Housekeeping vs. The Dirt is the continuation of a series of book critiques that Hornby wrote for The Believer, the first batch which was published as The Pollysyllabic Spree. Of course, I still adore Nick Hornby, but this book didn't make me laugh as often as the Spree. However, I got a larger number of good book recommendations this time and now my "to-read" list is a long reading in itself. And pleasingly, several of the books that Hornby reviewed are already on my "to-read" list. In particular, I was gratified to find the included excerpt of Then We Came to the End by Joshua Ferris (recommended to be by NPR *and* Nick Hornby now) and read Hornby's statement that "this is our sort of book." Too true. I can't wait to hit that one.

As with his The Polysyllabic Spree, the first collection of these columns, Hornby is funny and informative. Perhaps too informative as reading about these books is dangerous if one doesn’t want one’s to-read list to get too much longer. Each essay covers one month of books Hornby bought and books Hornby read.

The structure continues to be inspired but I didn’t enjoy this collection as much as the last one because he goes off in tangents and talks somewhat less about books and because, if my memory serves, his bought books and read books lists were, for the most part, shorter.

Also, he seemed less engaged in the process and I don’t think it was his humor (sometimes somewhat crass but in a forgivable British manner) but I think he really didn’t put quite as much into the essays. That said, what was there was interesting and enjoyable.

I don’t really appreciate the included long excerpts from a selection of the books he writes about because I don’t tend to enjoy reading long passages from books before I read the books. (I did read all of them because I am compulsive about wanting to read every word of every book that I read.)

I can't claim that this book was great, by any means. It was witty and informative and entertaining, though, and that's just what I was looking for when I decided to read it.

For those not familiar: "Housekeeping..." is a sort of sequel to Hornby's earlier work "The Polysyllabic Spree." Both of these books were originally published in monthly segments in "The Believer."

The premise of these pieces is to track the contant readers' dilemma: which books do I buy and which books do I read? Each chapter represents a month and begins with two lists - "Books Bought" and "Books Read." Each segment then tells the story as to why he bought and read what he did.

The segments aren't exactly essays. Nor are they really book reviews. Nor are they random ramblings. Simply put, they track his literary life as a reader.

You'd think that this premise would wear thin over the course of two books. But Hornby keeps things fresh and interesting with his fast, colloquial language and pseudo-intellectual interests.

Still - don't read this book without first checking out "The Polysyllabic Spree." It's not necessary, but it helps to know where he started.

Hornby keeps me on my toes! So many books to consider--14 books on a piece of paper for me to think about, none of which are currently on my tbr. And quotable lines---dozens of them. Which to choose? Oh my, this is and was difficult. A few have already been selected and used in my updates.


p 115 "Almost nobody writes their own books these days; indeed to do so is seen as a mark of failure in literary circles. Of course, the young have no choice, and there are, apparently, a few renegades who insist on churning out word after word....I have always used an old lady named Violet, who lives in a cottage in Cornwall, in the far west of England, and who is an absolute treasure. She's getting better too."


Oh Nick, what's not to like! You have literary knowledge, attitude to spare, wit and charm, especially when you discover an author or book you truly love. I have a few more lines marked but I should save those lest I spoil the fun for you who have yet to read this.

I will definitely continue this series, read them all, both for the reading list and for the wit.

Maybe a 4.5 but bumped to 5 for the smiles and chuckles provided.

Mildly amusing. I think I just need to admit that Hornby doesn’t do much more than that for me, but for some reason I keep reading his books.

Volume two of three and Hornby is really hitting his stride now. Even though I am not familiar with most of the books he reviews, he is a good enough writer to engage and entertain at the same time. There is a diary element to these monthly articles as well, which keeps them more than interesting. I even picked up a couple of leads and recommendations towards the end of this volume, a lack of which I had complained about when reviewing volume one, so all good here, as I make my to volume three.

Collection of Nick Hornby's columns about reading books. Truly just that. Pithy, witty collection. Quick read and fun.

Maybe I'm being too harsh. Maybe I should give this three stars. I'm quite fond of Nick Hornby ("About A Boy" is one of my favorite books) but I found myself disappointed. These essays just seemed inconsistent in quality. His train of thought was too messy and all over the place. I'd get excited at the mention of a certain book in his "books read" column only to find it barely touched upon (one line each on Zadie Smith's and Hanan al-Sheikh's books, really?) Then just when I wondering whether to move onto to something more satisfying, there would be an engaging piece with all his trademark everyman humor and cynicism. I love the concept of writing about reading but unfortunately this collection didn't do it for me.

I finished Nick Hornby's second collection of essays, Housekeeping vs. the Dirt sometime last summer, and so this brief review will be sorely lackingk in details. Like his first collection, The Polysyllabic Spree, this volume collects essays originally written for The Believer to chronicle what Hornby has read in the month between issues of the magazine.

Hornby's essays are, as always, well-crafted, and tightly woven, even when he protests that they are not so, but what sticks with me about these essays a couple of months after I read them--what I like about Hornby's essays--is that they demonstrate a thoughtful consideration of reading what it means to read--to chose to pick up a book--in a modern world where there are a seemingly infinite number of other entertainments available.

Two favorite quotations include:
“If reading books is to survive as a reading activity . . . Then we have to promote the joys of reading rather than the (dubious) benefits. I would never attempt to dissuade someone from reading a book. But please, if you're reading a book that's killing you, put it down and read something else.”
and
“There comes a point in life, it seems to me, where you have to decide if you're a Person of Letters or merely someone who loves books, and I'm beginning to see that the book lovers have more fun”

This is the second book collection of Nick Hornby's monthly Stuff I've Been Reading Column from The Believer. In this book he covers from Feb. 2005 to Oct. 2006. With this book Nick really seems to find his stride and the book is way more fun then the first one (which was still great!). Notable books in this collection include Little Children, In Cold Blood, Like a Rolling Stone, The Men who Stare at Goats, Jane Austen: The Girl with The Magic Pen, Citizen Vince, Housekeeping, Scenes from a Provincial Life, The Dirt, Into the Wild and Freakonomics. Hornby's humor is at an all time high in this collection. Read with delight as he blames his sister for writing a book about how he treated her, even though it is about Jane Austen. Or his disgust as he reads a passage from The Dirt about breakfast burrito's. Best of all when in one month he doesn't read a single book and he wastes an entire column giving out an award he invented called The Scientist of the Month Award. And still Hornby proves once again why he is such a great writer in pieces were he adds another critic's prospective on Bob Dylan (see Roger Ebert's take as well to see what I mean) and talks with passion for Scenes from a Provincial Life, a book that clearly meant a lot to him. Perhaps only Hornby could make you care about book criticism and that is just further proof of how much a gem he really is.

Perfect to read in little bits, this book sat next to my bathtub for the better part of a month. (shhh don't tell the library). I'm going to admit I skipped over some parts, because sometimes reviews of books you haven't read can be boring, and sometimes Hornby's fake ranting in annoying. I really enjoy that the selected books are not just limited to recent releases, but jump all over the place in time, subject matter and context. What kind of books a person buys, which ones they read and which ones they shelve, why they read them and what they thought is a pretty revealing process. It's basically a autobiography of Hornby in book review form. Mostly he made me want to read more, so that can only be a good thing. Also, I'm noticing it influenced how I'm writing book reviews now so I guess it had even more of an impact than I thought.

3.8