Writing Blog
Book review: The Burning Girl
This is the third Claire Messud novel I’ve read. I enjoyed her bestselling novel The Emperor’s Children, and her debut novel When the World Was Steady. The Burning Girl is her latest work. This novel set in small-town Massachusetts follows the lives and friendship of Julia Robinson and Cassie Burns. Julia and Cassie have grown…
Read MoreWe don’t have wi-fi. We talk to one another
Okay, so I love this sign posted (in English) outside a bar – the Italian word for ‘café’ – close to my home in Rome. The first time I noticed it I enjoyed a hearty chuckle. Soon I’ll be back in NY, and there you can find plenty of cafés where people are completely zoned out,…
Read MoreMore beach reading
I’ve already written about my first beach visit-beach reading session of this spring, back in April after my younger son’s running race on the seaside near Rome. But somehow, it never seems ‘official’ to me until I visit the seaside town of Sperlonga, south of Rome. Finally, last weekend I managed to get there for…
Read MoreWhy women’s stories are so engaging
“I deem as heroic those who have the harder task, face it unflinchingly and live. In this world women do that.” —James Salter How can I not love this quote by American novelist and short story writer James Salter (1925-2015)? I’ve always been a great reader, and grew up reading all the (mostly male-authored) classics.…
Read MoreAvoid regrets in life – write!
“If I don’t write I feel, well, a kind of remorse, no?” —Jorge Luis Borges I love these wise words by Argentine poet Jorge Luis Borges (1899-1986). And if there are any fighting words to pull a writer back from the abyss of endless procrastination and back on the path of productive writing, these seem…
Read MoreBook review: The Dinner
I had never heard of Herman Koch’s novel The Dinner before picking it up in a bookstore. I admit I was attracted by the cover and the interesting back cover description, and I’m so happy I took a chance on this novel, since I was very quickly engrossed in this disturbing tale. Originally published in…
Read MoreIt’s here! Beach reading season 2018
I always love this time of year. The spring sunshine blesses us, and it’s time to start heading out to the beach once again with a good novel tucked in the beach bag. Earlier this week my younger son had a track meet in Ostia, the small city west of Rome and on the sea.…
Read MoreGarcía Márquez on authors and pilots
“I’m happy when I’m traveling to know that the pilots are better pilots than I am a writer.” —Gabriel García-Márquez I love this quote from brilliant Colombian novelist Gabriel García-Márquez (1927 -2014). While García-Márquez, a truly gifted and original writer, is being modest, he also raises an important point. A pilot must demonstrate technical skill and mastery to…
Read MoreHappy National Library Week!
“The only thing that you absolutely have to know is the location of the library.” -Albert Einstein If that isn’t a fitting tribute to libraries, I don’t know what is. This week, we celebrate National Library Week, when it’s important not only to know where your local library is, but to show up and demonstrate…
Read MoreWhen I really don’t like a book…
I’m a big fan of books. Paper books, that is. I do far too much reading on computers at work, and when I return home or travel, I want to read real books, turn crisp pages, watch the number of pages accumulate as I work my way through a novel. Sadly for me, I don’t…
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