Percival Everett has written so many absolutely fascinating novels. I can’t wait to read his forthcoming James-a retelling of Huckleberry Finn.
@BookishTexan
7 ай бұрын
I am really looking forward to James as well. I am a bit ashamed of myself for not catching on to Everett until a few years ago, but it makes me happy to think of the back list books I still get to read.
@HannahsBooks
7 ай бұрын
@@BookishTexan Remind me to share my PE background with you sometime…
@BookishTexan
7 ай бұрын
@@HannahsBooks oooh, cant wait. Is as good as your Seamus Heaney story?
@HannahsBooks
7 ай бұрын
@@BookishTexan Ha! No…not nearly!
@Freckledbibliophile495
7 ай бұрын
I am currently reading Erasure. I'm set to read five of his books that I own this year. Thanks for the movie recommendation. I hadn't heard of it until I watched your video.
@BookishTexan
7 ай бұрын
Thank you. I am hoping to read his Dr. No this month and then I think his new book comes out in February.
@1book1review
7 ай бұрын
North Woods is something that confused me. Suddenly it was everywhere and I didn't understand what people so much enjoyed about it. Glad you elaborated on it a bit more. I'll keep to not picking it up, enough other things to read :D
@BookishTexan
7 ай бұрын
I kept waiting to be blown away and it just never happened. It was a decent and kind of interesting book, but just not great.
@lisaedwards8505
7 ай бұрын
Oh! I didn't realize American Fiction was based on Erasure. I haven't read the book but have been hearing a lot of buzz about the movie and Jeffrey Wright's performance and have it on my list of movies to go see. Now I'll add the book, too! Thanks Brian. 😊
@BookishTexan
7 ай бұрын
Thank you Lisa. I thought the movie did an excellent job of transforming the book into a funny, cringy, satire.
@joshyaks
7 ай бұрын
Speaking of authorial voice, that's one of the things that pleasantly surprised me about my most recent read: Dickens' A Christmas Carol.
@BookishTexan
7 ай бұрын
I find that I like Dickens authorial voice more often than not, but it is particularly wonderful in A Christmas Carol
@ianp9086
7 ай бұрын
Glad to hear you mention Visitation - I was thinking about it while you discussed North Woods and then you mentioned it! North Woods is on my shelf but I’m feeling less inclined to pick it up.
@BookishTexan
7 ай бұрын
North Woods isn't a bad book. I am glad I read it. I just felt like Mason was more committed to his concept than to characters or plot. I think I am in the minority in terms of my opinion btw.
@GuiltyFeat
7 ай бұрын
I'm a long-tern Rushdie stan and I loved "Victory City". You and I are on the same journey with Everett after being blown away by "The Trees". I read "Erasure" a couple of months ago after I saw the first trailer for American Fiction. I thought it was excellent and reminded me of all the issues I had with "Nightcrawling" from the year before or even how uncomfortable "The Hate U Give" left me. I have 70 pages to go with "North Woods" and I'm loving that also. It's a delightful ghost story and I feel like no one is talking about how funny the book is. This renaissance of nature writing in contemporary historical fiction is fascinating and I am finding the book to be in conversation with Lauren Groff's "The Vaster Wilds" AND Jesmyn Ward's "Let Us Descend".
@BookishTexan
7 ай бұрын
I just put in my holiday gift order for this year and ordered two Everett books. I am looking forward to his latest, James, in February. I am glad that you are enjoying North Woods. Somehow I didn't pick up on it being a ghost story until it clearly became one. Not sure I was entirely fair to the book while reading, but I just never felt fully engaged. I had not made the connection to Let Us Descend and I have not read the Groff book. Look forward to your thought on it.
@sarah-roadworthy
7 ай бұрын
I loved North Woods. I totally get your comments and why the book didn't work for you. I listened to the audio. I really had a sense as the house/woods as a character. The nature writing really helped that sense of place as character. Your comments make me wonder how much the form - physical or audio -influences a reader's enjoyment of a book. Visitation has been on my tbr for awhile. Now I'm more curious to pick it up to compare.
@BookishTexan
7 ай бұрын
I can see why so many people lived it. For me there were just some things that kept it from being great. I often think the form in which a book is consumed affects opinions. I am usually more harsh with books I read than with audiobooks.
@sarah-roadworthy
7 ай бұрын
@@BookishTexan I try and pick books for audio that I can listen to for hours at a stretch so I can knit, garden, clean, etc. I probably do listen less critically than a physical book. I've never really thought about it.
@BookishTexan
7 ай бұрын
@@sarah-roadworthy I do the same though with North Woods and my last audio book I did spend some time just sitting and listening. I am definitely less critical of audiobooks.
@myreadinglife8816
6 ай бұрын
I was interested to hear your thoughts about North Woods. I am going to have to try that one. And I also need to read more Percival Everett.
@BookishTexan
6 ай бұрын
You might like it more than me because you enjoy nature writing more than I do. It is a good book, I just dont think it was a book for me.
@tracys.mitnaul-xv7te
7 ай бұрын
Erasure is sitting on my shelf... this will be my next read. Thx for reviewing it. 😊
@BookishTexan
7 ай бұрын
Thanks for watching and commenting. I hope you like Erasure.
@EntertheBook
7 ай бұрын
I was excited to see you were to review North Woods as a subscriber recommended it to me and was on my list to check out at the bookstore with a gift card this week- does sound a bit choppy. Will likely wait for a library copy now. Erasure sounds really good. I probably want to read that before the movie. Thanks for the reviews! 😊
@BookishTexan
7 ай бұрын
I think I am in the minority on North Woods. It is isnt bad and I am glad I read it. Erasure is very good and reading it before seeing the movie made me appreciate the movie more. You can see the concessions that were made to make it a movie and appreciate all the ways in which it worked themes from the book into the movie however briefly.
@majelthesurreal5723
7 ай бұрын
I liked Erasure as well and am was interested in seeing American fiction.
@BookishTexan
7 ай бұрын
It was a very good movie. Distinct from the book, but very good.
@kip388
7 ай бұрын
Yep -- the 3rd story in North Woods was where my interest petered out and I set it aside for other books. Maybe I'll pick it up from the library someday but I wasn't captivated. (Also thought the apple motif last year is pretty peculiar!)
@BookishTexan
7 ай бұрын
That bit was a struggle. And all for apples and so he could weave the apple thing through the rest of the book. It did pick up the pace after that.
@jacquelinemcmenamin8204
7 ай бұрын
I finished my first 5 star read of f 2024 yesterday morning. Tom Lake by Ann Patchett. The audio is read by Meryl Streep. . I’ve also started listening to the audio of North Woods. It gets better the further you read. Also currently listening to How To Build A Boat The Gungle Ordinary Human Feelings Falling Animals This Is Happiness I loved all of the Henning Mankell books. I watched two of the Swedish television adaptations on BBC 4 with subtitles and the English version. Have you read the Rebus series by Ian Rankin? ☘️👋👋☕️☕️📕📚🇮🇪
@BookishTexan
7 ай бұрын
I have a hold placed on Tom Lake through the Libby Ap and hope to get to it soon. I think I ordered Falling Animals as a part of my Christmas Book Money haul. I have read quite a few of the Rebus novels and I enjoyed them.
@Justine_S
7 ай бұрын
Agree re North Woods. I only enjoyed a handful of the stories so most of the time I was waiting to be re-engaged. Percival Everett is an incredible writer. I can’t believe he’s not better known and celebrated. I wish I’d read Invisible Man before reading Erasure. I feel like that would have added to my experience. Glad to hear American Fiction is worth watching. Looking forward to the release of James this year.
@BookishTexan
7 ай бұрын
The fact that Everett is not better known amazes me, but to be honest I only really learned about him because of The Trees a few years ago. I am looking forward to James as well. thanks for watching and commenting.
@davidnovakreadspoetry
7 ай бұрын
I still have _Joseph Anton_ waiting (but it’s a chunker) and I might like to start with Rushdie’s essays when a copy comes available. We’ve watched Wallender but I’ve never come across any of the books. I dunno _Erasure_ sounds a little like what I heard of _Yellowface_ (books about writers are all the same* lol). *just teasing^
@BookishTexan
7 ай бұрын
Haha! Erasure is a much better book than Yellowface, and I liked Yellowface. I'm not sure that the Wallander TV series isnt better than the books. I've only read/listened to two and for me the jury is out. The only way I could make it through Anton was on audio.
@zsazsavoom
7 ай бұрын
This whole video had me nodding my head like a bobble-head dog on a dashboard. I'm about 3/4 of the way thru Northwoods and enjoying it a bit more than you did. That said, I definitely liked Visitation more. Much more. Jenny Erpenbeck's work intrigues me & I plan to read/re-read all of her books in 2024... erm, good thing she isn't as prolific as Trollope ;-)
@BookishTexan
7 ай бұрын
I’ve only read two books by Erpenbeck - Visitation and The End of Days. I won’t go on about North Woods (I always think of more things to say after posting a video), but I feel that Erpenbeck brought more depth and subtlety to her subject and characters than Mason. I didn’t know how few books Erpenbeck had written until your comment sent me to Wikipedia. Thank you for watching.
@Read2live
7 ай бұрын
I have read Salman Rushdie's short story collection East, West and I liked the stories, some more than others, but overall I liked it. However, when I tried to read Midnight's Children, I couldn't get into it at all. I do plan and want to give it another try, but so far I haven't felt motivated to pick it up again and it's been too long now, which makes me feel that I might never do.
@FreshLounger
7 ай бұрын
I am glad to hear that I am not the only person who just could not get into Rushdie's Midnight's Children.
@BookishTexan
7 ай бұрын
I liked The Satanic Verses a great deal, but like you I did not enjoy MC. I’m still hoping to try a reread as an audiobook.
@BookishTexan
7 ай бұрын
@@FreshLounger I read it without ever feeling like I got into it or got it.🤓
@Read2live
7 ай бұрын
@@BookishTexan Satanic Verses is on my list to read. I do want to read this one and I hope I like it as much as his short stories..
@sandeesandwich2180
7 ай бұрын
I'm about half way through listening to North Woods and I am enjoying it more than I thought I would, so far anyway.
@BookishTexan
7 ай бұрын
Very glad to hear that. I hope that continues.
@bookofdust
7 ай бұрын
We had similar experiences with North Woods, I was expecting the history part to be the stronger and central element, similar to the book The Glass Room, which is set in a famous modernist house in Eastern Europe and its changing of hands over time and how it was adapted, changes and survives. You are the first person to mention the Magic Realism, which is there from the beginning, but I fought against, only to have it completely break open at the end and make me sob and somewhat redeem itself. (If a book makes me cry, it definitely raises its ranking) As someone who loves Magic Realism I wished it would have been introduced to me as that from the start and I would have embraced it as such. With all the Pulitzer talk for this book I was expecting something much more insightful and long term sociological about American history, especially about how it cycles and repeats itself than something touchy feely supernatural like the end of a certain Sally Fields movie (that made me cry also). Read The Glass Room to get more of the other experiences I spoke of, especially how politics influences the life and changes of a house.
@BookishTexan
7 ай бұрын
I think it would have helped me to know that it had supernatural/magical realism elements from the beginning as well. It came as a shock during the segment with the slave hunter and it felt kind of cheap to me as a way of resolving that plot line. I guess I picked up on the hints before that scene, but that was such a direct intrusion in the story that it bothered me. Thanks for recommending The Glass Room. I will look into that one.
@scallydandlingaboutthebook2711
7 ай бұрын
The Glass Room is brilliant. It is more than a decade since I read it but it has stayed with me.
@tgrenful
7 ай бұрын
I appreciate your take on Salman Rushdie's authorial voice. I always took his voice as an influence of colonialism. I've read erasure several times. I am co-teaching a Black Literature class for high school seniors in March and erasure is one of the text we will be reading. I enjoyed the movie, as did the Black people in the audience I asked after the film. After the initial glow of seeing Black people that I both recognized and identified with in a film, I was troubled by what was removed from the book. But your channel is for book reviews and not movie analysis so I will leave it at that. I continue to enjoy your reviews very much. I am looking forward to reading Foster by Claire Keegan this week. Take Care.
@BookishTexan
7 ай бұрын
Your class sounds great. I always wanted to co-teach classes with literature teachers on my campus, but by the time that was accepted in my district I was teaching dual credit. I would love to know more about the things that were left out and why that troubled you. Thanks for watching and commenting.
@tgrenful
7 ай бұрын
@@BookishTexan It's the changes and what was left out. Monk's sister Lisa does not die of a heart attack but is murdered for providing abortions. Not to say a heart attack is benign but heart attacks happen in life. There's a normality to it. Murder is not normal. And whatever power Lisa has to help women is erased by a white man. Please forgive me for being didactic. The novel is in conversation with Invisible Man, Native Son, and even Chester Himes. Also The game show 3/4 into the novel Virtute et Armis (the state motto of Mississippi which roughly translates to "virtue through force") is a direct reference to the battle royal in Ellison's Invisible Man. The game show contestant Tom erases whatever power the all white audience had by winning. But what I found most egregious was labelling Monk's father as a serial philanderer when in fact we know he was in love with a white woman and had a child with her. That child grows up, living as a white woman. Proving that race is a false construction. There's more but this reply is already too long. I understand a film is never the book that inspired it. I enjoyed the film when I left the theater. But about 20 minutes later I realized I had some issues with the film. Thank you for asking the question. By the way, Foster was really enjoyable. Enjoy the rest of your day! Did you do any writing for your novel today??
@BookishTexan
7 ай бұрын
@@tgrenful I thought the decision to have Monk’s sister die from a heart attack instead of through being shot because of the work she did the most puzzling. But I figured that they did it because it added scenes to the movie that would have made it longer than they/the studio wanted. The same with the father’s cheating. Touching on either of these would have necessities scenes that developed themes that an audience might not have caught on too while distracting the audience from the dental story and theme. It feels almost meta that they erased those story lines and their subtle contributions to the story and theme to make the movie simpler for the audience. Essentially I just accept that a movie is not going to cover everything in a book. Not even the Lord of the Rings movies do.
@readandre-read
7 ай бұрын
Somehow I totally loved North Woods despite being someone who reads for character and isn't into magical realism or nature writing. Sorry it was disappointing for you. We do agree about Erasure! I really want to see American Fiction but it's not playing in Corpus. I want to see what they did with the ending.
@BookishTexan
7 ай бұрын
North Woods wasnt bad and I'm glad I read it. I hope you get to see American Fiction. The ending is one of the ways in which I thought they cleverly called lots of things into question that the book left you to work through on your own.
@edgarfranceschi8338
7 ай бұрын
Very good video; the solution to not reading Midnight's Children is to watch the movie, produced and narrated by Sir Salman himself.
@BookishTexan
7 ай бұрын
Thank you for recommendation!
@edgarfranceschi8338
7 ай бұрын
@@BookishTexan You are welcome!
@GunpowderFictionPlot
6 ай бұрын
I also struggled with North Wood, I didn't finish it, so what I'm about to say is probably incorrect, but it's short stories, not a novel.
@BookishTexan
6 ай бұрын
I see your point, but I still think it counts as a novel. The stories are increasingly connected particularly as you get nearer the end. I'm glad I'm not the only one who loved it.
@bbbartolo
7 ай бұрын
At $17.50 for senior (!) admission to the movie in NYC (more than the cost of the book), I'm interested in your movie review!
@BookishTexan
7 ай бұрын
Movies are ridiculously expensive. I usually only go to one or two movies a year.
@bbbartolo
7 ай бұрын
Oh I thought NYC was inordinately $$. Texas too?@@BookishTexan
@KDbooks
7 ай бұрын
I see Rushdie, I click
@BookishTexan
7 ай бұрын
I went back and watched your review which I had avoided so as not to prejudice my thinking about this book. What struck me most was how your knowledge of Indian history enriches your understanding of Rushdie’s work and that my own struggles with it are a result of my ignorance of that history.
@FrankOdonnell-ej3hd
7 ай бұрын
the eraser book and movie sound like they could be very funny will definitely give them a look-see⚛😀
@BookishTexan
7 ай бұрын
The movie is more laugh outloud funny than the book, but the book is more subtly biting.
@Robert.Sheard
7 ай бұрын
What are these movies you speak of? Midnight's Children is one of my favorite novels of all time. And just recently, I read Victory City and did enjoy it quite a bit.
@BookishTexan
7 ай бұрын
I’ve been to two movies in the last month which is more than I went to all of last year🤓
@Khatoon170
7 ай бұрын
Finally they discuss their lives and family . Lisa laments their mother . How difficult taking care of her by herself, later after monk conference. Lisa is murderd at work by anti abortionist . First few chapters , monk mentions novel title we lives in da chetto written by black author Juanita Mae Jenkins. Monk upset that racist novel riddle with stereotypes such as we lives in de ghetto can be successful while his novels are not , writes parody of Jenkin novel ( my pafology ) instead of using his own name however. Monk uses pen name shaggy r . Leigh , because he is ashamed by novel to put his own name on it , because he believes his mother needs to go to retirement home where people can take care of her worsening Alzheimer’s. . He is named by content of book and doesn’t want to be published. In the end he published book named fuck . Monk agrees to interview as stagg r . Leigh and wonders how far he should take his performance. He worries he may became thin hart. He takes his mother and Lorraine on vacation. It’s his mother last vacation before taking her to retirement theme , there he met woman named Marilyn who lives together became lovers . Monk mother Alzheimer steadily worsened. She runs away often . Monk finally decides to take his mother to nursing home . Monk continues to struggle with stagger . Leigh persona , eventually he is offered opportunity to serve on panel for book award , gifted by national book association. Monk accepts and is horrified to find fuck on list of contenders. He is more horrified when fuck is voted victory by other panels list . Ceremony fuck is announced as winner and monk staggers up to stage while other panels lists and audience looks on in amusement and confusion. Monk is unsure of his own identity , uncertain where stagg r . Leigh begins and monk ends . He imagines boy that he thinks may be him as child holding mirror in front of him . Percival Everett ( born in 1956 ) he is American writer and distinguished professor of English at university of Southern California. His notable works erasure, Iam Sidney Poitier , trees . He won notable awards wind ham Campbell prize for fiction 2023 . I hope you like my book review. Honestly sir I always keeping notebooks and pen beside me because Iam not native speaker. Good luck to you your dearest ones .
@BookishTexan
7 ай бұрын
Hello Khatoon! I am well. I hope you and your family are doing well! Great summary of Erasure. I thought it was an incredibly rich satire of race and society in the US.
@tommonk7651
7 ай бұрын
I love movies. I went to a movie recently and walked out for the first time in many, many years. I hated Napoleon....
@BookishTexan
7 ай бұрын
I had a bad feeling about Napoleon so I didn’t risk it
@tommonk7651
7 ай бұрын
@@BookishTexan To me, I don't think Joaquin Phoenix can carry a big epic movie. He's OK in a supporting role, I suppose, but he's not for me. I love Ridley Scott though.
@Khatoon170
7 ай бұрын
How are doing mr Brian. Thank you for your wonderful cultural channel. I chose one of books you mentioned main theme and author biography here it’s American fiction is 2023 American comedy film based on 2001 novel erasure about writer dealing with growing old , death , murder . Novel revolves around consequences of turning one art into commodity. Giving to market forces . Novel opens with narrator thelonious monk Ellison describing what is presently being is actually his journal . Goes on to discuss race , explaining how he personally doesn’t see race but based on world in , he is black as author and black person . Monk is expected to write black stories: he retells story where he is told by agent that he should stop writing about Greek mythology, instead write about hardships or black life . Monk writes about conference that he went to Washington before he meets with his sister Lisa who works at woman health clinic . Monk de show does not believe that his sister hates him , their relationship tense . She picks him up.
@JackieAmundson-mv5yg
7 ай бұрын
I enjoy listening to your reviews but you really need to find something to do with your hands besides petting your beard, very distracting, sorry
@BookishTexan
7 ай бұрын
Sorry about the beard thing. Not sure that I can break the habit.
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