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Liza Achilles - Literary/Autobiographical Author. The Blog for the Discerning Reader.

Literary / Autobiographical Author

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TV over IKEA bench
Incidental Musings

Progress?

May 5, 2023 by Liza Achilles 2 Comments
I feel like a total warrior. I have increased my TV watching time from almost 30 minutes (as described in this post from last December) to over an hour and 40 minutes. Who ever thought that TV watching could be such a demanding sport? I subscribed to Apple TV+ (this blog post is not endorsed by Apple or anyone else),...
leaning books
Incidental Musings

The Opposite of This Blog

May 3, 2023 by Liza Achilles 2 Comments
This blog is all about seeking wisdom through books (and elsewhere). Good books. Really good books. I’m zeroed in on those books that are particularly artful, informational, and excellently written. I just discovered a podcast that features the opposite: books that really suck. Often this occurs when an author peddles some half-baked idea without any research to back it up....
open book
Incidental Musings

Staving Off a Panic Attack by Reading

May 1, 2023 by Liza Achilles 2 Comments
Michael W. Clune writes about a unique event that happened during his childhood: he staved off a panic attack by reading. While reading Ivanhoe, he thought he was about to have a heart attack. He only learned later that it was actually a panic attack. So he read the entire book, all night long, without stopping, in order to delay...
fire flames
Incidental Musings

Final Orders for Art

April 17, 2023 by Liza Achilles 3 Comments
“Virgil left instructions at his death that the Aeneid, still unfinished, be destroyed. For he thought it needed three more years of licking into shape, time spent, perhaps, in harmonizing the voices he had sounded out. Or was he simply driven by his perfectionism as a poet? It is impossible to say, but fortunately, as we know, Augustus countermanded Virgil’s...
statue of liberty and manhattan new york city
Incidental Musings

Freedom of Speech

April 12, 2023 by Liza Achilles 2 Comments
I’ve been reading about world politics, and I want to say that today I’m feeling grateful to have freedom of speech. Not all countries grant that right. The USA isn’t perfect, but you generally won’t be imprisoned for voicing that you dislike a politician or policy. That’s all for today. I think that’s quite a lot to chew on, in...
bouquet of flowers with variety
Incidental Musings

The Variety Pack

April 3, 2023 by Liza Achilles No Comments
Like a bouquet of flowers that are all different and make a stunning arrangement, variety in book reading creates a pleasing and grounded balance. Some people adhere to only one genre and derive much pleasure from their all-alike bouquet of roses. But this strategy risks a loss of worldliness and understanding that a variety pack might bring. I personally try...
books piled on a fancy pillow
Incidental Musings

Waiting in the Wings

March 24, 2023 by Liza Achilles 2 Comments
My advice to you is to always have a few good books waiting in the wings. Two weeks ago, I wrote about reading a second book simultaneously with a first, if the first is difficult or not adequately holding the interest. I was engaging in this endeavor last week, but my plan backfired because the second book I chose to...
woman reading outside
Incidental Musings

The Humanities Major

March 13, 2023 by Liza Achilles No Comments
Did you see the recent New Yorker article called The End of the English Major, by Nathan Heller? “During the past decade, the study of English and history has fallen by a full third. Humanities enrollment in the United States has declined over all by seventeen per cent . . .” —Nathan Heller, The New Yorker, The End of the...
stacks of books in a stairwell
Incidental Musings

How Many Books Do You Read at Once?

March 10, 2023 by Liza Achilles No Comments
In a work team-building activity at a previous job, all of us employees were standing in the middle of a room. The leader of the activity said, if you read only one book at a time, stand in this corner of the room. If you read multiple books at a time, stand in that corner of the room. The employees...
old open handwritten book
Incidental Musings

The Danger of Words

February 27, 2023 by Liza Achilles No Comments
Sometimes when words are written, they pass, unnoticed, or mostly so, into dust. Other times, they cause riots in the streets. “If there was going to be a fuss, Rushdie figured, it would pass soon enough.” —David Remnick, The New Yorker, “Defiance” (print) and The Defiance of Salman Rushdie (web) The fatwa issued against Salman Rushdie for writing the novel...
hearts - Valentines
Incidental Musings

Remember: Resist

February 13, 2023 by Liza Achilles 2 Comments
At this time of year, I like to remind myself that our society tends to throw around all sorts of messages about a certain holiday coming up (tomorrow) that may or may not be helpful or wholesome for the psyche. Someone on a podcast I was listening to pointed out that there are two Valentine’s Days that run simultaneously: There’s...
snowy landscape
Incidental Musings

Blessings

February 10, 2023 by Liza Achilles No Comments
It’s February—how are you doing on those New Year’s resolutions (or other goals)? If there’s something you really want from life, I’m here to quietly urge you not to give up. So much more is possible than we think. I don’t believe that every imaginable miracle will occur, just through hoping. But small blessings happen every day. Furthermore, small blessings...
woman running with skyline in background
Incidental Musings

Reminder in My Ear

February 3, 2023 by Liza Achilles 2 Comments
Our bodies can contain reminders of the past, sometimes big and pervasive, sometimes small and persistent. Let me tell you about a small and persistent reminder that my body carries from my concussion, sustained 3+ years ago. A few months after my concussion, I was able to start running again. I usually run with earbuds, but at that time I...
hourglass
Incidental Musings

Relying on Time

January 30, 2023 by Liza Achilles No Comments
Three-plus years. That’s how long I went without watching a single TV show or movie. I read plenty of books during those years. But I managed no sustained screen movement. Book reading was certainly a priority (as I explained in my post If You Could Recommend One TV Show or Movie . . .). But it was also more difficult...
books falling on each other
Incidental Musings

The Five Tiers of Books

January 27, 2023 by Liza Achilles No Comments
There are five tiers of books in my world. Only the highest tier of books make it on to this blog. I thought I’d write a post today to share with you how I go about choosing books to preview on the blog. Tier 5: Never Started These are all of the books out there that I never attempted to...
goals planner with scissors and paper clips
Incidental Musings

Thoughts for the New Year

January 4, 2023 by Liza Achilles 4 Comments
What a pleasure it was to select the perfect 2023 weekly planner online. My mail carrier heedlessly smashed the package into my mailbox, but the planner inside turned out to be fine. Beautiful, in fact. I have always loved notebooks and such, as well as organizational methods. I have been enjoying planning out the details of my week this week....
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Hi! I’m Liza

selfie of Liza Achilles literary and autobiographical author writer blogger

About this blog

THE BLOG FOR THE DISCERNING READER: This blog will feed your mind and soul, plus the soles of your feet, if you're ticklish there. Read previews of intellectually and artistically great books, as well as insights on living life well, always with sprinkles of humor.

Categories of posts

  • Author Interviews (7)
  • Book Previews (351)
  • Guest Posts (8)
  • Incidental Musings (158)
  • News & Events (70)
  • Tales (82)

Featured books


candlestick with lit candle on round table with books in living roomNote that the link for the most recently added book(s) will not work until I have published the corresponding blog post.

Lion Sonya Walger
On the Calculation of Volume III / On the Calculation of Volume IV Solvej Balle
Joyride Susan Orlean
Vigil George Saunders
When Nothing Feels Real Nathan Dunne
Just Love Me for Who I Am James Styers
The Glory of Giving Everything Crystal Haryanto
Strange Houses Uketsu
On the Calculation of Volume II Solvej Balle
The Literati Susan Coll
Bring the House Down Charlotte Runcie
A Swim in a Pond in the Rain George Saunders
Intimacies Katie Kitamura
On the Calculation of Volume I Solvej Balle
Hunchback Saou Ichikawa
Pop! Mark Polanzak
Dreaming Reality Steven Jay Lynn & Vladimir Miskovic
Audition Katie Kitamura
Free Amanda Knox
The Pleasure Plan Laura Zam
Shakespeare’s Sisters Ramie Targoff
Unshrunk Laura Delano
The Vegetarian Han Kang
Viable Chloe Yelena Miller
Animal Liberation Now Peter Singer
A Little Life Hanya Yanagihara
Ghost Pains Jessi Jezewska Stevens
Hope for Cynics Jamil Zaki
Midnight in Chernobyl Adam Higginbotham
Cork Dork Bianca Bosker
The Scent of Bright Light Jean K. Dudek
Rejection Tony Tulathimutte
Intermezzo Sally Rooney
Do I Know You? Sadie Dingfelder
James Percival Everett
There Is No Ethan Anna Akbari
The Other Significant Others Rhaina Cohen
Slow Productivity Cal Newport
Blue Ruin Hari Kunzru
Get the Picture Bianca Bosker
Lawn Boy Jonathan Evison
Congratulations, The Best Is Over! R. Eric Thomas
Kairos Jenny Erpenbeck
Exhibit R.O. Kwon
All Fours Miranda July
The Year of Living Constitutionally A.J. Jacobs
Ghosted Jana Eisenstein
Disease Of Kings Anders Carlson-Wee
Why We’re Polarized Ezra Klein
Molly Blake Butler
The Big Bang of Numbers Manil Suri
Truth Is the Arrow, Mercy Is the Bow Steve Almond
Doppelganger Naomi Klein
King Jonathan Eig
The Rachel Incident Caroline O’Donoghue
The End of Loneliness Benedict Wells
Poverty, by America Matthew Desmond
The Trees Percival Everett
The Great Experiment Yascha Mounk
Study for Obedience Sarah Bernstein
Some People Need Killing Patricia Evangelista
The Words That Remain Stênio Gardel
Pageboy Elliot Page
Post-Traumatic Chantal V. Johnson
Stuart: A Life Backwards Alexander Masters
The Girls / The Guest Emma Cline
Bottoms Up and the Devil Laughs Kerry Howley
The Collected Tales of Nikolai Gogol Nikolai Gogol
I’m Glad My Mom Died Jennette McCurdy
Unlearn Your Pain Howard Schubiner with Michael Betzold
The Way Out Alan Gordon with Alon Ziv
The Best Minds Jonathan Rosen
Monsters Claire Dederer
Spare Prince Harry
As I Lay Dying William Faulkner
Rebuilt Michael Chorost
Losing Music John Cotter
Kokoro Natsume Sōseki
Party Going / Living / Loving Henry Green
Chatter Ethan Kross
Tender Is the Night F. Scott Fitzgerald
Stay True Hua Hsu
The Invisible Kingdom Meghan O’Rourke
How to Be Perfect Michael Schur
Orfeo Richard Powers
Unwinding Anxiety Judson Brewer
The Confidence Men Margalit Fox
Liberation Day George Saunders
Pandora’s Jar Natalie Haynes
Night of the Living Rez Morgan Talty
The Journalist and the Murderer Janet Malcolm
Mislaid Nell Zink
Exercised Daniel E. Lieberman
Lapvona Ottessa Moshfegh
Empire of Pain Patrick Radden Keefe
Furious Hours Casey Cep
First Person Singular Haruki Murakami
Klara and the Sun Kazuo Ishiguro
Dead Souls Sam Riviere
The Pale King David Foster Wallace
Lightning Flowers Katherine E. Standefer
Beautiful World, Where Are You / Normal People / Conversations With Friends Sally Rooney
Swan Dive Georgina Pazcoguin
A Passage North Anuk Arudpragasam
Lucky Jim Kingsley Amis
Projections Karl Deisseroth
The Indian Lawyer James Welch
Atomic Habits James Clear
The History of Philosophy A. C. Grayling
Dusk, Night, Dawn Anne Lamott
Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? Philip K. Dick
Nothing to See Here Kevin Wilson
Change Damon Centola
Homeland Elegies Ayad Akhtar
Becoming Attached Robert Karen
Piranesi Susanna Clarke
Don Quixote Miguel de Cervantes
Solitary Albert Woodfox
Girl, Woman, Other Bernardine Evaristo
Enlightenment by Trial and Error Jay Michaelson
Death in Her Hands Ottessa Moshfegh
The Cooking Gene Michael W. Twitty
The First Bad Man Miranda July
Upheaval Jared Diamond
A Journal of the Plague Year Daniel Defoe
Creatures Crissy Van Meter
Indelicacy Amina Cain
Say What You Mean Oren Jay Sofer
Habits of a Happy Brain Loretta Graziano Breuning
Bad Behavior, This Is Pleasure Mary Gaitskill
The Brother Gardeners Andrea Wulf
Severance Ling Ma
How to Be an Antiracist Ibram X. Kendi
The Museum of Modern Love Heather Rose
Why I Write George Orwell
The Woman Destroyed Simone de Beauvoir
Educated Tara Westover
The Gift Hafiz
The Collected Schizophrenias Esmé Weijun Wang
Your Duck Is My Duck Deborah Eisenberg
Sapiens Yuval Noah Harari
Milkman Anna Burns
Under the Banner of Heaven Jon Krakauer
Waiting for Bojangles Olivier Bourdeaut
A Mind Unraveled Kurt Eichenwald
Eugénie Grandet Honoré de Balzac
The Body Keeps the Score Bessel van der Kolk, M.D.
The Bookshop Penelope Fitzgerald
Digital Minimalism Cal Newport
The Sisters Brothers Patrick deWitt
Dare to Lead Brené Brown
My Year of Rest and Relaxation Ottessa Moshfegh
Almost Everything Anne Lamott
Born to Run Christopher McDougall, Bruce Springsteen
The Ladies’ Paradise Émile Zola
The World Beyond Your Head Matthew B. Crawford
All the Birds, Singing Evie Wyld
Barracoon Zora Neale Hurston
Dandelion Wine Ray Bradbury
JavaScript & jQuery Jon Duckett
Home Fire Kamila Shamsie
The Weather Detective Peter Wohlleben
Play It As It Lays Joan Didion
The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck Mark Manson
Convenience Store Woman Sayaka Murata
Perfect Me Heather Widdows
Sorry to Disrupt the Peace Patty Yumi Cottrell
Why Buddhism Is True Robert Wright
What Is Real? Adam Becker
Kudos Rachel Cusk
The Days of Abandonment Elena Ferrante
F*cked Corinne Fisher & Krystyna Hutchinson
Searching for Stars on an Island in Maine Alan Lightman
Wide Sargasso Sea Jean Rhys
Infinite Jest David Foster Wallace
A Room of One’s Own Virginia Woolf

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Best. Modern. Books.

Intellectually great nonfiction. Artistically great fiction and poetry. Get the inside scoop on the best 21st-century books!
 
Your free gift: 20 Best Books in the Last 10 Years