Andrew Hilbert is an aspiring circus clown and believes there’s no such thing as bad pizza. He is also a bookseller and will probably say hi to you fifteen times before you leave the store. This is his Top 5.
Shifu, You’ll Do Anything For A Laugh by Mo Yan
I hadn’t heard of Mo Yan before he won the Nobel Prize for literature but once I heard he was the first author from the People’s Republic of China to win the award, I set out to read something by him immediately. I landed on this collection of short stories and I’m glad I did. There’s much fuss over his political leanings and how he isn’t critical enough of the Chinese government. I don’t know enough to judge him either way but this collection of stories is a wonderfully absurd and Kafkaesque collection that comments on the political, social, and moral landscape of China. It’s a good read and I wouldn’t pass it up over the criticisms of his politics. He can write and that’s what matters.
Top of the Rock by Warren Littlefield
This book reads like an interview with everyone involved with the rise of NBC and Must See TV in the 90s. It is extremely engrossing and hands out nuggets of TV trivia like candy. It’s a quick read and it conveys the creative power of television that’s best left to creative people rather than men in business suits.
And So it Goes by Charles Shields
Kurt Vonnegut is one of my favorite writers and this biography does a great job of tearing down the myth of Vonnegut and tells the story of a deeply flawed yet brilliant man. There’s a lot to be learned about Vonnegut’s process as well as the years of nose-to-the-grindstone hard work he had to get through to be not only published but respected as a writer. If you’re a fan of Vonnegut or know a Vonnegut fan, this should be at the top of your reading list.
Super Mario: How Nintendo Conquered America by Jeff Ryan
This book by Jeff Ryan illuminates Nintendo’s path to dominance. Nintendo had been a trading card company since the 1800s, but were stuck in obscurity and financial dire straits. They even experimented with Love Motels (cheap rooms that could be rented by the hour for the purposes of, well, love). That business model failed. Now Super Mario is more recognizable and ubiquitous than Mickey Mouse. This chronological narrative of Nintendo is a quick read and illuminates the path to dominance in the once stagnant world of home video games.
Salmonella Men on Planet Porno by Yasutaka Tsutsui
I admit, I purchased this book based on cover art and title alone but I don’t regret it for a second. This collection of sci-fi short stories is wonderfully dark and humorous. It is reminiscent of Vonnegut’s style but with less than hopeful outcomes for the characters in each story. If you’re a fan of sci-fi, dark, weird, and/or funny stories, this collection should be on your shelf. Tsutsui is well known in Japan and deserves a place of prominence with American readers too.
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