More LitLinks: Reading the Internet in Early April
Reading Around And Finding Out
Do recommendation algorithms work? In my experience, it’s rare for Amazon or Netflix or any automated recommendation engine to produce a suggestion I’m interested in. When it comes to books, I’m most likely to find my next read from a mention inside the book I’m currently reading. Or I’ll find an article referencing a book related to the subject or fiction I’m reading. An appreciation or overview of a writer’s work will provide several helpful suggestions. My TBR grows quite well in this way. Throw in a few enthusiastic reports from trusted reader friends and I have more than enough to read. I ignore the automated recommendations and I’m not alone. This LitHub article suggests people are always better at this than machines.
On a related note, once I’ve found a book, I often have a difficult time getting rid of it even when I know I won’t read it again. The authors in this list have similar problems. I wouldn’t think of discarding one of the titles on that list: Bone Clocks, by David Mitchell. For me, I think books, including those I will not use again, are still objects that represent a time in my life, almost like photos. They evoke what was happening to me and what I was thinking at the time I read or purchased them. I do not have the same trouble with ebooks.
One of the best collections of short stories I’ve ever read is Three Messages and a Warning. Contemporary fantastical stories written by Mexican writers. And I wish more books were available in translation. Good translations done by caring humans. More poetry books seem to get translated than fiction, but this list contains a few.
And this week brings more Gabo (Gabriel García Márquez.) One-Hundred Years of Solitude is coming to Netflix. You can see the trailer here. I’m currently reading In Evil Hour, but I’ll have to go back to One-Hundred Years and reread it before embarking on the show.
That’s the best of what I have for now. While I prefer reading older books, I know many people only want the latest. If you’re ever looking for something very new, I suggest the LitHub lists of new books every Tuesday.
Kevin J. Fellows is the author of the novel At the End of the World and the poetry collection An Important Sky. Kevin is also cohost of The Time Is Right podcast about creativity.
If you’re a writer looking for editorial help Kevin offers developmental, story, and poetry editing services.