{"id":18632,"date":"2014-03-05T08:00:07","date_gmt":"2014-03-05T13:00:07","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.yiddishecup.com\/blog\/?p=18632"},"modified":"2014-03-18T09:13:57","modified_gmt":"2014-03-18T13:13:57","slug":"book-list","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.yiddishecup.com\/blog\/2014\/03\/05\/book-list\/","title":{"rendered":"BOOK LIST"},"content":{"rendered":"

<\/p>\n

Pamela Paul,<\/strong><\/span> editor of the New York Times Book Review<\/em>, keeps a list of all the books she has read.\u00a0 She wrote about her list<\/a> — that goes back to 1988 — in the book review.<\/em><\/p>\n

I know somebody else who keeps a list.<\/p>\n

My list goes back to 1973, Ms. Pam Paul!\u00a0 (Actually 1971, but I can\u2019t find the 1971-72 portion right now.)<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

My four<\/strong><\/span> literary horsemen of the early 1970s were Kerouac, Saroyan, Thomas Wolfe and Henry Miller.\u00a0 Plus every beatnik writer.\u00a0 Every<\/em> beatnik.\u00a0 That included Dutch motorcyclist\/writer Jan Cremer and Turkish East Village beat Erje Ayden.<\/p>\n

Here is my 1974 list, edited:<\/p>\n

The First Circle<\/em> \u00a0Alexandr Solzhenitsyn
\nGeronimo Rex<\/em> \u00a0Barry Hannah
\nKentucky<\/em> Ham<\/em>\u00a0 William Burroughs Jr.<\/em>
\nConfessions of a Child of the Century \u00a0<\/em>Thomas Rogers
\nStrangers and Brothers<\/em>\u00a0 C.P. Snow
\nThe Manor<\/em>\u00a0 Isaac Bashevis Singer
\nPere Goriot<\/em>\u00a0\u00a0 Honore de Balzac
\nTropic of Cancer<\/em>\u00a0 Henry Miller
\nBlue Movie<\/em>\u00a0 Terry Southern
\nMonday the Rabbi Took off<\/em>\u00a0\u00a0 Harry Kemelman
\nI\u2019m Glad You didn\u2019t Take it Personally<\/em>\u00a0 Jim Bouton
\nCall It Sleep<\/em>\u00a0 Henry Roth
\nMy Friend Henry Miller<\/em>\u00a0 Alfred Perles
\nThe Wanderers<\/em>\u00a0 Richard Price
\nImaginary Speeches for a Brazen Head<\/em> \u00a0Philip Whalen
\nFranny and Zooey<\/em>\u00a0 J.D. Salinger
\nThe Boys on the Bus<\/em>\u00a0 Timothy Crouse
\nNine Stories<\/em>\u00a0 J.D. Salinger
\nThe Autograph Hound<\/em>\u00a0 John Lahr
\nRaymond Chandler Speaking<\/em>\u00a0 Raymond Chandler
\nLolita<\/em>\u00a0 Vladimir Nabokov
\nMy Last Two Thousand Years<\/em>\u00a0 Herbert Gold
\nThe Slave<\/em>\u00a0 Isaac Bashevis Singer<\/small><\/p>\n

***<\/p>\n

Did you<\/strong><\/span> skim or read that list?\u00a0 If you read<\/em> it, here’s your reward — a continuation, with asterisks for really funny books. (At the end of the list, there is a prose wrap-up.) \u00a0 My fav books, generally . . .<\/p>\n

1975<\/p>\n

Keep the Aspidistra Flying <\/em>\u00a0George Orwell
\nBurmese Days \u00a0<\/em>George Orwell
\nFear of Flying<\/em> \u00a0Erica Jung
\nA Fan\u2019s Notes\u00a0 <\/em>Frederick Exley
\nThe War Against the Jews\u00a0 <\/em>Lucy Dawidowicz<\/p>\n

\u201976<\/p>\n

Little Big Man<\/em> \u00a0Thomas Berger
\nHot to Trot<\/em> \u00a0John Lahr *
\nThe Fight<\/em> \u00a0Norman Mailer
\nMiss Lonelyhearts<\/em> \u00a0Nathanael West
\nThe World of Our Fathers<\/em>\u00a0 Irving Howe
\nBloodbrothers<\/em> \u00a0Richard Price
\nThe Rise of David Levinsky<\/em>\u00a0 Abraham Cahan
\nTales of Beatnik Glory<\/em>\u00a0 Ed Sanders
\nThe Idiot<\/em>\u00a0 Fyodor Dostoyevsky<\/p>\n

\u201977<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

While Six Million Died<\/em> \u00a0Lucy Dawidowicz
\nThirteenth Tribe<\/em> \u00a0Arthur Koestler
\nChrysanthemum and the Sword<\/em> \u00a0Ruth Benedict
\nThe Last Tycoon<\/em>\u00a0 F. Scott Fitzgerald
\nConfessions of a Nearsighted Cannoneer<\/em> \u00a0Seymour Krim<\/p>\n

\u201978<\/p>\n

Union Dues<\/em> \u00a0John Sayles
\nAll My Friends are Going to Be Strangers<\/em> \u00a0Larry McMurtry
\nThe Chosen<\/em> \u00a0Chaim Potok
\nA Feast of Snakes<\/em> \u00a0Harry Crews
\nThe Basketball Diaries<\/em> \u00a0Jim Carroll<\/p>\n

\u201979<\/p>\n

The Cool World<\/em> \u00a0Warren Miller
\nRabbit Run<\/em>\u00a0 John Updike
\nAirships<\/em>\u00a0 Barry Hannah
\nThe Rector of Justin<\/em>\u00a0 Louis Auchincloss
\nSophie\u2019s Choice<\/em> \u00a0William Styron
\nKing of the Jews<\/em>\u00a0 Leslie Epstein<\/p>\n

’80<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

The Pope of Greenwich Village<\/em> \u00a0Vincent Patrick
\nDubin\u2019s Lives<\/em>\u00a0 Bernard Malamud
\nThe Apprenticeship of Duddy Kravitz<\/em> \u00a0Mordecai Richler *
\nThe Right Stuff<\/em> \u00a0\u00a0Tom Wolfe
\nTess of the d\u2019Urbervilles<\/em> \u00a0Thomas Hardy<\/p>\n

\u201981<\/p>\n

Jane Eyre<\/em>\u00a0 Jane Austin
\nThe House of Mirth<\/em> \u00a0Edith Wharton
\nEthnic America<\/em> \u00a0Thomas Sowell<\/p>\n

\u201982<\/p>\n

Zuckerman Unbound<\/em>\u00a0 Philip Roth
\nMaiden Rites<\/em> \u00a0Sonia Pilcer\u00a0 *
\nThe Friends of Eddie Coyle<\/em> \u00a0George V. Higgins<\/p>\n

\u201984<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

God\u2019s Pocket<\/em> \u00a0Pete Dexter
\nRabbis is Rich<\/em>\u00a0 John Updike<\/em>
\nThis Way for the Gas<\/em>\u00a0 Tadeusz Borowski
\nThe Abandonment of the Jews<\/em> \u00a0David Wyman
\nSurvival in Auschwitz<\/em> \u00a0Primo Levi<\/p>\n

\u201985<\/p>\n

Man\u2019s Search for Meaning<\/em>\u00a0 Viktor Frankl
\nThe Headmasters Papers<\/em> \u00a0Richard Hawley
\nBright Lights Big City<\/em> \u00a0Jay McInerney
\nThe Art of Fiction<\/em>\u00a0 John Gardner
\nFathers Playing Catch with Sons<\/em> \u00a0Donald Hall
\nLa Brava<\/em>\u00a0 Elmore Leonard<\/p>\n

\"\"

Elmore Leonard junk mail<\/p><\/div>\n

\u201986<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

Babbitt<\/em> \u00a0Sinclair Lewis
\nWiseguy<\/em> \u00a0Nicholas Pileggi
\nProvidence<\/em> \u00a0Geoffrey Wolff<\/p>\n

\u201987<\/p>\n

The Sportswriter<\/em> \u00a0Richard Ford
\nThe Great Pretender<\/em> \u00a0James Atlas
\nBonfire of the Vanities<\/em> \u00a0Tom Wolfe<\/p>\n

\u201988<\/p>\n

Papa Play for Me<\/em> \u00a0Mickey Katz
\nLife is with People<\/em> \u00a0Mark Zborwski and Elizabeth Herzog
\nThe Facts<\/em> \u00a0Philip Roth
\nA History of the Jews<\/em>\u00a0 Paul Johnson
\nIn Praise of Yiddish<\/em>\u00a0 Maurice Samuel<\/p>\n

\u201989<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

Old New Land<\/em> \u00a0Theodor Herzl
\nArchitects of Yiddishism<\/em> \u00a0Emanuel Goldsmith
\nFrom that Place and Time<\/em> \u00a0Lucy Dawidowicz<\/p>\n

\u201990<\/p>\n

Paris<\/em> Trout<\/em> \u00a0Pete Dexter<\/p>\n

\u201991<\/p>\n

Patrimony<\/em> \u00a0Philip Roth
\nMr. Bridge<\/em> \u00a0Evan Connell<\/p>\n

\u201992<\/p>\n

Devil\u2019s Night<\/em> \u00a0Zev Chafets
\nRabbit at Rest<\/em> \u00a0John Updike
\nRabbit Redux<\/em> \u00a0John Updike<\/p>\n

\u201993<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

Class<\/em> \u00a0Paul Fussell
\nDays of Grace<\/em> \u00a0Arthur Ashe<\/p>\n

\u201994<\/p>\n

Lost in Translation<\/em> \u00a0Eva Hoffman
\nHow We Die<\/em>\u00a0 Sherman Nuland
\nRoommates<\/em> \u00a0Max Apple<\/p>\n

\u201996<\/p>\n

Moo<\/em> \u00a0Jane Smiley
\nIndependence Day<\/em> \u00a0Richard Ford
\nThe Road from Coorain<\/em> \u00a0Jill Kerr Conway<\/p>\n

\u201997<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

Parts of My Body<\/em> \u00a0Phillip Lopate
\nAmerican Pastoral<\/em> \u00a0Philip Roth
\nThe Wishbones<\/em> \u00a0Tom Perrotta<\/p>\n

\u201999<\/p>\n

Ex-Friends<\/em> \u00a0Norman Podhoretz
\nHole in Our Soul<\/em>\u00a0 Martha Bayles<\/p>\n

’00<\/p>\n

The Trouble with Cinderella<\/em> \u00a0Artie Shaw
\nThe Human Stain<\/em>\u00a0 Philip Roth
\nWinning Ugly<\/em> \u00a0Brad Gilbert<\/p>\n

\u201901<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

Up in the Air<\/em>\u00a0 Walter Kirn *<\/p>\n

\u201902<\/p>\n

John Adams<\/em> \u00a0David McCullough
\nSelling Ben Cheever<\/em> \u00a0Ben Cheever\u00a0 *
\nThe Corrections<\/em>\u00a0 Jonathan Franzen
\nThe New Rabbi<\/em> \u00a0Stephen Fried<\/p>\n

\u201903<\/p>\n

Samaritan<\/em> \u00a0Richard Price
\nFunnymen<\/em> \u00a0Ted Heller\u00a0 *
\nMy Losing Season<\/em> \u00a0Pat Conroy
\nFabulous Small Jews<\/em>\u00a0 Joseph Epstein
\nThe Case for Israel<\/em>\u00a0 Alan Dershowitz<\/p>\n

\u201904<\/p>\n

The Da Vinci Code<\/em> \u00a0Dan Brown
\nGood Vibes<\/em> \u00a0Terry Gibbs<\/p>\n

\u201905<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

Made in Detroit<\/em> \u00a0Paul Clemens<\/p>\n

\u201906<\/p>\n

On Beauty<\/em> \u00a0Zadie Smith
\nPrisoner of Trebekistan<\/em> \u00a0Bob Harris
\nHigh Fidelity<\/em> \u00a0Nick Hornby
\nSweet and Low<\/em> \u00a0Rich Cohen<\/p>\n

\u201907<\/p>\n

America’s Polka King<\/em> \u00a0Bob Dolgan
\nPrisoners<\/em> \u00a0Jeffrey Goldberg
\nInfidel<\/em> \u00a0Ayaan Hirsi Ali<\/p>\n

\u201908<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

A Random Walk Down Wall Street<\/em> \u00a0Burton Malkiel
\nLush Life<\/em>\u00a0 Richard Price
\nDean\u2019s List<\/em> \u00a0Jon Hassler
\nIrrational Exuberance<\/em> \u00a0Robert Shiller<\/p>\n

\u201909<\/p>\n

Rabbit at Rest<\/em> \u00a0John Updike
\nHow I became a Famous Novelist<\/em> \u00a0Steve Hely *
\nFacing Unpleasant Facts<\/em> \u00a0George Orwell<\/p>\n

\u201910<\/p>\n

The Great Indoors<\/em> \u00a0Eric Broder\u00a0 *
\nPops <\/em>\u00a0Terry Teachout
\nOlive Kitteridge<\/em> \u00a0Elizabeth Stout<\/p>\n

\u201911<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

I Feel Bad About My Neck<\/em>\u00a0 Nora Ephron
\nOpen<\/em> \u00a0Andre Agassi
\nHow to Win Friends<\/em> \u00a0Dale Carnegie
\nThe Whore of Akron<\/em> \u00a0Scott Raab\u00a0 *<\/p>\n

\u201912<\/p>\n

I Married a Communist<\/em> \u00a0Philip Roth
\nPocket Kings<\/em> \u00a0Ted Heller\u00a0 *<\/p>\n

\u201913<\/p>\n

The Love Song of Jonny Valentine<\/em>\u00a0 Teddy Wayne *<\/small><\/p>\n

***<\/p>\n

I bought<\/strong><\/span> the Richard Price books for pleasure and investment purposes.\u00a0 His books are probably worth nothing.\u00a0 I have followed Price\u2019s career since he was 25.\u00a0 I knew a woman who dated him at Cornell.\u00a0 Price is a Lit god around my house.<\/p>\n

I like short books.\u00a0 Most classics are long, so I\u2019m bad at classics.\u00a0 Funny books are my favorite.\u00a0 Throw in a few jokes, or lose me.\u00a0 I don\u2019t need a strong plot.<\/p>\n

I’ve read The Great Gatsby<\/em> five times because it\u2019s great and short.\u00a0 I would read it more often if it was funny.<\/p>\n

I can\u2019t remember most of what I read.<\/p>\n

A lot here — in this post — is a rip off of Nick Hornby and his Ten Years in a Tub<\/em>, about books Hornby has read in the past 10 years.
\n<\/em><\/p>\n

I haven\u2019t read much philosophy.\u00a0 Any?\u00a0 I\u2019ve tried the Bible a few times.\u00a0 Proust — I’ve done 50 pages with him.\u00a0 I\u2019m good with Shakespeare!<\/p>\n

I\u2019ve read many books about Cleveland.\u00a0 Here are three random CLE books: A Fares of a Cleveland Cabby, <\/em>Thomas Jasany;<\/em> Confused City on a Seesaw, <\/em>Philip W. Porter; and First and Last Seasons, <\/em>Dan McGraw.\u00a0 I’ve read all of Harvey Pekar.\u00a0 Harvey didn\u2019t write much. \u00a0Maybe 90,000 words total. \u00a0 Thanks, Harvey.<\/p>\n

I\u2019ve read every klezmer book, I think.\u00a0 Did you know a Polish academic, Magdalena Waligorska, cited this blog in her book <\/em>Klemzer’s Afterlife<\/em> (<\/em>Oxford University Press)?<\/em>
\n<\/em><\/p>\n

My wife occasionally takes my literary recommendations to her book club.\u00a0 But not lately.\u00a0 She recommended How I Became<\/em> a Famous Novelist<\/em> by Hely. That ruined my wife\u2019s credibility.<\/p>\n

If you read a book on this list, pick one with an asterisk.\u00a0 And if you don\u2019t think the book is funny, bail immediately.<\/p>\n

I’m<\/em> bailing.\u00a0 Gotta list something.\u00a0 What, I don’t know.\u00a0 Maybe I’ll tally the people who liked this post vs. those who thought it was too self-indulgent.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Pamela Paul, editor of the New York Times Book Review, keeps a list of all the books she has read.\u00a0 She wrote about her list — that goes back to 1988 — in the book review. I know somebody else who keeps a list. My list goes back to 1973, Ms. Pam Paul!\u00a0 (Actually 1971, […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[11,3,14],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-18632","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-coming-of-age","category-miscellaneous","category-pekar"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.yiddishecup.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/18632","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.yiddishecup.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.yiddishecup.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.yiddishecup.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.yiddishecup.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=18632"}],"version-history":[{"count":10,"href":"http:\/\/www.yiddishecup.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/18632\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":19233,"href":"http:\/\/www.yiddishecup.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/18632\/revisions\/19233"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.yiddishecup.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=18632"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.yiddishecup.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=18632"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.yiddishecup.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=18632"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}

I haven’t read The Hobbit<\/em> or War and Peace<\/em>.\u00a0 (Check out Buzzfeed’s “22 Books You Pretend You’ve Read but Actually Haven’t.”<\/a>)<\/p>\n