Ex Libris

Confessions of a Common Reader

By: Anne Fadiman

Narrated by: Suzanne Toren

Perfectly balanced between humor and erudition, Ex Libris establishes Anne Fadiman as one of our finest contemporary essayists.

Anne Fadiman is—by her own admission—the sort of person who learned about sex from her father's copy of Fanny Hill, whose husband buys her 19 pounds of dusty books for her birthday, and who once found herself poring over her roommate's 1974 Toyota Corolla manual because it was the only written material in the apartment that she had not read at least twice.

This witty collection of essays recounts a lifelong love affair with books and language. For Fadiman, as for many passionate readers, the books she loves have become chapters in her own life story. Writing with remarkable grace, she revives the tradition of the well-crafted personal essay, moving easily from anecdotes about Coleridge and Orwell to tales of her own pathologically literary family. As someone who played at blocks with her father's 22-volume set of Trollope ("My Ancestral Castles") and who only really considered herself married when she and her husband had merged collections ("Marrying Libraries"), she is exquisitely well equipped to expand upon the art of inscriptions, the perverse pleasures of compulsive proof-reading, the allure of long words, and the satisfactions of reading out loud. There is even a foray into pure literary gluttony—Charles Lamb liked buttered muffin crumbs between the leaves, and Fadiman knows of more than one reader who literally consumes page corners.

©1998 Anne Fadiman (P)2004 Recorded Books

Critic reviews

"Fadiman's writing...is lively and sparkling with earthy little surprises." (Publishers Weekly)

"Fadiman writes with an appealing warmth and humor." (Library Journal)

Wishing for more..... or less

Any additional comments?

This book is a collection of essays by an obviously intelligent, well-read writer. For the most part, I found her observations amusing, touching, and completely relatable. However, there were a couple of the essays that had a certain tone of "I'm-so-much-smarter-than-you-are" which took away from the utter enjoyment of the whole book. However, overall, I loved the passion for books and reading that she so powerfully shared and I think all avid-readers will feel somewhat of a kinship in her stories because they too love books.

A modern classic

A master class in literary reflection. What I loved most was how passionately, but indirectly, the author advocated for making literacy a part of your life, and yet she never sounded preachy.

There is a thrill in listening to the way she combines prose. A lover of any literary classic would find this book a welcome addition to their library.

Reading IS fun!

This is a book I will listen to again. I thoroughly enjoyed getting to know Ms. Fadiman's quirky family. I vicariously searched used book stores with her and polled my own reading friends regarding what they would consider to be their "odd shelf." The reader, Suzanne Toren, adds just the right touch of humor and sophistication to make this book a very enjoyable listen! Listening to this book reminded me of the common bonds among readers and at the same time, the uniqueness of our own stories.

The narrator does her no favours

The essays are generally excellent. The reading is clear,lively and carefully enunciated, although calling British navy officers “lootenants” clangs as offensively on the ear as a Brit calling an American a “leftenant”would. But my more serious objection is to the reader’s tone. She gives Ms Fadiman a supercilious and self-congratulatory voice which never and must never come across in print. Pleasure, yes, superior self-satisfaction, no.
Still, the essays are worth it.

A Must for Lovers of the Written Word

This book has long been a favorite of mine, and I was delighted to find it here, not only in a clear and crisp audio format, but also narrated beautifully by a reader who not only clearly understands the wonderful humor of the book, but even proves herself more than up to the challenge of Ms. Fadiman's globe-trotting, century-hopping, sesquipedalian vocabulary. And yes, this was the book that first taught me "Sesquipedalian." Anne Fadiman's joyful tribute to bibliophiles everywhere is as delightful here as it was the first (and second, and third...) time that I read it.