An avid reader, I'm always happy when I'm given a reason not to read something. So imagine my delight yesterday when I found in the New York Times Book Review this summary of a book: "After a pandemic kills most of the human race, a traveling theater company roams around, searching for an audience." Then on the facing page I found: "In a trilogy's conclusion, the mysterious ecosystem known as Area X yields more of its secrets."
The table at Barnes & Noble had a sign: "What Teens Are Reading." And, remarkably, there were books atop it.
Saturday morning I drove down to the Miami book fair to hear Geoff Dyer, and yesterday afternoon I drove to Boca Raton to give a talk on travel books at the new library. I got a bigger crowd than Dyer, but I also put more people to sleep.
Not sure which is better: reading the books, or the glory.
I came back from Poland - where bookstores have large sections devoted to travel literature, sometimes next to sections of international reportage - to find Extreme RVs on the Travel Channel.
Oh, and the new editor of Conde Nast Traveler is the former editor of Martha Stewart Living.
I was disappointed Saturday when I went to the African American Research Center on Sistrunk Boulevard and learned that Earl Monroe, author of a new memoir, had cancelled his appearance because of an illness.
When I was growing up in New Jersey in the late '60s, the New York Knicks were my favorite team. I loved the way they played - smooth, smart, all of one piece - and the intriguing cast of characters that extended far down the bench. They made up one of the greatest basketball teams in history and, as it turned out, one of the most prolific.
In addition to the usual memoirs (Monroe, Walt Frazier, Dave DeBusschere), they have written political books (Bill Bradley), philosophical books (Phil Jackson) and even a book on improving one's memory (Jerry Lucas). Just as they set the standard for teamwork, they've set the standard for authorship,