Tuesday, December 30, 2008

Book of the Year

 

The Good Thief by Hannah Tinti was read by my book club a few months ago and has been selected as this blogs Book of the Year 2008. The story begins with a young boy, Ren, who was abandoned by his parents and raised at Saint Anthony’s orphanage for boys. A young man named Benjamin Nab unexpectedly appears, claiming to be Ren’s long- lost brother. The mysterious tale of the missing hand and who Ren’s parents really are begins to unfold. The themes of friendship, loneliness and love ruminate throughout this masterpiece. This is a book that can be read aloud by a fire place on a cold, stormy night. It is scary, Gothic, adventurous and exciting. You'll find yourself routing for the most unlikeable characters and at times wishing the story would never end. Although this is a contemporary novel, according to the critics, her style is reminiscent of Dickens and Stevenson. You could assume that Tinti must have grown up exposed to these great authors and they live through her words. If you are a lover of classic literature, look no further. 


sites to visit:

Random House

Who is "The Good Thief"?

Barnes & Noble Studio

Interview with Hannah Tinti

Is there any special method to your writing?

I write directly into a computer. I don’t use note cards or plot things out, specifically. I work sentence by sentence, and just see where it leads me.

 

How many hours a day do you spend reading/writing?

Oh, goodness—a lot. I’m the editor of One Story magazine, so any time I’m not spending on my own writing I’m reading and editing for the magazine. I would say I am reading or writing at least eight to ten hours a day, sometimes more.

 

What inspires you to continue being a writer?

When I have a good writing day, I feel like I’ve just won a marathon. There is a particular joy in writing a good sentence. I think it all comes down to communication. Writing is my way of connecting with the world.

 

If you could have been the author of any novel, which title would it be and why?

That’s a difficult question. I suppose I’m going to have to say Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte, simply because that is probably my favorite book—the one I’ve re-read the most. It’s an incredibly satisfying book, and I’m always trying to be a bit more like Jane. She sticks by her principles, and never compromises, and also doesn’t let anyone push her around.

 


Do you think you will ever change audiences?

Do you mean write for Children? I’m not sure. Perhaps some day. Many young adults have been reading The Good Thief, and because there is little swearing or sex, some book stores and librarians have been recommending it for younger readers. Frankly, I’m just pleased that people are enjoying the book.

 

What advice would you give anyone who wants to become a published author?

Often it is not the most talented authors who succeed. It is the most determined. If you never give up, you will find an audience for your work. That said, I also think that writers sometimes share their work too early, without doing the proper editing first. Only send a manuscript out when you have set it aside many times and read it with fresh eyes. The last bit of advice I’d give is to read literary magazines and start by submitting your work to them. This is how most writers get their start.

 

And do you have a list of favorite books/authors?

I love the Bronte sisters, and Dickens and Robert Louis Stevenson. All of them inspired The Good Thief. But I also love more modern writers like Flannery O’Connor, Raymond Carver and Donald Barthelme and Italo Calvino and George Saunders. I also love Margaret Atwood and Alice Munro and Andrea Barrett and A.S. Byatt.

Thursday, December 25, 2008

"Seven Days in the Art World" by Sarah Thornton


Sarah Thornton

Seven Days in the Art World

A fly-on-the-wall account of the smart and strange subcultures that make, trade, curate, collect, and hype contemporary art.
Sarah Thornton is a freelance writer who contributes to The New Yorker, BBC TV, andArtforum.com. She has degrees in art history and sociology. She lives in London.



E.B. White


E.B. White

*This short story was passed on to me by an colleague and I thought it was worth mentioning.“Once More to the Lake” is autobiographical and intensely personal. Click above to read the whole piece and check out an essay On “Once More to the Lake” By E. B. White by Charles Phillips and a series of thought provoking questions from a writer's workshop based on the story. 

Robert Lopez


Who is Robert Lopez?
Robert Lopez is the author of Part of the World. His fiction and poetry has appeared in dozens of journals, including; Bomb, The Threepenny Review, New Orleans Review, New England Review, Denver Quarterly, Blackbird, Nerve, etc. His new novel, Kamby Bolongo Mean River, will be published by Dzanc Books in 2009. He teaches at The New School and at Pratt Institute.

Read one of Robert's older pieces, "Bleeders" published in Willow Springs 55, Spring 2005. Check out Part of the World, his novel published by Calamari Press.

Blake Butler


 Book trailer and images from Blake Butler's forthcoming Ever.


Check out Blake's blog for more rants, raves and such. 

Read one of Blake's older pieces, "Exponential" published in Willow Springs 61, Spring 2008.

"The Wit of the Staircase"














"The Wit of the Staircase"
by
Kathleen Rooney

Review:
This short story is about McSorley's in New York City. It made me want to run out to grab a pint in this historical bar. The style reminds me of flash fiction, although the topic is based on an actual place. I'm not sure how to categorize this piece, but it was an enjoyable read.

Check out Rooney's website to read more of her work. 



LeapFrog Press:Publisher of Quality Fiction, Poetry and Non-Fiction


Novel Contest Opens January 15
Leapfrog Press announces its first novel competition, opening on January 15, 2009. The aim of this contest is the discovery of fine literary works including offbeat, experimental writing by new and experienced authors alike. The contest is open to any novel, novella, or book-length short-story collection written in English and not previously published. Manuscripts may be submitted between January 15 and May 1, 2009, and will be considered on a rolling basis. Please see the Leapfrog Fiction Contest page for details as they are posted.

Attention die-hard fans of Philip Roth


Filthy Reading Habit

If the public library is not your thing, but you love books and do not want to pay retail, look no further. There are pay services that can help you get your next book delivered right to your home. 
  • www.bookswim.com
  • www.booksfree.com
  • www.americasbookshelf.com
  • www.bookmooch.com
  • www.paperbackswap.com

Saturday, December 20, 2008

Top 10 Books I Want to Read in 2009

1. Headless by Benjamin Weissman
2. Lessons in Taxidermy by Bee Lavender
3. The Land of Laughs: A Novel by Jonathan Carroll 
4. 2666: A Novel  by Roberto Bolano and Natasha Wimmer 
5. Infinite Jest: A Novel  by David Foster Wallace 
6. Couch by Benjamin Parzybok
7. Bowl of Cherries: A Novel by Millard Kaufman
8. Vacation by Deb Olin Unferth 
9.The Book of Laughter and Forgetting by Milan Kundera
10. Bluebirds Used to Croon in the Choir: Stories by Joe Meno













Who is Joe Meno?


Visit his website and see for yourself.

W.W. Norton & Company

Norton has been an Independent Publisher since 1923. I really enjoy their Poetry links and Author Interviews. Here is a great place to find Reading Group Guides. Click on this link for more details. 

If You Give A Cat A Cupcake



A Delicious New Book in the #1 New York Times bestselling If You Give... Book series!



Listening Library





For more than 50 years, Listening Library has been the premier publisher of unabridged audiobooks for children and young adults. Our core commitment is to produce the best books—new releases and classics—as top-quality recordings to be enjoyed by audiences of all ages today and for many years to come.
Click on the link above and check out the site for yourself.

State by State

State by State: A Panoramic Portrait of America 
by Matt Weiland (Author), Sean Wilsey (Author)

Featuring original writing on all fifty states.

Alabama by George Packer 
Alaska by Paul Greenberg 
Arizona by Lydia Millet 
Arkansas by Kevin Brockmeier 
California by William T. Vollmann 
Colorado by Benjamin Kunkel 
Connecticut by Rick Moody 
Delaware by Craig Taylor 
Florida by Joshua Ferris 
Georgia by Ha Jin 
Hawaii by Tara Bray Smith 
Idaho by Anthony Doerr 
Illinois by Dave Eggers 
Indiana by Susan Choi 
Iowa by Dagoberto Gilb 
Kansas by Jim Lewis 
Kentucky by John Jeremiah Sullivan 
Louisiana by Joshua Clark
Maine by Heidi Julavits 
Maryland by Myla Goldberg 
Massachusetts by John Hodgman 
Michigan by Mohammed Naseehu Ali 
Minnesota by Philip Connors 
Mississippi by Barry Hannah 
Missouri by Jacki Lyden 
Montana by Sarah Vowell 
Nebraska by Alexander Payne 
Nevada by Charles Bock 
New Hampshire by Will Blythe 
New Jersey by Anthony Bourdain 
New Mexico by Ellery Washington 
New York by Jonathan Franzen 
North Carolina by Randall Kenan 
North Dakota by Louise Erdrich 
Ohio by Susan Orlean 
Oklahoma by S.E. Hinton 
Oregon by Joe Sacco 
Pennsylvania by Andrea Lee 
Rhode Island by Jhumpa Lahiri 
South Carolina by Jack Hitt 
South Dakota by Saïd Sayrafiezadeh 
Tennessee by Ann Patchett 
Texas by Cristina Henríquez
Utah by David Rakoff 
Vermont by Alison Bechdel 
Virginia by Tony Horwitz
Washington by Carrie Brownstein 
West Virginia by Jayne Anne Phillips 
Wisconsin by Daphne Beal 
Wyoming by Alexandra Fuller

and an afterword on Washington, D.C.: A Conversation with Edward P. Jones

Rimbaud: The Double Life of a Rebel by Edmund White


“A lucid, literate introduction to the poet's short but turbulent life. . . . The latest gem in the publisher's already glittering series.” –Kirkus Reviews (starred review)

“. . . a lean, incisive biographical-critical book by one of our outstanding literary commentators.” —Publishers Weekly (starred review)

“One of the best products of the currently booming brief-biography genre.” –Booklist

“A solid, factual account. . . [a] superb, informative book.” –Library Journal

Stieg Larsson

The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo
Written by Stieg Larsson
Translated by Reg Keeland

"It’s about the disappearance forty years ago of Harriet Vanger, a young scion of one of the wealthiest families in Sweden . . . and about her octogenarian uncle, determined to know the truth about what he believes was her murder."

Click here to read the first chapter.

Wednesday, December 17, 2008

The Elegance of the Hedgehog


The Elegance of the Hedgehog 

by Muriel Barbery (Author), Alison Anderson (Translator)

This is by far one of the largest reviews I have ever read on Amazon.com!
With sales of over half a million copies in Europe, this comedic novel is about a fat, philosophy loving concierge. Run out and grab a copy for the holiday season.
“An exquisite book in the form of a philosophical fable that has enchanted hundreds of thousands of readers.”
Elle (Italy)

Authors You Need To Read

Friends often ask me, "Who do you read?" and my response is somewhat blase. I usually find an author and read everything by that person, until I am absolutely sick of them. I have compiled a list of authors, in no particular order, that I have enjoyed over the past year and I think you should read. Enjoy!

  • Peter Carey
  • Peter Esterhazy
  • Etger Keret
  • Colum McCann
  • Antonio Munoz Molina
  • Francine Prose

Tuesday, December 9, 2008

Breakfast at Tiffany's


 by Truman Capote 
Review:
I loved this book the second time around! 

"Truman Capote I do not know well, but I like him. He is tart as a grand aunt, but in his way is a ballsy little guy, and he is the most perfect writer of my generation, he writes the best sentences word for word, rhythm upon rhythm. I would not have changed two words in Breakfast at Tiffany's which will become a small classic."
-Norman Mailer

Nothing But The Truth


Nothing But The Truth: 

A Documentary Novel 

by Avi

Review:  

A ninth-grader's suspension for singing "The Star-Spangled Banner" during homeroom becomes a national news story. This is a story about the imperfect nature of what humans call the truth. The novel is set up as a documentary, drawing its "facts" from a variety of memos, conversations, letters and a diary. Because those sources themselves are flawed, the "truth" is never revealed. This problem is magnified by two groups that have a vested interest in creating controversy rather than forging an understanding. The novel illustrates how inaccuracies and outright lies can be magnified by politics and the media.