This is a difficult one for several reasons. Firstly, there are a few well-known books out there that are mentioned almost automatically in relation to coming-of-age novels (step up Mr Salinger, Mr Dickens, Ms Lee). Secondly, our perception of what constitutes “coming-of-age” has changed. Most people now think of such books as covering either the end of childhood or more likely, the journey through adolescence into adulthood. One of my favourite novels, The Red Badge of Courage by Stephen Crane is a coming-of-age novel, as is another favourite, Brideshead Revisited by Evelyn Waugh and yet I’ve left both out because they deal with young men rather than adolescents. So in the spirit of the coming-of-age novel as we now know it, as an exploration of the journey between childhood and adulthood, of what we take with us and what we leave behind, here is my list for you to ponder.

I Capture the Castle by Dodie Smith

Because Smith subsequently wrote the children’s classic, The Hundred and One Dalmatians, her first novel is also generally viewed as being for children. It’s certainly been cherished by generations of young girls but it’s a terrible shame that it isn’t more widely enjoyed because it’s a wonderful novel of English eccentricity and American sensibility, and love - most of all love. The writing is beautiful and the ending is as perfect as any I’ve read.

Le Grand Meaulnes by Alain-Fournier

There have been attempts to translate the title (”The Lost Domain” or “The Wanderer”) but it says something of the elusive nature of this French classic that the title is essentially beyond translation. Narrated by one schoolboy, primarily about the exploits of another (Augustin Meaulnes), it details the adventure in which Meaulnes stumbles upon a bizarre fancy dress party at a mysterious chateau and meets the love of his life there. In the wrong hands it could have been disastrous but this novel beautifully explores the concept of the romantic ideal. And of course, the mysterious domain that Meaulnes finds and then loses again is the perfect depiction of adolescent longing. It was the author’s only novel - he was killed in the First World War in 1914, at the age of 27, a year after its publication.

The Grass Harp by Truman Capote

I was tempted to include “To Kill A Mockingbird” and didn’t partly because it was discussed here a few weeks back. But as Capote was a childhood friend of Lee’s and was generally considered to be the model for the character of Dill, it’s fitting that I should choose his wonderful piece of Southern nostalgia instead. It’s an anarchic little story about an orphaned boy, one of his aunts and a servant all going to live in a tree house, and the battle that follows involving the other aunt, the sheriff and the superbly named Judge Cool. Capote at his comic best.

Crazy by Benjamin Lebert

Most coming-of-age books are written with a little distance, but Lebert wrote this semi-autobiographical novel when he was sixteen (he’s only 26 now). There was even talk at the time that he couldn’t have written it himself and that his grandmother might have written it for him. In fact, it’s quite clearly the work of someone very young, full of pompous philosophy and the cliches of adolescent life, because… well, because the author was still mired in adolescence and that’s what it’s like! It’s a slim book and follows a young man with a disability as he goes to a new boarding school. Much of it - a first sexual escapade, for example - has the feel of someone reporting from the frontline. Well worth reading.

The Virgin Suicides by Jeffrey Eugenides

Interestingly, I know a few people who grew up in places like Michigan in the 60s and 70s who really don’t care for this book. Perhaps you need a little distance to appreciate its beauty. Written in the first person plural by an anonymous group of male admirers, it catalogues the suicides of the five Lisbon girls, neatly dovetailing their deaths with the fragility of childhood and adolescence itself. I wasn’t greatly enamoured of Sofia Coppola’s film adaptation, so if anyone else disliked the film, I would urge you not to let that put you off the book.

Spring Night by Tarjei Vesaas

This is a new author to me. I’d often heard that his books were classics that should be read but they’d always been made to sound rather grim. And there is a Bergmanesque quality to his writing (Vesaas was Norwegian, Bergman Swedish) but also a real lightness of touch. This novel deals with a brother and sister, Olaf and Sissel, left on their own for the night in their remote farmhouse when strangers descend upon them, one of them about to give birth. Dramatic events follow and there is very much a coming-of-age during the course of the night, but the novel perfectly captures the febrile and occasionally magical nature of adolescence. There’s also a simple beauty to the writing that many modern writers could learn from - “A tiny morning wind breathed at her dress and played with it. Under it was all of Sissel’s youth.”

Naturally, I’ve immediately thought of several books I should have included on this list, but thems the breaks. Do feel free to comment, to disagree, and of course, to recommend…

Well, as most of you already know, the Edgar results are in. We at the Nomad had a vested interest in one particular title and author, specifically in the Paperback Original category (an aside: aren’t the PBO covers just a bit more kick-ass than the others?), so color us slightly disappointed.

However, I’ve heard endless good opinion of Ms. Abbott’s writing, so if Mr. Wignall has to miss out on the little Mr. Poe, then I think she’s a fair one to take it instead. When he returns from another of his mysterious trips to a place where the internet is just a rumor, I’m sure he’ll have a thing or two to say. As for me, I’m in Serbia on a questionable dial-up connection–a pulse line, no less!–so I should get out of the way before the line burns out.

Anyway, here’s the big list…fight away!

BEST NOVEL
  Down River by John Hart (St. Martin’s Minotaur)

BEST FIRST NOVEL BY AN AMERICAN AUTHOR
  In the Woods by Tana French (Penguin Group - Viking)

BEST PAPERBACK ORIGINAL
  Queenpin by Megan Abbott (Simon & Schuster)

BEST FACT CRIME
  Reclaiming History: The Assassination of President John F. Kennedy
  by Vincent Bugliosi (W.W. Norton and Company)

BEST CRITICAL/BIOGRAPHICAL
  Arthur Conan Doyle: A Life in Letters
  by Jon Lellenberg, Daniel Stashower & Charles Foley (The Penguin Press)

BEST SHORT STORY
  “The Golden Gopher” - Los Angeles Noir by Susan Straight (Akashic
Books)

BEST JUVENILE
  The Night Tourist by Katherine Marsh (Hyperion Books for Young Readers)

BEST YOUNG ADULT
  Rat Life by Tedd Arnold (Penguin - Dial Books for Young Readers)

BEST PLAY
  Panic by Joseph Goodrich (International Mystery Writers’ Festival)

BEST TELEVISION EPISODE TELEPLAY
  “Pilot” - Burn Notice, Teleplay by Matt Nix (USA Network/Fox Television
Studios)

BEST MOTION PICTURE SCREENPLAY
  Michael Clayton, Screenplay by Tony Gilroy (Warner Bros. Pictures)

ROBERT L. FISH MEMORIAL AWARD
  “The Catch” - Still Waters by Mark Ammons (Level Best Books)

News that Vladimir Nabokov’s son, Dmitri, plans to publish his dad’s last novel (unfinished before the great man’s death) raises for me the question: Given how hard it is to publish while alive, should one publish when dead?

According to the Guardian, Dmitri Nabokov has wrestled with the pros and cons of releasing his father’s unfinished work ‘The Original of Laura’ since the novelist’s death in 1977. The primary con, of course, is that the book was incomplete; but the tantalizing pro is Dmitri’s contention that the book represents “the most concentrated distillation” of his father’s genius. (Dmitri was apparently undecided until his father appeared to him in a dream, and said: ” ‘You’re stuck in a right old mess. Just go ahead and publish.’)

Nabokov is far the first writer to publish from the grave. An entire Hemingway oeuvre rolled off the presses after Papa died: ‘A Movable Feast’, ‘Islands in the Stream,’  ‘The Dangerous Summer,’ and ‘The Garden of Eden.’
A measure of the critical response and controversy that occasioned each book suggests hits and misses. ‘A Movable Feast’ proved to be a valued memoir of Hemingway’s expatriate youth in Paris.  ‘Islands in the Stream,’ generated more controversy. Considered important because it was to follow Hemingway’s under achieving ‘Across the River  … ” and the inspiration for the classic ‘The Old Man and the Sea’, many believed it was too unformed to do justice to the writer.

Of course, the current trend is to have dead writers channel through living ones. Mark Winegardner was hired by the estate of Godfather author Mario Puzo to write a sequel. (Winegardner was selected from thousands of writers across the U.S. based on his similarities to Puzo in age, literary accomplishment, and style.) And of course Robert Ludlum arranged for his name to live on as a thriller brand (championed by writers like Eric von Lustbader and Gayle Lynds) after his passing.

Dmitri Nabokov wants no rewriting of his Dad’s last work. He wants not a word changed, saying it would be neither fair nor right. He simply wants to liberate the work from its imprisonment in a Swiss bank vault, and get it into the world. Which I’m certain Nabokov would approve of.

When the Edgar nomination came in for Who is Conrad Hirst? I noticed there was much talk about whether being nominated had any great impact on a book. Naturally, the same discussion occurs every year.

In the most obvious barometer, I certainly noticed a spike in my Amazon sales rank and that lasted until fairly recently. The net result thus far might only have been the sale of a few hundred additional copies, but they’re all people who probably wouldn’t have bought the book otherwise and who might go on to tell friends about it, so all gratefully received.

Meanwhile, there was a flurry of interest from foreign publishers and, as I’m told is traditional, the Japanese were the first out of the gate. Three Japanese publishers entered an auction for the book and I’m delighted to say I’ve just signed a contract with the winning house, Shinchosha Publishing, who will publish either late next year or in 2010. As I said, there was interest from other territories, and it’ll be interesting to see if any deals result, but the Japanese auction itself was a direct result of the Edgar nomination - so thanks, MWA!

Regular readers of this blog will know that my lack of foreign rights deals has been a real bugbear. Up until now I’d sold only the Russian rights to For the Dogs and, due to some problem with the translation (?), that book still hasn’t been published (the last I heard, it was scheduled for the end of March, but I don’t know if it actually appeared). The fact that foreign publishers are now showing an interest is hugely gratifying, and the Japanese market in particular is one in which I wanted to get a foothold - I’ll certainly be visiting to support the lauch of the book.

And speaking of visiting and the Edgars… I knew from the outset that there was a serious clash with regards to the Awards banquet. I’d be dishonest if I didn’t admit that Awards ceremonies don’t really appeal to me, but I would have gone anyway, not least for all the other Edgar Week celebrations. As it is, I’ll be somewhere in Europe (can’t say where just now), probably without internet access, and won’t be back until the 3rd. So if I lose, don’t think I’m sulking, and if I win, don’t be under the impression I think I’m too good for you - I’ll post about it as soon as I get back.

You may remember a year or so ago there was a big fuss about a new magazine called MURDALAND which was setting its stall as an antidote to the Dell Magazines (Ellery Queen’s and Alfred Hitchcock’s). It was a good magazine, well put together, introducing me to authors I’d never read (Anthony Neil Smith) and others I’d never heard of (a wonderful non-fiction account of combat in Central America).

Well, the second issue of the magazine is now available and I can once again recommend it highly. More than that, I urge you to pick up a copy because it’s good but it won’t survive on being good alone.

At the risk of sounding shallow, Murdaland looks good, the feel of something you want to keep, but it also contains a rich variety of material, from novel extracts, classic pieces, shorts (including, in this issue, another two writers I’d heard about but had not yet read - Harry Hunsicker and Vicki Hendricks, both impressive in their own ways) and non-fiction (a letter from a soldier serving in Kuwait).

And as ever, there was a great new discovery for me - the fresh and vivid voice of R. Narvaez. How about this for a cracking opening paragraph - Roachkiller’s heading for the subway, not two feet off the bus from Attica and minding my own, see what I’m saying. Wanting to leave that shit behind. But Joselito, he don’t shut up. Boy talked the whole way down. There’s a writer who takes you with him, whether it’s your neighbourhood or not.

So, check out Murdaland, and if you’re interested in the what and why of the people behind it, you could do worse than read the interview with Michael Langnas, to be found HERE

In between diapers, I ran across an interesting Yahoo news piece on the results of a poll to learn the most favorite book(s) in America. Unsurprisingly, number one among all demographic groups was the Bible, but it’s when we get to number two that things become more complicated:

Men chose J.R.R. Tolkien’s “The Lord of the Rings” and women selected Margaret Mitchell’s “Gone With the Wind” as their second-favorite book, according to the online poll.

But the second choice for 18- to 31-year-olds was J.K. Rowling’s Harry Potter series, while 32- to 43-year-olds named Stephen King’s “The Stand” and Dan Brown’s “Angels and Demons.”

Picks for second-favorite book also varied according to region. “Gone With the Wind” was number two in the southern and midwestern United States while easterners chose “The Lord of the Rings” and westerners opted for “The Stand.”

Whites and Hispanics picked “Gone With the Wind” as their second-favorite book after the Bible, while African-Americans preferred “Angels and Demons.”

“Finally, they may not agree on candidates, but one thing that brings together partisans is their favorite book. For Republicans, Democrats and Independents, the top two books are the same — the Bible followed by “Gone With the Wind.”

Dan Brown’s “The Da Vinci Code,” “To Kill a Mockingbird” by Harper Lee, “Angels and Demons” by Dan Brown, “Atlas Shrugged” by Ayn Rand and “Catcher in the Rye” by J.D. Salinger rounded out the top 10 favorites.

Various questions arise from this…Is “Gone With The Wind” really still read like it used to be? Why did “Angels and Demons” trump “DVC”? (I have my own opinion–it’s a better book.) It’s nice to see “The Stand” mentioned, and “Atlas Shrugged” I find kind of silly…but when I see “To Kill a Mockingbird” (one of the most bought and least read books around) it becomes clear that this list is based on what people think they’re supposed to answer, not what they’ve actually read.

Charleston Heston’s death at 85 has brought a flood of plaudits for his movie roles as Moses, Michelangelo, and Ben-Hur. There was something about Heston’s manner or his era that made him well-suited to play icons. His lesser known historical roles included Andrew Jackson (twice) in ‘The President’s Lady’ and ‘The Buccaneer’, and Rodrigo Diaz de Vivar in ‘El Cid.’

But I think Heston’s most interesting — if not best roles — were the spate of Science Fiction movies he made in the late 1960s and 1970s. All the movies placed Heston in a similar character: the lonely libertarian hero in a futuristic wasteland who fights for nothing more and better than self-preservation, and in the end becomes the last best hope of mankind. The first and best film was the original Planet of the Apes (1968). (It’s good because it was one of Rod Serling’s last efforts before the Twilight Zone creator died.) Then there was Omega Man (1971). (Will Smith’s recent vehicle I Am Legend, was a remake of it in spirit if not substance.) Followed by one of my B-movie favorites Soylent Green (1973), notable as well because it was Edward G. Robinson’s last screen appearance. 

What long stumped me about Heston was the reactionary politics he championed late in his life, and I always wondered if early clues of his passionate conservativism (a world view of one man and his gun against everything else) could be found in his sympathies with the heroes of these flicks.  

What was Chuck thinking when he read these scripts? Was the system that recycled human corpses to make the snack Soylent Green an allegory for the excesses of big government? Did he see liberal weakness (and a lack of available handguns) as the culprits that allowed the apes to take over the planet? (Note that the Wiki entry on Heston’s life calls Soylent Green and Omega Man environmental movies.)

For students of cinema or Heston who view this blog, this interpretation may be painfully ignorant. Still, I must confess: the movie world’s lasting memory of Heston will be of the bearded prophet parting the Red Sea, but for me Heston was his most convincing as the loin-cloth clad astronaut who pounds the earth with his fists, and damn’s the human race to hell for destroying itself and allowing a race of monkeys to take over. Not even Moses could have pulled that one off.