Flann O'Brien (1911-1966), Irish Novelist, Playwright, and Satirist

[The Hersch]

Need to lay in a stockpile of books. Thinking of rereading Jane Austen and Borges, some popular but not TOO trashy new stuff. I like Philippa Gregory, Bernard Cornwell, John leCarre. Fantasy is fine, horror isn't, no mass murderers or hit men, please. No shades of grey. Nonfiction tastes run to cookbooks, economics (think Michael Lewis and Freakonomics), John McPhee. MFK Fisher, Harold McGee, John Thorne, stuff like that.

Any and all suggestions welcome. Don't hold back please. I have read minimum one book a week, maximum one book a day, for 50+ years. Even if I read it before, I can read it again. What are your favorites?

I also meant to recommend The Third Policeman by Flann O'Brien. I can't conceive of anything better calculated to lift the spirits and divert the imagination. And then you might want to read Flann O'Brien's other astonishing masterpiece, At Swim-Two-Birds. I think I should probably reread these myself.