I Know, It’s Only Rock N’ Roll…

by John

...But I haven’t been this excited for a book in years! Of course, I’m talking about Keith Richards’ LIFE, which officially goes on sale today. And even if the excerpt from Rolling Stone didn’t live up to the hype (which it does), or if Michiko didn’t give it a rave review in the Times, I’d still be first in line to get my copy.

As a new agent, I’ve done several interviews over the last few weeks, and one of the usual questions is what did you read as a kid? Typically, my answers reference grade school or middle school, because once high school hit my pleasure reading pretty much dried up—except for rock bios, which aren’t exactly considered high literature. But looking back now at my well-thumbed copies of No One Here Gets Out Alive, Hammer of the Gods, and ‘Scuse Me While I Kiss the Sky, it’s fun to remember how I devoured these sordid tales of excess, and also to recognize the profound effect they had on me—no, I’m not talking about a raging heroin addiction, but how Beatles biographies like Peter Brown’s The Love You Make made me want to learn guitar almost as much as their music did.

So now that Keef has made the plunge, I can’t wait to dive in with him—partly because it promises to be an amazing story, but also I’m eager reconnect with that teen reading experience. By the way, if anyone wants a primer on rock bios/memoirs, check out this slideshow from The Wrap. And is anyone else as excited for LIFE as I am? Who else had their teenage world “rocked” by books as much as music?

Damning with great praise

by Miriam

Saying that the reviews for Jonathan Franzen’s Freedom have been positive is like saying McDonald's has sold a few burgers. Running the gamut from “a work of total genius” (New York Magazine) to “a masterpiece” (The New York Times Book Review)—and those are just the local rags—the orgasmic praise is, frankly, a little daunting. The expectations for this book are so high (from readers, booksellers and the novel’s publisher) that even President Obama getting an A.R.C. from a bookseller while on vacation in Martha’s Vineyard set off an industry panic attack.

As someone who read The Corrections with equal measures wonder and awe, I plan to get my copy of Freedom as soon as I can find my way to a bookstore when the book pubs next week. I worry, however, that, after all the early hosannas, I will find a comfortable chair, bribe my husband and four-year-old to give me a few hours of uninterrupted reading time, and find myself…disappointed. I am determined to come to the book with an open mind despite all the raves I’ve already been privy to, but Mr. Franzen is going to have to wow me anew before I jump on the laudatory bandwagon. I do feel for the guy, though. That mountain of praise is a long uphill climb.

Do you guys ever resent the media hype of big books (if I see one more Facebook post about Mockingjay…) and do you feel it negatively impacts your reading experience?