A
Rachel Kunhner, the author of Telex from Cuba, The Mars Room, and The Flamethrowers, has got some excellent books for you.
Agortino by Alberto Moravla (1944).
When my son turned 13, my mother said to me, “You have to read Agostino.” Agosino is a perfect novella and perhaps the best literate ever written about being a 13-year-old boy. It’s painful and tender and funny. A masterpiece.
The Copenhagen Trilogy by Tove Ditlevsen(1967- 1971).
Ditlevsen was a 20th-century Danish writer. Her trilogy of short memoirs, Childhood, Youth, and Dependency, is becoming the subject of a literary craze. As soon as you sink your teeth in, you’ll understand why. The books are fascinating. The problem is they bite back. I’m still recovering.
Star by Yukio Mishima (1960).
There are a lot of Mishima novels that haven’t been translated into English. This novella about a movie star losing touch with reality only recently was. “A true star, ” Mishima writes, “never arrives. Showing up is for second-rate actor who need to seek attention. ” Want to seem glamorous? Stay home. Attending things is for the second-rate.
The Expendable Man by Dorothy B. Hughes (1963).
Donna Tart once recommended Hughes to me. I’m so glad she did. While Hughes’ most famous book, deservedly so, is In a Lonely Place. The Expendable Man has one of the best opening sequences of any mystery novel: A man driving from L. A．to Phoenix picks up a hitchhiker—a dirty and ungraceful teenage girl—with grave consequences.
21．Which book may appeal to readers crazy about mystery-solving stories?
A．Star. B．The Expendable Man. C．The Copenhagen Theology. D．Agostino.
22．What do we know about these books?
A．There has been no English version of the book Star up to now.
B．The Copenhagen Trilogy describes the author’s whole life.
C．All these books are recommended to Rachel Kuchner by others.
D．Agostino is a good choice for parents of teenagers.
23．Where is this text most likely from?
A．A column. B．A guidebook C．An announcement. D．A textbook
