Writing Blog
Book review: The Human Flies
I bought this novel when traveling in Norway. Embarrassingly, aside from Ibsen (whom I love), I’m completely ignorant about Norwegian writers. I know Norway boasts thriller writers, such as Nesbo, who fill the book shops, but I was looking for something different and picked up this debut mystery novel by contemporary author Hans Olav Lahlum.…
Read MoreQuality over quantity – E.M. Forster
“My regret is that I haven’t written a bit more.” E.M. Forster I was surprised to read E.M. Forster’s regret – if anything, it proves that harboring regrets makes no sense. It’s true that the British writer Forster (1879-1970) only wrote six novels (one published posthumously) over his long lifetime – in addition to his…
Read MoreDo you often remember where you read your novels better than the books themselves?
I’ve already written a post about context reading. The concept is the same as ‘context drinking’ – how that Tuscan wine just tastes so much better when you drink it on holidays on a sunny piazza in Italy than it does when you bring it home to Peoria. When I travel I often look for…
Read MoreBook Review: The Expatriates
I enjoyed this novel following the lives of three expatriate women living in Hong Kong. The Expatriates by Janice Y.K. Lee explores the lives of three women – all adrift in their own way – living in Hong Kong’s expat community. Mercy is a Korean-American Ivy League grad who has been drifting ever since graduating…
Read MoreBook review: Hidden
This is the third novel I’ve read – and enjoyed – by Canadian author, Catherine McKenzie. Hidden is the story of a love triangle that unravels slowly following the death of Jeff, beloved father of Seth and husband of Claire and possible lover of Tish, a colleague who works at the same corporation, in another…
Read MoreNot a plotter, just a fretter and wheelspinner?
“I hardly do any preplanning, just fretting and wheel spinning Geoff Dyer Had to laugh when I read this writing quote by British novelist Geoff Dyer, and realized I really could relate. I also do minimal planning before a story. Generally, I have a scene or a big-picture idea. I may even have a voice…
Read MoreBook review: The Trophy Son
There was a lot of publicity around this novel by Douglas Brunt when it was released this summer, and I was curious to read it. In this novel, we follow the story of tennis prodigy Anton Stratis. Andre is pushed into professional tennis by his overbearing father, who tried and failed to create a tennis…
Read MoreIt’s not nosiness – it’s research
“I’m a gossipy person—I like looking at people and how they get along with one another.” -Jane Smiley Love these words by the brilliant novelist Jane Smiley. And I think this is an important trait for a novelist, after all, they are delving into the inner lives of the characters they create on the page.…
Read MoreAll roads lead to Rome – for literature!
If you find yourself in Rome in the next couple of weeks, you may want to take part in the Eternal City’s literature festival – the Festival delle letterature. This year is the Festival’s 16th edition, running from 20 June through 21 July. It’s an interesting mix of Italian and foreign authors, and most events…
Read MoreBook review: The Two-Family House
I devoured Lynda Cohen Loigman’s debut novel, The Two-Family House, this past weekend. I spent last Saturday on the beach reading about this complicated, large Brooklyn Jewish family in the 1950s. I loved getting into the minds of these well-drawn characters and watching how attitudes and thinking changed along with the changing times. The main…
Read More