Today, Juliet holds forth on her favorite book of all time, The Liars Club by Mary Karr
I read this book when it was first published in 1995. It's the one. It's the book that made me want to be a writer. I read it and then I did something I never do, I read it again.
Since 1995, I have read it maybe ten more times. It's become a sort of touchstone. I look at the book on my shelf, pick it up and flip through the tattered, marked up pages, think about whether or not it could still possibly live up to my expectations and then I start reading. It has never let me down.
I love it because I relate to the gut-punch story, the sarcastic voice of the young narrator and the poetry, oh the poetry!
Mary Karr often describes herself as an autobiographical poet. And it's no easy tightrope to balance upon but she does it flawlessly. For example,
“And you snap out of it. Or are snapped out of it. Never again will you lay a hand against yourself, not as long as there are plums to eat and somebody--anybody--who gives enough of a damn to haul them to you. So long as you bear the least nibblet of love for any other creature in this dark world, though in love portions are never stingy. There are no smidgens on pinches, only rolling abundance. That's how you acquire the resolution for survival that the upcoming years are about to demand. You don't give it. You earn it.”
This book still gets spotty reviews here and there. Some people simply couldn't relate to her humor or her story. But if you are the kind of reader who likes an honest, witty, gritty and maybe a little bit naughty tale, you will love The Liar's Club.
What is your favorite book?
I have this book in my bookcase and read it when it first came out. I like Mary Karr a lot. some of my favorite books are Swedish, of course, some are Russian. As far as American novels go, this year I fell in love with Cold Mountain. It doesn't get rave reviews on amazon, but I loved the journey the book takes you on, and the poetry, the nature...I have so many favorites, you really got me going. Angle of Repose by Wallace Stegner is another one. Some books by Barbara Kingsolver, And of course To Kill a Mockingbird. So many books, so much to read.
ReplyDeleteTo Kill a Mockingbird, YES!!! I need to read Cold Mountain.
DeleteI love, love, love Mary Karr.
ReplyDeleteShe is the cream of the crop. We got see her read at the Art Institute last year. She is such a force!
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