There are so many books about books out there and I love them all. What I particularly enjoyed about this title was that the authors interviewed weren’t the usual authors included in collections like this and neither were the books they spoke about. It was a refreshing look and some new titles went on my TBR!

Despite having her own doll and being the most famous librarian not in government, I was underwhelmed by this title

You can not go wrong with Nancy Pearl and this one is no exception. For anyone who loves books, this is a treasure. A chance to hear from favorite and new writers on who they love and how they were shaped by authors and books.

I love books about books, especially when they explore what works influenced authors. This is a good compendium of such works. Just be careful, or your tbr list may double.

I'm currently clearing out all of the books that were published in 2019-20 from my title feedback view!

In "The Writer's Library," Nancy Pearl and Jeff Schwager interview more than twenty American authors about their reading habits from childhood until the present day. Jonathan Lethem, Jennifer Egan, T. C. Boyle, Susan Choi, Michael Chabon, Louise Erdrich, Dave Eggers, Viet Thanh Nguyen, Charles Johnson, Donna Tartt, and others weigh in who influenced them (usually parents, librarians, and teachers), and which books captivated them over the years. In addition, the interviewees weigh in on the role of politics, race, and other social issues in literature; the ways in which accomplished novelists and poets use language creatively to touch, delight, and amaze their readers; and some of the titles that these authors acquired for their personal library collections.

This book will appeal, for the most part, to fans of literary fiction and poetry. However, even those who prefer light fare may appreciate the interviewees' enthusiasm for literature that "blows their minds." (Some variation of: "Such and such a work blew my mind" appears many times in these pages.) Furthermore, the authors explain to Nancy and Jeff why, for them, writing is not a vocation, but a passion. It is not surprising that quite a few individuals represented in "The Writer's Library" teach creative writing to college and graduate students.

At a time when literacy is threatened, clear thinking is mocked, truth is endangered, and sincerity is scorned, we need influential people to strengthen our core American values. How inspiring it is that Pearl and Schwager have elicited so many eloquent and profound remarks from brilliant and productive men and women about books that have served as their guiding lights. For those of us who are obsessed with reading, "our books are truly alive—on our shelves, on our desks, but most of all in our minds."

I enjoyed reading the interviews with the wide variety of authors included in this book (most of whom I've read at least something by). It's always fun to know what a writer (especially a well-known one) likes and was influenced by. And as a fellow librarian, I'm always interested in anything Nancy Pearl is involved in. Really enjoyed this book.

This was a different type of book for Nancy Pearl. I am a big fan of hers. It was certainly a different approach to authors views on books. I was able to add a few more titles to by tbr list.

Any book about writing will tell you that if you want to be a better writer you need to read more. In The Writer's Library: The Authors You Love on the Books That Changed Their Lives, Nancy Pearl and Jeff Schwager interview 23 writers about their favorite books and which ones influenced them the most.

When I pick up a book by my favorite authors, I don't really think who THEIR favorite authors are as well. It was so interesting to read these interviews. Pearl and Schwager ask very interesting questions to authors like Donna Tartt, Jennifer Egan, and Richard Ford, who in turn, provide thought-provoking answers. At the end of each interview is a list of many of the books mentioned in the interview, making it easy to put them on your own reading list.

I came away inspired to read not only many of these authors' works but also the books they recommended. I, for one, wholeheartedly recommend this to those who love books about books.

MY RATING - 4

I am a big fan of Nancy Pearl and anything that she is involved in.

This book is a book lovers dream as it is writers talking about the books they grew up reading and about their families.

It was so interesting to see that some authors did not grow up reading or in a family that read. Many had no influence to write and just decided that they loved books so much they were going to write one. Others were influenced by teachers and that was such a special thing to read about. Quite a few of the authors had parents or a parent that was a reader and helped them foster their love of books and writing. One of the major themes was the role that the library played, which I just love as I'm a huge library fan.

I highly recommend this book if you love reading and reading books about reading. It lit something in my soul and I ended up with a whole list of new book recommendations from the authors of books they loved. It was wonderful!!

This book features interviews with writers, in which they are asked about their own reading and libraries, and how reading affected their authorship. A brief introduction is included with each interview, describing key facts about the author who is being interviewed. The essays are written in question and answer style, which for me became tedious after awhile. The conceptual framework for the book is a good one, but I did not recognize most of the authors, nor was I familiar with some of the books they described. Readers who are interested in finding out more about authors and their connections to reading, and how their reading lives support their writing lives, will most likely find this work worth a look.

I received this book from the publisher and from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. The opinions expressed here are entirely my own.

I haven't read a book of interviews in a while, so this was refreshing. Nancy Pearl and Jeff Schwager introduce the reader to twenty-three authors by way of formal (and, at times, less formal) interviews. Admittedly, I skimmed some of the interviews that were long-winded or less interesting, but I also learned a lot about authors I didn't know well or hadn't heard of before. Standout interviews include Laila Lalami, Maaza Mengiste, and Viet Thanh Nguyen. Those who love Donna Tartt will be delighted by her brief (and unorthodox) email interview.

A good collection of interviews and interesting writers. I found it hard to connect with some of the literary references that were made but I was able to add quite a few new books and authors to my to-read list. I think I just didn't connect with the interview style of the book. I definitely recommend this book to anyone who is interested in the reading lives of authors.

While I found it interesting to hear writers talk about their reading life and favorite books, I had a few issues with this book: first, it often came across as pretentious, especially when the author being interviewed crapped on a particular book or author and the interviewers (Nancy Pearl and Jeff Schwager) just piled on. Second, I wasn't familiar with some of the authors being interviewed, so it would've been nice to include more of an introduction to each one - a statement on why Nancy and Jeff chose that author for the book. That said, I really did enjoy hearing about the writers' reading habits from childhood on, and I now have a whole list of books to add to my TBR list.

THE WRITER'S LIBRARY by Nancy Pearl and Jeff Schwager is subtitled "The Authors You Love on the Books That Changed Their Lives." I thought this title might be a source of inspiration for my students and a useful reference for reading promotion. Sadly, it felt like the opposite: the interviews conducted by well-known and respected librarian Nancy Pearl and Jeff Schwager seemed much more like an elite gossip fest amongst reading aficionados. Mostly, interviewers and interviewees seemed to participate in a kind of "one-upmanship," as they name title after title. Often the works mentioned, although by well-known authors, were more obscure titles which are not in most high school library collections. If you love to read and challenge yourself (after all, THE WRITER'S LIBRARY was a LibraryReads selection for September and had a starred review from Booklist), this might be a fit for you; otherwise, skip it to look instead for writings by those interviewed (T.C. Boyle, Louise Erdrich, Viet Thanh Nguyen, and so on, many of which are actually part of our curriculum).

Really enjoyed the peak into authors' minds, though this was more of a personal enjoyment read versus something I would add to my school library's collection. Would probably recommend it to any of my particularly avid readers, but only if they liked memoirs.

Write all the books about books you can, I will read them. All of them. Nancy Pearl teams up with Jeff Schwager to interview 23 mostly well-known authors about their reading lives. Most people know Nancy Pearl as the world's librarian and model for the iconic shushing librarian action figure, along with being the author of readers advisory books like Book Lust: Recommended Reading for Every Mood, Moment, and Reason. Jeff Schwager is less known to me but because the chapters in this book are transcribed interviews, I know he likes Philip Roth and Denis Johnson, and that right there tells you a lot about a person.

The best part of books like this is that I come away with more books I want to read - some I already know I want to read, or have had lingering on my shelves; a few I'd never heard of, a few I felt more interested in reading after hearing what the writer had to say about it (or sometimes, the interviewers.) There is a slight warning I feel I should give - the two interviewers are exuberant about books and outnumber the people they are interviewing. And since the chapters are transcriptions rather than narratives, you can see them cutting people off - I feel they would beg your forgiveness and hope you see it in the light of shared delight rather than competing interests. That is the spirit I have chosen to see it (otherwise it might be annoying.)

A lot of writers share some major authors who have influenced them, often some of the greats, and part of me believes that sometimes we say these authors because we think we should. I'm more interested in the unique books or writers that inspired people. I loved hearing about Amor Towles' project-based book club (wow) and Dave Eggers' experiences as a publisher.

I don't think this will take away from the experience of reading these interviews, so I will share the books I've added (or confirmed) on my list:

From Nancy Pearl's comments:
The Nowhere City by Alison Lurie (in conversation with Jonathan Lethem)
The Lotus Eaters by Tatjana Soli (in conversation with Viet Thanh Nguyen)
A Dangerous Friend by Ward Just, but only after reading The Quiet American by Graham Greene...(in conversation with Viet Thanh Nguyen, but I have Ward on my radar from Thomas O.)

From Laila Lalami:
[book of poetry from Tahar Ben Jelloun that doesn't seem to exist in English! darn!]
A House for Mr Biswas by V.S. Naipaul

From Luis Alberto Urrea:
Beautiful Losers by Leonard Cohen
In the Valleys of the Noble Beyond: In Search of the Sasquatch by John Zada

From Jennifer Egan:
Domestic Manners of the Americans by Fanny Trollope
The House of Mirth by Edith Wharton (mentioned by others as well)
Night Shift by Maritta Wolff

From T.C. Boyle:
Outside Looking In by T.C. Boyle (oh this is from his intro)
Lucky Jim by Kingsley Amis (I bought this last year for the Back to Classics challenge for a comic novel and never read it)

From Andrew Sean Greer:
Travels with My Aunt by Graham Greene

From Madeline Miller:
Like Life by Lorrie Moore

From Maaza Mengiste (whose book The Shadow King is currently on my stack):
Ragtime by E.L. Doctorow
Trieste by Daša Drndić

From Amor Towles:
Where Shall Wisdom Be Found? by Harold Bloom
Middlemarch by George Eliot (mentioned by others)
The Raj Quartet by Paul Scott

From Louise Erdrich:
Hope Against Hope by Nadezhda Mandelstam
Nightwood by Djuna Barnes (sitting on my Kindle, mentioned by others)

From Dave Eggers:
Herzog by Saul Bellow (I've never had him explained to me!)
Shadows on the Rock by Willa Cather (he claims it is her best...)
Pale Fire by Vladimir Nabokov (on my shelf!)

From Laurie Frankel:
American War by Omar El Akkad (most mentions I see are lukewarm but her feelings were very strong... I have this on my shelf)

From Siri Hustvedt:
Maybe Esther: A Family Story by Katja Petrowskaja
Pain by Zeruya Shalev
Book of Mutter by Kate Zambreno

From Vendela Vida:
Conversations with Friends by Sally Rooney (I've meant to get to this forever!)

The Writer's Library by Nancy Pearl and Jeff Schwager is a book of interviews with twenty-three living literary authors about their favorite books, books that inspired and impacted their lives, and what they keep on their bookshelves. This entertaining read is likely to add a few books to your TBR!

Something of a "gift book" that I suspect will be popular at Christmas, but this has a little more substance than the usual book of that type. I may have to reread Watership Down because so many authors mentioned it! There are a wide variety of authors interviewed, and I enjoyed even the ones I was unfamiliar with. It's a light little book, but I think people will enjoy it.

As a librarian, I love anything Nancy Pearl is a part of! This book is no exception. I also loved the opening by Susan Orlean (another one of my favorites). It provides such insight into who writers really are and who they were before they were known for their writing. Highly inspirational for those who seek to be writers in the future as well.