Book Recommendation: A Visit from the Goon Squad

I'd have to label Jennifer Egan's A Visit from the Goon Squad not just as one of the best books of 2010, but as one of the best books of the decade.  Strikingly original, smart, penetrating in its insights on both individual nature and collective American consciousness, the book is as rewarding to read as it is fun.  A reader's book for sure, this is a must read for writers.  What Egan does with structure alone--taking the notion of suddenly popular "linked stories" to a place perhaps only ventured into with as much authority by Tim O'Brien and Elizabeth Strout--the book could be required reading for writers wanting to examine a book's architecture.  It's made a couple of dozen "best of 2010" lists already and it certainly tops mine.  Navigate towards this Washington Post review for not just more praise but an excellent summary and analysis:  http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/06/15/AR2010061504751.html

After Setting Record, UConn Women Keep It In Perspective : The Two-Way : NPR

As the father of three daughters, all three of whom have competed in athletics in college and all of whom have "kept it in perspective," getting it done in the classroom first and participating in sports second, all of whom have always exhibited class and humility, my own perspective on the UConn Women's record is a bit jaded. It is a view in total agreement with this commentary: After Setting Record, UConn Women Keep It In Perspective : The Two-Way : NPR. How refreshing it is to see a group of athletes show the class they have to celebrate their success without tarnishing the successful history of others. Some lament UConn's total domination of women's basketball in the way we so enjoy hating those who are so wildly successful. I say give the women, their coaching staff, and the program the credit it deserves; you have to build programs like these and you have to do so with a relentless pursuit of excellence. We should show them something akin to the class with which they have reached this milestone and congratulate their success. Then we should move along, people; it's just basketball. The real repercussions of such achievement reside in the things we can learn from it: hard work, camaraderie, goal-setting, high expectation of the self, surrounding oneself with others who demand excellence...

Query Mistakes

Here is a link to an excellent article by JH Tohline compiled from interviews with agents about the most common mistakes they see from first time writers in query letters:  http://www.jmtohline.com/2010/12/biggest-mistakes-writers-make-when.html