I alternated liking and disliking "Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close" by Jonathan Safran Foer with each chapter.

"Extremely Loud" tells the story of young Oskar Schell, whose father, Thomas, died in the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks. Thomas had a habit of setting up puzzles and scavenger hunts for Oskar to solve, and Thomas' death has created one more question that Oskar feels he must find the answer to.

The book structurally reminded me a lot of "Everything is Illuminated." While Foer focused on Oskar in the present time, he jumped back to narration from Oskar's father, grandmother and grandfather. Similarly, in "Illuminated," the main character carries the plot of the story, though the author visits his ancestors to develop background.

Unfortunately, I find this to be the major fault in both of the books. I'm so interested in what Foer has to say with his characters in present time, but I am so BORED with earlier characters. I loved Oskar's journey in "Extremely Loud," but I found myself struggling to get through the chapters about his grandmother's early life.

"Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close" the movie hits theaters Jan. 20. I'd like to see it, because I'm under the assumption this is actually one movie I'll like better than the book.


-- Cheryl Sadler | CSadler@News-Herald.com | @nhcheryl

John Edgar Wideman has abandoned major publishers for the independent hustle.

Wideman has received the MacArthur Genius grant, two Pen/Faulkner awards and was a National Book Award finalist. He has written more than 20 books, both fiction and nonfiction, mostly for Houghton Mifflin.

His newest book, Briefs: Stories for the Palm of the Mind, will be self-published through print-on-demand service Lulu.com.

This is a surprising move if it is about the money. Simply put, major publishers still offer the most returns. There is a growing self-publishing scene, and it may eventually become as lucrative as the majors (at least, for authors of Wideman’s caliber and cache.) But, right now, the major publishers are still your best bet to make money.

However, Wideman indicates this has more to do with him wanting control over marketing strategies.

“I’ve been thinking about alternatives for a long time. I like the idea of being in charge. I have more control over what happens to my book. And I have more control over whom I reach,” he said in an interview with Publishers Weekly.

There is a third possible explanation for Wideman’s decision. Briefs is, as its title implies, a collection of short stories. Those are difficult sales, even for a recognized author. It might be possible that Wideman had trouble placing it, so he went the POD route. (I want to clarify that I don’t have any evidence for this third hypothesis. I don’t know that Wideman had difficulty finding a publisher for Briefs. It’s just another possible reason for his partnership with Lulu.)

Either way, I don’t question the man. He’s a MacArthur-certified genius.

On to the next one: Peter Hedges, writer of What’s Eating Gilbert Grape, listed his five favorite book-to-movie adaptations. (No, Tricia, Rebecca did not make the list.)

Next: I don’t follow college basketball, so this is my March Madness.

Finally: I received The Tao of Wu for Christmas but didn’t read it until yesterday.

“I believe death is the biggest hustle there is. It’s the biggest scam — because you can say what you want about it and nobody can prove you wrong.”

Thank you, Rza. I forgive you for Digi Snacks.

-Jason Lea, JLea@News-Herald.com

This blog entry likely contains spoilers.

I really don't like Nicholas Sparks. The best reason I can figure for always picking up his novels are that I want to read something that won't take too long, or I need to have a good cry. Yes, I don't like Nicholas Sparks' books but cry at them anyway.

This weekend I saw "Dear John", so I figured I would spell out my feelings about the book and the movie and the way I think the story should have been told. (More on my thoughts on the movie on Tuned in to Pop Culture.)

"Dear John" is about a Special Forces soldier named John, who on leave meets beautiful Savannah. The two fall in love quickly. He returns to Army life, re-enlists after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, and she breaks his heart by writing him a "Dear John" letter to tell him she is engaged. Bet you couldn't have figured out any of that just from the title of the book, right?

What the summary on Nicholas Sparks' Web site leaves out is really the best story in the novel: John has a strained relationship with his father, which Savannah is able to explain to him. Her words are hard for him to hear, but they help him understand why things are the way they are and give him the opportunity to improve on them.

Here is the problem with Nicholas Sparks. He has a great opportunity to tell an incredibly emotional story about a troubled father-son relationship, but he instead emphasizes the silly self-centered girl who gets angry that John wants to re-commit to the Army after the country was attacked by terrorists. Really?

I didn't want to like this book because I don't want to like Nicholas Sparks. I fell in love with the story he told about John and his dad. I am angry that Nicholas Sparks can't tell a story that doesn't involve some sort of endless, impossible, we-should-be-together-but-we-can't-be love story. Maybe that's because his stories are catered to the casual reader, and I suppose I can't fault someone for getting people to read when there several distractions exist. But I'm just never happy with the entirety of his books. Either the falling in love part takes too long, or the ending isn't what I wanted, or the plot twist makes me mad.

I talked with my boyfriend today about my favorite Nicholas Sparks' books and movies. My favorite book by far is "A Walk to Remember", which I read in one night during my junior year of high school. He pointed out that maybe the reason it was my favorite was because it was the first Nicholas Sparks book I had read. Maybe one was enough and I should never have picked up another. But I'm sure I'll do it again. (My favorite movie is "The Notebook", and that may only be because of the final scene with the old people. I just can't handle old people crying.)


-- Cheryl Sadler
CSadler@News-Herald.com

Now my night will be spent trying to rewrite some great literature to try to win a laptop. More laundry-dishes-cleaning avoidance. Thanks, Jason.

The office has been abuzz of late with talk about favorite Christmas movies. Which has me thinking about Christmas in literature.

What are the most memorable Christmases in literature?

There's the first Christmas, course. Hard to top the Bible.

I'm partial to Louisa May Alcott's "Little Women" with its opening of a Christmas without presents during the Civil War.

Who doesn't enjoy "The Gift of the Magi." O. Henry's classic is packed with powerful messages about true love and what gift-giving should be all about.

I know JLea's not the biggest fan of Charles Dickens, but even he has to admit that "A Christmas Carol" is an enduring work.

And no list is complete without Dr. Seuss' "The Grinch That Stole Christmas."

But then there's a bit of a drop-off.

I've read John Grisham's "Skipping Christmas." It was OK, but I have greater recall of the movie it spawned with Tim Allen and Jamie Lee Curtis.

What am I forgetting? Are authors steering away from the holiday as a theme or is my memory just failing?

Any suggestions? I could use a good read.

- Tricia Ambrose

If you've been to a theater or watched television at all in recent weeks, you've seen the ads for "My Sister's Keeper" due out June 26. (Inc ase you've missed it ...watch a trailer.

It's an adaptation of one of my favorite recent novels by Jodi Picoult.

"Keeper" is the story of a girl conceived to save her ailing older sister seeking legal freedom from her parents.

It's a powerful novel.

I wonder if the film, which stars Abigail Breslin, Alec Baldwin and Cameron Diaz, will live up to its source material.

I'm willing to give it a try. While I prefer books to movies generally, there have been some films that certainly did justice to their novels.

I think of classics like "Rebecca" (what can I say it is my favorite) and "Gone with the Wind."

I think of more recent works like "Mystic River" and "Atonement."

There have been some disappointments to be sure. Did anyone see "The Secret Life of Bees?"

And then there are those works that fall in the middle. For me, it's the screen versions of the Harry Potter books.

The movies are entertaining and if I hadn't read the books, I'm sure I'd rave. But so much of the charm of J.K. Rowling's works is in its cleverness. Who didn't smile the first time they read Diagon Alley?

It's just not the same experience on film.

What do you think? Is there a movie adaptation you loved? hated?

- Tricia Ambrose

In just about every instance, I prefer the book to the movie.

Some are equally good ("Gone with the Wind," "Rebecca," "Mystic River"), but I can't think of any I liked more. And I'm always amazed at people who will sit transfixed by a more than two-hour long film but would never sit with a book for that long.

I say they don't know what they're missing.

While a director's take on a novel is certainly interesting, to me it's just his - or her - view, and I prefer to form my own opinions of the work, not passively sit through someone else's.

It's just as easy to lose yourself in a good novel as it is a good movie. You do "forget" you're reading after a while. (For comparison's sake, when "watching" "Passion of the Christ" I forgot I was essentially reading subtitles. That's what a good story will do.)

Which leads me to "The No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency" coming to HBO. The series is just seven episodes, and the pilot is drawing attention as the last work of director Anthony Minghella.

A friend of mine turned me on to this series of novels by Alexander McCall Smith with its unforgettable lead character, Precious Ramotswe. I've only read the first four books in the series but the rest are on my list. You wouldn't think there'd be much connection between a Botswana detective and an Ohio editor, but you'd be surprised (I sure was).

It's even "What People Are Talking About" according to Vogue magazine! (Not sure that's a ringing endorsement for those of us who don't summer in the Hamptons and spend thousands on this season's it bag, but whatever.)

So, while I don't have HBO and likely will never see this series, perhaps because of it some HBO viewers may pick up the novels and discover their own connections with this unlikely heroine.

- Tricia Ambrose