Readings: Essays and Literary Entertainments
by Michael Dirda
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In these playful, erudite, and idiosyncratically personal essays from the Washington Post Book World, Michael Dirda shares some of the pleasures of the reading life. His subjects range from classics in translation to fantasy and crime fiction; from children's books to American and European literature; from innovative writing to neglected novels; from the dark joys of collecting first editions to the untroubled pleasure of P.G. Wodehouse. Dirda is a writer's reader and a reader's writer. He show more is a sure guide to good reading from the casual to the scholarly, and his columns are always diverting and informative, always worth coming back to. Readings presents many of his most memorable essays, including "The Crime of His Life" (a youthful caper), "Bookman's Saturday" (the scheming of a book collector), an annotated list of 100 comic novels, "Heian Holiday" (on The Tale of Genji), reflections on sex in literature, "Mr. Wright" (an exemplary high school teacher), "Listening to My Father," "Turning Fifty," and "Millennial Readings." In all these, and in 40 other pieces, Michael Dirda shows us books as sources of aesthetic bliss, comfort, and not least, amusement. show lessTags
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Member Reviews
One of my favorite literary essayists, Michael Dirda's ability to discuss books in a way that makes the most difficult tome seem delightful is just amazing. I cannot recommend highly enough his essays for encouraging reading and providing suggestions on how and where to look to fulfill your literary dreams.
"For some time now, the best book critic in America has been Michael Dirda."―Michael M. Thomas, New York Observer
Intimate, humorous, and insightful, Readings is a collection of classic essays and reviews by Michael Dirda, book critic of the Washington Post and winner of the 1993 Pulitzer Prize for criticism. From a first reading of Beckett and Faulkner at the feet of an inspirational high-school English teacher to a meeting of the P. G. Wodehouse Society, from an obsession with Nabokov's Lolita to the discovery of the Japanese epic The Tale of Genji, these essays chronicle a lifetime of literary enjoyment.
Intimate, humorous, and insightful, Readings is a collection of classic essays and reviews by Michael Dirda, book critic of the Washington Post and winner of the 1993 Pulitzer Prize for criticism. From a first reading of Beckett and Faulkner at the feet of an inspirational high-school English teacher to a meeting of the P. G. Wodehouse Society, from an obsession with Nabokov's Lolita to the discovery of the Japanese epic The Tale of Genji, these essays chronicle a lifetime of literary enjoyment.
The essays here are excellent--reflective, evocative, eager to learn more about the life literary journalist Dirda has chosen. And above all, they show the impure erudition (impure because mortal, as Dirda clearly knows) of a true liberal-arts scholar.
One small complaint: the essays seem logically ordered--starting lighthearted, on such topics as his family and Wodehouse, then becoming pensive, almost despairing at times, as Dirda yearns to enjoy both the cerebral pleasures of the book and the more sensible pleasures of, say, a day in New Orleans. Yet the book is not divided into parts which might make finding a piece of a particular mood easier. An index of names would also be welcome so the reader could gain a clearer picture of show more Dirda's wide-ranging learnedness. Then again, this can be done easily enough as is--merely dive in to this small, inexpensive collection, and remember that, just as no man is an island, it is no shame to springboard off the enthusiasm of another reader. show less
One small complaint: the essays seem logically ordered--starting lighthearted, on such topics as his family and Wodehouse, then becoming pensive, almost despairing at times, as Dirda yearns to enjoy both the cerebral pleasures of the book and the more sensible pleasures of, say, a day in New Orleans. Yet the book is not divided into parts which might make finding a piece of a particular mood easier. An index of names would also be welcome so the reader could gain a clearer picture of show more Dirda's wide-ranging learnedness. Then again, this can be done easily enough as is--merely dive in to this small, inexpensive collection, and remember that, just as no man is an island, it is no shame to springboard off the enthusiasm of another reader. show less
Excellent essays on books, literature, book collecting, etc. Clear sharp writer, true lover of books, wide range.
One of those books that I’ve had to copy long passages from, whole chapters even. Don’t miss Vacation Reading, Talismans, and One More Modest Proposal.
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- Nonfiction, Literature Studies and Criticism
- DDC/MDS
- 808 — Literature & rhetoric Literature, rhetoric & criticism Rhetoric and collections of literary texts from more than two literatures
- LCC
- PN4874 .D475 .A25 — Language and Literature Literature (General) Literature (General) Journalism. The periodical press, etc. By region or country
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- Languages
- English
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- Paper
- ISBNs
- 2
- ASINs
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