More Writers & Company

by Eleanor Wachtel

Interviews with Isabel Allende, Martin Amis, John Berger, Harold Bloom, E.L. Doctorow, Amitav Ghosh, Kazuo Ishiguro, Jamaica Kincaid, Oliver Sacks, Carol Shields, Jeanette Winterson and more.

Genres: Nonfiction, Writing

352 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1996

About the author

Eleanor Wachtel has been host of CBC Radio's Writers & Company since its inception in 1990

Reviews

[Joanne-in-Canada · Rating 4 out of 5]

Although I prefer Wachtel's interviews on CBC's Writers and Company (http://www.cbc.ca/radio/writersandcom...), this collection of short interviews with 22 authors--from Chinua Achebe through David Grossman and Carol Shields to Jeanette Winterson--in engaging and enlightening.

[Diana Sandberg · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book is a compendium of radio interviews from about 20 years ago. I am a great fan of Eleanor Wachtel, whose intelligence and keen perception inform all her work. I am repeatedly struck by how thoroughly she prepares for her interviews, apparently having read - and considered - an author's entire oeuvre, and often drawing extraordinary inferences from comparing various elements of the body of work. When I listen to one of her interviews, I like to listen for the not infrequent moment when the author pauses, astonished and flattered at the aptness of her insight. It regularly happens that the author comments that s/he'd never thought of that before. Authors also very often express a rather bemused satisfaction at the end of the interview: Wachtel: Thank you so much for this. Author (in tones of wonder): No, thank *you*, I've really enjoyed this.

Having said all that, I only sort of enjoyed this book. Perhaps it's just that they don't translate well onto the page (for me), or perhaps these things don't age well. I found most of the authors rather dreary and a bit smug, although I did very much enjoy the interviews with Amitav Ghosh, E.L. Doctorow, and especially Jane Smiley. In fact, not having read anything by Ghosh or Smiley before, I am now compelled to seek out their work.

[Denis · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you're a fan of interviews with writers, you'll enjoy this book. If you're a fan of the CBC Radio program, Writers & Company with Eleanor Wachtel, you'll love this book.

The authors interviewed are interesting and thought-provoking, revealing, and a pleasure to read. I'll likely reread this book many more times.

[Maryn Sutherland · Rating 4 out of 5]

quilted blanket. strawberries. Lighters everywhere. yellow blouse.

[Erica · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love the CBC and Eleanor Wachtel's show. There are some fantastic interviews in here with some great writers. I only read a few before I had to return to the library. The interview with Chinua Achebe and Amitav Ghosh reveled a lot about their reality and their perceptions of history.