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November 2007
Are we reading less? Or more?
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Uh-oh. According to a new report by the National Endowment for the Arts, Americans are reading less. And less well.
At this rate, we won’t be able to read the channel guide on Comcast.
The report, “To Read or Not to Read,” gathers statistics from more than 40 studies. Less than one-third of 13-year-olds are daily readers, a sizable decrease in recent years, and among 17-year-olds, non-readers have doubled in 20 years.
And of course, the Pit Bull of Reading Stats: Young Americans average two hours a day of TV watching, and only seven minutes of leisure time on reading.
That ain’t good.
At about the same time, though, the Association of American Publishers reported that book sales this year are tracking about 10 percent ahead of last year. Year-to-date adult hardcover were up almost 15 percent, and year-to-date children’s and young adult sales were up 63 percent. (Cough. Harry Potter. Cough.)
But even factoring out Mr. Potter, we’re buying books at a record clip.
So which is it? Are we in a Golden Age of Books, or the Dark Ages of Reading? Do these two announcements contradict each other? What’s going on? Any theories?
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Who else wants to feel dumb?
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
The New York Times prints its list of 100 Notable Books of 2007 on Sunday in the Book Review, but already has it up on the web here. I made the mistake of running down the list to see how many of the books I had read, and it was four.
Four books out of 100!
I know it’s just one list, and one that tends a little bit toward volumes like “The Collected Poems 1956-1998” by Zbigniew Herbert, which I’m sure is a real page-turner. And since it’s a collaborative list from the editors, I would guess that nobody has read all of them.
But still. I pride myself on being well-read, and four out of 100 cannot be viewed as anything other than abysmal.
Are there any brave souls who care to go through the list and tell how many of these books they have read? On a broader topic, do you do this — compare yourself to some arbitrary standard and then feel great when you beat or lousy when you don’t?
Permalink | Comments (12) | Categories: News and Reviews
J.K. Rowling as Entertainer of the Year
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Entertainment Weekly magazine has named author J.K. Rowling as “Entertainer of the Year,” which is pretty cool, because it’s the first time in the 17 years they’ve been doing that that they have chosen a novelist for the top spot.
The honor has gone to actors, singers, even cartoon characters (Bart Simpson), but never to an author, which indicates, really, how little influence authors have on the huge juggernaut that is the Entertainment-Industrial Complex.
EW notes all the usual numbers, like the 400 million Harry Potter books sold worldwide, and has a decent critical overview of the seven-book series, which will surely be known for years as one of the great events in both children’s literature and fantasy literature.
But here’s what caught my eye: “In an era of videogame consoles, online multiplayer “environments,” and tinier-is-better mobisodes, minisodes and webisodes, she got people to tote around big, old-fashioned, printed-on-paper books as if they were the hottest new entertainment devices on the planet.”
So hooray for books, and one more hooray for Rowling, who doesn’t need the acclaim, but deserves it nonetheless.
Here’s a link to EW’s Rowling piece online.
Did EW get it right? Is Rowling overrated as an author? What do you think?
Permalink | Comments (12) | Categories: News and Reviews
Tell me about the Camel Club
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
You can’t read everything. No matter how much you want to.
So even the best-read person has honkin’ holes in his or her book smarts.
One of mine is David Baldacci, who’s in Atlanta tonight at the Margaret Mitchell House (details here), talking about and signing his latest thriller, “Stone Cold.” It just debuted at No. 1 on the New York Times fiction best-seller list, which I’m not naive enough to believe is a guarantee of literary quality, but which does make you pay attention if you’re curious about books.
I like thrillers, of many stripes, and some minimal Googling tells me that Baldacci is writing a series of novels about a group of good guys called The Camel Club who foil various bad guys.
Normally I pontificate on this blog, but today I’m asking you, in humble cluelessness: Is Baldacci worth my time? Why? To whom would you compare him? Which book should I start on? (There’s nothing worse that starting a series on the wrong book.)
Permalink | Comments (5) | Categories: Atlanta Events
7-Day Author Forecast for Nov. 26-Dec. 2
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Nov. 26
Cal Thomas and Bob Beckel. “Common Ground: How to Stop the Partisan War That is Destroying America.” 7 p.m. at the Jimmy Carter Library and Museum. Thomas is a conservative. Beckel is a liberal. They have co-written a book in which the idea is not to shred the opponent. I like the idea.
Nov. 27
David Baldacci. “Stone Cold.” 6 p.m. at the Margaret Mitchell House. Free to members, $10 for non-members. The latest thriller from the best-selling author of “The Collectors.” For those who know Baldacci, all you need to know is that the Camel Club is back. That was enough to make it debut at No. 1 on the Times best-seller list.
Richard H. Sams. “Atlanta is Ours: The Plot to Capture Sherman.” 7 p.m. at the DeKalb History Center in the old courthouse on Decatur Square. Sams, a long-time Decatur resident, discusses his new book, which imagines what might have happened if Sherman had been captured by the Confederates. I can guess - he would not have been happy.
Nov. 28
Georgina Howell. “Gertrude Bell: Queen of the Desert, Shaper of Nations. 7 p.m. at the Michael C. Carlos Museum, Emory University. British journalist has written a biography of the “female Lawrence of Arabia.”
Dec. 1
Ron Greer. “Markings on the Windowsill: A Book About Grief That’s Really About Hope.” 9 a.m.-12 noon at Evans Hall, Agnes Scott College, Decatur. Part of the “Women Alone Together” series. Reservations: 404-769-3228.
Sidney Perkowitz. “Hollywood Science.” 7:30 p.m. at Wordsmith Books, Decatur. Emory physicist discusses the portrayal of science in movies. It’s … alive!!!
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What author woud you like to thank?
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
What author has given you the most pleasure in your life?
Yeah, I know, it’s an easy way to do a Thanksgiving blog. But giving it a moment’s thought might actually put you in the proper spirit of gratitude.
The question isn’t who wrote the best book. It’s the author you would most like to say “Thank you” to if you had the chance.
I thought about it, and decided mine was Dr. Seuss. Good old Theodore Geisel, author of 44 children’s books. When I was pre-literate, my parents read me all the Dr. Seuss books, repeatedly, until I had memorized nearly all of them. And not just “Grinch” and “Cat in the Hat.” I’m talking “The 500 Hats of Bartholomew Cubbins,” books like that. Serious Seussery.
When I became a parent, I read all the Seuss books to my daughter. In some cases, literally the very same books. I still have them, somewhere in a box, books my father bought, all battered and colored-in but very readable. I hope I see the day when I read them to my grandchild.
Thank you, Dr. Seuss.
What author would you like to thank?
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World’s Worst Book Title winner
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Well, folks, we had a squeaker in the vote for World’s Worst Book Title ever. But the Supreme Court was called in for an emergency ruling, and by a 5-4 vote they declared George Bush to be the winner.
No, wait. Wrong vote. The winner was “Cooking With Pooh,” which is a real book from Disney. It barely beat out “Letting It Go: a History of American Incontinence,” “The Stray Shopping Carts of Eastern North America: A Guide to Field Identification” (which I think maybe some people did not realize is also a real book) and “Everything You’ll Need to Remember About Alzheimer’s.”
It was submitted by Chris, whom I am getting in touch with so I can send him his/her reward, my personal, slightly dog-eared copy of “Bizarre Books” that started this whole thing. Plus I’ve got that new Borat book sitting on my desk and if Chris wants that, he/she’s welcome to it. Clearly, as of this posting I don’t even know if Chris is male or female. Sorry, Chris.
But congratulations for suggesting the World’s Worst Book Title.
Does anyone have any more book-related contest ideas? I’m open to suggestion.
And Happy Thanksgiving to all.
Permalink | Comments (26) | Categories: Contests
What’s on your to-do list?
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Some people never make to-do lists. Some people live by them.
But no matter where you stand on lists in your own life, you’ll get a kick out of the new book “to-do list,” by Sasha Cagen. Subtitle: “From Buying Milk to Finding a Soul Mate, What Our Lists Reveal About Us.”
Cagen, who lives in San Francisco, has collected a wide variety of lists through her blog, ranging from the usual hum-drum stuff (“clean shower floor,” “hole punch”) to the big Life Lists (“break the sound barrier,” “throw a hand grenade” … hmm, wonder what gender that lister is?) to the TMI (a woman’s list of men she has slept with).
To non-listers, the whole to-do list thing can sound a bit obsessive-compulsive, but Cagen helpfully includes a chapter on obsessive-compulsive lists, so we can see the real McOCD.
There’s the occasional celebrity (Nick Hornby’s list of desert-island CDs). Most are anonymous/first name only but a few brave souls let their names be used. They’re on my list of people braver than me.
I’m a small-l lister. This year, for the first time, I’m listing every book I read during the calendar year. Not for this blog, just because I just wanted to look back at the end of the year and think about all those books again. I’ve started my list of Christmas gift suggestions for loved ones — how do you survive without one? And I have my own little Life List tucked away — stuff I hope to do before I die.
How about you? Do you make lists, other than grocery? What kind? Care to share?
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7-Day Author Forecast for Nov. 19-25
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Nov. 19
Brock Clarke. “An Arsonist’s Guide to Writers’ Homes in New England.” 6:30 p.m. at Wordsmith Books in Decatur. With DJ Hacks and music by Sealions. Clarke’s novel is a comic romp that skewers a lot of literary pretensions and shows a major gift. Clarke (pictured above) is so talented I wished the novel was even better, but I enjoyed it thoroughly.
Chris Matthews. Life’s a Campaign: What Politics Has Taught Me About Friendship, Rivalry, a Reputation and Success.” 7 p.m. at the Jimmy Carter Library and Museum. The host of MSNBC’s “Hardball,” well-known for his pathological shyness, signs his new book.
Nov. 25
Jan Karon. “Home to Holly Springs.” 1 p.m. at Borders in Marietta. It’s the popular author’s second stop in metro Atlanta promoting her new book, which shows how popular she is here.
Permalink | | Categories: Atlanta Events
Vote for World’s Worst Book Title
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
The nominees for World’s Worst Book Title came in, and boy, some people’s minds are really in the gutter.
I said to keep it PG-rated, and nearly everyone did, but the amount of potty humor and innuendo was still pretty high. Still, I waded in and selected 10 that I thought were most worthy. I tried to get some that weren’t in the nudge-nudge-wink-wink category, which was hard. And I ended up with a mix of real and invented titles. My quick research shows that three of these are real books, although I’m not identifying which ones. Just vote for whatever floats your boat as the World’s Worst Book Title.
Voting will remain open until midnight Tuesday Nov. 20, and I will announce the winner on Nov. 21.
Our Top 10, in no particular order:
“Cooking With Pooh”
“Who Drooled on My Shoulder? A Guide to Sleeping Well on Trans-Atlantic Flights”
“Ennui for Dummies”
“Everything You’ll Need to Remember About Alzheimer’s”
“Curious George and the High Voltage Fence”
“Letting It Go: a History of American Incontinence”
“The Stray Shopping Carts of Eastern North America: A Guide to Field Identification”
“The Joy of Uncircumcising!”
“Daddy Drinks Because You Cry”
“Coming Out: A Transsexual Debutante’s Surprise to the South”
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Oprah lifts up Ken Follett, all 973 pages
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Talk about hitting the lit-lottery. Ken Follett is the latest recipient of Oprah Winfrey’s magic book-club pixie dust, and to make it even better, she sprinkled it on him at the beginning of the Christmas shopping season.
Oprah tapped Follett’s 973-page cinder-block-sized novel “The Pillars of the Earth,” which was published in 1989. It’s a big story set in 12th century England, about the building of a cathedral and the families and characters who take several generations to raise it up.
Follett, a 58-year-old Welshman, first became famous for his thrillers such as “Eye of the Needle,” a much leaner and meaner book than “Pillars.” (According to wikipedia, his publisher was nervous about the book.) I haven’t read “Pillars” (although I think my Well-Read Wife knocked it off a while ago), but I loved “Needle” and some of Follett’s earlier stuff.
But here’s the question. Even with the Oprah imprimatur, even though it’s a reader-friendly book, do even avid bibliophiles have the time or inclination to tackle a 973-page book?
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“What is the What” is all that
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Dave Eggers’ fine, fine book “What is the What” just came out in paperback. If you missed it last year, now is your chance to go out and read a truly world-expanding book.
“What” is a cross between a novel and an autobiography. The novelistic technique belongs to Eggers, the high-profile wunderkind who wrote “A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius” (a similar hybrid). The autobiography part belongs to Valentino Achak Deng, one of the Lost Boys of Sudan, who survived a childhood of staggering deprivation and cruelty, and eventually wound up, along with many of his young countrymen, in Atlanta. (He has since moved on.)
When I reviewed it for the AJC last year, I decided the best way to showcase its beauty was to shut up and quote. Read this passage, slowly, and try to listen rather than just read:
“On that day and in the days to come, when a boy was going to die, he would first stop talking. His throat would be too dry and to speak required too much energy. Then his eyes would sink deeper, circled in ever-darker shadows. He would no longer answer to his name. His walk would slow, his feet shuffling, and he would be among the boys who would rest longer. Eventually a dying boy would find a tree, and he would sit against the tree and fall asleep. When his head touched the tree, the life in him would fall away and his flesh would return to the earth.”
Eggers met with Deng in Atlanta for three years and wrote his story from their taped conversations. But he invented some scenes that didn’t happen to Deng, and Deng’s memories, particularly as a very young boy in horrific circumstances, are spotty.
My quibbles are purely about marketing. I thought and still think the title is terrible — it comes from a Sudanese fable Deng’s father tells early in the book and is sort of like a Zen koan, a question in which the unsolvability of the riddle is the point. But it doesn’t lure people to pick up the book. Neither does the cover.
But that doesn’t touch the artistry that Eggers brings to Deng’s story. I really recommend this book.
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Where’s Elvis when you need him?
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
The New York Times reports that Borders bookstores are installing 37-inch flat-screen TV sets to show “original programming, advertisements, news and weather.”
The Times quotes George L. Jones, chief executive of the Borders Group, who says the TV sets are “not designed to be intrusive.”
Yeah, and I’m George Clooney.
I realize that Borders megastores, like Barnes & Nobles, with their coffee shops and occasional childrens’ activities, are not always tomblike in terms of silence. They are temples of commerce, not scholarship.
But TV sets showing news and ads? In a bookstore? Am I the only one who just finds this idea utterly repulsive? I still haven’t accepted the darn CNN Airport channel blaring non-stop in every passenger lounge at Hartsfield-Jackson, blasting me with the latest Britney doings while I’m trying to read.
So who wants to fulminate along with me? Post what you think of Borders putting TV sets in its stores, and I’ll find someone at corporate PR at Borders and send them your comments.
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Philip Pullman talks about “Compass” controversy
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
The controversy over “The Golden Compass,” Philip Pullman’s fantasy novel, which is coming out as a movie Dec. 7, got a lot of interest on this blog last week. Now Pullman is appearing in a series of videos on Youtube in which he addresses his take(s) on what’s going on. His questioner is Donna Freitas, author of “Killing the Imposter God,” a new book about Pullman’s “His Dark Materials” trilogy. I’m posting them here because there was so much interest in the topic.
Here is Pullman giving advice to parents.
This is Pullman talking about his agenda.
And Pullman on religion.
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7-Day Author Forecast for Nov. 12-18
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Nov. 12
Vicente Fox “Revolution of Hope.” 7 p.m. at the Jimmy Carter Library. The former president of Mexico discusses and signs his book.
Marcus Zusak “The Book Thief.” 12:30 at the Marcus Jewish Community Center. This is not open to the public, I just thought it was cool. Several hundred local high school kids are going to hear a talk by Zusak about his cult-favorite Holocaust Young Adult novel “The Book Thief.” Each student has to bring a gently used book, which will be donated to homeless kids. Kudos to everyone.
Nov. 13
Ani DiFranco “Verses.” 1 p.m. at Wordsmith Books in Decatur. The beloved singer-songwriter and activist is making a fairly restricted visit to Wordsmith to promote her new collection of poems. She will read from the book and discuss them. She will not sign any autographs, according to Wordsmith. She will not do anything musical, unless maybe she hums under her breath or something. So go in with your expectations at the right level, Ani fans.
Vince Flynn. “Protect and Defend.” At Books a Million, Peachtree City. Flynn’s new thriller is about Iran and a nuclear weapons facility.
Nov. 14
Hank Klibanoff. “The Race Beat: The Press, the Civil Rights Struggle and the Awakening of a Nation.” 6:30 p.m. at the Marcus Jewish Community Center. Winner of this year’s Pulitzer for non-fiction.
Richard Garcia. Poet and storyteller. 12 noon at Burd Center for the Performing Arts, Brenau University. Garcia writes in a narrative style and appeals to a multi-cultural audience. His books include “The Persistence of Objects.”
Nathan Englander. “The Ministry of Special Causes.” 8 p.m at Marcus Jewish Community Center.
Mike Lupica. “Hot Hand” and “Two-Minute Drill.” 7 p.m. at Margaret Mitchell House. Sports columnist for The Daily News introduces a new sports series aimed at middle-school boys.
Hugh Howard and Roger Straus III. “Houses of the Founding Fathers.” 7 p.m. at the Jimmy Carter Library and Museum. Stories and photos of the homes of 40 signers of the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution.
Nov. 15
David W. Blight. “A Slave No More.” 7:15 p.m. at Decatur Library, sponsored by the Georgia Center for the Book. Blight, a Yale history professor and Bancroft Prize-winner, discusses his new book, which presents unpublished slave narratives.
Elizabeth Musser “Searching for Eternity.” 7 p.m. at Margaret Mitchell House. Musser, an Atlanta native, lives in France. This is her sixth novel, and it’s about a French boy who moves to Atlanta in the ’60s.
Nov. 16
Daniel Walker Howe. “What Hath God Wrought: The Transformation of America: 1815-1848.” 7 p.m. at Jimmy Carter Library and Museum. Howe is a professor emeritus at Oxford University. Sponsored by the Georgia Center for the Book.
Permalink | | Categories: Atlanta Events
World’s Worst Book Title contest
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
It’s contest time again, and this time we’re coming up with The World’s Worst Book Title.
I was inspired by a delightful new volume called “Bizarre Books: A Compendium of Classic Oddities” by Russell Ash and Brian Lake. They have assembled an entire book of other book titles, many of them self-published, and/or British, and/or 100 years old, but all of which the authors swear are real books. A sampling:
“Where’s Arthur’s Gerbil?”
“A Pictorial Book of Tongue Coating”
“The Fangs of Suet Pudding”
“Castration: The Advantages and Disadvantages”
“How You Can Bowl Better Using Self-Hypnosis”
“So Your Wife Came Home Speaking in Tongues! So Did Mine!”
So much more interesting than our current best-seller list, don’t you think?
Anyway, I am challenging one and all to come up with the all-time worst book title. It can be a real book, or one you make up. You don’t need to post which it is, either, which will add to the fun. It can be fiction or non-fiction. It should be no naughtier than a PG rating. You may enter more than once, but just don’t overdo it and annoy me. If you’re familiar with the annual Bulwer-Lytton contest for writing a bad opening sentence of a novel, this is in that vein, only presumably easier.
We will accept entries until midnight Nov. 15. Then I will choose what I think are the 10 best, and open up voting. Your votes will decide the winner. One winner will receive my copy of “Bizarre Books,” complete with a few page turndowns (sorry), and a book to be named later. Plus, of course, the rabid envy of the multitudes, which is not to be sneezed at.
Get titling.
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The anti-“Golden Compass” campaign
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
The movie version of Philip Pullman’s fantasy novel “The Golden Compass” comes out Dec. 7, and it’s already attracting controversy like a flannel shirt fresh out. of the dryer. There’s been a lot of activity recently on emails and listserves about the movie and the books. Here’s one piece that’s being forwarded around the Net a lot. I am running it exactly as it is circulating.
Hello Friends,
There will be a new Children’s movie out in December called “The Golden Compass” based on the book called “His Dark Materials” by Phillip Pullman, a proud artist who belongs to secular humanistic societies. He hates C.S. Lewis’s “Chronicle’s of Narnia” and has written a trilogy to show “the other side.” The movie has been dumbed down to fool kids and their parents in the hope that they will buy the book trilogy which Pullman says he wants children to read so they can decide against God and the kingdom of heaven. He was quoted in a 2003 interview as saying “My books are about killing God.” In the end of the trilogy the children kill God and everyone can do as they please. Nicole Kidman stars in the movie so it will probably be heavily marketed. This is just a friendly warning that you are sure not to hear on regular TV. Check out snopes for more information.
That last line refers to the Snopes Urban Legends website, which I have generally found to be pretty reliable in matters like this. Read here what Snopes has to say..
I’d like to get some reaction to this campaign. Have you heard of it? What do you think? Does it make you want to avoid the movie or the book? Are these people representing Pullman accurately?
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Living Biblically: Rules, rules, rules
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
There are Biblical literalists, who believe every word of the Bible is literally true. And then there’s A.J. Jacobs, agnostic Esquire magazine writer, who decided that for one year, he would attempt to follow every single rule or law in the Bible — 700-plus, by his count — from the dietary laws of Leviticus to the teachings of Jesus.
He grew a righteous beard, tithed to charity, avoided work on the Sabbath, stayed away from his wife while she was menstruating, completely revamped his diet, and in one hilariously bizarre sequence, actually tried to stone an adulterer, using pebbles.
During his year-long “lifestyle experiment,” he discovered the reasons behind a lot of the more unusual Biblical injunctions, and wrote his own book, “The Year of Living Bibically,” which is both quite funny and a serious examination of what it means to be a person trying to live a faith in today’s culture.
He’s appearing at the Book Festival of the Marcus Jewish Community Center of Atlanta at 7 p.m. tomorrow (Oct. 8) at Sweetwater Brewery, 194 Ottley Drive, Atlanta. Tickets, including beer-tasting, are $10 for members, $15 for non-members.
I interviewed Jacobs by phone, and asked him what was the hardest part of the whole project was.
“When I tried to do a massive ethical overhaul of my life and follow all the moral laws,” he told me. “The big ones, like ‘Thou shalt not kill,’ those are easy. Those I could follow. But the little ones, like no lying, no gossiping, no coveting. Oh, coveting’s a killer! And I live in New York City, the coveting capital of the world!”
I agree. I could keep kosher if I had to. Observe the Sabbath. Grow my beard. But not covet that Porsche convertible that just drove by? That would be tough.
So if you were to try to follow every rule, law and injunction in both Testaments, which one do you think would give you the most problem?
Permalink | Comments (46) | Categories: Atlanta Events
National Novel-Writing Month
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Apologies for being a little late with this post. But November is National Novel Writing Month, where everyone who ever claimed they could write a novel is encouraged to get up off their big fat sofa and just do it.
The goal is to write a 175-page (50,000-word) novel by midnight, November 30. Last year there were 79,000 who at least tried, and 13,000 who succeeded, according to the group’s website.
According to the fun, non-hectoring website, NaNoWriMo (an awkward acronym if ever one existed) is all about “valuing enthusiasm and perseverance over painstaking craft. … The kamikaze approach forces you to lower your expectations, take risks, and write on the fly. Make no mistake: You will be writing a lot of crap.”
Hey, I’m a professional journalist! I’ve spent my whole career writing a lot of crap!
It’s too late this year. Maybe next year. For now, I thought we could just exchange novel ideas. Does anyone here have an idea for a novel they’d like to write? I’ve been kicking around a lot of ideas that have yet to really work out yet, but I’ve got this one very rough notion for a comic novel set in Atlanta that involves the Mansion Madam, Mike Vick and golf.
Anybody else want to share an idea for a novel, or a novel-writing experience?
7-Day Author Forecast for Nov. 5-11
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Nov. 6
Amy Chua. “How Hyperpowers Rise to Global Dominance — and Why They Fall.” 7 p.m. at the Decatur Library. Chua, a Yale law professor, examines world powers such as the Mongol and British empires and looks at what lessons can be drawn. She concludes our immigration policies should not be restrictive. I haven’t read the book, but I read her last book, “World on Fire,” and thought it was flat-out brilliant in its analysis.
Nov. 7
Dalia Sofer and Gina Nahai. 11:45 a.m. at Marcus Jewish Community Center. Sofer’s debut novel is “The Septembers of Shiraz,” and Nahai’s novel is “Caspian Rain.” Both deal with Jewish life in Iran.
Nov. 8
Melissa Fay Greene. 11:45 a.m. at Marcus Jewish Community Center. I’ve already gone on at length on the greatness of Greene’s non-fiction skills. She’ll be talking about “There Is No Me Without You,”” her book about AIDS in Africa.
A.J. Jacobs. 7 p.m. at Sweetwater Brewery. In his funny and moving new book, “The Year of Living Biblically,” Jacobs writes that he is Jewish in the same way that Olive Garden is an Italian restaurant. Nevertheless, the agnostic spent one year following every single law in the Bible. He even tried to stone an adulterer.
Nov. 9
Finesse Mitchell. “Your Girlfriends Only Know So Much.” I don’t have all the particulars; will post when I get them. Mitchell is a comic and Essence columnist, writing about what men are really thinking. Uh-oh.
Donald McCaig. “Rhett Butler’s People.” 7 p.m. at Borders Buckhead —. I hear that the author of the companion volume to “Gone With the Wind” is a pretty cool guy. See for yourself.
Nov. 11
Marcus Zusak. “The Book Thief.” 7 p.m. at the Marcus Jewish Community Center as part of the Jewish Book Festival. The Book Thief” has gained a big reputation as a Young Adult novel about the Holocaust that adults pass around as well.
Permalink | | Categories: Atlanta Events
Loooooooooou!
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
If you want a dispassionate analysis of Lou Dobbs, his new book “Independents Day: Awakening the American Spirit,” or his appearance here Sunday afternoon to pump said book, the web is a large and diverse place, so happy hunting.
I want to be clear: Lou Dobbs just chafes my cheeks. He comes across as smug and pompous. He still pretends he’s an old-school news anchor on his CNN show when he has really turned into just another opinion-slinging Angry White Guy on cable. I don’t mind opinion-slinging, but if he wants to do it, give him his own show for opinions. Call it “Lou’s Lips.” You can have that one gratis, CNN, if you use it as a title.
I’ve known many, many people who’ve worked for CNN, from the very top to the very bottom, and it is safe to venture that the Lou Dobbs Fan Club inside CNN has always had exactly one member.
Having vented all that, “Independents Day” wasn’t nearly as bad as I feared it would be. It’s actually pretty enjoyable for an Angry White Guy on Cable book.
It isn’t just about his very strong stands on immigration issues. He takes on the media, specifically his own house, CNN, for abandoning serious issues for fluff coverage like Anna Nicole Smith and the Celebutard Scandal du Jour. He rattles off an interesting history of the last 50 years from his “independent populist” point of view. He defends Don Imus, which is at least gutsy, even if I don’t agree with him. He writes, somewhat uncomfortably I thought, about the role of religion in politics and society today.
But what really made me sit up was how vehement he is on President Bush. And not just on immigration reform. He just wails on Bush over mismanagement of the Iraq War, all the signing statements, domestic spying, torture, and so on.
He quotes the oath Bush took twice as President and writes, “In my opinion, [Bush] has broken his oath. He has without question broken faith with the people of this country and our national values.”
That’s pretty strong stuff from someone who is neither Democrat nor liberal. I wonder if that’s the passage he will read at his reception/signing at 3 p.m. Sunday at the Atlanta History Center, 1310 W. Paces Ferry Rd.? And if he does read that part out loud, I wonder what the reaction of his audience will be?
I won’t be there, but anyone who goes and wants to send in a field report would be very welcome indeed.
So what do you think of Lou Dobbs?
Permalink | Comments (15) | Categories: Atlanta Events
Define “cool”
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
What makes a book cool?
“A Tale of Two Cities” is a classic, but I don’t think anyone would call it cool, particularly kids forced to read it in eighth grade. “The DaVinci Code” is popular, but falls way short of cool. “Ulysses” is a masterpiece, and there was a time when it was arguably cool, but that time has passed.
This reverie on cool is inspired by the new book “In the Know: The Classic Guide to Being Cultured and Cool,” by Nancy MacDonnell, an editor at style.com. It’s a slim paperback designed to give a crash course in coolness in film (“8 1/2,” “Roshamon,”), fashion designers (Halston, Dior), restaurants (nothing in Atlanta, sorry) and a bunch of other categories, including books.
“Cool is maddeningly elusive to define,” MacDonnell writes. “For purposes of this book, I’ve thought of it as cultural literacy combined with a refined aesthetic sense.” Alrighty.
Here are MacDonnell’s “Ten Books You Should Read:”
“Madame Bovary” by Flaubert.
“The Picture of Dorian Gray” by Wilde.
“The Metamorphosis” by Kafka.
“Orlando” by Woolf.
“Tender is the Night” by Fitzgerald.
“The Portable Dorothy Parker.”
“The Bell Jar” by Plath.
“In Cold Blood” by Capote.
“Lolita” by Nabokov.
“One Hundred Years of Solitude” by Marquez.
That’s an impressive list, but I just don’t feel the coolness, do you? If she had wanted to argue “most influential” or something, fine. But not cool.
Cool implies that a small group understands and cherishes something, but the larger group does not. Coolness is innate. Those books are worthy, but I’m hard-pressed to defend most of them as cool. Maybe Parker and Plath, and Nabokov if you get what he’s doing.
So what would a list of quintessentially cool novels look like, if we cared about true coolness over quality? How about some of these?
“Invisible Man” by Ralph Ellison. Chilliest book ever.
“Walden” by Henry David Thoreau
“The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy” by Douglas Adams
“The Catcher in the Rye” by J.D. Salinger
“Naked Lunch” by William S. Burroughs
“On the Road” by Jack Kerouac
“Stranger in a Strange Land” by Robert Heinlein
“Catch-22” by Joseph Heller
“Gravity’s Rainbow” by Thomas Pynchon
“Even Cowgirls Get the Blues” by Tom Robbins
I think MacDonnell’s list may be of a higher literary standard than mine, but mine is way cooler.
What do you think makes a book cool? What are some cool books you would add to the list?
Permalink | Comments (24) | Categories: News and Reviews
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