Fascinating. Truly fascinating. I had read the original Pride and Prejudice about five years ago and couldn't quite remember details, but I think that made reading Pride and Prejudice and Zombies that much more enjoyable. The concept of zombies roaming Netherfield and Pemberly is unusual at first, but reading the book made it seem like this is the way it was always meant to be. It was as if Seth-Grahame Smith had insight into what Jane Austin really wanted to write. It was only natural for Elizabeth Bennett to be sitting in a corner of the room polishing her gun, and of course, Mr. Collins is unable to see past his own nose and notice his wife is turning into a zombie. The additions made were flawlessly done. Nothing seemed out of place; nothing seemed like it didn't quite fit. All I can really say is, well-done Seth-Grahame Smith! Well done!
Yesterday I did an on-line chat with several readers at Donlin Drive Elementary School in Liverpool, NY. THANK YOU! to librarian Mary Fulton and the students who did a great job preparing for the session--I hope they had as much fun as I did!
Now on to a few thoughts about my recent reading. During any given stretch of time, I always enjoy reading a variety of genres. There is a broad general pattern--mysteries, nonfiction, food and travel books for adults; novels for young people; several picture books every week; a poem every day (at minimum, and several more on Poetry Fridays thanks to all the great poetry bloggers!) It's pretty haphazard; I've always said that I'll read anything as long as it's GOOD. I can recall only one stretch during which my reading was deliberately structured: For several months during 2006, I read exclusively novels for young people because I was on the panel of the National Book Awards, and for several months after that, I read mostly adult books in an attempt to even things out.
So I have no idea why this most recent batch skews so heavily to adult. Doubtless it will even out again, after I pick up the usual haul of riches at ALA in June....
Fiction:
AN UNCOMMON READER, by Alan Bennett. Adult hardcover, gift (thanks, Betsy!). A bite-sized novella by one of England's leading lit lights. Terrific premise: What if the Queen (yes, as in the current queen Elizabeth II) became an avid reader? If you're an Anglophile, a bibliophile, a humor (humour)-ophile, you'll love this perfect mouthful of a read.
LIQUOR and SOUL KITCHEN, by Poppy Z. Brite. Adult, library. A very reliable source recommended these books (are your ears burning, Joe Monti?). They're both set in the restaurant world of pre-Katrina New Orleans, but not in the silly surface way of many 'food novels'. Brite depicts the restaurant kitchen in all its UNglamorousness, the heat and the knives and the killing hard work. There's a third in this series (PRIME, which actually comes between the two above) that my library didn't have. Must request it.
Aside: I'm on something of a New Orleans kick at the moment. In addition to the Brite books, my nightstand holds copies of THE GREAT DELUGE (nonfiction) and A CONFDERACY OF DUNCES (fiction)--the latter on that endless list labeled 'books I've never read that I really MUST get to SOON', the former recommended strongly by Deb Murphy, a Harper Collins sales rep. (By the way, most of the sales reps I know are TERRIFIC sources for answers to the what-should-I-read question.)
THE WILLOUGHBYS, by Lois Lowry. Middle-grade, ARC. Do you like your icons skewered? A story that takes on what seems like every cliche in children's literature and pokes wicked, good-natured fun at them all. Orphans, babies left on doorsteps, nannies, a scary neighbor...with the bonus of a hilarious glossary at the end.
(I also read another ARC, but will blog about it closer to its pub date.)
Nonfiction:
TRUTH AND BEAUTY, by Ann Patchett. Adult memoir, paperback loan (thank you, Nancy Werlin!). Patchett on her lifelong friendship with another author, Lucy Grealy (AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF A FACE). I love-hated this book: some great writing, an interesting look into the MFA-workshop-fellowship path chosen by many adult fiction writers (which caused me to once again thank the stars that I somehow ended up published in children's instead...), a moving recollection of a friendship. But I also found myself irritated at times by the solipsistic nature of both the writing and the subject. If you like TMI*, you'll get it well-written here.
*Too Much Information
ABOUT ALICE, by Calvin Trillin, Adult memoir, library. Trillin's paean to his wife, who died too young from cancer. Perhaps best appreciated if you have followed the author's career over the years--his food books, essays for The New Yorker and Gourmet--laughing yourself into a sideache over his self-deprecation and acute icon-skewering (I guess I have a thing for icon-skewerers....). But I think anyone who's ever been in love will love this book, as slim and elegant and witty as its subject.
THEY POURED FIRE ON US FROM THE SKY, by Benson Deng, Alephonson Deng, and Benjamin Ajak. Adult memoir, library. Three Lost Boys from Sudan take turns narrating their perilous journeys from their home villages to new lives in the U.S. The structure is a little confusing--I lost track of who was who several times and had to keep turning back to check--but all three stories are remarkable.
BASEBALL, by George Vecsey. Paperback purchase. Part of the Modern Library series in which a writer tackles a seemingly boundless subject within the confines of a couple hundred pages. A salute to the author, who manages to include many of baseball's most beloved stories while including some I had never read or heard before. Favorite moment: a heartbreaking quote from Oscar Charleston, the great Negro Leagues batter who never got to play in the majors. "Just one swing," he said. Just one swing in the majors--that was all he wanted....
Coming soon: the full schedule of events for my West Coast tour!
Last night I wrote a thirty second scary story. Actually I wrote a 90 second REALLY scary story, then chipped at it, hacked and deleted and rephrased until it was thirty seconds long. Afterwards I wished I'd saved the 200 word version.
This morning I went to the local NPR radio station and recorded it -- we cut out another sentence, and I slowed down a hair -- for an NPR Hallowe'en special...
....
I believe that the curious can see the whole, uncut, me getting an award at Scream 2007 thing at
Posted TodayNeil Gaiman accepts "Hell's Dildo" at the 2007 Scream Awards.
It cuts off before I welcome Roger Avary and Ray Winstone to the podium to introduce
Beowulf, but if it hadn't you would have seen Roger wearing his "Scary Trousers" tee shirt in front of a billion people.
(Cat Mihos blogs about the awards at
http://furrytiger.blogspot.com/2007/10/birthday-girl-scream-awards-dream-life.html. Lovely photos, but my Big Pupil Thing means redeye all the way...)
I should mention that the amazing Cat's
Neverwear site is over at
http://www.neverwear.net/ and you can get your Kendra Stout "Scary Trousers" or your Dagmara Matuszak "Anansi Boys" tee shirts there. (I suggested that Cat should do a tee shirt with the full "I believe" speech from
American Gods on it next...)
Which reminds me -- I've now
finally seen the bound insides of the Hill House
ANANSI BOYS (you can see pictures at
http://hillhousepublishers.com/hh-update-22oct07-01.htm) and they are astonishingly beautiful. Hill House are still trying to get straight answers out of the Polish printer about when he's actually going to have the books bound and delivered to the US -- he's made too many promises to them that haven't come through -- but it looks like it's getting closer and closer to being a reality.
...
Ross Douthat replies to my post of the other day at
http://rossdouthat.theatlantic.com/archives/2007/10/dumbledore_is_gay_ii_1.php...
This is more of a marmite locating datalet then a question.There is a large and rather unusual store near Cincinnati, OH called Jungle Jims. Along with Jim's collection of large animatronic singing creatures, there is a decently size section of foods from England in the international part of the store.They have a website at junglejims.com at which you can view some off the strangeness under the attractions section.Marmite, of course, is there and also Hobnobs and various and sundry other foods of interest.I feel like I'm writing a pamphlet for a tourist attraction now, so I'll stop.
Whenever I drive across America -- which isn't often -- I try and stop in at Jungle Jim's on the way back. And not just for the UK food, but for the amazing variety of world food. It's an amazing place. Would that all supermarkets could have that magic.
...
I just heard about the event chronicled in
http://117hudson.blogspot.com/2007/10/show-must-go-on.htmlWe were lucky in that the actor who was hurt was the only one who was sort of understudied (as one of the wolves had also played Lucy's brother in an earlier production) so they reconfigured the second half for seven people instead of eight to do the wolf party...
...
Mr. Gaiman,I checked to see if you've mentioned it yet this year, and saw that you hadn't-- would you mind taking a second to remind your fans who haven't already signed up that National Novel Writing Month begins in a week?I'm a first-timer, but a lot of your journal entries recently have really inspired me to sit down and write, and NaNoWriMo is a great way to combine your advice and a great community. Figured I'd send in reminder in case there are others who feel the same way I do. Thanks!-Laurie
I can do even better than that. I can point people to
http://www.nanowrimo.org/And I can finish my Letter Of Encouragement to the troops...
