June 18, 2009

Catching Up on My Book Reviews

I am slowly wending my way through Updike's Due Considerations, and it is a profoundly embittering experience. I despise his neurotic and self-indulgent fiction, but his essays, and especially his book reviews, are really accomplished. Every damned one of them is a carefully-crafted gem. Every...damned...one...of...them.

It wasn't always so - this terrific article explains how Updike's reviewing advanced from precious solipsism to the craftsmanship of his later years. His rules for reviewers are well-judged, and anyone who wishes to seriously review books should make them a touchstone for their own work.

Screw it, I'm in a hurry. Here are some recent books and what I think of them:
Updike, eat your heart out.

1 Comments:

Blogger JAB said...

Eisengeiste- we do not neglect the Updike smackdown.

June 20, 2009 at 10:44 AM  

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