Read This Next by Sandra Newman and Howard Mittelmark
1 July, 2011
Like many of you, I love looking through lists of book recommendations, be it seasonal, of authors and bloggers and especially friends. But since starting blogging, I’ve got enough recs as it is and my amazon wishlist is a mile long. I missed all the buzz on the 1000 books you need to read before you snuff it, but thought Read This Next by Sandra Newman and Howard Mittelmark might offer something a little different. And I am SO glad I read this because it’s probably one of the funniest and erudite lists I’ve been lucky enough to come across. And the books they recommend are sufficiently different and new to me.
Grouped in themes such as war, love, work, religion, etc., they pick a number of books they concentrate on with questions you may (or may not) want to discuss in book groups (god I wish I could be a fly on the wall if they do!) plus extra lists such as sff, mysteries, misery memoirs, etc., basically covering the whole spectrum. If you’ve got a delicate sensibility, some of the humour may rub you the wrong way. But hey, I say give it a go anyway, it’ll make you grow a thicker skin and open your eyes a bit.
It’s not a book you want to read straight through. You want to dip into it daily or when you need a laugh. I loved the way Newman and Mittelmark kept adding new thematic lists to their current themes so they also bring in books by actual Africans, Russian Lit, China, the apocalypse, the drugged out, transgressive love, etc. And any list that has China Miéville in it gets my vote! Plus it also includes Neville Shute’s On The Beach – a brilliant yet oft-forgotten classic. There is a mixture of books from the canon (yeah, I’m a sucker for classical texts that everyone feels you must read but are often boring/irrelevant/past it/makes you unsure of why you are actually reading it) as well as more contemporary stuff.
What I really liked about the selection is that you get the feel of the authors’ tastes here. There are lots of lists out there but Read This Next stands out because of its unique approach. And it’s hilarious. I don’t think I’ve laughed out loud this much for ages. OK, enough gushing. I command you to go and get this book. It’s brilliant.
Many thanks to the lovely people at Penguin who kindly sent me this book to review.
chasing bawa 
1 July, 2011 at 12:48 pm
Ignoring the fact that there is a machine gun pointing at a kitten on the cover of this book (!) it sounds like one I must read, particularly as you command me to 😉
1 July, 2011 at 10:36 pm
I’m scared for my TBR list, though…it’s gonna explode if I read this one!
2 July, 2011 at 1:45 am
Like you mentioned, this type of book is a bit overdone, but this one sounds really good!
2 July, 2011 at 11:15 am
I shall just pretend I didn’t read that bit about the literary canon. Heh! I think maybe I would end up throwing this book at the wall. I have a feeling the authors may lack (ahem) sufficient reverence for Certain Books & Characters. 🙂 I will still check it out if I see it around though. Sounds like a hoot.
2 July, 2011 at 12:03 pm
Boof: OMG, can you believe I didn’t even see the kitten and gun!? But yes, you must!
softdrink: Ha ha, that’s the risk you must take;)
reviewsbylola: It’s hilarious. It’s a book you’d want to give to people (I’ve already given it to two).
Violet: Not that I’m disrespecting the canon. I’ve got my favourites such as Dickens, Collins and Hardy but there are some that I just don’t get (Therese Raquin, Madame Bovary). But the thing about the literary canon is that it makes you want to try them again just to see what you missed. But don’t worry, the authors have very good taste:) How are you?
2 July, 2011 at 7:33 pm
I am very excited about reading this one Sakura, and I have you to thank for it for so kindly sending me a copy, really, really lovely of you. I think its going to add a whole lot of books to the TBR and a whole lot of laughter to my next few months of dipping into it!
4 July, 2011 at 10:58 am
No worries. I really hope you enjoy it:)
4 July, 2011 at 5:26 am
OOH – do I dare? I want to read this!
4 July, 2011 at 10:58 am
Go on, you know you want to!