An inspiring collection that will make a perfect gift for an aspiring writer or devoted reader.
A book about books and why people read them.
In her introduction to this impressive collection, Literary Hub contributing editor Patrick (An Uncommon History of Common Courtesy: How Manners Shaped the World, 2011, etc.) invites us in to read some prominent people’s brief and pithy reflections about the books that influenced them most. They are writers, musicians, CEOs, politicians, actors, and others, and all vouch for the power of the written word. They picked novels, children's books, sci-fi, nonfiction, poetry, and one comic book. Two of them (Mira Jacob and Sunil Yapa) picked the same book: Arundhati Roy’s The God of Small Things (1997). They both discovered in it a language they had never heard before but instantly recognized. Besides Roy, three other authors are picked twice: Joyce, Beckett, and Salinger. For the late Alan Cheuse, Ulysses was his “working bible.” For Lev Grossman, Waiting for Godot was a “vaudeville act about life.” Nine Stories spoke to a young Elissa Schappell’s “fear of dying and disappearing.” Tommy Hilfiger, who is dyslexic and “always had difficulty in reading,” picked Walter Issacson’s biography of Steve Jobs. A few contributors pick books in general, including Eric Idle: “I read omnivorously. I devour books.” Sherlock Holmes helped a shy Al Roker figure things out. Serendipity abounds. Richard Russo picked Pudd’nhead Wilson but didn’t realize how much it affected him until years later, while book review editor Ron Charles picked Russo’s Straight Man because it was the first book he reviewed and got paid for. While Fay Weldon writes about reading but not accumulating books, Gina Barreca bought Weldon’s Remember Me: “it changed everything for me.” Among the dozens of other contributors are Dave Eggers, Carl Hiassen, Fran Lebowitz, Margaret Atwood, Nelson DeMille, Susan Orlean, and Rosanne Cash. A portion of the proceeds from the sale of the book will be donated to the nonprofit 826National, which helps students improve their writing skills.
An inspiring collection that will make a perfect gift for an aspiring writer or devoted reader.Pub Date: April 5, 2016
ISBN: 978-1-941393-65-9
Page Count: 304
Publisher: Regan Arts
Review Posted Online: Dec. 9, 2015
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 15, 2015
BOOK REVIEW
An enjoyable slice of 20th-century music journalism almost certain to provide something for most readers, no matter one’s...
Music journalist and musician Wald (Talking 'Bout Your Mama: The Dozens, Snaps, and the Deep Roots of Rap, 2014, etc.) focuses on one evening in music history to explain the evolution of contemporary music, especially folk, blues, and rock.
The date of that evening is July 25, 1965, at the Newport Folk Festival, where there was an unbelievably unexpected occurrence: singer/songwriter Bob Dylan, already a living legend in his early 20s, overriding the acoustic music that made him famous in favor of electronically based music, causing reactions ranging from adoration to intense resentment among other musicians, DJs, and record buyers. Dylan has told his own stories (those stories vary because that’s Dylan’s character), and plenty of other music journalists have explored the Dylan phenomenon. What sets Wald's book apart is his laser focus on that one date. The detailed recounting of what did and did not occur on stage and in the audience that night contains contradictory evidence sorted skillfully by the author. He offers a wealth of context; in fact, his account of Dylan's stage appearance does not arrive until 250 pages in. The author cites dozens of sources, well-known and otherwise, but the key storylines, other than Dylan, involve acoustic folk music guru Pete Seeger and the rich history of the Newport festival, a history that had created expectations smashed by Dylan. Furthermore, the appearances on the pages by other musicians—e.g., Joan Baez, the Weaver, Peter, Paul, and Mary, Dave Van Ronk, and Gordon Lightfoot—give the book enough of an expansive feel. Wald's personal knowledge seems encyclopedic, and his endnotes show how he ranged far beyond personal knowledge to produce the book.
An enjoyable slice of 20th-century music journalism almost certain to provide something for most readers, no matter one’s personal feelings about Dylan's music or persona.Pub Date: July 25, 2015
ISBN: 978-0-06-236668-9
Page Count: 368
Publisher: Dey Street/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: May 15, 2015
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 2015
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK TO SCREEN
BOOK TO SCREEN
BOOK TO SCREEN
Stricter than, say, Bergen Evans or W3 ("disinterested" means impartial — period), Strunk is in the last analysis...
Privately published by Strunk of Cornell in 1918 and revised by his student E. B. White in 1959, that "little book" is back again with more White updatings.
Stricter than, say, Bergen Evans or W3 ("disinterested" means impartial — period), Strunk is in the last analysis (whoops — "A bankrupt expression") a unique guide (which means "without like or equal").Pub Date: May 15, 1972
ISBN: 0205632645
Page Count: 105
Publisher: Macmillan
Review Posted Online: Oct. 28, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 1, 1972
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