Status
Available
Call number
Collection
Publication
Random House (2005), Hardcover, 201 pages
Description
In this delightful memoir, the book critic for NPR's Fresh Air reflects on her life as a professional reader. Maureen Corrigan takes us from her unpretentious girlhood in working-class Queens, to her bemused years in an Ivy League Ph.D. program, from the whirl of falling in love and marrying (a fellow bookworm, of course), to the ordeal of adopting a baby overseas, always with a book at her side. Along the way, she reveals which books and authors have shaped her own life--from classic works of English literature to hard-boiled detective novels, and everything in between. And in her explorations of the heroes and heroines throughout literary history, Corrigan's love for a good story shines.
User reviews
LibraryThing member TimBazzett
I enjoyed this book much more than a couple of other similarly titled books (So Many Books, So Little Time; and Ruined by Reading), which simply did not hold my interest and failed to deliver in regard to unearthing rare classics or more books to read. Corrigan's lists of books at the back of Leave
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Me Alone are a treasure trove for booklovers. I guess my only difficulty with her book was the inordinate amount of space give to the Bronte sisters and Jane Austen, whose books I've tried to read, but have never finished. After reading Corrigan's extrapolations of them as "extreme adventure" type stories for women, I've decided that it's probably not just me; it's a gender thing. The parts I probably enjoyed the most were her more autobiographical revelations, about her parents (a father who loved books and a mother who did not), and her friends growing up in Queens. She also let us into her adult life, telling of the ordeal she and her husband endured in trying repeatedly to have a child and then of the adventure of the successful adoption of their daughter in China. But I also loved the segments of stuff she read throughout her life. Odd to find out that a distinguished scholar and book critic like Corrigan loves mysteries and noir detective stories, and also enjoyed "series" books. Her descriptions of the Beany Malone books that Catholic girls apparently loved from the 40s through the 60s even sounded interesting. Made me think of a few similar books I remember reading somewhat guiltily many years ago, since they were thought to be "girls' books": Mr & Mrs Bojo Jones, and Seventeenth Summer. I was somewhat surprised that we share many "favorite" books. And although she never mentioned it, while reading this book I also thought often of Washington Post book critic Michael Dirda's wonderful memoir of his life-long love affair with books, An Open Book. I think I'll put the two books side-by-side on my to-read-again-someday bookshelf. This was a terrific book. From a confirmed fellow booklover, thanks, Maureen. Show Less
LibraryThing member camcleod
I have to love a book that starts out like this: "It's not that I don't like people. It's just that when I'm in the company of others - even my nearest and dearest - there always comes a moment when I'd rather be reading a book." Yes, Maureen! That's it, exactly.
LibraryThing member SamSattler
I sometimes read while waiting in line amongst strangers for my lunch order to be ready. And on more than one occasion, one of those strangers has asked me what I was reading. Sometimes I find that to be a bit irritating because of the way that it interrupts my whole train of thought, so I kept
I bought the book based almost entirely on that great title because it reminded me of a tee shirt that my wife gave me years ago that had the Archie Goodwin quote, "Go to hell, I'm reading," on the front. Maureen Corrigan has been the NPR Fresh Air book critic for almost twenty years and she writes a mystery column for the Washington Post, so I expected to relate easily to what she had to say about her love of reading and how it affected her life. It didn't quite work out that way, and maybe that's my fault for not reading more of her introduction before heading for the cash register to pay for the book. But I stopped reading the introduction after this first paragraph: "It's not that I don't like people. It's just that when I'm in the company of others - even my nearest and dearest - there always comes a moment when I'd rather be reading a book." How could any avid book reader resist that?
Unfortunately, the book turned out to be a mixture of dry literary criticism and memoir that never seemed to mesh into a whole. Every time the book started to flow, it seemed to be interrupted by pages and pages of thesis-like book criticism or some rather judgmental account of a part of Corrigan's past. I found myself bored much of the time with what read to me as her feminist and ultra-liberal agenda but there were enough gems in the book to keep me reading to the end and it's those that I'll mention here. These are several of the interesting quotes that I marked as I read the book:
"Despite the proliferation of mega-bookstores and neighborhood reading groups, most Americans are indifferent to the lure of literature: in fact, according to a Wall Street Journal article of a few years ago, some 59 percent of Americans don't own a single book."
"I think consciously or not, what we readers do each time we open a book is to set off on a search for authenticity. We want to get closer to the heart of things, and sometimes even a few good sentences contained in an otherwise unexceptional book can crystallize vague feelings, fleeting physical sensations, or, sometimes, profound epiphanies."
"I learned, firsthand, about the void that all devoted readers dread-the void that yawns just past the last page of whatever good book we're currently reading."
"A forgettable book disappoints or merely meets our conscious expectations; unforgettable books take us to places we didn't even suspect existed, places we may not even have wanted to go."
"For all readers, male and female, there is a discrepancy between the possibilities offered by the world of the imagination and the possibilities offered by real life. That's one of the reasons we read fiction: to fantasize about what might be."
"We read literature for a lot of reasons, but two of the most compelling ones are to get out of ourselves and our own life stories and...to find ourselves by understanding our own life stories more clearly in the context of others'."
"...I also think the comfort books offer is qualified. All those voices, all those thoughts, all those reminders of how much there is to read and how little time there is to read it. Mentally and physically, books can be oppressive, even hazardous."
"...Books just don't register with this crowd. They think I lack common sense; I think they lack a part of their soul."
"Book lovers always have to touch books."
There is also an interesting section at the end of the book in which Corrigan lists some of her favorite books. For instance, this list of books that she "never gets tired of rereading":
Lucky Jim by Kingsley Amis
Some Tame Gazelle by Barbara Pym
Pride and Prejudice and Emma by Jane Austen
Shining Through by Susan Isaacs
David Copperfield, Bleak House and Great Expectations by Charles Dickens
The Age of Innocence by Edith Wharton
The Maltese Falcon by Dashiell Hammett
The Big Sleep by Raymond Chandler
The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald
The Book of Daniel by E.L. Doctorow
Little Women by Louisa May Alcott
The Woman Warrior: Memoirs of a Girlhood Among Ghosts by Maxine Hon Kingston
So, despite my general disappointment in the book and the somewhat tedious style in which it is written, I found it to be worth the effort. Since it is written from such a feminist point-of-view, perhaps female readers would find it to be a much better book than the one that I read. But for myself, I'm going to use Corrigan's own words to say that "a forgettable book disappoints or merely meets our conscious expectations." By that definition, Leave Me Alone, I'm Reading is "a forgettable book."
Rated at: 3.0
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waiting for someone to pop that question while I was reading Leave Me Alone, I'm Reading so that I could close the book and show them the cover just to see what kind of reaction I would get. No such luck, but that was not the only disappointment I had with the book.I bought the book based almost entirely on that great title because it reminded me of a tee shirt that my wife gave me years ago that had the Archie Goodwin quote, "Go to hell, I'm reading," on the front. Maureen Corrigan has been the NPR Fresh Air book critic for almost twenty years and she writes a mystery column for the Washington Post, so I expected to relate easily to what she had to say about her love of reading and how it affected her life. It didn't quite work out that way, and maybe that's my fault for not reading more of her introduction before heading for the cash register to pay for the book. But I stopped reading the introduction after this first paragraph: "It's not that I don't like people. It's just that when I'm in the company of others - even my nearest and dearest - there always comes a moment when I'd rather be reading a book." How could any avid book reader resist that?
Unfortunately, the book turned out to be a mixture of dry literary criticism and memoir that never seemed to mesh into a whole. Every time the book started to flow, it seemed to be interrupted by pages and pages of thesis-like book criticism or some rather judgmental account of a part of Corrigan's past. I found myself bored much of the time with what read to me as her feminist and ultra-liberal agenda but there were enough gems in the book to keep me reading to the end and it's those that I'll mention here. These are several of the interesting quotes that I marked as I read the book:
"Despite the proliferation of mega-bookstores and neighborhood reading groups, most Americans are indifferent to the lure of literature: in fact, according to a Wall Street Journal article of a few years ago, some 59 percent of Americans don't own a single book."
"I think consciously or not, what we readers do each time we open a book is to set off on a search for authenticity. We want to get closer to the heart of things, and sometimes even a few good sentences contained in an otherwise unexceptional book can crystallize vague feelings, fleeting physical sensations, or, sometimes, profound epiphanies."
"I learned, firsthand, about the void that all devoted readers dread-the void that yawns just past the last page of whatever good book we're currently reading."
"A forgettable book disappoints or merely meets our conscious expectations; unforgettable books take us to places we didn't even suspect existed, places we may not even have wanted to go."
"For all readers, male and female, there is a discrepancy between the possibilities offered by the world of the imagination and the possibilities offered by real life. That's one of the reasons we read fiction: to fantasize about what might be."
"We read literature for a lot of reasons, but two of the most compelling ones are to get out of ourselves and our own life stories and...to find ourselves by understanding our own life stories more clearly in the context of others'."
"...I also think the comfort books offer is qualified. All those voices, all those thoughts, all those reminders of how much there is to read and how little time there is to read it. Mentally and physically, books can be oppressive, even hazardous."
"...Books just don't register with this crowd. They think I lack common sense; I think they lack a part of their soul."
"Book lovers always have to touch books."
There is also an interesting section at the end of the book in which Corrigan lists some of her favorite books. For instance, this list of books that she "never gets tired of rereading":
Lucky Jim by Kingsley Amis
Some Tame Gazelle by Barbara Pym
Pride and Prejudice and Emma by Jane Austen
Shining Through by Susan Isaacs
David Copperfield, Bleak House and Great Expectations by Charles Dickens
The Age of Innocence by Edith Wharton
The Maltese Falcon by Dashiell Hammett
The Big Sleep by Raymond Chandler
The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald
The Book of Daniel by E.L. Doctorow
Little Women by Louisa May Alcott
The Woman Warrior: Memoirs of a Girlhood Among Ghosts by Maxine Hon Kingston
So, despite my general disappointment in the book and the somewhat tedious style in which it is written, I found it to be worth the effort. Since it is written from such a feminist point-of-view, perhaps female readers would find it to be a much better book than the one that I read. But for myself, I'm going to use Corrigan's own words to say that "a forgettable book disappoints or merely meets our conscious expectations." By that definition, Leave Me Alone, I'm Reading is "a forgettable book."
Rated at: 3.0
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LibraryThing member hlselz
When I picked up this book, I thought it was going to be amazing. On the contrary, overall it was somewhat pompous and dull. Corrigan does have some really good passages talking about how being an avid reader all her life has helped her get through many trials; the adoption of her child from China,
Corrigen lighty touches on the idea of how we can better understand and experience our own lives, by relating to the lives of charectors from books. This is a topic in which I was hoping she would divuldge more into. But alas, no.
Overall, an ok read. There is a pretty good booklist at the end though.
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the dealth of, and later the search for rememberence of her father, and her Irish Catholic upbringing. Scattered around these gems though, is the sometimes short, but mostly long, critiques of her favorite books. Not only are the books to often analyzed to death, (especially for being such a light hearted memoir) but she also gives away the entire plots of some stories.Corrigen lighty touches on the idea of how we can better understand and experience our own lives, by relating to the lives of charectors from books. This is a topic in which I was hoping she would divuldge more into. But alas, no.
Overall, an ok read. There is a pretty good booklist at the end though.
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LibraryThing member looneydame
This isn't a review, but my some great quotes from the book. (If this is inappropriate or unwelcome, I trust a more seasoned library thing user will set me straight.)
“…books can give us readers some understanding of the boundaries of our own identities and [they can] make us less afraid of
“The semicolon is my psychological metaphor, my mascot. It’s the punctuation mark that qualifies, hesitates, and ties together ideas and parts of a life that shoot off in different directions” (xxxi).
“Among the many dangers of being an obsessive reader is that you tend to mediate your life through books, filter your experiences through plots, so that the boundary between fiction and fact becomes porous” (1).
“…books can give us readers some understanding of the boundaries of our own identities and [they can] make us less afraid of
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moving back and forth across those boundaries into other stories, other lives” (xxii).“The semicolon is my psychological metaphor, my mascot. It’s the punctuation mark that qualifies, hesitates, and ties together ideas and parts of a life that shoot off in different directions” (xxxi).
“Among the many dangers of being an obsessive reader is that you tend to mediate your life through books, filter your experiences through plots, so that the boundary between fiction and fact becomes porous” (1).
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LibraryThing member alaskabookworm
I'm a sucker for any book about books. This one, though, disappointed, perhaps because it got a bit too highbrow, and she wrote so much about the mystery genre, which I have little interest in. The book just plain bored me. Instead, read the wonderful books: "Ex Libris" by Anne Fadiman and "So Many
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Books, So Little Time," by Sara Nelson. Show Less
LibraryThing member LouCypher
Superb writing skills are definetely one of her skills, but I found some parts to be dreadfully dry and had to force my way through them. The best thing about the book would definetely be that I learned of about a hundred new books I would like to read from this book.
LibraryThing member bellalibrarian
I wasn't able to make it all the way through this book. I enjoyed the main idea of the book and picked it up because I would always rather be reading; however, I found my mind wandering after the first 50 pages or so. I enjoyed Corrigan's personal stories regarding her experiences with books as
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opposed to her theories. Show Less
LibraryThing member delphica
(#10 in the 2008 book challenge)
NPR fans may know Corrigan from her book commentaries. This is a nicely rambling and chatty series of essays looking at how the books one reads and the events of one's life become intertwined. This was a joy to read -- first, because I think it's easy for fiction
Grade: A-
Recommended: To people who enjoy Maureen Corrigan on NPR. Also, in a strange but pleasing combination, 20th century mystery fiction (esp. American hardboiled) and Beany Malone books (1950s series for teen girls) both get a lot of attention. She also tackles one of my own pet issues, class and education in the US.
NPR fans may know Corrigan from her book commentaries. This is a nicely rambling and chatty series of essays looking at how the books one reads and the events of one's life become intertwined. This was a joy to read -- first, because I think it's easy for fiction
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readers to relate to the issues Corrigan explores, and second, I've happened to have read nearly every book Corrigan addresses. This is somewhat rare, even among the rabid reader set. Usually, when authors talk about their favorite or most influential books, there are always plenty that I'm not familiar with. The plus side of that is it often provides excellent recommendations for future reading. But on the other hand, the fun of reading a book like this while knowing and liking all the plots and characters cited is that you feel as if it's an exclusive party of people who share your own excellent taste. In real life, I try to self-edit (somewhat) and not wax too crazily poetic over books that I have reread multiple times. Reading this book was like being given free reign to wallow in my own memories of first discovering Harriet Vane and staying up all night to read about the trials and tribulations of Karen Killilea. Corrigan does combine her own personal stories and anecdotes with more standard academic literary criticism, but I found that aspect satisfying -- this isn't a fluffy "here's a bunch of things to read before you die" list. It brought back rather fond memories of grad school -- the paradoxical kind because part of what makes them fond is the fact that you're not in grad school anymore.Grade: A-
Recommended: To people who enjoy Maureen Corrigan on NPR. Also, in a strange but pleasing combination, 20th century mystery fiction (esp. American hardboiled) and Beany Malone books (1950s series for teen girls) both get a lot of attention. She also tackles one of my own pet issues, class and education in the US.
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LibraryThing member butterflybaby
This book is actually a collection of essays so it was easy to put down and pick back up.
The title and the introduction were what connected me with this book. I was able to use the essays in this book to pick out a few books I might not have otherwise picked up.
The title and the introduction were what connected me with this book. I was able to use the essays in this book to pick out a few books I might not have otherwise picked up.
LibraryThing member tobiejonzarelli
Maureen Corrigan, book critic/host for NPR's Fresh Air, professor and author opens her debut novel with, "It's not that I don't like people. It's just that when I'm in the company of others - even my nearest and dearest - there always comes a moment when I'd rather be reading a book." and from that
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moment on I was hooked. This memoir resonated with me throughout its pages, how many times have I hated to come up for air when someone around me interfered with my newest find! As its pages progressed I found myself identifying more and more with Corrigan. We learn of her Irish Catholic background, her love of hard boiled detective fiction, female extreme adventure stories, and her childhood book list list including Catholic martyr tales. There is no literary snobbery to be found here, in fact she often pokes fun at her graduate school memories. If you too are a bookaholic this is a gem! It is a rumination of her lifelong obsession with books that I found at times, both appealing and original. What books did she pack for her trip to China, what books did she pass on to her father, what books influenced her education? For the answer to these questions, you too will need to take a trip with Corrigan! Show Less
LibraryThing member Rincey
This book only really works if you've read the books this author talked about. Otherwise it can get kind of lame.
LibraryThing member Marliesd
The author is the book critic on NPR's Fresh Air and a lit. prof. at Georgetown. She's good.
LibraryThing member readallday
I did not enjoy this book as much as I thought I would. I bought the book primarily because of the title...very catchy for avid readers... and was a little disappointed. Some parts seem to go on and on about the same subject matter. But it does have it moments.
LibraryThing member glade1
Finished this one yesterday. It was a fun look at one reader's life, and it caused me to spend some time thinking about how literature has affected my own life. Her chapter discussing the stories she read in childhood and how they might have shaped her was interesting. I've always been a reader but
Her final words in this book resonate with me:
Such is the power of words, of writing, of books. Words can summon up a skyline from the dark; they can bring back the people you loved and will always yearn for. They can inspire you with possibilities you otherwise would never have imagined; they can fill your head with misleading fantasies. They can give you back your seemingly seamless past and place it right alongside your chaotic present.
"But that only happens in books," my mother, pretty much immune to the power of the written word, would say.
Exactly. That's why I can't stop reading them.
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have surprisingly not really stopped to think how literature might have shaped my character. I don't usually feel that I have been actually changed by books, but it is likely impossible not to be influenced by what you read.Her final words in this book resonate with me:
Such is the power of words, of writing, of books. Words can summon up a skyline from the dark; they can bring back the people you loved and will always yearn for. They can inspire you with possibilities you otherwise would never have imagined; they can fill your head with misleading fantasies. They can give you back your seemingly seamless past and place it right alongside your chaotic present.
"But that only happens in books," my mother, pretty much immune to the power of the written word, would say.
Exactly. That's why I can't stop reading them.
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LibraryThing member tjsjohanna
I liked the premise of this book and the way the author connected key books and genres to her own life experiences. On the other hand, I found the structure too loose - there wasn't a very discernible pattern to theme or topic. And the author didn't discuss all that many books, considering the
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length of the book. I did enjoy some of the evaluations Ms. Corrigan made of the books she did discuss. Show Less
LibraryThing member lycomayflower
Professor, NPR book critic, and bibliophile Maureen Corrigan discusses the books that have been important to her, dividing her choices into three categories: women's extreme-adventure stories, stories about work (including interesting considerations of detective novels), and Catholic martyr
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stories. Corrigan's discussions are fascinating and insightful, and she discusses how these books informed her life well. Recommended to anyone who enjoys books about books or the reading life. Show Less
LibraryThing member libmhleigh
Corrigan speaks about her life as an avid reader, focusing on three topics in literature: female extreme adventure stories (including her own story of adopting a daughter from China), detective stories, and Catholic martyr tales.
I started out really liking this book, but it ended up driving me
I started out really liking this book, but it ended up driving me
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insane, The good parts were that Corrigan is an entertaining writer and I got to write lots of titles on my “to read�Â? list. The bad things were that the memoir aspect of the book and the literary criticism aspect seemed forced together- not at all seamless. Additionally, the author at times seems very self-important- she was astute enough to see the good in âÂÂhard boiledâÂ? detective stories, she was enlightened enough to marry a Jewish man and adopt a daughter from China, she is a radio celebrity (I didnâÂÂt even know we had those anymore). Yes, yes, weâÂÂre all very impressed. Show Less
LibraryThing member BookConcierge
NPR's Fresh Air book critic fails miserably at this autobiography/memoir. I couldn't get past page 50 .... and I had to force myself to get that far. I only tried because a friend whose opinion I value loaned me the book. Read too much like an academic treatise; I didn't get the passion for books
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that I was expecting. Show Less
Language
Original publication date
2005-09-06
Physical description
201 p.; 9.3 inches
ISBN
0375504257 / 9780375504259
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