Onward with the weekend update

NYTBR:  I guess I might as well accept it–under the new system, fewer crime fiction releases will be reviewed per column by Marilyn Stasio. Maybe she just doesn’t want to read as fast as she once did. It happens, after all. Anyway, the new one features books by Archer Mayor, Ruth Dudley Edwards and Erin Hart. Otherwise in the TBR,  Jay McInerney looks at Jonathan Lethem’s new story collection,  Frank Lloyd Wright gets another biography as part of the Penguin Lives series, and the Mommy Lit craze takes a decidedly nastier turn with a look at the insanity of private school admissions.

WaPo: The big story of Book World is Marina Krakovsky’s in depth analysis of bestseller lists, and why many papers are reluctant to dump theirs and switch to Bookscan. Otherwise, John Dileo rounds up celebrity biographies (including a new one of Tallulah Bankhead), Christopher Hitchens waxes obtuse (but he thinks it’s eloquent) about David Lodge’s new novel, and Stephen Greenblatt attempts to humanize Shakespeare by juxtaposing his personality with his plays.

G&M: Giles Blunt gives a gold star to Martin Cruz Smith for his newest Arkady Renko novel; Paul William Roberts explains why Ronald Wright’s slim polemic A SHORT HISTORY OF PROGRESS is a must-read (and based on what I heard of it and what was being discussed at his launch party last week, I’ll definitely concur) and it’s all Conrad Black, all the time in this double review by John Fraser.

Guardian Review: Uh oh–the headline on Stella Duffy’s favorable review of CJ Sansom’s second novel uses last week’s most hated phrase; Matthew Lewin rounds up thrillers by Paul Adam, John Case, Ken Follett and Geoffrey (not that one) Archer; Phillip Pullman worries about what Bush’s reelection means for literature (hell, he’s not the only one) and oh look! Blogging is journalism’s new black. Or something.

Observer: Ben Elton transitions from comedy writer to comic crime novelist;  Pamela Anderson’s novelized life crosses the pond; and Robert McCrum somehow mixes the US election with book titles, though honestly, I’m not sure how and why.

Scottish and sundry: Two new biographies of Leonardo da Vinci are summarily critiqued; Siobhan Synnot details when a book launch goes horribly awry;  and Andrew Ervin is seriously underwhelmed with Canadian Robert McGill’s debut effort, THE MYSTERIES (which is languishing in Mt. TBR at the moment, though someday, I’ll dig it out…)

What doesn’t fit otherwise:

Oline Cogdill reviews two new books and gives a thumbs up to both, one by Michael Lister and the other by Elaine Meryl Brown.

Want more reasons to read Kate Atkinson’s CASE HISTORIES? Robin Vidimos of the Denver Post provides a few more.

Elisabeth Egan of the Chicago Sun-Times does as well, but lumping it–in any way, shape or form–with CITIZEN GIRL seems very, very strange.

A new collection of stories by George V. Higgins has been published, five years after the famed Boston crime writer passed on. The Rocky Mountain News evaluates the posthumous edition.

Speaking of Boston, the Herald jumps on the Martin Cruz Smith bandwagon, very much digging his new novel.

The first two George Smiley novels by John LeCarre have been reissued in hardcover, making this very good news indeed for Rob Meltzer of the Mitford Daily News.

Kristine Kathryn Rusch, who is a ridiculously prolific writer in both the SF/F and mystery realms, is interviewed by the Newport News Times about her life and working habits.

Virginia Swift, aka Scharff, is a history professor and mystery novelist, making her just a little bit unusual. The Albuquerque Journal meets her.

Another day, another pan for Tom Wolfe’s new book. And based on the excerpts, I’d have to agree. Come on Tom, you spent all that time on college campuses and you can’t figure out how they think and speak? Oy….

Unbridled Publishing, a small Denver-based firm, is getting a ton of attention of late (especially for M. Allen Cunningham’s debut novel.) Steve Weinberg gives a primer on the publisher’s history.

Next year marks the bicentennial of Hans Christian Andersen’s birth. Sarah Crompton of the Sydney Morning Herald offers a brief look at the children’s author and his tortured life.

Terry Pratchett, the ridiculously prolific author of the Discworld series, is interviewed by The Age about debunking myths, where he’s going next, and a certain Ms. Rowling.

And finally, National Drunken Writing Night (also known as NaDruWriNi) occurred yesterday. I was too busy unburdening my sorrows to my best friend (which should have involved copious amounts of drinking, but I had to drive home) but Ed and Gwenda held the fort very nicely.