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For the Love of Books: 115 Celebrated Writers on the Books They Love Most
More than 100 distinguished writers share their personal thoughts in response to the question: What books have left the greatest impression on you and why? "Certainly the most entertaining literary companion . . . quite irresistible."--"Washington Post Book World."
320 pages, Paperback
First published March 8, 1999
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Displaying 1 - 28 of 28 reviews
November 17, 2012
This book is not for the casual reader. However, if you are someone who obsesses over what to read next, authors' lives, styles of writing, and consistently have a stack of books to be read by your bed, this book is for you. It's a fascinating glimpse of why authors love their favorite books (and even more interesting when one author heralds a book as life-changing, then a few pages later, a different author dismisses it as trash!) It's also amazing the caliber of authors Mr. Shwartz has gathered to contribute--Kurt Vonnegut, Robert M. Pirsing, John Irving, John Updike, etc. I have read a handful of books like these and more often than the names are not too recognizible even to the most devoted reader. He must have had some clout!
The great thing about this is not only the long-imagined glimpse into our favorite writers' minds, but the fact that you can keep this book on your shelf and use it as a reference for what to read next for YEARS to come. You may flip to Anna Quindlen and be inspired by her descriptions to read all of her favorites! Or you may be amazed to find an author you never heard of who loves the same books you do---therefore you go and search out all of said author's books, knowing you will likely enjoy them. The bibliography in the back is also very helpful.
One warning though: Many of the authors' picks are more often than not classics and pretty high-brow, at times difficult books to read (after all, many of the contributors have scholarly backgrounds). Some of their opinions are also based on very in-depth observations of style of writing and word choice rather than the book being a page-turner or an relatable story. If you consider yourself a bibliophile but are into more contempary books, there are other books similar to this that may reccommend slightly lighter, more varied reading. I would reccommend Book Lust and More Book Lust by Nancy Pearl, So Many Books, So Little Time by Sarah Nelson, and How Reading Changed my Life by Anna Quindlen, to name a few.
The great thing about this is not only the long-imagined glimpse into our favorite writers' minds, but the fact that you can keep this book on your shelf and use it as a reference for what to read next for YEARS to come. You may flip to Anna Quindlen and be inspired by her descriptions to read all of her favorites! Or you may be amazed to find an author you never heard of who loves the same books you do---therefore you go and search out all of said author's books, knowing you will likely enjoy them. The bibliography in the back is also very helpful.
One warning though: Many of the authors' picks are more often than not classics and pretty high-brow, at times difficult books to read (after all, many of the contributors have scholarly backgrounds). Some of their opinions are also based on very in-depth observations of style of writing and word choice rather than the book being a page-turner or an relatable story. If you consider yourself a bibliophile but are into more contempary books, there are other books similar to this that may reccommend slightly lighter, more varied reading. I would reccommend Book Lust and More Book Lust by Nancy Pearl, So Many Books, So Little Time by Sarah Nelson, and How Reading Changed my Life by Anna Quindlen, to name a few.
March 16, 2016
When you love books, like I do,
one of the things we book lovers
seem to love is to read about
what books other books lovers
love to read. Browsable fun.
one of the things we book lovers
seem to love is to read about
what books other books lovers
love to read. Browsable fun.
to-read-1
August 26, 2013Joseph McElroy recommended this book since I'm interested in influences and processes. It contained three short pieces by him on books he love:
On the Genealogy of Morals
Space, Time and Architecture: The Growth of a New Tradition
My Past and Thoughts: The Memoirs of Alexander Herzen
He said in particular the Giedion was influential "leading to a Japanese expression at the end which is exactly to the point of what you say." I ordered the Giedion to see what he's talking about.
On the Genealogy of Morals
Space, Time and Architecture: The Growth of a New Tradition
My Past and Thoughts: The Memoirs of Alexander Herzen
He said in particular the Giedion was influential "leading to a Japanese expression at the end which is exactly to the point of what you say." I ordered the Giedion to see what he's talking about.
January 5, 2020
This was a good browsing book for me. It was definitely not meant for casual readers and had a lot of incredibly well read authors’ suggestions; many were new to me. I did enjoy reading how books I love had impacted them also and I added a few books to my TBR list.
January 29, 2016
I loved this book. It is brilliant. 115 prominent writers were kind enough to tell us about the three to six books they love the most. The insights are astonishing. Although their choices may overlap a little, their reasons are distinct. It also works as a spur to read books I didn't know about or have inadvertently neglected.
xx-dnf-skim-reference
June 20, 2023Much too hard to skim. Wading through all the "I reread Proust every few years, ever since I was 8" and the *L*iterary incestuousness is hard because the titles are in a typeface that fades behind the text on the page.
I did get a few bits to mark, finally. One of my odd childhood favorites, Robert Benchley, got a nod, as did James Thurberof course. Lots of the contributing authors mentioned the Bible, Dickens, Moby Dick, 'the Russians'... and lots loved Tom Wolfe ... but at least several had the good sense to mention Huckleberry Finn.
But new-to-me is Max Beerbohm, a happier satirist than Twain, iiuc the contributing writer correctly. And Even Now is the work that has one more serious piece in that collection of essays.
And I got the idea to read Bartlett's as a lead to more new-to-me authors. And a reminder to read Working: People Talk About What They Do All Day and How They Feel About What They Do, the size of which intimidated me when everyone else was reading it. And to revel again in The Importance of Being Earnest. And to read more of George Bernard Shaw, especially the preface to Androcles and the Lion.
Heavily skimmed June 2023. Note to self - avoid getting entangled in any more books like this; they always disappoint and/or frustrate.
I did get a few bits to mark, finally. One of my odd childhood favorites, Robert Benchley, got a nod, as did James Thurberof course. Lots of the contributing authors mentioned the Bible, Dickens, Moby Dick, 'the Russians'... and lots loved Tom Wolfe ... but at least several had the good sense to mention Huckleberry Finn.
But new-to-me is Max Beerbohm, a happier satirist than Twain, iiuc the contributing writer correctly. And Even Now is the work that has one more serious piece in that collection of essays.
And I got the idea to read Bartlett's as a lead to more new-to-me authors. And a reminder to read Working: People Talk About What They Do All Day and How They Feel About What They Do, the size of which intimidated me when everyone else was reading it. And to revel again in The Importance of Being Earnest. And to read more of George Bernard Shaw, especially the preface to Androcles and the Lion.
Heavily skimmed June 2023. Note to self - avoid getting entangled in any more books like this; they always disappoint and/or frustrate.
July 17, 2022
For the most part, these authors claim they read what they were supposed to so they could status-strive and be patted on the head for being good little boys and girls. What a pack of pompous bores. I am nauseated by those who only read a small selection of elite-approved books and who never stray outside the lines for fear they might lose caste. Show an ounce of independence and curiosity, for God's sake.
April 22, 2019
This book was educational, informative, and interesting. I enjoyed reading the descriptions that writers, some whom I admire, others whom I don't know, wrote of their favorite books, many their most impressionable books from childhood. l got insight into much literature I hope to explore in the future.
December 16, 2019
An interesting--if perhaps not always believable (have all these people *really* read "Moby Dick" and Proust??)--look at what bo0ks "influenced" a list of notable modern writers. Caution: the index is really nowhere near complete.
August 30, 2020
Books about books.....and writers......and some of their favorite books. What is not to love here!
August 31, 2020
Loved this book, it gave me a long list of more great books to read.
January 12, 2021
Fun to browse.
August 25, 2022
Worth dipping into now and again for interesting reading possibilities.
February 4, 2014
The premise of this book: The editor, Ronald B. Shwartz, sent a message to 115 authors, asking them to respond via letter or phone. His prompt: "Identify those 3-6 books that have in some way influenced or affected you most deeply, 'spoken to' you the loudest, and explain why--in personal terms. All books, whether 'Great Books' or not-so-great books--books of any kind, genre, period--are fair game."
Many greats--in literature, the arts, the sciences--responded. Kurt Vonnegut's was the most memorable to me, but here also are Russell Banks, Dave Barry, Art Buchwald, Jonathan Harr, John Hawkes, John Irving, Susanna Kaysen, W.P. Kinsella, Caroline Knapp, Elmore Leonard, Doris Lessing, Norman Mailer, Frank McCourt, Arthur Miller, Joyce Carol Oates, Grace Paley, Robert B. Parker, Robert Pirsig, Mario Puzo, Neil Simon, Oliver Stone (Did anyone know that he published a novel awhile ago? Has anyone read it?), William Styron, Gay Talese, John Updike, and Geoffrey and Tobias Wolff--just to name a few.
Which titles were mentioned the most?
Surprisingly--to me, anyway--the title mentioned the most, by far, was Marcel Proust's Remembrance of Things Past. It was not close.
The others, in order:
Moby-Dick by Herman Mellville
The Bible
The Brothers Karamazov by Leo Tolstoy (or Tolstoi, which I prefer, as a T206 fanatic)
Ulysses by James Joyce
War and Peace by Leo Tolstoi
The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger
William Shakespeare's Collected Works
The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain
Most of the selections were idiosyncratic, but there were still a few Hemingways, Austins, and others in there. Most books we've heard of before were mentioned two or three times. Those in the list above were mentioned at least six times, at most ten times.
But it was an interesting read, and not very taxing. It didn't take a lot out of me, which is good, since I've had a headache to drive me insane for the past week or so.
Highly recommended, if you're curious at all about what made an impression on these writers--and why.
Many greats--in literature, the arts, the sciences--responded. Kurt Vonnegut's was the most memorable to me, but here also are Russell Banks, Dave Barry, Art Buchwald, Jonathan Harr, John Hawkes, John Irving, Susanna Kaysen, W.P. Kinsella, Caroline Knapp, Elmore Leonard, Doris Lessing, Norman Mailer, Frank McCourt, Arthur Miller, Joyce Carol Oates, Grace Paley, Robert B. Parker, Robert Pirsig, Mario Puzo, Neil Simon, Oliver Stone (Did anyone know that he published a novel awhile ago? Has anyone read it?), William Styron, Gay Talese, John Updike, and Geoffrey and Tobias Wolff--just to name a few.
Which titles were mentioned the most?
Surprisingly--to me, anyway--the title mentioned the most, by far, was Marcel Proust's Remembrance of Things Past. It was not close.
The others, in order:
Moby-Dick by Herman Mellville
The Bible
The Brothers Karamazov by Leo Tolstoy (or Tolstoi, which I prefer, as a T206 fanatic)
Ulysses by James Joyce
War and Peace by Leo Tolstoi
The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger
William Shakespeare's Collected Works
The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain
Most of the selections were idiosyncratic, but there were still a few Hemingways, Austins, and others in there. Most books we've heard of before were mentioned two or three times. Those in the list above were mentioned at least six times, at most ten times.
But it was an interesting read, and not very taxing. It didn't take a lot out of me, which is good, since I've had a headache to drive me insane for the past week or so.
Highly recommended, if you're curious at all about what made an impression on these writers--and why.
December 28, 2012
I'm so relieved to say I enjoyed this book. A couple months ago I picked up a different book that on the surface seemed to promise everything this book promised: a bunch of authors talking about the books they love and why they love them. Instead, that other book was like a long sales pitch from authors who spent more time talking about their own greatness than the work of any other person. Blech. Fortunately, this book delivered EXACTLY what it should have. In every author's response, you could FEEL the passion they have for good books, quality writing, strong authors. Often while reading I would grab a pen to jot down a book I was going to look up later.
Standing alone this book easily would have achieved 4 stars but it gets the 5th from me because I can't tell you how many other books claim to give this material ("a book from authors about great books!") and instead veer off into sales pitches or self-focused ramblings about their own style or work.
Finally, I just want to mention that I read this book in the worst possible way, by cramming it all into a short time span. Since every couple of pages is a new author and a new list, this book is probably best enjoyed in short spurts. After a couple hundred pages of these 2-3 page responses, it started to feel a tiny bit like a long laundry list where responses would blur into one another. That's not the fault of the book at all, it's a consequence of me setting out to read the whole thing in a short time.
Standing alone this book easily would have achieved 4 stars but it gets the 5th from me because I can't tell you how many other books claim to give this material ("a book from authors about great books!") and instead veer off into sales pitches or self-focused ramblings about their own style or work.
Finally, I just want to mention that I read this book in the worst possible way, by cramming it all into a short time span. Since every couple of pages is a new author and a new list, this book is probably best enjoyed in short spurts. After a couple hundred pages of these 2-3 page responses, it started to feel a tiny bit like a long laundry list where responses would blur into one another. That's not the fault of the book at all, it's a consequence of me setting out to read the whole thing in a short time.
October 13, 2008
For the Love of Books is a collection of 115 essays on the books that have made life time impressions. They are written by authors asked (and sometimes pestered) by Ronald B. Shwartz to talk on the books that inspired them to become writers.
It's pretty obvious which authors were pestered and which ones responded eagerly. There's a lot of antagonism in many of the authors. I skimmed through most of these reluctant answers.
Among the responses, Dave Barry's was my favorite. He was clearly one of the eager participants. His response also seemed to most genuine. He starts his list of with silly things like the Archie and Batman comics. From there he moves on to other favorites: Catcher in the Rye and Catch-22. From there he and I part ways in our reading tastes but I may have to go back and read his recommendations based the first half of his essay.
In the back of For the Love of Books is an extensive bibliography of the books described by one or more of the authors. Ronald Shwartz estimates the list at five hundred books. Among the most frequently mentioned are the King James Bible, the Torah, Moby Dick, Catcher in the Rye, The Great Gatsby and the works of Charles Dickens.
It's pretty obvious which authors were pestered and which ones responded eagerly. There's a lot of antagonism in many of the authors. I skimmed through most of these reluctant answers.
Among the responses, Dave Barry's was my favorite. He was clearly one of the eager participants. His response also seemed to most genuine. He starts his list of with silly things like the Archie and Batman comics. From there he moves on to other favorites: Catcher in the Rye and Catch-22. From there he and I part ways in our reading tastes but I may have to go back and read his recommendations based the first half of his essay.
In the back of For the Love of Books is an extensive bibliography of the books described by one or more of the authors. Ronald Shwartz estimates the list at five hundred books. Among the most frequently mentioned are the King James Bible, the Torah, Moby Dick, Catcher in the Rye, The Great Gatsby and the works of Charles Dickens.
October 21, 2010
From my blog:
I'm really enjoying the informality - the way each contributor has his or her own voice - how we find out not only the works that are supposed to matter but also the ridiculous ones that only matter on an individual level. Anthony Lane, for example, cites Richard Scarry's Busy Busy World as "a resourceful tour d'horizon whose cosmopolitan principles reverberate in my mind even now. I cling fast to the belief, for instance, that the benign thieves of Paris invariably hide from the police in tureens of green soup, that the ghosts who float through Danish castles are obliged to wash their sheets in the laundry, and that the present unrest in Algeria could be peacefully solved by Couscous, the famous detective ("My! That Couscous is a clever fellow.")" And I'm in love. :)
I'm really enjoying the informality - the way each contributor has his or her own voice - how we find out not only the works that are supposed to matter but also the ridiculous ones that only matter on an individual level. Anthony Lane, for example, cites Richard Scarry's Busy Busy World as "a resourceful tour d'horizon whose cosmopolitan principles reverberate in my mind even now. I cling fast to the belief, for instance, that the benign thieves of Paris invariably hide from the police in tureens of green soup, that the ghosts who float through Danish castles are obliged to wash their sheets in the laundry, and that the present unrest in Algeria could be peacefully solved by Couscous, the famous detective ("My! That Couscous is a clever fellow.")" And I'm in love. :)
May 27, 2011
A fun read for bibliophiles of all kinds, this book is a series of first-person accounts from (then-)living writers discussing the books that delighted, challenged, and inspired them. Shwartz seems to have distributed a questionnaire to the participating writers, and some meet the bare minimum--naming and briefly describing the five books that form the foundation of their literary past--while other writers go all out, refusing to choose only five, or waxing nostalgic about sneaking grown-up books off Dad's or Grandma's shelves, or tracing for us a clear path directly from something they read to something they eventually wrote. Some freely ramble: I particularly remember the accounts by Dave Barry and Frank McCourt as free-wheeling stream-of-consciousness book chats.
It's great for reading recommendations--I know I stepped away from this book with my TBR list significantly swelled--but also just to pull off the shelves for five minutes' worth of entertainment.
It's great for reading recommendations--I know I stepped away from this book with my TBR list significantly swelled--but also just to pull off the shelves for five minutes' worth of entertainment.
November 17, 2016
I'll be honest, I skipped around, reading the essays that interested me. I particularly enjoyed those by Anne Fadiman and her father Clifton Fadiman (as the editor notes, this is the first and only time the two have appeared together in print) and also Anna Quindlan's contribution--she talks about inhabiting books instead of simply reading them, which is exactly how I feel about certain books--and she describes the phenomenon much better than I ever could.
Currently Reading
June 21, 2007I mark up books like these, adding reminders for my ever growing wish list.
August 30, 2008
A bunch of fairly well-known writers were asked what books influenced their lives the most. The results run the whole gamut...from Harold and the Purple Crayon to Ulysses.
February 16, 2009
Good. Gave me a lot of books to add to my list.
September 1, 2009
More high-brow than I expected, what with the near-constant worship of Joyce and Proust. I wonder how a follow-up sampling of younger writers would turn out.
February 16, 2010
I have a thing for books about books.
October 30, 2011
I have the most in common with Rita Dove.
Read
April 27, 2011Essays by famous writers. Poorly editied
May 29, 2011
An enjoyable read. I am so far behind on reading the great, classics that have stood the test of time. My to read list grew by pages while reading this.
June 3, 2012
Interest set of short essays from famous authors about famous (mostly) authors.
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