New Technology World

What books do you have on your nightstand?

A hodgepodge of delights — “Passing” by Nella Larsen, “Second Place” by Rachel Kusk, “The Book of Form and Void” by Ruth Ozeki, “Trust” by Hernan Diaz, “An Immens World” By Ed Yong — A book of essays possibly related to Dorothy Wordsworth: Dorothy’s Journal of Grasmere and Alfoxden. stuff), edited by Colette Clarke. “The Ballad of Dorothy Wordsworth: A Life” by Francis Wilson. Stanley Plumley’s remarkable “Evening Immortal” and “Afterlife Keats.”

What was the last great book you read?

Damon Galgut’s “The Promise” is a rare example of a novel that blends barbaric political and historical insight with fine literary structure. He captures a lot about the last few decades of South Africa through the transformation of one family.

Is there a classic novel that you recently read for the first time?

I was wondering if, despite having loved a particular Willa Cather novel for years, I skipped over the others and wasn’t drawn to the subject matter? stupid me During the pandemic, I finally read and fell in love with “Shadow on the Rock.” Set in late 17th-century Quebec, this work has the same brilliance as Death Comes to the Archbishop.

Can a great book be badly written? What other criteria can overcome bad prose?

I’ve read clumsy but powerful books, especially Dreiser’s novels, and I can’t believe they’re “great.” However, I do remember that characters and stories have to count.

Describe your ideal reading experience (when, where, what, how).

Early in the morning, in bed, holding the book I’ve always wanted to read, my dog ​​and two cats are still asleep with the rest of the world. rain is nice Also the chirping of birds.

What is your favorite book that no one has heard of?

“Pioneers of Science” (1893) by British physicist Oliver Lodge. I have a beautiful 1908 edition of him, with an ornate embossed cover and gilded pages his edges.

Your fiction often incorporates historical accounts of scientific discoveries. Is there a researcher or popular science writer you particularly admire?

“Entangled Life” by Merlin Sheldrake rocked my world. So are Helen Macdonald’s ‘H is for Hawk’, Sy Montgomery’s ‘The Soul of an Octopus’, Elizabeth Kolbert’s ‘The Sixth Extinction’ and Scott Weidensaul’s ‘A World on the Wing’. I read anything written by Jonathan Weiner or Richard Panek. Rachel Carson remains a touchstone.

Who are the best writers about the relationship between humans and the natural world (and the rest of the world)?

See above. But see also Willa Cather, Mary Oliver, Sylvia Townsend Warner, Natasha Treshew, Marilyn Robinson, Jamaica Kincaid and many other poets and novelists. And Dorothy Wordsworth!

What is the most interesting thing you learned from a book recently?

Bats that use sonar to hunt lunaga are overwhelmed by long tabs that hang from their hindwings. (Thanks, Ed Yong!)

What topics would you like more authors to write about?

Seas, stars, skies, forests, ponds, birds, moths, lizards, mushrooms, mountains, bats, clouds – all the world outside the home and our narrow minds.

How do you organize your books?

Specifically, I guess? Fiction and poetry are listed alphabetically by author, but each dear friend has a separate shelf. history loosely by era; biography by subject, unless you mash up someone close to your life or slide it next to your own volume of fiction or poetry. , chock full of stuff related to what I’m working on. For example, a book about the Arctic, a therapeutic cottage in the Adirondacks, or a book about tuberculosis. These shelves now house works by female naturalists of the mid-to-late 19th century, such as Anna Botsford Her Comstock and Mary Treat.

What are the books on your bookshelf that might surprise someone?

Patrick O’Brien’s Aubrey-Maturin series? Nautical history is not my hobby, but when I first came to WW Her Norton, my beloved editor, Carol Hauk Smith (who is unfortunately now deceased) wrote “Captains and Captains”. It was given to me as a present. I was skeptical, but I was fascinated. She kept sending them until I read them all.

What’s the best book you’ve ever received as a gift?

The nearly complete 11th edition of the Encyclopedia Britannica, famous for its historical entries, came to me in my early twenties when I was flirting with a graduate student.

What kind of reader were you as a child? Which childhood book or author sticks out the most to you?

Well deep! They are also indiscriminate and attracted to books that are perceived as being for adults. Luckily, a friendly librarian from the local Bookmobile was able to bring whatever books he could reach (I’m ridiculously tall). Often these were fat historical novels that I loved without realizing that what I was learning could be grossly biased or simply invented. , Anya Seton’s ‘Katherine’ and Leon Uris’ ‘Mila 18’. Until I was in his thirties, most of what I knew about Van Gogh came from reading Irving’s Stone’s “Lust for Life” when he was eleven or his twelve.

How have your reading preferences changed over time?

I read more books about writers and scientists than I used to. Biographies of Virginia Woolf, Charles Darwin, H.G. Wells, Robert Oppenheimer, Sylvia Townsend Warner; I’ve also enjoyed biographical fiction, such as Hall’s “Trinity.” and Sigrid Nunez’s “Mits: Marmosets of Bloomsbury.” I am also now drawn to books in which writers read and ponder other authors. : Wrestling With DH Lawrence”.

You are planning a literary dinner party. Which of her three writers, dead or alive, would you invite?

three? are you kidding? I want them all — every writer whose work has set my brain on fire. While they were eating, talking, arguing, and laughing, I would hide under the table, eavesdrop, and see whose foot was being tapped nervously, whose foot was on the other. I want to see if it’s growing.

Disappointing, Overrated, Just Bad: What book you thought you liked but didn’t like? Remember the last book you didn’t finish?

‘Alexanderplatz in Berlin’, a seemingly brilliant novel about the Weimar Republic by Alfred Döblin, has been recommended many times. At least in 10 years he will start once but give up with regret and embarrassment.

What are you planning to read next?

I loved Elizabeth Strout’s “Oh, William!”, “My Name is Lucy Barton” and “Anything Is Possible”. Not only because she adores Lucy as a character, but also because Strout had a great way of reflecting and refracting her impression of Lucy. what will she do next?