Play Book Tag discussion

Today’s topic is about authenticity.

That could mean authors writing in a way that feels real and honest… or us being authentic in our reviews and comments. Or how we present ourselves online. Or even how we stay true to our experiences and beliefs, while still thinking about who we’re talking to and what the situation is.

It could also be about how we use tools like AI and still try to keep our own voice.

Feel free to share any thoughts — books where authenticity stood out, characters who struggle to be true to themselves, or even just your own thoughts on being real with others.

The first thing I thought of was the philosophy of authenticity! However, that's not what you mean :)

If I haven't met an author, it's difficult to know how authentic they are being, so instead I think I'll focus on an author who writes characters that are so brilliantly done, they feel more authentic than most, and that's James McBride. Despite his magical realism, every single solitary character is brilliantly done, so feels authentic to me. The best example of this is in his book Song Yet Sung.

I usually have immediate opinion on everything and share them freely, often to the defense of annoying those who have to hear them! I may think I am being authentic, but sometimes I am just trying to prove that I’m right!

I agree with Karin. I cannot know if authors are writing authentically, but I can have an opinion on whether their books feel authentic to me.

I find Nevil Shute's characters come across as authentic. They are usually just "regular people" trying their best to get by.

I recently read Ubik by Philip K. Dick, and one of its main themes is authenticity. Dick writes of a slightly warped version of our world where the boundaries between authentic and artificial experience have become so blurred that the distinction loses meaning. It seems to me that this is part of why this book remains so relevant today, even though it was written in the 1960s, since we now have a world where the blending of the online virtual world with “real life” is one we deal with every day. I always find myself wondering how much of what I read online is "real" versus "a projected image." not to mention what is fact versus fiction or even outright lies. (I try not to read too much online for this very reason or at least choose my sources very carefully).

I try to find my own voice and be my authentic self in my reviews. I write my true reactions to the book.

Who do I talk about when I talk about authenticity? Probably all the writers on my now disappeared favorite author's list here on Goodreads. Nevil Shute was also at the top of that list, deservedly in my opinion, with Richard Russo somewhere hot on his heels. I think this authenticity [or 'voice' , 'authority' as in someone who knows what he is writing about and tells it as it is] was one of the main criteria for being added to the favorites.
This year, I went back to where the discussion should probably start: Anton Chekhov - Selected Stories of Anton Chekhov and saw why so many generations of new writers are still inspired by his style, characters, fine insights into the human spirit.

Who sits at the opposite end of the spectrum? the 'we're only in it for the money' or the 'popcorn' bandwagons? Surprisingly, for me the label includes a lot of popular choices and genres, like tearjerkers that use death and terminal illness to kickstart the jaded reader's empathy, Rambo style action thrillers in exotic locations, romantasy adventures of nubile princesses with improbable martial skills and killer gowns+jewelry, boring stream of consciousness metafictional memoirs from misunderstood intellectuals and others of this sort.
Yet, I have given good ratings to such books, if they caught me in a good mood, or on a long flight, on a beach, etc.

Karin wrote: "The first thing I thought of was the philosophy of authenticity! However, that's not what you mean :)

If I haven't met an author, it's difficult to know how authentic they are being, so instead I ..."

I would be happy to hear about the philosophy of authenticity.

Karin wrote: "The first thing I thought of was the philosophy of authenticity! However, that's not what you mean :)

If I haven't met an author, it's difficult to know how authentic they are being, so instead I ..."

I would be happy to hear about the philosophy of authenticity.

Joy D wrote: "I agree with Karin. I cannot know if authors are writing authentically, but I can have an opinion on whether their books feel authentic to me.

I find Nevil Shute's characters come across as authe..."

I guess the idea of the authenticity of the author part played on several thoughts.

The argument of writing to authentic experience, such as the theme of Yellowface.

Also the use of names to sell books. James Patterson, the Clintons. Still using Ludlum's and Cussler's name after they have died.

In regard to our own voice. I guess I was thinking about the influence of expectations or someone else loving a book and not wanting to hate a book for their sake. Holding back from commenting on sensitive topics.

Lastly, I'm reading Audition, which has the thoroughly confused but apparently, one of the themes is authenticity. I plan on reading your review after I finish the book

The book you mentioned sounds interesting and I'm adding to my TBR.

I’m just off a plane after midnight, but I happen to read this question on route and I had just one thought. So maybe it fits, but this is what came to mind. It had to do with the dialogue that makes me laugh. I love it when the characters are drawn in such a way that they’re not necessarily self deprecating, but they have a quick wit and they’re able to poke fun at themselves. I have a couple of authors in mind that just make me crack up and I just appreciate how willing the own character is to talk about their flaws in a way that’s endearing and not self deprecating. Elinor Lipman is like that. Same with Sara Goodman Corfino. I have read a few authors recently, where I have just loved the way they write and the way they talk about their characters and the way they draw them. When these characters have this amazing witch and dialogue I just feel like it’s really authentically brought to life. So to me, maybe authenticity is humor. Like sometimes with writing it’s almost 2 Perfect and so perfect that it’s not quite real. And sometimes it’s right spot on.

Jason wrote: "The argument of writing to authentic experience, such as the theme of Yellowface."
I find I typically like these types of books mainly because I can gain perspective from walking in someone else's shoes. I am currently reading a book by an Afghani-American whose family still lives in Afghanistan, and he is providing many cultural and historic insights (Jamil Jan Kochai).

"Also the use of names to sell books. James Patterson, the Clintons. Still using Ludlum's and Cussler's name after they have died."

I usually don't read these types of books for the same reasons Algernon lists above. My perception is that they seem like money grabs more than any attempt to communicate authentic experiences (though maybe they do, and I just don't know because I haven't read any of them).

"In regard to our own voice. I guess I was thinking about the influence of expectations or someone else loving a book and not wanting to hate a book for their sake. Holding back from commenting on sensitive topics."
I do often feel bad if I don't like a book that has been recommended to me, but we all bring different life experiences to the table, and I think it is to be expected that we won't always like the same books. I try not to be influenced by other opinions or reviews. I don't read them in advance of writing my own. I have a huge spreadsheet where I keep track of all my ratings to make sure I am internally consistent.

ETA - Regarding sensitive topics, I try to write reviews diplomatically so as not to push buttons of people reading them. I may not always be successful, but I try to respect others' opinions and don't expect everyone to share mine.

"Lastly, I'm reading Audition, which has the thoroughly confused but apparently, one of the themes is authenticity. I plan on reading your review after I finish the book.
I loved it but this is a "love it or hate it" type of book so I look forward to your thoughts.

Joy D wrote: "I agree with Karin. I cannot know if authors are writing authentically, but I can have an opinion on whether their books feel authentic to me.

I find Nevil Shute's characters come across as authe..."

Yes! I love Shute because of those ordinary characters. Some current authors are Anne Tyler and Michelle Huneven and Elizabeth Strout.

Some other books I think are at least partially about authenticity:

Their Eyes Were Watching God by Zora Neale Hurston - Janie's journey from silence to finding her authentic voice

Invisible Man by Ralph Ellison - the narrator's search for authentic identity in a society that refuses to see him

The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald - Jay Gatsby's elaborate reinvention versus his true self (this might be about the effects of inauthenticity)

Giovanni's Room by James Baldwin - internal battle with sexual identity and self-acceptance, traveling to France to be able to live authentically

The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini - Amir's journey from cowardice to authentic courage

The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood - Offred maintaining her inner identity under totalitarian oppression

The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde - The conflict between outward appearance and moral authenticity

Death of a Salesman by Arthur Miller - Willy Loman's tragic inability to face his authentic self

I'm sure there are many more, but these leap to mind right away.

Jason wrote: "Karin wrote: "The first thing I thought of was the philosophy of authenticity! However, that's not what you mean :)

If I haven't met an author, it's difficult to know how authentic they are being,..."

It's been years since I thought about that philosophy. I first heard about it from one of my favourite high school teachers I was able to contact (he'd gone back to university and became a prof at one of my alma maters) called The Ethics of Authenticity by Charles Margrave Taylor. It took me a number of chapters before I figured out what the actual philosophy was (which I later verified.) Like every philosophy, I found holes in it, especially in arguing the ethics of it, which is why I wish I hadn't heard that philosophy was hard when I was in university, because it's right up my brain alley.

Here's a helpful article about it https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/au... if you'd like to know Plato lived long before this type of philosophy came to be, so disregard the site name's beginning.

I just finished The Fugitive: In Search of Lost Time, Volume 6 by Marcel Proust while traveling. It was a difficult book to read but also an authentic one, with all its beauty, confusion and ego left intact. I'm not surprised it was written when it was — only someone writing in that era could have pulled this off. There is no attempt at "reader-friendly" clarity. The sentences are long-winded — sometimes unclear and beautiful. At times, it’s deeply frustrating. But it feels like Proust was trying to capture thought in real time. What floored me most was the emotional precision.

If authenticity is about tracing the bare bones of thought as it forms — this book nails it.

Of course Anton Chekhov makes his way into the conversation. Seeing his name took me straight back to the time when I had the pleasure (and madness) of performing in The Proposal.

Elara wrote: "I just finished The Fugitive: In Search of Lost Time, Volume 6 by Marcel Proust while traveling. It was a difficult book to read but also an authentic one, with all ..."

Another Proust fan! Hear Hear! Great review.

I read the entire work over a 9 month period in 2019/2020, and in fact Volume 5, the one just before this one, was read just as we all went into lock down. It had a singular resonance.

Reading Proust is something you sink into, take your time with, and even just roll your eyes and skip ahead a little when he waxes on and on about the shrubbery or church steeples. But then you read this one. It's a journey and coming of age that was quite alive for me.