Most of what I blog is. But I thought about what I read. Read read or read. Makes no difference.
I prefer non-fiction because it opens up the world just a bit more in throwing light on an idea, concept, fact or person, an achievement or a relationship, a root cause or what stems what.
Biographies, Business of running a business, Human origins, Human thinking, Psychology or Philosophy, Medicine or Engineering, Architecture or History. The subjects are varied and the magic is in how the author is able to convey information without sounding pretentious or pedantic.
But I do have my share of non fiction favorites. Genres perhaps. Thrillers and Mysteries mainly. Comedy or humor as a stand alone (both fictional or not) but very few authors can pull off a 300 page tome just trying to make you laugh.
George Carlin could. Pelham G. Woodhouse had it down with Jeeves and his crummy cast of characters. Bill Cosby with his Fatherhood and other familial insight stories could.
Recent reading included Bill Bryson and his wanderings of our planet or observations thereof.
Other attempts from the likes of Chris Rock, Aziz Ansari and some guy that acts in a sitcom et al could not rise to the occasion.
In the thriller category I like stories that can grip you with the opening sequence and then keep you engrossed such that you feel you are standing next to the protagonist or in some cases are the one.
Weaving drama and suspense while not losing focus on the main story and befuddling the reader is a challenge for 400 pages of story telling. Many authors are formulaic and can pull it off book after book.
Ian Fleming with his British Spy could do it. Agatha Christie and her Belgian detective did it.
Robert Ludlum for the most part could do it - although his writings tended to border on soporific and the continuation of his style or franchise by a guy called Eric Van Lustbader is certainly boring (IMHO).
My newer favorites have been an author that goes by the name of Lee Child and his monastic killer called Reacher. Recently picked up books by Jeff Deaver whose crime mysteries are entertainment and enlightenment at the same time. You learn some little thing about a new subject, in his case law since he is also a lawyer.
I prefer non-fiction because it opens up the world just a bit more in throwing light on an idea, concept, fact or person, an achievement or a relationship, a root cause or what stems what.
Biographies, Business of running a business, Human origins, Human thinking, Psychology or Philosophy, Medicine or Engineering, Architecture or History. The subjects are varied and the magic is in how the author is able to convey information without sounding pretentious or pedantic.
But I do have my share of non fiction favorites. Genres perhaps. Thrillers and Mysteries mainly. Comedy or humor as a stand alone (both fictional or not) but very few authors can pull off a 300 page tome just trying to make you laugh.
George Carlin could. Pelham G. Woodhouse had it down with Jeeves and his crummy cast of characters. Bill Cosby with his Fatherhood and other familial insight stories could.
Recent reading included Bill Bryson and his wanderings of our planet or observations thereof.
Other attempts from the likes of Chris Rock, Aziz Ansari and some guy that acts in a sitcom et al could not rise to the occasion.
In the thriller category I like stories that can grip you with the opening sequence and then keep you engrossed such that you feel you are standing next to the protagonist or in some cases are the one.
Weaving drama and suspense while not losing focus on the main story and befuddling the reader is a challenge for 400 pages of story telling. Many authors are formulaic and can pull it off book after book.
Ian Fleming with his British Spy could do it. Agatha Christie and her Belgian detective did it.
Robert Ludlum for the most part could do it - although his writings tended to border on soporific and the continuation of his style or franchise by a guy called Eric Van Lustbader is certainly boring (IMHO).
My newer favorites have been an author that goes by the name of Lee Child and his monastic killer called Reacher. Recently picked up books by Jeff Deaver whose crime mysteries are entertainment and enlightenment at the same time. You learn some little thing about a new subject, in his case law since he is also a lawyer.
Perry Mason has an avatar?
ReplyDeletehmm..My name is Erle (ref to Mason author) II?
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