Books I Read in 2020, Part 2

At this point in 2020, we were firmly in the COVID era, meaning I barely left the house and had plenty of time to read. So here's how I passed the time...

"Among the Thugs"
Back in the 1990s, Bill Buford's grim examination of soccer (sorry, football) hooliganism was a constant presence on bookshelves of young men exploring the darker side of life. So, naturally, I had a copy but, for reasons I can't explain, never read it until last year. Glad I finally did. It's beautifully written (really) and frequently jaw-dropping, both for the scenes it depicts and the fact that Buford managed to stay in one piece while reporting it.

"In Cold Blood"
As a huge fan of the 1967 movie, I can't explain why it took me so long to read the actual book. (Do you sense a theme here?) Anyway, as you probably already know, it's a fascinating bit of reportage, with Capote doing a breathtaking job of taking you to Holcomb, Kansas, introducing you to the Clutter family, and then relating the horrible events as they play out. Still one of the best true crime books ever written.
"Make My Day: Movie Culture in the Age of Reagan"
The third in J. Hoberman's trilogy of books examining recent decades as seen through their movies (following "The Dream Life" and "Army of Phantoms"). This one obviously focuses on the 1980s, and it's the most personal of the bunch, given than Hoberman was an active critic during that decade. It's an angry book full of bile toward Reagan and many of the movies of the era, but for a guy like me, who came of age in the 1980s, both as a person and a movie lover, it hits home.
"Pity the Reader: On Writing with Style"
Suzanne McConnell, a student (and friend) of the late, great Kurt Vonnegut, shares lessons from his classes, personal advice and life history in an excellent book that's part Vonnegut bio, part writing guide. It's an impressive book, covering plenty of territory and delivering some solid advice. More than anything, it made me want to go back and re-read some Vonnegut.

"The Loneliness of the Long Distance Cartoonist"
Adrien Tomine's sketchbook-style (right down to the binding and the graph paper) collection of autobiographical anecdotes is very funny and, of course, beautifully drawn and designed, but if I'm being honest, I found it a little, I dunno, light? I'm sure that was his intention, but for all the dramatic moments between these covers, I chuckled to myself more than I actually got involved in the situation. Still, as a day-to-day depiction of what a cartoonist on the rise goes through, it's plenty revealing and (like I said) plenty amusing. Just not what I expected, I guess.
"The Big Goodbye: Chinatown and the Last Years of Hollywood"
I loved this detailed, warts-and-all, beautifully written examination of the making of "Chinatown" and how it turned out to be one of the last gasps of the glorious Hollywood era of the 1970s. My favorite parts involved the writing of the movie, with Robert Towne and Roman Polanski fighting over what stayed and what went and, in the process, turning out one of the great Hollywood screenplays. Full of great anecdotes and character portraits, it's one of the best books about Hollywood I've read in a long time. (And trust me, I've read a lot.)
"Jack Kirby: The Epic Life of the King of Comics"
Maybe, it turns out, a comic book is the best way to tell the story of the most influential comic book artist of all time. Tom Scioli delivers the good, covering Jack's life from before his birth to after his death. And even though I was familiar with a lot of the stories within, Scioli both uncovered some new ones and told the old ones in refreshingly different ways. (His portrayal of the transformation of Stan Lee from mild-mannered bald guy to open-shirted hipster is worth the price of the book.) 
"Improv Nation"
I liked "The Big Goodbye" so much that I tracked down another book by Sam Wasson, this extensive history of improv in America. Nichols and May, Second City, the Compass, SNL, SCTV -- it's all there, with tons of anecdotes and a great historical sweep. I might have even liked this one more than "The Big Goodbye," which is saying something. Highly recommended.
Up next:Raymond Chandler gets annotated, Chuck Palahnuik makes his second appearance of the year and the best graphic novel of 2020 takes a grim look at my alma mater.