Dayton Literary Peace Prize Winners Announced

The winners of the Dayton Literary Peace Prize were recently announced with none of the titles disappointing.  The prize is given annually, with winners and runners-up in Fiction and Nonfiction.  Descriptions are from the Dayton Literary Peace Prize press release.

The winner for Fiction went to Chang-rae Lee's Pulitzer Prize nominated work The Surrendered.  The book is an examination of the long-lasting scars of war-time horrors through the intricately entwined lives of a American soldier and an orphan of the Korean War whose paths cross years after first colliding in an orphanage in war-torn Korea. The combatitive relationship between the two show how the psychological damage done by the war continues to plague them.

The Fiction runner-up is Beneath the Lion's Gaze by Maaza Mengiste.  This work is about the relationships and deception between a father and his two sons during and after Ethiopia's revolution.  It's a work displaying the difficulty of keeping a family apart while the world around them is being torn apart.

In the Place of Justice, the memoir of Wilbert Rideau, was the winner for Nonfiction.  Rideau, a prison journalist in the violent Angola prison in Louisiana, was condemned to death in an unfair trial.  The sentence was modified to life imprisonment and Rideau became editor of a prison newsmagazine, which under his leadership became an important journal instrumental in reforming the Angola prison.

The runner-up for Nonfiction, The Warmth of Other Suns by Isabel Wilkerson, tells the stories of three African-Americans who fled the South for a precarious future in the North and West.

World Cup Caliber Authors from Sweden

This is the second week of World Cup caliber authors and this week we are highlighting writers from Sweden. Sweden's main spectator sports are football (soccer) and hockey.  The Women's National Football team has qualified for every one of six World Cups and they have participated in four Olympic Games.
They are one of the top teams in the world and continue to move up.  They placed 2nd in 2003 and 3rd in 1991 and again this year.
Try one of these talented authors and help celebrate the excellence of Sweden.

John Ajvide Lindqvist--he writes horror novels, thrillers, and short stories.

Majgull Axelsson--she is a journalist/writer who has won several important Swedish literature awards.

Marianne Fredriksson--she was a journalist for various papers before publishing fifteen novels.  She passed away in 2007.

Jan Guillou--this controversial writer has published a series of novels about a Swedish Knight Templar.

Astrid Lindgren--(1907-2002)--A classic children's author and creator of Pippi Longstocking.  She is probably the most well-known Swedish writer.

Liza Marklund--journalist and crime writer--her novels have been published in 30 languages.

Linda Olsson--born in Stockholm this lyrical novelist now lives in New Zealand.

Maj Sjowall--author and translator.  She is best known for her 10 detective novels written with her partner Per Wahloo.

If you want to read more Swedish detective fiction--try one of these authors from my Swedish crime writers blog entry.

When a little says a lot

Anyone who's ever talked with me (or perhaps even read this blog) is aware that brevity is not my strong suit.  I tend to use a lot of parentheses and ellipses and dashes.  It takes a lot of words to get across what I mean, and I want to make sure that the emotional import of my message is adequately conveyed.  To do that, I try to explain things over and over and around and through, and every other possible direction...or, perhaps I just don't edit myself very well.  I'm at least aware enough to recognize that I don't necessarily add any meaning or emotional heft to what I'm saying just by virtue of being wordy.  Hemingway once wrote a six-word story to win a bet, and he ended up calling it his greatest work ever: "For sale: Baby shoes.  Never worn."  (Okay, even just typing that, I felt a little sad...well done, Mr. Hemingway.)

The Lover's Dictionary, written by author David Levithan, covers the entire arc of a relationship in brief, personalized dictionary-style entries.  Levithan, who's best known for YA books like Nick and Norah's Infinite Wisdom and Will Grayson, Will Grayson (both worth a read, if you haven't already) had a decades-long tradition of writing books for friends on Valentine's Day.  When he realized he was only two weeks away from that date in 2009, he decided to use random words and fit the story to then.  I was intrigued by the concept of using words in a relationship-specific way to then define the relationship.  Because this couple's arc is presented alphabetically, not chronologically, the reader is taken through a wild array of emotions in a seemingly unrelated jumble.  The affection, the anger, the delight, the love, the heartbreaking, and the heartbroken moments are all tossed together in a melange of emotion.  And yet, it works, and Levithan managed to create a sense of linearity of emotion, if not time.  Entries like "obstinate, adj. Sometimes it becomes a contest: Which is more stubborn, the love or the two arguing people caught within it?" speak volumes about the the relationship and the couple's within it that is fraught with drama (incidentally, the definition of 'fraught" is wrenching).  Others, like "yearning, n. and adj. At the core of this desire is the belief that everything can be perfect." hold a sense of hope and, well...yearning.   The end result is an emotionally complex book that somehow seems greater than the sum of its words.

Fair warning: if you like your endings clear and wrapped up, it might not be the book for you.  However, if you like your books original, creative, emotionally charged, and pithy, give it a try. 

   

Another Crossover Hit!

I just read, Divergent by Veronica Roth. This is her debut novel and it is an excellent dystopian fantasy.  If you enjoyed Hunger Games I am quite sure you will enjoy Divergent. It is a book about a teen girl who lives in a world divided into 5 factions. The factions include Dauntless who are brave; Candor who are honest; Erudite who are studious; Amity who are peaceful and fun-loving; and Abnegation who are selfless. The world was divided into factions after a major war. Each faction has an important societal role and together they promote peace. There is unrest in Beatrice’s world. Erudites are not at all pleased with Abnegations power and are doing all they can to create tension between the factions. Beatrice is a member of Abnegation. Yet she doesn't quite fit in. She is blunt, honest, and inquisitive and speaks up when she is not to speak.

The story opens showing us glimpses of Beatrice’s life and the choice she will soon need to make. All 16 year-olds take an aptitude test that determines which faction is right for her (usually). The aptitude test is always correct. Her results are inconclusive. She is determined off the records to be Divergent. She must choose a faction, but the test leaves her with 3 possibilities. If she chooses a different faction she gives up everything she’s known. It isn't like she moves across town or goes to a different school. Factions unless at school, don't intermingle. (Remember separate but equal? Hmm, not such a good thing right?) Divergents are dangerous. They don't fit in well with any one society and if she is discovered she will be killed. She is told to "Tell no one.” Now Beatrice is scared. She doesn't belong in Abnegation, but where will she fit and what will the choice she makes do to her family/world. Her choice leads her on a path fraught with danger and deadly intrigue.

This novel kept me turning pages. I read it straight through in one sitting. I needed to know who was truly Tris' friend, why would they do what they did and what it really meant to be divergent. As Tris' world begins to fall apart what will she do? Can she trust Christine, Al or Four? What about her brother and her family.

This is an excellent thriller that readers of any age will enjoy. You may be horrified, entranced, scared, laugh and just wonder why or how could this happen. How can it be stopped? I refuse to give you more information. Pick up the book and read it. If you enjoy excitement, intrigue and adventure. This is the book for you.
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World Cup Caliber Authors from France

With American football starting and the cooler temperatures last week--I am a very happy camper.  Don't get me wrong--I love football but I am missing the original "football" or soccer--especially after the exciting women's World Cup a few months ago.  So I thought since the men's winners got their own blog entries--then the ladies definitely deserve their own too. 
For the next four weeks I will be highlighting authors from the winner's home country--starting this week with fourth place France.  The French women's national team has only been in two World Cups (2003 and 2011) but they placed #4 this year and recently qualified for the 2012 Olympics--so they are on their way up.
From Nobel Prize winning writers Jean-Paul Sartre and Albert Camus, classic authors Guy de Maupassant and Marguerite Yourcenar, to the following more contemporary scribes--France has produced some gold medal caliber literature.
Try one of the following "winning" authors from France:

Pierre Boulle--Bridge Over the River Kwai
Claire Castillon--My Mother Never Dies: Stories
Philippe Djian--Unforgivable
Michelle Halberstadt--The Pianist in the Dark
J. M. G. Le Clezio--Mondo and Other Stories plus others
Mathias Malzieu--The Boy with the Cuckoo-Clock Heart
Irene Nemirovsky--Suite Francaise plus others
Tatiana de Rosnay--Sarah's Key plus others
Eric-Emmanuel Schmitt--The Most Beautiful Book in the World plus others

Remembering tragedy through books

There will be many tributes this weekend to the victims of the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks and to the rescue workers who were there in the aftermath.  There are a variety of ways to try to understand tragedy, each of which serves its own function in helping us move forward.  For me, there is a place for fiction in all of this.  Azar Nafisi, in her popular book, Reading Lolita in Tehran wrote that "what we search for in fiction is not so much reality but the epiphany of truth."  While I certainly don't think that reading a book will make sense of everything that happened then or since, I think that reading stories often helps engender empathy and, through that, promotes greater understanding. 

With that in mind, if you're looking for something to read that covers this topic, there are a few books that I'd point to:

The Submission by Amy Waldman -- A new release about the tensions that arise when it is revealed that the winning design for a Ground Zero memorial was submitted by an American Muslim. 

Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close by Jonathan Safran Foer -- With a movie starring several Oscar winners, this 2005 title is becoming popular again (for more on movies about 9/11 check out the Now Playing blog).  It is  about a 9-year-old boy looking for the lock to a key that belonged to his father, who was killed in the World Trade Center. 

A Disorder Peculiar to the Country by Ken Kalfus -- A dark comedy about a couple going through a bitter divorce when each thinks the other is killed in the terrorist attacks, this novel has been said to put the culture of New York up against the events of the day.

The Good Life by Jay McInerny -- Eite Manhattanites are forced to reconsider what is important in life when their lives are turned upside down in the aftermath of the terrorist attacks.

September Day by Larry Schweikart -- The worlds of people with remarkably disparate backgrounds are immutably intertwined by 9/11. 

And, for some non-fiction treatment of 9/11, there are a variety of interesting books, including:

Wounded City: The Social Impact of 9/11

A History of the World Since 9/11

September 11: An Oral History 

The 9/11 Commission Report

Or, check out the 9/11 Digital Archive  for first-hand stories, emails, and digital images.

Read a banned book!

Banned Books Week is an event that occurs annually during the last week of September (September 24-October 1). To help mark this celebration of our freedom to read whatever we like, the Reader's Advisory Team has set up special displays at both the Centerville and Woodbourne libraries to showcase books that have been challenged and/or banned at one time or another through the years. You may be familiar with many of the titles. Running with Scissors, by Augusten Burroughs, was challenged just last year at four different U. S. high schools and banned altogether at another due to "extremely inappropriate content for a high school media center collection."  Jodi Picoult's My Sister's Keeper was removed from classrooms in Clawson, Michigan due to it being deemed "too racy for middle school students." Perhaps one of the most famous banned books is the Bible. During the sixteenth century, the Catholic Church, threatened by the Protestant revolt sweeping through Europe, violently suppressed various Protestant versions of the Bible. (William Tyndale, author of the Tyndale translation of the Bible, was burned at the stake for his trouble.) Not long ago I wrote a post about Anne Frank: The Diary of a Young Girl, a book that has frequently been challenged due to passages that focus on Anne's "growing sexual awareness" and her "discussion of sexual matters." There are many titles on the banned and challenged books list; trust me, that list goes on and on, from Harper Lee's To Kill a Mockingbird to Stephen King's Cujo. But the beauty of the society in which we live is that we can read these and others without fear of punishment or death. Come November, you'll be exercising your right to vote (hopefully). But right now, exercise your right to read.

Centuries of June

Have you ever noticed that after a while, books start to all seem the same?  There are frameworks that are used, to varying degrees of effectiveness, over and over.  It could be the person who has to confront and reevaluate her life due to a case of amnesia (see: What Alice Forgot, The Last Letter from Your Lover,  or Man Walks into a Room), or the scholar who stumbles into a centuries-old conspiracy that he has to solve before being killed by a secret cult that was long thought dormant (see: The DaVinci Code, The Rule of Four, or The Mozart Conspiracy), or even the couple destined to be together who are kept apart for years due to a family conflict or a terrible misunderstanding before finally realizing their mutual love and affection (see: ...oh, I can't even start to narrow down that one).  Regardless of how good they are (and some of the titles I just mentioned -- though not all -- are very good) it sometimes feels like there are a finite number of structures into which a story can fit and that the book's merit is based solely on how the author operates within that structure.  

And then...something different comes along that is so unique that it has the effect of being refreshing.  Enter Keith Donohue's new book, Centuries of June.   It begins with a late night trip to the bathroom that goes bad when the narrator falls and injures his head.  From there, the early hours unfold as he is visited by an old man and eight unique women, each of whom had been wronged by a man in another time, and who form a unique community in his bathroom as they listen to each other's tales.  The vagaries of time, space, and a talking cat only add to the narrator's confusion, but as he begins to understand the women and their place in his bathroom, his role becomes clear.  The blending of different times, situations, and dialects ultimately comes together to a cohesive conclusion that is satisfying without answering every question. 

One the most laudable aspects of this book -- its unique style that sets it apart from other stories -- also makes it somewhat difficult to write about, since there is no natural comparison.  I can't say, "well, if you liked X book, you'll definitely like this."  (The closest I can come if you're really looking for a comparison is Andrew Davidson's The Gargoyle, which I consider high praise.)  Kirkus calls Centuries of June "[p]eculiar and quirky and sure to appeal to offbeat tastes."  I say if you're looking for something a little different, give it a try. 

Digital Books, oh MY!

The other day I was at the eye doctor.  I was reading a book (I am truly not sure which one). The interesting thing is what happened when the doctor saw my book.  It led to a lengthy discussion on the merits of a nook or any other type of e-reader.  My doc tried to convince me the error of my ways.  No it was not my reading selection he wished to discuss but rather the form of the reading material. We discussed the merits of leaving my beloved physical books behind and moving on to an electronic digital reader (eek!).

That's right; I spent the time while my eyes were dilating discussing the pros and cons of electronic reading devices. You should know, I love the feel of a hardback or paperback book in my hand, a book, not a kindle; e-reader, nook or Sony reader and I like to use a fun bookmark. I was informed (as I already knew) that the e-readers can bookmark my page. The font can be made larger, smaller, brighter or darker depending on what your eyes need to read. This might be great for the nights when the book grabs a hold of you (yes, mine do!) and keeps you turning page after page until your eyes get bleary.

It also might be nice to have access to all my books without breaking my arm or my back from the weight of the books (I read a lot of books and they can get quite heavy.).  I also learned my doctor is quite fond of his Nook. It replaces his vast library of books and he uses it all the time. Light weight, easy to use, easy to share books with friends, hmm what are the drawbacks?

I am an old fashioned gal and prefer to have a book (not a Nook) in my hands. However, the good doc was very convincing. He has 3200 books at his fingertips and can store more (Wow!). I guess if the books could fit in a small device it would be a blessing. I am a die-hard book lover. I like to turn the pages and can't wait to reach the end of the book and find out who dunnit. I'm not sure for me that it would be the same to reach the last page of a book on an e-reader. However, I may have to give it a try.  There are a lot of positives to them.  If you want to try some new technology on your own go to our website and learn how. If you have any pointers I'd love to hear them.  I'm just not sure I can give up my books, but I may have to try an e-reader.

In the Queue

Last Man In Tower by Aravind Adiga

Combine a man who can’t be bought, with present-day Mumbai where everything and everyone is for sale, and you have a recipe for violence, corruption, and an Agatha Christie-style murder.


The Night Strangers: A Novel by Chris Bohjalian


Chip and Emily Linton have purchased a rambling Victorian house in New Hampshire and hope to make a happy home there with their daughter. The haunting begins when they discover a door in their basement sealed with 39-inch carriage bolts.

Columbus: The Four Voyages by Laurence Bergreen


Everyone knows of Christopher Columbus’ 1492 voyage, but not much is known about the three other voyages he undertook which revealed his sense of the sea and his superb navigational skills.