To blog reader Gene, I didn’t mean to slight anyone by offering to email my reading list back-channel to another reader. I just didn’t think the world at large cared much about what I’m reading. Since you asked (cajoled?), I just finished “The Race Beat” by Gene Roberts and Hank Klibanoff (a loaner from my former boss, Lou Heldman) and started “Travels with Charley” by John Steinbeck (a loaner from Deanna Harms of the Greteman Group). Next I’ll read another loaner, “The Historian” by Elizabeth Kostova, courtesy of Patty Clark of the Kansas Leadership Center.
Thanks for the tip on “Taking on the Trust” by Steve Weinberg. Coincidentally, I bought it last week. (It’s the story of reporter Ida Tarbell’s quest to bring down John D. Rockefeller and Standard Oil.) But I always read borrowed books first so I can get them back to their owners in a timely fashion, so I’m not sure when I’ll get to Ida.
Back to the list: Before those, most recently I’d read Nathaniel Philbrick’s “Mayflower,” “The Worst Hard Time” by Timothy Egan, “Marie Antoinette” by Antonia Fraser, “The Tipping Point” by Malcolm Gladwell, “Eat, Pray, Love” by Elizabeth Gilbert, and “Ex Libris” by Anne Fadiman.
Last week a reader asked me for reading suggestions because she feels guilty about not reading more, and she heard journalists are a bookish group. She said she reads the newspaper cover to cover each day to make sure she’s up on current events, but feels intimidated about trying to become a better book reader.
I do think journalists read a lot, but probably not more than other professions in which people make their living by words. Anita, my first suggestion is not to be intimidated — there are no right or wrong choices as long as you’re reading something that interests you. The worst mistake I’ve seen would-be readers make is trying to force themselves to read something they’re not interested in because they think they should. Sort of like eating peas if you don’t like peas.
You asked if we tend to read fiction or nonfiction, and…. yes and yes. If I surveyed the newsroom, I suspect reading tastes would be all over the board. I do tend to read mostly nonfiction, primarily because there are a lot of subjects I want to know more about. Then again, my favorite book is fiction (”Watership Down” by Richard Adams).
One great thing about reading is that it can be an expensive hobby (if you like to collect books) or a free one (if you go to the library). And yes, I’ll be glad to send you a list of recent books I’ve read. But my favorites probably won’t all be yours — keep trying different genres until you find those that interest you most, and don’t force yourself to read certain books because you “should.”
Several people asked me this week how it feels to see three books by current and former Eagle staffers on the best-seller list at Watermark Books. Well, it’s awesome.
Last Sunday’s Books page showed that "Bind, Torture, Kill: The Inside Story of the Serial Killer Next Door" is at the top of Watermark’s list. It’s written by Eagle editors and reporters L. Kelly, Roy Wenzl, Hurst Laviana and Tim Potter.
Tom Schaefer, our former Faith & Values editor, has a terrific new book out ("Seasons of Faith"), a compilation of his columns published in the newspaper. It was #4 on the list.
And gardening writer Annie Calovich has a great book for gardeners, "The Best Garden Plants for Kansas," at #5.
On top of that, reporter Stan Finger has written a just-released book, "Into the Deep," Robert Rogers’ account of losing his family in the 2003 Turnpike flood and how his faith sustained him through his loss.
I’m proud of these books and what they say about The Eagle’s staff — they’re a tribute to the depth of experience, knowledge and writing skills that we’re fortunate to have in our colleagues.
– Sherry