Author of the Day: Philip Roth

Philip Roth was born in 1933 in New Jersey, the setting of many of his books. His personal life was often fodder for his fiction, particularly his books chronicling the lives of 20th-Century American Jews. He created an alter-ego in Nathan Zucherman, the protagonist in nine novels. Another trilogy features college professor David Kepesh as the main character. Roth passed away in May 2018 at the age of 85.

Roth is a personal favorite. I intend to read all of his books. Those I have read so far are in red. Those currently on my TBR shelf are in blue.

Goodbye, Columbus: And Five Other Short Stories (1959) (National Book Award winner; reviewed here)

Letting Go (1962)

When She Was Good (1967)

Portnoy's Complaint (1969) (Modern Library’s Top 100 list)

Our Gang (1971)

The Breast (1972) (Kepesh)

The Great American Novel (1973)

My Life As a Man (1974) (proto-Zuckerman)

Reading Myself and Others (1976)

The Professor of Desire (1977) (Kepesh)

The Ghost Writer (1979) (Zuckerman)

Zuckerman Unbound (1981) (Zuckerman)

The Anatomy Lesson (1983) (Zuckerman)

The Prague Orgy (1985) (Zuckerman)

The Counterlife (1986) (Zuckerman) (National Book Critics Circle Award winner)

The Facts: A Novelist's Autobiography (1988) (nonfiction)

Deception (1990)

Patrimony: A True Story (1991) (nonfiction)

Operation Shylock: A Confession (1993)

Sabbath's Theater (1995) (National Book Award winner)

American Pastoral (1997) (Zuckerman) (Pulitzer Prize winner)

I Married a Communist (1998) (Zuckerman)

The Human Stain (2000) (Zuckerman) (reviewed here)

Shop Talk (2001) (nonfiction)

The Dying Animal (2001) (Kepesh)

The Plot Against America (2004) (reviewed here)

Everyman (2006)

Exit Ghost (2007) (Zuckerman)

Indignation (2008)

The Humbling (2009)

Nemesis (2010)

NOTES

Last updated May 23, 2018.

Teaser Tuesday: Goodbye, Columbus

"Surely, I thought, the Messiah himself -- if He should ever come -- won't niggle over nickels and dimes. God willing, he'll hug and kiss." -- From "Defender of the Faith" in Goodbye, Columbus: and Five Short Stories by Philip Roth. There is reason why Roth is considered the chronicler of 20th Century American Jewish life. And why he won the National Book Award for this, his first book. I can't believe that this gem has been sitting unread on my shelf for so long. Teaser Tuesdays is hosted by Should Be Reading, where you can find the official rules for this weekly event. .

Challenge Update: Battle of the Prizes

. J.G. from the super-duper Hotch Pot Cafe blog is the first one to complete the Sunshine Smackdown: Battle of the Prizes challenge. Congratulations, J.G.! And thank you so much for participating in the first Rose City Reader challenge. Having such talented reviewers participate made the challenge so much fun for me. The challenge runs through Labor Day, so there is still plenty of time to get your reviews in. Please remember to leave a link to your reviews on the main challenge page or on any of the update posts, including this one. I am halfway through Philip Roth's Goodbye, Columbus, my National Book Award pick, so will get my third review posted shortly. The three books J.G. read for the challenge are listed below, with links to her reviews. The rest of the reviews by participants are linked on the main challenge page. Olive Kitteridge (J.G.'s Pulitzer choice) The Great Fire (her National choice) The Fixer (her double dipper) .

Mailbox Monday

It is not a long Mailbox Monday list, but thanks once again to Reading Local, I had some mad money to spend on books last week. I used my contest winnings at one of my favorite local bookstores, Daedalus Books in Northwest Portland. I picked up two more P. G. Wodehouse books from the "Collector's Wodehouse" series, Doctor Sally and Nothing Serious. And Vagabond by Colette, which is on my French Connection list. .

Opening Sentence of the Day: Goodbye, Columbus

"The first time I saw Brenda she asked me to hold her glasses." -- Goodbye, Columbus and Five Short Stories by Philip Roth This is Roth's first book and is my National Book Award pick for the Battle of the Prizes Challenge. .