Who’s Reading Whom

Though it often is a time for a temperature-induced torpor, summer also is the season for readers to seek the solace of a quiet beach, a tree-shaded spot or a comfortable cabin chair to experience an almost-sensual vacation delight: reading books they have not been able to get to during busier moments.

This literary feasting, however, is not limited just to the run-of-the-mill reader. Those who write the best-selling novels, the hit screenplays and the big-time Broadway shows say they too spend their simmering summers idling on a sort of busman’s holiday.

Writers, especially those in Los Angeles, say they will devote the next few months to devouring the works of their colleagues, some books to be read for the sheer pleasure, others to advance a special interest or general knowledge.

Novelist-historian Jack Langguth, for example, will be rushing to the local English-language library during his visit to Rio de Janeiro, if he needs to replenish his own stack of hardcover and paperback books; novelist-biographer Sara Davidson plans to while away some pleasant hours reading at home or at the beach while her children attend camp.

Unlike general audiences, however, authors tend to be tough and discriminating. They profess to be bored by or too busy to tackle light reading.

One work in particular, seems destined to fare especially well among well-read authors interviewed about their summer reading plans: Gabriel Garcia Marquez’s “Love in the Time of Cholera.” Other books that seem to attract interest: Tom Wolfe’s “The Bonfire of the Vanities” and Stephen W. Hawking’s “A Brief History of Time.”

Here’s the Word on some other works considered worthy or hot by Los Angeles writers this summer:

T. Jefferson Parker--novelist, author, “Laguna Heat” and soon-to-be-published “Little Saigon”

“I’m going to read a new novel by Jim Harrison called ‘Dalva.’ It’s supposed to be his best book and that’s saying a mouthful. It’s calling me from the bookshelf right now.

“I think I’m going to read some Richard Ford called ‘A Piece of My Heart.’ I read a couple of his books and that will be the next one. He’s real good.

“I’m also going to reread a book called ‘Panama’ by Thomas McGuane. I reread that every summer. It’s just a great novel. It’s an inspiration always.”

Luis Valdez--playwright and screen writer, author, “Zoot Suit” and “I Don’t Have to

Show You No Stinkin’ Badges”

“I’m reading a trilogy by Eduardo Galeano called ‘Memory of Fire.’ What’s wonderful about these books is they offer a panoramic view of human civilization in America. . . . Yet it’s very easy reading. It goes by like vignettes and scenes.

“I think what it does is draw your attention to America as an organic whole. . . . There has been more (of a relationship) than Chevrolets and Coca-Cola being imported into Latin America. There has been an active exchange of ideas and cultural influences. . . . So we need to understand that flow, that give and take. The knowledge will only enhance what we are.”

Irving Wallace--novelist, author, “The Prize,” “The Chapman Report” and “The Almighty”

“I’ll name four books I put aside: ‘Nora: The Real Life of Molly Bloom’ by Brenda Maddox; ‘Freud: A Life for Our Times’ by Peter Gay; a novel called ‘Freedom’ by William Safire; and ‘Giacommetti’ by James Lord.

“I’m very interested in James Joyce and he had a very frank wife, so I can’t wait to get to this book. I’m putting off reading it until I can take it on a real vacation. Probably in July.

“I read something by Gay on Freud, and he’s so darn good that I couldn’t wait to read a full-length book on Freud by him.

“There’s also a good new writer named Nelson DeMille who’s written a book called ‘The Charm School,’ which I started and I’ll finish. That’s the place where the KGB turns Russians into Americans so they can infiltrate the U.S.”

Carolyn See--novelist, author, “Golden Days,” “Rhine Maidens”

“I’m reading ‘Oscar and Lucinda’ by Peter Carey. . . . I think it’s maybe the best novel I’ve read in 20 years. If you’re looking for a great novel, that’s a great novel.

“Then I’m reading a very silly novel which I just love. It’s by E. S. Goldman. ‘Big Chocolate Cookies.’ It’s the kind of book that you read the first page and you think, ‘Oh gosh, this is so much fun.’ Because obviously the guy who is writing it is out to have a good time. . . . He’s sort of like James Joyce in a bathing suit. He’s a playful genius.

“And looking through my stack, I see something called ‘Men,’ which looks like it should be a lot of fun. . . . It’s a sexy novel written by a lady, Margaret Diehl. . . .”

Wanda Coleman--poet, short story writer, author of “A War of Eyes” and “Heavy Daughter Blues”

“I’m thinking about rereading Camus’ ‘The Plague’ because we have such a big plague going on right now. That book has been haunting me. . . .

“I’m (also) catching up on . . . what my fellow black female writers have been writing. Sharon Doubiago has a new book of stories, ‘The Book of Seeing With One’s Own Eyes,’ which I’m planning to get. Then there’s a book ‘Mama’ by Terry McMillian that’s been highly recommended.”

Irving Stone--biographer, author, “Lust for Life,” “Agony and the Ecstasy” and “Clarence Darrow for the Defense.”

“One book I’ll be reading is ‘Love in the Time of Cholera.’

“I’ve read three or four reviews, but mostly I’m interested because when I saw that title I said they won’t sell 10 copies. Instead, I saw in the New York Times or maybe the Los Angeles Times that it’s No. 1 on the best-seller list. It’s got to be awfully good.

“I’ve got two other books that came in the last two days. The first is ‘Green City in the Sun’ by Barbara Wood, and the next is ‘People Like Us’ by Dominick Dunne.”

T. C. Boyle--novelist, author, “World’s End”

“I can’t read trash books. If the quality of prose isn’t really high, I can’t get engaged. I would say, though, that ‘John Cheever: A Biography’ by Scott Donaldson is as readable and ‘unputdownable’ as any thriller would be for me and I would say the same about Garcia Marquez’s new book.

“You don’t have to read crap to be occupied fully and swept away. Garcia Marquez is the quintessential storyteller. He is like Aesop. It’s as good as any thriller you could ever want in terms of picking you up and transporting you to another world.”

Sara Davidson--novelist, biographer and TV producer, author, “Loose Change,” “Friends of the

Opposite Sex,” and “Rock Hudson”

“I mostly read fiction. . . . I’ll get a stack of 10 or 12 (books) and read 30 or 40 pages in most of them, and nothing will compel me to pick them up again, until I find one that I absolutely have to and can’t wait to read. . . . I can tell you the last two books that was true of--a book called ‘White Palace’ by Glenn Savan, and I read Hemingway’s ‘The Garden of Eden.’ They were both very erotic and beautifully written and had wonderfully compelling characters.

“I can tell you what’s in the stack now, but I can’t guarantee you what I’m going to finish. I’m reading ‘Only Children’ by Rafael Yglesias; I have a book called ‘The Yellow Wind’ by David Grossman, an Israeli novelist who has written a book about his experiences with the Palestinians living in Israel; and then I’ve got ‘Love in the Time of Cholera’ by Garcia Marquez. I have a couple of books by James Salter; one is called ‘A Sport and a Past Time’; and the other called ‘Light Years.’

“Then I have the ‘Mysteries of Pittsburgh’ by Michael Chabon. I read 34 pages and am liking it a lot so I probably will finish.”

Bret Easton Ellis--novelist, author “Less Than Zero” and “The Rules of Attraction”

“I want to read the new Garcia Marquez book. . . . (It) has been so heavily recommended that I just can’t not read it.

“Then there’s always like a huge stack of paperbacks by my bed that I hope to (reread) like ‘Lolita’ or ‘Tender Is the Night,’ ‘Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas,’ ‘Farewell, My Lovely’ and the ‘Odyssey.’

“For some reason, I’m always reading some kind of Hollywood book. . . . There’s this non-fiction book called ‘Reel Power’ by Mark Litwak about the struggle for influence and success in Hollywood. It’s just not particularly well written. I’m also reading Michael Jackson’s autobiography, ‘Moonwalk’. . . . As I read, I’m finding out that maybe he’s not that interesting.”

Marilyn Ferguson--editor and writer, author “The Aquarian Conspiracy,” editor-publisher of “Brain/Mind Bulletin.”

“I’ve started to read ‘Chaos’ by James Gleick. It’s been a best seller. . . . The subject is extremely difficult and esoteric. So I want to see what kind of wizard job he must have done (to make it readable). It’s about chaotic mathematics. The science of chaos.

”. . . (As far as) trash, I just keep rereading Agatha Christie until another Agatha comes along. . . .”

David Henry Hwang--playwright, author, “M. Butterfly” and six other plays

“I’m going to read the Richard Ellmann’s biography, ‘Oscar Wilde.’ It’s kind of a fascination with that whole period.

“I bought ‘The Bonfire of the Vanities’ by Tom Wolfe and hope to start that. Then I’ve been reading a lot of screenplays to learn a little more about the form, including ‘Mona Lisa’ and ‘My Beautiful Launderette.’

“What do I read in trash? I guess my favorite author in that category is Eric van Lustbader. He wrote ‘The Ninja’ and a whole series of pulp books set in Asia. I read a lot of his books because I think it’s amusing to see how he’s perceiving Asia and by extension, how American pop culture is perceiving Asia.”

Dean Koontz--novelist, author, “Watchers,” “Lightning” and “Strangers”

“I’m going to finally get around to reading ‘The Bonfire of the Vanities.’ I like Tom Wolfe’s non-fiction and something tells me his novels have got to be fresh and unlike most mainstream fiction.

“I want to reread some of the early works of John D. MacDonald, the suspense writer. ‘The Damned,’ ‘Slam the Big Door,’ ‘Cry Hard, Cry Fast.’ He’s a marvelous stylist. He’s far and away better in character and style than the prize-winning mainstream writers. . . . It reminds you what can be done with language and characterization in a succinct fashion.”

A. J. Langguth--historian and novelist, author, “Patriots” and “Jesus Christs”

“One thing I’m very enthused about, because I’ve just begun it in manuscript, is a book by Sue Horton on the Billionaire Boys Club. It’s a combination of ‘Less Than Zero’ and ‘In Cold Blood’ and it’s very chilling.

“Everybody I know has read or is reading ‘Love in the Time of Cholera.’ I think it promises to be lovely, first because I go to Brazil every year, and I am interested in South American writing. . . . And also (because) so many of my friends have finished it and told me I’m in for a treat. I’ve seldom heard of a book that has such a wide variety of fans.

“I’m hoping some of these books fall into the category of light reading. As a matter of fact I really don’t like vacation books.”

Brian Moore--novelist, author, “Black Robe,” “The Lonely Passion of Judith Hearne” and

“The Great Victorian Collection”

“I want to read Henri Troyat’s ‘Chekhov: A Biography’ and Richard Ellmann’s ‘Oscar Wilde.’

“Another book I’ve got sounds very heavy: ‘The Oxford Companion to the Mind.’ It’s a big encyclopedic book about everything to do with the mind.

“Another book I want to read is a lighter thing called ‘Coasting.’ It’s by a guy named Jonathan Raban who sort of sailed around England.”

Gloria Goldsmith--playwright, TV writer, author of “Womanspeak,” “The Compensation

Factor,” “My Mother, My Daughters and Me”

“I’m going to read a book called ‘The Sisterhood: The True Story of the Women Who Changed the World,’ by Marcia Cohen. There’s one book I’m going to read, ‘Somebody’s Darling’ by Larry McMurtry. I like his stuff.

“I just finished a book about Jessica Savitch, ‘Almost Golden’ by Gwenda Blair.

“Then I have a heavy-reading book, which I’ve been picking at and which I’m not going to finish. It’s a resource book which I’m glad I own. It’s ‘Patriots’ by A. J. Langguth.”