The Genius That Is Nick Hornby

Nick Hornby is the type of author who makes me want to write, too. He makes it seem effortless, so I feel like I must be able to do it. How hard can it be, right? Um…hard. To get at raw emotions the way he does, while simultaneously not making you want to slit your wrists is very tricky, indeed. His books rule, but are often made into mediocre films (exception to this rule: About a Boy), such as Fever Pitch and High Fidelity.

One of my favorite books of his is "Songbook," a collection of essays he has written about songs that he loves. 'Songs are what I listen to, almost to the exclusion of everything else. I don't listen to classical music or jazz very often, and when people ask me what music I like, I find it very difficult to reply, because they usually want names of people, and I can only give them song titles.' At one point, he talks about Badly Drawn Boy's "A Minor Incident" that was included in the film About a Boy (based on Hornby's own novel). He discusses how it resonates with his own difficulties in raising his autistic son, and also, how it brings a whole new perspective to the characters in his novel that he hadn't thought of previously.

Badly Drawn Boy - A Minor Incident

His new book, The Polysyllabic Spree, is a collection of essays he writes for The Believer magazine (part of the media I regularly stalk) about books that he is reading, has just read, and may someday read. The collection is awesome, but the best part about it is that all the proceeds are split between two charities: Treehouse, a London-based charity for kids with autism and 826NYC, a Brooklyn-based (like The Believer, and, soon, yours truly) charitable writing center that helps local kids learn to read and write better (they also have adult workshops and seminars on occasion). So, do it for the kids and buy the book! (or just do it for yourself)