There are some writers who, at the same time as delivering a great story, do it using language so evocative, pure and sometimes even lyrical, that they are a true delight to read. These are our literary chicks.
| Books that Made the Noughties |
| by Ellen Bashford
At the end of a decade people always try to summarise what it was all about. What was the defining moment? The most memorable occasion? The darkest hour? Was it the age of celebrity, information, technology? (my vote will not be going to technology, making things that already exist smaller does not count – we should be going to work in flying pods by now, owned by apple and called iFly) History, however, remembers what people wrote down, or at least it used to, so where does the literary world feature in the great Noughties? To the delight of Chick lit fans, this decade has certainly been one for girl power. We’ve seen the plights of Tudors, Vampires, wizards, Princesses and struggling shopaholics, and actually been able to relate to them. A few years ago, who’d have thought that vampires would mean more than ideas for Halloween costumes, but now? They’re everywhere thanks to Stephenie Meyer, and the thousands of people who have been trying to jump on the ‘Vampire bandwagon’. Pale is cool again, lace is back in fashion and people who live in small, rainy towns feel a little better about themselves (go Britain). People like Lauren Weisberger and Sophie Kinsella have re-vamped classic chick lit to be more glamorous, more humorous and more outrageous. Instead of girl meets boy, we now have girl meets shoe, girl meets dragon lady and girl meets superstardom. Audrey Niffenegger takes the portrayal of the abandoned wife to new levels in ‘The Time Traveler’s Wife.’ While the idea of Time Travel drives the novel, it is everything else that resonates with the reader. J.K. Rowling gets her own paragraph. A women who can get people to camp outside a book store, sell more than 400 million copies on an idea she has on the train, well she owns the decade. Jealous literary people call her books ‘unsophisticated’ and some have even tried to claim that she stole the idea from a selection of popular books, but until she gets down for plagiarism I applaud her, the magic in her books is only a small portion of the magic of her success, although in the future she wants to write under a pseudonym, so keep an eye out for in the Cafes of Edinburgh. Romance has even, one might say, stepped down as the main antagonist to make way for books such as My Sister’s Keeper. Jodi Picoult’s book about the struggles of a family in extreme circumstances, opened all our eyes to maybe not think our lives were absolute hell when the kids are arguing over who should set the table. Philippa Gregory took us back in time with ‘The Other Boleyn Girl’ and I simply must mention Elizabeth Kostova’s book ‘The Historian’, as one of the most complex, intellectual and believable tales of the truth about Dracula, if you are on the bandwagon then you have to read this. A chilling tale of the daughter of a Historian as she grows up in a world where the past does not stay put. With more twists than a New York pretzel, fact and fiction merge perfectly to the point where you can’t tell what is what, so simply except all as fact. The men too, are joining us with tragic romance novels like Ian McEwan’s ‘Atonement’, so great a tear jerker that they should give you a free box of tissues with each purchase. We have also seen great talent rising from the east. Khaled Hosseini’s ‘The Kite Runner’ portrays the Afghan people in a new light, especially considering western involvement in this country for a good portion of the decade. A powerful and sometimes graphic book, it made people reevaluate their ideas of classic bad guy/good guy situations. His other famous novel, ‘A Thousand Splendid Suns’ solidified his place as a great author of the Noughties. Part autobiography, part literary genius, ‘What is What’, by Dave Eggers shows the hardship’s of Valentino Achak Deng, a harsh tale that speaks not for sympathy but for the understanding of the tragedy, the optimism and the complications of life in war-torn Sudan. Malori Blackman and Cupcake Brown’s books on racial divides showed the insensitive realities of both real and fictional characters. With Blackman’s role reversal showing the subtle nature of racism in everyday life that goes unnoticed. Cupcake Brown’s struggle though each horrific situation is sickening to read, but such an eye-opening account reminds the reader that racism and poverty are still out there, even if you can’t see them. The controversial and dystopian have also ascended to the forefront of literature, in both fiction and non-fiction forms. Richard Dawkins’ ‘The God Delusion’ threw petrol onto the science Vs religion fire, provoking mixed reactions, especially when coupled with Dan Brown’s ‘The Da Vinci Code’ and sequel books. Who also, is not aware of Bill Bryson’s wanderings? Having made himself famous for his travel guides, he then turned to history and science, his books easily approachable and brilliantly informative. Michael Moore’s critical analysis of his country is definitely worth mentioning, and his general comments always drive for some sort of controversy. Love him or hate him, his political thoughts have gathered a few followers. How-to books made a comeback with Camilla Morton drawing on her celebrity friends to produce a guide for the modern woman, including how to install a light bulb in heels. Celebrities themselves became ‘authors’, although how many of them actually wrote them is another question, proving that sometimes ‘Heat’ is just not good enough for celebrity gossip. Literature this decade has blossomed from every corner. The giant mega-publisher that is the internet has allowed everyone to become so called ‘writers’, with people getting book deals based on their blog pages, and Twittering becoming the biggest writing popularity contest of them all. Historical fiction went from the dull to the desired, and politics influenced a great many authors. As we go into the 2010s (I have just come to terms with the ‘noughties’ and cannot bring myself to say ‘Teenies’, just yet), the great merge of literature and technology will either annoy or excite people, most of whom have already picked sides with the launch of the e-reader. Look out for authors such as Erynn Mangum, the person to read for those ‘mildly addicted to coffee’, so pretty much everyone. Camy Tang, another wonder from the east, her Sushi Series is the first of many good hits. Tracy Chevalier is a new writer on the move for different kinds of romance books, she is most definitely intriguing and Pulitzer Prize winner for 2004, Edward P. Jones is another author on the rise. I cannot predict the future, but I can tell you that whoever has told you books are dying out is a liar, or believes in the prophecy of 2012. |
| Posted: 08/02/2010 14:42:08 |
Chick Lit > Literary Chicks :: Books that Made the Noughties