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Books on the Nightstand, Episode 41 (26:41)

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We open this episode with a voicemail from Cynthia from A Cynful Mind podcast (which Cynthia describes as “a podcast about knitting, music, food, and whatever I’m geeking out about at the moment, which can include many books”). Cynthia recommends Drawing in the Dust by Zoey Klein. She also asks a question about the Espresso Book Machine, which we talked about in epsiode #39, specifically, how does the EBM handle the cover of the book? Michael and I do our best to answer.

In Segment 1, we talk about what is becoming known in the publishing world as “Dan Brown Day.” The Lost Symbol, the new book from Dan Brown, goes on sale on September 15th, and there have been many articles written about whether other books should be released on the same day. We know of at least two other big books that will also be published on the same day: Where Men Win Glory by Jon Krakauer, and Sense and Sensibility and Sea Monsters, from the publisher that brought us Pride and Prejudice and Zombies. When you go into a bookstore to buy a particular book, do you often find yourselves walking out with other books as well? Do you think there’s room for more than one new book on a particular date, even if that book is a blockbuster?

In Segment 2, Ann talks about the category of “literary confessionals,” which are typically collections of essays by various writers that revolve around a single topic. Love is a Four Letter Word, edited by Michael Taeckens, The Bitch in the House edited by Cathi Hanauer, The Friend Who Got Away, edited by Jenny Offill and Elissa Schappell are three of Ann’s favorites. Michael mentioned a new collection about being a father, but he couldn’t remember the title. A little bit of research showed that it was The Book of Dads, edited by Ben George.

In “Two Books We Can’t Wait for you to Read,” Ann tells about Waiting for Columbus by Thomas Trofimuk, a novel about a psychiatric patient who claims to be Christopher Columbus, and the nurse who listens to his stories in an attempt to understand him. Michael talks about Await Your Reply by Dan Chaon, a novel of identity, told through stories of three separate lives that intersect in unexpected ways.

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