I think I gave this up after reading a tome called
However, I still do collect books written by two people - Stephen King and Ed McBain. Specifically, the 87th Precint series by Ed McBain. I do collect the odd Travis McGee books by John D MacDonald and the occasional John (Irving/Updike/Fowles/Steinbeck) too, but they do not fill my bookshelves like King and McBain. King occupes one and a half rows in my library; McBain takes up one. I believe I have over 75% of the Stephen King books and about 60% of the 87th Precint Series. It's easy enough to go to Landmark and buy up the remaining Stephen Kings and at least the later McBains, but I don't feel tempted to do that. I'd rather stretch it out: wait for a good deal, browse the pavements, kick it around a little.
I like Ed McBain for his dialogue. No one does it better. His dialogues are a bit like those from the scene in Million Dollar Baby where Clint Eastwood and Morgan Freeman discuss Freeman's socks. It goes on for a couple of minutes, it's not directly relevant to the main story, yet it contributes a lot in fleshing out the characters.
I read King for the way his characters think. The way he describes everyday situations. The way he talks about childhood and growing up. Yeah, he does write horror pretty well, but that's just gravy.
These guys have written absolute junk too - oh, have they! The last two books I read were King's Song of Susannah and McBain's Hark!. Both were unpalatable. McBain has become old, tries too hard to be clever and frankly, the Deaf Man looks more like a complete nincompoop than the criminal mastermind he is supposed to be. Song of Susannah is not a novel. It's a by-the-way scribble on the margin of a used notebook, a hairball coughed up by someone thoroughly bored of writing.
Which doesn't change a thing, of course. I am looking forward to buying The Dark Tower and Money, Money, Money, the next time I visit a bookstore. A man's gotta do what a man's gotta do.
This is a beautifully written entry. I love to know about the way one engages with literature, being a book lover myself and having dedicated a good portion of my life studying and teaching them. The university is not kind to the Kings and Updikes of the literary world, to be sure, and I've always felt that kind of elitism has no place over the love of what an author is capable of articulating to his/her audience. King has a special place in my library, too. As does Enid Blyton :)
ReplyDeleteI still read all the books by an author if I like her/him. So I have the complete Enid Blyton, Asterix, Tintin, ACKs, Hitchcock's three investigators, Wodehouse, Agatha Christie, Asimov, Maclean, Burroughs etc., etc.
ReplyDeleteI changed the habit a bit once I hit college - if the most recent book by an author didn't grab me, I'd stop buying the ones that came after that book. The author would now be classified as 'used to be good once'.
So how many books do you own, Madhav? :)
Wonderful post! Happy its the first thing I am reading. I have a similar addiction for picking up music. If there's a artist I love, I pretty much buy all his/her works. For some I've begged, traded another CD and what not.
ReplyDeleteMy music library dominators are Natalie Merchant, U2, Sarah Mclachlan, Cowboy Junkies amongst a few more.
As for books, I think I've managed to sustain this addiction for Clive Cussler, Guy Kawasaki and J K Rowling. Cussler writes only fiction with a superhero as the main cast and all his adventures are on the sea. Kawasaki writes mostly on business but his star performance is on this book called Hindsights (very touching and rare. Had to scout around 4 bookstores in Mumbai to lay my hands on it). Have you been able to read any of his speeches. They are awesome. I have one with me which is addressed to a Graduating Class and it has wisdom spelled out with such lucidity, it sure does leave you with a fresh sense of ambition. And Rowling? Just bring it on babieh!
I seem to remember King dissing the university types in a speech last year. Funny how the commercially successful writers are always looked down upon. One has to suffer for one's art, eh?
ReplyDeletereally nice post.
ReplyDeleteAh thanks, I forgot to mention Asterix and the ACKs. I do have a few of the Three Investigators series too - some were really good. Dead Man's Riddle, Terror Castle..man, I think I should get some of them too, now.
ReplyDeleteHow many books? Ha ha. A closely guarded secret. Here's an outdated pic of a section of my library, though. I'll put up a more recent snap one of these days.
Ah, the story of my life!
ReplyDeleteI do pick up music too, but not has enthusiastically as books. I started but never got around to collecting all of U2, Springsteen, Dire Straits, Tull, Clapton, Rahman, etc.
ReplyDeleteI've read a couple of Cusslers I think - the Dirk Pitt series, right? I haven't read Kawasaki, apart from that famous speech which I thought was an urban legend.
I have the 5 Rowlings of course, but I'd define a collection as at least ten books!
Unless we hope Harry Potter flunks school and Rowling does a re-run on his life, my over 10 books collection would only include Cussler & Asterix :p
ReplyDeleteHow is your library Categorized? Just curious!
ReplyDeleteFiction is categorized alphabetically. Non-fiction is pretty haphazard, placed on the shelves to the right and left walls.
ReplyDeleteI'd rather stretch it out
ReplyDeleteSince you mentioned John Irving - as of a few years back he was trying to stretch out Dickens by keeping one novel unread. And Dickens is a major influence in his writing.
Windmills of the Gods by Mr Sheldon. Shocked me out of it, really.
:o
I think that was my favourite Sidney Sheldon. Be careful, Madhav: The Windmills of the Gods grind slow, but they grind Exceeding Fine. :)
I liked Windmills of the Gods too especially the description of Bucharest and the ruler :P
ReplyDeleteIt was the second (first was Tell me your dreams) and the last Sidney Sheldon that I bought.
Ok I was just wondering whether you had categorized it by the author.
ReplyDeleteSorry. When I said alphabetically, I meant alphabetically by author name.
ReplyDeleteBy keeping one novel unread? Yeah, I can see the Dickensian influence but I didn't get the one novel unread part.
ReplyDeleteWasn't Windmills the aliens one? I think it was. My favorite Sheldon is The Other Side of Midnight, which isn't saying much of course.
thanks.
ReplyDeleteOh Ok. No wonder I could see all Stephen King books together with a large "KING" written on them, in the lower most shelf. :)
ReplyDeleteBloody Hell! You have empty shelf space! That is *so* unfair! My books stand two deep on the shelves, and most of them are packed away in boxes.
ReplyDeleteIncidentally, why is the number of books a closely guarded secret? I do so love to brag about my collection. :)
I think the Other Side of Midnight had the line which had me laughing out loud - 'Sliced, on rye, and hold the mustard please.'
ReplyDeleteI turn up my nose :)
ReplyDeleteThis was taken before I transfered in my collection from Trivandrum. I'll put up an updated pic soon. I still have a lot of empty space though. I don't plan to stop buying!
ReplyDeleteYou brag about your collection? Where do you live?
Don't remember that - read it long ago. Must catch up one of these days.
ReplyDeleteOh, Maugham's here.
ReplyDeleteWhat about Jeffrey Archer and Erich Segal? I went bonkers about Sheldon, A and S in my twelfth standard. Haven't really read any MacLean other than the two navarone books, and the Golden Gate.
ReplyDeleteAnd oh, I can *totally* relate to the obsessive completist syndrome. Totally.
Archer yes, Segal no. I liked Love Story when I read it at age sixteen, but even then I couldn't stomach the sequel, Oliver's Story.
ReplyDeleteWindmills wasn't the aliens one, I think. I stopped Sheldon after his books started to indicate his visits to India were becoming very frequent.
ReplyDeleteOh, really?
ReplyDeleteI meant he's avoided reading one of Dickens's novels, so he can keep looking forward to something.
ReplyDeleteI checked on Amazon. Turns out we're both thinking of the wrong book. Windmills was about an ambassador to Romania and this colourful assassin called Angel. The book I said was my favourite turns out to be Sands of Time.
Here's an amusing line from one of the reviews: Not a breath of subtlety touches these pages. :)
And look, Daddy cool too!
ReplyDeleteYep. But only to those who love books and might be envious. ;)
ReplyDeleteI live in Gurgaon. :)
I can *totally* relate to the obsessive completist syndrome. Totally.
ReplyDeleteWould never have guessed.
HMS Ulyssess was Maclean's best book. I loved most of his books, but this one has always been my favourite.
ReplyDeleteAn 1868 print of Tale of Two Cities?????
ReplyDelete*gasp*
*Faint*
A few pics I took today morning.
ReplyDeleteJust remembered yesterday night that it was called The Doomsday Conspiracy.
ReplyDeletePut up a few more here.
ReplyDeleteCongrats on the 1868 print!
And that's the one I haven't read. My favourite is Fear is the Key, maybe because it was my first McLean.
ReplyDeleteI'll remember that, next time I visit Delhi.
ReplyDeleteCool. :)
ReplyDeleteWe'd have a nice chat about books [other stuff too]....During my last vacation, one of the best evenings I spent was with a random stranger. He had laughed at me when he saw the number of books I was carrying to the cash counter, we got into a discussion about books and reading, and spent the next 5 hours drinking beer in the pub next door, trying to determine which one of us has read more books. :)
A sight for sore eyes....Feels good to see so many old friends. :)
ReplyDeleteI couldn't read the names of the novels in the McCollough collection, so I have to ask - have you read her roman series? _The First Man in Rome_, _The Grass Crown_, _Fortune's Favourite_, _Caesar's Women_ etc? If you haven't, and if you like Roman history [or even Caesar], these are highly recommended.
I'd recommend it. It was his first book, a beautifully written story about the second world war.
ReplyDeleteThat sounds like fun. I'd shy away from a discussion on who's read more books, though. From what I've seen of your reading habits, I know the answer already!
ReplyDeleteFrankly, I haven't read a single McCollough yet. I bought the collection because of my wife. This set includes The Thorn Birds and two others I don't remember.
ReplyDeleteI didn't really like any of her other books, but the Roman series is delightful.
ReplyDelete*g*
ReplyDeleteMy wisdom is already rubbing off on you... ;)
Ain't it the best? Guess how much we paid for it?
ReplyDeleteAlso, you may want to tell us how much you are willing to pay for it! ;)
- M.
I've read "The Thorn Birds" and really liked it.
ReplyDelete- M.
Cool! Your book collection looks like a lovely library that I'd love to raid! :)
ReplyDeleteDostoyevsky - Whew! Is it 'The Brothers Karamazov'? I have a copy back home but haven't managed to read it. In the picture of the shelves with the Stephen King books, the last book on the second shelf from the bottom shows a Tor publications book that looks like Robert Jordan's "Eye of the World", is it?
- M.
The Dostoyevsky is Crime and Punishment. Haven't read it yet.
ReplyDeleteAnd yeah, that is indeed Eye of the World.
Ah!.. You know I haven't seen this entry till now. Were this filtered before?
ReplyDelete