The Book Shopper

A Book Shopper's Top 10 Books of 2010

Unlike other “best” book lists, my criteria for excellence is somewhat different. To make the list requires a combination of value (how much I paid for the book) and good reading. Whether the book was published in 2010 is of little significance to me as I am a person who likes to think of himself as  immune to book hype (purposely avoiding this year’s darlings Jonathan Franzen, Patti Smith, Sarah Palin) while preferring to shop for books at used bookstores, independent book stores, book festivals, church sales and even online (gasp!). I crave the process. Here’s my list of most notable finds:

Detective Story (2008) by Imre Kertesz.  I picked up a hardback copy of this small novel from the Nobel Prize winner at Raven Used Books in Cambridge for $5 while I was visiting my daughter in Boston. I thought his earlier Fateless, was a fantastic book and this one did not disappoint. Without graphic details, Kertesz captures the terror of living in a totalitarian state and the subtle ways that those who commit tortuous acts can justify their actions.

State by State: A Panoramic Portrait of America (2008) edited Matt Weiland and Sean Wilsey. I continue to use this collection of 50 writers writing about 50 states for my bedtime book (requirements: short chapters, not too demanding). Some marketing book publicist gave me a complimentary copy at a book fair in 2009. There is an unevenness to the essays as you would expect, but Louise Erdich (on North Dakota), Ha Jin (on Georgia), Jhumpa Lahiri (on Rhode Island)  Jack Hitt (on South Carolina - specifically Charleston),  Joshua Harris (on Florida), and Susan Orlean (on Ohio)  were either insightful or entertaining and it’s a great travel guide to new writers before venturing into the Land of Nod.

Wanderlust: A History of Walking (2000)  by Rebecca Solnit. A fascinating look at the history of foot travel from early times to present day (it even answers the question:  Which came first?  Learning to walk upright which developed our brains or is it vice versa?) If you like to walk or think, this book is for you. I paid full price at the Harvard Book Store and was not sorry in the least and as I have already purchased two copies for those on my Christmas List.

Sag Harbor (2009) by Colson Whitehead. I was always a little pissed at myself for missing him at SCAD last year, but reading this novel has made it up for it. Set in 1985, Whitehead writes with great energy about being a black teenager and trekking out from the city every summer to join his buddies on Long Island. It’s mostly about being a kid and growing into a young man and figuring out how to fit in.  My friend Denise bought this book discounted through the  Better World Books as part of the Better World -- Whole Foods book club (a book club that is similar to the MARTA book club in name only). I liked the book better than she did. More of a guys book of serious fiction, if there is such a thing.

The Season for Food & Books

After a couple of years of blogging, I’ve learned only two things: 1.) writing a long post around Thanksgiving is not time well spent as blog traffic is light over the holidays and 2.) if you really want to get people’s attention in Atlanta, write about food because more people love good food than good books. (Case in point: There are dozens of Atlanta food blogs and only a few book blogs.)

There’s always been a food-book connection in metro Atlanta, but lately it has been especially prevalent.  A Cappella Books and Linton Hopkins of Restaurant Eugene are promoting a book-restaurant pairings, with Mark Kurlansky appearing at Restaurant Eugene on Monday, November 22 followed by David Tanis on December 6. (Ticket price includes a meal and a book.)

Last Wednesday, my friend Denise attended the kickoff for the new Southern Foodways
Alliance Community Cookbook at the Decatur Public Library. Denise reports that it was a packed house, which included free samples of pimento cheese with homemade crackers, barbecued pulled pork and glazed nuts. The Southern Foodway Alliance promotes the importance of eating together whether it be grits or greens or the fancier stuff.  The cookbook, which compiles favorite family recipes from all over the South, is just one way to pull communities together.

Also last week the ex-husband of Top Chef host Padma Lakshmi (Salman Rushdie) was promoting his new book Luka and the Fire of Life at the Carter Library, but I don’t think the book was about how to regulate the temperature in your oven.  And Anthony Bourdain was at the Cobb Center on Saturday night as well. The tickets for Bourdain ran in the $30 to $125 range, so one only wonders what he was cookin’.

 

MARTA Book Club #10: The Pedestrian Book Bag

Here at the MARTA Book Club—a loose confederation of people who read while riding the Metropolitan Atlanta Rapid Transit Authority’s public transportation— we are not limited to just filling our heads with book learning. The MARTA book club is now designing fashion accessories. Behold the Pedestrian Book Bag, which made its debut on the streets and trains of Atlanta this week.

Designed by BonnyBeeDesigns, the Pedestrian Book Bag is a lightweight, waterproof, single strap, over-the-shoulder, ripstop nylon bag with a reinforced bottom. The designer (my daughter) actually consulted a real urban commuter before sewing the prototype bag (shown here) and she has provided instructions on how to make one for yourself on her blog. The long thick strap won’t cut into your shoulder and it frees your hands for reading if you are forced to stand up while riding on the train (which happens more frequently after the fall budget cuts). A light zipper on the top keeps your book and lunch from spilling onto the train floor during sudden stops. The orange reflective material makes it easier for motorists to see pedestrians during the evening commute especially with the earlier onset of darkness.

The slogan “Thanks! for not running me over” can be interpreted two ways: 1.) As a thank you to the motorist who does slow down and respect the pedestrian’s right of way or 2.) As a brusque, sarcastic reminder to the motorist that does not slow down when a pedestrian exercises the right of way. For the illiterate driver, a pictograph has been included to explain the gist of the message.  

What We Are Reading: For those unfamiliar with the group, the MARTA Book Club is more than a group of well-read fashionistas. There may be no meeting times, no organizational rules, and no special fares, but we are greater than the sum of our parts.  Here’s a new list of what people are reading on the MARTA since our last posting:

Getting to Happy by Terry McMillan 

Extreme Danger by Shannon McKenna

Darkly Dreaming Dexter by Jeff Lindsay

Lamb by Christopher Moore (as reported by Emily Britt)

Island Beneath the Sea: A Novel by Isabel Allende

Lover Man by Geneva Holliday.  This month’s steamiest cover

Double Pleasure, Double Pain by Nikki Rashan A close second to this month’s steamiest cover sweepstakes.

The World Is Flat: A Brief History of the Twenty-first Century by Thomas L. Friedman

Lie by Midnight by Amanda Quick

Next by Michael Crichton

Grant Jerkins: A Very Simple Reading

I’ve heard a few well-known authors read this year—Jonathan Franzen, Anne Lamott, and Nick Hornby—all of them read for what seemed like an eternity (over a half an hour). I much prefer a quick reading—20 minutes tops. After all, I can read the book myself and I often drift off in thought during oral presentations. By the time I refocus, I’ve usually lost the plot line.

There are quick readings and then there are nano-quick readings and if you went to the water fountain at the wrong time Tuesday night, you missed most of first time novelist’s Grant Jerkins' book launch at the Decatur Public Library.  (Only the late E. Lynn Harris’s reading was shorter. See here or details. )

It’s not like Jerkins didn’t warn us. “I will have you home in time to watch Glee,” he quipped, before he read just a couple pages from his crime novel, A Very Simple Crime.

Set in Atlanta, A Very Simple Crime is the story of a man accused of murdering his wife by placing his violent and developmental disabled son in a position to allegedly bludgeon his wife (his son’s mother) with an ashtray. Jerkins puts his 10+ years of experience working with developmentally disabled adults into the narrative. The book also approaches the murder from the perspective of a junior deputy prosecutor who struggles to redeem himself from a child molestation case he botched years ago.

Jerkins fielded questions about the origins of the book and how it began as original screenplay he had written over a decade ago. The book has been optioned as a movie by director Barbet Schroeder (Barfly, Reversal of Fortune), but Jerkins explained that whether the movie will be made depends largely on financial support.