About this item
Imagine keeping a record of every book you ever read. What would those titles say about you? With humor and warmth, the editor of The New York Times Book Review shares the stories that have shaped her lifeFor twenty-eight years, Pamela Paul has been keeping a diary that records the books she reads, rather than the life she leads. Or does it? Over time, it s become clear that this Book of Books, or Bob, as she calls him, tells a much bigger story. For Paul, as for many readers, books reflect her inner life her fantasies and hopes, her dreams and ideas. And her life, in turn, influences which books she chooses, whether for solace or escape, diversion or self-reflection, information or entertainment. My Life with Bob isn t about what s in those books; it s about about the relationship between books and readers. Bob was with her when she struggled to get through the Norton Anthology of English Literature in college and when she read Anna Karenina while living abroad alone. He was there when she fell in love and much needed when she sought solace in self-help and memoirs like Autobiography of a Face. Through marriage and divorce, remarriage (The Master and Margarita) and parenthood (The Hunger Games) , professional setbacks and successes, Bob recorded what she read while all that happened. The diary now coffee-stained and frayed is the record of a lifelong love affair with books, and has come to mean more to her than any other material possession. My Life with Bob is a testament to the power of books to provide the perspective, courage, companionship, and ultimately self-knowledge to forge our own path. "
About the Author
Pamela Paul is the editor of The New York Times Book Review, which she joined as the children's books editor in 2011, and oversees books coverage at The New York Times, where she hosts the weekly Book Review podcast.She is the author of seven books: " The Starter Marriage and the Future of Matrimony" was named one of the best books of 2002 by The Washington Post; her second book, "Pornified," was named one of the best books of 2005 by The San Francisco Chronicle. She is also the author of "Parenting, Inc.", "By the Book: Writers on Literature and the Literary Life from The New York Times Book Review," "My Life with Bob: Flawed Heroine Keeps Book of Books, Plot Ensues" and most recently, "How to Raise a Reader," co-written with Maria Russo. Her first picture book for children, "Rectangle Time," came out in February 2021.Paul's next book, "100 Things We've Lost to the Internet," will be published by Crown on October 26th, 2021 (and can be preordered now!) . Paul has been a contributor to Time magazine and The Economist, and a columnist for The New York Times Sunday Styles section and Worth magazine. Her work has also appeared in The Atlantic, The Washington Post, The New York Times Magazine, The Economist, Vogue, and other publications.You can follow Paul on Twitter @PamelaPaulNYT and on Instagram @PamelaPaul2018.
