“If My Book Club Hates the Book I Chose What Does This Tell Me?”

innovators-9781476708690_lgThe ultimate search engine would basically understand everything in the world, and it would always give you the right thing. And we’re a long, long way from that.
Larry Page, co-founder of Google

I don’t know how a search engine could “basically understand everything in the world”, probably because I don’t understand how computers work. (Actually, I don’t even really comprehend how television works —  or radios, for that matter.)  I’m perfectly content to think of them as miraculous and mysterious inventions. What interests me are the workings of the minds of the people who developed the computer and the Internet. I just started reading The Innovators: How a Group of Geniuses, Hackers, and Geeks Created the Digital Revolution, by Walter Isaacson (author of Steve Jobs) — it’s absolutely fascinating, focusing on how teamwork enhances creativity.

As I was reading the first chapter of The Innovators, I found myself Googling various things that piqued my interest. Several of my searches directed me to blogs, which made me wonder what Google searches led people to Books on the Table.  I found information about “referrers” and “search terms” on the stats page for the blog, and was not surprised to learn that Google is by far the largest referrer to Books on the Table, accounting for 87% of all Internet searches that led to the blog. What did surprise me was that Google’s privacy restrictions prevented me from knowing what search terms people used that connected them with Books on the Table.

Other search engines (Bing, Yahoo, AOL, etc.) do provide information about specific search terms. The most popular searches were: “Good books for book clubs”; “What happened to the diamond in All the Light We Cannot See?”; and “We Are Liars book review”.  One person asked a question that I think requires human, not artificial, intelligence: “If members of my book club hate the book I chose what does this tell me?” (OK, Larry Page, explain how the “ultimate search engine” would respond to that.) Maybe I shouldn’t be surprised at this question, since I read in a Google promotional piece that the number one question asked on Google this year is  “What is love?”.

Here are a few of the most unusual search terms that somehow led readers to Books on the Table in 2014:

  • Term paper on Jay Gatsby Do I detect possible plagiarism?
  • Rick Maus marijuana grower and book writer This one intrigued me, but my search turned up only an article in Sugarbeet Grower magazine about a device used in harvesting beets
  • Best novels by W.B. Yeats Well, I think he did write a short story or two.
  • Book about young girl who have a time mashine and meet Al Capone I think I might know this one! It could be Al Capone Does My Shirts — although I don’t recall a “time mashine”.
  • Francine Fleece Seattle This is mysterious, since I searched myself and came up with no results. However, three people were looking for the elusive Francine Fleece.
  • Mob Wives Chicago still on the air? Don’t search engines know that Books on the Table doesn’t cover reality TV?
  • Book club cocktail napkins There were many searches for these. Maybe Books on the Table should start selling them?
  • Is Sarah Churchwell married? Four people wanted to know this. I checked, and Churchwell (author of the terrific book Careless People: Murder, Mayhem, and the Invention of The Great Gatsby, coming in paperback in January) is married. If things don’t work out for her, there may be plenty of potential suitors out there.

Happy New Year! May all your Internet searches be fruitful in 2015.

 

Reading on a Jet Plane

All my books are packed, I’m ready to go . . .  (apologies to John Denver and Peter, Paul & Mary)

Last week, I went to the American Booksellers Association Winter Institute in Seattle — a four-day educational conference for independent booksellers. Packing my clothes was easy; people in the book business are not known for being fashion-forward, and January in Seattle does not require the layers of fleece, wool, and down that are needed in Chicago. So after I filled my carry-on suitcase with jeans, yoga pants, and sweaters, I started the difficult task of deciding which books to take — always the trickiest part of trip preparation.

9780062279972-1What about the book I’m reading that only has 50 pages left to go — worth bringing, when I might finish it at the gate before the plane even takes off? And that big, fat, HEAVY new hardcover — what if I haul it along and end up hating it? Should I bring something that I’m obligated to read so I can’t keep putting it aside the way I do at home? How about something mindless that I can leave behind?  I always bring 150% of the books I think I’ll have time to read on a trip– ever since I was delayed overnight in the Frankfurt Airport, where I ran out of reading material and was forced to buy the only non-pornographic English language option available, The Sum of All Fears by Tom Clancy. Now my greatest fear is being stranded without a good book, or two, or three.

And yes, I do know about e-books. They’re fine; I have my IPad loaded with them. I just don’t enjoy reading them the same way I enjoy reading real books. They serve the purpose the same way eating at McDonald’s does the job when you’re on a road trip. I’d rather eat at McDonald’s than go hungry, but I don’t feel nourished the same way I would if I ate real food. And besides, what happens when the e-reader runs out of juice and there’s no power supply available, or it malfunctions?

As I was pondering my book options for the trip, it dawned on me that I really only needed to bring two books — one to read on the four-hour flight to Seattle, and one for “insurance” in case of delays. After all, I was going to a booksellers’ conference where I was going to be given dozens of wonderful new books to read and share with my colleagues. So what did I bring? The Wind Is Not a River, by Brian Payton (which I’d just started reading but knew I was going to love) and Careless People: Murder, Mayhem and the Invention of the Great Gatsby by Sarah Churchwell (which I wanted to finish reading because the author is coming to Lake Forest for an event in February).

The Wind Is Not a River is my favorite kind of book — it’s a war story and a love story, and it focuses on a somewhat obscure piece of history. Set in Seattle and Alaska during World War II, the novel contains two narratives. Journalist John Easley impersonates a Royal Canadian Air Force officer to investigate the Japanese invasion of the Aleutian Islands in Alaska. (The U.S. authorities didn’t allow journalists to cover the invasion since they felt Americans would panic if they knew how close the Japanese actually were to America’s mainland.) He accompanies an American crew on a bombing run over the islands and is shot down. For months, he lives in a cave, foraging for food and evading the Japanese occupiers. Meanwhile, his wife Helen passes herself off as a showgirl and joins a USO group headed to Alaska to entertain the troops — but her real purpose is to track down her missing husband.

The Battle of Attu, the only World War II land battle in North America.

The Battle of Attu, the only World War II land battle in North America.

Author Brian Payton expertly moves between the two stories, which are equally compelling. John’s battles against starvation and gangrene and Helen’s desperate attempts to get information from unwilling officials are both vividly rendered. His writing beautifully evokes the stark, unfriendly landscape of the Aleutian Islands. In her review in the Chicago Tribune, Beth Kephardt says: “Payton’s great gift is characterizing a specific place and time; I would read anything Payton writes about landscape.”  (To read the complete Chicago Tribune review, click Chicago Tribune/Printers Row.)

Soon after John is shot down, he meets another survivor — a young airman from Texas. Payton describes their encounter in language that perfectly evokes the scene, yet makes me think of E.B. White’s rule for writers — “Omit needless words”:

Then, just as swiftly as it began, the fog stalls its retreat. Like a wave racing down the beach to the sea, it hesitates, reverses course, then comes flooding back again. They walk toward each other in the gathering mist, the preceding color and light now seeming like a dream. They approach each other with widening grins, like they’re the only ones in on the joke. And when they meet, they hug each other long and hard, like men who had cheated death together — like men convinced the worst is behind them.

Of course, the worst is not behind them. The journey ahead for John Easley and Karl Bitburg will test their courage and endurance — just as Helen’s search reveals the strength and determination she never knew she had.

I closed The Wind Is Not a River just as the plane was beginning its descent into Seattle. As I looked out the window at the gorgeous scenery of the Pacific Northwest, I imagined Helen Easley boarding the ship that would take her to the Aleutian Islands to look for her husband. I had to remind myself that what I’d just read was historical fiction, and that Helen and John never existed. But they seem just as real to me as Zelda and F. Scott Fitzgerald do in Careless People, another book with two narratives. In the fall of 1922, Scott and Zelda moved to Long Island; around the same time, in nearby New Jersey, a double murder (a married minister and his mistress) took place. In her well-researched work of history and biography, Sarah Churchwell connects these stories in surprising and insightful ways.  Next week, I’ll be interviewing Churchwell, an American literature scholar currently living in England. I hope she has a peaceful plane trip, with plenty of time to read!

10 Books to Read After the Holidays

IMG_1716Winter has definitely arrived in Chicago — it’s 15 degrees (without the wind chill) and snow is on the ground. There is nothing more appealing than curling up on a comfortable couch with a good book — and possibly a blanket and a cup of hot tea. A roaring fire would be nice too, but we are having a problem with our fireplace. The chimney doesn’t seem to be drawing properly; every time we light a fire, the house gets very smoky. So I’ve just called our local chimney cleaning service, called  (I am not kidding) Ashwipe Chimney Sweeps. Anyway, I’m not going to be able to squeeze in much reading time over the next couple of weeks. There are Christmas presents to buy and wrap, meals to plan and cook, parties to attend, kids coming home on vacation. The bookstore would probably like it if I showed up and worked. And did I mention that my daughter is getting married three days after Christmas?

One of the best things about working in a bookstore is the endless supply of ARCs (advance readers’ copies) that we have piled in our basement. I probably shouldn’t tell you this, but we actually keep them in the bathroom. The store isn’t very big, and that’s really the only place they fit. I also have a backlog of electronic ARCs on my IPad. I have ARCs for books that will come out in June — no sense reading those now, because chances are I won’t remember the books very well by the time they’re published. So I try to read books that are either just published or soon to be published. Sometimes something comes along that has to be read immediately, because it’s so compelling — it might be a book that a friend or colleague absolutely loved, or one that called my name and displaced the others on my stack. Then I forget all about publication dates and read what I want.

I have a pile of books I’m looking forward to reading in January and February. (Nine of them will be published during those months, and one — Book of Ages — is already out.) Any bets on how many I end up reading?

Nancy Horan's Loving Frank is one of my favorite works of biographical fiction. Her second novel is about another passionate love affair (Scottish writer Robert Louis Stevenson and his American wife, Fanny).

Nancy Horan’s Loving Frank is one of my favorite works of biographical fiction. Her second novel is about another passionate love affair (Scottish writer Robert Louis Stevenson and his American wife, Fanny).

Second novel by Chicago author Brigid Pasulka -- her first one was set in Poland; this one takes place in Italy.

Second novel by a wonderful Chicago author, Brigid Pasulka — her first one was set in Poland; this one takes place in Italy.

Debut novel by a Wisconsin author -- several colleagues have read this small-town story and loved it.

Debut novel by a Wisconsin author — several colleagues recently read this small-town story and loved it.

Book of Ages was a finalist for the National Book Award in nonfiction. I'm looking forward to reading about Jane Frankliln -- Benjamin Franklin's youngest sister and a brilliant person in her own right. (Also, a mother of 12!)

Book of Ages was a finalist for the National Book Award in nonfiction. I’m looking forward to reading about Benjamin Franklin’s youngest sister — a brilliant writer and commentator in her own right, and the mother of 12.

F. Scott Fitzgerald called Tom and Daisy Buchanan "careless people". This book tells the surprising story behind The Great Gatsby.

F. Scott Fitzgerald called Tom and Daisy Buchanan “careless people”. This book tells the surprising true story behind The Great Gatsby.

Darker than The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry, Perfect is about a young boy whose view of the world is shattered.

I’m told that Perfect is darker than The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry. It’s about a young boy whose view of the world is suddenly shattered.

Five  World War I Gold Star mothers travel to Europe to say final goodbyes to their sons.

Five World War I Gold Star mothers travel to Europe to say final goodbyes to their sons.

Diane Johnson explores her Midwestern roots in this memoir -- and she'll literally be returning to the Midwest as well; she visits Lake Forest in late January.

Diane Johnson explores her Midwestern roots in this memoir — and she’ll literally be returning to the Midwest as well; she visits Lake Forest in late January.

I adored Maggie Shipstead's first novel, Seating Arrangements. Her new novel is about the world of professional ballet.

I adored Maggie Shipstead’s first novel, Seating Arrangements. Her new novel is about the world of professional ballet.

A ghost story set in Vermont -- right up my alley. Chris Bohjalian liked it and I'm betting I will too.

A ghost story set in Vermont — right up my alley. Chris Bohjalian liked it and I’m betting I will too.
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