Really, truly I am. I've just been crazy busy, what with a new baby (well, he's not so new anymore, now, is he), more writing gigs (see my chapter in the upcoming edition of Genreflecting, I'm hard at work on the Women's Fiction entry into the Genreflecting Advisory Series, still blogging for ShelfRenewal...), and life in general. But I have lots of blog posts for this baby on my to-do list... I swear.
Bear with me!
Sunday, March 20, 2011
Friday, September 24, 2010
My take on the Franzen Flap of 2010
Forgive the lapse of posts recently, but I just had my second child and life's been, um, busy. Hardly enough time to read, let alone write! But I have been meaning for weeks now to weigh in on the fuss about Jonathan Franzen and his new book.
To recap, Jonathan Franzen published a new book this summer and landed not only 2 NYT book reviews but the cover of Time as well. Then Jennifer Weiner and Jodi Picoult got lots of press for protesting.
My take? I am firmly on their side. My reaction to seeing the cover, even before the #franzenfreude started, was "WTF, why does this dude get the cover of Time??".
I'm pretty tired of literary fiction by men getting all the attention. Case in point: nearly every book blog I read this summer gushed about One Day
by David Nicholls. I got very tired of the pandering, and eventually angry, because I read it and HATED it. I thought the characters, particularly the male protagonist, were downright unlikeable. And other than a few comic scenes, the novel was dull, dull, dull - with a total cop-out of an ending. But everyone else was giving him the blog equivalent of a blow job.
Frankly, One Day is a pale imitation of a women's fiction novel, written by a man. It's a quasi-romance. It tries to get into the characters' heads. And in my opinion failed miserably. (I'll be honest - I'm not a big fan of Nick Hornby, either.)
And you know damn well that if One Day had been written by a woman... it would NEVER have gotten so much attention. I think that's what makes me the maddest.
To recap, Jonathan Franzen published a new book this summer and landed not only 2 NYT book reviews but the cover of Time as well. Then Jennifer Weiner and Jodi Picoult got lots of press for protesting.
My take? I am firmly on their side. My reaction to seeing the cover, even before the #franzenfreude started, was "WTF, why does this dude get the cover of Time??".
I'm pretty tired of literary fiction by men getting all the attention. Case in point: nearly every book blog I read this summer gushed about One Day
by David Nicholls. I got very tired of the pandering, and eventually angry, because I read it and HATED it. I thought the characters, particularly the male protagonist, were downright unlikeable. And other than a few comic scenes, the novel was dull, dull, dull - with a total cop-out of an ending. But everyone else was giving him the blog equivalent of a blow job.Frankly, One Day is a pale imitation of a women's fiction novel, written by a man. It's a quasi-romance. It tries to get into the characters' heads. And in my opinion failed miserably. (I'll be honest - I'm not a big fan of Nick Hornby, either.)
And you know damn well that if One Day had been written by a woman... it would NEVER have gotten so much attention. I think that's what makes me the maddest.
Wednesday, September 15, 2010
More writing...
Just signed the contract for my 3rd nonfiction book about Women's Fiction! Will be part of the Genreflecting Series. Due out Fall/Winter 2011. Also just submitted the Women's Lives and Relationships chapter to the forthcoming next edition of Genreflecting
, and got my finished copy of Integrated Advisory Service: Breaking Through the Book Boundary to Better Serve Library Users ,where I contributed to the Women's Stories section.
, and got my finished copy of Integrated Advisory Service: Breaking Through the Book Boundary to Better Serve Library Users ,where I contributed to the Women's Stories section.
Wednesday, July 14, 2010
Backseat Saints by Joshilyn Jackson
Loved this book.
I'm a big fan of Joshilyn Jackson in general, after being wowed by her first novel, Gods in Alabama
.
I've also blogged about her at Booklist.http://bookgroupbuzz.booklistonline.com/2010/06/16/authors-you-should-try-joshilyn-jackson/
Backseat Saints
is the story of Ro, an abused wife who finally makes a break for it. What's really interesting is that the character that Jackson has created does not seem at all to be the type of woman who would put up with abuse. She's really headstrong, witty, and you get the feeling she could bust anyone's balls at a moment's notice (at least, before she got married, she was strong). She also happens to be in love with her hateful husband, despite the abuse. When a psychic tells her that she's going to die at his hand unless she kills him first, she finally lets the "old" Rose Mae out.
Funny, smart, and fast paced, I enjoyed this story for the characters as well as the tight plot.
I'm a big fan of Joshilyn Jackson in general, after being wowed by her first novel, Gods in Alabama
. I've also blogged about her at Booklist.http://bookgroupbuzz.booklistonline.com/2010/06/16/authors-you-should-try-joshilyn-jackson/
Backseat Saints
is the story of Ro, an abused wife who finally makes a break for it. What's really interesting is that the character that Jackson has created does not seem at all to be the type of woman who would put up with abuse. She's really headstrong, witty, and you get the feeling she could bust anyone's balls at a moment's notice (at least, before she got married, she was strong). She also happens to be in love with her hateful husband, despite the abuse. When a psychic tells her that she's going to die at his hand unless she kills him first, she finally lets the "old" Rose Mae out.Funny, smart, and fast paced, I enjoyed this story for the characters as well as the tight plot.
Wednesday, June 2, 2010
Jennifer Weiner will be with us for a while!
Yay, today Jennifer Weiner just signed a contract for 4 more books with her publisher, Atria Books.
She's one of my favorites, so I'm very happy about this news!
Courtesy of Galley Cat:
http://www.mediabistro.com/galleycat/deals/jennifer_weiner_inks_four_book_deal_163413.asp
She's one of my favorites, so I'm very happy about this news!
Courtesy of Galley Cat:
http://www.mediabistro.com/galleycat/deals/jennifer_weiner_inks_four_book_deal_163413.asp
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