Tag: ann patchett

Not that they asked, but if they had, I went through my reading log and did the painful winnowing down of books I’ve read published in 2000 or later down to ten “best” books (the last seven to get cut really hurt) to the following (in order by publication date): Housekeeping: A Novel by Marilynne Robinson […]

2023 saw me returning to a more typical year of reading, with the vast majority of my reading being fiction again. I also ended up having a bit more reading time than usual so my total book count for the year was 124 books. The full list of books is available at GoodReads. My favorite […]

There was no logic to the way any hospital was laid out—they grew like cancers, with new wings metastasizing unexpectedly at the end of long tunneled halls. Ann Patchett, The Dutch House.

My favorite reads of the year, in alphabetical order by title. I read some damned good shit this year with one re-read in the list (Run) The Art of Asking Your Boss for a Raise by Georges Perec Bloodchild and Other Stories by Octavia Butler  Cake Time by Siel Ju Elizabeth is Missing by Emma Healey  Fountain […]

My diversity report for the year: Women authors 48% (down from 51.4% last year). Non-white authors were 16.4% of my reading (up from 14.8% last year). I chose my book to hit diversity targets 25% of the time, down from 37.5% last year. I think part of that is that I’ve been more reluctant to […]

Magic means nothing to the blind. Ann Patchett, The Magician’s Assistant.

Magicians all across the world managed quite well without assistants, but without magicians, the assistants were lost. Ann Patchett, The Magician’s Assistant.

Boys who habitually stole from grocery stores. Boys who loved fire and burned up dry grass fields in summers, hay barns in winter. Boys who would not stop fighting, broke the noses and jaws of smaller boys. Mean, stupid boys who could not be taught the difference between right and wrong, never having seen it […]

If you truly love Los Angeles, you want to be buried in Forest Lawn. Ann Patchett, The Magician’s Assistant.