Overview

A memoir of reading and working with books by the renowned Booklist editor. With the infectious curiosity of an inveterate bibliophile and the prose of a fine stylist, Donna Seaman charts the course of her early reading years in a book-by-book chronicle of the significance books have held in her life. River of Books recounts Seaman's journey in becoming an editor for Booklist, a reviewer, an author, and a literary citizen, and lays bare how she nourished both body and soul in working with books. Seaman makes palpable the power and self-recognition that she discovered in a life dedicated to reading.

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9781734643565

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Reviews

“A ‘constant reader’ who generously advocates for a wide diet of literature, from novels to poetry to narrative nonfiction to essays and all that lie between, Seaman counsels that 'the more varied our reading, the more detailed, intricate, and vital our perceptions become.' A lively and entertaining contribution to the shelf of books about books."" * Kirkus * ""Donna Seaman reads with her whole body, and River of Books is a hymn to her vocation, a testament to her immersions, the story her transports. The surface is calm, but the water runs deep in this memoir of intense responses, of enchantments and ecstasies.""    * EDWARD HIRSCH, author of Stranger by Night, editor for 100 Poems to Break Your Heart * ""River of Books is a beautiful memoir. Deeply personal, it is moving, dazzling, and spiced with touches of Seaman's slantwise sense of humor.""   * SARA PARETSKY, author of Pay Dirt and other V. I. Warshawski novels and the memoir, Writing in an Age of Silence *

“A ‘constant reader’ who generously advocates for a wide diet of literature, from novels to poetry to narrative nonfiction to essays and all that lie between, Seaman counsels that 'the more varied our reading, the more detailed, intricate, and vital our perceptions become.' A lively and entertaining contribution to the shelf of books about books."" * Kirkus * ""Readers know the feeling that is equal parts escape and appreciation. Book groups, especially those that read classics and demanding books, would have a terrific time discussing River of Books. Donna’s writing about her reading life is sure to inspire readers to contemplate their own and lead to lively discussions."" * Booklist * ""Donna Seaman reads with her whole body, and River of Books is a hymn to her vocation, a testament to her immersions, the story her transports. The surface is calm, but the water runs deep in this memoir of intense responses, of enchantments and ecstasies.""    * EDWARD HIRSCH, author of Stranger by Night, editor for 100 Poems to Break Your Heart * ""River of Books is a beautiful memoir. Deeply personal, it is moving, dazzling, and spiced with touches of Seaman's slantwise sense of humor.""   * SARA PARETSKY, author of Pay Dirt and other V. I. Warshawski novels and the memoir, Writing in an Age of Silence *

Author Information

Donna Seaman is the adult books editor at Booklist, a member of the Content Leadership Team for the American Writers Museum, and a recipient of the Louis Shore Award for excellence in book reviewing, the James Friend Memorial Award for Literary Criticism, and the Studs Terkel Humanities Service Award. Seaman has written for the Chicago Tribune, Los Angeles Times, and other publications. She has been a writer-in-residence for Columbia College Chicago and has taught at Northwestern University and the University of Chicago. Seaman created the anthology In Our Nature: Stories of Wildness, her author interviews are collected in Writers on the Air: Conversations about Books, and she is the author of Identity Unknown: Rediscovering Seven American Women Artists.

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