Hot Off the Presses

The Pulitzer Prizes were announced today and of interest to this blog was the award for fiction which went to Olive Kitteridge by Elizabeth Strout. The Publisher's Weekly review of the book described it as:

Thirteen linked tales from Strout (Abide with Me, etc.) present a heart-wrenching, penetrating portrait of ordinary coastal Mainers living lives of quiet grief intermingled with flashes of human connection.

As someone who enjoys the short fiction form as both a writer and a reader, it's exciting to see a collection like this gain some recognition. I'm looking forward to adding this to my 'to read' pile.

You can see the full list of winners on the Pulitzer website here, and read more about the winners (with links to their earlier reviews) at the New York Times here.

Note to Self

No more reading harrowing true stories of death and survival.

I'm just too sensitive.

City of Dust: John Fante and the City of Los Angeles

It wasn't intentional, but apparently I finished reading Ask the Dust by John Fante just in time to celebrate what would have been his 100th birthday.

I initially added Ask the Dust to my 'to read' list a few years ago when my short fiction writing professor, Stephen Cooper, glowed about Fante. At the time, he had just finished writing Fante's biography, Full of Life: A Biography of John Fante, so I took his endorsement with a grain of salt.

No grain of salt was needed.

Ask the Dust is passionate, intense, and brutal. And it offers some of the most stirring descriptions of Los Angeles that I can ever remember reading. In some ways Fante's Los Angeles of the 1930s is not the same as my current one of the oughts. But the sensation of Los Angeles is still the same: the palm trees, warm winds, racial tensions, long highways to dusty deserts, startling earthquakes, and transplanted dreamers.

John Fante's children have recently donated his archive of manuscripts, letters, and documents to the public which will be available for viewing at the Department of Special Collections in the Charles E. Young Research Library at UCLA. In honor of this donation, and his 100th birthday, Cooper has written an essay in the LA Times, which you can find here.

One of the most oft-repeated stories about Ask the Dust tells how the book went out of print after its 1954 Bantam run, and stayed that way until 1980, when Charles Bukowski rescued it from literary oblivion. Since then, its admirers have grown, and continue to do so still.

In one of my favorite passages, Camilla Lopez, the mysterious heroine of the book, cruises down Wilshire Boulevard in an open topped car, one leg dangling over the side, unapologetic about letting the cool breeze blow up her skirt. As she attracts the attention of nearby drivers and the embarrassment of her passenger, her only response is to simply press down on the gas and tilt her head back and laugh.

It's Like a Decoder Ring for Chick Speak

I confess. I'm one of those women. I love Pride and Prejudice. I first read the book at the age of fourteen, a literary experience I can still vividly recall. Then, of course, the screen adaptations followed. I own the A&E version on DVD, with the dreamy and brooding Colin Firth, and I saw the Keira Knightley adaptation in theaters three times. It's a little bit sad, I know.

I've always imagined that I had a special connection to Jane Austen, since we share a birthday, though I feel no such affinity towards Beethoven who also shares the day. More to the point though, I think I've always fancied myself a little bit of an Elizabeth Bennet. And what P&P loving woman hasn't?

So it was to my great pleasure that I came across this article by Kyle Olson, "The Guys' Guide to Pride and Prejudice." In the article, Olson (henceforth known as Darcy-In-Training), takes on the challenge of actually reading the book to discover what secrets it seems to hold about women. P&P loving women.

My survey, statistically flawed as it is, came to the conclusion that if a gal enjoys reading, that gal loves Pride and Prejudice. This book could be some sort of lady-kryptonite, weakening the knees of the heterosexual XX crowd (and therefore must not be allowed to fall into the wrong hands). It's like the Rosetta Stone for females: the resource that, once cracked, gives us the insight to achieve understanding far beyond what we had previously held. So, gentlemen, if we can only harness the secrets of this novel, our luck in love could drastically change.

Darcy-In-Training's article is funny and flattering, and I'm fairly certain that you'll enjoy it as much as I did, no matter what chromosomes you've got. And if you're a little bit of an Elizabeth Bennet, you'll probably wind up with a crush. Cheers, Mr. Kyle Olson.

Rabbit at Rest

One of my greatest literary influences has always been my father. I can imagine that I once believed he arrived in this world fully formed as 'my father the lawyer', a man who made my sack lunches for school in jeans every morning and arrived home in a suit with his briefcase every evening. But of course my father had been living his life long before my sister and I made our entrance, and in that life my father was passionate about writing.

I became aware of myself as a writer long before I knew that he was a writer. I can recall one afternoon, though I don't remember the impetus, during which my father brought out his writing to show me. Thin pages, more than a decade old, punched with the dark ink from a typewriter. That day I finally knew. My dad is a poet.

As far as I know, my father no longer writes, but his literary passions remain, passions we often share and discuss. He has long admired the great American writers, namely Ernest Hemingway, but often he has encouraged me to read John Updike, calling me into a room with him just so he could read a passage aloud, sharing some small snippet of the tales of Updike's most famous character, Rabbit.

So it is through my father that I feel the loss of John Updike who passed today at the age of 76. He was one of America's great writers, and though he was prolific over his lifetime, it still feels too young too soon to lose so great a talent.

You may think to yourself that you've never heard of him, or simply never encountered his writing, but that is likely not so. Updike was near omnipresent in literary circles, a regular contributor to The New York Review of Books and The New Yorker. The New York Times obituary provides an extensive review of his life and work.

I regret that I haven't read one of John Updike's novels during his lifetime, but I know I will enjoy one during mine, and certainly during my father's.

Book Beginnings

Now here is some good news to get this blog started in the new year:

According to a new National Endowment for the Arts study, reading among American adults is up for the first time since 1982.

DID YOU HEAR WHAT I SAID? READING IS UP!

This is fantastic news for writers and lovers of literature.

And check this out:

Young adults show the most rapid increases in literary reading. Since 2002, 18-24 year olds have seen the biggest increase (nine percent) in literary reading, and the most rapid rate of increase (21 percent). This jump reversed a 20 percent rate of decline in the 2002 survey, the steepest rate of decline since the NEA survey began.

You can read more about the study here.

I am thrilled, and I hope you are too. Here's to a great, positive new year!

Reading as a Memory

In a recent interview with Jacket Copy, the Los Angeles Times literary blog, National Book Award finalist Salvatore Scibona, author of The End, says about reading:

For me, ideally, a novel should be read slowly, in some version of solitude, in a state of willfully suspended disbelief, while alert, with a lot of sympathy to spare, while warm, in a room without too much unnecessary light, while one is 16 years old, lonesome, lovelorn, while there's something else one is supposed to be doing, late at night, hoping a certain person will call; and she doesn't call.

That simple but clear description made feel for the sixteen year-old boy reading in the dark room. It made me feel like I was him.

More importantly though, it reminded me of my own reading memories: a rare overcast day, curled up in the reading corner I'd carved out of my childhood bedroom, beside the window, my grandparents' red down comforter in various states of wrap over and underneath me, alternately reading and praying for rain. To this day, that memory is exceptionally strong for me. The way it felt, the way it smelled, the feeling of satisfaction in the reading.

That is where I fell in love with reading, and it is an experience that is long lost to me. As I continue to read, I will create new reading memories that will also be a part of my passion for books, but none will ever rival that first.

What about you? Do you have a memory of reading, more powerful than all others?

The End Has Come.... Somewhat

The Tribune Company, publisher of the Los Angeles Times, filed for bankruptcy protection on Monday. I'm not at all surprised. Not only because of the current economy, but because the weakness of the Los Angeles Times, and other print media, was a topic of discussion on this blog back in July.

I can't save the Los Angeles Times. It should be able to save itself. It is a pulitzer prize winning brand, and I am convinced that if they begin to think of themselves as a news and content provider instead of a newspaper provider, they will be able to refocus on what parts of their company they need to rebuild and expand to get revenue flowing in the right direction. As we've been saying on this blog for months now, publishing will survive, we just need to reimagine it and change our expectations.

So I won't say that this is the end of print media, or the end of the Los Angeles Times.

It is, however, the end of 2008, and like the New York Times, the Los Angeles Times released their 2008 Favorite Books list. I particularly like that they sectioned out Science Fiction, Children's Fiction, and Crime Fiction - a nice way to draw some deserved attention to those genres - and took the time to actually explain their selections. Check out their various lists here.

Though I have to ask, can someone please explain to me why "Books" are categorized in the "Living" section of the website, along with "Health" and "Autos" among others, instead of "Arts/Entertainment?" Los Angeles Times, if you're going to start fixing things, that might be a place to start.

Before You Shop...

Well... I have to admit... I still have two gift cards to the book store. I know, I know. I've been pestering you all for help and still can't make up my mind! While I appreciated all of the suggestions, notwithstanding Lesbian Erotica (I'm looking at you Prince, Sven), I still haven't stumbled on that paperback I'm excited to read.

So if you're anything like me, it might be wise to prepare yourself before heading to the bookstore for some shopping where the broad scope of options may dazzle you into paralysis.

Thankfully, the New York Times Sunday Book Review is doing its part to help. Check out their recently released 10 Best Books of 2008. While none of these books appear to be out in paperback, they just might make the perfect holiday gift you've been looking for.

As for me... I'm still searching for that perfect purchase...

Roswell vs. Twilight: BATTLE ROYALE

Way back in August, I wrote this post about the similarities between Twilight by Stephenie Meyer and the old TV show Roswell that used to air on the WB and later UPN. That single post has drawn more readers from web searches than any other post from this entire year. Clearly, I was on to something.

Today, Mike Moody over at the TVSquad (cheers, Mike) went up with a side by side comparison of the Roswell series and the Twilight movie. Check out his excellent post here.

While I have been very hard on Twilight on this site (this was my original review of the book) I do think there is something encouraging about its smashing success. According to Box Office Mojo Twilight raked in a near $70 million on its opening weekend, a bigger opening than Quantum of Solace the most recent James Bond effort. That's some big money.

Why is it encouraging? Because it demonstrates, yet again, that young women have buying power and that they are a demographic worthy of the attention of publishers and studios alike. And for someone like me, a writer of fiction with a decidedly female bent, that is nothing but good news.

I still hold that the comparison between Roswell and Twilight simply reveals the formulaic foundation upon which they are each built. And it's to that formula, the teen love rescue gambit, that I attribute the success of both. Women (and pre-teens, tweens, teens, whatever) enjoy a good romance now and again, and if you combine that with some creativity, and some quality writing (hopefully) you're increasing your odds of success in that market.

So who is the winner in the Roswell/Twilight showdown? Well, I know which way I vote, but the bottom line is, we all win.

Gift Card Dilemma: Too Many Books, Too Little Money

I have a $10 gift card for Barnes & Noble.

I'm all caught up on my guilty pleasure series.

I want to buy Anathem by Neal Stephenson, but I want to try to keep to the paperback books.

Anyone have a suggestion? Something out in paperback that I absolutely MUST read?

The State of the World and Me

One of the things I love most about books is the escape that they offer from the world. I've written before about disappearing into a comforting children's book when times get tough. There is a reassuring simplicity of morals in children's books that reminds me as an adult that not all problems are so complicated and nebulous. In children's books the difference between right and wrong is clear, and usually right wins the day.

With American events being what they are recently, and my sensitive and opinionated nature, I've found it difficult to write for this blog about books and publishing without feeling a little bit beside the point. Of course life will go on, and things will not always be quite so dreary, but in the meantime I'm struggling to keep my outlook positive, and not let the nattering nabobs of negativism get me down.

This morning it was time to begin reading a new book as Wicked by Gregory Maguire had been finished last night. However, as I went through my "to-read" stack all of my literary options seemed so depressing. Why does the literary genre have to be the genre of tragedy and cynicism?

The book I finally grabbed for my bag was The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain. I've never read it before, and yet I having a nagging doubt about whether it will be the pick-me-up I need. I'll give it a crack at lunch and see how it goes.

But what say you, readers? Can you make me a recommendation? A book that will carry me away? Can anyone give me a book that can stop me from feeling like the world is coming to an end?

Evolve or DIE

It seems to me that there has been a lot of chatter amongst interested parties - including this blog - about how the publishing industry is in some sort of death spin. Everywhere I turn, there are articles and discussions attempting to take the publishing industry's blood pressure, and then bemoaning the weak result.

Recent case in point - an article in New York Magazine by Boris Kachka, "The End." The article is both illuminating and disturbing, presenting the usual business view, as well as a look back at the history of the industry and an insider angle which is not often shared with outsiders like me.

Yet, I come to the end of the article feeling terrified. Terrified of the ominous threat of Amazon, terrified of the impending doom of Borders, terrified of the unknown future of technology.

Here's the thing: the publishing industry has to change if it wants to remain an industry. It has to figure out a way to increase its profit margin, to expand, to keep selling its product in whatever form is actually going to sell.

But me, I don't have to change, I just have to change my expectations. Even without the promise of a fat advance, or an earned out royalty check, or a coveted spot on the best seller list, I have faith that there will always be writers. They'll do it for the love of the art, for the love of sharing their story. They'll find partners in technology, people who support them, read them, believe in them.

And whether or not anyone is making any money, I'll still be here reading.

Neal Stephenson is Scary, But I Still Love Him

I have mentioned on this blog before that I don't generally read the same author more than once. I'm a slow reader, so I try to expose myself to as many different authors as possible. That said, there is one author that I've read more than others (as the title of this post suggests) and that is Neal Stephenson.

Stephenson's books are dense and difficult, often weaving complex scientific concepts into the story, but they are also adventurous and funny, populated with characters that I enjoy spending more than a thousand pages with. Stephenson is definitely not for everyone, but he is certainly for me.

Jacket Copy, the Los Angeles Times literary blog, recently posted an excerpt of an interview with Stephenson that will be included in a larger profile to be printed later. You can read the interview selection here.

Even if you're not interested in the interview, check out his scary publicity photo. Neal, your writing intimidates me all on its own. You don't have to go scowling at me.

Water Glass Roll Call: What Are You Reading?

I've been moving at a faster clip than usual with my reading recently, largely due to the fact that I read when I'm procrastinating writing. It also helps that I've been reading light books that keep me page turning. I'll find any excuse to get my book out of my bag when I'm reading a good book, even if it's just to occupy me during a short elevator ride.

I recently finished Hoot by Carl Hiaasen. I've never read any of his other work, but I knew this children's book was highly praised, and that sparked my curiosity. Having found quite a bit of delight in Louis Sachar's Holes, I thought I might repeat the experience of reverting to childhood in a similar way. And indeed, I did. Hoot is a well written adventure for children, with a good sense of humor, and a knack for capturing life's small moments of illumination.

Now I'm onto Wicked by Gregory Maguire, which is not at all what I expected. It is more inventive and imaginative than I anticipated, though I confess that having never read the L. Frank Baum originals, I don't have the original text with which to compare it. I have only Judy Garland's ruby-heel-clicking version in mind.

So, a few questions for you:

What did you last finish reading? How did you like it?

What are you reading now? Is it what you expected? How do you like it so far?

Lounge Chair Reading and You - A Water Glass Special Summer Report

I never understood why some books were considered "Beach Reads" as opposed to "Everywhere Else Reads." After all, a book is a book is a book. No matter where you read it, right?

Of course, calling a book a "Beach Read" is really just a marketing term to help sell books at airports, creating a need amongst summer travelers. Ooh! I'm going to the beach, but I don't have a book! Better buy one. But is there something to reading a lighter, frothier book while on vacation?

As one who has recently returned from a fantastic summer weekend in Las Vegas, let me tell you there is definitely something to be said for having a light read on your vacation with you. This weekend, the book I was reading had to compete with this view from my poolside lounge chair:

Not to mention all the good looking scantily clad male and female specimens passing back and forth (sometimes wet!) in front of my view. So even though I had a very light book with me, I still only managed a paragraph or two during the two hours we were doing our lounging. I refuse to blame the book though. It was entirely my fault. I was distracted by a delicious iced tea, the ever approaching hot desert sun, perfectly timing a dip in the pool, and eavesdropping on my neighbors.

Instead, I finally managed to take a bite out of the book on Sunday when my flight home was delayed nearly three hours. Were I to have more poolside time, I swear this would be the perfect book:

Strangers in Death by J.D. Robb (Nora Roberts' Sci-Fi/Mystery pseudonym) is book #26 in the In Death series that I have been reading since a good friend turned me onto them in college. The books are funny, romantic, and with just enough mystery to keep me turning the pages, though I don't recommend starting the series in the middle. The books have settled into a definite rhythm, following a murder investigation as led by Lieutenant Eve Dallas of the New York Police Department circa 2060, and populated with a funny and enjoyable cast of supporting characters. I pepper my reading with these books, because they are easy reads, a welcome break from some of the heavier denser books I tend to select for myself, but most importantly, because I always want to spend 400 or so pages with Roberts' delightful and compelling characters.

So yes, there is such a thing as summer reading, but don't ask me to read it only during the summer time. How boring would that be?

I've Got Twelve Minutes to Make a List

So here ya go...

Five Books That Should Not Be Made Into a Movie:

1. Life of Pi by Yann Martel

2. Ender's Game by Orson Scott Card

3. House of Leaves by Mark Z. Danielewski

4. The Eyre Affair by Jasper Fforde

5. Snow Crash by Neal Stephenson

Wait... I'm Not the Only Writer in Southern California?

The Southern California Independent Booksellers Association recently announced the 2008 Book Award Finalists. Nominated by booksellers, these books represent the best of what California writers have to offer, capturing the unique voice and spirit of the region.

And it is with pleasure that I offer congratulations and best of luck to fellow blogger and sometime visitor of this site, Billy Mernit, whose book Imagine Me and You is one of this year's finalists! I've had Billy's book for a couple of months now (and prominently displayed to the right since its purchase) but have finally had the chance to dive in. Imagine Me and You is a delightfully light read (so far, at a hundred pages in) with a "champagne-like fizz" to borrow an amusing phrase from the author himself.

Congratulations Billy!

Textual Inspiration #7

Speaking of YA fantasy fiction I do like...

With swift ease of animals they ran, the long lean man and the sturdy boy, an urgent loping running that took away their age and all sense of familiarity in their appearance; faster, faster, faster. And at the rocks ending the headland they did not pause, but went on. Will leapt up light-footed to the crest of Kemare Head and cast himself outwards into the air, into empty sky, arms spread wide, lying on the wind like a bird; and after him went Merriman, his white hair flying like a heron's crest. For an instant the two dark spread-eagled figures seemed to hang in the sky, then with a slowness as if time held its breath they curved downwards, and were gone.

- From Greenwitch by Susan Cooper
Book three of The Dark is Rising Sequence

A Doff of the Cap

I know I've been a little hard on Twilight by Stephenie Meyer on this blog in recent posts. I really haven't meant to beat up on her work. It's more that her book has me thinking a lot about formulaic writing, the importance of characters, the importance of editing, and a thousand other book writing issues.

However, I do want to take a moment to acknowledge that Breaking Dawn, the most recent of the Twilight novels by Stephenie Meyer, sold 1.3 million copies in its first 24 hours of release, according to AP. In the current book market, that is cause for cheer and congratulations. Any book or series that gets that many young people (and adults) reading is okay by me.

So, congratulations to Stephenie Meyer on her success, and thank you for helping to create young readers for the rest of us writers out there!