The Times and The Swamp

http://goo.gl/I1kdq

Author Karen Russell and friend

Here the NY Times weighs in with their notable picks of the year.  It is a good solid list though with few surprises. 

I was pleased to see Swamplandia! by Karen Russell make the cut. 

My two cents on that book can be read here: 

http://goo.gl/a3Bi9.  Don't miss out on this book or her first short story collection, the brilliant St. Lucy's Home for Girls Raised by Wolves.  Russell is an immense talent.

Oddly, the book is to be adapted by HBO and producer Scott Rudin as a "half hour comedy project"(!) with the author consulting.  While HBO has created some real magic, this leaves me baffled.  If it ever makes it to the screen, my high hopes for it will be matched with low expectations.  Then again, I would love to see HBO prove me wrong.

Ron Currie wins Young Lions award

As mentioned a few posts ago, Ron Currie was among the finalists for the New York Public Library's Young Lions fiction prize, awarded to promising writers under thirty-five. He faced some stiff competition but prevailed for his debut collection, God Is Dead, and collected a cool 10 grand. Bravo, Ron.

http://www.mediabistro.com/galleycat/awards/ron_currie_jr_nypls_young_literary_lion_of_07_83584.asp?c=rss


I blogged about this book last June: http://reednext.blogspot.com/2007/06/god-is-dead-by-ron-currie-jr.html

Undoubtedly worth buying and reading.