Fiction_L Archives 1960s novels Dates: 3/7/03,3:59 PM  through  3/20/03,11:03 AM  (16 postings) Search for: Select one or more indexes to search: 2009-current     2007-2008     1996-2006    (Matches from each index will be displayed separately in the results page.) Return to March 2003 thread menu   |   Fiction_L Archives Menu

FROM: Carrie Herrmann <cherrman@bcpl.org>
REC'D: 3/7/03, 3:59 PM

Hello,

I'm hoping you can help me. I am in the planning stages for a fall discussion
series centered around the theme of the 1960s. I am looking for novels set in
the 1960s America that would make good discussion books. I appreciate any
help you can give me.

Carrie A. Herrmann
Access Services Coordinator
Boone County Public Library
859-384-5550 (phone)
859-394-5557 (fax)
cherrman@bcpl.org

FROM: "Marx, Charleen, JCL" <MarxC@jocolibrary.org>
REC'D: 3/7/03, 4:43 PM

One of my favorite titles is _Little Miss Strange_ by Joanna Rose. It is a
coming of age story set in Denver during the 60's and would make for great
discussion. There are many period details and lots of still relevant issues
to contend with. Here is the Booklist review from NoveList.

Booklist Review: Through an almost mind-numbing accumulation of detail,
first-novelist Rose paints an extraordinary picture of the fractured,
makeshift families that were a byproduct of the tumultuous sixties. As the
novel opens, preschooler Sarajean Henry describes her daily routine with
Jimmy Henry, the man she assumes is her father, and her life at Free School
with best friend Lalena. As she grows older and more aware, her running
commentary on her clothing and her activities is punctuated by emotionally
wrenching moments of discovery: Jimmy Henry is a heroin addict, Lalena's
father is sexually molesting her, and, most traumatically, Jimmy Henry is
not her father but merely the friend her junkie mother happened to leave her
with. As she incorporates each new piece of upsetting information, Lalena
struggles to make sense of her world and to help herself. Though this novel
will be a strain for some readers, others will be drawn to the stoic
Sarajean and her unblinking acceptance of her circumstances. ((Reviewed
February 15, 1997)) -- Joanne Wilkinson

Enjoy! Charleen Marx

-----Original Message-----
From: Carrie Herrmann
To: Fiction_L
Sent: 3/7/03 4:53 PM
Subject: 1960s novels

Hello,

I'm hoping you can help me. I am in the planning stages for a fall
discussion
series centered around the theme of the 1960s. I am looking for novels
set in
the 1960s America that would make good discussion books. I appreciate
any
help you can give me.

Carrie A. Herrmann
Access Services Coordinator
Boone County Public Library
859-384-5550 (phone)
859-394-5557 (fax)
cherrman@bcpl.org

......................................................................
Need to subscribe, unsubscribe, search the archives?
Everything Fiction_L: http://fictionl.webrary.org

FROM: Patricia Gibson <pgibson@tnrdlib.bc.ca>
REC'D: 3/7/03, 5:36 PM

Hi,
How about "Five Smooth Stones" by Ann Fairbairn? It would be interesting
to discuss black/white relations then and now and where the NAACP has
gone in their development. Of course, there is always "To Kill A
Mockingbird."

Another interesting book you might want to do is Betty Friedan's "The
Feminine Mystique." It would be interesting to see how women feel about
the book that was so revolutionary back in 1963. I must say, apart from
her digression into Freudian theory (who reads Freud anymore - esp.
about women!)I feel that some of her points still jab.

I hope this helps.
Patricia Gibson
Kamloops Public Library

FROM: Andrew Smith <asmith@mail.wrl.org>
REC'D: 3/8/03, 9:08 AM

Michener's The Drifters captures a lot of the rootlessness of the young
people and the lack of understanding on the part of their elders

*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*

Andrew Smith asmith@mail.wrl.org
Readers Services Librarian
Williamsburg Regional Library (757) 259-4050
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

On Fri, 7 Mar 2003, Carrie Herrmann wrote:

> Hello,
>
> I'm hoping you can help me. I am in the planning stages for a fall discussion
> series centered around the theme of the 1960s. I am looking for novels set in
> the 1960s America that would make good discussion books. I appreciate any
> help you can give me.
>
> Carrie A. Herrmann
> Access Services Coordinator
> Boone County Public Library
> 859-384-5550 (phone)
> 859-394-5557 (fax)
> cherrman@bcpl.org
>
>
> ......................................................................
> Need to subscribe, unsubscribe, search the archives?
> Everything Fiction_L: http://fictionl.webrary.org
>

FROM: Sandy Westbrook <sandyw@crlc.org>
REC'D: 3/8/03, 9:20 AM

Carrie,
We don't have Novelist here - we use What do I read Next? It lists
very few novels set in the 1960's and I have to admit I don't know whether
they'd be any good for discussion, but here's the list:
Mona Clee - Branch Point
Walter Mosley - A Little Yellow Dog
Daniel Rhodes - Kiss of Death
F. Paul Wilson - Reborn
Gardner Dozois - Slow Dancing through Time
Dan Simmons - Summer of Night
William F. Buckley - Tucker's Last Stand

I also looked in American Decades 1960-1969 which lists the books that
people were reading during the 60's. Just by looking at the list - I think
you could find lots to discuss in these and certainly some of them would
give you an excellent feel for what life was like during the 60's:
Joseph Heller - Catch-22
Kurt Vonnegut, Jr - Slaughterhouse-Five
Truman Capote - In Cold Blood
Helen Gurley Brown - Sex and the Single Girl
J.D. Salinger - Franny and Zooey
Katherine Anne Porter - Ship of Fools
William Faulkner - The Reivers
Mary McCarthy - The Group
Saul Bellow - Herzog
Bernard Malamud - The Fixer
Philip Roth - Portnoy's Complaint
Ian Fleming - James Bond books
Morris West - The Shoes of the Fisherman
Irving Wallace - The Man
Arthur Hailey - Hotel and Airport
Jacqueline Susann - Valley of the Dolls
James Clavells - Tai-pan
Gore Vidal - Myra Breckinridge
Ira Levin - Rosemary's Baby
Robert Heinlein - Stranger in a Strange Land

Sandy Westbrook
Adult Services Librarian
South Windsor Public Library
South Windsor, CT 06074
Ph 860-644-1541
Fax 860-644-7645
sandyw@crlc.org

FROM: Nancy Almand <lucysky@earthlink.net>
REC'D: 3/8/03, 11:05 AM

Walking to Mercury by Starhawk

This is a prequel to the Fifth Sacred Thing.

From Booklist
When spiritual leader and ecofeminist Starhawk turned to fiction in The Fifth Sacred Thing (1993), readers embraced her vision of a future in which power is redefined and women's realities are celebrated. This prequel focuses on Maya Greenwood, a rebellious centenarian in the previous book. Enlisted in revolutionary politics during the '60s, Maya lived underground for years after and discovered herself as a witch and a ritualist. Starhawk recounts Maya's life in flashbacks and through journal entries and the letters from her two lovers, fiery Rio Connolly and earthy Johanna Weaver, which Maya reads on a trip to Nepal to find her estranged sister. Nepal serves as a framing device for Maya's probings of the past, especially the secret that Rio is the father of Johanna's child--a secret the women have kept from Rio, but which has driven them and him apart. The resolution of this and other estrangements is the core of the book. Despite Starhawk's warning against such an interpretation, her fans will probably read the strong-willed feminist witch Maya as a stand-in for the author. They will, no doubt, also find, once again, Starhawk's vision of the union of personal life, spirituality, and politics to be invigorating and inspiring.

FROM: Theresa <ttheveno@pelican.state.lib.la.us>
REC'D: 3/10/03, 9:30 AM

I think Forrest Gump was set at least partially in the 1960's and would
probably make a good discussion book. Also, not fiction, but not exactly
normal non-fiction either, is Tom Wolfe's The Electric Kool-Aid Acid Test,
which is well worth taking a look at for that aspect of the 1960's.
Theresa Thevenote 318-253-7559
Avoyelles Parish Library http://www.avoyelles.lib.la.us
104 N Washington
Marksville LA 71351

FROM: Elizabeth Manar <Elizabeth.Manar@gale.com>
REC'D: 3/10/03, 12:42 PM

Hello all,

I did a search for titles set in the 1960s in the What Do I Read Next?
Online database and came up with 289 titles after filtering to make sure the
novels were set during the 1960s in America and were Adult Fiction. I would
be glad to go through any of these to limit the search a little further. If
I can be of assistance, please contact me off list.

Thank you,
Elizabeth Manar
Contributing Editor, What Do I Read Next? Online

"The views, opinions, and judgments expressed in this message are solely
those of the author. The message contents have not been reviewed or approved
by the Gale Group."

-----Original Message-----
From: Sandy Westbrook [mailto:sandyw@crlc.org]
Sent: Saturday, March 08, 2003 10:12 AM
To: Fiction_L
Subject: Re: 1960s novels

Carrie,
We don't have Novelist here - we use What do I read Next? It lists
very few novels set in the 1960's and I have to admit I don't know whether
they'd be any good for discussion, but here's the list:
Mona Clee - Branch Point
Walter Mosley - A Little Yellow Dog
Daniel Rhodes - Kiss of Death
F. Paul Wilson - Reborn
Gardner Dozois - Slow Dancing through Time
Dan Simmons - Summer of Night
William F. Buckley - Tucker's Last Stand

I also looked in American Decades 1960-1969 which lists the books that
people were reading during the 60's. Just by looking at the list - I think
you could find lots to discuss in these and certainly some of them would
give you an excellent feel for what life was like during the 60's:
Joseph Heller - Catch-22
Kurt Vonnegut, Jr - Slaughterhouse-Five
Truman Capote - In Cold Blood
Helen Gurley Brown - Sex and the Single Girl
J.D. Salinger - Franny and Zooey
Katherine Anne Porter - Ship of Fools
William Faulkner - The Reivers
Mary McCarthy - The Group
Saul Bellow - Herzog
Bernard Malamud - The Fixer
Philip Roth - Portnoy's Complaint
Ian Fleming - James Bond books
Morris West - The Shoes of the Fisherman
Irving Wallace - The Man
Arthur Hailey - Hotel and Airport
Jacqueline Susann - Valley of the Dolls
James Clavells - Tai-pan
Gore Vidal - Myra Breckinridge
Ira Levin - Rosemary's Baby
Robert Heinlein - Stranger in a Strange Land

Sandy Westbrook
Adult Services Librarian
South Windsor Public Library
South Windsor, CT 06074
Ph 860-644-1541
Fax 860-644-7645
sandyw@crlc.org

......................................................................
Need to subscribe, unsubscribe, search the archives?
Everything Fiction_L: http://fictionl.webrary.org

FROM: Cheryl Edwards <cedwards@mail.wrl.org>
REC'D: 3/10/03, 1:25 PM

Here are some 60s era non-fiction if that would help.

"Helter Skelter" by Vince Bugliosi - Charlie Manson and his
merry band of hippies bring the '60s to a brutal end.

"Armies of the Night" by Norman Mailer - Mailor opines while on a
Peace march to Washington in 1967.

"No One Gets Out of Here Alive" by Jerry Hopkins - Well known bio
of Doors front man Jim Morrison.

"Go Ask Alice" by Anonymous - Teenager writes memorably about her
drug addiction. (May be early 70s rather than 60s)

"Coffee, Tea or Me? by Trudy Baker - 60s era Stewardesses
discover the sexual revolution. Cheesy but popular
book at the time.

-Cheryl-
Williamsburg Regional Library

FROM: David Wright <dwright333@yahoo.com>
REC'D: 3/10/03, 3:03 PM

For some reason I have always thought of Thomas
Pynchon's "The Crying of Lot 49" as being an
especially 60'sish piece of work, not for any
definite and particular reason, but for the
overall feel of it. A very NOW book, then.

David Wright
Seattle Public Library

--- Cheryl Edwards <cedwards@mail.wrl.org> wrote:
>
> Here are some 60s era non-fiction if that
> would help.
>
>
> "Helter Skelter" by Vince Bugliosi - Charlie
> Manson and his
> merry band of hippies bring
> the '60s to a brutal end.
>
> "Armies of the Night" by Norman Mailer -
> Mailor opines while on a
> Peace march to Washington in 1967.
>
> "No One Gets Out of Here Alive" by Jerry
> Hopkins - Well known bio
> of Doors front man Jim Morrison.
>
> "Go Ask Alice" by Anonymous - Teenager writes
> memorably about her
> drug addiction. (May be early 70s rather than
> 60s)
>
> "Coffee, Tea or Me? by Trudy Baker - 60s era
> Stewardesses
> discover the sexual revolution. Cheesy but
> popular
> book at the time.
>
>
> -Cheryl-
> Williamsburg Regional Library
>
>
>
......................................................................
> Need to subscribe, unsubscribe, search the
> archives?
> Everything Fiction_L:
http://fictionl.webrary.org

=====
David Wright Seattle Public Library

__________________________________________________
Do you Yahoo!?
Yahoo! Tax Center - forms, calculators, tips, more
http://taxes.yahoo.com/

FROM: "Barb Borg-Jenkins, South Haven Public Library" <shref@pcpls.lib.in.us>
REC'D: 3/10/03, 6:03 PM

Although this book was written in 1977, "The Woman's Room" by Marilyn
French really touched true on the relationships between men and
women--to show how they have stayed the same despite the years between
the publication of Betty Friedan's book and Marilyn French's.

Barbara Borg-Jenkins
South Haven Public Library
Valparaiso, In 46385

Patricia Gibson wrote:

>Hi,
>How about "Five Smooth Stones" by Ann Fairbairn? It would be interesting
>to discuss black/white relations then and now and where the NAACP has
>gone in their development. Of course, there is always "To Kill A
>Mockingbird."
>
>Another interesting book you might want to do is Betty Friedan's "The
>Feminine Mystique." It would be interesting to see how women feel about
>the book that was so revolutionary back in 1963. I must say, apart from
>her digression into Freudian theory (who reads Freud anymore - esp.
>about women!)I feel that some of her points still jab.
>
>I hope this helps.
>Patricia Gibson
>Kamloops Public Library
>
>
>......................................................................
>Need to subscribe, unsubscribe, search the archives?
>Everything Fiction_L: http://fictionl.webrary.org
>
>
>
>

FROM: Spencer Ms Martha <Martha.Spencer@usmc-mccs.org>
REC'D: 3/11/03, 11:07 AM

Bright Angel Time by Martha McPhee captures the rootlessness, a mother's
involvement with a feckless "guru" from the child's point of view.

Martha

-----Original Message-----
From: Andrew Smith [mailto:asmith@mail.wrl.org]
Sent: Saturday, March 08, 2003 10:04 AM
To: Fiction_L
Subject: Re: 1960s novels

Michener's The Drifters captures a lot of the rootlessness of the young
people and the lack of understanding on the part of their elders

*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*

Andrew Smith asmith@mail.wrl.org
Readers Services Librarian
Williamsburg Regional Library (757) 259-4050
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

On Fri, 7 Mar 2003, Carrie Herrmann wrote:

> Hello,
>
> I'm hoping you can help me. I am in the planning stages for a fall
discussion
> series centered around the theme of the 1960s. I am looking for novels
set in
> the 1960s America that would make good discussion books. I appreciate any
> help you can give me.
>
> Carrie A. Herrmann
> Access Services Coordinator
> Boone County Public Library
> 859-384-5550 (phone)
> 859-394-5557 (fax)
> cherrman@bcpl.org
>
>
> ......................................................................
> Need to subscribe, unsubscribe, search the archives?
> Everything Fiction_L: http://fictionl.webrary.org
>

......................................................................
Need to subscribe, unsubscribe, search the archives?
Everything Fiction_L: http://fictionl.webrary.org

FROM: "Wilton Library Association" <library@wiltonlibrary.org>
REC'D: 3/11/03, 11:49 AM

Checking in late here, but the first title that jumped to my mind is Mark
Childress' Crazy in Alabama. It's humorous, but that doesn't always blunt
Peejoe's experiences in the Alabama of the mid 60's. It was also made into
a moderately amusing movie.

Sandy
====================
Sandra Clockedile, MSLIS
Head of Systems
Wilton Library Association
library@wiltonlibrary.org
http://www.wiltonlibrary.org

FROM: Susanne Clower <sclower@chipublib.org>
REC'D: 3/11/03, 12:21 PM

I came across Richard Farina's classic the other day - "Been Down So
Long It Looks Like Up To Me." I haven't read the whole book, but there
are extensive reviews and sample pages at Amazon. It appears to
chronicle the transformation of an Ive Leaguer from the 50's to the 60's
- I guess it sort of introduces the Sixties. It might be a good starting
point for the list.
What always amazes me about books from the 50s and 60s are the prices -
the main character looks at an apartment renting for $70 a month!
Susanne Clower
Chicago Public Library

FROM: "Karl G. Siewert" <librarian@yoyology.com>
REC'D: 3/11/03, 1:14 PM

I haven't seen anyone mention ONE FLEW OVER THE CUCKOO'S NEST by Ken Kesey.
It was published in 1962 and had a strong "question authority" message.

-Karl G. Siewert, MLIS

FROM: Carrie Herrmann <cherrman@bcpl.org>
REC'D: 3/20/03, 11:03 AM

Thank you for the suggestions of novels set in 1960s America. I am looking at
sevearl of these to use in a discussion series about the 60s.

Little Miss Strange_ by Joanna Rose. It is a
coming of age story set in Denver during the 60's and would make for great
discussion. There are many period details and lots of still relevant issues
to contend with.

"Five Smooth Stones" by Ann Fairbairn? It would be interesting
to discuss black/white relations then and now and where the NAACP has
gone in their development.

"To Kill A Mockingbird."

Betty Friedan's "The Feminine Mystique." It would be interesting to see how
women feel about the book that was so revolutionary back in 1963.

Michener's The Drifters captures a lot of the rootlessness of the young
people and the lack of understanding on the part of their elders

Mona Clee - Branch Point

Walter Mosley - A Little Yellow Dog

Daniel Rhodes - Kiss of Death

F. Paul Wilson - Reborn

Gardner Dozois - Slow Dancing through Time

Dan Simmons - Summer of Night

William F. Buckley - Tucker's Last Stand

Joseph Heller - Catch-22

Kurt Vonnegut, Jr - Slaughterhouse-Five

Truman Capote - In Cold Blood

Helen Gurley Brown - Sex and the Single Girl

J.D. Salinger - Franny and Zooey

Katherine Anne Porter - Ship of Fools

William Faulkner - The Reivers

Mary McCarthy - The Group

Saul Bellow - Herzog

Bernard Malamud - The Fixer

Philip Roth - Portnoy's Complaint

Ian Fleming - James Bond books

Morris West - The Shoes of the Fisherman

Irving Wallace - The Man

Arthur Hailey - Hotel and Airport

Jacqueline Susann - Valley of the Dolls

James Clavells - Tai-pan

Gore Vidal - Myra Breckinridge

Ira Levin - Rosemary's Baby

Robert Heinlein - Stranger in a Strange Land

Walking to Mercury by Starhawk This is a prequel to the Fifth Sacred Thing.

anything by Jack Kerouac captures the mood surrounding the 1960's.

Forrest Gump

Tom Wolfe's The Electric Kool-Aid Acid Test,

"Helter Skelter" by Vince Bugliosi - Charlie Manson and his
merry band of hippies bring the '60s to a brutal end.

"Armies of the Night" by Norman Mailer - Mailor opines while on a
Peace march to Washington in 1967.

"No One Gets Out of Here Alive" by Jerry Hopkins - Well known bio
of Doors front man Jim Morrison.

"Go Ask Alice" by Anonymous - Teenager writes memorably about her
drug addiction. (May be early 70s rather than 60s)

"Coffee, Tea or Me? by Trudy Baker - 60s era Stewardesses
discover the sexual revolution. Cheesy but popular
book at the time.

Thomas Pynchon's "The Crying of Lot 49" .

"The Woman's Room" by Marilyn French really touched true on the relationships
between men and women--to show how they have stayed the same despite the years
between the publication of Betty Friedan's book and Marilyn French's.

Bright Angel Time by Martha McPhee captures the rootlessness, a mother's
involvement with a feckless "guru" from the child's point of view.

Mark Childress' Crazy in Alabama. It's humorous, but that doesn't always blunt
Peejoe's experiences in the Alabama of the mid 60's.

Richard Farina's classic - "Been Down So Long It Looks Like Up To Me." It
appears to chronicle the transformation of an Ive Leaguer from the 50's to the
60's - I guess it sort of introduces the Sixties. It might be a good starting
point for the list.

ONE FLEW OVER THE CUCKOO'S NEST by Ken Kesey. It was published in 1962 and had
a strong "question authority" message.

Karen Stoltz's "World of Pies" takes place in Texas in the 1960s. I liked it a
lot.

Carrie A. Herrmann
Access Services Coordinator
Boone County Public Library
859-384-5550 (phone)
859-394-5557 (fax)
cherrman@bcpl.org

Return to March 2003 thread menu   |   Fiction_L Archives Menu

The Webrary® and Fiction_L are services of the Morton Grove Public Library "Webrary" is a registered trademark of the Morton Grove Public Library. All rights reserved. Copyright of Fiction_L postings belongs to their respective authors; postings may only be reused with the author's permission. Compiled lists (compilations of titles or authors from earlier postings on a particular topic) may not be reused for commercial purposes. To use a compiled list for non-commercial purposes, please credit "Subscribers of the Fiction_L mailing list." All other content is ©2010 Morton Grove Public Library, 6140 Lincoln Ave., Morton Grove, IL 60053-2989, (847) 965-4220.