04/30/06 09:06 PM
Okay, so it’s not really that much of an issue, but at the beginning of this year, I told myself I would only read non-fiction this year. This hasn’t been a problem at all to date, as there are tons of books on my shelves (and a couple more that I ordered this week) that I could easily choose and stay within those boundaries. However, it was recently announced that Mark Z. Danielewski’s new book entitled Only Revolutions will be coming out in late summer (Sept 5th to be precise). Like many others, I was a big fan of his crazy debut novel House Of Leaves, so I’m eagerly looking forward to seeing what’s up his sleeve with this newest tome (especially since it’s been almost 5 years since his last output.
I know it’s silly, but I’m trying to decide whether I should abandon my non-fiction plans and dive into the new Danielewski when it comes out, or whether I should just hold off until 2007 and keep on with the non-fiction.
May 15th, 2006 at 7:27 pm
I’ve been there, I’ve tried that very thing from both sides, only fiction, only non-fiction, and its not only difficult, its a little silly. I work with books all day and there is a never ending flow of intruiging material out there and I feel that attempting to put any kind of control over what you’ll read eventually comes back to bite you. Its like saying I’m only going to smell red flowers this year, you’ll miss out on so much.
June 28th, 2006 at 11:56 pm
I’m currently wrestling with a galley (proof) copy. I love House of Leaves, thought it was brilliant. This book is poetry. In a bad way. Obtuse poetry that supposedly tells the story. There is no narrative prose. I am having a real hard time dealing with it. This is at least 24 times as pretentious as House of Leaves. I’m not sure it should be called “a novel” – I guess that’s genre-busting for you. I can’t really judge it without finishing it, but it is a much more challenging read than House. There is no immediate pay-off of intrigue or interesting material, of that I’m sure.
June 29th, 2006 at 7:24 am
Ouch. That wasn’t something I was expecting to hear, especially since I’m not really a fan of pretentious poetry. Based on advance word, I’m sure you’re correct in that it tells some sort of vague story, and I’m sure there’s probably some sort of codes and bla bla bla hidden inside it. I was thinking of pre-ordering a copy and having it in my hands when it came out, but I think I might have to visit a bookstore and scan 10 pages or so before picking it up now.
Thanks for the advance word.