Books on the Nightstand discussion
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Ann
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Jun 18, 2009 05:53AM
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I love Melissa's idea about books you once hated and then love later (and maybe vice versa). It speaks to this notion of reading as dynamic, a two-way relationship that evolves and changes as we evolve and change.
Book pairings can be really good for discussions -- at least in online groups -- I've not experienced such in an in-person group. That would make an excellent episode, I think.
I don't know if it gets to be called a pairing if three books are involved but my favorite linked reading was West with the Night by Beryl Markham, Out of Africa by Isak Dinesen and White Mischief by James Fox. They are all about the same group of people - Kenya in the days of the empire - from three different points of view. My favorite fun fact is that both Beryl Markham and Karen Blixen said that Dennis Finch Hadden was headed to them when his plane went down.dottie M.
Oh boy -- I'm going to add White Mischief to my list to read when I reread Out of Africa -- which I was already planning to pair with Markham's book when I reread. So now I get two new experiences with my second visit with Dinesen! Thanks, Dottie -- nice name, BTW ;)
This reminded me of a multiple book reading experience in which I participated with Constant Reader people years ago, long before we landed here on Goodreads. The Reading List (which I don't believe was even labeled that at the time) read J.B.:A Play in Verse by MacLeish while Classics Corner read The Book of Job in the Bible -- and then several of us also read Kushner's When Bad Things Happen to Good People and Elaine Pagels' The Gnostic Gospels -- and there may have been another one. That was quite a merry, rousing book-go-round -- one I'll always remember, certainly.
Have you ever talked about books that may be more easily appreciated in their audio form than than on the printed page? I've found audio books to be helpful with older books, like those by Dickens, where it takes a while to get into the older writing style. I'm not much into mysteries and thrillers, so other recommendations of books that are well suited to audio would be appreciated.
Irene wrote: "Have you ever talked about books that may be more easily appreciated in their audio form than than on the printed page? I've found audio books to be helpful with older books, like those by Dickens,..."
That's a good idea -- I've had trouble listening to fiction audiobooks, but better luck with non-fiction.
That's a good idea -- I've had trouble listening to fiction audiobooks, but better luck with non-fiction.
The production quality and the narrator determine whether or not I'll listen to an audiobook or goto the print edition; But I am fortunate to have that choice.
That said, I avoid non-fiction in audiobooks if only for the simple reason they very often include graphics, illustrations and/or maps that I like to refer to as I am reading the text. While I've seen some audiobook publishers put the graphics online, it's not something I can look into while driving and; they are more disruptive to the listening experience than even endnotes are to the reading experience.
I find that audiobooks in the Classics category tend to work well, especially if the titles are re-reads. Serials tend to work well in audio, but only if the narrator remains constant.
That said, I avoid non-fiction in audiobooks if only for the simple reason they very often include graphics, illustrations and/or maps that I like to refer to as I am reading the text. While I've seen some audiobook publishers put the graphics online, it's not something I can look into while driving and; they are more disruptive to the listening experience than even endnotes are to the reading experience.
I find that audiobooks in the Classics category tend to work well, especially if the titles are re-reads. Serials tend to work well in audio, but only if the narrator remains constant.
A few books that I couldn't imagine NOT having listened to on audio, mostly because they are read (wonderfully) by the author: EAT PRAY LOVE by Elizabeth Gilbert; DREAMS FROM MY FATHER by Barack Obama (you get to hear the President using profanity and doing accents, it's kind of a hoot); and THE HOUSE AT SUGAR BEACH by Helene Cooper. All of these are memoirs read by the authors. Anne Lamott's books are fun to listen to as well (when she is the reader).Jeremy Irons doing LOLITA was amazing. And an audio book of Arundhati Roy's THE GOD OF SMALL THINGS was terrific--wish I could remember the company that produced it, the reader was British-Indian. Books that center around a non-Western culture are often good candidates for audio books because of accents and foreign words.
Jeremy Irons is almost always a sure sell for me in considering an audio book. I don't know what it is about his voice, but he always knocks it out of the park.
Have you done guilty pleasure books? The ones you want to hide as you're reading them? What about books with book lists? I have recently purchased three, and LOVE collecting these.
Thanks for the great suggestions for audio books. I agree that the reader can make or break a book. I didn't realize Dreams From My Father was read by Obama. That's at the top of my list of audio books to look for. I just remembered one that I listened to ages ago and loved. It was called The White Nile. It was about the many expeditions that tried to find the source of the Nile in Africa. Hilarious, in many ways. All these English adventurers would ship off to Zanzibar with piles of food from Fortnum and Mason and all kinds of other civilized stuff. They'd need to hire dozens of porters to help them carry it all off into the wilderness for them. Invariably, the porters would quit in three or four days, leaving the Englishmen (and frequently their stoic wives) tramping though jungle and swamp on lean rations. I won't spoil the ending by saying who found it or how it was done, but it was a mystery for quite a long time.
Another genre is muslim (religion or culture) literature, I know I haven't read too much and realize I don't even have a good idea of "classics" from that genre. Any suggestions? I realize that I'm a few months late but I just saw this post of yours, Krista. I was an Arabic major in school (I can't do much more than order food, alas.) But I took an Arab literature class and I'd like to add these to Ann's suggestions:
THE STORY OF ZAHRA (also by Hanan Al-Shaykh) about a woman during the fall of Beirut
BEIRUT '75 by Ghadah Samman about the prelude to the fall of Beirut
WOMAN AT POINT ZERO by Nawal Al-Saadawi (who is a famous Egyptian physician and feminist who has at times had to flee Egypt to avoid arrest) is about an abused woman who becomes a prostitute and kills her pimp.
THE OPEN DOOR by Latifah al-Zayyat is about an Egyptian girl who finds her identity during Egypt's battle for independence from Britain. And is the only really cheerful story in the bunch.
Enough thread-jacking. Arabic literature is a topic near to my heart.
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Wow! I just listened to the new podcast and I heard you mention my name and idea! Thank you! I am very interested in hearing what books people hated in school, but loved later. We bring so much of our own experiences to the books that we read, that sometimes it isn't the quality of the book that keeps us from connecting, it is the moment in our lives that we encounter the book. Thank you for the audio book picks. I've been meaning to purchase the new David Sedaris book, but I think now that I will get the audio version.
It was a great idea Melissa. I'm calling with my own pick and I can't wait to hear others. An ongoing dialogue between myself and a friend is how they shouldn't force books on teenagers who can't appreciate them yet. I say it plants a seed they'll appreciate later, he says it makes them hate classic literature forever.
I don't know if anyone has suggested this yet, but the movie podcasts I am also addicted to often talk about "method movie-going". What if you did an episode on method book-reading and activities/travel people engage in/embark upon after being inspired by a book? For example, if you read Julie and Julia 365 Days, 524 Recipes, 1 Tiny Apartment Kitchen, maybe you decided to tackle the same feat. This might be a good call-in topic, but I don't know what kind of response you would get.
Idea #2 of the day: Books we re-readI often grapple with this because there are SO many books on my TBR shelf but I have so many favorites I want to get back to (it has been 4 years since I read East of Eden and I really want to read it again!) I often wonder if other book nuts have this same problem, and which books do we want to go back to over and over again?
Stephanie wrote: "I don't know if anyone has suggested this yet, but the movie podcasts I am also addicted to often talk about "method movie-going". What if you did an episode on method book-reading and activities/t..."
That's a good idea. I haven't followed through on anything, but I have had the "desire" to follow through on "projects" I have read about -- Julie & Julia is one of them, also Good Book LP The Bizarre, Hilarious, Disturbing, Marvelous, and Inspiring Things I Learned When I Read Every Single Word of the Bible by David Plotz, and pretty much every travel book that I've read.
That's a good idea. I haven't followed through on anything, but I have had the "desire" to follow through on "projects" I have read about -- Julie & Julia is one of them, also Good Book LP The Bizarre, Hilarious, Disturbing, Marvelous, and Inspiring Things I Learned When I Read Every Single Word of the Bible by David Plotz, and pretty much every travel book that I've read.
Stephanie wrote: "Idea #2 of the day: Books we re-read
I often grapple with this because there are SO many books on my TBR shelf but I have so many favorites I want to get back to (it has been 4 years since I read ..."
I so want to re-read The Handmaid's Tale again after hearing Ann speak about it in this week's podcast (it's one of my favorite books ever, as well, and I have a copy signed by Margaret Atwood so it's also one of my most prized possessions), but I feel like I am neglecting my TBR shelves (yes,plural - one is fiction and one is non-fiction and they are both full).
My husband says that I will never finish all the books on the TBR shelves before I die; I just tell him that I accept his challenge and that he will be stuck with me until then....
I often grapple with this because there are SO many books on my TBR shelf but I have so many favorites I want to get back to (it has been 4 years since I read ..."
I so want to re-read The Handmaid's Tale again after hearing Ann speak about it in this week's podcast (it's one of my favorite books ever, as well, and I have a copy signed by Margaret Atwood so it's also one of my most prized possessions), but I feel like I am neglecting my TBR shelves (yes,plural - one is fiction and one is non-fiction and they are both full).
My husband says that I will never finish all the books on the TBR shelves before I die; I just tell him that I accept his challenge and that he will be stuck with me until then....
Suzanne wrote: "Stephanie wrote: "Idea #2 of the day: Books we re-readI often grapple with this because there are SO many books on my TBR shelf but I have so many favorites I want to get back to (it has been 4..."
That is in my top 5 of all-time. Love that book.
Stephanie wrote: "Idea #2 of the day: Books we re-readI often grapple with this because there are SO many books on my TBR shelf but I have so many favorites I want to get back to (it has been 4 years since I read ..."
I have this problem as well. I own over 200 books TBR and there are a lot more that I want to read. So when a book hits me and I want to re-read it, I never get to doing that.
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Now I want to reread Handmaid's Tale but I still have The Blind Assassin on my TBR pile. I once worried aloud that I would die before I finished all of the books I want to read, and my husband replied, "Don't worry, dear. For you, heaven will be one endless library."
There's a quote by someone famous that goes something like, "I have always believed Heaven to be a kind of library." Would that it is so...
I think that maybe you guys should do a show or a segment on required summer reading for students - it could be either a whole show (because I think that there is enough to talk about depending on the ages/grades of the reader) or split up by segment into many shows (one show you look at recommended/required reading for sixth and seventh graders, the next week for 8th graders etc.).
I like the idea of focusing on different cultures or parts of the world. I generally like books about India, especially those by Indian authors (although the Raj Quartet was great, too). Other favorites are about Africa (Laurens va der Post and Isak Dinesen come to mind.) And almost everything by Australian writers.
How many animal lovers are out there? Enough to do a topic on books where animals are central-- like Watership Down, Horse Heaven, The Art of Racing in the Rain, etc?
I love animals, but I don't like to read many animal-themed books. They always die at the end, and I get depressed.
a show about good YA books that aren't just for YA'ssince I'm not, age wise anyway
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Rita: we did one podcast episode of YA books that aren't just for young adults (episode #14) but I'm gearing up for another.... That was the first BOTNS podcast I ever listened to-an odd choice for me in retrospect as I YA lit is not really my thing and I haven't even read the Harry Potter books. Nevertheless, I have "City of Ember" and "The Hunger Games" on my to read lists now.
Ann, I would be interested in knowing how and why some books are labeled YA. I LOVED The Book Thief, and although the herione is a young girl, the language and themes are certainly adult. A number of years ago, I read Jim the Boy, and it was in the fiction section of the bookstore. I spotted it the other day, and it had been moved to the YA section. Does the publisher decide where to shelve the book? Does the bookseller? Does the author have any say?
Melissa wrote: "Ann, I would be interested in knowing how and why some books are labeled YA. I LOVED The Book Thief, and although the herione is a young girl, the language and themes are certainly adult. A number ..."
I can't recall where I saw the interview, but I remember reading somewhere that "The Book Thief" was originally written and published (in Australia) as an adult title and; that Marcus Zusak was very surprised to see it marketed as a YA title in the USA. I can only speculate that the agency that purchased the rights to distribute the title in the US were the ones to market it as a YA title.
I can't recall where I saw the interview, but I remember reading somewhere that "The Book Thief" was originally written and published (in Australia) as an adult title and; that Marcus Zusak was very surprised to see it marketed as a YA title in the USA. I can only speculate that the agency that purchased the rights to distribute the title in the US were the ones to market it as a YA title.
I just got done reading The Accidental Bestseller by Wendy Wax and it got me thinking about the publishing world (i.e. how to publize a book to generate buzz and even the cover art and how it can make a book more interesting or something you might pass over). Maybe you could do a segment on the buzz generated over certain books and whether or not the hype lives up to the actual book when it comes out - The Lost Symbol comes to mind - and one on the best cover art for a book and whether or not it influences your purchase - just a thought...keep up the good work!
This would be a great filler topic that would probably be of interest to many readers, would be great for voicemails, and now that you're weekly could become a more regular thing. You both often mention authors you like, but what about more of a spotlight? Tell us more about them, about the types of books they write, and about your favorites. Maybe people could call in to chime in about the featured author, or talk about favorite authors in general.
A new subject: Hyped, Over-hyped and "where's the hype?!" books, I concur! I nominate: Hype: The Thirteenth Tale, Over-hype: Harry Potter series, Where's the hype: Orxy and Crake by Atwood. I will try to call in some commentary on these books... um... sometime soon ;-)
Dottie wrote: "Oh boy -- I'm going to add White Mischief to my list to read when I reread Out of Africa -- which I was already planning to pair with Markham's book when I reread. So now I get two new experience..."Dottie, I think you should add to your White Mischief/Out of Africa pairing... THE BOLTER by Frances Osborne. That would be prefect!
Ann wrote: "Rita: we did one podcast episode of YA books that aren't just for young adults (episode #14) but I'm gearing up for another...."This prompted me to download all of the podcasts and listen to them in order so I can see what I've been missing. Boy I'm glad I did.
Alexandra wrote: "Ann wrote: "Rita: we did one podcast episode of YA books that aren't just for young adults (episode #14) but I'm gearing up for another...."oh good. I love YA books and would love some new recomm..."
RAMPANT is supposed to be out at the beginning of September. I read it last spring... it was a pretty amusing read (I'd put it more toward the category of guilty-pleasure YA reading instead of I'd-recommend-this-to-every-adult-I-know YA reading). One heads up on it though: the publisher has put ages 12+ in its marketing and there are a few content issues that... well, I wouldn't give it to my 12 year old niece. Definitely an older teen book.
While you're waiting for it, another guilty pleasure YA series of the supernatural vein that I really enjoy is the Maggie Quinn: Girl Vs Evil series by Rosemary Clement-Moore (1st one is Prom Dates from Hell)... good for fans of Buffy. Very snarky, sarcastic, with not-so-subtle plays on things like "the sorority turns out to be a cult of evil witches"... you know the type.
Since Halloween is my all-time favorite holiday, I would love an episode about creepy, suspenseful books that aren't all about the blood and the violence. Last year, I loved listening to The Historian on audiobook--I don't think I would have made it through the printed version.
Books That Get You Out of a Reading Slump
It happens every once in a while, maybe even chronically... There are times when nothing appeals to you or you start a succession of books and nothing takes. What was the book that got you out of your reading slump ?or; What kind of book do you turn to when you're in a reading slump? or; What impetus (a book challenge, a movie...) got you back into reading action?
It happens every once in a while, maybe even chronically... There are times when nothing appeals to you or you start a succession of books and nothing takes. What was the book that got you out of your reading slump ?or; What kind of book do you turn to when you're in a reading slump? or; What impetus (a book challenge, a movie...) got you back into reading action?
Tanya - what a fabulous idea! I'd be really curious to see which books people have found to lift them out of the slump.
How about chick lit books. While some of them aren't literary masterpieces they are often quite entertaining. One of my favorite authors in this genre is Marian Keyes.
Ann wrote: "Anything you're dying to hear about?We're planning our "editorial calendar" for the rest of the year, and wanted to solicit your ideas.
We have some big plans, and hopefully the time to impl..."
Hi Ann and Michael, love the weekly podcast - Please forgive me if you have already discussed, just some ideas I have been thinking of:
books about only children! Seriously, this may sound silly but I keep reading novels, memoirs about families, can you recommend some for the only child?
books by narrator- for example, books narrated by animals - I am reading "The Art of Racing in The Rain" right now, and find it charming from the dogs perspective, do you know of any others?
mystery series - I have made online book friends and they love Ian Pears - I believe that is the author. So can you name some mystery series - maybe we could do a mystery series challenge, each week/month complete one thru however many are in a series
That's all for now, back to reading "Cutting For Stone" on the final 100 pages, it has been a great book and I am reading it because you suggested, great suggestion! Thank you for working hard to keep us all informed on what is out there!
you wrote: books by narrator- for example, books narrated by animals - I am reading "The Art of Racing in The Rain" right now, and find it charming from the dogs perspective, do you know of any others?Try Dog on it by Spencer Quinn (actually Peter Abrahams). It is a Bernie and Chet mystery - narrator is Chet who is a dog.
dottie
Dottie wrote: "you wrote: books by narrator- for example, books narrated by animals - I am reading "The Art of Racing in The Rain" right now, and find it charming from the dogs perspective, do you know of any ot..."thanks Dottie, will check it out
Dottie wrote:..."The Art of Racing in The Rain" right now, and find it charming from the dogs perspective, do you know of any others"AMAZING GRACIE!...based on a true story.
Books on the Nightstand
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