Conversational Reading

New @ TQC Sam Lipsyte InterviewShare

Our own Barrett Hathcock has done a lengthy interview with Sam Lipsyte. Therein they discuss, Gordon Lish’s infamous writing classes, Lipsyte’s debt to Barry Hannah, writing with children, the literary blogs, and this:

And as a kind of northern, New Jersey, Jewish kid, it was a strange thing to latch on . . . continue reading New @ TQC Sam Lipsyte Interview

Your Face This Spring in One WeekShare

A reminder for everyone that we’ll be starting our epic, multi-month reading of Javier Marias’ Your Face Tomorrow trilogy in a little over a week, on March 21. Here is the schedule of reading.

Now how many of you have already gotten started reading these books?

Trim the FatShare

I haven’t read The Infinities, and I have no idea whether or not I’d agree with this critique if I actually read the book, but I do completely sympathize with the idea Levi evokes here.

Then there’s The Infinities by John Banville, a high-falutin’ philosophical kind of book that I really wanted to read, . . . continue reading Trim the Fat

Bring Back the Mass Market Paperback!Share

I’d really like to see it happen. As I understand things, there are two possibilities for why this hasn’t already happened: 1) we as a reading public just don’t have the interest in serious fiction to support mass market paperbacks as a business proposition like we used to. Or 2) . . . continue reading Bring Back the Mass Market Paperback!

Bestseller DatabaseShare

As Max has it, this database of 337 bestsellers with extensive notes is bibliographic crack.

For instance:

Upon The Reivers’s June, 1962 release the novel experienced an interesting array of reception. The more “important” critics of the day “lambasted” Reivers as a mediocre piece of work while the “knuckleheads” such as New York Times writer Orville . . . continue reading Bestseller Database

BTB PressShare

So we announced the Best Translated Book Award winners yesterday. Here’s the winners at Three Percent.

And Omnivorcaious has a pretty good interview with judge Michael Orthofer. We learn:

Of the eligible books (around three hundred) I would guess I read and reviewed about a hundred, and at least took a closer look (ranging from reading . . . continue reading BTB Press

Presenting The Offending AdamShare

(This posts comes to us from Andrew Wessels, who contributes to The Quarterly Conversation, as well as a number of other literary pursuits. His new site The Offending Adam delivers new poetry and book reviews every week and does so with an innovative approach to. Here he explains where the site comes . . . continue reading Presenting The Offending Adam

Are E-Books a Revolution?Share

Interesting discussion going on at The Constant Conversation surrounding Levi Asher’s recent point that e-book adoption is proceeding too slowly to really be a revolution, as everyone’s calling it.

Check the comments for some great points on both sides, including Mark Thwaite, who says in part:

Further, I’m still at a loss, really, to . . . continue reading Are E-Books a Revolution?

Best Translated Book Award Winner and PartyShare

Alas, so much cool stuff happens on the East Coast that I’m not able to attend. And here’s a great example: tomorrow Chad Post et al. will be announcing the BTB winners for Fiction and Poetry. You know what to expect: booze, food, lots of schmoozing, books. If you’re . . . continue reading Best Translated Book Award Winner and Party

Reality HungerShare

I can usually tell that I’m enjoying an essay when I think as I read it “I should really blog about this.” And one of the marks of a truly great essay is when, once I’ve decided I’m going to blog it, I think “ahh, here is the perfect part to excerpt” . . . . . continue reading Reality Hunger