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  • Adam Thirlwell: Politics: A Novel (P.S.)

    Adam Thirlwell: Politics: A Novel (P.S.)
    One would think this book is about sex, And while it is, since the characters have so much about it, some of it is kinky, and threesomes play a big role in the narrative. mostly POLITICS is about everything else: the mechanics, the logistics, the emotional minefields, the awkward questions, the moral dilemmas, and, well, the politics of what it is to be with someone you love or someone you don't, and how an act that should be simple is anything but. Thirlwell was disgustingly young when he wrote this but he absolutely understands that to make this book work, there must be an underlying sweetness and sincerity to the entire story. Now I want to see what he's up to more recently. Amazon | Indiebound | B & N | Borders | Powell’s

  • Jennifer Mascia: Never Tell Our Business to Strangers: A Memoir

    Jennifer Mascia: Never Tell Our Business to Strangers: A Memoir
    Years ago I was blown away by Mascia's Modern Love piece describing her parents' secret past: her father was a mobbed-up convicted murderer, and her mother not only knew all about it, but aided and abetted her husband when life required being a fugitive, selling drugs, and living at great highs and crushing lows. Mascia's book tells a more whole story about her peripatetic life, and even with every new shocking revelation what remained consistent was how much she loved her parents, no matter how deep those lows went, and how much she misses them now that they are gone. Unconditional love never goes away, no matter if those who receive it deserve it. Indiebound | Amazon | Borders | B & N | Powell’s

  • Juli Zeh: In Free Fall

    Juli Zeh: In Free Fall
    Give me a novel of ideas and if the story is good and the characters are believable and entertain me, I am there. Give me a crime novel of ideas, where two physics professors, friends and rivals, opposites but startlingly similar, do emotional battle on an intellectual canvas, raise the stakes through betrayal, the possible kidnapping of a child, and embroil a romantic-leaning police detective in the complicated machinations of quantum theory, and holy hell, I think I have myself one of my favorite books of the year. Powell’s | Indiebound | Amazon | Borders | B & N

  • Simon Lelic: A Thousand Cuts

    Simon Lelic: A Thousand Cuts
    It appears to be a crime with an easy solution: a disgruntled schoolteacher shoots up his place of employment and kills several students in the process. But really, Lelic's novel is about the catastrophic consequences of bullying, and how this act is hardly limited to kids turning on other kids, but burrows deeply into adult relationships as well. He evokes empathy for the killer and sympathy for Lucia, the investigating officer who has to fight for every scrap of dignity as she pieces together the far more complex truth of what really happened at the school. Powell’s | Amazon | Borders | Indiebound | B & N

  • William Lindsay Gresham: Nightmare Alley

    William Lindsay Gresham: Nightmare Alley
    I cannot stop raving about this book to people. The circular narrative structure, the demented feel of a traveling carny troupe, and the extraordinary rise and precipitous fall of Stan Carlisle give off the persistent, raging feeling that hell is always with us, and success is basically a sucker's game. No matter what the biographical evidence on Gresham's state of mind leading up to and after the book's bestseller (and movie basis) status in 1946, I don't think we can really know what demons plagued him to produce this marvelous noir gem. B & N | Indiebound | Amazon | Borders | Powell’s

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« And if that doesn't work, the thumbwar is next | Main | When WTF doesn't quite cut it »

June 08, 2006

Anatomy of an idea

So 24 hours after I posted my musings on the whole "Class of 2007" idea, here comes Killer Year, as founded by Jason Pinter, J.T. Ellison, Brett Battles & Sandra Ruttan.

Expect to hear a lot more on that front in the near and not-so-near future.

Posted at 11:00 AM in World of Mystery |

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Comments

Bryon Quertermous

These young kids and their endless ambition. It makes me sick I tell ya...

Posted by: Bryon Quertermous | June 08, 2006 at 11:47 AM

Jason

Me too. Who do these whippersnappers think they are?

Posted by: Jason | June 08, 2006 at 11:57 AM

Sandra Ruttan

When I grow up, I want to be just like Bryon.

Posted by: Sandra Ruttan | June 08, 2006 at 12:38 PM

JT Ellison

I have to grow up?

Posted by: JT Ellison | June 08, 2006 at 12:56 PM

Brett Battles

Come on, party people. You're in public now. No more joking or kidding or messing around...

...HA! Who am I trying to kid? Have at it...

And, thanks Sarah for the mention again today. All us kids appreciate it!

Posted by: Brett Battles | June 08, 2006 at 01:03 PM

Philip Hawley

Sarah, I look forward to meeting you--and many of my classmates--in Phoenix later this month!

Posted by: Philip Hawley | June 08, 2006 at 04:41 PM

Rob Gregory Browne

Well, it looks like we're all showing up here. Now if we could just get Alex Sokoloff to drop by -- she's '06, but LATE '06 -- we could have a nice party...

Posted by: Rob Gregory Browne | June 08, 2006 at 05:22 PM

Elaine Flinn

Best wishes to the Class of 2007! And what a great idea to have a joint blog. Barry's idea is terrific, and youse all should give it some thought.

Looking forward to meeting you at TFest. J.T. will know where to find me -I'm the old bag in the bar.

Posted by: Elaine Flinn | June 09, 2006 at 01:28 PM

Jason Adams

Brett, Jason ,JT & Robert, i just wanted to wish you the best of luck with your debut novels next year. Thanks for the emails as well

Posted by: Jason Adams | June 10, 2006 at 05:31 AM

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