A note from THE BOOK REVIEW EDITOR LAURA ROESCH
PHOTOGRAPHY BY BONNIE BRANT
Book authors have my deepest respect. Whether works of fiction or non-fiction, in my eyes writers are heroes. They show discipline and dedication to detailed research, compile and structure thoughts, and can profoundly educate and influence their readers. Imagine a time when typewriters and the non-existence of the internet prolonged any writing ambitions.
The elaborate process of writing novels must have been so much more challenging in the years before the worldwide web. I recently finished “Sarum” by Edward Rutherfurd. First published in 1987, well before the age of digital research, this hefty novel sent me off on a tangent to determine just how Rutherfurd combined fact and storytelling. It is a sweeping fictionalized account set in Salisbury and Stonehenge in England. The story follows five families from the Ice Age to present day, weaving together British history with the trials and tribulations of the human experience along the way.
There are no limitations to the emotions, explorations, and knowledge a writer can convey depending on whether a reader is open to it. For me, one book often leads to another and, in the case of “My Life with Bob, Flawed Heroine Keeps Book of Books, Plot Ensues,” written by Pamela Paul, editor of “The New York Times Book Review,” it led to many others. Paul’s work is a memoir detailing her 28- year relationship with books. “Bob,” short for “Book of Books,” recounts every single book she has read since she was 17. It is an intensely personal look over her shoulder as she chronicles her travels across the globe, often alone, in a way that connects her adventures with her reading life. Pamela Paul notes “…sometimes you need to go out and search for the answer… but it took a book to push me along.” Inspired by “A Journey of One’s Own: Uncommon Advice for the Independent Woman Traveler,” by Thalia Zepatos, Pamela Paul had an epiphany. During a job interview for a not-so-exciting career option, she resolved to abandon the career treadmill for a time. Taking a page or two from Zepatos’ book, she told everyone who would listen that she was moving to Thailand. Paul sold her 1985 Honda, purchased a non-refundable one-way ticket to Chiang Mai and away she went, living in different parts of Asia. She expresses the pleasures of reading about those places as she experienced them in the most entertaining way. She describes reading “Anna Karenina,” and seeing what she perceived as parallels of isolation with her own life. She moves to Cambodia while reading “Swimming to Cambodia,” whose author became Paul’s first “literary crush.” While I devoured Pamela Paul’s work and comments, from time to time I had visceral reactions to her observations. I called out “book snob” several times–but then thought; is that a bad thing? Paul is thirsty for knowledge, insecure, fearless, bold, gutsy, ironic, wise, emotional, joyous, hopeful–and brilliant in her insights. I have read many of the books she presents and others on her list have made it into my “to be read” stack.
If you do not have time to read “Bob,” I highly recommend tuning into Pamela Paul’s weekly podcast, “Inside the New York Times Book Review.” It is a must for anyone who enjoys a good book and talking about it. To quote Paul, “reading may be solitary but, in the aggregate, books unite us.”
How about you, my bookish friends? I look forward to hearing your thoughts if you have an opportunity to read “Bob.”