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Will Schwalbe

Goodreads Author

Born

in New York, The United States

Website

http://www.willschwalbe.com

Twitter

WillSch

Genre

Biographies & Memoirs, Literature & Fiction, Cooking, Food & Wine

Member Since

February 2009

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Greetings! Since we are both here, I’m guessing you are probably a fellow book-lover. Always great to meet other members of the tribe!

I’ve put a lot about myself in my books, but here are some of the basics. I was born in New York in 1962; grew up in Cambridge, Massachusetts; went to boarding school in New Hampshire, and to college in New Haven, Connecticut. So I consider myself a New Englander, even though I’m not one by birth.

I’ve worked as a journalist, in the television business, and even (briefly, in college) as a substitute teacher. But I’ve spent most of my life in publishing: at William Morrow, and then at Hyperion, where I was Editor in Chief. In January 2008, I left Hyperion to found a startup called Cookstr.com and ran that for Greetings! Since we are both here, I’m guessing you are probably a fellow book-lover. Always great to meet other members of the tribe!

I’ve put a lot about myself in my books, but here are some of the basics. I was born in New York in 1962; grew up in Cambridge, Massachusetts; went to boarding school in New Hampshire, and to college in New Haven, Connecticut. So I consider myself a New Englander, even though I’m not one by birth.

I’ve worked as a journalist, in the television business, and even (briefly, in college) as a substitute teacher. But I’ve spent most of my life in publishing: at William Morrow, and then at Hyperion, where I was Editor in Chief. In January 2008, I left Hyperion to found a startup called Cookstr.com and ran that for six years. It’s now part of Macmillan Publishers, where I’ve worked since 2014.

Books have been the constant in my life. From those my mother read me when I was too young to read, to those my father read us when we could read but still liked to be read to. From books I read under the covers, long after I was supposed to be asleep—including every single thriller by the magnificent Alistair Maclean—to books that I found in my teens that helped me imagine all different kinds of lives, and see the world through others’ eyes.

I’ve written four books. The first -- SEND: Why People Email So Badly and How to Do it Better – was written with my friend David Shipley. The second, THE END OF YOUR LIFE BOOK CLUB, is about the books I read with my mother when she was dying. The third is BOOKS FOR LIVING, about the role books can play in our lives and how they can show us how to live each day more fully and with more meaning. And the fourth is WE SHOULD NOT BE FRIENDS: The Story of an Unlikely Friendship that started in college and has enriched my life for forty years and counting.

I live in New York City with my husband. We’ve been together since way back when I first moved to Hong Kong in 1984. We have one African violet, that’s a bit lopsided; books everywhere; and are obsessed with our neighbor’s adorable chow, Lucky. We also have five godchildren, one niece, and four nephews.

I love meeting fellow readers and hearing from readers about all different kinds of book. I answer everyone, though sometimes it can take me a bit of time. My favorite question to ask or be asked is a simple one: “What are you reading?”

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Will Schwalbe’s books

Average rating: 3.81 · 64,367 ratings · 9,696 reviews · 11 distinct works • Similar authors

	The End of Your Life Book Club 3.81 avg rating — 55,704 ratings — published 2012 — 2 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Books for Living 3.86 avg rating — 5,139 ratings — published 2016 — 17 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	We Should Not Be Friends: The Story of a Friendship 3.87 avg rating — 3,051 ratings — published 2023 — 11 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Send by David Shipley, Will Schwalbe (Goodreads Author) 3.44 avg rating — 464 ratings — published 2007 — 26 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The End of Your Life Book Club: a Mother, a Son and a World of Books 3.58 avg rating — 12 ratings	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Send: The Essential Guide to Email for Home and Office by Will Shipley David; Schwalbe (2007) Paperback really liked it 4.00 avg rating — 2 ratings — 2 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	THE END OF YOUR LIFE BOOK CLUB 0.00 avg rating — 0 ratings	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The End of Your Life Book Club: A Memoir by Will Schwalbe (Goodreads Author), Jeff Harding (Narrator) 0.00 avg rating — 0 ratings	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	El club de lectura del final de tu vida [The End of Your Life Book Club] 0.00 avg rating — 0 ratings	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Le parfum de ces livres que nous avons aim?s by Will Schwalbe (February 24,2014) by Will Schwalbe (Goodreads Author), Unknown Author 0.00 avg rating — 0 ratings	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars

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Debut Author Snapshot: Will Schwalbe

His memoir, The End of Your Life Book Club, tells of the two-person club he formed with his indomitable mother as she underwent chemotherapy for...

Will is Currently Reading

Will Schwalbe is currently reading

Books for Living

by Will Schwalbe (Goodreads Author)

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Nov 18, 2020 04:37PM

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Will’s Recent Updates

Will Schwalbe answered Janet's question: Hello! I am reading The End of Your Life Book Club. I am an avid reader. My beloved father passed away 14 years ago. He never complained about his health problems - reminds me of your mom. I want to explore the books you and your mom talked about that I have not read. Do you know if there is a list somewhere online? I'm so sorry to hear about your father -- he does sound very much like my mom. As for the booklist -- it's at the end of the printed book (or should be in most editions). But also someone put together a Goodreads page with the books! Here's the link: See Full Answer
Aug 10, 2024 11:50AM · 2 likes · like

Will Schwalbe answered Janet's question:

Hello! I am reading The End of Your Life Book Club. I am an avid reader. My beloved father passed away 14 years ago. He never complained about his health problems - reminds me of your mom. I want to explore the books you and your mom talked about that I have not read. Do you know if there is a list somewhere online?

I'm so sorry to hear about your father -- he does sound very much like my mom. As for the booklist -- it's at the end of the printed book (or should be in most editions). But also someone put together a Goodreads page with the books! Here's the link: See Full Answer

Aug 10, 2024 11:50AM · 2 likes · like

More of Will's books…

Quotes by Will Schwalbe (?)

“We're all in the end-of-your-life book-club, whether we acknowledge it or not; each book we read may well be the last, each conversation the final one.”
― Will Schwalbe, The End of Your Life Book Club

161 likes

“One of the many things I love about bound books is their sheer physicality. Electronic books live out of sight and out of mind. But printed books have body, presence. ... I often seek electronic books, but they never come after me. They may make me feel, but I can't feel them. They are all soul with no flesh, no texture, and no weight.”
― Will Schwalbe, The End of Your Life Book Club

154 likes

“The greatest gift you can give anyone is your undivided attention...”
― Will Schwalbe, The End of Your Life Book Club

tags: attention

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See all Will Schwalbe's quotes »

Polls

March BoTM Nominations ~ Book About a Librarian or Book Lover ~ Final Poll

The Bookish Life of Nina Hill

by Abbi Waxman

10 votes, 26.3%

The End of Your Life Book Club

by Will Schwalbe

9 votes, 23.7%

Mr. Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore

by Robin Sloan

5 votes, 13.2%

Matilda

by Roald Dahl

5 votes, 13.2%

The Book Charmer

by Karen Hawkins

5 votes, 13.2%

The Library of the Unwritten

by A.J. Hackwith

4 votes, 10.5%

38 total votes

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