The Blue Ocean Weekend Update

Which is both late and abbreviated, natch.

NTYBR: Marilyn Stasio focuses her review attention upon Arnaldur Indridason, Archer Mayor, Julia Spencer-Fleming & Robert B. Parker; Henry Louis Gates offers up his take on UNCLE TOM’S CABIN; Colson Whitehead lauds Richard Powers for his latest and stupendous effort; and Jim Holt expounds on the nature of God after reading Richard Dawkins’ latest athiestic treatise.

WaPo Book World: Two books shed light on the Hungarian Revolution, 50 years later; Ron Charles praises a new Western by William Kittredge; and Lauren Belfer forgives Erik Larson for putting his obsessions on the page, because they are done with panaches.

G&M: Lyn Hamilton questions whether a plot device really serves Giles Blunt well (I happen to disagree); John A. MacDonald, Canada’s first prime minister, is re-examined in a new biography; and boy oh boy, was Frank Lloyd Wright into some serious perversions, as a new book details.

Guardian Review: Amit Chaudhuri praises an Indian poet who “should be up there with Salman Rushdie”; Mia Gallagher’s epic tale of a junkie’s life sounds like a must-read; and if not for Ernest Jones, a new biography details, Freud’s theories would never have spread to England.

Observer: Yeah, we know there are too many damn awards, but that doesn’t mean the subject shouldn’t be revisited; nearly 300 years after Scotland united with England, tensions simmer anew, says Ruaridh Nicholl; and Adam Mars-Jones eviscerates Stephen King’s LISEY’S STORY.

The Times: Peter Millar, on the other hand, loves King’s new novel; Joanna Trollope is fascinated by a cultural history of shoes; and Joan Smith doesn’t really think much of CHRISTINE FALLS after judging it from a genre standpoint.

The Scotsman: Should crime fiction be a guilty pleasure? A new Gilbert Adair novel is a good jumping off point for such discussions; Jackie McGlone chats with Laura Hird about literary influences and her latest work; John Banville relishes his not-so-secret identity as Benjamin Black; and of course ghostwriters are getting a ton of money for celebrity memoirs. They need the dough, considering how much work it takes…

The Rest:

It’s definitely All Ian Rankin, All The Time this weekend. Danuta Kean chats with the author about his musical tastes, and Publishing News launches a ‘Rebus 20’ portal for Booksellers (latter link via The Rap Sheet.)

Oline Cogdill shines a light on the small presses this week, reviewing new releases by Martha Powers & Barbara Allan.

Dick Adler’s latest column reviews work by Kate Atkinson, Don Winslow, Michael Connelly, Robert Ward, Elizabeth Ironside and reissues by David Dodge, David Goodis & Pete Hamill.

The Japan Times’ Mark Schreiber chats with Naomi Hirahara about Mas Arai, Japanese detective fiction traditions and her next projects.

The Toronto Star continues its “Criminal Minds” series with Q&As of Michael Cox and Michael Connelly.

It’s bloggers ahoy at the Philly Inquirer, as Edward Champion gets critical of LISEY’S STORY and Edward Pettit does the same for THIRTEEN MOONS.

David Montgomery is more effusive in praising LISEY’S STORY in his review for the Chicago Sun-Times.

And finally, what he said. Which I guess explains how I’ve kept this up for over 3 years on the seat of my pants…