Reading Wednesday

[gwynnega]

What are you reading now?
Jennifer Crusie, Crazy For You. My first Crusie. I'm not too far in, but loving it. The portrayal of a supposedly "nice guy" who is controlling in the extreme is very well done.

Sinister Wisdom 87, a tribute to Adrienne Rich.

What did you just finish?
Virginia Hamilton, Sweet Whispers, Brother Rush. I bought the ebook when coffeeandink pointed out that Open Road Media was having a giant sale. It's a black urban ghost story that went in directions I didn't expect. Now I'm curious to read Hamilton's The Planet of Junior Brown.

What are you about to read?
Maybe Marge Piercy's Sex Wars (the only Piercy novel I haven't read). I also keep meaning to read Susie Bright's memoir Big Sex Little Death. Also the NYRB New York Stories of Edith Wharton and Elizabeth Hardwick.

Comments

[kore]

OMG I want that tribute to Rich.

The NYRB edition of Wharton's stories is FAB -- I read it last year (maybe the one before that) and it knocked me out. Haven't read Hardwick's yet, but I think I have that one too. The NYRB fails a lot of the time re women writers (I was a member of its "book club" last year, and out of 13 books TWO were by women, plus they're REPRINTING a shitload of Kinsley fucking Amis) but the press also does have some good stuff by more obscure authors.....I think they just reprinted Renata Adler's Speedboat, which I've always been curious about.

[gwynnega]

I've been curious about Speedboat as well.

[usedtobeljs]

Yay reading! :)

[gwynnega]

Yay indeed!!

[ratphooey.livejournal.com]

Oh, Crusie is such fun! She sometimes veers a little too far into twee for my taste, but, well, she's allowed. :-)

[gwynnega]

I think I'll allow it. :-)

[herself_nyc]

Marge Piercy! I haven't read her since I was in college. I used to love her.

Those stories of Edith Wharton are wonderful.

[gwynnega]

I love a lot of Piercy's novels (especially Small Changes, Braided Lives and Vida) but was disappointed by several of her more recent books. But then The Third Child was quite good, so I'm curious about Sex Wars.

[herself_nyc]

I recall her stuff being pretty preachy/doctrinaire, which didn't bother me at the time but would now. Am I wrong?

[gwynnega]

There's definitely that aspect--but it gets undercut in her best novels by characters having different opinions/ideologies from each other. I remember a hilarious bit in Vida, where Vida is at her most doctrinaire, preaching at her sister about sexual freedom, and her sister is affectionately making fun of her.

[stateless82.livejournal.com]

Virginia Hamilton! I'd almost forgotten- I must have read Zeely a dozen times back when I was little. I'm going to have to go find it again.

Also yay for Jennifer Crusie, Adrienne Rich and Marge Piercy (who I will also add to this years try to read list- I've had a copy of Braided Lives for ages).

[gwynnega]

I love Braided Lives. It may be Marge Piercy's best novel.

[janedavitt.livejournal.com]

I love Crusie's books and that one is great because the controlling boyfriend is so super reasonable in his head and yet so BATSHIT CRAZY, OMG. Plus, the people are normal and not well off and just relatable to.

[gwynnega]

Yes, the way Crusie writes the controlling boyfriend is a great example of how a villain is the hero of his own story. It's so well done.