Saturday, January 23, 2010

52 Books...week 4




The Little Book by Seldon Edwards




The table of paperback books at Costco is much too hard to resist as the pile of unread books on my bedside table can attest. The Little Book was an impulse buy from last summer which I finally got around to reading. Part time travel book, but mostly historical fiction set in Vienna of 1897, it is a fun, interesting and unpredictable read. I think the back cover blurb by Maureen Corrigan from NPR's Fresh Air has the best summation: "A...thing of joy whose only purpose -- and I mean this as a compliment -- is to delight and entertain."

What makes this book even more delightful is that it is the first novel by author Selden Edwards. He explains in his note at the end of the book the genesis of the idea over 30 years ago and it's subsequent evolution through many drafts over the years.

3 comments:

  1. I love travel books and set in historical fiction? Sounds like a fun book.

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  2. What a lovely review of my novel. You can imagine what a thrill it is to be a late-bloomer novelist and to have people all over the country finding my book by surprise at places like Costco and small bookstores and being compelled by it. Thank you for writing this. I loved reading it! Selden Edwards

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