Why Read: Selected Writings 2001–2021

Written by Will Self

Narrated by Will Self

From the Booker–shortlisted author of Umbrella, a world-girdling collection of writings inspired by a life lived in and for literature

From one of the most unusual and distinctive writers working today, Will Self’s Why Read is a cornucopia of thoughtful and brilliantly witty essays on writing and literature.

Self takes us with him: from the foibles of his typewriter repairman to the irradiated exclusion zone of Chernobyl, to the Australian outback, and to literary forms past and future. With his characteristic intellectual brio, Self aims his inimitable eye at titans of literature like Woolf, Kafka, Orwell, and Conrad. He
writes movingly on W. G. Sebald’s childhood in Germany and provocatively describes the elevation of William S. Burroughs’s Junky from shocking pulp novel to beloved cult classic. Self also expands on his regular column in Literary Hub to ask readers how, what, and ultimately why we should read in an
ever-changing world. Whether he is writing on the rise of the bookshelf as an item of furniture in the nineteenth century or on the impossibility of Googling his own name in a world lived online, Self’s trademark intoxicating prose and mordant, energetic humor infuse every piece.

A book that examines how the human stream of consciousness flows into and out of literature, Why Read will satisfy both old and new readers of this icon of contemporary literature.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Recorded Books, Inc.
• Release date: Jan 17, 2023
• ISBN: 9781705087633

Will Self

Will Self is an English novelist, journalist, political commentator and television personality. He is the author of ten novels, five collections of shorter fiction, three novellas, and five collections of non-fiction writing.

Reviews for Why Read

[pomo58 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Why Read by Will Self collects a number of his essays so far this century into a nice collection.Like any collection some essays will speak to the reader more than others. I certainly had my favorites. But even his weakest can, if you're an active reader, generate some ideas and perhaps open an avenue or two of thought for you. Yes, he likes to challenge his readers, sometimes with big words. Don't tilt at windmills and complain about it, then say you also like to be challenged, then cite words you didn't know the meaning of as a reason to not like the way he does it. What you're really saying is that you don't like to actually be challenged, you just want words that you know but some other people might not. But if the words are too hard for you, well, you want your participation trophy anyway. But then, these types will complain about tedium at the end of a long tedious review, so they have no sense of their own (limited) worth.This collection is ideal for keeping on a bedside table or any place else you might want something short to read without diving back into a longer book, whether fiction or nonfiction. While reading straight through is enjoyable I think reading an essay at a time, spaced a day or so apart, would also allow you to think about what, if anything, the essay means to you.Recommended for readers who like collections of short pieces as well as those who like Self. I tend to prefer his fiction but these are well worth the time.Reviewed from a copy made available by the publisher via NetGalley.