You Must Read This "You Must Read This" presents conversations with writers about the books they love to read and recommend.

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You Must Read This

Writers recommend their all-time favorite books

Monday May 28, 2012

Cowslips To Kingcups: Finding Joy In The Garden

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Cowslips To Kingcups: Finding Joy In The Garden<br>

May 28, 2012 • When author Lauren Groff found herself anxious and unable to work, she needed a book to get lost in. Elizabeth and Her German Garden, with its great, hidden depths, consoled her through her darkest time. Has a book ever gotten you out of a tough moment? Tell us about it in the comments.

Cowslips To Kingcups: Finding Joy In The Garden

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Recalling The Past: The Intimate Objects Of Childhood

Harvard University Press

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Recalling The Past: The Intimate Objects Of Childhood

May 28, 2012 • Sometimes rediscovering an object from childhood can bring back a flood of memories. Jeffrey Lewis rediscovered much of his young self when he read Berlin Childhood around 1900. Has a book ever reminded you of your own early life? Tell us about it in the comments.

Monday May 21, 2012

Wisteria And Sunshine: One Enchanted Italian April

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Review

Wisteria And Sunshine: One Enchanted Italian April

May 21, 2012 • An April spent in an Italian castle? Yes, please. The four women of Elizabeth von Arnim's The Enchanted April are lucky to have a grand adventure. But author Madeline Miller recommends the book even if you're stuck at home. Do you have a favorite book about exotic travel? Tell us in the comments.

Monday May 14, 2012

Mamma Mia! A Mother Tougher Than The Godfather

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Mamma Mia! A Mother Tougher Than The Godfather

May 14, 2012 • Mario Puzo isn't known for his strong female characters — but if you've read his pre-Godfather work, The Fortunate Pilgrim, you might think otherwise. Author Zoe Ferraris recommends this book, which is based on Puzo's own mother. Do you have a favorite literary matriarch? Tell us in the comments.

Mamma Mia! A Mother Tougher Than The Godfather

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Thursday April 26, 2012

Bradbury's Tale: A 'Wicked' Read, A Haunted Book

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Bradbury's Tale: A 'Wicked' Read, A Haunted Book

April 26, 2012 • It wasn't just the creepy carnival that drew Seth Grahame-Smith to Something Wicked This Way Comes. It was also the book's frank portrayal of parents who don't behave like grown-ups. Do you remember when you realized your parents weren't perfect? Tell us about it in the comments.

Bradbury's Tale: A 'Wicked' Read, A Haunted Book

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Monday April 23, 2012

Beyond The 'Blonde': A Look At Marilyn's Inner Life

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Beyond The 'Blonde': A Look At Marilyn's Inner Life

April 23, 2012 • Flamboyant and confident, Marilyn Monroe oozed sex appeal. But in Joyce Carol Oates' Blonde, we see a woman overshadowed by her onscreen persona. Author Manuel Munoz says the novel gives a glimpse into the star's interior life. Have a favorite book about a celebrity? Tell us in the comments.

Beyond The 'Blonde': A Look At Marilyn's Inner Life

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Thursday April 12, 2012

Hellbent For Living: A Screwball Parisian Adventure

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Hellbent For Living: A Screwball Parisian Adventure

April 12, 2012 • There are many books set in the so-called City of Light, but author Rosecrans Baldwin says that none are quite as charming as The Dud Avocado. Have a favorite tale set in France? Let us know what it is in the comments.

Hellbent For Living: A Screwball Parisian Adventure

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Wednesday February 22, 2012

Gutter To The Stars: A Testosterone Fueled Romp

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Gutter To The Stars: A Testosterone Fueled Romp

February 22, 2012 • If someone's not being killed or beaten, he's being shaken down, spied on, bedded, or seduced in James Ellroy's American Tabloid. Author Adam Levin says it will have you admiring J. Edgar Hoover's sleazy connivances and cheering for the violent downfall of the Kennedys.

Gutter To The Stars: A Testosterone Fueled Romp

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Monday February 20, 2012

A Depressive Diarist Chronicles His Descent

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A Depressive Diarist Chronicles His Descent

February 20, 2012 • How much do we read into ourselves when we write a diary? Author Patrick DeWitt recommends the dark, deep journal of a man suffering from a nervous breakdown.

A Depressive Diarist Chronicles His Descent

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Monday February 6, 2012

Down To Brass Tacks: A Detailed Etching Of Moscow

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Review

Down To Brass Tacks: A Detailed Etching Of Moscow

February 6, 2012 • In historical fiction, the facts draw the reader in, making the world of the novel believable. That's the lesson author Eva Stachniak learned from The Beginning of Spring, a Penelope Fitzgerald novel that immerses readers in the lives of its Russian characters.

Monday January 30, 2012

Teen Girls, Mean Girls: A Tale Of Karmic Revenge

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Teen Girls, Mean Girls: A Tale Of Karmic Revenge

January 30, 2012 • Margaret Atwood's novel Cat's Eye is as philosophical as it is emotional, as poetic as it is psychological. Its story of an abusive friendship helped author Margaux Fragoso to recover from a relationship with a toxic frenemy.

Monday January 9, 2012

Review

A Revolution On The Page: Finding Identity In Poetry

January 9, 2012 • When Roya Hakakian moved from Iran to the U.S., she didn't think any poet in her adopted country could top the ones whose work she grew up with. But then she discovered a piece that blew away her prejudices. It was "My Papa's Waltz" by Theodore Roethke.

A Revolution On The Page: Finding Identity In Poetry

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Monday January 2, 2012

Imprisoned In A Mysterious Mistaken Identity

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Imprisoned In A Mysterious Mistaken Identity

January 2, 2012 • Author Alex Gilvarry recommends Max Frisch's I'm Not Stiller, a novel that intertwines a classic tale of mistaken identity with high comedy and postwar seriousness.

Imprisoned In A Mysterious Mistaken Identity

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Monday December 19, 2011

Review

A Wise And Zany Editor: The Legendary Harold Ross

December 19, 2011 • As a journalist and author looking for some inspiration, Jill Abramson looked to James Thurber. His description of working for storied editor Harold Ross isn't just hilarious; it's an illuminating look at an important journalistic icon.

Monday December 12, 2011

Ode To The Dead: In Remembrance Of Characters Past

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Ode To The Dead: In Remembrance Of Characters Past

December 12, 2011 • Can a book of elegies rise above maudlin morbidity? Author Stewart O'Nan says yes — and he recommends a great one by Christie Hodgen. It's a book that will break your heart, and warm your soul.

Ode To The Dead: In Remembrance Of Characters Past

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