The majority of my reading year focuses on forthcoming and recently published books, and I’m generally very happy with that. I like being current, able to contribute to conversations—both virtual and IRL—about books, trends, and the state of publishing, and in on the shared excitement for the titles that, whether unexpectedly or not, blow the reading community out of the water. The dearth of backlist in my regular reading life is a problem entirely of my own creation, and I usually don’t mind it so much.
But by the end of the year, when the holidays are approaching, and I’ve read my way through the book world’s version of Oscar season, the TBR pile starts singing its siren song, and I want nothing more than a cup of coffee and some time to curl up with a book I can read purely for enjoyment. And because nothing zaps my ability to think critically about a book (or, well, anything) quite like repetitive, excessive consumption of ham, pie, and holiday treats—not to mention the amount of time I spend napping and taking bubble baths this time of year—it makes more than a little sense for me to take some time away from reviewing.
This December’s backlist binge was even better than I anticipated. Here’s a look at the first chunk of my recent reading.
Everything that Rises Must Converge by Flannery O’Connor
This was my first experience with Flannery O’Connor, and I am irate that no one shoved it into my hands and forced me to read it sooner. I have a feeling that O’Connor would have been inescapable if I had grown up in the South, but I went through 20 years of schooling in the midwest with hardly a mention of her, and that just seems wrong. This collection, originally published in 1956, reveals O’Connor’s obsessions with change (and the consequences of resisting it), faith, and morality (of the sort that would be considered pedantic if it were written today but is instead brilliant because 1) this is Flannery O’Connor and 2) hello, it was 1956).There is a matter-of-factness to O’Connor’s writing that makes it tempting to take her words at face value, but there is such movement and depth—like something rippling just below the surface—that it is impossible to resist looking for more. Everything that Rises Must Converge is great reading on many levels, and it is *just* the kind of thing my inner English geek gets off on. O’Connor is a master of the short story, and it is evident that she thought and re-thought every last word, phrase, sentence, and paragraph. A must-read for anyone who loves short fiction pretty much everyone.
The Secret History by Donna Tartt
This was one of those OMG, WHERE HAVE YOU BEEN ALL MY LIFE? reading experiences. Tartt’s story, about a college student who wheedles his way into an exclusive group of eccentric Greek majors at a small liberal arts college and participates in the murder (and subsequent cover-up) of one of his new friends, is straight-up creepy, but her world and its characters are so fully realized that, were I not afraid of freezing to death in an unheated Vermont warehouse or being shoved off a cliff and left for dead, I’d want to curl up and live inside this book. Tartt’s language is powerfully evocative; her descriptions are vivid and unforgettable; and her dialogue is almost painfully authentic.
The Secret History pulls off one of my favorite literary tricks in that it begins with the ending (by revealing the murder) and devotes the majority of the book not to detailing what happened but to explaining how and why. Readers who prefer plot-driven narratives will find much to love in the storyline, and readers who, like me, are all about the writing are bound to fall head over heels with Tartt’s way with words. The startling near-perfection of this book is made even more remarkable by the fact that it is Tartt’s debut novel, and I don’t have a vocabulary large enough to begin describing the myriad reasons that every reader of literary fiction should own a well-worn copy.
The History of Love by Nicole Krauss
Why oh why did I buy this book and then leave it languishing on the pile for THREE EFFING YEARS? Why?
And why didn’t any of you shame me for doing so?
The History of Love is, like another of my perennial favorites The Shadow of the Wind, a book about a book. Krauss deftly weaves multiple narrative lines into a story about an old man, a young girl, and the book that has shaped their lives in ways they are neither fully aware of nor capable of understanding. She explores history and the Holocaust without being completely depressing (no easy feat!), and her writing is just so lush. So gorgeous. So “yes, I’m going to read this aloud to you whether you like or not” inducing. (Just ask my poor, patient husband.)
In Leo Gursky, an elderly Jewish man who knocks over drugstore displays just so he can know he is not invisible (“All I want is not to die on a day when I went unseen”), Krauss has created an unforgettable character to star in a work of literature that elevates the love story to new heights. You need proof?
Her kiss was a question he wanted to spend his whole life answering.
How’s that? Without question, this is one of the best books I read this year (and, really, in the last decade), and I only wish I’d discovered it sooner. To borrow an analogy from the sports world, Krauss “leaves everything on the field,” filling this book with emotion, beauty, and heartbreakingly perfect sentences. She has found her way onto my list of favorite authors, and I just *know* that The History of Love will only get better with time and re-readings.
What have you been reading on winter vacation?
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Michelle onDecember 30th, 2010 8:28 am I’m so glad that you fell in love with The History of Love. It is continually the book I push into everyone’s hands.
Michelle´s last blog ..Top Fives- Television
Suejustbooks onDecember 30th, 2010 9:35 am I loved The Secret History, but without a doubt History of Love is one of my favorite books ever! Now you must read Great House this year before it is classified as backlist. And I will be adding Flannery O’Connor to MY backlist. I love discoveries like this!
Jamie onDecember 30th, 2010 10:18 am You already know how happy I am that you adored The History of Love and that is one of my ALL TIME favorite quotes from it! Both of the other two are on my TBR list so maybe I’ll bump them up soon. I also have A Good Man is Hard to Find by O’Conner that I need to get to soon!
Michele@A Reader's Respite onDecember 30th, 2010 11:03 am Hate to admit it, but I’ve been doing the backlist binge for at least six months now and I’m loving it. I make a couple of exceptions, but not many. To be able to leisurely stroll down the bookshelf walls and pick a book at random just because I feel like it is luxurious.
FWIW, I loved The Secret History, too. Enough years have passed that it might be worth a re-read soon. But I’ve never even heard of the Krauss book….off to the library tomorrow so I’ll see if I can find it.
Michele@A Reader’s Respite´s last blog ..Go Away- Jane
Lynne Perednia onDecember 30th, 2010 11:37 am All three of these works have been among my favs for years but especially Flannery. I can’t say enough good about her. Each of her stories neatly captures the people in it, their hearts, their destinies, their world.
I’m still reading too many books at once and have finished none of them. That’s probably worse than the huge backlist piling up around here.
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Literate Housewife onDecember 30th, 2010 12:06 pm I love your backlist. They’re all things I want to get to. I like how you call this a backlist binge. I’m going to have to plan something like this for 2011. Thanks so much for the inspiration!
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aguja onDecember 30th, 2010 12:28 pm Thank you for your backlist. I have decided that I must read The Secret History and (besides loving the title) Everything That Rises Must Converge. They both sound interesting. The History of Love is indeed a very special book, so I am glad that you have discovered it.
Rebecca Joines Schinsky onDecember 30th, 2010 3:39 pm It was a total binge! I felt so luxurious just wandering over to the shelves and reading whatever I wanted (as Michele discusses here, too). I’ll be looking forward to doing this again next December….and maybe sometime in the summer when publishing is slow,too.
Tweets that mention -- Topsy.com onDecember 30th, 2010 8:08 pm[...] This post was mentioned on Twitter by Literate Housewife, Sharjah Book Fair and others. Sharjah Book Fair said: | The Book Lady's Blog http://t.co/ZpMX5Pi [...]
jessica handler onDecember 30th, 2010 8:34 pm The Secret History is worth a revisit, indeed. Note to self – move the copy from the living room into my “to be read” pile in my studio. Happy reading, all!
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Rebecca Joines Schinsky onDecember 30th, 2010 9:40 pm I’m trying to figure out how long I should wait before I embark on a re-read myself…must be long enough to forget some of the surprises but not so long that the plot will distract me from picking up on things I missed the first time around.
Brittanie onDecember 30th, 2010 9:59 pm I just put the Flannery O’Connor book on hold at the library. I think I have only read A Good Man is Hard to Find. I am a Southern girl born and raised so I should be ashamed of myself. Thanks to you I will be reading more by her.
Brittanie´s last blog ..Best Books of 2010
Wendy onDecember 30th, 2010 10:08 pm Yay! I was able to grab a copy of The Secret History off Paperback Swap! Probably will be my last “new” book for a few months. (Taking the TBR Dare at Ready When You Are, CB.)
Rebecca Joines Schinsky onDecember 31st, 2010 4:10 pm Awesome! Can’t wait to hear what you think about it.
Surprised by Deliberation : literatehousewife.com onJanuary 4th, 2011 5:11 am[...] top read of last year and many years before that. While I nibbled at the back list, Rebecca from The Book Lady’s Blog went all out and has really been my [...]
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