Knopf 100--Day 25

93. Turns out that we've written quite a bit about E.M. Forster books which I don't think either of us realized until a minute ago when Liz called to yell at me for another repeat. I just hate Liz. The thing about Forster though, is his books are really good and he writes women particularly well. He's the Aaron Sorkin of his time (that's a complete joke about Aaron Sorkin by the way). On an earlier blog I said that A Passage to India was my favorite novel of Forster, but can I change my mind? He got better with every novel to be sure, so maybe Passage to India is more mature or technically better, but Howards End is really wonderful, really funny, and goddamn, what a fantastic cast of smart women. I would say this, if you haven't read A Room With a View, Howards End, Maurice, or A Passage to India, you should. They are classics in every sense of the word, and particularly if you've read Austen, give Forster a try. 

94. We did a thirty day challenge on the blog a couple of years ago and one of the questions was something like, name a book you loved but don’t anymore. Well, I mentioned a few books that I suspected I wouldn’t like as much (To Kill a Mockingbird was one) but thought it unfair to say unless I went back and re-read the specific books. Another of the books I mentioned that perhaps I wouldn’t love was Anne Tyler’s Accidental Tourist. Well, I did re-read last year it and I can just go blow, because I really just love that book! The plot revolves around a travel writer whose teenage son was murdered in a robbery. His marriage falls apart and he seems to drift and drift until he is homebound with is very odd siblings and a dog that needs some training. I completely and thoroughly enjoyed love this book and am embarrassed that I ever thought I could not love such a powerful book. I highly recommend reading it. I still think I would be disappointed with a Mockingbird revisit…

95. Are you in the mood for a really dark book? A really crazy good, dark book you will not be able to put down? It’s a good winter book, a good rainy day book. Simple Plan by Scott Smith, is a jaw dropper. Here is the plot: Two brothers and a friend happen upon a small plane crash is a small midwestern town (I think its Iowa or Ohio, look it up I can’t remember everything, geez). In the debris they find the dead pilot and a bag containing several million dollars. One wants to call the police, the other two are normal and say, uh…no, we are keeping the cash, man. They agree that they will hold on to the money for a few weeks and if nothing suspicious happens they will split it evenly. Well, turns out that Confucius was right, mo money, mo problems.

96. I think I will go with the flow here and mention another dark novel, though unlike Simple Plan, this novel is certainly more of a thriller, but do understand that it is incredibly well written and character driven. In fact, I would say April Smith’s North of Montana is one of the best debut novels I’ve ever read, really outstanding. This book is the first in a series, the main character is a young smart FBI agent, Ana Grey. In North of Montana the plot revolves around a very convoluted drug case, a movie star, and a young doctor. Lots of plot twists, this book is smart. I can also recommend Good Morning Killer, which is a few books later in the same series, but you don’t have to read these in order.

Correction!!

57. I have been instructed by Liz that since I can't follow simple instructions and not repeat books she has chosen, I must replace my earlier pick of Plainsong. I wanted to settle it over three sets of tennis but considering how very out out of shape and lazy both Liz and I are, I am officially agreeing to replace Plainsong with Birds of America by Lorrie Moore. 

It's important to understand that Birds of America isn't one of the best collections of stories ever published, it's simply one of the best books ever published. Don't come at us with some shit about not liking short stories; stop saying that, it's nonsense. These stories are heartbreaking, smart, and darkly funny. A few of my favorites: Real Estate is about a woman battling cancer who refuses to put up with her husbands continued infidelity. People Like That are the Only People Here (this is a story David Sedaris often mentions as one of his favorites) is somewhat based on Moore's own experience with her sick child. And maybe my favorite, Willing, about a down on her luck middle aged actress who moves to the Midwest and lives out of a motel while dating a mechanic. She hates this. I can't think of a young writer, a good literary writer who can not look to this book as an influence. I am going to be so mad with you people if you don't read this book. 

30 More Days Challenge: Day 23

Day 23: Favorite Classics

Gianna:

It some point in the 90’s I read several E.M. Forster novels--Howard’s End, A Room With a View, Maurice, and Where Angels Fear to Tread--one right after the other. My favorite turned out to be the last book in the pile, A Passage to India, written in 1924.

A Passage to India pits the British Raj and the Indian Independence movement against each other when a young British woman accuses a Muslim doctor of sexually assaulting her while on a group outing. The trial exposes the racial tensions of India and permanently changes the key players. It is a loaded, truly thought-provoking, beautifully written novel.

From Passage:

E.M. Forster

"'I have had twenty five years experience of this country'--and twenty five years seemed to fill the waiting room with their staleness and ungenerosity--'and during those twenty five years, I have never known anything but disaster result when English people and Indians attempt to be intimate socially.'"

Gianna loves Judy.

I really loved reading Forster and I wonder why he isn’t more widely read or even talked about. Could it be that they have made films of nearly all his books? No need to read him when excellent films were made? I loved the film version of Passage (can’t get enough of Judy Davis) but the novel really is something special. I could say the same thing about Howard’s End which I love love loved, but the book is so gorgeous.

Liz:

I struggled with this category because I couldn't decide which direction I wanted to go with it.  Around the time I was a sophomore in high school, I realized that I would probably pursue an English major in college....and I realized that the education I received at Woodville High School might fall short in preparing me.  Don't get me wrong--I think that, given the resources available in a town with 2,500 people, the Woodville public school system was actually pretty strong.  There were some great, dedicated teachers who wove straw into gold.  Still, I knew that there were kids in other, better funded schools who were reading more than three books per year and would enter college better prepared.  And while the faculty at my school did their best, the student body was a different story.  My class was known for being hyper-competitive, but we didn't challenge each other to think and grow, we challenged each other to be whiny little shits.  Anyway, all of this is to say that throughout high school I read a ton of books from the great western canon, and quite a few of them I enjoyed.

Herman Melville

And yes, I am one of those people who loves Moby-Dick.  I'm fascinated by maritime history because of this book.  I'm a sucker for novels of obsession and psychological meltdowns because of this book.  I love American Lit based in part on my love of this book.  There's always talk of the "great American novel," and I think that Ahab's quest for the white whale and ultimate destruction just might be that book.  I actually have a framed copy of one of Rockwell Kent's iconic drawings for his gorgeous illustration of Moby-Dick hanging in my bedroom.  If I were stuck in the biodome for three years, I'd take this book with me.  I think it's beautiful.