There's still a bit of strategy to selecting books for Literary Speed Dating.
"That's part of the interesting thing about it — how do you want to introduce yourself through your books?" Tom said. "You don’t necessarily want to bring your favorite books. You want to bring books that tell somebody something about you, but speak well of you, too."
I'm thinking:
1. Something by Paul Auster or Jose Saramago.
2. Perdido Street Station (China Miéville) or Snowcrash or Cryptonomicon (Neal Stephenson).
3. ?
Part of me wants to bring The Golden Notebook (Doris Lessing), but that would be a little cruel, and clearly indicates I shouldn't be speed-dating at all.
What 3 books would you bring on a literary speed date?
4 comments:
Oh -- I love the idea of literary speed dating! And I LOVE Lessing's Golden Notebook! Hmmmm. I don't think I could choose just three. But if I had to...for the first round of speed dating, it would be books that I just love for the language of them...:
1)AVA by Carole Maso
2)Martin Sloane by Michael Redhill
3)The Sweet-Shop Owner by Graham Swift
Oh but there are so many more. Maybe Barnes? Or Auster, as you mention? Cortazar's Hopscotch? Hmmm. Isn't it interesting to stop for a moment and think about what your books say about you? I'm often so busy trying to get through the stacks and stacks I've yet to read that I never really think about it. Now I'm self-conscious! But I guess that's what dating is all about, right? :-)
Oooooo! Literary speed dating! I was never very good at dating, so I probably won't be so great at choosing books for this either, but I'll give it a shot..
1. Underworld, by Don Delillo
2. Possibly Neuromancer, by William Gibson, or The Scar, by China Mieville, or Infinite Jest, by David Foster Wallace
3. The Ghost Road, by Pat Barker
I blame you, Isabella, for the waffling on #2-- you started it! Now the question is, would I ever get a date?
1) Fire and Hemlock, by Diana Wynne Jones -- because YA fantasy is my particular dirty secret, and they need to know that off the bat.
2) Some comic -- either my own (if I'm feeling brave) or something by Carla Speed McNeil. The other quirk they have to accept.
3) The Archaeology of Beekeeping, by Eva Crane, or else my giant Plan of St. Gall -- because I could never date someone who didn't think these books were cool.
What an interesting idea. I've never done the speed dating thing, though Liz did before we met (at least I think it was before me met...). But the added book twist makes it sound a lot more appealing.
I'd choose:
1. Vonnegut's Breakfast of Champions
2. McAfee's Slow Walk In A Sad Rain
3.Roach's Stiff
Of course, if you ask me again tomorrow, I'll have a totally different answer. How do you ever boil it down to just three???
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