In the New York Times' "By the Book" column, Jeannette Walls answers the old "what do you like to read" question almost exactly as I would.
What kinds of stories are you drawn to? Any you steer clear of?
I love histories, biographies and memoirs. I’m also drawn to realistic fiction. I’m not a huge fan of experimental fiction, fantasy or so-called escapist literature. Reality is just so interesting, why would you want to escape it?
Do you read a lot of memoirs? Any good ones recently, aside from Lindhout’s?
I love memoirs. I devour them. “In the Sanctuary of Outcasts,” by Neil White; “The Memory Palace,” by Mira Bartok; “Denial,” by Jessica Stern; “A Long Way Gone,” by Ishmael Beah; “An Unquiet Mind,” by Kay Redfield Jamison; “Chanel Bonfire,” by Wendy Lawless; “The Center Cannot Hold,” by Elyn Saks; “After Visiting Friends,” by Michael Hainey; “The Kiss,” by Kathryn Harrison; “My Stroke of Insight,” by Jill Bolte Taylor; “Couldn’t Keep It to Myself: Wally Lamb and the Women of York Correctional Institution,” edited by Wally Lamb. That’s just a few. There are so many more.
Keep reading HERE.
What about you -- are you more a fan of reading fiction or nonfiction?
I can read a small amount of science fiction, mainly short stories, if it's intelligent and not too much on the fantasy side. I love classic ghost and horror stories, but the fantasy genre (imaginary kingdoms and dragon trainers and so on) leaves me absolutely cold. I made it through "The Hobbit" but I couldn't do "Lord of the Rings" (the made-up languages were a huge turnoff). I find historical fiction to be so-so (I'd rather read straight but lively history). I tend to prefer fiction that is by dead authors. Too many times, contemporary fiction has disappointed me, particularly when it is highly touted.
ReplyDeleteI love history and biography and I'm okay with memoirs as long as the writer has some humor (black or otherwise) and some perspective on their own life and experiences. Shallow I-did-this-and-then-I-met-this-person stuff is not interesting.