All about reading fetish:
Please read The Last Samurai. This book changed my life! Okay, I'll cease being melodramatic but it did start me reading again. For a while there I was only reading technical books and playing with my computer.
Although the book is put out by Hyperion Books, they make no mention of it on their website. The author, Helen Dewitt, also isn't mentioned in their list of authors. I know that the capitalist borg we all live in is twisted so I'm wondering what the story is behind this. For example, sometimes an artist will release something but because their label or distributor doesn't believe in it they won't market it.
But then again, maybe Helen is a recluse. Even though her book describes the characters tracking down authors of their books via the publisher, she is a sadist and chooses to rescind contact with people who loved her book.
Well, here are a few Helen Dewitt resources:
1. Here is a good review.
2. An excellent resource for her many allusions is here.
3. This shows related authors in a cool way, I'm not sure of it's accuracy however...
By the way, it bothers me that people *always* compare Dewitt to A.S. Byatt. I did not find this to be the case; both are expressive but in different ways - Dewitt in a raw wit, Byatt with technical skill and dense allusions. Very dense! Also, Byatt's meta-narrative of academic life was a bit out of touch, not bad, but out of touch.
Hm.
As I read these great books it makes me feel so obtuse; Dewitt and other authors (Neal Stephenson, David Foster Wallace, A.S. Byatt, Douglas Coupland amongst others...) casually expose intelligence and wit that consistently spellbinds me.
12:15:47 AM 
|
