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Schumacher Literary Hall of Fame

Here is a list of fiction writers who are among my personal favorites (with a representative book listed alongside). These are not the usual suspects, but some of the lesser-known writers I like. Richard Yates, "Revolutionary Road"; John Fante, "Ask the Dust"; Nelson Algren, "The Man with the Golden Arm"; Frederick Exley, "A Fan's Notes"; Charles Portis, "The Dog of the South"; John Williams, "Stoner"; Patrick Hamilton, "Hangover Square"; Richard Russo, "Empire Falls"; Richard Ford, "The Sportswriter"; Don DeLillo, "White Noise"; Jim Harrison, "True North"; Raymond Carver, "Will You Please Be Quiet, Please?"; Willy Vlautin, "The Motel Life"; Michael Chabon, "The Wonder Boys"; Ian McEwan, "Atonement"; Colson Whitehead, "John Henry Days"; Orhan Pamuk, "Snow"; Junot Diaz, "The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao"; Avram Davidson, "Vergil in Averno"

Recent reading: recommended fiction

The Secret of Lost Things (2006), Sheridan Hay; Absurdistan (2006), Gary Shteyngart; Five Skies (2007), Ron Carlson; Citizen Vince (2005), Jess Walter; On Chesil Beach (2007), Ian McEwan; We're in Trouble (2005), Christopher Coake; Returning to Earth (2007), Jim Harrison; The Lay of the Land (2006), Richard Ford

My profile

Geoff Schumacher

What's a dogsbody?

It's British slang for "a worker who has to do all the unpleasant or boring jobs that no one else wants to do."

October 2005



A recommendation: "The Memory of Running"

Thu, 10/27/05 8:38 P GMT-08
You might remember hearing about Ron McLarty. He's the guy whose unpublished novel received a rave review from Stephen King in his Entertainment Weekly column. Suddenly, the New York publishing houses were in a bidding war for the book. "The Memory o

2,000 and counting

Wed, 10/26/05 6:46 A GMT-08
Probably as I was writing my last blog entry about the likelihood of seeing the 2,000th American death in Iraq very soon, it happened: The military announced three more deaths, eclipsing the 2,000 threshold. Sen. John Kerry, meanwhile, says we sho

Deaths

Tue, 10/25/05 7:05 A GMT-08
Within the next few days, we likely will see the 2,000th American killed in Iraq. This is roughly the same number that died in the terrorist attacks on the twin towers.

Gibson simplifies things

Sun, 10/23/05 1:15 P GMT-08
The Las Vegas Gleaner reports that Democratic gubernatorial candidate Jim Gibson revealed on Jon Ralston's cable TV show that he's solidly pro-life. This puts him in stark contrast with his primary opponent, state Sen. Dina Titus, and with a large ma

World Series

Thu, 10/20/05 7:01 A GMT-08
It will be the Chicago White Sox vs. the Houston Astros in the World Series. This is not what you'd call a marquee matchup. Not a lot of big-name players involved. But I like it. I hate the Yankees, for one thing, so I'm always glad when they're not

A matter of perspective

Mon, 10/17/05 7:10 A GMT-08
It's worth noting, I think, that the death and devastation caused by Hurricane Katrina in Louisiana and Mississippi pales in comparison to the effects of the recent earthquake in northern Pakistan and Kashmir. The death toll from the hurricane curren
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Dems in ’06

Thu, 10/13/05 7:58 A GMT-08
The New York Times reports today that national Democrats are increasingly optimistic about their chances of regaining majorities in the House and Senate in 2006. Is the public so disenchanted with President Bush and the Republican leadership that th
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Goodman for governor?

Wed, 10/05/05 7:16 P GMT-08
The Las Vegas Sun reported today that Las Vegas Mayor Oscar Goodman has the best chance among potential Democratic candidates to defeat GOP frontrunner Jim Gibbons. Goodman, who has not publicly professed a desire to run, would do better than likely

Titus vs. the conservative tide

Tue, 10/04/05 7:16 A GMT-08
Dina Titus, UNLV political science professor, author and state Senate minority leader, is the frontrunner for the Democratic nomination for Nevada governor. She is expected to face a stiff primary challenge from well-connected Henderson Mayor Jim Gib
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My news of the day

Sat, 10/01/05 3:11 P GMT-08
Thanks to my good friend Bryan, I now have a website at www.geoffschumacher.com. It's a great-looking site and I hope it will be useful to me as an author, public speaker, etc. If you look at the site and see any problems -- besides that it's all abo
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