Naked in Baghdad by Anne Garrels and In the Company of Soldiers by Rick Atkinson

As the war in Iraq commenced what seems like ages ago with the frenetic coverage of embedded reporters and the televised firefights, I remember looking forward to reading some of the books that would inevitably come out of this media frenzy. In the nearly two years since there have been many of these books, some good and some bad. I recently read a couple of them.

Actually I listened to Naked in Baghdad by NPR correspondent Anne Garrels on the long drive from Chicago to New York. The audiobook is read by Garrels and her husband Vint Lawrence. Garrels' strong, familiar voice added a lot to the experience. Though Garrels was one of just a handful of American journalists to stay in Baghdad during the run-up to war, the political and military machinations going on around her are just one element of the book. The meat of the book is devoted to her personal relationships with her fellow journalists, minders, drivers, and the myraid Iraqi officials who spent the regime's final days collecting bribe money. As an inside look into the harrowing life of a war correspondant, the book is brilliant, filled with menacing bad guys and explosions that are way too close for comfort. But Garrels is at her absolute best as she delves into the backroom politics of the world of the macho foreign correspondant. She revels in the fact that American television left Baghdad before the war, leaving only an old school contingent of print reporters to cover the invasion from the capital. She pulls no puches as she berates CNN's arrogance and Geraldo Rivera's foolishness. Her demand is for professionalism over sensationalism.

Most journalists were forced by uncertainties in Baghdad to cover the war by embedding with American units as they invaded Iraq. Rick Atkinson was one of these embedded journalists, and his book, In the Company of Soldiers tells the story of his time with the Army's 101st Airborne Division. Aside from his duties with the Washington Post, Atkinson is also a military historian of some repute (his World War II book An Army at Dawn won a Pulitzer in 2003) and it shows. He is interested most in the tactics employed during the invasion and in the commanders who implemented them. Where Garrels delivers portraits of shady Iraqi bureaucrats and flamboyant European journalists, Atikinson's narrative is tied to Major General David Petraeus, a no-nonesense military man. The 101st, and Atkinson along with them, saw their share of action during those early days, but much of what transpired during those first weeks feels like a footnote -- or ancient history -- compared to all that has happened since. The most interesting parts of the book are the most personal. Atkinson's daily struggles against the harshness of the desert and the austerity of military life shine far more brightly than the methodical movements of the troops he travelled with. Both books take the US to task for fouling up the aftermath of the invasion, but where Garrels' concerns seem to arise from her daily interactions with Iraqis, Atkinson's epilogue seems hastily tacked on, an attempt to save the book from being made irrelevant by the nasty turn that this war has taken.

RELATED: In October I met Anne Garrels, and I met Rick Atkinson in October 2003.

- C. Max Magee @ 5:22 PM ~ comments: 0 ~ Links to this post

 

New Year's Resolution

When I asked people earlier this month to tell me about the best book they read this year, several wrote back to say that they honestly couldn't because, over the course of a long and busy year, they had forgotten many of the books that they had read. Now I'm sure that they could have reconstructed their year of reading by combing through old reciepts and library records and interviewing the local barristas: "I'll have a tall latte, and do you happen to remember what book I was reading during the last week of March?" But who wants to do that. So, if you are looking for a New Year's resolution, I would like to propose one. It's easy: make a list of all the books you read this year. If you want to do something a little more rigorous, commit yourself to putting some words down about every book you read (And if you deem these words ready for public consumption, I'll happily post them here.) Somehow, this sort of casual reflection makes the reading experience that much more fun. Have a great New Year. Things will be slowly returning to full speed around here, so stay tuned.

- C. Max Magee @ 10:02 AM ~ comments: 0 ~ Links to this post

 

Year End Loose Ends

The holidays are upon us, and I suspect that many of the folks reading this will be cutting out early this week. I think I'll do the same, so don't expect much in this space until 2005. I'm glad everyone seemed to enjoy the year end extravaganza. It was great fun seeing what everyone read this year. I'll leave you with a couple of late additions and addenda before sending you off to your holiday jollification.

Dan Wickett, proprietor of the Emerging Writers Network, previously gave us his Emerging Best of 2004, but he recently wrote in with some more of his personal favorites from this year.

Novel: Steve Yarbrough - Prisoners of War; George Garrett - Double Vision

Short Story Collections: Aaron Gwyn - Dog on the Cross; Percival Everett - Damned If I Do

Poetry Collections: Beth Ann Fennelly - Tender Hooks; David Huddle - Grayscale

Non-Fiction: Steve Almond - Candyfreak: A Journey Through the Chocolate Underbelly of America; Owen Gingerich - The Book Nobody Read: Chasing the Revolutions of Nicolaus Copernicus

And last week, Brian shared with us his thoughts on a couple of books he enjoyed this year, but he couldn't let me close things out without posting this:

Chronicles, Vol. 1 by Bob Dylan: I lived in mortal fear that the genius of Bob Dylan - lyrically, melodically, and just plain cool-as-a-motherfuckerally - wouldn't translate to prose. Naw, nothing to worry about. His book reads like nothing else: a smashed-up collage of history, (auto)biography, anecdote, music criticism, politics, fiction, lies, truth, and more. Dylan hangs with Chinese philosophers, New York playwrights, John Wilkes Booth(!!!), Tiny Tim, John Wayne, Gorgeous George, Bono, and, in my favorite scene in the book, during an early 60's freezing cold NYC day, within the confines of a friend's crash-pad, a teenaged Dylan skims through a wall of books and loses himself in ancient Greece, the Napoleonic wars, the Civil War, etc... a badass rootin-tootin' tale of America(na) told through the eyes of one of its greatest (and most eccentric) poets.

Now that sounds pretty good! Enjoy the holiday everyone. Coming after the break: a new installment from Millions contributor Andrew, the introduction of two brand new Millions contributors, my year in reading, and, yes, much, much more.

- C. Max Magee @ 1:13 PM ~ comments: 0 ~ Links to this post

 

On the Merits of Weschler

Brooklyn's Doug Diesenhaus shares his favorite read of the year.

Mr. Wilson's Cabinet Of Wonder by Lawrence Weschler - In reading Mr. Wilson's Cabinet of Wonder, I had an experience similar to the author's sense of dislocation in observing his seductive subject, the Museum of Jurassic Technology in Los Angeles. He writes, "the visitor to the Museum of Jurassic Technology continually finds himself shimmering between wondering at (the marvels of nature) and wondering whether (any of this could possibly be true)." You'll speed through this book and be so fascinated with Weschler's incredible writing on how we look at art, facts, and history that you'll have to check out two other great Weschler pieces: Boggs: A Comedy of Values and his recent magazine prototype Omnivore.

Everybody is always recommending Weschler. I'll have to add him to my list.

- C. Max Magee @ 10:27 AM ~ comments: 0 ~ Links to this post

 

From One Foodie to Another

Edan Lepucki is extremely well-read, but she also has a not-so-secret passion for cookbooks. Thankfully she has decided to share the wealth with this guide to the year's best.

Over the past two years, my hobby for cooking food, (and then, eating it), has become a somewhat overwhelming passion. Now that I'm knee-deep in a MFA program, I often find myself fantasizing about quitting the life of a writer (so difficult! so lonely!) to become a chef. I dream about jetting off to some famed culinary institute, where I learn the right way to chop and braise and whisk in a room with a 5:1 male-to-female ratio. In the meantime, I've discovered some fantastic cookbooks to fuel the fire. I've voted these 3 the best of 2004.

Italian Easy: Recipes from the London River Cafe by Rose Gray and Ruth Rogers - The London River Cafe is where Jamie Oliver, the famed Naked Chef, got his start. I'm not normally a fan of Italian food--all those pastas and creamy sauces--but this book's fare is light and surprisingly diverse. Try the porkchops in lemon, or the mozarella salad with roasted bell peppers, or the sausages in wine, or the chicken in nutmeg--you won't be disappointed. All of the recipes are lo-fi and easy to follow, and the pictures will have you drooling.

A Beautiful Bowl of Soup: The Best Vegetarian Recipes by Paulette Mitchell - Who knew that soup was easy to make? This is a little paperback cookbook that still manages to include a ton of recipes and beautiful, full-color photographs. I'm not a vegetarian, but I've nevertheless been impressed by what Mitchell has to offer: curried carrot with apple; Mediterranean stew; roasted butternut squash. This week I'm going to try to make sweet potato ancho bisque!

Barefoot in Paris by Ina Garten - I've attempted to convert every cook I know into a follower of Ina Garten, who's funneled her success from her specialty food store, Barefoot Contessa, into the cookbook writing business. Garten's recipes almost always call for kosher salt and olive oil, but somehow, with just a few more ingredients, each dish has its own unique, mouth-watering flavor. This time, we go with Ina to Paris, where we learn how to make string beans the French way; how to prepare a goat cheese tart; and how, sweet lord, to cook mussels in a white wine sauce. I only got this book a week or so ago, and already I've ripped through more than a handful of recipes. Barefoot in Paris also tops the 2004 list in terms of visual prowess. Photographer Quentin Bacon deserves a medal for his picture of Herb-Baked Eggs.

- C. Max Magee @ 9:17 AM ~ comments: 0 ~ Links to this post

 

LBJ and Much More

Patrick Brown, one of my old bookstore compatriots, is now living in Iowa, a circumstance that affords him a lot of reading time. Here are his favorite reads of the year:

Non-Fiction (and Best overall for the year): Means of Ascent: The Years of Lyndon Johnson, Vol. 2 by Robert Caro. This biography, which is one part Western, one part Shakespearean political tragedy ala Richard III, is among the best books I've ever read. In 1948 Lyndon Johnson ran a do-or-die campaign for the US Senate against the most popular man in Texas political history -- former governor and all-around-bad-ass Coke Stevenson. It really must be read to be believed.

Rounding out the top five non-fiction books are (in order): Master of the Senate (part 3 of the LBJ series), Blood Horses: Notes of a Sportswriter's Son by John Jeremiah Sullivan (a dreamy, meandering ode to horse culture and fatherhood), The Path to Power (part 1 of the LBJ series), and Vermeer in Bosnia by Lawrence Weschler.

Best Fiction I've read this year: Morte D'Urban by JF Powers. While not as off-beat or quite as funny as Powers's other novel Wheat That Springeth Green, Morte D'Urban succeeds in being an entertaining and tender novel about a priest who's ambition to take over his dying religious order's leadership lands him in rural Minnesota. Like Wheat That Springeth Green, the book is a conversion tale of sorts. Don't let the subject matter scare you away.

The rest of the top fiction 5: Any Human Heart by William Boyd, Our Man in Havana by Graham Greene, Jimmy Corrigan by Chris Ware, and You Remind Me of Me by Dan Chaon. I haven't been reading enough new fiction. Shame on me.

I've embarked upon my annual holiday excursion to the East Coast. Sporadic posting is likely but all possible effort will be made to keep The Millions rolling along.

- C. Max Magee @ 6:20 AM ~ comments: 0 ~ Links to this post

 

Booker Winner is Best

My good friend Garth, writer, rocker, and erstwhile purveyor of Hot Face wrote in with his favorite read of the year.

The Line of Beauty by Alan Hollinghurst -- Callow young aesthete Nick Guest is a devotee of late-period Henry James, whose style, he says, "conceals things and reveals things." In Alan Hollinghurst's portrait of politics, money, and sex in Thatcher-era London, style reveals more than it conceals. Among the revelations this preposterously well-written novel offers, in the end: that there's a little Nick Guest in all of us, that aestheticism is not just a superficial flight from the deeper world but a kind of fumbling toward it, and that Hollinghurst is a novelist of rare gifts. Here he almost single-handedly bridges the divide between the novel of society and the novel of the self, combining the former's imaginative sprawl, objectivity, moral exactitude, and attentiveness with the latter's searing emotional investment in its subject. The Line Of Beauty is by turns charming, voyeuristic, sentimental, merciless, witty, affecting, austere, and graphic. Throughout, it is a triumph on par with Brideshead Revisited, Remembrance of Things Past, or the works of the Master himself.

- C. Max Magee @ 1:49 PM ~ comments: 0 ~ Links to this post

 

Will Google Reinvent the Book?

You may have heard the news that Google is embarking on a new venture to digitize the collections of several university libraries. According to Google this venture "a part of our mission to organize the world's information and make it universally accessible and useful." Though I have heard some naysayers discussing this on the radio today, I agree with the folks who are saying that this could represent a great leap forward for the written word. In the centuries before the internet, mankind generated millions and millions of words. So much knowledge is "locked up" on the pages of books. If Google succeeds in digitizing the world's books, people will suddenly be able to manipulate all that "locked up" information, finding hidden patterns or bringing to light details that have been tucked away in the dusty stacks, all with a few keystrokes. This is all still a few years out as Google gets to work, but it might be time to start thinking about what you'll do with all of this information once it's at your fingertips.

Related:

• Coverage at CS Monitor.
• PC Magazine puts this development in the context of Google's recent unveilings of Google Print and Google Scholar.
• Jeff Jarvis at Buzzmachine asks: What's next?

- C. Max Magee @ 5:22 PM ~ comments: 0 ~ Links to this post

 

Master List

Galley Cat takes all the "best of" list and finds out who is the best of the best. I was thinking about doing a post like this one, but she beat me to it and did a much better job than I would have. Enjoy.

- C. Max Magee @ 5:15 PM ~ comments: 0 ~ Links to this post

 

More from the Left Coast

Rodger Jacobs, author of the book Christopher Walken and the Tuna Fish Sandwich and Other L.A. Stories, shares with us the best books he read this year.

Best books I've read this year? Well, I'm still going to stand behind Michelle Huneven's Jamesland even though I had some minor quibbles with it. Next to that I would have to go with the stunning debut novel by Canadian journalist Robert Hough, The Final Confession of Mabel Stark. I can think of no other contemporary writer -- with the obvious exception of Ron Hansen with Hitler's Niece and The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford -- who has mastered the historical novel in such a vibrant and highly engrossing style. It's a lengthy tome (440 pages) and by the time you have read the last page you feel that you have lived Mabel Stark's life side-by-side with this amazing yet deeply troubled woman. The book is so evocative that I still -- almost a year after having read it -- have sense memories attached to the novel, the scents attached to circus life, the wet hay during sudden storm bursts, the kerosene lamp in Mabel's railroad car. This was such a master work that I am anxious to see if Hough can follow it up or if, sadly, it's a once-in-a-lifetime book like Leonard Gardner's Fat City or Harper Lee's To Kill a Mockingbird. The book is that damn good.

Thanks for that. That bit about "once-in-a-lifetime books" at the end made me think. Many a VH1 special is devoted to the musical one-hit wonder, but what about the literary variety? Who's on that list? And what do these authors have in common? Hmmm... food for thought.

- C. Max Magee @ 1:36 PM ~ comments: 0 ~ Links to this post

 

Eight from a Bookseller

Lisa is a bookseller from Colorado whose eclectic tastes are appreciated here at The Millions.

Non-Fiction
The Elements of Lavishness: Letters of Sylvia Townsend Warner and William Maxwell 1938-1978: In this delightful volume English novelist Sylvia Townsend Warner and New Yorker editor William Maxwell's relationship blossoms from professional correspondence to a deep friendship. The two never actually met in real life, but their love for one another is apparent in their incredibly erudite and often quite funny years-long correspondence.

The Sisters: The Saga of the Mitford Family by Mary Lovell: I'm not usually one for biographies, but The Sisters is a thoroughly engrossing tale of these Bright Young Things of England's interwar years. The five Mitford sisters ran the gamut from Nazi sympathizer to best selling novelist. Lovell's book is heavily researched, but she maintains a light tone throughout, which makes it enjoyable for those of us who prefer to take our history with a bit of gossip and froth.

It Must've Been Something I Ate by Jeffrey Steingarten: Steingarten, the inimitable gourmand, former Harvard Lampoon editor and lawyer returns with a sequel to his first collection of food essays, The Man Who Ate Everything. Many of these pieces appeared first in Vogue and the New Yorker. Steingarten loves food and the sociology and mythology behind the art of eating. He is, most definitely, a latter-day Liebling. Delightful!

The First World War by John Keegan: This book seems to be the definitive volume on WWI. It is an all-consuming narration on all aspects of WWI. Incredibly moving and never dull, it is essential reading, I think, as it profoundly informs the politics and culture of the world today.

Fiction
Madeleine Is Sleeping by Sarah Shun-Lien Bynum: More of a prose poem than a novel, this 2004 NBA nominee is a time and space bending fantasia populated by a young girl in a catatonic state, a photographer turned pornographer, a fat woman who sprouts wings and a woman who takes on the shape of a cello. Absolutely spell-binding.

Little Black Book of Stories by A.S. Byatt: This most recent offering from A.S. Byatt, seemingly the most erudite and sensual of all women writing today, consists of five stories, some of which were previously published in various publications. By turn haunting and dark, Byatt maintains her trademark ability to effortlessly blend fairy tales into the everyday world.

The Courage Consort: Three Novellas - Michel Faber: Michel Faber seems to be one of the most dynamic authors writing today. Coming off of his huge, Dickensian novel of last year, The Crimson Petal and the White, he returns with these three somewhat surreal, incredibly entertaining novellas.

The Adventures and Misadventures of Maqroll by Alvaro Mutis: This is the best novel (or collection of novellas, I suppose) that I think I've ever read. Words cannot even begin to describe the stories here. The most imaginative, magnificent, gorgeous words I've read in a very long time. I didn't want to ever leave Maqroll!

Thanks for that, Lisa. We've got a few more year end lists on the way, and then I'll be back at the helm.

- C. Max Magee @ 11:21 AM ~ comments: 0 ~ Links to this post

 

AKA Dr. Srangelove

My good friend Derek is deep into his first year of law school. He reads not for pleasure but for salvation.

Eight Secrets Top Exam Performance in Law School performance by ___ Whitebread: Yes, it's depressing that a law school book with a cheesy name is one of my top books of the year but it helped me stop worrying and learn to
love the first year of law school. By love I mean not lose all my hair.

or/and

Love Is a Dog from Hell Charles Bukowski: He's a dirtbag, but his poems are like what Richard Brautigan would have written if Brautigan wasn't such a stinking hippie.

- C. Max Magee @ 1:31 PM ~ comments: 0 ~ Links to this post

 

And from the Missus

Believe it or not, Mrs. Millions reads circles around me, she just doesn't feel compelled to maintain a blog about it (I know, crazy). But I was able to convince her to send along a note about the best book she read this year.

A Confederacy of Dunces by John Kennedy Toole -- Ignatius J. Reilly's voluminous tweed trousers and accompanying ensemble are a spectacular introduction to an engaging, disgusting, provocative, hilarious, and amazing book about a ridiculous human. The density of prose and of Reilly's hulking mass left me incredulous.

Speaking of which, I got a real kick out of the Confederacy of Dunces reference in the movie Sideways.

- C. Max Magee @ 1:32 PM ~ comments: 0 ~ Links to this post

 

Two Bests from the Left Coast

Brian from Los Angeles, one of the most prolific readers I have ever known, sent along his to favorites for 2004 (as we continue The Millions End of Year Extravaganza)

Non-Fiction: The Fall Of Baghdad (excerpt) -- It is to our great benefit that Jon Lee Anderson was one of the very few journalists to remain in Baghdad throughout (and after) the attack. Anderson remains (mostly) apolitical, to record, with ferocious accuracy and color, what he saw, heard, smelt and felt throughout those turbulent weeks. All those self-important and partisan-hack talking heads and politicians who profess to know what's best for iraq and america are infants next to Anderson.

Fiction: Elizabeth Costello (excerpt) - J.M. Coetzee is primarily known for one of his weaker books (Disgrace") as opposed to one of his masterpieces (Waiting for the Barbarians, Life and Times of Michael K) -- Elizabeth Costello falls somewhere in between. And, Coetzee knows this, even seems to integrate this into the book itself. Elizabeth Costello perfectly captures, through a series of an old woman's digressions and lectures, the confusion inherent in existence. Proceeding through life with the knowledge that all information has a flip side, that every belief has a counter-belief, that everything one does is both super-charged with meaning and also meaningless, one must... proceed. As does Elizabeth Costello (and Coetzee). A book that intentionally wallows in human fallibility, confusion, flawed logic, and shortcomings, but elevated way beyond most 'perfect works' -- Coetzee is one of our best contemporary prose stylists, novelists, and essayists.

--and a shout-out to the new centennial edition Graham Greenes with cooler covers than the Penguin editions and introductions by the likes of Coetzee, Christopher Hitchens, etc... The Heart Of The Matter and The End Of The Affair must be read by all!

Look for more great end of year reviews as the Extravaganza continues.

- C. Max Magee @ 1:53 AM ~ comments: 0 ~ Links to this post

 

Return of The Gaviero

There are some books that just demand to be reread. For Emre, who I'm hoping will become a regular contributor to The Millions, the book he reread this year is also the best book he read this year.

I never read a book twice until The Adventures and Misadventures of Maqroll. When I finished reading the outlandish escapades of Maqroll in early November of '03, I knew that I would read the book at least two more times. The seven novellas that Alvaro Mutis wrote over the past twenty years are now collected in one 700 page volume, which relates the wanderings of one Maqroll the Gaviero (the lookout). The stories of Mutis' inconspicuous protagonist are presented by different narrators and in a random chronological order. The cleverly placed references in each novella help the reader discern the order of events, which unfortunately does little to dispel the mystery surrounding Maqroll and leaves the reader aching to know more about him. Mutis consoles the reader, albeit a little, each time a new character crosses paths with Maqroll. Presenting each person very skillfully and in great depth, Mutis ultimately paints a picture in which lifelong adventurers, crooks, lovers, sailors, miners, farmers, truckers, and dreamers cross paths by way of the most unimaginable, yet very possible, events. The Adventures and Misadventures is not just a modern day Don Quixote, as some termed it, but more a lyrical novel, a great ode to beautiful friendships, novel personas, and true emotions - joy and agony alike. It has been only one month since I finished reading The Adventures and Misadventures of Maqroll for the second time and I am already itching to read it again, this time in the chronological order that I discerned. It is a great novel that leaves the reader asking for more. The good thing is, you can go right back to page one. Enjoy.

I should note here that I often cite Maqroll as the best book I have ever read (I, too, intend to reread it some time soon). If you care about fiction, I implore you to become acquainted with the Gaviero. You won't regret it.

- C. Max Magee @ 1:02 AM ~ comments: 0 ~ Links to this post

 

The Millions End of Year Extravaganza (It Begins)

Some time during the month of December, squeezed in between the eggnog and the marathon sessions at malls swollen with frantic shoppers, I hope everyone has a moment or two to reflect on the last year. And as you are reflecting, I hope you set aside another, smaller moment to think about some of the great books you've read in the past year. I've asked several readers of The Millions to do some reflecting, and the results have begun to pour in. Over the next days and weeks, I'll be sprinkling these reflections throughout The Millions for your enjoyment. Pay close attention because some of these folks may become regular contributors to The Millions in the coming months. If you want to join in the fun, email me and tell me what the best book you read this year was. Today, we'll start things off with a couple of Canadians. Andrew Saikali (a new contributor here at The Millions).

Shah of Shahs by Ryszard Kapuscinski - the first book I read by him and the book that single-handedly changed the way I think of non-fiction books. A collection of journalistic notes and descriptions of historical photos, assembled in such an extraordinary way that the reader gets a complete and provocative impression of the atmosphere and revolutionary mind-set leading up to the fall of the Shah.

Also weighing in is Roy Santin, another reader from north of the border.

My pick of the year is Zoe Heller's What Was She Thinking? Notes on a Scandal (excerpt), shortlisted for the Man Booker prize 2003- it's very juicy, verging on nasty gossip, coming across as a very light insignificant thing that was tossed out, but actually is a very deep and thoughtful meditation on contemporary society both in our personal communities of family and friends and wider social trends. It's also an interesting meditation on communication, intention and conflicting interests. It's a lot of fun, with significant intimations on important issues.

Stay tuned for more reflections coming soon.

- C. Max Magee @ 9:48 AM ~ comments: 0 ~ Links to this post

 

My review of The Founding Fish by John McPhee

Have you ever wondered why someone doesn't write a really interesting book about shoemakers or Idaho or health inspectors? When I worked at the bookstore I used to get questions like this all the time. Usually, I was forced to stare blankly for a moment before performing a futile search on the computer. But every once in while, someone would ask, "Are there any really good books about the geology of North America?" And my eyes would light up and I would say, "Yes!" The same was true if they asked for books about merchant marines, Alaska, or canoes. John McPhee has the ability - which I prize as a reader - to write engagingly about any subject, and Founding Fish is no exception. In this case, the subject is the American Shad. The fish is prized by anglers and gourmands and pops in and out of American history. But this is not "the cultural history of American Shad" (are we tired of these "cultural history of..." books yet?") Instead he weaves history with science as well as plenty of personal observation. The myriad digressions are like seams of precious metal. McPhee's world is populated with fascinating characters - ichthyologists, shad dart makers, and a seine fisherman from the Bay of Fundy. If you have a taste for non-fiction and would like a book that is diverting and pleasurable (rather than "hard-hitting" and topical) try reading John McPhee.

Spotted on the el: The Rule of Four by Ian Caldwell and Dustin Thomason

New list: The Economist best of the year.

- C. Max Magee @ 4:40 PM ~ comments: 0 ~ Links to this post

 

Yardley's year in books

My favorite book critic, Jonathan Yardley of the Washington Post, has put out his list of the year's best books. He also takes the opportunity to make some comments about the National Book Awards controversy.

My own view is that the literary judgment of the National Book Award panelists was clouded by their desire to Make a Statement (as, for that matter, was the judgment of their compatriots on the nonfiction panel), but it's just my opinion and is worth no more than the paper it's printed on, if that.

He self-aware enough to note that books he has chosen are "by men, and mostly men of a certain age, which as it happens is an age pretty close to my own." I'm not sure if the other litbloggers - who went to great lengths to defend the five NBA finalists - will jump on Yardley because he seems to say that the five women are not worthy, but my feeling is that he, at least, makes it clear that these choices are about opinions, and his opinion happens to differ from the opinions of the judges. Now, on to his book choices: An Unfinished Season by Ward Just, The Plot Against America by Philip Roth (excerpt), Nothing Lost by John Gregory Dunne (excerpt), Roads of the Heart by Christopher Tilghman (excerpt), and Human Capital by Stephen Amidon (excerpt). Yardley also lists his non-fiction picks in the column.

Also out: 100 Notable Books of the Year from the New York Times.

- C. Max Magee @ 5:30 PM ~ comments: 0 ~ Links to this post

 

More year-end lists

Two British papers have put out their "best books" lists for the year. The Guardian asked some literary luminaries to pick their favorites, while The Independent compiled a mega-review that amounts to the story of 2004 in books. If you like year-end "best of" lists about any and all things, check out Fimoculous, who is collecting them.

Bookspotting: spotted on the el: Best New American Voices 2005. Everyone says the short story is dead, so it's nice to see people reading a collection while they're out and about.

- C. Max Magee @ 1:42 AM ~ comments: 0 ~ Links to this post

 

Physics and Book Sales

Using Amazon.com bestseller rankings as his data set, a physicist at UCLA, Didier Sornette, and his coauthors have just completed a study to investigate which phenomena lie behind the creation of best-selling books. While Sornette acknowledges that a big sales spike occurs after a book receives a prominent review or a mention on television, "the slower peaks tend to generate more sales over time." He finds that word of mouth is -- scientifically -- the best way to sell books. Or, to put it another way, it appears as though the laws of physics decree that creative marketing will win out over the more aggressive variety. Here's the abstract for the original study with all its scientific mumbo-jumbo.

A Baseball Book Miracle

As Janet Maslin notes in her review of Faithful: Two Diehard Boston Red Sox Fans Chronicle the Historic 2004 Season, Stephen King and Stewart O'Nan couldn't have picked a better year than this one to write a fan's-eye-view book about their beloved Boston Red Sox. Maslin likes the book and I'm not surprised; passion for the subject matter often leads to inspired and entertaining writing.

- C. Max Magee @ 1:27 AM ~ comments: 0 ~ Links to this post