More Wishes

Earlier this week I called on my favorite writers: What books, I asked, do you hope to find under the tree? The wish lists rushed in. Books for everyone!

Judyth Hill — author of six books of poetry, and author-in-residence at Simple Choice Farm in San Miguel de Allende, Mexico — is bursting with books, wishes and wants:

• The Lacuna, by Barbara Kingsolver (she and Hill are featured at the San Miguel Writers' Conference in February)

• Divisadero by Michael Ondaatje

• Leaping Poetry by Robert Bly ("for the 100th time," jokes Judyth)

• Collected Prose of Paul Celan

• Posthumous Diary by Eugenio Montale

And, she adds, "the usual James Patterson, Patricia Cornwell, Stephen King bonbons!"

Bill Siverly — author of several poetry collections including the recently released Clearwater Way, and editor of Windfall: A Journal of Poetry of Place — says he has "way too many books already" but he'll make have room for Raymond Carver's short stories. "I've never read Carver, whose role in Pacific Northwest writing is considerable." Keeping with the Northwest theme, Siverly recommends three books by Robert Bringhurst who "brings a deep understanding and appreciation of Native American literature and literature in general, especially ancient literatures. A joy to read":

• A Story as Sharp as a Knife: The Classical Haida Mythtellers and Their World

• The Tree of Meaning: Language, Mind and Ecology

• Everywhere Being Is Dancing: Twenty Pieces of Thinking

Gail Waldstein, poet and author of To Quit This Calling: Firsthand Tales of a Pediatric Pathologist, offers her book list, along with a wish for more time to read:

• William Maxwell: Later Novels and Stories: The Château / So Long, See You Tomorrow by William Maxwell

• Too Much Happiness by Alice Munro

• Strike Sparks: Collected Poems 1980-2002 by Sharon Olds

• The New York Times Practical Guide to Practically Everything, Second Edition: The Essential Companion for Everyday Life by Amy D. and Peter W. Bernstein (editors)

Rick Schultze, author of the memoir When Movie Was A Band: The True Story of My Short Life as a Rhythm Guitar Player, is modest in his book requests:

• Ford County: Stories by John Grisham

• and "any new Carl Hiaasen books!"

Sage Cohen, author of Writing the Life Poetic: A Guide to Reading and Writing Poetry, is all business with her suggestions:

• Get Known Before the Book Deal by Christina Katz

• The Writer's Digest Guide to Query Letters by Wendy Burt-Thomas

• Book by Book: The Complete Guide to Creating Mother-Daughter Book Clubs by Cindy Hudson

What's on your wish list? Anything to add, expand, highlight, rewrite or delight? Please share your comments, suggestions and reviews here.

Comments

[Eliza]

What books are you hoping for, Drew? :)

[drew]

Hi Eliza,
Thanks for asking!

I do love receiving books, and I especially love the surprise of others choosing a book for me. Because of the sharing spirit of others, over the years I've enjoyed books and authors I never knew existed. I think that's the joy for me — that someone took the time to pick a book they thought I might like, or to share a book they like so much they want to bring me into its beauty.

That said, I have recently discovered Francine Prose (I'm late to this party; she's been writing for years) and I can't wait to read more of her fiction.

And I recently realized the poet Frank Gaspar is also a fiction writer, so I'm eager to read more of his work.

And I always love reading poet Tony Hoagland.

And short story and fiction writer Lorrie Moore, who has a new book out.

And I would like to know more about Nelson Mandela. I'm sure there's a biography or memoir out there just waiting for me to find.

And . . . I sound greedy, I know, but can one ever wish for too many books?