The Next Best Book Club discussion
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What are you reading?
I am still treking through Pillars of the Earth (a good read, but not blown away by it yet and I am half way through), and I also started reading the Omivore's Dilemma by Michael Pollan, which I am hoping gets more interesting after I get through the history of corn. :)I am looking to pick up a David Sedaris book because I haven't read anything by him yet. Does anyone have any favorites by him or a recommendation about which one to start with?
I haven't read a full Sedaris yet but have read a few chapters here and there. He is hilarious and I imagine they are pretty quick reads.
Mod
Jenna - I love David Sedaris. Dress Your Family in Corduroy and Denim and Me Talk Pretty One Day are great reads. I like to listen to his audiobooks as well - he does all of the readings and his delivery is just brilliant. Here's an example of one of my favorites from Dress Your Family:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UCUHTD...
Ignore the video - just listen.
About Pap??? Hmmm, I might have to pick that up. I wonder if it is written in the same style.
Lori - The book came out in March. I have been eyeing it for quite a while. It is very well reviewed on Amazon.
Mod
Jeremy, my two favorite Sedaris books were Me Talk Pretty One Day and Holidays on Ice. He is great! I used to listen to him on NPR all the time. You should definitely give him a try. If nothing else, pick up Holidays on Ice to read during the holidays...it is pretty short and will make your family holiday hassles seem trite in comparison. :-)Jen, you should pick up some Laurie Notaro. She reads like a female Sedaris. I read her book An Idiot Girl's Christmas over the holidays a couple of years ago and about fell off the couch laughing. I found myself reading stories to my family and they were rolling too.
I have no doubt that I would enjoy the Sedaris books. I read the first few chapters of Me Talk Pretty...and was very entertained. I guess the time has just flown by without me obtaining a copy for myself.
About Pa or Finn....interesting. Except he was BAD MAN. Is the book going to be some sort of apologist point of view? hehe
About Pa or Finn....interesting. Except he was BAD MAN. Is the book going to be some sort of apologist point of view? hehe
Yeah, I wonder about that too, Jeremy.I am very concerned about the style. I mean, no one can be as good as Twain, but if the style is a lot different, I can't imagine being able to get into it.
I think in order for the book to be credible the author would have to be a student of Twain.
Jenna, I have read Dress you Family in Corduroy and Denim by Sedaris and found it really funny. I have heard great stuff about his other books too.Logan, yay that you love The Magus! It's such a mind mess isn't it, but you just can't put the damn thing down!
Lorena, love your new haircut.
Oh yes, and I've just started Outer Dark by Cormac McCarthy after haivng loved The Road. Only a chapter in and it's written in that same way where you have to concentrate quite hard when you first start the book but I am enjoying it so far. I really like his style of writing.
McCarthy! McCarthy! I think if one were to read nothing but McCarthy and Palahniuk then therapy would be in order.
I'll probably end up picking up Finn (even though I'm worried when a book is called a tour de force...eek!). Damn! That means I'm probably gonna have to reread Tom Sawyer also because even though I remember a lot more of it than Huck Finn, I'll want a fresh read of it going into Finn. Not that anyone has to ever drag me to Twain...I just have a lot to read right now.I figure, if I'm willing to read March by Geraldine Brooks, to get the father's side of the story (and I probably wouldn't have been so inclined if it hadn't won the Pulitzer), then I could handle reading more about Pap. Finn has gotten some great reviews.
I think if one were to read nothing but McCarthy and Palahniuk then therapy would be in order.It would definitely send up some flags!
Wow, Lori! Great restraint at the Salvo. I've been wanting to read Huck Finn for some time now. I honestly can't remember if I read it when I was young. I know I read Tom Sawyer and loved it. So many books!!!
You don't like him then Jeremy? (LOL). I know what you mean though - although I like him I may have to follow this one with a dose of chick-lit.
Mod
Kirsty, I was in Waterstones today and Marcia Preston's new book (something about Berlin) is on the 3 for 2 and also has a £2.00 off voucher inside. I didn't pick it up yet but wanted to see if you had read anything else by her?
I love Twain. I am patiently waiting until I can get my hands on a copy of The Diaries of Adam and Eve. I'm sure that it will be great!
Well, Boof, in the past 13 months I have read 2 McCarthy's, 2 King's and one Koontz. I must be tapped. And if all goes according to plan, I'll be starting a Palahniuk during lunch break today. (Change of plans. Sorry Mr. Pratchett)
Charity - I had never even heard of that one. What a great premise.
Like you need more on your to-read shelf, I'm sure. :-)
Ahem, which Palahniuk, Jeremy?!?I am LOVING the smell of my book right now. It smells like childhood. It's pretty distracting.
Jen,Thanks for that link...it was great! I'll have to get that book during my next book store excursion.
I loved Snowflower and the Secret Fan, too! I had to reread The Good Earth right after! It's one of my faves and it sooo put me in the mood! It was a great book!
Sorry Charity. Had to step out for a bit. That would be Haunted. (I don't have a copy of Choke yet).
Kathy, I love The Good Earth too. Have you read any other books set in China? I love books from or about here - I have a list on GR's with them on.
Oh man! That's one of the Palahniuk books I don't have...although I'm chomping at the bit to get a copy. The cover is enough to make me want to sit down and read it in on fell swoop. I don't know who does his cover art, but they are a god!!
I forgot how funny this book is...I'm at the part where they make their secret society and they want to ransom somebody but they don't know what ransom means. Ha ha.
Or an anti-God? :)
An ex-colleague of mine (and a one hit wonder at good reads) liked it so I kept my eyes peeled. During my last vacation I went into a cozy little bookstore in North Conway, N.H. (hey Katie) and I thought it was a used bookstore. Well, I was wrong and I had already dropped about $50 at a Borders Express so I found one area of used books where there was a copy Haunted and The Poet by Michael Connolly. It worked out quite well actually.
An ex-colleague of mine (and a one hit wonder at good reads) liked it so I kept my eyes peeled. During my last vacation I went into a cozy little bookstore in North Conway, N.H. (hey Katie) and I thought it was a used bookstore. Well, I was wrong and I had already dropped about $50 at a Borders Express so I found one area of used books where there was a copy Haunted and The Poet by Michael Connolly. It worked out quite well actually.
Are you talking about Huck Finn now?
Um, yeah. Sorry, I have thread ADD.
That is too friqqin hilarious. I don't care what country you're from, that there is funny.
Borders Express? I had never heard of it until the vacay. It is just a small version of Borders, more like a Mr.Paperback only more aesthetically pleasing. No expensive coffee or snacks. I need to see how to open one in my town. I have to drive nearly 1/2 hour to get to A bookstore never mind a major bookstore. It is pathetic. Ok, I don't count Walmart as a bookstore.
Do you do a lot of online shopping?
Good point. I use Amazon mostly although I do like Powells, Logan! I am going to check out some of the sites people have been mentioning here. Severaly years back I found a great Steinbeck collection on EBay and a nice boxed set of 20th century women authors.
What are called Borders Express these days were formerly known as Waldenbooks until six or seven years ago. Then Borders ate that smaller chain and turned them into Borders Express stores. They always make me think of fast food books, which is just plain wrong. Give me a bookstore owned by a crotchety old recluse that smells vaguely of mildew and mothballs any day.Jeremy, Palahniuk is one of my favorite authors but Haunted stands out to me as a mediocre book at best. I enjoyed, as always, his social commentary about people's desire to win fame through their suffering but felt like he just went overboard trying to shock the reader. I think it was Macy who was saying that a great sociological essay could be written about people's favorite Tom Robbins book- I think the same could be applied to Palahniuk.
I am very leery of books recontextualizing other author's characters. Is it really too much to ask for a writer to think up their own character instead of riding on the coattails of their betters? It's not just this Finn book, but the Mr. Darcy books as well. There are probably some other examples that I can't remember right now, but I think it's a bit disturbing.
Charity, I really liked March and getting the dad's side of the story. I think Geraldine Brooks is a fabulous writer. I don't think you will be disappointed.
We still have Waldenbooks in Columbus. No Borders Express though.Your thoughts on Finn mirror my own. I have been extremely nervous about March which is why I didn't rush right out to buy it when it won the Pulitzer. I'm afraid that these books will ruin some childhood favorites for me.
I've read somewhere that some think Palahniuk goes for shock value. I guess I'll have to read it to find out. I'll let you know how it strikes me. One of the reasons I like him so much even though I have only read one of his books (Diary) and seen but not read Fight Club (had no idea at the time that it was based on a book) is that I like to write and the stuff I come up with approaches his twistedness and darkness. I'm not saying I'll ever publish, just that I think I am in that genre minus the shock value and perhaps the ability to provide in depth social commentary.
I simply love Borders. I didn't know the history of Borders Express, but the fast food comparison does not work for me. Books are still books no matter where you buy them. I don't know how many new bookstores went out of business because of Borders, but I see used bookstores everywhere I go, so it doesn't appear to have affected that market. I was a little peeved when Borders teamed up with Amazon and I am glad to see that is not happening anymore.
I agree about an author using other characters. But if someone is avid enough to have read and re-read all of Twain's works and study his life in-depth, perhaps it is not so bad to try to carry on a legend (not that Twain's legend would not carry on by itself).
I simply love Borders. I didn't know the history of Borders Express, but the fast food comparison does not work for me. Books are still books no matter where you buy them. I don't know how many new bookstores went out of business because of Borders, but I see used bookstores everywhere I go, so it doesn't appear to have affected that market. I was a little peeved when Borders teamed up with Amazon and I am glad to see that is not happening anymore.
I agree about an author using other characters. But if someone is avid enough to have read and re-read all of Twain's works and study his life in-depth, perhaps it is not so bad to try to carry on a legend (not that Twain's legend would not carry on by itself).
Jeremy, I totally agree with your thoughts on Palahniuk. As a very haphazard writer myself, the things that tumble out of my head tend to remind me of a rough draft of a Palahniuk book (at least in my dreams they do). He belongs to a triumvirate of authors that I think have done the most for shockingly insane writing. The other two are Irvine Welsh and Bret Easton Ellis. I can think of no other authors that have tapped that vein of insanity and surrealism as well as they have.
In my (limited) experience, used bookstores rely on the chains & major publishing houses as much as the chains & major publishing houses rely on the used bookseller.*People are able to sell back books that they buy through the retailers.
*Chains & publishing houses are able to unload 'hurt' and 'remainder' titles that they would have otherwise had to take a bath on.
*Used booksellers are able to carry 'new' copies of books that might be slightly irregular (dented or torn cover, etc.) or with a remainder mark at a fraction of the price of the major retailers.
It is usually good for business all around. However, mom-and-pop NEW book retailers are probably suffering because they don't get to offer the books at discounts like the major retailers and they generally don't have the selection. Most end up converting to a used & new concept to be competitive.
Boof! The envy! I would love a month to just get intoxicated in books. Finding them,reading them and still get paid! Let me know how it goes before you go back to work. Its like having a book spa month...lol
Oh no! Two more authors! Do you get much of a chance to write? I need to really buckle down now that baseball season is winding down. I found this quarterly online writing contest that gives 24 hours to write a short story based on a prompt. Apparently, I will never win the darn thing, but it forces me to get something down on paper that I can then expand upon in the future. And so far, it is has been some pretty weird stuff...maybe that is why I can't win!
I don't have a memory of many mom and pop new bookstores prior to Borders. Then again, I live in hicksville, USA. But we used to have a lot of small hardware stores prior to Depot and Lowes that went by the wayside. I am not drawing the same parallel. Also, Borders seems to want employees that love books and music. Although Home Depot probably prefers home repair and gardening lovers, I don't think that is their average employee.
I don't have a memory of many mom and pop new bookstores prior to Borders. Then again, I live in hicksville, USA. But we used to have a lot of small hardware stores prior to Depot and Lowes that went by the wayside. I am not drawing the same parallel. Also, Borders seems to want employees that love books and music. Although Home Depot probably prefers home repair and gardening lovers, I don't think that is their average employee.
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The Next Best Book Club
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Not to throw a wrench into your plan, but have you read Hosseini's A Thousand Spendid Suns. Just as good as Kite Runner and every bit as gruesome at times, but worth it.
Loved the Potter world as well. Am thinking of going back to 1 and starting again. The first books are so filled with great moments of sarcasm and adult humor.
Linda