The Sunday Update

So, how’s your weekend? Mine’s been spent in front of the television, rooting madly for my now-beloved Calgary Flames, only to see them lose in Double OT. It was a great game, so hard to be heartbroken, but still…on to game 7, then. And of course, it’s the 60th anniversary of D-Day, so a moment must be spared to remember those who fought valiantly to win a hard-fought and bloody war.

Anyway, to the links we go:

It’s the big “Summer Reading” issue at the NYTBR, which means they cannibalize all the good reviews since last December and do a big dump telling you that you should be reading them on the beach (or wherever.) But let’s look at the other stuff, like two intriguing baseball books (especially Jeff Pearlman’s THE BAD GUYS WON), Laura Miller using a new book by a former CIA agent to sniff at spy novels, and a couple of interviews with the currently overexposed Helen Fielding and David Sedaris.

The Washington Post Book World is still heavy on military stuff, but does offer up some intriguing choices, like Duncan Sprott’s fascinating novel of Greek rule in Egypt, THE PTOLEMIES, the story of friendship between tennis great Althea Gibson and doubles specialist Angela Buxton (the former black, the latter Jewish) and why it was so remarkable, and a whole lotta ink on the newest Mary Higgins Clark novel.

Over at the Guardian, Henning Mankell’s foray into non-fiction is greeted with disappointment, while the male half of Nicci French–Sean French, that is–has ventured into solo writing, albeit with less pizzazz than originally hoped, and Norman Mailer’s THE EXECUTIONER’S SONG gets a very nice retrospective.

Usually, I’d turn to the Observer next, but amazingly, there seems to be no book coverage there this week. How could this be? So instead, let’s jump to the Globe and Mail, where Martin Levin uses a new book about celebrity idiocy to rant about how things are more dumbed down than they used to be, Josh Lambert’s review of David Bezmozgis’s extremely acclaimed short story collection is more than thorough, and Roger Hall rounds up some new books on D-Day with a Canadian twist.

Need your post-Book Expo Fix? Look no further than the Chicago Sun-Times, which wraps things up quite nicely here and here, Ron Hogan’s breezy and very informative take, and Mark Sarvas’s phenomenal coverage (with pictures) of the week that was.

As for the rest:

Sarah Murdoch, the mysteries & thrillers editor of the National Post, handicaps the nominees for Canada’s Arthur Ellis Award. She pegs Giles Blunt as the front runner and I’d be hard pressed to disagree, although it’ll be a battle between him and Peter Robinson.

Tom and Enid Schantz return with their monthly mystery roundup for the Denver Post, handing out praise to Will Thomas’s historical novel SOME DANGER INVOLVED (which looks mighty intriguing) and Jacqueline Winspear’s BIRDS OF A FEATHER (which, disappointingly, did not pass the 50 page test with me, especially because I had really enjoyed MAISIE DOBBS.)

Oh god, didn’t we just do this last year, albeit with a different reporter and a different paper? So Colin Waters of the Sunday Herald decides to do the same old tired thing of perusing the bestseller lists and making fun of every entry. All right, I suppose next year the Independent gets a shot at this sorry chestnut…

What may be the most succinct summation of Helen Fielding’s new book, done by Lynn Crosbie of the Toronto Star after superbly putting things in context: “This is a boring and loathsome book, and I hate it.”

Christopher Whitcomb used to be an FBI agent, but he got bit by the novel bug and has penned a fictional recounting of his experiences with his new book BLACK, as in Black Operations, as in covert intelligence stuff. He talks to the Fredricksburg Freelance-Star about his new career path.

Dick Cady is another newbie novelist whose book has attracted some good notices in various corners of the mystery world. He’s especially praised in this review by his hometown paper, the Indianapolis Star.

Part of me wants to read Dylan Schaffer’s crime debut, MISDEMEANOR MAN–it sounds entertaining, fast-paced and well-plotted. But the whole Barry Manilow thing? Wha? Seems I’m not the only one having a problem with this–so too is Mark Johnson of the San Jose Mercury News.

Sue Grafton will be honored with the Ross MacDonald Award by the Santa Barbara Book Festival, given to a California-based writer whose crime fiction work is elevated to literary excellence. Congrats to Ms. Grafton, who also won the Philip Marlowe award this year as well.

Gene Hackman is a celebrated actor, but he writes books as well, with the help of his co-writer Daniel Lenihan. Their new one, AND JUSTICE FOR NONE, explored Hackman’s childhood memories of his Chicago upbringing, as he recounts to the Tribune.

Stephen Joyce, will you take that stick from out of your ass already? Doesn’t it hurt by now?

And finally, so how do you jazz up an awards ceremony, like the Aussies plan to do for the Miles Franklin, their most prestigious award? Get a celebrity presenter like Cate Blanchett to host. Hell, the MWA could have told them that….