On Writing: More reviews

A few more award winning books I've recently read:

Lord of Misrule, by Jaimy Gordon won the National Book Award in 2010. Goodreads describes it as

"A brilliant novel that captures the dusty, dark, and beautiful world of small-time horse racing, where trainers, jockeys, grooms and grifters vie for what little luck is offered at a run-down West Virginia"

I found it very literary. And dark. Another fearless writer, Jaimy Gordon's character descriptions are intense. So are the sex scenes. These award winning authors don't hold back. Ever.

 

Let the Great World Spin, by Colum Mccann won the National Book Award in 2009.

"In the dawning light of a late-summer morning, the people of lower Manhattan stand hushed, staring up in disbelief at the Twin Towers. It is August 1974, and a mysterious tightrope walker is running, dancing, leaping between the towers, suspended a quarter mile above the ground."

A novel, based on true events, about a French tightrope walker who actually walked across the two towers. 9/11 was never far from my thoughts as I read this amazing story.

And finally, Empire Falls by Richard Russo. It won the Pulitzer Prize for fiction in 2002.

"Richard Russo—from his first novel, Mohawk—has demonstrated a peerless affinity for the human tragicomedy, and with this stunning new novel he extends even further his claims on the small-town, blue-collar heart of the country."

This novel was so good, I went out and bought every book  by Russo, and there are a lot of them. He writes small town stories with such subtlety and skill, that you almost don't credit how great of a writer he actually is.

Richard Russo has become one of my favorite authors.

How about you? When you read a good book, do you start following that author--reading everything by them you can get your hands on?