The Most Overrated Books of 2011 according to NY Daily News, and Steve Jobs is included?
Most Overrated Books
Rebecca Hunt’s Mr. Chartwell
At The Washington Times, my review of Rebecca Hunt‘s Mr. Chartwell, a shaggy dog novel about Winston Churchill‘s “black dog” (depression).
What’s “Appropriate”
We’ve been following the YA debate quite attentively – I wrote about it just last week – but Sarah Burnes‘s addition to the conversation, a blog post for The Paris Review, is one of the most eloquent I’ve read. In defense of reading YA fiction as a “grown-up” she writes, “The binary between children’s and adult fiction is a false one, based on a limited conception of the self. I have not ceased to be the person I was when I was an adolescent; in fact, to think so seems to me like a kind of dissociation from a crucial aspect of one’s self. And the critic should be concerned with what is good and what is bad, what is art and what is not—not with what’s ‘appropriate.'”
Reflecting on Baldwin
Toni Morrison wrote an obituary for James Baldwin in The New York Times, published December 20, 1987 and online for you to read. “Jimmy, there is too much to think about you, and too much to feel. The difficulty is your life refuses summation – it always did – and invites contemplation instead. Like many of us left here I thought I knew you. Now I discover that in your company it is myself I know.” Justin Campbell reflects on Baldwin, race, and fatherhood.
Life on Earth
“I’m the one who gets asked, publicly, how I manage to write and teach and have three kids. Do you get those questions, or do people just assume there is a woman doing all of the homemaking so you can go upstairs and write?” Poets Tracy K. Smith and Gregory Pardlo discuss David Bowie vs. Elton John, the confessional vs. the abstract, and the balance between family and work. Also check out Sophia Nguyen’s Millions review of Smith’s new memoir, Ordinary Light.
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Matthew Salesses Interviewed
Get to know Matthew Salesses, whose story “High Schools, or How to Be Asian American” we shouted out a few months back.
From Russia with Love
Take a break from watching the snowboarding and skating at the Winter Olympics, and read some Russian literature instead. At NPR, Andrew D. Kaufman recommends three books to learn more about the Caucasus. For more on Russian literature, read our own Nick Moran’s essay on duels in Russian fiction.
Alexandra Kleeman Uses Interruptions Strategically
Rowling on “the Literati.”
Does The Silkworm, which came out last week, give readers insight into how its author, Robert Galbraith – er, J.K. Rowling – feels about the publishing community? Elizabeth Winkler takes a look.
The list was quite interesting and I do agree with some of the picks (including Steve Jobs) but then Mr. Nazaryan had to go and put this statement at the end of the article: “If you disagree with the above, by all means tell me how/why I am wrong. Not that I ever am.” Call me over-sensitive but that statement sounds plain arrogant to me regardless of Mr. Nazaryan’s reputation. if you are going to invite people into a discussion on why they agree or disagree with you why put the additional disclaimer “Not that i ever am.” Seems like his made up his mind so what’s the point of us even discussing why we agree or disagree with him? Waste of time.
That line was a joke! Nazaryan has a sense of humor. Enjoy it!