When I saw Jeri's post on FaceBook, I immediately thought of The One Thing by Anna Quindlin. I think it was that book, anyway. The main character becomes a therapist and assigns books to her clients. For a women troubled by an obsessive lover, she recommends Wuthering Heights. I love that it's a real thing.
I finished reading Dave Eggers "You Shall Know Our Velocity!" How can one writer write books I really like (Zietoun, What is the What, The Circle) and books I really dislike? The style was more like his first book "A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius". Lots of internal dialog. A young man, foibles painfully on display, trying to make sense of life. And then 3/4 of the way through he throws a wrench into the narrative that invalidates everything that came before; letting the reader know that the author is in control and can manipulate his audience anyway he likes. John Irving has done the same thing. It's like stage actors acknowledging the 4th wall; like a magician sharing the secret to a trick. I guess I want to believe in the story, the play, or the trick. I feel so used!
Saturday, November 21, 2015
Friday, November 20, 2015
Books in the News
Well, sort of. This is going to make it sound like I’m all up-on-the-news. In reality, I ‘liked’ NPR on Facebook and one of my friends posted the other. So, Facebook has it’s up side. I think if you love books and love to read, you will find the following interesting:
I talked about the short list for the National Book Awards earlier. The winners were announced on November 18. It is interesting to me that the award for fiction went to Adam Johnson for a collection of short stories. I like short stories a lot – when they’re done right (thinking Olive Kitteridge).
NPR: Adam Johnson, Ta-Nehisi Coates Win National Book Awards
If you’re a friend of mine of Facebook, you already saw this story from the New Yorker. I think that the profession of “bibliotherapist” sounds intriguing. Imagine being able to prescribe your favorite books to people. Oh, that’s right, it’s not about me; it’s about them and their mental health. Anyway, some of the books mentioned in this article are now on my Amazon wish list (in case you’re thinking holiday shopping).
The New Yorker: Can Reading Make You Happier?
Enjoy!
I talked about the short list for the National Book Awards earlier. The winners were announced on November 18. It is interesting to me that the award for fiction went to Adam Johnson for a collection of short stories. I like short stories a lot – when they’re done right (thinking Olive Kitteridge).
NPR: Adam Johnson, Ta-Nehisi Coates Win National Book Awards
If you’re a friend of mine of Facebook, you already saw this story from the New Yorker. I think that the profession of “bibliotherapist” sounds intriguing. Imagine being able to prescribe your favorite books to people. Oh, that’s right, it’s not about me; it’s about them and their mental health. Anyway, some of the books mentioned in this article are now on my Amazon wish list (in case you’re thinking holiday shopping).
The New Yorker: Can Reading Make You Happier?
Enjoy!
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