Aug
16
Shakespeare & Canines
August 16, 2008 | Leave a Comment
Two great books:
1) My Name is Will by Jess Winfield. Its subtitle: A Novel of Sex, Drugs and Shakespeare. That pretty well sums up this delightful book which alternates chapters between the Bard in his salad years and a druggy graduate student in Santa Cruz in the ’80s. The two tales somehow coalesce at a Renaissance Faire in Marin County when our grad student ingests a massive magic mushroom.
A truly marvelous jape.
2) The Story of Edgar Sawtelle by David Wroblewski. Yes, I know I’m a little late coming to this masterpiece which came out early in the summer, but I was blown away by this debut novel. It’s the story of a mute boy born on a dog-breeding farm in remote Wisconsin. That doesn’t sound too magical. But Wroblewski’s accomplishment here is to make the prosaic shimmeringly lyrical. Whether you love dogs or good writing, you have to read this book. Highly recommended.
BTW, tying it in to the first book, readers have located a Shakespearean theme in TSOES but it doesn’t emerge until nearly 300 pages in. BY which time, you will irretrievably hooked.
Aug
7
What I’m Reading
August 7, 2008 | Leave a Comment
1) The Shadow Walker by Michael Walters. An exotic locale can really make a mystery sing (viz John Burdett’s Bangkok series). It certainly vaults this book by Walters into a rarified pleasure. A British policeman is on loan to the government of Mongolia after a British national is the target of a seeming serial killer. The crime aspect won’t keep you flipping pages but the setting, Ulan Baatar, is fascinating.
2) The Night of the Gun by David Carr. The New York Times columnist delves back into his days (and nights) as a cocaine vampire in the ’80s in this searing, often disturbing, and courageous memoir. It’s an extraordinary story of addiction and recovery, written with insight and elegance.