I will fall for a book with a unique, compelling narrative voice—or voices—every time. Maggie O’Farrell’s This Must Be the Place. Amor Towles’s A Gentleman in Moscow. North Woods by Daniel Mason. And so I fell for the first-person narrator of I Cheerfully Refuse by Leif Enger, who starts the book by telling us “Here at the beginning it must be said the End was on everyone’s mind.” A casual, genial … [Read more...]
Review of “Lolly Willowes”
Sylvia Townsend Warner (1893-1978) was a British author who wrote poetry, short stories, and novels, among other things, including a biography of T. H. White. I have a collection of letters between Warner and William Maxwell, an editor at the New Yorker, to which Warner submitted poetry and short stories. They were both terrific writers, and I enjoy dipping in and out of the book. But other than … [Read more...]
Favorite Quotes
During a recent class, I discussed rhythm, starting with a passage from Ursula Le Guin’s excellent Steering the Craft, and moving on to Virginia Woolf’s equally excellent explanation: “Style is a very simple matter; it is all rhythm. Once you get that, you can’t use the wrong words.” Simple, right? I then read aloud one of my favorite examples of style/rhythm/right words. It’s three paragraphs … [Read more...]
Summertime Reading!
Two of my clients are publishing books this summer. First up is David Flinn's Climb Like a Mzungu, which is available through Amazon starting Friday, June 23. My other client, Jasmin Attia, won the 2022 Nicholas Schaffner Award for Music in Literature. Her book, The Oud Player of Cairo, will be published on August 1, available at Barnes & Noble, independent bookstores, and on … [Read more...]
Pile of Books
I enjoy making an attractive pile of books as I contemplate which book to read next. This particular pile is comprised of books I got for my birthday last month. Well, all except that big Harry Potter book on the bottom. All of these are books I asked for as gifts. The top one, Draft No. 4 by John McPhee, is from my mother. She asked if she could borrow it when I’m done so she can reread it. … [Read more...]