Mighty Pen

Preparation for the Next Life by Atticus Lish made a number of the "Best of 2014" lists but I've only discovered it this morning via a news peruse as Mr. Lish has just won the 2015 PEN/Faulkner Award for Fiction.  The Guardian has a nice write-up as well for this debut novel.  It looks like a good title for your summer reading list.

Lost Cups and Old Cookies

This morning's NPR news noted a variety of statistics about the upcoming holidays, shipping days, shopping days, and general rushing the end of the year before we even adjust that beloved hour back on our clocks.  I appreciate the view forward, but I'm still trying to find the measuring cups I packed six weeks ago.  [I found cookies with my knitting if that tells you anything about the spatial way my mind works...perhaps it does actually..just forget I mentioned it.]

We'll also just skip how listening to Arcade Fire's new album reminded me of a series of movies watched this weekend which led me to a bookstore which led to a list which led back to knitting which led to:  I Want My Hat Back by Jon Klassen.  There's also the follow-up This is Not My Hat (2013 Caldecott Medal Winner).  Either of these might make good reads for the young ones for that end of year list that I should be making (right after I find the measuring cups).

Lumineers to Luminaries

Congratulations Ms. Eleanor Catton!  She and her book, The Luminaries, received the 2013 Man Booker Prize yesterday.  I'm sure this title has been added to holiday wish lists around the globe.

Interesting note:  the (848 page, 2.6 pound) book's 12 sections were of decreasing length by about half the pages each section.

Something About Mary

The Man Booker Shortlist was named Tuesday.  Who will be your first read?

Image from Manbookerprize.com

Lucky 13

The end of July brings one of my favorite events during summer:  the Man Booker Longlist for 2013 has been announced.

My fall reading list has another thirteen.

Yoga-to Believe

"The yogic journey guides us from our periphery, the body, to the center of our being, the soul.  The aim is to integrate the various layers so that the inner divinity shines out as through clear glass"

                    - B.K.S. Iyengar, Light on Life, p3.

Congrats to our GBC P@1ge for achieving her Iyengar yoga certification.  We are so proud of your journey!

Namaste.

And Then There Were Six

The Man Booker shortlist was announced yesterday and though Bring up the Bodies by Hilary Mantel is getting press as a favorite, I'm still partial to Swimming Home by Deborah Levy.  Sadly, this was a book I was not able to purchase for my trusty Kindle so destiny likely brings a paper copy.  Though not keen to read another book about a lighthouse immediately, I do still have The Lighthouse in my list.  The winner will be announced the 16th of October.

Hope your week is progressing better than expected and that the cooler weather brings an extra smile or two your way.

Always Look on the Bright Side of Life

Most of us are into music as well as books.  It's the go-to for exercise company, the necessary for clearing your head, traveling soundtracks, and the impromptu kitchen dance.  The Olympic ceremonies have done a fine job of reminding me of a few favorites and NPR gave me this link to the Six Songs of Me.  Six easy questions and endless possibilities for a playlist.

Cool Runnings

For those of you who have been destined to write a short story about the odd lives of the people in the GBC  neighborhood or some other random topic of choice, here is your chance.  Oh, did I mention that you had to have been living in the UK for the last three years?  Don't worry, there is always 2015.  

The Costa Book Award has a twist this year in that the entries will be anonymous so the novice writer can be paired "page to page" with the more experienced (and perhaps well known) entry.  As I read the news this morning, I wondered it the bookish Brits had been affected by the spirit of the Olympic games.  Maybe?

Regardless, all pens welcome.  

In-Titled

The Long List for the Man Booker prize was announced last week. There were a few familiar authors but most of the other thirteen would be new reads for me. The short list will be announced in just over a month, and it is from this list I usually pull a new read. (Last year it was Room.)

Perhaps just as entertaining is the complete list of titles submitted for the "create your own Man Booker prize worthy title" which includes 10 references to "Tiger", "Things to Do in Denver When You're Dead," and "Life of 22/7." On that (constant) note, have a great end of week.

Trains Planes and Sore Heels

I finished Dorian Gray on the train which seemed an appropriately romantic tribute to Oscar Wilde. When I finished the last words, I could not immediately begin another work. I don't want to give too much away as it is an upcoming book club novel, but wow! As the reader moves through the last third of the book, s/he will begin to piece together the most likely ending, and as I read Wilde's words, I was amazed with his techniques and his imagery. It would be nearly four hours before I would pick up my next read.

In other literary news, Philip Roth was announced as the winner of the International Man Booker Prize today. (You may remember this was the contest which had a wee bit of controversy when the finalists were announced.) You may wish to add one of his titles to your summer book list.

Prized Possessions

The Pulitzer Prizes were announced this week and my former home city celebrated as a finalist in the local reporting of breaking news category. The Tennessean was indeed a lifeline for news as I sat in a (very small) Parisian hotel preparing for a meeting nearly one year ago.

Other award-winning works may also make your short-list for summer reading:

• A Visit from the Goon Squad by Jennifer Egan. The book has its own MySpace page which incidentally does not roar with music upon opening (much to the pleasure of one writer at 6:00 am)
• The Emperor of Maladies by Siddhartha Mukherjee. This work is a biography of cancer and makes the list for me this morning both due to content and the fact that I had to really search it out as the NYT article had a bad link. (And yes, I emailed the author to let him know.)

In non-Pulitzer news, Master Georgie received the Man Booker Best of Beryl Award last night. In this "always a bridesmaid, never a bride" honoring, Beryl was described as a "gracious non-winner." [Note: if any of you write of me in this way, I will haunt you like ghosts from an old French home site of a murder/suicide.]

Book'em? Dunno.

Most of you know that I have this terrible habit of checking email before I am even vertical. Usually, I check work news first, however this morning, I wanted to peruse through the list of International finalists for the Man Booker Prize. A list of thirteen was announced for this bi-annual award. To my surprise upon checking the news, our baker's dozen became a mathematical dozen due to John le Carre's withdrawal from the list. His statement's reasoning: he does not compete.

Respect the artist. Though I have only been following the MB prize for a little over ten years, I have no recollection of an author's withdrawal. Literary agents and writers with much more experience than me will be analyzing this statement in detail today. The Man Booker Chair, Rick Gekoski is leaving him on the finalist list.

There are a host of items where you will find me pushing myself to be better or stronger, but I am not a competitive writer. This news sound bite has me asking the question: do you compete and if so, for what end?

skinny latte, skinny jeans, skinny list

Earlier this month the category winners for the Costa Book Awards were announced. I was unfamiliar with most of the titles but a few of these will make my ever-growing Excel list of books.

The Hand that First Held Mine by Maggie O'Ferrell (novel)

Witness the Night by Kishwar Desai (first novel)

The Hare with Amber Eyes by Edmund de Waal (biography)

Of Mutability by Jo Shapcott (poetry)

Out of Shadows by Jason Wallace (children's)

The book of the year will be announced tomorrow on BBC Radio 4 which gives you just over a day to choose your favourite (with the additional "u" a nod to the Brits).

For those of you unfamiliar, Costa is a coffee house which appears in London as much or more than our green-labeled (now no name on the cup) friend here from the States. If you are lucky, you will get a bit of attitude served with your latte. Cheers.

Answer: Man Booker Award

As I read its co-nominee, The Room, The Finkler Question by Howard Jacobson was named the 2010 Man Booker Prize for Fiction winner last week in London. In searching for more information about the book, I discovered this NYT excerpt of Chapter 1. This morning I read through the opening paragraphs, and my favorite line thus far: "She shattered his calm."

Sometimes it only takes one line to get added to the book list. Congrats Mr. Jacobson.

Name that Tune

Yesterday the Man Booker Longlist was announced. This is one of my favorite book lists as it usually includes a wide range of selections. The dozen includes two authors I have previously read: Peter Carey (his comma-less True History of the Kelly Gang) and David Mitchell (Cloud Atlas). The titles of the lucky 13 (not an error) are interesting: C by Tom McCarthy, The Finkler Question by Howard Jacobson, and The Stars in the Bright Sky by Alan Warner to name a few. What's in a name? Sometimes more than you think.

May Ramble

In addition to this being an exciting week for GBC members, it was a time of recognition for Troubles by J.G. Farrell. The title received the Lost Man Booker Prize on May 19. This award was created to honour books published in 1970 when the rules of award changed. (So many things changed in the seventies.)

The Independent Publisher Book Award winners will be honored this upcoming week as well. A comprehensive list of authors and titles can be found here. I was hoping to report that I had read at least one of them, but I must currently remain silent on this issue.

Finally, to conclude this series of marginally related thoughts, NPR explores Meghan Daum's book Life Would be Perfect if I Lived in that House with this link. An excerpt of the book is also included. As I share Daum's fondness for Little House on the Prairie, this book has now been added to my reading list.

My summer reading will quite certainly carry into autumn. Enjoy the week.

December Discovery

Summary
Yesterday my daily habit of on-line news reading lead me to a magazine which led me to a book list which led me to another website which led me to this post.

Details
The Times is a newspaper site that I frequent three to four times a week for news, and last month I discovered their new monthly environment and science magazine, Eureka. The magazine contains a quiz (see earlier post for previous geek revelation), and last night I was in the mood for Issue 2. I should also let you know that my day began by reading an article shared by GBC Kate on art meeting science from the NY Times which may have influenced my decision to read an old article from a previous Eureka issue on books and science. This October article introduced me to both the Cheltenham Festival series and the inaugural Wellcome Book Prize. The intent of the Wellcome Prize is to "celebrate medicine in literature" and the 2009 short-list of nominees was a selection of titles that I had not seen in previous lists of recommended book reads. The books captured my interest and I wanted to share them with you.

Ph-enomenal D-arling

Soon we will have our first PhD in the GBC. Yesterday GBC Kim defended her thesis and three years of work culminated in an hour of questioning from her committee. [This was actually hour two of the event. Hour one included the presentation and the audience's ability to toss her a few "soft" questions as warm-up. We were then (politely) kicked out for the tough part.] I have not yet had the opportunity to speak with her after learning that she passed, but I would imagine there is a measure of relief and perhaps wonderment of "what next?".

I was fortunate to be able to attend her presentation yesterday. It was really amazing - interesting, funny, clever, logical, shocking at times (due to some of the great quotations), and spot on 40 minutes, her allotted time. GBC T1m did a great job with her Twitterfeed, but I think he would agree with me that it really was impossible to fully capture what an incredible job she did in 140 characters. I felt proud and I am just her neighbor!

GBC Kim, congratulations from your fellow bookclubbers! We are extremely happy for you and I think you've earned the right to pick any book for 2010.

Full of October

I turned to poetry this weekend for company during my short travels. My bi-lingual edition of Isla Negra by Pablo Neruda includes an English translation by Alastair Reid. Although the collection of poems are autobiographical and likely should be read consecutively, I enjoyed randomly selecting a work and testing the memory of my Spanish before reviewing the translation in my native tongue. Love, war, friendships, places, emotions and observations are wrapped in a melody of words that captured my attention on a cool autumn day. One of my favorites from yesterday's read was Pleno octubre (October Fullness).

Pablo Neruda was the 1971 recipient of the Nobel Prize for Literature; his Nobel Lecture as well as other bibliographical information can be found here.