Breaking the summer slump
I've been a baaad reader lately. First, I made a detour for the Tour de France, postponing my reading to watch nightly reviews of the annual bike race (at least the views of the countryside provided some sort of cultural benefit). Then vacation hit, with lots of driving on I-95 and a few days in New York City. Reading took a backseat to spending time at museums, restaurants and other sites.
I lost all momentum in reading -- does that ever happen to you?
To get back on track, I need a killer book, one that moves fast and is relatively short. If you have a recommendation, please pass it on.
Comments
Off the top of my head . . . if it doesn't have to be fiction, try Carl Wilson's Let's Talk about Love: A Journey to the End of Taste, a brilliant little book about the question of taste, prompted by the Montreal native's hatred of Celine Dion's music. Really smart, really perceptive, and, unexpectedly, fundamentally kind.
Fiction? If you want comedy, Anthony Powell's Afternoon Men is lovely and quick (as is my friend Ed Park's Personal Days, a bitingly funny look at the modern office); for action there's always Georges Simenon's short romans dur; for something other, there's Gregoire Bouilliere's strange and charming The Mystery Guest.
Whew. That's a lot of books for a Sunday morning. Good luck!
Posted by: Levi Stahl | August 2, 2009 11:45 AM
Have you read "The Story of a Marriage" by Andrew Sean Greer? That's the first one that comes to mind.
Hope you enjoy ...
Posted by: Melissa | August 2, 2009 6:15 PM
I'll second Levi's suggestion for a Simenon novel. Short, fabulous, and perfect for a hopeless Francophile baaad reader.
Posted by: Gail Farrelly | August 2, 2009 8:33 PM
Business? Try "Starbucked" by Taylor Clark.
Marketing? Try anything by Seth Godin.
Fiction? If you haven't read Sebald's "Austerlitz" yet, Penguin released a 58-page excerpt called "Young Austerlitz" a few years ago as part of their 70th anniversary. Could be a nice kick-start.
Posted by: Justin Kownacki | August 3, 2009 9:39 AM
"Election" by Tom Perrotta
Posted by: Brian | August 3, 2009 9:52 AM
Awesome, awesome book by Michael Lister called DOUBLE EXPOSURE. It's set to be released the end of this month or the beginning of next...have you received an ARC of this one? It's a mover for sure...and on the shorter side. I'm also in the midst of TRUST NO ONE by Gregg Hurwitz. Another mover, but it's more around average length.
Posted by: Jen Forbus | August 3, 2009 10:23 AM
Nonfiction: "The Double Helix," by James D. Watson.
Fiction: "Of Mice and Men," by John Steinbeck.
Steroids: "Dingers! A Short History of the Long Ball, by Peter Keating.
These are short books that revived my interest in reading after a tedious history of the Ottoman Empire's decline almost made me regret having eyes.
Posted by: patrick k lackey | August 3, 2009 12:24 PM