{"id":8084,"date":"2014-08-04T17:03:08","date_gmt":"2014-08-04T21:03:08","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/chimeraobscura.com\/vm\/?p=8084"},"modified":"2014-08-05T15:59:35","modified_gmt":"2014-08-05T19:59:35","slug":"podcast-bookmans-holiday","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/chimeraobscura.com\/vm\/podcast-bookmans-holiday","title":{"rendered":"Podcast: Bookman’s Holiday"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"covermontage\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Virtual Memories: Michael Dirda\u00a0– Bookman’s Holiday<\/a><\/p>\n

http:\/\/traffic.libsyn.com\/virtualmemories\/Season_4_Episode_29_-_Bookmans_Holiday.mp3<\/a><\/audio><\/div>

Podcast: Play in new window<\/a> | Download<\/a><\/p>

Subscribe: Spotify<\/a> | TuneIn<\/a> | RSS<\/a> | More<\/a><\/p>\n

“I see people walking their dogs and looking down at their phones. When you’re out walking your dog, you should be thinking great thoughts, or reviewing your life’s major blunders, or having some moments alone with yourself.”<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

It’s a bookman’s life for him! I interrupted Pulitzer Prize-winning book critic Michael Dirda<\/a> from plundering the book-dealer room at Readercon 2014<\/a>\u00a0for\u00a0a conversation about culling his books, the great age of storytelling, teaching adventure novels, what he dislikes about the tone of today’s book reviewers, his tendency to fall asleep while reading, and the time\u00a0Neil Gaiman tried to explain Twitter to him.\u00a0BONUS! I went back and remastered The Correction of Taste<\/a>, the\u00a0episode I recorded with Michael from October 2012! Go listen to that one<\/a>, too!<\/em><\/p>\n

http:\/\/traffic.libsyn.com\/virtualmemories\/Season_4_Episode_29_-_Bookmans_Holiday.mp3<\/a><\/audio><\/div>

Podcast: Play in new window<\/a> | Download<\/a><\/p>

Subscribe: Spotify<\/a> | TuneIn<\/a> | RSS<\/a> | More<\/a><\/p>\n

\"Dirda<\/a><\/p>\n

“I never should have gone into book reviewing. I don’t have the right qualities for it. I read slow, I write slow: but I do love books and I’m dogged about it. I’d rather be involved with them than anything else.”<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

We also talk about his two early career goals\u00a0(riverboat gambler or Captain Blood),\u00a0what brings him back to Readercon each year, and why he’s never read Portrait of a Lady\u00a0<\/em>but fell in love with\u00a0Lud-in-the-Mist,<\/em>\u00a0a fantasy novel in which the protagonists are middle-aged.<\/p>\n

“My aim always has been to champion things that have been overlooked or neglected or otherwise not given the attention I think they deserve.”<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Enjoy the conversation!<\/a>\u00a0Then check out\u00a0the archives<\/a>\u00a0for more great episodes! Related conversations:<\/p>\n