Greetings from Amazon.com Delivers Literature and Fiction Editors, Kerry Fried, Alix Wilber, and James Marcus FEATURED IN THIS E-MAIL: * What We're Reading: Barry Unsworth's "Losing Nelson," Eliza Minot's "The Tiny One," Walter Kirn's "Thumbsucker," and Jonathan Raban's "Passage to Juneau" * The Best Books of the Century * A Boy's Own Story: Michael Downing on writing "Breakfast with Scot" * Zip It!: Jonathan Lethem mouths off about "Motherless Brooklyn" * Editors' Choice: Joseph Roth's "Rebellion," J.R. Ackerley's "My Dog Tulip," Andre Dubus III's "House of Sand and Fog," and Gerald Shapiro's "Bad Jews" * New Literature & Fiction Paperbacks: "I Married a Communist," "The Art of Shakespeare's Sonnets," and "T.C. Boyle: Stories" * Not Yet Published: Michael Crichton's "Timeline," Gunter Grass's "My Century," and Nina Berberova's "Cape of Storms" WHAT WE'RE READING ****************** "Losing Nelson" by Barry Unsworth http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0385486529/entertainmentsit The iconic, one-armed Admiral Nelson drives a modern-day biographer over the edge in Barry Unsworth's new novel. "Losing Nelson" is a stunning work of historical imagination, a rebuff to hero-worshippers everywhere, and a touching, black-comic chronicle of one man's magnificent obsession. "The Tiny One" by Eliza Minot http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/037540645X/entertainmentsit Like her big sister Susan's debut, "Monkeys," Eliza Minot's "The Tiny One" revolves around a sprawling, accident-prone New England family. But there the resemblances disappear: this novel is a touching and fastidious exploration of an 8-year-old girl's consciousness, which gets everything--from the narrator's take on school lunches to her childish capacity for grief--just right. "Thumbsucker" by Walter Kirn http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0385497091/entertainmentsit What's a boy with an oral fixation to do? At 16, Justin Cobb is still sucking his thumb, though a combination of beer, decongestants, nitrous oxide, cough syrup, Midol, and Ritalin might just help him break the habit. In "Thumbsucker," Walter Kirn sketches a droll and poignant portrait of American adolescence. "Passage to Juneau" by Jonathan Raban http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0679442626/entertainmentsit "Passage to Juneau" takes Jonathan Raban from the caffeinated precincts of Seattle to the Alaskan frontier. Navigating the chaotic Inside Passage in a 35-foot ketch, the author chronicles its history, culture, and landscape with his customary brilliance--and encounters some personal turbulence along the way. THE BEST BOOKS OF THE CENTURY ***************************** After months of ardent editorial debate, we've made our choices. Check out our decade-by-decade survey of both fiction and nonfiction--200 great books in all! Titles that managed to outdistance time's winged chariot range from "The House of Mirth" to "Hunting Mister Heartbreak," "Ulysses" to "The Optimist's Daughter." Books of the century A BOY'S OWN STORY ***************** When the author of "Breakfast with Scot" set out to write a novel about some nosy neighbors, he didn't plan on including an 11-year-old who loves lipstick, perfume, and pantyhose-- and happens to be a boy. Yet as Michael Downing reveals in this exclusive Amazon.com essay, the little swisher quickly took center stage in his imagination. And readers will be relieved to hear that he didn't escape Scot-free. http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/redirect?tag=entertainmentsit&path=tg/feature/-/15647 ZIP IT! ******* Jonathan Lethem likes to keep a finger in just about every stylistic pie, from science fiction to campus frolic to hard-boiled noir nouveau. In a conversation with Amazon.com's Ryan Boudinot, he discusses his ever-changing narrative moods, his latest linguistic extravaganza-- "Motherless Brooklyn"--and exactly how hard it was to keep his protagonist's Tourette-ish trap shut. http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/redirect?tag=entertainmentsit&path=tg/feature/-/15671 EDITORS' CHOICE *************** "Rebellion" by Joseph Roth To his dying day, the great Joseph Roth (1894-1939) pined for the return of his beloved Austro-Hungarian Empire. In his youth, however, he was known as Red Roth, and his early novel "Rebellion" is clearly a product of the author's left-leaning period. The lamebrained protagonist, a kind of Viennese Job, is transformed into a master of quasi- anarchist oratory. Yet Roth's rapid-fire style remains impervious to political piety--and an irresistible source of melancholic pleasure. See why this sardonic genius tickles James Marcus's fancy, and check out a list of this novelist's creations. http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/redirect?tag=entertainmentsit&path=tg/feature/-/15659 "My Dog Tulip" by J.R. Ackerley In 1947, J.R. Acklerley rescued a German shepherd from unhappiness. This exquisite, supersensitive animal immediately fell in love with him, and he was equally enamored. Alas, Tulip didn't have quite the same effect on the author's fellow Londoners--though Ackerley wonders if the three people she soon bit count "as a true sociological sample of her feelings for mankind." Almost 45 years after its initial, private publication, "My Dog Tulip" has lost none of its appeal and little of its smiling shock value. Check out this milkbone masterpiece and other titles featuring some entirely unforgettable creatures, bestial and human. You won't find any stupid pet tricks among Kerry Fried's recommendations: these animals, and their literary vehicles, are far too sublime. http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/redirect?tag=entertainmentsit&path=tg/feature/-/15605 "House of Sand and Fog" by Andre Dubus III Cultures clash with a vengeance in Andre Dubus III's National Book Award-nominated novel, "House of Sand and Fog." Massoud Amir Behrani, a former officer in the Iranian army who immigrated to the States after the fall of the Shah, finds himself reduced to a day laborer in his adopted home of Los Angeles. In a last desperate attempt to get his foot in the door of the American Dream, he buys a house on auction. Unfortunately, the former owner, a woman with a past named Kathy Nicolo, believes her home was seized unlawfully and she wants it back. The legal soon becomes personal as tensions escalate in the dog-eat-underdog world of Dubus's dark imagining. And don't miss these other favorite titles on Alix Wilber's shelf this month. http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/redirect?tag=entertainmentsit&path=tg/feature/-/13156 "Bad Jews" by Gerald Shapiro Leo Spivak is a bad Jew. So is Ed Shifman. And painter Kenneth Rosenthal? He's so bad he added "Call Waiting" and "Lack of Available Parking" to the 10 biblical plagues. Gerald Shapiro's latest collection is, as you might expect, full of "bad Jews"--even though some of them have the best of intentions. Read these stories for a Passover Seder that turns into a food fight; for Hodgkin's disease as a tool of seduction; and for spiritual redemption via a Three Stooges-style whack to the head. What else is Mary Park reading? Take a look. http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/redirect?tag=entertainmentsit&path=tg/feature/-/13278 NEW LITERATURE & FICTION PAPERBACKS *********************************** "I Married a Communist" by Philip Roth http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0375707212/entertainmentsit A miniature epic of fellow-traveling and Red-baiting--with a typically acerbic take on American Jewry and its discontents. "The Art of Shakespeare's Sonnets" by Helen Vendler http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0674637127/entertainmentsit Going head-to-head with the greatest sonnet sequence in the English language, Helen Vendler offers some amazing insights into the real Shakespeare in love. "Stories" by T.C. Boyle http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/014028091X/entertainmentsit Wisecracking fictioneer T.C. Boyle may be at his best in the short form, which allows him to cram the maximum amount of amusement into the minimum number of pages. NOT YET PUBLISHED ***************** Currently stashed in the literary equivalent of Fort Knox, Michael Crichton's "Timeline" should be appearing punctually on November 16. We're also waiting for factory-fresh Nobelist Gunter Grass's "My Century," Sebastian Faulks's "The Girl at the Lion d'Or," and Nina Berberova's "Cape of Storms" to hit the shelves. http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/redirect?tag=entertainmentsit&path=tg/feature/-/7711 ****** Looking for power tools? From screwdrivers to scroll saws, our brand-new Home Improvement Store offers the planet's best selection of tools and more. Home Improvement ****** You'll find more great books, articles, excerpts, and interviews in Amazon.com's Literature & Fiction section at Literature & Fiction ******
Search:
Keywords: