I probably would have avoided Justin Cronin's The Passage, or at least come to it very late. Thanks to the avid bloggers who attended BEA and got advance copies, The Passage was my first big read of the summer--and I loved it...
Greg Zimmerman at New Dork Review of Books has done more to advance the cause of David Foster Wallace adoration in book lovers everywhere than any blogger alive. Thanks to Greg I have started This is Water; The Infinite Jest is on my Nook, awaiting our November holidays....
Priya Parmar at The Plum Bean Project wrote so lovingly about Jude Morgan's Passion that I couldn't resist the Romantic beauty of this novel...
Stu Allen at Winstonsdad's Blog got me started on Don Quixote, and I discovered the humor and sadness in the great Spanish classic...
Melissa of The Betty and Boo Chronicles was so convincing in her tribute to Steve De Jarnatt's story "Rubiaux Rising" that I went out to the bookstore and bought The Best American Short Stories 2009 that very day...
I hope someone will make an action figure of Super Librarian....Super answered my call for help when I was trying to decide what books to try with my reluctant readers. She recommended Matt de la Pena--and I had never heard of him. Shame!
All you YA bloggers out there--I'm going to show you some love. Because who do I run to when I need a great book for my reluctant reader students? If I rely upon my own youthful reading experience, I'll end up throwing Dostoyevsky at those poor kids, thus turning them into non-readers forever. Here is a list of books my students have loved, thanks to the YA bloggers....
Leaving Paradise Simone Elkeles
Looking for Alaska John Green
Mexican Whiteboy Matt de la Pena
I know a book is really good when it never makes its way back to my book shelves, but just gets passed from one student to the next. And this week I handed Leaving Paradise to one of my most book-skeptical students. Hooked! Yes, that was a gleam of triumph in my eye.
7 comments:
My stats say Looking for Alaska is the most looked at right now at my site!!
LOVE the Dostoevsky statement. I admit, I'm still scared to death of him!!
As I think I've mentioned before, it warms my heart to know you've decided to take on DFW in part because you've read about him at The New Dork Review of Books.
Can't wait to hear what you think of both!
And thanks for the shout out!
I have read so many great reviews about The Passage too but I have yet to pick it up.
I'm off the check out the others you named too :)
Boof at The Book Whisperer
I have no idea how you remember who you heard about all of those books from. That is very impressive! I really need to start reading more of those fabulous grown-up books...
@BookQuoter-I think I need to get a couple more copies of Looking for Alaska because it never makes it back to my classroom!
@Amanda-I have to admit that it was the third try that was the charm with Crime and Punishment. But I did read The Idiot in high school! Voluntarily!
@Greg--I have to admit that your DFW love is infectious!
Thanks for the shout out! I would love my own action figure, hehe.
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