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Archive for June, 2011

Jun 30

12 Comments

Next Up: The Spy Who Came In From The Cold

I’ve never read a spy novel. I once listened to a Tom Clancy novel while driving across the country, and it bored me to tears–literally, I think I cried somewhere in Oklahoma. Okay, not literally. And it probably wasn’t the Clancy book. I’m just too ADD for audio books.

Anyway, when it comes to the espionage, cloak and dagger stuff, I’m leery. But John Le Carre is the premier spy novel writer–that’s what I’m told. And this novel is set in the Cold War, Berlin Wall, etc, so that should be interesting.

So maybe this will be entertaining. If not, at least it’s short. Here are some quick facts about The Spy Who Came In From The Cold by John le Carre’:

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Jun 29

39 Comments

Book #20: Catch-22

There was only one catch and that was Catch-22, which specified that a concern for one’s own safety in the face of dangers that were real and immediate was the process of a rational mind. Orr was crazy and could be grounded. All he had to do was ask; and as soon as he did, he would no longer be crazy and would have to fly more missions. Orr would be crazy to fly more missions and sane if he didn’t, but if he was sane he had to fly them. If he flew them he was crazy and didn’t have to; but if he didn’t want to he was sane and had to. Yossarian was moved very deeply by the absolute simplicity of this clause of Catch-22 and let out a respectful whistle.

“That’s some catch, that Catch-22,” he observed.

“It’s the best there is,” Doc Daneeka agreed.

And that is the gist of a Catch-22, a concept dreamed up by Catch-22 author Joseph Heller. You know an author and his book have had a powerful influence on culture when a new word or phrase from the novel becomes a part of the lexicon.

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Jun 28

14 Comments

101 Books Handy Guide to Beach Reading

Photo: LWY via Flickr

I must be an old soul. Because when I go to the beach, I love to read. Don’t get me wrong, I love swimming in the ocean as well. But nothing beats a good book and a cold drink in the sand.

Few things go together better than the beach and a good book. But reading on the beach isn’t as easy as dropping a lawn chair in the sand and kicking back, or is it?

As I’ll be heading to the beach soon, I’ve been thinking about what makes a good book for oceanfront relaxation:

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Jun 27

6 Comments

Catch 22 and Mind-Numbing Bureaucracy

I’m a fan of Catch 22. Like, a big fan. This one will probably be high in my rankings.

What I love about Catch 22, and satire in general, is that there’s truth in it. Sure, the truth has been twisted and exaggerated enough to make it funny, but satire always makes a subtle point.

A lot of Catch 22 deals with the government bureaucracy and mind-numbing amount of rules that a soldier must endure. If this novel could be summed up in one paragraph, the following might do it.

The setting: Colonel Scheisskopf has just been assigned to General Peckem, who gives Scheisskopf the responsibility of writing letters “to let everyone know how good we are and how much work we’re turning out.”

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Jun 24

14 Comments

The Band That Reads Together, Stays Together

Who knew Iron Maiden was such a literary band?

Seriously. Wikipedia has a list of songs inspired by novels, and this heavy metal band seems to have quite a library a books, judging by all the literature-inspired songs in their catalog.

As I thought about songs inspired by literature, I quickly remembered Eminem’s song, “Rabbit, Run,” which was inspired by the depressing John Updike novel of the same name. (Here’s my review of Rabbit, Run).

But, apparently, Iron Maiden isn’t the only band who reads a book or two. I guess these guys have plenty of time on the road, so why not read a little Tolkien or Bellow on the bus?

Here’s just a sample of songs inspired by great books:

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Jun 23

21 Comments

Do Book Trailers Work?

Book trailers are all the rage these days.

It makes sense, I guess. The publishing industry takes a nod from the movie industry and uses short, one-to-two minute videos as a marketing tool.

But does it really work?

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Jun 22

23 Comments

5 Novels That Will Make You Laugh

As I’m reading through Catch 22, I’m realizing how few comedic novels I’ve read. And I don’t know why. When you’re reading a 400 page book, humor helps the pages go by faster.

Catch 22 is fabulous, and it’s considered one of the greatest humor novels and satires of the 20th century. But there are many others.

After a little research, I tracked down a few.

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Jun 21

16 Comments

Trying to Write a Novel? Don’t Give Up.

I really wouldn't want to be one of the many editors who said, "Uh, no thanks," to J.K. Rowling.

Despite my obvious love for fiction, I’ve never attempted to write a novel and I probably never will. Nonfiction book? Possibly. But fiction? Highly, highly doubtful.

That said, this blog post written by Chuck Sambuchino is inspiring—and hopefully you guys who are writers will feel the same way. If you thought all the great novels were shoe-ins to be great novels from the start, then you’re wrong.

The list of classic novels that were rejected by publishers—multiple times, even—is quite long. Some of the highlights include (with Chuck’s comments in box quotes):

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Jun 20

15 Comments

Catch 22: Satire Done Right

I’ve never read a book quite like Catch 22. And, if you’ve read it, you probably know what I mean.

To me, this is an absolutely hilarious novel. But it’s one of those books that you’ll either love or hate. Heller’s use of humor reminds me a lot of movies like Airplane or maybe something like Monty Python. Either you laugh your butt off, or you don’t laugh at all.

Yossarian, the main character, runs the show. Here’s one of my favorite lines so far.  Doc Daneeka and Yossarian are discussing Daneeka’s fear of flying (he’s a bombardier in the Air Force) and trying to figure out a way Daneeka can get out of it. Doc Daneeka says:

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Jun 17

25 Comments

Can You Judge A Book By Its First Sentence?

Lord of the Flies: Great Opening Line

Way back when this blog had about 5 readers, I discussed this topic. So since I’ve got a few more visitors than that these days, I thought we could revisit it.

If you’ve read at least one of my reviews, you’ve probably noticed that I include the opening line of the novel in each review. Why?

I don’t think you can judge a book by its cover, but you might be able to judge it by its opening sentence. Whenever I’m browsing books in a bookstore (remember those?), I always flip to the first page and read the first paragraph or so.

You can learn a lot from the opening line—things like the setting, the plot setup, a fact or two about a character, the author’s style. The opening line is almost like a piece of chicken on a toothpick from one of those Asian places in the mall food court. Even that small little bite can tell you whether or not you’ll like their food.

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