Steven Riddle on Fiction vs. Nonfiction.

“What I’ve discovered over time is that nonfiction books very rarely present anything like nonfiction. That is, most postmodern nonfiction. When your view of reality is that reality is shaped by the language you use to describe it and by the oppressions, hidden or overt that define it, it would be difficult to present anything in an objective way, because there cannot be any objectivity.
Fiction, on the other hand, shows me the human condition, and because the author lays his cards on the table on way or the other, I can determine whether what is shown is truly reflective of human experience or is shaped by the bias of the author to lead me to an agenda.”

I tend to prefer fiction or nonfiction that’s told like a story, stories from history that I can evaluate in much the same way that I evaluate fiction. In other words, I can say, even if it’s essentially true, I don’t like this story, and I don’t really believe in the truth that is embodied in this nonfiction history. I think the author is trying to “lead me to an agenda.”

Queen Shenaynay’s Desert Island Cookbooks. She lists ten best-of-the-best cookbooks with annotations telling why they’re good and what they’re good for. I’m thinking Christmas gifts for some of my favorite cooks. Nonfiction you can believe in.

Carl V.’s Autumn 2006 RIP Reading Challenge. R.I.P. stands for Readers Imbibing Peril, and you can join in by having a reading goal for the autumn of five books that are “scary, eerie, moody, dripping with atmosphere, gothic, unsettling.” I need to get back to Wilkie Collins’ The Woman in White anyway.

Ms. Seasonal Soundings is sponsoring The Autumn Reading Challenge. I didn’t take the challenge because I have so many books on The List that I just read whichever one I happen to find handy that suits my mood. Like Stefanie at So Many Books, I’m somewhat ambivalent about book lists. On the one hand, I love book lists because I get new ideas about what to read. I like making lists of my favorites, or my favorites in this or that genre. I like keeping a list of books I want to read because otherwise I forget about books that I am truly attracted to. However, I don’t like being told what to read. I read whatever I’m in the mood to read. I sometimes make myself read a “classic” because I know from experience that I may have to work at it at first, but I also may get valuable insight and education from my perseverance.