The Handsell: The Book of Other People

Readers, forgive me, for I have slacked: it's been over a week since my last post. Summer lethargy and typical busy-ness means things may continue like this for a while, though I've got chronicles of publishing panels and NAIBA board meetings to report. In the meantime, here's a little rec for your short-attention span summer reading.



The Book of Other People edited by Zadie Smith (Penguin paper original, January 2008)
Anthologies are typically hit and miss, but when you've got Zadie Smith and all her friends writing short stories that are each a character sketch, it's hard to miss. My favorite "other people" are (of course) David Mitchell's insufferable/funny/sad matron looking for love, and Jonathan Lethem's savant/otaku/eccentric Perkus Tooth (whom I'm told features in his upcoming novel). Wonderful for dipping into over a period of time, and for the beautiful/creepy Charles Burns cover.