 1, 2006.

a universal library?

What is the concept of the universal library? Google thinks it knows...

lets all read the same book

Reading programs are hot again! "Tuesday at Carnegie Hall, the National Endowment for the Arts will announce a competition for grants, up to $20,000 each, to be awarded to 100 communities that select a novel and encourage everyone to read and discuss it."
The one community, one book movement has been catching on in cities across the country, but the Big Read program expands on this movement, giving communities the monetary incentive to start the program and making it easy to choose from a pre-selected list of novels.

And the Pulitzer goes to...

Bravo! For fans of Geraldine Brooks (author of The Year of Wonders), its no surprise that she is the winner of this year's Pulitzer in Literature for her Civil War era novel, March. Don't confuse it with The March, E.L. Doctorow's novel about the Civil which also won an award -- two in fact -- the PEN/Faulkner and the National Book Critics Circle awards.

Baltimore roots

Anne Tyler does not give interviews. But USA Today was able to ask her some questions by email about her most recent book, Digging to America. Read and enjoy!

Hershey, PA

Today I am in Hershey, PA with Jeff's family -- right now we are trying to decide what we are going to do (some people voting for the outlets, Hershey Park, Target). No one can decide :) How about a bookstore?

Bookworm

As I was doing searches for the "reading literature pyramid" today for my fall comics class syllabus, I came across Bookworm: a love of learning, a love of books, a site with everything a book lover could wish for. Lots of references to the Great Books of the Western World and to book groups and Great Books websites. So, even if you question what "great books" inherently mean, you can find lots of "great" resources that purportedly tell you why they think so! Mostly white, dead males...

John Kenneth Galbraith, 1908-2006

John Kenneth Galbraith, writer and influential Harvard economist, died Saturday at age 97. Author of one of the most important books (arguably) of the 20th century, The Affluent Society, JKG was a political liberal and a strategist and advisor to several Presidents and Democratic politicians. In the aforementioned Affluent Society, JKG argued that America may be growing richer in private economic resources, but our public resources were being steadily eroded by an increasing reliance on consumer production and growth of capital. His book paved the way for a new societal discussion about infrastructure, schools, social services, and the allocation of money for the public good.

book heaven

Jeff & I were in Rochester on Saturday and stopped at Starbucks for a grande Americano (my fav). Next to the coffee place was a new store "BOOK OUTLET" -- imagine that! A bookstore next to a Starbucks -- hmmm, wonder if they will do any business?
I think it might be one of these chain remainder places; their prices were advertised as 70% off the price on the jacket. I got three paperbacks and a hardcover for $23.31 -- bless my lil bibliohungry heart!
Here's what I got:
Trash, short stories by Dorothy Allison (she of the Bastard out of Carolina fame, which is probably one of the more disturbing fictional takes on child sexual abuse)
The Overworked American, by Juliet Schor (geez, like we didn't know that already!)
American Dynasty, by Kevin Phillips (author of political-social-economic history, Wealth and Poverty)
Things you Should Know, short stories by A.M. Homes (wicked, ace writer!)

When I will have time to read all the above? Hmm...probably not this year unfortunately, but the deal was too good to pass up!

Fellow bloggers unite!

A list of authors who blog...
...and some others:
Laurie King (author of the Mary Russell/Sherlock Holmes mystery novels)
Jennifer Weiner (of Good in Bed fame)
S.J. Rozan (author of the Lydia Chin/Bill Smith mystery novels set in Chinatown)

An interview with...

...A.M. Homes, author of The Safety of Objects and Jack. Dark and engrossing, Homes' novels are touched with a wicked and morbid sense of humor. Here's another interview...

degrees of separation

Everyone is supposed to be only six degrees separate from any other person in the world. Well, I've never been N degrees close to any writers or authors (except for that one time I got to meet Jill McCorkle at the NYPL), but recently I got a few degrees closer to a writer -- sort of! My sister-in-law Laura, has an ex-boyfriend, Brian, who has a sister, Cristina, who just published her first collection of short stories. Entitled Come Together, Fall Apart, Cristina's debut collection has been reviewed in Booklist and Publishers' Weekly and one of the stories was in The New Yorker last year. Ok, so I'm stretching it a bit -- I've never even met Cristina, but judging by the New Yorker story and the reviews, Ms. Henriquez will be a writer to watch.

Sound good to you?

Do...

Cancer
Dementia
Hospital visits
deaths
funerals
marital infidelity
sexual promiscuity

...all sound good to you? Well, if so -- then I've got a book for you! Antonya Nelson's latest story collection features all of the above. Nelson interests me because she is compared to writers like Lorrie Moore and Ann Beattie -- two of my favorite writers working today. Also, who can beat a collection of stories written about the most dysfunctional of families - the American white middle-class family?

PEN/Faulkner award goes to...

E.L. Doctorow has won the PEN/Faulkner award for his latest novel, The March. Published in 2005, Doctorow's novel is a fictionalized account of Sherman's tumultuous "March to the Sea" during the Civil War, when General William Tecumseh Sherman pillaged and plowed a destructive path through the south, destroying and cutting off the Confederate army's supplies. Doctorow is a celebrated master of historical fiction; his superb novel Ragtime is an account of America at the turn-of-the century that follows real-life historical characters who changed and impacted this country.

remote book signing?

Writer Margaret Atwood claims she is ignorant of technology. However, the Booker prize-winning author has invented a "remote pen" to sign fans' books virtually -- much like the electronic gizmos UPS or FedEx employs for package deliveries. Possibilities await...

Octavia Butler, science fiction writer

It seems as though I am only writing posts about writers dying. I just found out from a librarian friend today that Octavia Butler, science fiction writer extraordinaire, has died at age 58. Writer of novels such as Kindred, Parable of the Sower, and its sequel, Parable of the Talents, Butler was an amazing writer. Her novels have a social conscience, not just pure science fiction, but novels of social commentary, intelligence, spirituality, and meaning. Bob tells me that Wild Seed is on his Top Ten, so I will have to read it as soon as I can.

Reds

My latest foray into nonfiction is a huge, 614 page tome on American anti-communism and the roots of McCarthyism in 1950s America: Reds: McCarthyism in Twentieth-Century America, by Ted Morgan. It is hefty and dense, but it is also a fascinating dissection of the history of the Communist party in America and the fallout from the Bolshevik Revolution and Soviet espionage before, during, and after World War II. One does get the feeling throughout the book that Morgan may be trying a bit too hard to convince the reader of how dangerous the Soviet threat was during the 1930s and 1940s -- his tone and language convey the idea that Soviet spies surrounded us everywhere. Still, since the release of the code-breaking Venona transcripts and the de-classified McCarthy hearings, it is an important examination of one of the most fearsome times in American history.

Larry Brown, writer, 1951-2004

I was looking for some information on one of my favorite authors recently and found out he passed away in November of 2004. Larry Brown wrote some of the best Southern gritty fiction around and was a self-taught writer who didn't start writing until he was well into his thirties. His novel, Fay, is on my top ten list of all-time favorite novels. Listen to an audio tribute from NPR...

Betty Friedan, 1921-2006

I've really been out of the loop...
Betty Friedan died on February 4th, on her 85th birthday. Such an important and influential woman. The Feminine Mystique radicalized so many women in the '60s and '70s, making it possible for women like me to have all the wonderful opportunities I take for granted. She left her indelible mark...

latest Sue Grafton I've read

I just finished reading "Q" is for Quarry this weekend and I have to admit, I am continually amazed by Grafton's ability to keep writing such engaging, deep and well-written mystery novels. "Q" is much longer than many of the previous alphabet series, and its interesting to note that this novel is rooted in an actual unsolved homicide which took place over thirty-five years ago. Kinsey Millhone is asked by two former Santa Teresa detectives to help with an unsolved investigation going back to 1969 -- a young woman was found stabbed, with her hands bound, and her body in a state of rapid decomposition. The case went nowhere, mostly due to lack of identification of the body and no leads. Eighteen years later and the two detectives are still curious about the girl and want to close the books on the case. Kinsey is asked to step in and help them solve the "cold case".
Coincidences aside, the seventeenth novel in the series is engrossing and revelatory -- the reader is slowly learning more and more of Kinsey's cloudy family history -- at much the same time as Kinsey herself. This novel is much like a jigsaw puzzle. Clues are introduced at the beginning, many of which don't seem like clues until later on in the story. Grafton is a superb storyteller, much of it due to the three-dimensional nature of her characters. Kinsey reveals more of herself in this book than ever before, giving us a glimpse of the soft inside.
Highly recommended and I would add, one of the best in the series so far.

After a long silence...

What a crazy past couple of weeks! I'm hoping to start posting again with some regularity. My life has been pretty chaotic with my job interview, uncertainty about my position, and a whole lot of teaching and web work -- life should be a little more stable soon! Keep reading...

National Book Critics Circle finalists...

The National Book Critics Circle finalists were announced last week -- Andrea Levy is nominated for Small Island, Mary Gaitskill for Veronica, and William Vollmann for Europe Central are some of the authors included, so it should be an interesting awards competition...

love story?

Just finished reading The Pact: a love story, by Jodi Picoult. I usually love Picoult's books -- big, plot-driven novels usually appealing to women, with some good character development (see Plain Truth or Keeping Faith). So, understandably, I was extremely disappointed after finishing the novel. The novel is a story of two teenagers (Emily and Chris) who grow up next door to each other. Their parents are best friends and naturally, the two are encouraged in their growing romantic relationship. Until something goes horribly wrong and Emily is found dead, from a gunshot wound to the head, with Chris next to her, bleeding and unconscious, but still alive. Thus begins the novel of "what went wrong in Perfectville?". What bothers me are a couple of inconsistencies: one, the reason for the suicide is so vague and clouded in mystery and ultimately, never solved. Although I suppose you could make the argument that this is the case for so many suicides, it just didn't seem to ring true. Second, the mother of Emily reads her daughter's diary, then burns it. It never comes up again, which seems like a huge waste of an interesting plot twist. Third, the actual circumstances surrounding the actual suicide and Chris' attempts to save Emily from killing herself are seriously flawed. The scene and the characters' actions in it, felt false. All in all, it was an highly entertaining novel, but not one of her better ones, plot-wise. I did like the character of Jordan and his private investigator, Selena -- both were interesting and I wanted to find out more, but the parents of both teens seemed contrived. If you have not read Jodi Picoult before, try one of her other novels before this overly melodramatic work.

liar, liar, pants on fire...

James Frey has some explaining to do. Frey's bestseller A Million Little Pieces and an Oprah Book Club pick, is drawing attention for alleged lies he told in the book...

America's most literate cities

Imagine that -- Seattle, WA is considered America's Most Literate City. Well, it doesn't really surprise me considering that it is also the home of Starbucks, and as such, is probably coffee capital of America. 'Cause if you are reading a good book, you also need a good cup of joe...

New Year "books-to-read" resolution

So Alice and I discussed our New Year's resolutions and agreed to post them - mine are a few days late, but here goes...
The books I am determined to read and finish in 2006:

1. Empire Falls and Straight Man by Richard Russo
Richard Russo is one of my favorite authors -- his books are funny, intelligent, and poignant. The first book I read was Nobody's Fool -- the story of Sully was pure pathos, his whole life a failure and his attempts to make some peace with it darkly comical. Russo is a gifted writer.

2. I'm hoping to finish a few mystery novel series this year:
John Rebus novels by Ian Rankin
V.I. Warshawski novels by Sara Paretsky
Kinsey Millhone novels by Sue Grafton
Kathy Mallory novels by Carol O'Connell

3. Some classics on my to read list...
Anything by Thomas Hardy!
Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy

4. On Beauty by Zadie Smith

5. Godless by Pete Hautman

6. The Rabbit Factory by Larry Brown

7. The Right Nation: How Conservatism Won by John Micklethwait and Adrian Wooldridge
...because I don't want to believe its true :)

8. The New Media Monopoly by Ben Bagdikian

9. The Age of Anxiety: McCarthyism to Terrorism by Haynes Johnson

10. Wealth and Democracy: A Political History of the American Rich by Kevin Phillips
Published in 2002, but even more important today. Still at the top of my nonfiction reading list, as soon as I get through those information architecture texts for work...

movie date

Alice and I went to see The Squid and the Whale at the Little Theatre in Rochester last night. Fantastic movie! Who knew writers could be such self-absorbed jerks? Jeff Daniels was terrific in a superbly understated performance as a washed up writer struggling with his wife's own literary success. It was funny and sad at the same time...

new bio

Happy New Year! Today I read an interesting book review for a new biography of Joseph Smith -- founder of the Mormon religion. A few months ago I linked to a blog posting about Jon Krakauer, the author of Under the Banner of Heaven, (a book I listened to on tape) which is about the violence of the fundamentalist Mormon sects. Mormonism has roots in the Rochester area, with Palmyra, NY (Joseph Smith's childhood home) within driving distance of the city. What peaks my interest is the adulation and respect heaped on him -- a man who "found" golden plates and proclaimed he spoke to God and Jesus and was the new Prophet to lead the fallen to the true church. Of course, what is more amazing is the lasting power of his words and deeds -- 200 years later and the church is still thriving with 12 million members worldwide. I'm a skeptic, so I tend to fall on the disbelief side of the fence when it comes to Mormonism...