Joanna Scott: 5 books that "cast a spell"

Joanna Scott is the Roswell Smith Burrows Professor of English at The University of Rochester and author of numerous books, including Everybody Loves Somebody, a collection of stories and Liberation, a novel.

In an interview with Powells.com Ink Q & A, she was asked to "Recommend five or more books on a single subject of personal interest or expertise."

Her response:

I'm always looking for books that cast a spell, whatever that means. It should be a simple quality to describe, yet it's infinitely mysterious. I can't give any recipe for this or even offer a list of ingredients. But I can offer examples of the spellbinding books I've read or reread recently:

1. The Silver Screen by Maureen Howard
2. King by John Berger
3. An American Tragedy by Theodore Dreiser
4. Two Women by Alberto Moravia
5. Specimen Days by Michael Cunningham

Read the entire interview.

--Marshal Zeringue