Readings

In these playful, erudite, and idiosyncratically personal essays from the Washington Post Book World, Michael Dirda shares some of the pleasures of the reading life. His subjects range from classics in translation to fantasy and crime fiction; from children's books to American and European literature; from innovative writing to neglected novels; from the dark joys of collecting first editions to the untroubled pleasure of P.G. Wodehouse. Dirda is a writer's reader and a reader's writer. He is a sure guide to good reading from the casual to the scholarly, and his columns are always diverting and informative, always worth coming back to. Readings presents many of his most memorable essays, including "The Crime of His Life" (a youthful caper), "Bookman's Saturday" (the scheming of a book collector), an annotated list of 100 comic novels, "Heian Holiday" (on The Tale of Genji), reflections on sex in literature, "Mr. Wright" (an exemplary high school teacher), "Listening to My Father," "Turning Fifty," and "Millennial Readings." In all these, and in 40 other pieces, Michael Dirda shows us books as sources of aesthetic bliss, comfort, and not least, amusement.