The IBIC Guide to Books By William Goldman

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June 24, 1994

I was already a few chapters into William Goldman's MARATHON MAN (Delacorte Press, 1974) before I realized that I was reading another book with fiendish Nazi criminals. I considered putting it down, but it was too good. In any event, this book can't be said to glorify Nazis like a run-of-the-mill swastika thriller. In fact, it contains one of the most moving anti-Nazi scenes I have ever read, when the villainous "White Angel" of Auschwitz makes the mistake of entering the Jewish diamond markets on New York's 47th Street and is recognized by survivors of the death camps.

I was inspired to reread Goldman because of seeing "Maverick" (for which he wrote the screenplay) at the show a few weeks ago. I went to the library in search of THE PRINCESS BRIDE, but it was checked out, so I settled for the most famous Goldman that I had never read. MARATHON MAN lives up to its reputation. A beautifully written pageturner with several knock-your-socks-off plot twists that came up to the GORKY PARK level of knife-in-the-stomach surprise. An excellent book, and a reminder of how good Goldman can be.

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Editor's Recommendations, Summer 1996

In this inaugural edition of IBIC's Featured Books, I'd like to draw your attention to several titles which have helped to shape my life and thinking.

  • When I was around fifteen, I came across Larry Niven and Jerry Pournelle's science fiction novel, INFERNO. This '70s remake of Dante's classic describes science fiction writer Allen Carpentier's descent into Hell. It's still a very fresh, accessible take on the classic. What a great movie it would make!
  • The Niven/Pournelle INFERNO immediately inspired me to read the original Divine Comedy. I've read a number of translations over the years, but my favorite is the one by Dorothy Sayers (INFERNO; PURGATORY; PARADISE). The notes are excellent, and Sayers had such a knowledgeable and witty mind that reading her prose is a pleasure in itself. (For those interested in a more contemporary translation, I should mention that Robert Pinsky received excellent notices for his 1995 THE INFERNO OF DANTE : A NEW VERSE TRANSLATION; it's a very handsome book.)
  • I also want to tell you about the late Henry Fairlie's THE SEVEN DEADLY SINS TODAY, which probably did more than any other single book to galvanize me into a lifetime interest in Christianity that led me, eventually, to faith. Ironic, because Fairlie was a self-proclaimed agnostic socialist! But reading between the lines of this insightful and deeply feeling book, one realizes that the love of God cannot have been far from Fairlie's heart.
  • Finally, I should draw to your attention a more recent acquisition, the very handsome NIV STUDY BIBLE (10TH ANNIVERSARY EDITION) from Zondervan, indexed and bonded in leather in IBIC's theme color, burgundy (black and brown are also available). The notes to this Bible are amazing. They appear to provide you with a very substantial portion of what you need to know to have an intelligent layman's appreciation of the linguistic and historical issues involved in understanding Scripture.

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