Alison Flood at the Guardian tells about the rapid development of Animal Lit memoirs in the UK. Of course, the books mentioned are bobbins. I just can’t see past fiction like Jack London’s White Fang, Richard Adams’ Watership Down, Rudyard Kipling’s Jungle Book. If you want non-fiction then look at Laura Hillenbrand’s Seabiscuit.
While searching through an unlikely list of candidates to be inducted into our Weird Book Room, I came across this book - Leopard in my Lap by Michaela Denis. They don’t publish books like this one any more.
Published in 1955, it’s an autobiographical account of seven safaris taken by photographer and film-maker Armand Denis and his wife Michaela in South America, Africa, Papua New Guinea, and Australia. I just love the cover and I bet that it might be a decent read too. I immediately thought about A Lion Called Christian.
Michaela trained as a fashion designer in New York before marrying Armand and before going on safari and encountering African tribes, lions, or elephant herds, and crocodiles. Apparently, Michaela acted as Deborah Kerr’s double in King Solomon’s Mines.
Michael Crichton’s collection of art - including Pablo Picasso, Andy Warhol and Jasper Johns - is going on sale. The author died in November 2008 at the age of 66.
Four pieces from Crichton’s collection valued at $32 million — including an iconic Johns Stars and Stripes “Flag” painting that once hung in the writer’s Beverly Hills bedroom — went on display Friday before being auctioned by Christie’s in New York in May.
Want to hear about the book of the moment? It’s called The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skloot and this book is selling like hot cakes because of this glowing review by Dwight Garner in the NY Times.
Her name was Henrietta Lacks, but scientists know her as HeLa. She was a poor Southern tobacco farmer who worked the same land as her slave ancestors, yet her cells—taken without her knowledge—became one of the most important tools in medicine. The first “immortal” human cells More…grown in culture, they are still alive today, though she has been dead for more than sixty years. If you could pile all HeLa cells ever grown onto a scale, they’d weigh more than 50 million metric tons—as much as a hundred Empire State Buildings. HeLa cells were vital for developing the polio vaccine; uncovered secrets of cancer, viruses, and the atom bomb’s effects; helped lead to important advances like in vitro fertilization, cloning, and gene mapping; and have been bought and sold by the billions. Yet Henrietta Lacks remains virtually unknown, buried in an unmarked grave.
If I was locked up in the slammer, then I’d be begging friends and relatives to send me books (if they were still having anything to do with a jailbird like me, of course) to help pass the hours, the days, the years. This article in the Austin American-Statesman shows how mixed up the Texas prison system is regarding what prisoners can and cannot read while in jail.
Prisoners can’t peruse certain books by Pablo Neruda and Andre Gide, both Nobel laureates. “Krik? Krak!” by Haitian writer Edwidge Danticat, who last year won a MacArthur “genius” grant, is prohibited behind Lone Star bars. Books of paintings by some of the world’s greatest artists — da Vinci, Picasso, Botticelli, Michelangelo — have been ordered out of state correctional facilities.
And just because a book is a best-seller in the free world doesn’t mean it’s available on the inside. Harold Robbins, Pat Conroy, Hunter S. Thompson, Dave Barry and James Patterson belong to the don’t-read fraternity. Mystery writer Carl Hiaasen does, too, as do Kinky Friedman and Janet Fitch, whose “White Oleander” was an Oprah’s Book Club selection.
I love reading. And my two favourite genres are fiction and comics/graphic novels, so it was a real pleasure to read The Amazing Absorbing Boy, the latest novel from Trinidadian-Canadian author Rabindranath Maharaj. The book tells the story of Samuel, a teenager in Trinidad whose mother has just died. His world is spun into the unknown, particularly when his uncle arranges for him to go and live with his father in Toronto, a place so different it might as well be another planet. His reception is less than the idyllic reunion he had fantasized, and Samuel immediately feels isolated and ostracized, a sore thumb on an unfamiliar hand. One of the ways in which he copes is through his love of comic books and superheroes, and relating those themes to the increasingly strange and lonely life in which he finds himself.
It’s a very good book, and I enjoyed it. It was great to be able to spend some time talking with Maharaj about the book, his own upbringing, and what he’ll be up to next. I look forward to reading more from him, and going back and reading the other novels and short stories he’s already written.
Read the interview!
Read the book!
AbeBooks.co.uk Top 10 bestsellers
1. Zapp!: Lightning of Empowerment by William C. Byham
2. The Road by Cormac McCarthy
3. Small Giants: Companies that Chose to be Great Instead of Big by Bo Burlingham
4. The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet’s Nest by Stieg Larsson
5. The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larsson
6. The Lovely Bones by Alice Sebold
7. The Truth about Managing Your Career by Karen Otazo
8. The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger
9. The Holy Quran by Abdullah Yusuf Ali
10. Exploring Corporate Strategy by Gerry Johnson
AbeBooks Bestselling signed books
1. Swan Thieves by Elizabeth Kostova
2. Shades of Grey by Jasper Fforde
3. The Lost Symbol by Dan Brown
4. Let the Great World Spin by Colum McCann
5. The Man Who Loved Books Too Much by Allison Hoover Bartlett
6. Noah’s Compass by Anne Tyler
7. When You Reach Me by Rebecca Stead
8. The Selected Works of T. S. Spivet by Reif Larsen
9. The Greatest Show on Earth by Richard Dawkins
10. Chronic City by Jonathan Lethem
A neat idea can be found over at Out of Print Clothing. As someone who thinks books should be worked into as many other aspects of life as possible, AND as someone mildly obsessed with beautiful book covers and book design, I can definitely get excited about this. I love when people do creative things for a good cause, as well, and this has arguably MORE than one good cause.
From their mission statement:
“Out of Print celebrates the world’s great stories through fashion. Our shirts feature iconic and often out of print book covers. Some are classics, some are just curious enough to make great t-shirts, but all are striking works of art.
We work closely with artists, authors and publishers to license the content that ends up in our collections. Each shirt is treated to feel soft and worn like a well-read book.
In addition to spreading the joy of reading through our tees, we acknowledge that many parts of the world don’t have access to books at all. We are working to change that. For each shirt we sell, one book is donated to a community in need through our partner Books For Africa.
How we read is changing as we move further into the digital age. It’s unclear what the role of the book cover will be in this new era, but we feel it’s more important than ever to reflect on our own individual experiences with great literary art before it’s forever changed. “
I can definitely get behind that. And some of the books featured are some of my favourites, like , The Catcher in the Rye, Nineteen Eighty-Four, Slaughterhouse Five and Of Mice and Men, to name just a few. Cool. Good on ‘em.
If a shifty looking geezer comes up to you in a boozer and offers you around 12,000 copies of Flanimals, then just say no - they’ve been half-inched.
In this month’s Avid Reader newsletter, I wrote about Fat in Fiction. I suspected readers might have a lot to say, and I was right - you did! It’s always a controversial topic, especially these days, when our society seems to be expanding and obesity is being monitored as a dangerous epidemic.
Some encouragement, some suggestions, some counterpoints, all appreciated and interesting. Thanks so much for writing in to share your views with us. And I now have some titles to add to my reading list!
Here’s some of what you had to say:
“The best fictional book about a fat person I’ve ever read: Fat Woman, by Leon Rooke. Vivid, gothic, bizarre, and very touching.
–M. Allen”
“One Fat Englishman by Kingsley Amis has some fun moments, but David Lodge in the Guardian calls it “his least likeable novel” and says that the main character “was in many respects a devastating and prophetic self-portrait.” Perhaps all the better reason to give this slim novel a go!
Brian”
“I have been overweight for sometime now and am trying to lose about 40 lbs. I see a lot of overweight people and it has become an obsession on television. But, here in Cheyenne, WY I have a friend who has a lot of family problems and she has become extremely overweight. She is so sweet and nice and another friend and I know she is not being treated nicely by other people in her office. It is terrible. And of course, when a person does lose “all that weight” well, they are welcomed back into the world. I wish we could cut the bias. Thanks much.
HelzHart”
” I would like to commend to you Dr Koppelman’s important work on the topic, which continues her very special contribution to literature, and was groundbreaking on the topic you cover.
Could you perhaps add it to your blog?
“The Strange History of Suzanne laFleshe” and Other stories of Women and Fatness
Thank you,
Laura
“Hi there,
I really appreciated Beth Carswell’s piece on fat in fiction, especially her critical take on how authors
use fat as metaphor and their limited vision for fat characters. I was surprised, then, that she didn’t
mention Susan Stinson’s novels as the happy fat exceptions. Fat Girl Dances with Rocks, Martha Moody, and Venus of Chalk all have amazing fat characters and explore the fat body and fat in the social world in very complex ways. She’s one of the only writers I’ve read who can capture the great joys of the fat body and the pleasures it brings. I think your readers would love her books and I hope you can mention them in the future.Best,
Lynne”
“While I don’t disagree with what you say about fat people in fiction, I don’t think they are a singular case. Beauty in general is usually used to represent good, and “ugliness” as evil or bad. Glasses are used hugely to stereotype children, and beyond that, what about all the hook nosed, beady eyed, etc. villains? These people have arguably even less control over their looks than overweight ones.
Fat is a hot topic because it is perceived that people can have some control over their weight. (I do think people are sent wildly conflicting marketing messages - so that both the food and diet industries can thrive - which is despicable.) In many cases fatness is related to emotional issues, so I don’t think it’s unrealistic to use it to illustrate that kind of change in a person’s life. But, considering that many people are genetically disposed to be overweight, and that western culture at the present time fosters overweight, I agree that it would be very good to have stories that show that people are much more than a dress (or suit) size.
-Suzy”
“I just wanted to say thank-you to Beth Carswell for the article ‘The Skinny on Fat in Fiction’. I totally agree that in a world of ever increasing political correctness, where one by one one prejudices are identified and made socially unacceptable, weight remains one of the few remaining acceptable prejudices. But the prejudice willnever be challenged without articles like that. So thank-you Beth for taking up your pen (or keyboard!) and
contributing to the good fight!! And hey, perhaps an author will be inspired and write a charcter who has
curves with no agenda. Good work!
Rachel”
“Dear Beth,
I read your article, The Skinny on Fat in Fiction, and found it a little one sided. There are a growing number ofauthors using skinny for the same purpose. In fact extremely thin, spidery or anemic characters are just as often used as evil doers, or portrayed as defective of character. Thinness is used to denote creepiness, or moral decay as often as obesity is used for greed and lack of willpower.
But in the end obesity or anorexia are extremes. Most readers are neither (though I admit the ranks of the obese
are swelling). Fat and skinny are just devises to be used by an author to slow their heroes down, or add flair
to a villain. In children’s books especially, villains are often referred to as ‘dark’ or ‘swarthy’ characters,
yet we don’t hear complaints from the world’s dark and swarthy of mistreatment in literature. Perhaps those
who feel persecuted for their weight are simply more conscious of their appearance because of the western world’s
current obsession with celebrity worship?I have no doubt that what you say in your article is true (I always thought JK was unfair with Dudley), but it’s
just as easy to look on the other side of the coin. Rob Grant’s novel Fat explores both sides of the argument in
a humorous and enlightening way. I note it’s not in your list however.Regards
Chris”
“Two cents really is all this is going to be worth, but I wanted to say it anyway. I just read your article about
“fat” in literature… and would like to point out that, although current literature may look down its nose at
obesity, it only reflects our current American culture. J.R.R. Tolkien made his hobbits “fat in the stomach”
and fond of food without connecting that to any great character flaw.Erika”
“Naval officer Jack Aubrey in Patrick O’Brian’s Napoleonic seagoing series is quite a bulky figure … but it
doesn’t stop him from doing anything or being one of the main heroes of the books.A derring-do naval officer is hardly a fat stereotype. And Aubrey’s stature is by no means the central theme
of the books (it is just an aside, really). So here IS an example of a character who is “fat without it carrying
so much weight”.Roly, Paraparaumu, New Zealand”
“Re: Beth Carswell’s piece The Skinny on Fat in Fiction:
It makes for interesting reading, but I have two quibbles with it. (1) For many people of size, their size issues are central to many of the dramas in their lives, and it may not be truthful to write as if they aren’t. and (2) She doesn’t mention Thayne Hudson’s book A Breath Floats By and although three of the main characters are fat (visibly so in the cover illustration), there is much going on in the novel unrelated to their weights, and it made for delightful reading. There are many other books that she should have listed, but didn’t. The irony is that the author of the article bemoans that more books don’t make weight play a minor role, but she doesn’t seem to know about this one.
Bill, Woodstock, NY”
“I agree, so many characters who are overweight are portrayed negatively. Unfortunately, the world of
fiction does not fit well with the world of reality. In the real world, there are more overweight people than
there are skinny people.So where does that leave us? In the power of the skinny people? I think not! The overweight people
I know which includes me as well, are strong, intelligent people, who can take care of themselves
very well, thank you. We are overweight for various reasons, which really don’t matter. In the end,
who cares why?As to losing the weight. Well, maybe. I may, I may not. That’s up to me, and what I am willing to do
to lose it. Those who are in the know, realize that it’s not what’s outside that matters, it’s what is in
the inside, the person’s soul, their character.Well, thank you for allowing me to vent!
Anne”
“Being fat is unhealthy. And may it be a metaphor for overindulgence?
I also think our modern capitalist/consumerist society encourages obesity beyond its natural rate. Our modern system allows people to very little in exchange for
a lot of goods. In the past it took a lot more effort to produce and distribute things. So, our modern age is the richest and as a result the laziest age ever, I think. I think that may be the cause of a lot of obesity.I don’t think its good to make fun of people, but maybe no one would be offended if no one was extremely obese.
So, I think we should get rid of obesity. - Timothy”
“For another approach to the subject, please add “Seize the Fire” by Laura Kinsale to your list of books on this
topic. The pleasingly plump heroine is somewhat distressed by her weight. The hero is extremely distressed
when she loses weight while they are shipwrecked.Yvonne”
“Not exactly a classic book, (though it should be) but Fevre Dream by George R.R. Martin has a fantastic
fat character in Abner Marsh, the riverboat captain.
James”
“You should add “The Fat Studies Reader” Edited by Esther Rothblum and Sondra Solovay to your fact in fiction list - michael”
“Dear Ms. Carswell:
Bravo! Thank you for saying something that so many of us “fatties” have been trying to say, for a long time.
It needed to be said, and you did it exceptionally well!
Sincerely,
Arlene “
“Fat in fiction will stop being a big deal when it stops being a big deal to human beings. In other words,
it’s just part of creating a character, same as green eyes or deafness or deathly pale skin or
“Yon Cassius has a lean and hungry look”. Fiction just records what we all think is significant,
only more so because writers are better at recording interesting details than we are.Glad to get the book list though!
Julie”
“Hi:
I just read your article on fat characters in fiction. I realize that Canadian fiction and, in particular, French Canadian fiction, of ten flies under the radar. It is, however, worth checking out Yves Beauchemin’s novel, Juliette, for an example of a well-rounded (no pun
intended) character who happens to be overweight. She even gets to have a romantic relationship. - Sharon”“No longer in print, I am sure, is the Mark Tidd series by Clarence Buddington Kelland. The main character is
obese by description, but has none of the other negative character traits you describe. I read those books
as a child and I am now retired; so you may not be able to locate a copy. OTOH, if anyone can find one, you can.
James “
Count me among the legions of fans who grieved, mourned and even lamented when it was announced back in 1995 that Bill Watterson was calling it quits, and his remarkable comic strip Calvin & Hobbes would be no more. I loved that strip. Wholly and unabashedly, I really did. I looked forward to it. It made me cry - the one where Calvin finds a sick baby raccoon and tries to nurse it back to health, only to have it die, comes to mind - and crack up laughing (way too many to even attempt to mention), and I eagerly followed the adventures of Spaceman Spiff, the transmogrifier, Tracer Bullet, Stupendous Man, and the nefarious she-girl, Susie Derkins.
When Watterson announced the strip’s retirement, even while I was heartbroken and prayed it wasn’t true, it was fitting, and part of me was pleased. Like Gary Larson’s The Far Side, which Larson had retired one year prior, the strip was still fresh, clever, original and creative, and Watterson left us wanting more. I really think that was the only way to do justice to Calvin & Hobbes. I loved Garfield as a child, delighting in the fat orange meatball of a cat and the dynamic between him, Odie, Jon, Nermal and the rest, but by the 1990s, Garfield had grown so tired, so repetitive, so unfunny and stale that I stopped reading it because it made me cringe. As I understand it, Jim Davis is still churning out the strips, albeit with help from others, too. Which would be all well and good if it were what he loved, if he still had more to say, if there was still anything left that was new. But to my eyes, it’s been a very long time since that could be accurately said.
Bill Watterson checked out at the right time. He was never the guy to put out action figures or t-shirts or….really much of any Calvin & Hobbes merchandise besides books, as far as I know. I know the first time I saw one of those godawful decals of Calvin urinating plastered on the side of a truck, I winced and prayed Watterson would never see one.
He checked out when he felt he’d told the story enough, and said all there was to say, and when we could imagine Calvin & Hobbes running off into the woods together for the rest of their adventures, rather than watching them grow unfunnier and more stale, losing the uniqueness and freshness that made them so beautiful.
And according to this interview, Watterson doesn’t regret a thing.
“I think some of the reason “Calvin and Hobbes” still finds an audience today is because I chose not to run the wheels off it.
I’ve never regretted stopping when I did.”
A million books from Manchester are being sent down the salt mines. No, it’s not some weird Mancunian Fahrenheit 451 thing - it’s a storage issue.
This year’s twist on the Booker Prize is the “Lost Man Booker Prize” - apparently someone misplaced a Booker down the back of a sofa way back in 1971.
The mystery never ends with J.D. Salinger - speculation is already rife about what’s in his safe. Fifteen unpublished novels perhaps?