I Want My MTV by Craig Marks and Rob Tennenbaum (2011)

Just like a great documentary, there's something so satisfying about a really well-written, perfectly edited oral history.  I Want My MTV: The Uncensored History of the Music Video Revolution is a perfect example, since the people interviewed are outspoken, honest and often hilarious. My copy of this is stuffed with post-it notes marking hilarious quotes from various performers. It's really well done. My only complaint is that there are so few photos--I'd like to see a few more photos of the people behind the scenes at MTV and the VJs, who were the face of MTV. Definitely inspired me to go to YouTube and look up videos, including the ones commonly described as the best (A-ha's Take On Me) and the worst (Billy Squier's Rock Me Tonite -- sorry, Billy.  No one can deny you still looked good even in a pink tank top.)  Fun and dishy.

And so many fantastic quotes (a totally random sampling):

Stewart Copeland: "We would tease Stingo that he couldn't walk past a mirror without primping. And he would say, 'Fuck off, it's my job. And yours, too, by the way.'"


Billy Gibbons: "I still sign autographs for girls who say, 'I was just thirteen and I couldn't wait to dress up like the girl in "Legs.'"  (So me.  That outfit was awesome.)

Joe Elliot: "When we were kids growing up in Sheffield, there were only two types of clothing shops--men's and women's. And you were never going to find stage wear in a men's shop. So nearly everything we wore, from the waist up, was female. Blouses and T-shirts with loud patterns, designed for big ladies."

John Landis: "One of my guilty pleasures is that when I see a group of people try to do the 'Thriller' dance using the record, they have to wander around like zombies waiting for the goddamn music to start, because the recorded version begins with all these sound effects that aren't in the video."

Lionel Richie: "The funniest story about 'Hello' is that I kept going back to Bob over and over again, saying, 'Bob, that bust of me does not look like me.' 'Bob, the bust does not look like me.' Finally, Bob came over to me and said, 'Lionel, she's blind.'"

Stewart Copeland: "I grew to understand that videos were mainly about getting our singer's face out there. Because it was so pretty. That's the way it goes. Drummers learn that lesson pretty early in life. Guitarists never quite learn that lesson. Drummers and bass players, we're over it."

Sebastian Bach: "Dude, when they talk about 'hair metal', whose hair do you think they're talking about? I've still got it. I'm looking at it right now. And it's so flaxen!"

Awesome and deliciously fun for anyone who grew up on MTV (or Friday Night Videos, for that matter).

What I Hate from A to Z by Roz Chast (2011)

I adore Roz Chast's drawings, and I adore a good rant and this book brings both of those things together in one.  Although, as Chast explains in the introduction, it's really less things she hates than things that make her anxious. But that's not as snappy of a title. One of my favorites is her entry on balloons: "When I look at a balloon, all I see is an imminent explosion. Where's the fun in that?"  Amen.

The Family Fang by Kevin Wilson (2011)

If you like the films of Wes Anderson, you'll love The Family Fang.  They share the same quirky family relationships, eccentricities and attention to detail.  Even the cover art is reminiscent of The Royal Tenenbaums.  In this novel, the parents (of the family Fang) are eccentric performance artists, dedicated to creating unusual and unexpected public scenes.  As the book begins, the parents have gone missing.  Their two children, often unwitting or unwilling participants in their parents' art, now grown and finding their way in the world have to figure out where they parents have gone.

This novel has a strange, eccentric, and funny charm.  And as much as I liked the novel, I LOVED the cover, and kept looking back at it as I read the book.  Shout out to book designer Allison Saltzman and artist Julie Morstad for an amazing, compelling cover.  See also Bookslut's interview with Kevin Wilson that discusses the art (and a whole lot more.)

Blackout and All Clear by Connie Willis (2010)

A total case of the right novel at the right time, these two novels appeared on a friend's best of 2011 list, and the subject coincided with a post-trip obsession with fiction set in London, with a particular emphasis on the Blitz. In the first, Blackout, historians from the year 2060 are routinely sent back through time to witness and report upon various major historical events, safe in the knowledge that they cannot change the events in the past. Historians Polly, Merope and Michael are throughly immersed in their visit to the London of the Blitz, surviving bombings, evacuations, and major battles until they realize they may not be able to get back to their time. At 500+ pages, it's a substantial read, albeit a little repetitive. The portrayal of life in London during the Blitz, however, is fascinating, as are her characters. Which led me to immediately pick up the sequel.

All Clear is an excellent sequel. Where the other novel meandered a bit and set up the situation a bit too fully, this novel starts off with a bang and keeps going. Having gotten to know the characters over 1100+ pages (in the two novels), I found it incredibly gratifying to have this concluded so beautifully. Gently in many ways, but beautifully. Subtly romantic and so wonderfully evocative of what is must have been like living in London during World War II. A delight.  (See also her wonderful collection of Christmas short stories: Miracle and other Christmas Stories.)

The Slap by Christos Tsiolkas (2008)

Staggeringly good Australian novel about a group of friends and family and the aftermath when one of them slaps another's child at a backyard barbecue. Each chapter is about a different person in the group and their perspective on the event, and the story unfolds as each character is explored (not in a Rashomon way--the story just keeps progressing through the book). Amazing character writing--incredibly insightful into so many characters and their relationships. Just beautifully written and fascinating. 

 Also, loved the multiculturalism of the characters and how much of their characters are linked to their cultural heritage--an idea that doesn't come up that much in American literary fiction (not without making a big stinking deal about it). Amazing, absorbing, insightful.

What Alice Forgot by Liane Moriarty (2009)

Absolutely adored this novel about a woman who falls down at the gym, hits her head and wakes up with amnesia. Her last memory is of being pregnant with her first child, happily married, and a new homeowner. But it's actually ten years later, she has three children, and is in the midst of a messy divorce. Not only that, but her sister is oddly distant. The beauty of this book is in Alice's slow discoveries of what has happened in the past year, how she (and others) have changed and why. Wonderful, vivid characters, and Moriarty is wonderful with relationships, particularly sisterly relationships. Delightful and humorous but full of insight and complexity as well.

The Grimm Legacy by Polly Shulman (2010)

Charming young adult novel about Elizabeth, who gets a job as a page at the New-York Circulating Material Repository, which lends out objects rather than books. It's also home to the Grimm collection, which contains magical objects that inspired the famous fairy tales. When items (and pages) start disappearing, Elizabeth and her fellow pages have to use everything they can to solve the mystery and get them back. This book is fabulous for anyone who loves libraries and fairy tales. It's subtle and charming, mysterious and romantic and a little funny. Great characters. So yay!  Shulman also wrote the witty young adult Pride and Prejudice-inspired Enthusiam.

Feathered by Laura Kasischke (2008)

A teen novel about three girlfriends who travel to Mexico for spring break, and something awful happens to one of them. Beautifully descriptive of Cancun and at the same time, wonderfully eerie and spooky and tense in the events leading up to the drama. I actually had to put the book down at one point, I was so worried about these poor girls. And the author's description of the girls walk through a debauched spring break party at Club Med is more horrifying than almost anything else in the novel.  Chilling.

Fire and Rain by David Browne (2011)

Subtitled: The Beatles, Simon and Garfunkel, James Taylor, CSNY, and the Lost Story of 1970. Incredibly absorbing story of a really pivotal year in music. Alternating chapters explore the lives and works of each of these musicians during this time.  As the music industry is a small world, these stories are constantly intertwining.  Lots of fascinating behind-the-scenes stories with larger than life performers all kept in context with the times as Browne explores the social and political events of the time as well.  Terrific look at a fascinating time in music.

The Unit by Ninni Holmqvist (2006)

Searching for readalikes for Never Let Me Go by Kazuo Ishiguro, I came across this Swedish novel set in a dystopia where single, childless men and women of a certain age (50 and 60) are sent to 'the unit', a compound where they are studied for scientific research and provide 'donations' for the public. Very interesting and compelling look at a society that values having children above all else.   A fascinating exploration of relationships, considering that the main character's primary romantic relationship in her adult life was with a married man.  Also, there's a beautiful thread about the main character's great love for her dog.  Very unusual, but very well done.