…is that they are the perfect excuse to read instead of weed!
The only question is, what shall I read? One favorite is a big, fat book to take me through the day and the rainy days to follow this week. According to the Guiness Book of World Records, Proust wrote the longest book in the world—a novel in 13 volumes. I haven’t read it, so I don’t know how it differs from a more modern series, such as Diana Gabaldon’s Outlander and subsequent installments. However, I don’t have the former and I’ve read the latter, so I must look elsewhere.
I’m fond of off-beat cultural history, and I haven’t yet read Flow: The Cultural History of Menstruation, so that’s one possibility.
Then, too, a little sex can be entertaining. A few years ago, Susann Cokal gave a talk at the James River Writers Conference on writing effective sex scenes. The main thing I recall is her advice not to put in too much clinical detail and don’t be too explicit. Publisher’s Weekly called this novel “Steamy… [a] literary bodice-ripper.” AND she creates a great historical voice. So, definitely a contender.
Then again, maybe I’ll go for really non-traditional. The Scrapbook of Frankie Pratt: A Novel in Pictures by Caroline Preston is just that. Each page is covered in pictures, with very few words. My only concern is that it wouldn’t even get me through today.
On the other hand, with all the rain predicted this week, why choose just one?
I recently started reading Hillbilly Elegy by J. D. Vance. Change the names, and it could be my memoir!
Yep. Roots in the hills of Eastern Kentucky. An old home place—where my paternal grandparents lived—in the holler at the head of Old House Creek. Granny Butcher, Granny’s mother, lived there, too. Here’s a picture taken in the yard there when I was a baby, me in Granny Butcher’s lap, with Dad and Granny standing.
To make Vance’s memoir my own would require a lot of tweaks. For example, it was my parents who didn’t finish high school. We both graduated from state universities in Ohio, but he went on to become a lawyer while I got a Ph.D. in psychology. Still, the broad picture is the same: unbreakable family ties, work-related migration from Kentucky to Ohio, and the emotional upheaval of upward mobility.
Which brings me to the point: good memoir evokes a strong emotional response in the reader. The basis of my response to Hillbilly Elegy is obvious, but there must be more to it than personal relevance. It didn’t become a bestseller on the basis of me alone! I was strongly affected by West With The Night (Beryl Markham) and Glass Castle (Jeanette Wall) without nearly so much shared history.
When you sit down to write memoir, start by asking yourself, “Why would anyone else care?” What is the emotional chord I am trying to strike? Horror or humor? Nostalgia or dysfunction?
And then, get some guidance. Writing good memoir draws on many of the same skills required for writing good fiction. But there are some issues and concerns unique to telling one’s life story. There are tons of good books out there. Here are a few samples.
Memoir is the fastest growing genre among writers today. But if writing it isn’t for you, at least read some. And ask yourself, “Why do I care?”
Our Souls at Night by Kent Haruf is incredible. It’s low-key, but the operational definition of a page-turner. It opens with Addie Moore calling Louis Waters and inviting him to sleep with her. The twist is that they are seventy-something widow(er)s, and there’s no explicit sex. They defy the town gossips and family opposition. As the St. Louis Post-Dispatch said, “A fine and poignant novel that demonstrates that our desire to love and be loved does not dissolve with age.”
Kent Haruf is a best selling novelist. But this is the first book of his I have read. I literally couldn’t put it down. Haruf has a spare style—like Hemingway, without the macho. It’s a fast read, but you might want to linger. It’s truly gripping.
Truth: Marathon euchre and cribbage got us only so far. It’s only natural that talk turned to books. So here’s a list of books the four of us recommended to each other.
[Source: Goodreads]Behind the Beautiful Forevers by Katharine Boo is beautifully written nonfiction. It’s about striving and hope in a Mumbai under-city, and won both a National Book Award and the LA Times Book Prize.
Another excellent nonfiction read is Escape From Camp 14: One Man’s Remarkable Odyssey From North Korea to Freedom in the West, by Blaine Harden. It’s a gripping story.
The novel The Elegance of the Hedgehog by Muriel Barbery is moving, funny and good writing.
[Source: Goodreads]Two people praised the novel Our Souls at Night by Kent Haruf as excellently written. It’s the story of a seventy-year-old widow and widower who become soulmates, written as Haruf was dying.
Purity by Jonathan Franzen was described as a “weird” but excellent novel about two young people with strange mothers, searching for their real fathers, one in San Francisco and one in East Berlin.
[Source: Goodreads]Iron-hearted Violet by Kelly Barnhill is YA fantasy, about a princess who is very smart, not pretty, living in a land of dragons and magic castles.
When we got to mysteries, there were too many to list, so we just went with authors: pretty much anything by Tara French or Donna Leon for books set abroad, Greg Isles, Kathy Reichs, Lee Childs, Jeffrey Dever, Janet Evanovich, Nevada Barr, or Dennis Lebane.
People are creatures of habit. Your challenge for the year ahead is to break out of your reading rut. How many of these categories can you sample this year? Choose at least a dozen!
HUMOR: It’s a scientific fact that you can’t get ulcers while laughing. So choose humor for the good of your health.
PRIZE-WINNERS: Pulitzer, American Book Award, Booker Prize, Hugo Award (sci-fi), Caldecott (children’s books), National Book Critics Circle Award, or any other you choose. You can’t go wrong!
BESTSELLER: See what’s popular– for example, any NYT Bestseller category.
READ FROM THE BIBLE: Any one or more books, any of the 450 translations into English. An all-time international bestseller. If you are into brevity here, choose the Book of Ruth.
[Source: Amazon][Source: Goodreads]PUBLISHED MORE THAN 100 YEARS AGO: There are hundreds of classics that fit this category. But consider Uncle Tom’s Cabin. It was the most popular book (after the Bible) in 19th century America.
[Source: NPR]HISTORICAL FICTION: Any fiction set before 1950.
ROMANCE: Can be mixed genre, as long as romance is a central theme.
YOUNG ADULT: Any genre. Explore what young people–and many adults–are reading. Think Harry Potter, or the recent vampire series.
BIOGRAPHY AND MEMOIR: This can be current or historical, just find a life worth reading.
ABANDONED BOOK: Any book you started but didn’t finish. Why did you put it aside? Is it better the second time around?
MAGICAL REALISM: Márquez inspired many writers–and readers–to explore this genre. If you aren’t a fan already, you might become one!
NEGLECTED BOOK: Any book you’ve had hanging around for awhile, intending to read eventually. What’s been stopping you?
A BOOK IN TRANSLATION: Any book that has been translated from another language. Think Tolstoy, Dostoyevsky, Proust, Marquez, or something more modern, like Ha Jin.
HORROR: Just look for the shelf label in your local bookstore or library. Think early Steven King.
ACTION/ADVENTURE: Think Indiana Jones or James Bond.
CHILDREN’S BOOKS: Can be another quick read, while standing in the aisle, even!
POETRY: Can be all one poet or a collection. Maybe try Shel Silverstein?
[Source: Amazon]NOT YOUR ETHNIC BACKGROUND: Easier than you might think. Most books in translation or set abroad would qualify, as well as subgroups within the U.S.
SCIENCE: It can be as technical or as popular, as focused or as general, as you like. Mary Roach is my favorite popular science writer.
HISTORY: Social, military, political, whatever, as long as it is nonfiction. I like Dean King.
MYSTERY: Classic or modern, cozy or police procedural, foreign or domestic. They’re everywhere!
FANTASY: It can be anything from an older book, like Alice in Wonderland, to a book that has just come out. It exercises you in willing suspension of disbelief.
So, in 2017 READ, READ, READ! Get thee to the bookshelves.
Frankly, I’m feeling dragged through a knothole! Besides all the usual holiday hassle, I am still recovering from cataract surgery and focus is sometimes a strain and sometimes just not a happening thing. I’m told this will resolve soon. In the meantime, when I can’t read, I can still watch! So here, for your watching pleasure, is a selection of Christmas movies based on books.
[Source: Wikipedia]
Although not as old as some, How the Grinch Stole Christmas (Dr. Seuss) is definitely a classic.
The Polar Express by Chris Van Allsburg. The movie is a yes or no sort of thing, but it appears that most people like the book.
’Twas the Night Before Christmas (Clement Moore) is a secondary story in the film—but then, most movies vary from the books.
The Gift of Love (based on The Gift of the Magi by O.Henry )
The Nutcracker (based on The Nutcracker and the Mouse King by E.T.A. Hoffman) is more than a ballet. It’s been made into a movie at least three times—in 1993, 1986, and 2016.
A Christmas Carol (Charles Dickens) may be the most filmed book of all. Movie versions were released in 1938, 1951, 1984, 1999, 2001, and 2009; musical versions in 1970 & 2004; and various take-offs like Mickey’s Christmas Carol in 1983, Scrooged in 1988, The Muppet Christmas Carol in 1992, Ebenezer in 1998, A Christmoose Carol in 2006.
Hercule Poirot’s Christmas (Agatha Christie) for diehard mystery fans.
It’s a Wonderful Life by Jeanine Basinger
Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer (Robert Lewis May) and Olive, the Other Reindeer (J. Otto Seibold & Vivian Walsh)
The Life & Adventures of Santa Claus (L. Frank Baum)
Technically, Miracle on 34th Street (Valentine Davies) shouldn’t be here, as the book and the movie came out simultaneously. But who wants to be technical?
And if you want still more movie options, go to imbd.com for 100+ Christmas movies based on books.
Of course, you should feel free to read the books instead—or even in addition!
“It is thought by many, lately, and said by some, that the republic has seen its best days, and that it remains for the historian to chronicle the history of its decline and fall. I disagree. Sparrows may yet cross the sky.” -Jill Lepore
“Days before the reading I felt so much dread. But today is different. Thank you writers, audience, community. This is what a shift feels like. We are not passive. We are co-creating this reality.” -Stacy Parker Le Melle
“Dorothy is the real saviour of the book (Baum’s wife, it’s worth noting, was a prominent suffragist), but even when they’ve exposed the wizard as a fraud, she and her friends turn to him for aid. “How can I help being a humbug,” chuckles Oz the not-so-great, “when all these people make me do things that everybody knows can’t be done?” -Maya Jasanoff
“The musician Sara Bareilles wrote a song entitled “Seriously”, sung by Leslie Odom Jr, about what Obama’s inner thoughts must have been during the election. I’ve been repeating these lyrics to my daughter: ‘In a history plagued with incredible mistakes, still I pledge my allegiance to these United divided States.'” -Cynthia Bond
I’ve written a couple of blog posts about what writers can learn from the current political campaigns. A piece in the October 31st issue of The New Yorker takes a different approach.
Thomas Mallon is a novelist, essayist, and critic whose book Finale: A Novel of the Reagan Years is now available in paperback. His novels usually portray politics and politicians from a POV other than the political “star.” In “Presumptive” he talks about who would be his protagonist if he were to write a novel based on 2016—and why. He makes some excellent points about what makes an effective main character.
The same issue of The New Yorker features an article by George Packer. Although he starts with an interview with Hillary Clinton, the bulk of the article is tracing the historical bases of current allegiances to the Republican and Democratic parties. He’s thorough and scholarly but highly readable. Read it with a view to what makes compelling nonfiction.
Whether you lean toward fiction or nonfiction, the principles of a good story are the same: you need a compelling what (in the form of a character and/or event) and a believable why (the motivation or circumstances that molds the outcome).
Continuing the election-related focus, I recommend Colin Woodard’sAmerican Nations: A History of the Eleven Regional Cultures of North America. It might just as well be titled “The United States and How It Got This Way.” His premise is that sub-cultures within the U.S. today can be understood in terms of who settled various parts of the continent, when, and under what circumstances. His labeling of the regions takes a bit of getting used to, but he provides a map. Overall, he has closely tied what to whyin a highly readable and (for me) informative book.
FINAL TAKEAWAY: Election season is a great time to read voraciously!
I have mixed feelings here. In fourth grade, my geography book was the most exotic, fascinating thing I’d ever seen. In high school, I hated history so much that I vowed never to take a non-mandatory class. And I didn’t, avoiding history all through college. But like so many, I find both topics not just palatable but absolutely fascinating when presented in literature and/or experienced during travel.
Virtually any good writing set abroad gives a vivid sense of place, so I’ll put geography aside for a bit, and urge you to consider all the ways you can enjoy history.
Consider historical events or periods of interest to you. Your reading options are myriad. I grew up in a house with few books, but we did have a two-volume pictorial history of World War II that had pictures of concentration camp survivors that are seared in my mind’s eye still.
At least as common is to read history by reading about people. Queens, kings, generals, popes—biographies abound. Think Queen Elizabeth, Marie Antoinette, Joan of Arc, or Catherine the Great—to name a few women. Often travel sparks an interest. I was unaware of Sisi the Empress Elizabeth of Austria, or Maria Theresa, one of the most outstanding and powerful personalities in the Habsburg dynasty.
I won’t belabor the point, but geography can be equally personal. Consider Dean King’s book, Bones in the Zahara. Vivid and personal, immediate and gripping. (Indeed, I recommend any of Dean King’s non-fiction books.)
Bottom line: History and geography can be as gripping as fiction. Try it!
I’m on the road now. For the most part, I don’t write from the road. I write a daily journal, and an occasional postcard, but I’m not a travel writer. Of course, that doesn’t keep me from having an opinion!
The best travel writing is full of vivid detail and focuses on things not in the tourist pamphlets. Think Jack Kerouac. Think John McPhee. Think Paul Theroux. And think about reading Italy in Mind. (Alice Leccese Powers, Ed.)
This book includes essays, journal entries, letters, poetry, short stories, and excerpts from novels by everyone from Mary McCarthy to Edith Wharton, Gore Vidal to Susan Sontag. They give a great sense of place.
For a different type of travel writing that really goes beyond tourist pamphlets, you could also try Hidden Cities by Moses Gates.
What does this have to do with writers? These are great examples of people who write travel well! Absolutely crucial if you want to write a travelogue, but important if your work includes travel scenes.
