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“30 Years of Liberating Literature”

September 29, 2012 – 11:07 am

"30 Years of Liberating Literature"

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What The Class of 2016 is Reading

September 2, 2012 – 10:42 pm


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According to a recent article in USA Today titled A Cheat Sheet to What Makes Today’s College Freshmen Click the class of 2016  are electronically sophisticated, yet woefully unprepared for the real world.

 ”This is a generation with an average of 241 social media friends, but they have trouble communicating in person,”

So what are the colleges and universities asking these freshman to read  to help open a discussion about the world they live in?  The non fiction book The Other Wes Moore about two boys from similar backgrounds meeting very different fates seems to be a top pick followed by last year’s popular title for freshman  The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks. This of course is only a partial list from what I could readily find online.  I would love to keep the thread going if you have college freshman in the house reading and ready to leave the nest.

Brown - Sons of Providence by Charles Rappley
Bucknell Univ – The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skloot
Clemson - Wading Home by Rosalyn Story
Franklin W. Olin College of Engineering - The Toaster Project by Thomas Thwaites
Georgetown University- The Tiger’s Wife: A Novel by Téa Obreht
Goucher College – An Enemy of the People – Kwame Kwei-Armah
Gustavus Adolphus - The Other Wes Moore by Wes Moore
Hampshire College – Sweet Heaven When I Die: Faith, Faithlessness, and the Country In Between, by Jeff Sharlet
Ithaca - Ten Thousand Saints by Eleanor Henderson
Kalamazoo College - Once Upon a River by Bonnie Jo Campbell
Montana State Univ - Extraordinary, Ordinary People by Condoleezza Rice
NYU Gallatin - Antigone by Sophocles
Pomona - The Barbarian Nurseries by Hector Tobar
Reed - The Odyssey by Homer
Rhode Island College - The Immortal Life Of Henrietta Lacks By Rebecca Skloot
Smith College - Dreaming in French: The Paris Years of Jacqueline Bouvier Kennedy, Susan Sontag, and Angela Davis by Alice Yaeger Kaplan
The University of the South – The Forest Unseen by David George Haskell
Tulane - Nine Lives: Mystery, Magic, Death, and Life in New Orleans by Dan Baum
University of Alabama Birmingham-The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skloot
UNC-Chapel Hill – The Shallows: What the Internet is Doing to our Brains  by Nicholas Carr
University of Mississippi - Crooked Letter, Crooked Letter by Tom Franklin
Washington State Univ -  The Immortal Life Of Henrietta Lacks By Rebecca Skloot
Washington University in St Louis –  The Other Wes Moore by Wes Moore
Whitman College - The Warmth of Other Suns  by Isabel Wilkerson.
WUSTL - The Other Wes Moore by Wes Moore

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Something Old, New, Borrowed & Blue in Summer Reading

July 18, 2012 – 6:23 pm

Publishers Weekly just came out with the bestselling books (so far) of 2012. I must say I’m a bit bored. The Hunger Games and Fifty Shades of Grey top all lists with a smattering of old favorites (The Help, The Girl that Kicked the Hornets Nest, Steve Jobs. Unbroken) thrown in for good measure.  The usuals (Patterson, Grisham, Baldacci and Sparks) made the list, and it is refreshing to see that two of my favorite novels this year, Defending Jacob and Gone Girl, have caught on with the Kindle crowd.

My summer reading list does not reflect the above trends.  So in the spirit of the many weddings that are happening all around me, here goes.

Something Old:
Heartburn by Nora Ephron.  Two reasons.  I’ve always wanted to read it.  I’m still in mourning.

Something New:
Kim Barnes newest In the Kingdom of Men.  This is a tale of what happens to a young woman from Oklahoma who moves with her husband to an oil business  compound in Saudi Arabia in the late 60′s.  I’m a big fan of Ms Barnes and this looks to me to be a big book club hit.

“In the Kingdom of Men” is a mystery, opening with the discovery of a murdered local woman, then backtracking to explain how Gin — and more darkly, Mason — are connected to the death. ~Seattle Times

Something Borrowed:
My sister passed along her copy of Kate Atkinson‘s latest Jackson Brodie mystery Started Early, Took My Dog.   I’ve watched the PBS series so I am familiar with the back story of this Yorkshire private eye whose sister’s murder when he was a young boy haunts him and seems to affect  his relationships with women  and the cases he takes on.

Something Blue:
Sacré Bleu by Christopher Moore. If you are new to Moore’s quirky and very funny books (Lamb, Fool, Bite Me) than you are in for a treat.  Nancy Pearl described it as “part mystery, part history (sort of), part love story, and wholly hilarious”.  Seems like the perfect summer read.

With such great books staring me in the face you probably won’t hear much more from me until mid-September.  It’s summer folks and the reading is easy.

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June 27, 2012 – 2:57 pm

Nora Ephron    May 19, 1941 – June 26, 2012


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Author/Writer Jennifer Weiner’s Advice To Book Bloggers

June 11, 2012 – 8:45 am

“No one can make you feel inferior without your consent. ” ~Eleanor Roosevelt

Or as Ms. Weiner paraphrased in her keynote address at this year’s BEA Bloggers Conference, “No one can hurt your feelings without your permission.”  She used Oprah Winfrey, who Ms. Weiner described as the world’s first book blogger, and her televised book club as exhibit #1. The following is Ms. Weiner’s theory in a nutshell.

In 1996, Oprah launched Oprah’s book club. Not a blog per se, but it did fill the criteria of a blog by offering a fresh innovative voice that was a far cry from the schooled book critics.  Oprah was like a next door neighbor telling you she loved a particular book and just knew you would love it too. The book club became wildly popular, turning each month’s pick into an instant best seller.  Only after Jonathan Franzen poo pooed the fact that his book Corrections had been made an Oprah pick, did the wheels start to come off the Oprah book bus.  Oprah allowed her feelings to be hurt and rescinded the invitation.  The book club went on hiatus a few months later, only to return at a later date with a focus on the classics.  Oprah had become just another book critic.  So what is Ms Weiner’s advice for book bloggers?

Be as transparent as possible.  If your site has a money making aspect to it, spell it out.

Speak in your own voice with the courage of your own convictions about the books and authors you love no matter who tells you you shouldn’t love them.

Dance like no one is watching, sing like no one can hear, tweet like your mom’s not online.  Be brave, smart, creative and kind. Above all else, be yourself.  Readers will find you.

Look for Jennifer Weiner’s The Next Best Thing in stores and online July 3rd. 

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“The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel” A Retirement Reality

June 1, 2012 – 1:41 pm


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Memorial Day weekend I convinced my husband we needed to see The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel, the  film adaptation of Deborah Moggach’s book These Foolish Things. I loved the movie, but what I savored from the film was it’s concept of outsourcing elder care.  To my delight this is actually a reality for many British retirees.  According to The Independent’s  ”Fun in the Sunset Years”,  there is Retirement Township 50 miles east of Mumbai; Malaysia’s My Second Home program; and Manila’s   Indang Village, billed as “The British Village in the Philippines”.  And it is not just the Brits that are on the move.  German and Japanese home care operators are buying up large swaths of land in the Philippians where outside of the rainy season the climate is spring like all year round.  The article concludes that just perhaps, Dev Patel’s wish, the hotel owner and care giver in the movie “…of creating a home for the elderly so wonderful that they simply refuse to die.”  may not be a dream at all.

Here are some other  fun facts provided on the author’s website.

- In the book, the hotel’s name was Dunroamin.

- The movie premier post-party goody-bags contained a copy of the novel, a bag of marigold seeds printed with the movie poster, a tube of anti-ageing cream, a £20 voucher for East and a packet of Hob-Nobs (which Maggie Smith’s character eats) and a Hob Nob mug.

- In the movie,  Penelope Wilton’s character, Jean, can be seen reading a copy of Tulip Fever also written by Moggach.

- Recipe for home made Hob Nobs via Cookie Madness.

By helen | Posted in Behind the Screen, Travel | Tagged , , | Comments (0)

What America + Seattle is Reading

April 30, 2012 – 7:28 pm

The folks at BookBeast went to Nielson BookSkan for 2011 sales figures to determine What America’s Reading: Bestsellers By City.  The cities were selected by their size, LARGE.  Interesting that of the ten metropolitan areas surveyed, only Washington, D.C., Boston and San Francisco made the 2011 most literate cities list.  This got me thinking about just what books Seattleites are reading.  Seattle consistently ranks one or two on the most literate list and since I live near-by, definitely my demographic. The best info I could dig up online was this 2011 Seattle Times article  10 most-in-demand Books at the King County library.  This list is a little skewed towards YA readers since they are heavy users of the library and tend to borrow more books than buy as evidenced by the multiple titles appearing by authors Suzanne Collins and Rick Riordan. Nonetheless, adult readers showed their preference for State of Wonder (a personal favorite), The Help, Unbroken and Bossypants. Parenting concerns or maybe just plain curiosity contributed to the popularity of the very controversial book Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother.  

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Spring Time Reading

April 9, 2012 – 5:50 pm

As I free associate, enjoy the book links:

April…spring….showers…flowers…GARDENING  


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Each year, the American Horticultural Society recognizes outstanding gardening books published in North America with its annual Book Award.  The 2012 winners cover the gamut from holistic orcharding (I didn’t know that was a word) to small green roofs.  My favorite?  Nikki Jabbour’s The Year-Round Vegetable Gardener.  http://www.ahs.org/awards/book_awards/2012_AHS_Book_Award_Winners.pdf

vegetables…healthy…eating….fixing…RECIPES


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On a recent Chowhound forum about “Best Vegetarian Cookbooks”, one cookbook was recommended over and over again, Plenty by Yottam Ottolegnhi.  Some of the comments:  ”Beautiful book with great recipes.”;   “I second this. This is one of my new favourite books – I have used it often and absolutely love it.”    http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/835938

Plenty was also a favorite of the Guardian food blogger Catherine Phipps, …”You also won’t go far wrong with Yotam Ottolenghi’s Plenty – my favourite dish is the intensely sweet yet savoury caramelised garlic tart.”   Philpps also lists her favorite veggie cookbooks for kids, entertaining and name dropping (Paul McCartney’s Meat Free Monday Cookbook).  http://www.guardian.co.uk/lifeandstyle/wordofmouth/2012/jan/24/vegetarian-cookbooks-pick-crop

OK  So, where was I?

eating… full…exercise…outside…BASEBALL

I must admit to being a fair weather baseball fan (Go Mariners!), so the cold spring Seattle rains are more conducive to reading about baseball than actually attending a game.  One book that sits top of my ‘to read’ list is The Art of Fielding by Char Harbach.  A good old fashioned story about a college baseball stand out,  Henry Skrimshander, who seems destined for big league stardom until a routine throw goes disastrously off course and the fates of five people are upended.  Even more fascinating for author wannabes, the companion e-book How a Book is Born by Keith Gessen, tells the tale of just what it took  in today’s publishing world to get The Art of Fielding to print and a big dollar advance.  http://www.vanityfair.com/magazine/ebooks

P.S. Just in time for Father’s Day, USA Today is buzzing about a new baseball themed novel out this month by John Grisham Calico Joe.  

http://books.usatoday.com/bookbuzz/post/2012-01-17/new-baseball-novel-coming-from-john-grisham/605382/1

 

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Nancy Pearl’s 2012 Spring Book Picks

February 20, 2012 – 3:58 pm

Nancy Pearl is a former Seattle Librarian who has picked up a national following with her Book Lust series.  She is a regular commentator on NPR and was named Library Journal’s 2011 Librarian of the Year.  Pearl recently shared with KUOW’s Steve Sher which spring titles she was most looking forward to reading.  http://kuow.org/program.php?id=25612

In One Person by John Irving

His most political novel since The Cider House Rules and A Prayer for Owen Meany, John Irving’s In One Person is an intimate and unforgettable portrait of the solitariness of a bisexual man who is dedicated to making himself “worthwhile.”

Due May 2012

 

Sacre Bleu by  Christopher Moore

A magnificent “Comedy d’Art” from the author of Lamb, Fool, and Bite Me, Moore’s Sacre Bleu is part mystery, part history (sort of), part love story, and wholly hilarious as it follows a young baker-painter as he joins the dapper Henri Toulouse-Lautrec on a quest to unravel the mystery behind the supposed “suicide” of Vincent van Gogh.

 Due April 2012

 

Carry the One by Carol Anshaw

Carry the One begins in the hours following Carmen’s wedding reception, when a car filled with stoned, drunk, and sleepy guests accidentally hits and kills a girl on a dark country road. For the next twenty-five years, those involved, including Carmen and her brother and sister, craft their lives in response to this single tragic moment.

Due March 2012

 

The Lola Quartet by Emily St. John Mandel

“…The Lola Quartet is her 3rd novel and in my opinion, her best yet. Florida, New York, Utah. Journalism, drugs, jazz, and gambling addictions. Characters who seem to be real people, who elicit a visceral response from the reader. And, an ending that was an emotional punch in the gut. Emily’s books only get better and better and I look at her as one of my personal writing teachers.” -Drew Goodman, University of Utah Campus Bookstore, UT     

Due May 2012

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Three LOVE-ly Novels for February

February 6, 2012 – 6:51 pm

Valentine’s Day and love stories go hand in hand.  So, for your February reading pleasure, here are three very good novels each with a different love story to tell.


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The Paris Wife by Paula McLain

I loved this book.  I thought the author did an incredible job of showing the raw emotional sides of a marriage as it slowly unravels. We follow the courtship and marriage of  a young Ernest Hemingway to a sheltered spinster nine years his senior and accompany them as they make their way to Paris to follow the writer’s dream. The love they have for each other, however, proves no match for the decadent lifestyle of 1920s Paris.  Full of lush period detail, this book made me want to listen to a Josephine Baker CD and sip a glass of  vin rouge.  As one Amazon reviewer  so aptly writes,

At the end of Ernest Hemingway’s memoir, A Moveable Feast , he writes of his first wife, Hadley Richardson, “I wish I had died before I loved anyone but her.” After their divorce, Hemingway marries three more times, each one prompt to follow, like serial wives. This is the story of the woman that loved him before he was famous.

 


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The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern  

This book is unlike anything I have read before. The author describes the scents, smells and sites of the black and white circus, known as The Night Circus, in such detail that it is truly a feast for the senses. The Night Circus or Le Cirque des Reves arrives without notice and is open only from dusk to dawn. We slowly learn that it is also the playing field for a very serious game between two young illusionists who have been bound at an early age to a contest that pits them against each other to the death. The trouble is, they fall in love. A magical story that is an adult delight to read.

 


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Running the Rift by Naomi Benaron 

This is a story about a young Tutsi boy, Jean Patrick and his quest to become an Olympic long distance runner.  A tender coming of age story, set against the years leading up to the Rwanda genocide where Hutu’s killed over one million Tutsi.  We follow Jean Patrick as he grows up and heads off to University, where he meets and immediately falls in love with Bea a fellow student of a different social class. As the persecution of the Tutsi by the Hutu increases, Jean Patrick must choose between living his dreams  by escaping with help from his Hutu coach or staying behind and face being killed along with the girl and her family that he has grown to love.

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