[it wasn't always easy but i sure had fun]

[minervacat]

Dear Red Sox fans:

Thanks for not burning Boston down, yo.

Love,
Min

P.S. I heard some outrageous rumor that your team beat the Yankees to win the AL pennant; way to go! *grin*

In other news, there is no other news, but there is a Top 5 topic. Top 5 Authors You Think Everyone Should Read. We've done Top 5 Books You Think Everyone Should Read,

Comments

[humpingbears]

1. Kaye Gibbons - Modern, Southern, essentially female writer. Start with Ellen Foster, which is sort of harrowing and moving and funny all at the same time, and then move into either A Virtuous Woman or Charms for the Easy Life, which is hands down one of my favorite books ever. I wrote my college entrance essay about my admiration for its protagonist.

2. Nick Hornby - he is everything Kaye Gibbons isn't: Male, British, harsh, and sexist. And I love him. And? he has one of the greatest views of modern music in the whole wide world, even if I don't always agree with him. My favorite is, of course, High Fidelity, which is much, much, much better than the movie version, which is pretty good. About a Boy is also much better than its film, although the film also a) is pretty good, and b) stars Hugh Grant with non-floppy hair.

3. David Sedaris - I don't care where you start. Just read him, for god's sake. My favorite is Me Talk Pretty One Day, but you'll be rolling on the floor with any of them. I think Naked is probably the most subtly humorous, but it also gives a better insight into his psyche than any of the others.

4. Nick Bantok - Everything that this man has produced is masterful. I own all but one of his books. I'm constantly moved by the stories, and his artwork is utterly incredible. The fact that he can both write AND draw in completely different voices/personalities boggles my mind. The Griffin and Sabine trilogy is probably his best-known work, but I really like The Forgetting Room and The Venetian's Wife, too.

5. Jon Krakauer - The sheer amount of time and energy that this man puts into researching his books makes me love him. All three of his major books (Into The Wild, Into Thin Air, and Under the Banner of Heaven) are incredible. All are true, all are incredibly powerful, and all make you question things about yourself, which, in my view, is a great quality to look for in a great writer.

[minervacat]

Someday, when I have lots of money and time to spend pouring over all of them, I am going to own all of Nick Bantok's stuff. I have distinct recollections of listening to him read Griffin and Sabine on tape, in the car when I was a kid, and then finally actually seeing the book for the first time - there's nothing that compares to the sheer beauty of his work. They're not books, they're works of bloody art.

I have read at least one book by everyone on your list! *dances* (I don't like Krakauer, but mostly because his genre doesn't interest me; he's a tremendous author, just not for me.)

[humpingbears]

I can totally understand how Krakauer would not mesh with a lot of people, but I think everyone should give him a try. I didn't read him until I was visiting a family friend up near Glacier National Park,a nd she had a copy of Into Thin Air on the coffee table, and I read like half of it in a day. It was the perfect setting for it.

And Nick Bantok...sigh. I heard him speak last summer at this huge Southern Festival of Books thing we have here. He was great, and he totally talked about the writing/drawing in seperate voices thing, and it blew my mind. If you want to read something of his other than the Griffin and Sabine series, I really recommend The Forgetting Room, especially for you.

[minervacat]

Oh, I tried. I read all of Into Thin Air and it was good, but it didn't make me want to read more. My dad's read all of his stuff, though. It's right up his alley. :)

The Forgetting Room ... seems to me I might have read it - the title rings a bell at least - but I can't recall a single thing about it. I'll have to read it again. Thanks for the nudge.