Canoeing Redwing Bay on the Charles River
I did not expect to spend today's gift of an extra hour deep in sleep. I had hoped I'd wake up at my usual time so I could spend the extra hour reading and blogging. Maybe next year!

Yesterday afternoon I finished How I Live Now by Meg Rosoff (previously discussed in my October 25 entry). Its ending had its grisly aspects, and Rosoff was unsparing in the graphic details. Yet, the book's conclusion was positive, hopeful, and satisfying. The discussion of Daisy's and Piper's survival in the countryside will definitely keep teenage (and older) readers rivetted. The interest the novel has stimulated in adult circles is gratifying to me because I have always believed that some of the best writers write for children and young adults. Do you have a favorite YA or children's writer whose books you seek out?

Tom Wolfe's I Am Charlotte Simmons will be available in bookstores on November 9. (Its publication has been delayed because of the election.) The New York Times gave what amounted to a lousy review late last week, but for Tom Wolfe fans, there is a terrific, lengthy article about him in today's New York Times Magazine. I'm really eager to read the novel, based on the interviews with Wolfe that I've seen so far. He spent years researching the book, spending week upon week on college campuses, investigating the private lives of today's college students. Wolfe is such a character and so intensely alive; he's a fascinating speaker. And he's 76 years old no less! And here's a link to an audio New York Times interview with Wolfe. Please note: The "lousy review" link is not working--you can read Michiko Kakutani's review by going to the "audio New York Times" link.

I realize I included many New York Times links here, but I've had difficulty locating any other relatively recent Wolfe interviews. I heartily recommend signing up for the Times if you haven't already. I consider it the best of the online newspapers, with the possible exception of the completely nonpartisan Christian Science Monitor, which is excellent for international and national news.