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Dirda on Books
Hosted by Michael Dirda
Washington Post Book World Senior Editor
Thursday, Nov. 8, 2001; 2 p.m. EST
Washington Post Book World Senior Editor Michael Dirda took your questions and comments concerning literature, books and the joys of reading.
Each week Michael Dirda's name appears -- in unmistakably big letters -- on page 15 of The Post's Book World section. If he's not reviewing a hefty literary biography or an ambitious new novel, he's likely to be turning out one of his idiosyncratic essays or describing his travels to, say, a P.G. Wodehouse Convention. Although he earned a Ph.D. in comparative literature from Cornell, Dirda has somehow managed to retain a myopic 12-year-old's passion for reading. He particularly enjoys comic novels, intellectual history, locked-room mysteries, innovative fiction of all sorts -- just the sort of range you'd expect from a Pulitzer Prize winner in criticism (1993).
These days, Dirda says he still spends inordinate amounts of time mourning his lost youth, listening to music (Glenn Gould, Ella Fitzgerald, Diana Krall, The Tallis Scholars), and daydreaming ("my only real hobby"). He claims that the happiest hours of his week are spent sitting in front of a computer, working. In the fall of 2000 Indiana University Press published "Readings: Essays and Literary Entertainments," a selection from Dirda's Book World columns. He hopes to bring out a companion volume soon.
Dirda joined The Post in 1978, having grown up in the working-class steel town of Lorain, Ohio and graduated with highest honors in English from Oberlin College. His favorite writers are Stendhal, Chekhov, Jane Austen, Evelyn Waugh, T.S. Eliot, Nabokov, John Dickson Carr, Joseph Mitchell and Jack Vance. He thinks the greatest novel of all time is either Murasaki Shikubu's "The Tale of Genji" or Proust's "A la recherche du temps perdu." In a just world he would own Watteau's painting "The Embarkation for Cythera." He'd also like to spend six months in Florida writing a book that would become a runaway best seller, a critical success, and the hottest cinematic property of the year. A guy can daydream, right?
The transcript follows.
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over Live Online discussions and choose the most relevant questions for guests and hosts; guests and hosts can decline to answer questions.
Michael Dirda: Welcome to Dirda on Books. For the next hour we'll discuss writing, reading, reviewng, etc. It continues to be a glorious fall here in Washington--the lancscape a study in browns tinged with orange, yellow and red. We could use a little rain. It's been a nuisance trying to retrieve mail around here--gloves, surgical masks, sealed rooms in which to open letters. And, of course, half the post seems to be missing, including my credit card bills. Oh well. These are the times one yearns to be a college student, back in Ohio, strolling across Tappan Square to an 11 O'clock lecture on Northern Baroque Art, with the prospect of an afternoon at the library and a hot date for the evening. Ah youth! ANyway, on with the show!
Lenexa, Kans.:
Mr. Dirda, -- Scoring Tips from Baudrillard --
I must have nearly a hundred of Richard Appignanesi's "Introducing ____" series and the "____ For Beginners" (hate the latter title) -- seem to drag one home with each visit to the bookstores.
The illustrations are also fun: my favorite is a wise Baudrillard winking and coaching an old lecher about to make a move on a voluptuous blonde standing nearby -- "Never say 'I desire you.' Say instead 'You make me feel good.' This turns the object into a subject." For the same reason -- "If she asks which part of me do you like the best, always say 'the eyes.'"
QUESTION: Are you a fan? Thanks much.
Michael Dirda: Ah, Lenexa, you know me too well. In truth, I"ve never read much Baudrillard, though I'm having dinner with an expert on him tomorrow: Harvard University Press editor Lindsay Waters, an old friend and the Natty Bummpo of cultural studies (i.e. Pathfinder, etc.) A good friend in Orlando also has some interest in him, though she likes Luce Iragaray and Dale Spender more. Once out of my hot youth, thoughk, I've had little patience for any kind of theory--I read Northrop Frye and William Empson and they seemed to teach me most of what I needed to understand literature: The Big Picture and the Close Up. Now, being an aging hedonist, I read strictly for pleasure. Even in my work. But you make Baudrillard sound appealing.
I can't stand those little books you describe.
Crystal City, Va.:
Reading last week's transcript makes me wonder whether I'm the only one who read or remembers THE SHY STEGOSAURUS OF CRICKET CREEK, or THE WONDERFUL FLIGHT TO THE MUSHROOM PLANET.
Anyway, you mentioned the Arthur Inman diary in passing. Is it worth reading?
Michael Dirda: I've read the Eleanor Cameron (Mushroom Planet)--it didn't seem quite as thrilling as I"d hoped, though I love her essaiys on children's literature, especially those in The Green and Burning Tree. Don't know the other book.
The Inman diaries are supposedly the longest in our history--though Edward Ellis's may be even longer. THey're oddly fascinating: Inman was a recluse who paid ordinary people to tell him the story of their lives. Some odd stories indeed.
Washington, D.C.:
OK, you just managed to throw me into retro mode with your college reminiscing. I miss it too and this type of fall weather never fails to remind me of my old leafy campus in Washington State.
Anyway, books... I am seeking a good book on the Serb/Bosnian/Croatian conflict. Clearly I have only a very basic understanding of it, since I don't even know how to refer to it properly, but I want to understand what happened in that region in the 1990s. Any ideas?
Michael Dirda: Robert D. Kaplan, I think, is the guy to read. Can't think of his title. But anybody there want to help?
SciFiGirl:
Since we are having such a beautiful day today, I was wondering if people's minds turn towards heavier fare in the winter, thinking, oh, this is the year I'll read Proust! And not just the first sentence! I have been leaning toward more literary novels myself since September (the new Doug Coupland, Michael Chabon's Wonder Boys, Corelli's Mandolin is on the horizon), instead of my summer fare of Janet Evanovich and other "fluff".
Michael Dirda: Well, winter is certainly the time to hunker down with a big book--though I'd hold off until after CHristmas. Surely the holidays should be devoted to AGatha Christie or similar light-hearted fare. I think GIbbon does very well these days. That Olympian view, those magnificent sentences, that pervasive irony--ever helpful now.
Rockville, Md.:
Just got finished reading Clive Cusslers latest, Valhalla Rising. Very sureal, he describes a terrorist plot to drive an oil tanker into lower Manhattan to destroy the World trade center. This book came out in August. Have you read it or is he too low brow for you?
Michael Dirda: Too low brow.
Alexandria, Va.:
What book that is out do you feel is a must read?
Michael Dirda: None is a must read. People should choose books that work for them. But I would suggest skimming the book reviews, especially Book world, for possible titles that might be of interest.
W. Windsor, N.J.:
In the midst of today's political situation...
What do you think are the best literary treatments of war, either fiction or non-fiction? Do you know of any works about war in which we can find a modicum of solace?
Michael Dirda: The Iliad, especially the Fagles translatoin with Bernard Knox's introduction. John Keegan's The Face of Battle, about war in the middle ages, time of Napolen and WWI--all in in the same small area of Europe. For solace you might try Patrick O'Brian or C.S. Forester--thoughtful and rousing adventures at sea during the Napoleonic wars. For real solace, read Chekhov and Trollope and Montaigne.
Washington, D.C.:
What can you tell me about Ward Just, the former Post reporter? I have read several of his novels and short stories, and enjoy them greatly -- especially because they usually take place in the two locations where I have spent my life: Illinois and Washington, D.C.
Also, when I read his works, I feel like I am listening to a writer who is -- above all -- decent in his outlook and values.
I believe he lives in Paris, is that right? Anything else (even anecdotal) that you can share about Mr. Just? Thanks.
Michael Dirda: He lives in New England too. I've never, alas, met him, though we've talked on the phone, usually when I tried, unsuccessfully, to get him to review something. I cherish that title: The Congressman Who Loved Flaubert.
Fairfax, Va.:
I'm about to read some M.R. James ghost stories -- OK, OK, so I'm a little late in my Halloween reading! -- and wondered what your favorties are. I know you've covered this ground before. Forgive my aging memory.
Michael Dirda: Count Magnus. Casting the Runes. Canon Alberic's Will. A Warning to the Curious. Oh, Whistle and I'll Come to You, My Lad.
San Diego, Calif.:
Michael, I am reading one of the Appalachian novels of Sharyn McCrumb because it is a selection of a local book group I'm thinking of joining. I'd not read any of her books before, and I find this is not the only genre she has written in. Do you know if she's more respected in one or another?
Michael Dirda: She's best known now for those mysteries, but years ago she won an Edgar (for first novel I believe) for her funny spoof/whodunit, set at a science fiction convention, Bimbos of the Death Sun. There's a sequel too.
E-Guy:
Michael, do you believe that reading drama is a worthwhile enterprise? I ask because I am something of an avid theater-goer, and Washington, D.C., while hardly Dubuque in the performing arts department, doesn’t always get the interesting new plays on a timely basis, as your theater critic wrote recently. For example, I am interested in Edward Albee’s latest work “The Play About the Baby,” but despite having a well-received New York run, it is not scheduled to play locally this season. So it’s either wait patiently until it is produced here, or read the print edition. But it seems to me that drama is best appreciated live rather than on the printed page. If anything, I prefer to read a play AFTER I’ve seen it onstage.
Michael Dirda: Well, you've probably answered your questoin: You either wait or you read the print version. Of course, drama is meant to be seen, but Robertson Davies used to advise reading plays--he was talking about VIctorian melodrama--as rathre like reading short stories.
College Park, Md.:
Hello:
Have you read any of the books and manuals by youthful lady author Tristan Taormino (born 1971)?
Michael Dirda: No, 29 isn't that youthful. Keats was dead at 25. Rimbaud stopped writing at 19. Daisy Ashford did her best work at 9.
Crystal City, Va.:
'Fess up, Michael! Was it your idea to title that review "Members Only?"
Michael Dirda: Yes. I had suggested other, even better, if altogether unusable heads too--and there's obviously a pun there as well.
Washington, D.C.:
On the Yugoslavia question -- Roger Cohen's Hearts Grown Brutal is wonderful. So is Misha Glenny. And Richard Holbrooke's To End a War is amazing as well.
Michael Dirda: Thanks
North Tonawanda, N.Y.:
The Kaplan book you're thinking of is BALKAN GHOSTS. Kaplan's publishers have just released a new edition of his book about Afghanistan, SOLDIERS OF GOD. Kaplan writes a chapter updating his thoughts since Sept. 11.
Michael Dirda: thanks
Lenexa, Kans.:
Speaking of college romances, in David Lehman's latest (The Best American Poetry: 2001) the poet Linda Gregerson appears. Since she was born in 1950 and did her undergraduate work at Oberlin, just wondering if you knew her? Thanks.
Michael Dirda: We might have overlapped, but I didn't know here. Do know her name now, of course. I only recently discvoered Tracy Chevalier went to Oberlin. Avery Brooks was there when I was an undergrad too.
Lockport, N.Y.:
Did you make it to Bouchercon? If so, did you find any treasures in the Dealers' Room?
Michael Dirda: DIdn't get there, alas. Too much going on.
Washington, D.C.:
Hello Michael -- Are you planning to go to the "Harry Potter" movie when it opens here?
Michael Dirda: Yes, but I'm not sure when. More likely I'll wait til lthe furor dies down. But my kids will probalby want to see it the first weekend.
New York, N.Y.:
I'm currently writing a thesis on Russian History. Usually a euphoric experience, this week has been difficult, and I fear I'm beginning to not see the forest for the trees.
Can you re-inspire me? What do you think is the best work -- in any genre -- on or about Russia?
Michael Dirda: The work of the Russian novelists and shortstory writers: Lermontov, Goncharov, Turgenev, Tolstoy, Chekhovk, Babel, and, most of all, Dostoevsky. If you had to read one book on Russia, it should probably be The Brothers Karamazov.
Philadelphia, Pa.:
Have you read any of Tom De Haven's trilogy of novels about cartoonists? 'Funny Papers' is one of my favorite novels. I just finished 'Dugan Under Ground' and enjoyed it very much. De Haven managed to slip a parody of a 'reading group guide' at the end in the form of a comic book's letters page.
Michael Dirda: I know of the books, but haven't read any. These sound good.
Annandale, Va.:
What do you make of Tom Bombadil? Does his character have a basis in legend, literature, or mythology?
Michael Dirda: WE should save this till Monday at 2 when I'll continue our discussion of Tolkien, focusing on The Fellowship of the Ring. (I know Tom has his own story.)
"Young Visitors" Fan:
I would recommend Daisy Ashford to all in the chat. Her book, "Young Visitors," is a wonderful look at Edwardian (Victorian) social mores as understood by a clever (not obnoxious) 9 yr old!
Michael Dirda: Yes, but remember your spelling: The Young Visiters.
wiredog:
Clive Cussler. He's still writing? I must admit that the last book of his I read was the Titanic one. Back in High School. As soon as I hit 16, I stopped reading his stuff.
Michael Dirda: I was being flip in calling him low brow, since I do like lots of low brow things. But I"m not interested in his work--only an auctioneer can appreciate ALL forms of art.
Somewhere, USA:
I think that some drama is just as good read as seen. Tom Stoppard comes to mind.
Michael Dirda: Thanks. Charles Lamb, Anthony Hecht and many others feel that Shakespeare is better read than seen. At least in some plays.
Atlanta, Ga.:
Mr. Dirda:
I have two questions: First, as a Maryland/D.C./Virginia exile I've been suffering down here for the last several months. I haven't found any good independent bookstores or second hand bookstores and the Fulton County library isn't as good as either Montco or Arlington. Do you or your readers have any suggestions?
Second, I seem to be on a British cum Booker Prize jag recently, since I've just finished Byatt's Tale of a Biographer (not as good as Possession, I thought, but interesting), Julian Barnes' Love, etc. (liked it) and am now reading Cleary's book on the Kelly Gang and Margaret Atwood's The Blind Assassin, both of which I like. Any suggestions in a similar vein?
Thank you.
Michael Dirda: Carey's. Suggestions? There are so many good books. Try other Booker winners, I guess.
Washington, D.C.:
Michael,
Have you read any more on the Franzen/Oprah issue? I really am curious to hear what you think in this battle between middlebrow readers and the literary establishment. Should he just be grateful to sell more books or is he right to worry about his repuation suffering from a big old Oprah logo slapped on his book?
Michael Dirda: There was a panel discussion of this on Slate, including my colleague Chris Lehmann who reviewed the Franzen for us. Is this really all that interesting? Neither Oprah nor Franzen needs the publicity. I wish William Gaddis were still around.
Robert Kaplan's Books:
"Balkan Ghosts" is the title you are seeking.
ALSO -- with an eye towards current events, Kaplan's book, "The Arabists" give a very thorough and readable understanding of the history of US policy in the Middle East and Central Asia. Compelling and eye-opening.
The US used to have major influence in the region until the Nixon administration. Now we have to reestablish ourselves there again.
Michael Dirda: thanks again.
Takoma Park, Md.:
I was away and missed the last few discussions. Re Emma Donogue:
Slammerkin was not to my taste (though fabulously well done with fine language), but don't miss her earlier masterpiece, Hood. It is the best evocation of loss of a partner I have ever read, and it manages to be universal despite the lost spouse being a Lesbian partner. She both honors the specifics of the relationship and evokes everyone's similar loss. An amazing book.
Michael Dirda: thanks
Akron, Ohio:
What's the best book you can recommend for someone forced to regroup after a failed romantic foray?
Michael Dirda: Readings: Essays and Literary Entertainments, by Michael Dirda.
More to the point, are you sure the romantic foray has failed? Perhaps you or your friend should give the other person one last chance? Maybe a romantic weekend at a fancy hotel? You might be surprised. I think misunderstandings end relationships more than anything else. "Though Birnam Wood be come to Dunsinane and thou opposed being of no woman born, yet I will try the last. . ."
Havertown, Pa.:
I have noticed in some Jane Austen books and also in Jane Eyre, the text will read something like '...they proceeded to D______shire'. More recently Franzen does the same thing in The Corrections. He will talk about W________ Corporation. While it is trivial, I wonder why they do that? Do you have any insight?
Michael Dirda: A convention, I suppose. Also, to give the sense that the story is real and that to name the town would be to give it all away, that is, people would recognize the main characters and events. So, by failing to say exactly wehre or when something took place, you end up making it seem all the truer.
Somewhere, USA:
Michael,
Just curious:
What kind of watch do you wear? Do you wear one? You seem the type that would like to go without one, but can't because of responsibilities -- pick ups and drops offs at soccer matches, movies, etc.
So what's the time piece, eh?
Michael Dirda: I wear a slightly rounded rectangular watch, in white stainless steel, with blue hands, and a brown leather band, from Kenneth Cole. It's very dear to me for sentimental reasons.
For years I didn't wear a watch or any jewelry at all. Of course, this was when I was thinking of having my finger tips surgically removed so that I wouldn't leave finger prints either.
Somewhere, USA:
For the Booker Fan:
Sacred Hunger by Barry Unsworth is a worthwhile read, as is Oscar and Lucinda, both Booker Winners if I'm not mistaken.
Michael Dirda: yes
Washington, D.C.:
Although a good book, the Arabist needs to be taken with a grain of salt. It was written a while ago, and although the historical parts of the book are still very valid and interesting, the situation in the Middle East changes moment by moment. Information regarding international politics needs to be up-to-the-minute.
Michael Dirda: thanks
Crystal City:
Although it is unfortunate that authors are categorized into groups, one rather large group of writers that I enjoy is African-American authors. Among the authors I enjoy reading are Richard Wright, Jamaica Kincaid, Ralph Ellison, and many others. Are there any authors from this group that you like reading? If so, what books would you suggest? Thanks.
Michael Dirda: I like Ellison--as who does not?; I've recently started Erasure, by Percy Everett, a Nabokovian satire of ghetto memoirs. ANd I like the crime novels of Chester Himes a great deal as well. My problem--and it is mine--is that I don't like social-realist books that much, which much black literature tends to be.
Washington, D.C.:
An earlier chatter said "Information regarding international politics needs to be up-to-the-minute."
I think they call that type of publication a newspaper...
Michael Dirda: yes.
Re: D_____shire, etc...:
You know, you see that kind of abbreviation in much Russian literature too. With both locations and proper names. Always wondered about that.
Michael Dirda: see my earlier reply.
Lenexa, Kans.:
For Akron:
In case the weekend at the hotel or Dirda's book doesn't work, an insight from "Sex and the City": "We've learned it takes half as long to get over a relationship as the fling itself."
Michael Dirda: thanks for the insight from Candace Bushnell. Some relationships are never gotten over.
Rockville, Md.:
Where is your favorite place to read?
Michael Dirda: Back in my childhood.
A quiet coffeeshop in the morning.
Mt. Rainier, Md.:
I remember seeing a program on PBS called "On the Waterways" in the early 90s. It was narrated by the late Jason Robards and one episode about the Florida Everglades featured the late great conservation writer/activist Marjory Stoneman Douglas(1890-1998). Have you come across any of her books focusing primarily on the Everglades ecosystem? such as "Freedom River" or "The Everglades: River of Grass."
Michael Dirda: I know about her life and that she lived almost as long as God, but that's about it. Have never read her books, though I once had a student write a report on her.
Gaithersburg, Md.:
A few more questions and thoughts about "Housekeeping". What is the name of the film? Do you think Fingerbone lake was as central as the house to the action of the book. I thought the scenes on, over and in the lake more memorable -- or perhaps that is where the transitions occured. I appreciated Robinson's desire and ability to shine a little light on the lives of those who don't normally merit positive attention. Just as we know every rich person is not happy, she shows it may also be true that not every homeless person is unhappy.
Michael Dirda: Nice reflections. I think the film was also called Housekeeping. Yes the lake is just as important as the house--and the bridge only slightly less so.
Re: The Arabists:
As Harry Truman said (in Merle Miller's book, _Plain Speaking_)
"The only thing new under the sun is the history you don't know."
There is a lot of history in the middle east and central asia it would be good for folks to learn!
Michael Dirda: yes, indeed.
Heartbroken, Washington, D.C.:
Re the lovelorn answer for Akron. Is that quote mangled? What does it mean, where is it from and could you give some real recommendations?
Michael Dirda: Quotes from Macbeth.
I can't give any good recommendations, as I've never found a book to salve a broken heart. You can try being cynical--read La Rochefoucauld, say--or analytical--Stendhal's De l'amour--but I imagine those pop self-help books you see in drug stores are as useful as any great work of literature.
Somewhere, USA:
Colson Whitehead is writing some interesting contemporary African-American literature. The Influence of Ellison is his first, The Intuitionist, is apparent, but the work stands on its own merits.
Michael Dirda: thanks.
Washington, D.C.:
Re: up-to-the-minute... with regard to the smart/nasty comments about newspapers, the point about the Arabists, is that the author tries to make an overall view of where politics in the Middle East are headed, which in a six year old book are pretty much irrelevant, except for looking back and seeing how things have changed.
Michael Dirda: thanks.
for the failed romance:
Don't know if you are a man or woman. How about Jane Austen's Emma? Its a good example of failed romantic forays, but everything works out in the end.
Michael Dirda: Yes, I like that idea: Everything works out in the end. One can only hope.
Boston,Mass.:
How about sacred texts as literature?
Critics often site the Old Testament, but much of it I find no more rewarding (or instructive) than any other religion's cobbled-together mythology. The Koran is a terrible read. The only thing that stands up, to me, is the New Testaments Gospel of John. The other three aren't that great.
Your thoughts?
Michael Dirda: You're wrong. John appeals to moody youth, but the other Gospels are tender, wise, immensely moving and beautifully composed. I like William Tyndale's translations, basis for most of the King James versions we know.
African American SF:
I love the short stories of Octavia Butler. I haven't had the courage to read her novels yet. She is so intense a story teller that I feel a novel-length story would be overwhelming.
Michael Dirda: Yes. Try Wild Seed.
Swim-two-birds:
For the person looking for war books, both Ford Madox Ford's Parade's End and Anthony Powell's Dance to the Music of Time (The Kindly Ones, I think) have excellent sections on the British experience of the World Wars.
Michael Dirda: Yes. Thanks. You might also add Evelyn Waugh's Sword of Honour trilogy.
Washington, D.C.:
Hello Michael -- Can you tell us a little about how you folks work at Book World, i.e. how you decide what gets reviewed and who reviews it, how much editing is done to the finished pieces, etc.
Michael Dirda: THis is such a large question, and we're almost out of time. Try me again next week. Ok?
New York, N.Y.:
Have you had a look at the John Barth novel yet?
Michael Dirda: No. Some reviews have liked it, others haven't.
wiredog:
Books on MidEast: Sir Richard Burton (not the actor, the explorer) gives a good view of "The more things change..." etc.
Michael Dirda: Thanks.
Downtown, Washigntonn, D.C.:
Mr. Dirda:
I see that you are a fan of Stendhal's, as am I. The Red and the Black is my very favorite novel ever (I was saying this long before Mr. Gore was on Oprah, I kid you not) but I somehow failed to really enjoy the Charterhouse of Parma. Could you clue me to what it is that I was missing there?
Cheers.
Michael Dirda: It's a book that doesn't translate well, htough you might try Richard Howard's new version. It isk, also, a much more autumnal work, and you may need to feel a little more worn out by life to like it. Andre Gide, among others, thought it the greatest of all French novels.
Annandale, Va.:
"most of the King James versions we know" -- how many KGV are there? I thought one?
Michael Dirda: Version--I type fast and don't usually reread my sentences, so mistakes happen.
San Francisco, Calif.:
For war lit how about Eliot's 4 quartets?
The dove descending breaks the air
with flame of incandescent terror
of which the tongues declare
the one discharge from sin and error
etc etc etc
Michael Dirda: Thanks. And on that note I think we can call it an hour for this week. Do keep reading and if you're interested in Tolkien stop by on Monday at 2 for my discussion of The fellowship of the RIng. Till then.
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