A link from author Laura Lippman had me intrigued, so I clicked, and had a great gut laugh. Two men got into an argument ‘over literature’. The teeny article had no specifics as to what the argument entailed. Which got me thinking, what aspect of the literary world would I be so het up about, I’d succumb to violence? Naturally, one hopes to never go over the line and punch someone because they like paperbacks better than hardcovers. Or, the theory of Shakespeare’s work having been written by Francis Bacon. Or-Edward Albee’s plays are nonsensical. (I really believe this). I can think of some incidents involving the written word that drives me to distraction. Censorship of any kind, is one. Trashing the crime fiction genre is two. Praising the robber baron amazon is three. Removing illustrative plates from perfect healthy books, is a very big four. Self published literature is a humongous five. And the death of the physical book is a given, six.
The comments below the article are hilarious–astute, witty, and on the money. I’m curious. What do you, a reader, get into a tizzy about when someone or some literary incident occurs that you heartily disagree with? Which subject matter in the broad definition of ‘literature’ burns you up? Is there some writer, or book, or genre that peeves you? Do others trash things you like to read?
Come on, dish. I’d love to find out what words turn you into a hothead!
Censorship makes me hopping mad, too! Along with those you list, I’d add:
Discussing a book with someone who says they loved it and then I discover they had seen the movie, but never read the book. But that doesn’t get me angry, just annoyed…
LOL–I don’t know if I’ve ever come across someone who dislikes a book without seeing it, only going by the movie–but, gee, most movies are terrible adaptations, that means ignorant people really hate a lot of books, lol.
Censorship is a hot button subject for me. Another irritant is the idea that celebrities shilling their ghost-written wares can outsell a good writer who only wants to be a good writer.
Definitely definitely the same as your number six. If one more person tells me print books are dead, I will use one to break their nose and ask them if they have now reconsidered.
Literary fiction is the only fiction worth reading – people like that miss out on so much