The Daylight Saving Time Weekend Update

And if you’re like me, some of your clocks got switched and others you’ll forget about till, oh, Tuesday…

But the good news is spring is here and the weather’s been great. The bad news is that the great weather has brought out the Mr. Softee truck and that damn jingle’s in my head again. Ah well, onto the links:

NYTBR: Jacob Heilbrunn argues that Charles McCarry should be considered tops in the spy genre; Franklin Foer finds Will Blythe to be a tad obssessed with the Duke-UNC basketball rivalry; and Liesl Schillinger wishes Lucy Ellman wouldn’t resort to capital letter gimmicks.

WaPo Book World: Andrew Sean Greer admires Kevin Brockheimer’s latest, but wishes the book had taken more chances; Christopher Moore shows why he’s the master of the genre of his own making with A DIRTY JOB; and Marie Arana rounds up what’s hot this spring for fiction and non-fiction.

G&M: Margaret Cannon’s crime column looks at the latest by Thomas Perry, Joanna Hines, Ann Cleeves, Minette Walters, Joy Fielding and (for some godforsaken reason) Jeffrey Archer; novelist Rudy Wiebe writes his memoirs, and T.F. Rigelhof cheers at this new tome; and I must, must read Susan Glickman’s debut novel. This sounds so sumptuously good.

Guardian Review: Ian McEwan argues for the merits of literary science writing, a sentiment I agree with wholeheartedly; Ian Jack wonders at the lack of Scottish women in their literary canon; and what the hell is up with the UK paperback cover of FREAKONOMICS? It’s hysterical.

Observer: Jon Canter found the hardest part of writing his novel was the author bio; Melvyn Bragg defends his controversial list of British books that have changed the world; and Robert McCrum remembers John McGahern, who passed away this week at the age of 71.

The Times: Geraldine Brooks talks about the Richard & Judy effect and what it’s meant to her; Salman Rushdie looks back at MIDNIGHT’S CHILDREN from a twenty-five year old vantage point; Peter Millar gives his take on new thrillers by Barry Eisler and Patrick Quinlan; and Ben McIntyre wonders where all the literary smokers have gone.

The Scotsman: John Haldane talks to William Peter Blatty about the nature of evil and of course, THE EXORCIST; Virago publisher Carmen Callil explores the dark side of the French Holocaust in a chilling new biography of her former psychiatrist; and Jake Arnott talks about his newest novel and (more reluctantly) his next project.

The Rest:

Oline Cogdill serves up a trio of short reviews of new stuff by Joshua Spanogle, Jonathan Kellerman and Tami Hoag.

Speaking of Kellerman, he and his wife Faye and son Jesse all spoke in Berkeley at a fundraiser about their common pursuit: crime writing.

Dick Adler’s Chicago Tribune column reviews the latest by Kris Nelscott, James Sallis, Martyn Waites, Frank Tallis, and Cathi Unsworth, as well as giving his take on DUBLIN NOIR.

David Lazarus of the SF Chronicle looks at two new thrillers by Javier Sierra and Michael Gruber.

Sarah Dunant explains to the Independent how a forced exile from writing crime novels led her to historical fiction — and greater success.

Regis Behe talks to Jennifer Solow about how much her first novel is based on her own life, and how she got interested in writing about “professional boosters.”

Erica Jong is back and telling all sorts of salacious tales about her life in a new memoir, which she discusses with the LA Times.

Leonardo Padura Fuentes, one of the best crime novelists from Cuba, talks to Political Affairs about his work, his politics and his influences.

And finally, I guess I should just be reconciled to the fact that all my dirty little secrets will eventually end up on the Internet. Now if you’ll excuse me, I have a choice tenderloin waiting for me in the oven…