I joined substack recently to promote my debut novel coming out soon! I would love for you to subscribe and support me on my journey.
Open and Shut is a detective murder mystery that follows Detective Calvin Russell as he investigates the murder of Sylvia Cobb. While the evidence seems to point squarely at her husband, Calvin begins to suspect there's more to the story as buried secrets begin to surface throughout the neighborhood.
1. Favorite Book: Look Homeward, Angel by Thomas Wolfe
2. Second-favorite book: For Whom the Bell Tolls by Ernest Heminway
3. Third-favorite book: Voyage of the Dawn Treader by C.S. Lewis
4. Least favorite book: In the Mountains of Madness by the Dunwich Horror dude
5. 2nd least fave: To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee?
6. Book that made me cry the most: For Whom the Bell Tolls
7. Book that made me laugh the most: You Can’t Go Home Again by Thomas Wolfe
8. Most underrated novel: The F.U. KiD by me
9. Most overrated novel: To Kill a Mockingbird
10. Book I wish everyone would read: Look Homeward, Angel
11. Book I wish I’d read sooner: The Devil’s Chessboard by David Talbott
12. Book that changed the way I think: Gravity’s Rainbow
13. Most beautiful prose I’ve ever read:
14. Favorite opening sentence: A screaming comes across the sky.
15. Favorite ending: You Can’t Go Home Again
16. Favorite literary character: Gollum
17. Lit character I relate to most: Ignatius P. Riley – A Confederacy of Dunces
18. Favorite lit villain: Long John Silver
19. Favorite author: Thomas Wolfe
20. Favorite living author: Steven King
21. Book return to again and again: Look Homeward, Angel
22. The book I’d save if I could keep only one: The Count of Monte Christo
23. Book I’d rec to someone who wants to fall in love with literature: For Whom the Bell Tolls
24. Book I’ve re-read the most: Look Homeward, Angel
25. Favorite Novella: A River Runs Through It by Norman McLean
26. Favorite short story: The Short Happy Life of Francis McComber by Hemingway
27. Saddest ending: For Whom the Bell Tolls
28. Happiest Ending:
29. Favorite Play: King Lear by Shakespeare
30. Fave poem: Ulysses by Tennyson
31. Fave opening chapter: Moby Dick
32. Favorite closing chapter: You Can’t Go Home Again
33. Fave lit friendship: Ishmael and Quequeg
34. Fave lit romance: Robert Jordan and Maria in For Whom the Bell Tolls
35. Lit’s most unforgettable scene: Gandalf against the Balrog on the bridge in Moria
36. Best narrator: Bilbo Baggins
37. Book wish had sequel: dunno
38. Most intimidating book: Gravity’s Rainbow
39. Hardest book I’ve ever finished: Gravity’s Rainbow
40. Book that surprised me the most: Voyage of the Dawn Treader, C.S. Lewis
41. Book that disappointed me the most: To Kill a Mockingbird
42. Book I rec most often: Gravity’s Rainbow (I’m a sadist I guess)
43. Book I wish more people knew about: Look Homeward, Angel
44. Book I wish I could read again for the first time: Narnia series
45. Book that made me fall in love with reading: The Magician’s Nephew by C.S. Lewis (Narnia series)
46. Book that should be taught in every school: Algebra of Conspiracy by me
47. The greatest novel ever written: Look Homeward, Angel
48. The most beautiful sentence I’ve ever read: The seed of our destruction will blossom in the desert, the alexin of our cure grows by a mountain rock, and our lives are haunted by a Georgia slattern, because a London cutpurse went unhung. : Look Homeward, Angel
49. One final rec not mentioned yet: Light in August by William Faulkner
My favorite opening line in a book is the one from Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice. Her wit and her observations skills are phenomenal. Worst villain: Dr. Frankenstein, the creator, not his creation. Most familiar/ realtable: Anne of Green Gables. One I go back to alot: 7 Habits of Highly Effective People
I have difficulty with favorites because there are so many writers and books I like. I also have to admit my tastes have shifted with age. For example I’m not as enthusiastic about Doestoevsky as I once was . I still think he’s brilliant but must admit the appeal has diminished. The funniest book I’ve ever read is Kingsley Amis’ Lucky Jim. For the last few years the writer I routinely turn to with pleasure is Muriel Spark. In a way I can’t explain the novel that probably influenced me the most is Walker Percy’s The Moviegoer. The writer I’d recommend to people who haven’t read him is Joseph Roth. One of the most devastating novels I’ve read is Waugh’s Handful of Dust and part of what gives it its power is , it’s also pretty funny in a way that may stick in your throat. Dissenting- I like Never Let Me Go , was bored by The Magic Mountain and think The Great Gatsby is beautifully written and rather ridiculous. I’ll also recommend Dawn Powell. Oh hardest book I ever completed Samuel Becketts trilogy - Molly, Malone Dies and The Unameable.In closing want read something compellingly odd Huysmans La Bas, I love it.
👏👏👏🙌🙌🙌❤️❤️❤️ Such a cool post, Liza! I learned so much about your literary tastes I didn’t know! The one I thought that was most interesting is that the book that intimidated you the most was the Holy Bible. You’ve talked before about not being religious and that you were not raised to be religious. I don’t know exactly how you would identify yourself religiously, but it’s sounds like from what you’ve said that you are an atheist. From what you’ve publicly shared in your articles it sounds like you aren’t religious because you are a very logical person and a skeptic who has trouble believing in something that she can’t see or prove with hard physical evidence. So I get why the Holy Bible would be intimidating for you because you would be unsure how to approach it.
WOW!!!!!!! I love the questions!!!! And I love your answers!!!!!! This will take some thought! Thank you for sharing! You are so right, the books we love can reveal our deepest personhood, our deepest values, fears or dreams! At least, I think mine would. Many of the books on your list will also be on mine. I’d be curious to know how this is answered by a wide range of interest book lovers. My books lean towards “deep understanding, probing the human psyche,” but there are people who love mysteries, action, history, etc. Would they have different questions? Anyway, I love this, and I thank you!
Great Q and A. One question asked myself was which book do I relate to things that happen in my everyday life the most and it's Swann's Way, in part because I've read it so often. I'm not as big a fan of Dostoyevsky as you are, but the Grand Inquisitor is the literary political parable I think of most often.
How did Romeo and Juliet surprise you?
I joined substack recently to promote my debut novel coming out soon! I would love for you to subscribe and support me on my journey.
Open and Shut is a detective murder mystery that follows Detective Calvin Russell as he investigates the murder of Sylvia Cobb. While the evidence seems to point squarely at her husband, Calvin begins to suspect there's more to the story as buried secrets begin to surface throughout the neighborhood.
1. Favorite Book: Look Homeward, Angel by Thomas Wolfe
2. Second-favorite book: For Whom the Bell Tolls by Ernest Heminway
3. Third-favorite book: Voyage of the Dawn Treader by C.S. Lewis
4. Least favorite book: In the Mountains of Madness by the Dunwich Horror dude
5. 2nd least fave: To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee?
6. Book that made me cry the most: For Whom the Bell Tolls
7. Book that made me laugh the most: You Can’t Go Home Again by Thomas Wolfe
8. Most underrated novel: The F.U. KiD by me
9. Most overrated novel: To Kill a Mockingbird
10. Book I wish everyone would read: Look Homeward, Angel
11. Book I wish I’d read sooner: The Devil’s Chessboard by David Talbott
12. Book that changed the way I think: Gravity’s Rainbow
13. Most beautiful prose I’ve ever read:
14. Favorite opening sentence: A screaming comes across the sky.
15. Favorite ending: You Can’t Go Home Again
16. Favorite literary character: Gollum
17. Lit character I relate to most: Ignatius P. Riley – A Confederacy of Dunces
18. Favorite lit villain: Long John Silver
19. Favorite author: Thomas Wolfe
20. Favorite living author: Steven King
21. Book return to again and again: Look Homeward, Angel
22. The book I’d save if I could keep only one: The Count of Monte Christo
23. Book I’d rec to someone who wants to fall in love with literature: For Whom the Bell Tolls
24. Book I’ve re-read the most: Look Homeward, Angel
25. Favorite Novella: A River Runs Through It by Norman McLean
26. Favorite short story: The Short Happy Life of Francis McComber by Hemingway
27. Saddest ending: For Whom the Bell Tolls
28. Happiest Ending:
29. Favorite Play: King Lear by Shakespeare
30. Fave poem: Ulysses by Tennyson
31. Fave opening chapter: Moby Dick
32. Favorite closing chapter: You Can’t Go Home Again
33. Fave lit friendship: Ishmael and Quequeg
34. Fave lit romance: Robert Jordan and Maria in For Whom the Bell Tolls
35. Lit’s most unforgettable scene: Gandalf against the Balrog on the bridge in Moria
36. Best narrator: Bilbo Baggins
37. Book wish had sequel: dunno
38. Most intimidating book: Gravity’s Rainbow
39. Hardest book I’ve ever finished: Gravity’s Rainbow
40. Book that surprised me the most: Voyage of the Dawn Treader, C.S. Lewis
41. Book that disappointed me the most: To Kill a Mockingbird
42. Book I rec most often: Gravity’s Rainbow (I’m a sadist I guess)
43. Book I wish more people knew about: Look Homeward, Angel
44. Book I wish I could read again for the first time: Narnia series
45. Book that made me fall in love with reading: The Magician’s Nephew by C.S. Lewis (Narnia series)
46. Book that should be taught in every school: Algebra of Conspiracy by me
47. The greatest novel ever written: Look Homeward, Angel
48. The most beautiful sentence I’ve ever read: The seed of our destruction will blossom in the desert, the alexin of our cure grows by a mountain rock, and our lives are haunted by a Georgia slattern, because a London cutpurse went unhung. : Look Homeward, Angel
49. One final rec not mentioned yet: Light in August by William Faulkner
I guess I skipped one...thffbt.
What a stunning list to read! I'm getting Zweig's Beware of Pity right away.
My favorite opening line in a book is the one from Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice. Her wit and her observations skills are phenomenal. Worst villain: Dr. Frankenstein, the creator, not his creation. Most familiar/ realtable: Anne of Green Gables. One I go back to alot: 7 Habits of Highly Effective People
I have difficulty with favorites because there are so many writers and books I like. I also have to admit my tastes have shifted with age. For example I’m not as enthusiastic about Doestoevsky as I once was . I still think he’s brilliant but must admit the appeal has diminished. The funniest book I’ve ever read is Kingsley Amis’ Lucky Jim. For the last few years the writer I routinely turn to with pleasure is Muriel Spark. In a way I can’t explain the novel that probably influenced me the most is Walker Percy’s The Moviegoer. The writer I’d recommend to people who haven’t read him is Joseph Roth. One of the most devastating novels I’ve read is Waugh’s Handful of Dust and part of what gives it its power is , it’s also pretty funny in a way that may stick in your throat. Dissenting- I like Never Let Me Go , was bored by The Magic Mountain and think The Great Gatsby is beautifully written and rather ridiculous. I’ll also recommend Dawn Powell. Oh hardest book I ever completed Samuel Becketts trilogy - Molly, Malone Dies and The Unameable.In closing want read something compellingly odd Huysmans La Bas, I love it.
👏👏👏🙌🙌🙌❤️❤️❤️ Such a cool post, Liza! I learned so much about your literary tastes I didn’t know! The one I thought that was most interesting is that the book that intimidated you the most was the Holy Bible. You’ve talked before about not being religious and that you were not raised to be religious. I don’t know exactly how you would identify yourself religiously, but it’s sounds like from what you’ve said that you are an atheist. From what you’ve publicly shared in your articles it sounds like you aren’t religious because you are a very logical person and a skeptic who has trouble believing in something that she can’t see or prove with hard physical evidence. So I get why the Holy Bible would be intimidating for you because you would be unsure how to approach it.
Oh dear, very intimidating. What if I told you I like Homer, Faulkner, Melville, and whoever wrote the Bhagavad Gita?
WOW!!!!!!! I love the questions!!!! And I love your answers!!!!!! This will take some thought! Thank you for sharing! You are so right, the books we love can reveal our deepest personhood, our deepest values, fears or dreams! At least, I think mine would. Many of the books on your list will also be on mine. I’d be curious to know how this is answered by a wide range of interest book lovers. My books lean towards “deep understanding, probing the human psyche,” but there are people who love mysteries, action, history, etc. Would they have different questions? Anyway, I love this, and I thank you!
Great Q and A. One question asked myself was which book do I relate to things that happen in my everyday life the most and it's Swann's Way, in part because I've read it so often. I'm not as big a fan of Dostoyevsky as you are, but the Grand Inquisitor is the literary political parable I think of most often.