I love Susan Orlean's writing but I had no idea I'd enjoy 'The Library Book' as much as I did. She has a way of drawing me into her stories and forcing me to stick around to see what happens. I wish I had that ability!
I read 'The Orchid Thief' as a long essay in the New Yorker, before it became a book. It was riveting!
I lived in SoCa most of my life and I had no idea of the fire that happened, so this was all new to me when I read the book. It took me quite a while to read it as there were some places in the book that were really slow for me. But overall, I loved it.
Yes, it is slow reading. She had a problem with "The Orchid Thief" when she turned her long essay into a book. The critics noticed the padding and raked her over the coals for it. The book didn't do well. She's primarily an essayist and should probably stick to that.
I'm so glad you gave a link to the article on the joys of epistolary books. I've spent much of the pandemic reading Samuel Richardson's Clarissa. I was first prodded because it's considered one of the greatest books in the English language but was always reluctant because it clocks in at around 1,500 pages (so embarrassing, but true, to admit that stopped me), and, yes, the letter form wasn't appealing. After almost 2 years, I'm a little way half way through and enthralled. Letters really add an intimate immediacy to the work. And Ocean Vuong's book is so wonderful (his poetry is, too)! Finally--thank you SO much for subscribing to my newsletter. Your support means so much!
You're welcome, Pat. I enjoy your newsletter so much. You write about food but it is so much more. You also take the reader on a journey about the food and that is what I enjoy the most. And thanks for subscribing to my newsletter. I've found some really great newslettters/writers since I began this adventure on Substack. I feel like I've found some new friends.
I've never attempted a book more than 500-600 pages before. My attention span is short enough with a 200-400 page book. When a book starts dragging, I lose interest quickly. I'll try to get back into it a few times, but if I fail, I DNF. I admire your ability to read it over a period of time and still stay engaged with it. Maybe one day when I am no longer working a full time job, I'll attempt something bigger.
Thank you! I often feel like I'm writing into a void, essentially because I'm so timid/lazy at networking and following through with reaching out the way Substack keeps urging us to do. The writing is enough, as it always should be, right? But the newsletters I do subscribe to are inspirations--like yours and all the great books I've discovered on it and just the celebration of reading. As far as Clarissa, it actually helps that it's in letter form so you can pick it up anytime, read a few letters, and be right back in it. Otherwise, I'm with you. I used to force myself to finish reading every book I started until a friend reminded me that books and their authors should pull you in no matter how short your attention span is which is about as long as a guppy these days. Keep on telling me about book and sharing your love of them!
Awe, thank you. It means a lot to me that you enjoy my newsletter. I agree about writing into a void. I'm not much for self-promotion either, but I have learned to interact with the newsletter authors that interest me from the Thursday office hours posts and also to comment on posts as it sparks great discussions as this one did. I enjoy your community, thanks for being a part of my community.
I'm all in when you write that post. I'm game to read a few more. I do have to be in the right headspace to really enjoy them. And I also can't read one when I'm working a lot of hours during tax season. Epistolary novels are definitely not something I can read during my heavy deadlines. I have a whole folder of your posts that I've saved and go back to get ideas for books to read. :)
I love Susan Orlean's writing but I had no idea I'd enjoy 'The Library Book' as much as I did. She has a way of drawing me into her stories and forcing me to stick around to see what happens. I wish I had that ability!
I read 'The Orchid Thief' as a long essay in the New Yorker, before it became a book. It was riveting!
I lived in SoCa most of my life and I had no idea of the fire that happened, so this was all new to me when I read the book. It took me quite a while to read it as there were some places in the book that were really slow for me. But overall, I loved it.
Yes, it is slow reading. She had a problem with "The Orchid Thief" when she turned her long essay into a book. The critics noticed the padding and raked her over the coals for it. The book didn't do well. She's primarily an essayist and should probably stick to that.
I'm so glad you gave a link to the article on the joys of epistolary books. I've spent much of the pandemic reading Samuel Richardson's Clarissa. I was first prodded because it's considered one of the greatest books in the English language but was always reluctant because it clocks in at around 1,500 pages (so embarrassing, but true, to admit that stopped me), and, yes, the letter form wasn't appealing. After almost 2 years, I'm a little way half way through and enthralled. Letters really add an intimate immediacy to the work. And Ocean Vuong's book is so wonderful (his poetry is, too)! Finally--thank you SO much for subscribing to my newsletter. Your support means so much!
You're welcome, Pat. I enjoy your newsletter so much. You write about food but it is so much more. You also take the reader on a journey about the food and that is what I enjoy the most. And thanks for subscribing to my newsletter. I've found some really great newslettters/writers since I began this adventure on Substack. I feel like I've found some new friends.
I've never attempted a book more than 500-600 pages before. My attention span is short enough with a 200-400 page book. When a book starts dragging, I lose interest quickly. I'll try to get back into it a few times, but if I fail, I DNF. I admire your ability to read it over a period of time and still stay engaged with it. Maybe one day when I am no longer working a full time job, I'll attempt something bigger.
Thank you! I often feel like I'm writing into a void, essentially because I'm so timid/lazy at networking and following through with reaching out the way Substack keeps urging us to do. The writing is enough, as it always should be, right? But the newsletters I do subscribe to are inspirations--like yours and all the great books I've discovered on it and just the celebration of reading. As far as Clarissa, it actually helps that it's in letter form so you can pick it up anytime, read a few letters, and be right back in it. Otherwise, I'm with you. I used to force myself to finish reading every book I started until a friend reminded me that books and their authors should pull you in no matter how short your attention span is which is about as long as a guppy these days. Keep on telling me about book and sharing your love of them!
Awe, thank you. It means a lot to me that you enjoy my newsletter. I agree about writing into a void. I'm not much for self-promotion either, but I have learned to interact with the newsletter authors that interest me from the Thursday office hours posts and also to comment on posts as it sparks great discussions as this one did. I enjoy your community, thanks for being a part of my community.
I love epistolary! I need to write a post of favs!
I'm all in when you write that post. I'm game to read a few more. I do have to be in the right headspace to really enjoy them. And I also can't read one when I'm working a lot of hours during tax season. Epistolary novels are definitely not something I can read during my heavy deadlines. I have a whole folder of your posts that I've saved and go back to get ideas for books to read. :)
Thanks for your support Gayla!