I never finished A Heartbreaking Work -- I think he's a great writer but he's way too self-indulgent for me.

Sounds like an interesting premise, though.

Here’s my Goodreads review if you’re interested: [link]

I do think it’s worth reading; just be prepared to dislike the protagonist.

I like Eggers in theory but in practice, I kinda want to smack him.

I always thought he was a better book designer than a writer. Still, I loved AHWOSG. More often than not, I can't make it through his other books.

If you are reading Hild, there's a glossary: [link]

Anyone who's interested in British murder mysteries should look up the BBC documentary A Very British Murder, which is on YouTube. It's a 3 part series covering British fascination with murder from the 17th century, and how murder mystery fiction has developed. Lucy Worsley is a great host. Her interview with P.D. James is fascinating, and there's a tape recording of Agatha Christie mulling over plots.

edit: And now she's talking about Dorothy Sayers! And the skull Eric (or Erica).

Thank you! This sounds awesome.

OK, suggestions, anyone--how do I get rid of most of my hardcopy books? I really need to not have so many bookshelves full of books. But while I can and will just donate many of the thrillers and romances, some of the rest...well, a few I already have ebooks of, because they were cheap, or because I forgot I owned them (..also why I have two copies of some hardcopy!). I feel like there are definitely some books I want to keep for making me happy (...or the hardbacks, because damnit, I spent money on those). But ebooks are not as convenient as CDs when it comes to digitizing. What to do? Do I just decide to get rid of large swaths of my books, and figure if I miss it, I'll buy it on kindle, and if I don't, I didn't need it anyway?

Your last sentence is mostly what I do. I also look at my local library's ebook selection before donating: if they have it I figure I can always get it that way if I want to read it again. I really try to only keep books I may want to expose to others or fit the "may want to reread during a simple browse at any moment" kind of happy makers. Which for me means I keep more silly fantasy books than I keep truly great books, because if I am desperately browsing for a reread I am looking for visceral pleasure.

I barely keep any books in hard copy or ebooks (which I primarily get from the library) at this point. For the books I buy in hardcopy, I take them to school where they disappear into the ether. I figure I won't re-read and if I do, I can get it at the library.