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Books on the Nightstand published our final episode in July 2016. This is a place for listeners to find old episodes. 

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  2. BOTNS #117: Who will buy Margaret Atwood's Cheese Sandwich?

BOTNS #117: Who will buy Margaret Atwood's Cheese Sandwich?

Feb 23, 2011

Borders News

We couldn't let this episode go by without acknowledging the sad story of Borders Books and Music declaring Chapter 11 this week. We know that we have several listeners who are Borders employees, and we know that some of you have lost your jobs. Our thoughts go out to you, and we look forward to hearing about your next venture in the world of books.

We celebrate the genius of Margaret Atwood (6:11)

Change is not always good
Slide from Margaret Atwood's presentation, hand-drawn by Atwood herself

I just returned from two publishing-related conferences, Book2Camp and Tools of Change, where I had several up-close and personal interactions with one of my literary idols, Margaret Atwood. Atwood's keynote speech at Tools of Change was the highlight of the conference for many.

Atwood's message, so ably illustrated below, was that technology can be good, but we have to be careful about unintended consequences. In this particular case, Atwood was talking about ebook technology possibly making it difficult for authors to earn a living. She summed it up perfectly by asking, "Who will pay for my cheese sandwich?".

If you have a bit of time, her speech is well worth the viewing:

So we were inspired to share with you some of our favorite books by Margaret Atwood:

  • Michael has read Oryx and Crake, which is a dystopian novel that is a companion novel to The Year of the Flood, which I've talked about on an earlier podcast.
  • The Handmaid's Tale, which I've also spoken about, is one of my top 5 books of all time; a mix of feminism and dystopian speculative fiction.
  • Cat's Eye, about bullying among pre-teen girls.
  • Alias Grace, a convicted murderess claims that she cannot remember details of her crime.
  • The Blind Assassin, which won the Booker Prize, has a science fiction novel within the larger story of two sisters.

Two books we can't wait for you to read (18:02)

Blood, Bones and ButterRevenge of the Radioactive Lady

Michael talks about Blood, Bones and Butter by Gabrielle Hamilton, a memoir of a chef that Michael found to be wonderful and fascinating. It hits bookstore shelves on March 1st.

Elizabeth Stuckey-French will be one of the authors joining us at the Books on the Nightstand Weekend Retreat, and today I'm thrilled to tell you about The Revenge of the Radioactive Lady. This is a very difficult novel to describe, and the best I can do is "quirky," but it's so much more -- poignant, sad, funny, warm, and yes, quirky. I hope you'll check it out.