The Books That Get People Talking
By Kathleen McCleary | October 16, 2019 |
Flickr Creative Commons: Theo Crazzolara
I’m a writer but I’m also a reader, and every 4-6 weeks my book groups (I’m in two) meet to talk about what we’ve read. Some of the discussions are brief—a cursory talk about the book, then a diversion into discussing our kids, our careers, our dogs, our aging parents, the Washington Nationals (I live near D.C.), world politics, and the many delectable treats to be found at Trader Joe’s. Other discussions can go on, literally, for hours as we debate the pros and cons and ins and outs of a book we can’t forget and can’t ignore.
Both my book groups are always searching for stories that lead to an immersive reading experience and good conversation, the kind of books you HAVE to talk to someone about as soon as you finish them. But I approach all our book group discussions as an author, too. What makes a book the kind of book people need and want to talk about? Is it character? Plot? Setting? Or is it some unfathomable alchemy you can only grasp occasionally, like seeing the northern lights? Whatever it is, I want to know, because I want to write the books that make people want to talk about them.
The books that have sparked the most animated conversations in my book groups over the past 10 years include John Steinbeck’s East of Eden, Daphne du Maurier’s Rebecca, Lincoln in the Bardo by George Saunders, Sing, Unburied, Sing by Jesmyn Ward, Less, by Andrew Sean Greer, and Stoner, by John Williams. They’re wildly different books: Sing, Unburied, Sing (2017) is about a young black boy in rural Mississippi on an improbable road trip with his drug-addicted mother; Rebecca (1938) is a moody Gothic romance about a young wife in Cornwall and her haunting predecessor; and Less (2018) tells the tale of a struggling middle-aged gay novelist who travels the world to avoid an awkward wedding.
In a completely unscientific study, I reached out to a few members of my book groups and stretched my own brain to remember what about these books captured us and wouldn’t let go. A few common threads:
They deal with big themes that are at the heart of human experience. Are humans born evil? Can you ever overcome the human impulse to act out of jealousy, greed, or rage? How? (Read East of Eden for more info on all that). How do you deal with the kind of grief (say, losing a beloved child) that threatens to overwhelm your very sanity? (Lincoln in the Bardo has some ideas). Insecurity, rejection, the longing for love, prejudice, cruelty, forgiveness, redemption—they’re all in those books and I mentioned and they’re all part of life. People respond to the struggles and victories that echo or even foreshadow their own experiences.
The characters are complex and fully drawn, and I mean all the characters, not just the protagonist. Jesmyn Ward’s novel is told from several points of view, and each narrator has a distinct voice, individual quirks, their own hopes and disappointments—they feel like people you know. The dark characters in these books are unnerving and haunting (that Cathy in East of Eden is as terrifying a character as has ever appeared in fiction) yet still have moments of vulnerability or redemption; the protagonists try and stumble and try again.
The setting is integral to the characters and the story. California’s Salinas Valley IS East of Eden; Rebecca couldn’t take place anywhere other than the wild moors of Cornwall; the oppressive heat and oppressive history of Mississippi are inextricably entwined with the story of Sing, Unburied, Sing. These stories don’t just happen to take place in these settings; the settings are a key element that affect everything.
They ignite controversy. Seventy-five percent of one of my book groups hated Lincoln in the Bardo, and the other 25% loved it. The ensuing impassioned discussion led to one of our best talks, and new ways of thinking about the book on both sides. The group had similar reactions to Less and Sing, Unburied, Sing, with lovers and haters of both books. Of course some of that is simply personal taste; my favorite flavor of novel will not be yours. But even when people didn’t particularly like one of these books, they felt strongly about it, they were engaged. And that’s a good thing.
What books have sparked great conversations in your life? Why? What lessons have you taken from them for your own writing?
[coffee]
Kathleen McCleary is the author of three novels—House and Home, A Simple Thing, and Leaving Haven—and has worked as a bookseller, bartender, and barista (all great jobs for gathering material for fiction). A Simple Thing (HarperCollins 2012) was nominated for the Library of Virginia Literary Awards. She was a journalist for many years before turning to fiction, and her work has appeared in The New York Times, The Washington Post, Good Housekeeping, Ladies Home Journal, and USA Weekend, as well as HGTV.com, where she was a regular columnist. She taught writing as an adjunct professor at American University in Washington, D.C., and teaches creative writing to kids ages 8-18 as an instructor with Writopia Labs, a non-profit. She also offers college essay coaching (https://thenobleapp.com), because she believes that life is stressful enough and telling stories of any kind should be exciting and fun. When she’s not writing or coaching writing, she looks for any excuse to get out into the woods or mountains or onto a lake. She lives in northern Virginia with her husband and two daughters and Jinx the cat.
Yes, to all your points, Kathleen, especially the last.
I believe a big part of the commercial success of Fifty Shades was due to the controversy it excited. Coming at the beginning of the #MeToo movement and apparently igniting the hatred of real-life BDSM practitioners, people felt compelled to take a side on the healthiness of couple’s dynamics. Your position on the book’s gender politics became a statement of your view of the larger culture and where it should be headed. IMHO, when a book excites that kind of polarization around identity, it creates a self-propelling buzz.
Excellent point, Jan, about the commercial success of Fifty Shades of Grey, and the love/hate response to it. In addition to the varied opinions on the nature of the relationship in that book, many people had varied opinions on the quality of the writing–STRONG opinions. Love it or hate it, it got millions of people reading and talking about what they’d read, and that makes me happy as a reader and as an author. Thanks for your comment.
Even though it was published over 20 years ago, Midwives by Chris Bohjalian was a terrific discussion book (did the Midwife make the right decision?) that brought out all kinds of different opinions. Lately we’ve loved having discussions around books in the MeToo vein – The Power, The Farm, Handmaid’s Tale.
Thanks, Maggie. I haven’t read Midwives yet, but I’ll suggest it to my book groups. Sounds perfect for the kind of conversation I was writing about here. And one of my favorite things about being in a book group is how the fiction we read can feel relevant even decades after it was written—a good thing for writers to keep in mind, too.
I enjoyed your post, Kathleen.
I agree that books that spark controversy or touch a nerve get the conversation flowing. Years back I had recommended We Have Always Lived In The Castle by Shirley Jackson, for my book group. The members overwhelmingly panned the book but what a rich night of discussion followed. It’s about the characters and choices they make. (But it IS a great book, LOL.)
Read & write on!
Hi, Rose! One of my book groups read the Jackson book, too! I wasn’t there for that discussion but I know there were similar strong feelings about the book. And characters and the choices they make are at the heart of every good story, aren’t they? Good luck with your writing.
Great post! In our home, the books that generated the most discussion recently is The Second Mountain by David Brooks (can we really do this when we’re young or must we first go through the ascending the first mountain, which is ego driven, first), When Breath Becomes Air by Paul Kalanithi (gorgeous writing and we each cried separately over how cruel life can be and how he could’ve been surrounded by a larger family had they simply followed God’s plan for babies), and St. Paul’s Letter to the Romans (it’s in the Bible and ooh boy, it’s sobering). I realize these are all nonfiction–but before that we talked about some of Flannery O’Connor’s short stories–she always sparks many discussions and it might also be that we’re all very opinionated :)
Hi, Vijaya, and thank you for your usual thoughtful comments. We’ve had some great talks about non-fiction works, too (Tara Westover’s EDUCATED comes to mind), but I’ve noticed that the things that arouse passionate conversation in fiction (universal themes, characters, their choices, etc.) are the same things that arouse passionate conversation about non-fiction books. (My group couldn’t believe the choices Tara Westover’s parents’ made, and we spent a long time trying to figure out her very complicated and frightening older brother). And Flannery O’Connor is always good for controversy. Happy writing!
I swear every time I take a random dirt road in the country, Flannery O’Connors A Good Man Is Hard to Find comes to mind.
Great post as always, Kathleen. I wish I’d been in your group when you discussed LINCOLN IN THE BARDO, as the ideas of others can open us to things we don’t see in our own reading. Ward’s book has been on my list for a long time. Book Clubs can be fascinating and also disappointing when the chosen book doesn’t appeal to me and yet I feel I must contribute to the discussion and so plow through. A book I must read soon is Elizabeth Strout’s OLIVE AGAIN.
Hi, Beth. Oh, I’ve had the same experience of forcing myself to plow through a book I really didn’t like, because we’d chosen it for book group. But I like reading outside my comfort zone once in a while, and some books are challenging and become fuller and clearer in the context of a group discussion. I’m a firm believer that every book I read makes me a better writer. And I can’t wait to read OLIVE, AGAIN too!
Boy, I think you nailed it.
Is the theme big enough, Does the setting contribute to the action, Are the characters compelling, and Are readers going to differ in their thoughts and feelings about this? Four yeses, it seems to me, constitute a pretty good platform from which to begin a novel. What a checklist for an aspiring author.
Your taste is broader than mine. I also crave a strong voice, you don’t have very many words with which to engage me. And a sense of progression, that it’s going somewhere.
Thank you so much for this. I don’t know if I would ever have articulated it, but it feels right, important. It’s a keeper for trying to improve my own work.
Thanks so much, Bob. I’m glad the column resonated for you. And I agree about craving novels with strong voices; the older I get, the less time I want to spend on books that don’t feel like a feast to me–or at least a satisfying meal. Many thanks for commenting, and good luck with your writing.
I’ve read and loved all the books you’ve read in your book club. My favorite of all of them – Stoner! I keep it near me! Hopefully as a totem of inspiration. I debate different points with different friends as some are more literary than others. My editor laughs at my love of male authors who’ve reached middle age and are assessing their place in life and in the world — Philip Roth, James Salter, Richard Ford, Jim Harrison, Paul Auster and John Williams (Stoner). She says she hates those men! But I write about them, they are at the core of my current WIP
I forgot to mention – the books that freak people out that I love? Lolita, My Absolute Darling, and even the magical and wonderful story, All The Ugly and Wonderful Things by our Bryn Greenwood. It is a love story that transcends time… but some reviews think Wavy was abused… I absolutely do not. Bring that one to Book Club!
Great post, Kathleen. I think the most important of your factors is that they deal with big themes. My rarely unanimous book club loved Stoner; we were surprised at how deeply moved we were by it. That could have ended the discussion right there, but we went on to talk at length about what makes a good life.
The book that we spent the most time discussing in the 25 years I’ve been a member was Ian McEwan’s Antonement. After we got done talking about the story and the characters, and untangling the implications of the structure, we had so much to discuss about the idea of atonement that we had to schedule a second night.
This understanding has certainly influenced my own writing.