David Abrams's Blog, page 189

Every Morning a Different Universe: Charles Yu’s Sorry Please Thank You

Sorry Please Thank You
by Charles Yu
Pantheon
Guest review by Will Kaufman

Charles Yu’s wit, inventiveness, and raw, emotional openness are all on good display in his new collection of stories, Sorry Please Thank You , but the book isn’t without its shortcomings. With his last book book, How to Live Safely in a Science Fictional Universe , which deservingly landed on a number of awards lists, Yu created something unique by blending a sort of non-fiction confessionalism with science fiction, and phi...

Trailer Park Tuesday: Hemingway's Girl by Erika Robuck

Welcome to Trailer Park Tuesday , a showcase of new book trailers and, in a few cases, previews of book-related movies.  Unless their last name is Grisham or King, authors will probably never see their trailers on the big screen at the local cineplex.  And that's a shame because a lot of hard work goes into producing these short marriages between book and video.  So, if you like what you see, please spread the word and help these videos go viral.





Ernest Hemingway, that larger-tha...

My First Time: Laura Maylene Walter

My First Time is a regular feature in which writers talk about virgin experiences in their writing and publishing careers, ranging from their first rejection to the moment of holding their first published book in their hands. Today’s guest is Laura Maylene Walter.  Her debut short story collection, Living Arrangements (BkMk Press, 2011) received a National Gold 2012 Independent Publisher Book Award and a silver ForeWord Book of the Year award.  Laura’s writing has appeared in Poets...

Confessions of an Anxious Novelist

I stood in the wings of the theater stage, hidden in the folds of the heavy gold curtains, and stared at the set bathed in a brilliant explosion of light.  There was an archway—a metal trellis topped with fancy curlicues by the set designer—and beyond that there was a doorway which led to a drawing room with a fainting couch, a desk, and a wingback chair.  In less than a minute, I would hear my cue and walk boldly out from the folds of the curtains, pass through the arch, knock on t...

Friday Freebie: The Age of Desire by Jennie Fields

Congratulations to Rhonda Lomazow, winner of last week's Friday Freebie prize package: Triburbia by Karl Taro Greenfeld and The Bird Saviors by William J. Cobb.

This week's book giveaway is The Age of Desire by Jennie Fields.  The novel is a definitely must for all you Edith Wharton lovers out there.  Fans of The Paris Wife should also sit up and take notice.  The Age of Desire paints a fictional portrait of a middle-aged Wharton falling in love with a young journalist named Mor...

My First Book: The Tick-Tock Clock

Early this morning, I was leafing through an old scrapbook in search of a photo for another blog post when I stumbled across one of my early attempts at literary stardom.  As I turned the pages--the ancient yellowed glue releasing its hold on grade school report cards, class photos, and love letters to my dog--what should drop into my lap but My First Book.  I've mentioned elsewhere that my "first" book was a story called "The Lady and the Clock," written when I was 6 years old. ...

Trailer Park Tuesday: The Last Policeman by Ben H. Winters

Welcome to Trailer Park Tuesday , a showcase of new book trailers and, in a few cases, previews of book-related movies.  Unless their last name is Grisham or King, authors will probably never see their trailers on the big screen at the local cineplex.  And that's a shame because a lot of hard work goes into producing these short marriages between book and video.  So, if you like what you see, please spread the word and help these videos go viral.



I was intrigued by Ben H. Winter...

My First Time: Patricia Ann McNair

My First Time is a regular feature in which writers talk about virgin experiences in their writing and publishing careers, ranging from their first rejection to the moment of holding their first published book in their hands.  Today’s guest is Patricia Ann McNair, author of a collection of short stories, The Temple of Air , which was called “a beautiful book, intense and original,” by Audrey Niffenegger, and was selected as the winner of Southern Illinois University’s Devil’s Kitchen Read...

Soup and Salad: The Classics According to a 6-Year-Old, Jenna Blum Goes Hollywood, the Appeal of Book Covers, Time and Again--the Movie, Raymond Carver's Sprung Rhythm, Benjamin Percy Resists Dialogue Openings, Books and Bikinis, Carlos Ruiz Zafon on our N

On today's menu:

1.  A six-year-old guesses the plots of classic novels by their covers .  Here's one:
“I think it’s about baseball. A person who likes to play baseball but also takes care of a plane.”  Any idea what book she's talking about?  Hint: look to your right.
2.  Novelist Jenna Blum got this crazy notion in her head that she could write a screenplay adaptation of her novel Those Who Save Us .  At the Grub Street Daily blog, she reports on lessons learned :

     ...

Soup and Salad: The Classics According to a 6-Year-Old, Jenna Blum Goes Hollywood, the Appeal of Book Covers, Time and Again--the Movie, Raymond Carver's Sprung Rhythm, Benjamin Percy Resists Dialogue Openings, Books and Bikinis, Carlos Ruiz Zafon on our N

On today's menu:

1.  A six-year-old guesses the plots of classic novels by their covers .  Here's one:
“I think it’s about baseball. A person who likes to play baseball but also takes care of a plane.”  Any idea what book she's talking about?  Hint: look to your right.
2.  Novelist Jenna Blum got this crazy notion in her head that she could write a screenplay adaptation of her novel Those Who Save Us .  At the Grub Street Daily blog, she reports on lessons learned :

     ...