en-us http://www.publishersweekly.com/blog/%blog_id.html?nid=4411 Copyright 2009 Reed Business Information. Subject to its Terms of Use November 9, 2009 http://www.publishersweekly.com/blog/860000286/post/1650007365.html?nid=4411 Its gotten so bad that even when I close my eyes I can still see hunky gay boys in bulging speedos, hyper-masculine groping each other on the downlow and money exchanging hands for furtive sexual favors. No, it's not casual Fridays at Publishers Weekly. I'm actually a judge in the gay romanc… Fri, 09 Mar 2007 09:00:29 PST http://www.publishersweekly.com/blog/860000286/post/1460007346.html?nid=4411 I'm just back from the west coast on the appropriately named red eye after four days in San Francisco, one of them meeting Khaled Hosseini for a profile article which I'm not going to say too much about because then what would I write for the profile? The night before with David Po… Fri, 09 Mar 2007 09:15:14 PST http://www.publishersweekly.com/blog/860000286/post/1740007374.html?nid=4411 So I piss and moan a lot (Really. A lot. It's pathetic.) about what are referred to by one or more of us as scheissebuchen. Scheissebuchen arrive daily and, depending on the season (this spring has been rotten with them), in large quantities. What makes a scheissebuch? Any number of things, bu… Tue, 13 Mar 2007 00:00:00 PST http://www.publishersweekly.com/blog/660000266/post/1390007339.html?nid=4411 ...Read More Tue, 13 Mar 2007 00:00:00 PST http://www.publishersweekly.com/blog/670000267/post/1330007333.html?nid=4411 Last weekend I visited my friend John (loved the brunch especially), and as I left for the trip home, realized I'd finished my book and didn't have another one. The horror! The horror! I tend to guard against this dread state of affairs by packing at least two books whenever I travel (yes,… Tue, 13 Mar 2007 00:00:00 PST http://www.publishersweekly.com/blog/860000286/post/1750007375.html?nid=4411 This year's PW poetry feature is on literary magazines and their relationship to book publishing. Over the next few days, I want to mention a few other literary magazines I love that didn't make it into the piece, either because they do not feature poetry, or simply because I didn't have… Tue, 13 Mar 2007 08:29:47 PST http://www.publishersweekly.com/blog/670000267/post/840007484.html?nid=4411 Readers of my other blog know that I'm fond of asking what's on your nightstands -- and sharing what's on mine (to those who ask "Who cares what's on your nightstand?" -- and remarkably few have -- my response is, who really cares that Dooce's daughter likes licorice… Wed, 14 Mar 2007 00:00:00 PST http://www.publishersweekly.com/blog/880000288/post/260007426.html?nid=4411 I was excited to be asked to write a blog on women’s fiction. Of course, after thinking about it, I realized that what women’s fiction meant to me isn’t necessarily what it means to anyone else. So I decided to do an impromptu survey. I approached women in different venues (… Wed, 14 Mar 2007 00:00:00 PST http://www.publishersweekly.com/blog/860000286/post/1720007572.html?nid=4411 A biggish beach-read hopeful recently came in. The book has three 30-something female leads, and features a heady combination of cancer lit, affair lit and mom lit. Here's the bio from the back: "[The author] is a graduate of Johns Hopkins University and the University of Iowa … Wed, 14 Mar 2007 12:33:34 PST http://www.publishersweekly.com/blog/670000267/post/1880007588.html?nid=4411 … Thu, 15 Mar 2007 04:30:20 PST http://www.publishersweekly.com/blog/860000286/post/20007602.html?nid=4411 I work the web exclusive reviews, so more or less every nonfiction book that doesn't get reviewed in print (for any number of reasons, including but not limited to timing, content, and the relative merits of a ton of other books) comes to me. These include all kinds of books about 2012, which, n… Thu, 15 Mar 2007 10:25:42 PST http://www.publishersweekly.com/blog/670000267/post/250007625.html?nid=4411 As a culture, we've been obsessed for a while now with places to go, things to do, and people to know/meet/hook up with before we die. There are many variations on this theme, which got me thinking: what books would we read before we die? Notice I didn't say which books should we read befor… Fri, 16 Mar 2007 05:17:06 PST http://www.publishersweekly.com/blog/660000266/post/340007634.html?nid=4411 Thanks to all of you who posted comments on my first entry, linked my blog to yours, or wrote directly to me with words of congratulations. It's wonderful to receive such a warm welcome! Several of you mentioned wanting a ShelfTalker RSS feed, and I'm pleased to report t… Fri, 16 Mar 2007 09:40:00 PST http://www.publishersweekly.com/blog/880000288/post/540007654.html?nid=4411 Did you know that March is Women's History Month? I didn't. I was passing through Barnes and Noble the other day and saw a display with the sign Women's History Month. So I asked the clerk if this was a Barnes and Noble thing like Hallmark makes up like Grandparent'… Fri, 16 Mar 2007 16:49:17 PST http://www.publishersweekly.com/blog/660000266/post/460007646.html?nid=4411 Yesterday was a snowy day here in Boston and, as on all snowy days, I found my mind repeating the short refrain that begins the picture book Snowsong Whistling by Karen E. Lotz, illustrated by Elisa Kleven. It goes like this: "There's a crisp in the air/ From I-don't-know… Sat, 17 Mar 2007 00:00:00 PST http://www.publishersweekly.com/blog/860000286/post/60007606.html?nid=4411 The last line of print in the galley for The Yiddish Policemen's Union, Michael Chabon's forthcoming Best Ever Speculative-History-Homage-to-Noir-Novel-About-Jews-in-Alaska, struck me as sorta odd: "This novel was written on Macintosh computers using Devonthink Pro and Nisus Writer Expr… Mon, 19 Mar 2007 00:00:00 PST http://www.publishersweekly.com/blog/670000267/post/710007671.html?nid=4411 … Mon, 19 Mar 2007 03:59:36 PST http://www.publishersweekly.com/blog/860000286/post/1090007709.html?nid=4411 Summer’s been on my mind, and it’s not just because of the cold weather and this morning's thaw. It’s the smell of roasting pork. Recently, the guys from my monthly poker game took me out to Thomas's country house in the Catskills for a weekend getaway to celebra… Tue, 20 Mar 2007 07:12:28 PST http://www.publishersweekly.com/blog/880000288/post/1190007719.html?nid=4411 What a yucky week!! Computer in the shop, cell phone doesn't work (new one in the mail), crappy weather, and a miserable cold. Cranky doesn't begin to describe it. Reading is my passion and teary eyes, sneezing and snot are sending me over the edge. I can't concen… Tue, 20 Mar 2007 10:46:03 PST http://www.publishersweekly.com/blog/860000286/post/1260007726.html?nid=4411 I've been a negligent blogger but I have been getting around. There was Lettie Teague's book party for Educating Peter in which she teaches Rolling Stone film critic Peter Travers about wine. (Lettie is the wine editor at Food & Wine magazine.) The party was at Centovini on 25 West Houst… Tue, 20 Mar 2007 13:47:14 PST