tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4951486642731990675.post511167637577853184..comments2023-10-02T06:07:30.625-07:00Comments on CONTRA JAMES WOOD: List Lust, or, The Banalities (Updated)Edmond Caldwellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02651618912907453630noreply@blogger.comBlogger7125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4951486642731990675.post-80099512060302748232009-10-06T12:30:07.604-07:002009-10-06T12:30:07.604-07:00Hello there -- I was on the panel at The Millions,...Hello there -- I was on the panel at The Millions, but none of my Top 5 made the Top 20 or honorable mentions. I wrote a follow up, in case you're interested, reviewing a book that is little known (never released) in the US, a Nepali novel called <em>The Tutor of History</em>.<br /><br />http://www.themillions.com/2009/09/top-20-alternative-manjushree-thapa’s-the-tutor-of-history.html<br /><br />And also a review at The Second Pass of a book published by one of The Big Houses but also little known in the US, called <em>Everyman's Rules for Scientific Living</em>, by Australian novelist Carrie Tiffany.<br /><br />http://thesecondpass.com/?p=2942<br /><br />I suppose I felt, in the wake of the Top 20, to bring attention to some unsung gems -- particularly contemporary novels that for whatever reason don't seem to "hit" the US market tastes.Sonyahttp://sonyachung.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4951486642731990675.post-2757191917839724832009-10-02T14:05:22.228-07:002009-10-02T14:05:22.228-07:00Austerlitz seems to be generating a lot of comment...Austerlitz seems to be generating a lot of comment on blogs about the list. I enjoyed it, but it may or may not be on my top 20 for the decade, which I'm going to post during winter break from my job. I think it got a lot of play because Sebold died just after it was published, so people ran out and read it. The list was helpful to me because it identified books I may read in the next decade. Also, I read a lot of books written before 2000, and I haven't gotten to a lot of books that were big in the 2000's (Absurdistan, Special Topics, Emperor's Children, Yiddish Policeman's Union, Jonathan Strange, etc.). <br /><br />If I had been on the Facebook group, I probably would have voted for these five (I would have assumed "The Corrections" was going to make it anyway):<br /><br />The Historian (massive book deal)<br />Thud! (fantasy)<br />Love Me (it's hilarious)<br />Zeroville (cool cover, indie press)<br />The Assassin's Song (one of the most sensitive novels about fathers, sons and brothers that I've read)<br /><br />And, depending on what I had for lunch, I may have subbed out The Historian for Paper Towns by John Green, a YA novel (genre fiction! Noooooooo!) or The Heartbreaker by Susan Howatch.Richard LeComtehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13986639064661051138noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4951486642731990675.post-12843205070661622172009-10-02T07:11:09.060-07:002009-10-02T07:11:09.060-07:00That's a book that is much loved around here, ...That's a book that is much loved around here, both by me and my cog-sci spouse.Edmond Caldwellhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02651618912907453630noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4951486642731990675.post-3109455124035057302009-10-01T09:25:50.275-07:002009-10-01T09:25:50.275-07:00I love DeWitt's argument. It's fitting, re...I love DeWitt's argument. It's fitting, really, since any survey of the best fiction the 2000s had to offer which doesn't prominently feature her own <i>The Last Samurai</i> is missing the boat.Richardhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08014014605639738887noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4951486642731990675.post-63987720441420195722009-09-30T11:20:59.958-07:002009-09-30T11:20:59.958-07:00It's just been pointed out to me that Sebald&#...It's just been pointed out to me that Sebald's other novels are ineligible. Still Austerlitz is overrated for the reason I gave.<br /><br />They're pretty uninspiring lists for sure. For those who chose Atonement, may God - or someone with good judgement - help them.Stephen Mitchelmorehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01658772259307446873noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4951486642731990675.post-34957279803170103982009-09-30T06:58:12.074-07:002009-09-30T06:58:12.074-07:00Lists can be fun, and useful if they are rooted in...Lists can be fun, and useful if they are rooted in sufficiently persuasive argument. This one, like most, may well be circumscribed by accessibility, salability and the lists of media corporations - this doesn't preclude quality, as you've noted, even if it is included simply as a sop to the 'literary.' <br /><br />An interesting concomitant exercise here would be to fish for a list from a pond that excludes giant publishers...indie only.NigelBealehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06094387597632333192noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4951486642731990675.post-663139213495515002009-09-30T00:10:17.230-07:002009-09-30T00:10:17.230-07:00The only reason I can see why Sebald’s Austerlitz ...The only reason I can see why Sebald’s Austerlitz was included ahead of the three much better novels he wrote before is that it received the public profile of a corporate giant and that the Holocaust was an overt presence.<br /><br />James Wood was right when refusing to contribute to such a list a while back, saying people always vote for worthy books that win prizes. <br /><br />BTW, the list gave me the willies, and I think Andrew Seal made a good point about the young writers revealing their career faces in their "genre-bending" choices.Stephen Mitchelmorehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01658772259307446873noreply@blogger.com