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| Who are the speediest writers around? |
| The Thread's Must-Read |
| "Washington Black" by Esi Edugyan Buy this book Here’s your adventure novel of the year. We meet George Washington Black, “Wash,” at 11 years old, enslaved on a sugar plantation in Barbados. He sticks close to Big Kit, the only mother figure he’s ever known, who tells him stories of her homeland, Dahomey. When the plantation master’s brother, Titch, arrives from England, he pulls Wash from the fields and enlists him as his assistant. Titch has an obsession with science, exploration, invention — he takes Wash on long walks around the island, exploring the natural world and measuring what he sees. Wash discovers his own talent for sketching. He can draw almost perfect recreations of the plant and animal life around him. Wash documents the island while he helps Titch prepare his precious prototype: The Cloud-cutter, a hot air balloon he designed himself. When death strikes the plantation, and tensions reach fevered heights, the pair is forced to flee by air, taking a wild leap away from Barbados by balloon. This is only the first leg of Wash’s new life, bouncing around the antebellum South and reaching even the cold depths of the Arctic. There’s an air of Jules Verne about the book, in the way Wash takes on these adventures and experiences the world. The novel was a finalist for the Man Booker Prize, and it delivers both the thrill of exploration and the quiet observations of a watchful mind. -Tracy Mumford |
| This Week on The Thread |
| Got what it takes to write a novel in one month? Nov. 1 marks the start of National Novel Writing Month, and more than 600 writers in Minnesota are racing to write a novel by the end of the month. If you think that sounds impossible, see the story below. More |
| Six bestsellers that were written in only a month These books — or the first drafts, at least — were written in just a month. More |
| A shadowy book about the end of the world and the power of letters "Scribe" by Alyson Hagy Buy this book In a world scarred by war and sickness, the bartering economy has returned and the unnamed narrator of "Scribe" makes a living writing letters for people. Then a man arrives who asks her to take down his confessions. More |
| This romance knocks it out of the park "The Proposal" by Jasmine Guillory Buy this book Jasmine Guillory's new romance kicks off with her heroine rejecting an over-the-top public proposal at a ball game — luckily, there's a hot, sensitive doctor on hand to help her with the backlash. More |
| The courage to keep Emmett Till's memory alive "Let the People See" by Elliott J. Gorn Buy this book Historian Elliott J. Gorn's new book revisits the 1955 death and public funeral of the African-American teen. Critic Maureen Corrigan says it's a timely story about the fragility of collective memory. More |
| Louis Cha, who wrote beloved Chinese martial arts novels, dies He's been called China's Tolkien, its Martin, its Rowling — all in one. With his adventure stories rooted in ancient China, Louis Cha gave life to decades' worth of martial arts films. More |
| Actor Michael Caine on his long career: "The alternative was a factory" "Blowing The Bloody Doors Off" by Michael Caine Buy this book From the title heartthrob in "Alfie" to the fatherly butler of a "Batman" franchise, the actor has been filling movie screens for a half-century. More |
| A case for spending time in the counselor's office "Listen to the Marriage" by John Jay Osborn Buy this book John Jay Osborn has a new novel based on the four years when he and his wife attended (successful) marriage counseling. More |
| How do you move a bookstore? With a human chain, book by book Shoulder to shoulder, they formed a line 500 feet long: from the stockroom of the old shop, down the sidewalk, and onto the shop floor of the new store. More |
| Inside the ever-expanding wizarding world: Harry Potter at 20 It's hard to remember a world before Harry Potter. But it's been 20 years since readers in the U.S. were first introduced to the boy wizard, whose story has captivated audiences ever since. More |
| Author, playwright Ntozake Shange of "for colored girls" fame dies at age 70 Playwright, poet and author Ntozake Shange, whose most acclaimed theater piece is the 1975 Tony Award-nominated play "for colored girls who have considered suicide/when the rainbow is enuf," died Saturday, according to her daughter. She was 70. More |
| Fierce and mysterious, this novel walks in dark dreams "The Naked Woman" by Armonia Somers Buy this book The Uruguayan writer Armonia Somers was part of a generation of talented artists — but she stood out, so wild, surreal and uncompromising that she scared critics and other authors alike. More |
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