Born to Read

Hello all!

Well, I am on the last leg of our trip and should be back in Kentucky the first of May. We are enjoying visiting with my husband's family in Texas and letting the puppies swim in the nearby lake.

Speaking of families, my lovely aunt sent me this photo of me and my older brother. I thought I'd share since it looks like I've always loved reading. Do you all have fond memories of reading when you were a child?

From the Road...

Hello all!

I'm just popping in to say hello from the road. My husband and I have driven from Kentucky to Texas. Our goal: to see some beautiful National Parks, take pictures, relax, and camp. So far we've been to Guadalupe N.P., Carlsbad Cavern N.P., Big Bend N.P. and are heading out to see a band play at a Texas dance hall.

We've been listening to some fun books on CD while we drive. We finished a funny detective story by Jasper Fforde called The Big Over Easy.We're currently listening to The Whiskey Rebels by David Liss.
Sporadically I'm reading the new Brunonia Barry novel The Map of True Places. I just love her writing.Here's my husband and I in Carlsbad Cavern which is in southern New Mexico. A very cool place if you've never been. And no...I did not see any bats. Phew.


I should be back and close to regular scheduled postings in May. Thank you to all my loyal readers for sticking around while I've been M.I.A.!

New Books

This past Monday I was invited by Harper Collins to meet and check out a new-to-me author Jo Nesbø, a crime writer from Norway who's books follow Detective Harry Hole.

He's become critically acclaimed in Europe and his books are now being translated into English. He's won the Glass Key Award in Europe and his book Nemesis was shortlisted for the 2010 Edgar Award for Best Novel.

I have to say I love the Edgar Award. Does any one know of a cool Edgar Award book challenge?

Anyway, I think these are going to be great books for my upcoming road trip. What do you think?

Discussing a Book

Here's just a few photos from our night out discussing Swimming Inside the Sun. This place makes great caprianas and yummy chips and dip.

Of course I have to play with my camera settings. I love the Canon's color accent setting:

Here's Robb writing down notes:

Interesting book...

I thought I'd just share this intersting tidbit I learned today.

I was commuting to work this morning and listening to my favorite podcast, Wait Wait Don't Tell Me! from NPR on my new iPod Touch (man is this iPod cool) when I learned about this book:

This is the blurb from Harper Colliins:

In Sneaker Wars, journalist Barbara Smit reveals the dramatic, character-driven story of these two power-houses. Started in their mother's laundry room in Germany, Adi and Rudi Dassler's shoe business was an instant success, their spikes worn by Jesse Owens in the Berlin Olympics. But a vicious feud soon pulled them apart: by the end of World War II, the brothers split the company, dividing their family and hometown.

What a bizarre true story! Did any of you know this weird fact about Puma and Adidas? I am going to have to pick this book up.

Duel Review Coming Soon

My husband and I are currently working on a duel review of a book called Swimming Inside the Sun by David Zweig. We thought it would be interesting to give a guy's and girl's perspective of this book. Does this sound interesting?

Here's the synopsis from the back of the book:

On the verge of success, struggling New York City musician Daniel Green has his life’s dream snatched from him. Despondent, Dan seeks solace and answers from the comforts of women, great thinkers from Marx to Kierkegaard, and the security of rice milk. Suffering from a darkly comical state of extreme self-consciousness, Dan begins to lose his grip on reality, and in a meta-fictional twist, the narrative shifts from first to third-person as his depersonalization peaks. All the while, the signs of his existential dilemma become, literally, the writing on the wall, as his studio apartment is increasingly taken over by The Notes he can’t seem to stop writing. Battling loneliness and a mind that can no longer discern between fiction and real life, Dan’s only hope may be the redemptive force of music. In a culture obsessed with tales of winners’ ascensions to the top, Dan Green’s story, defiantly, irreverently, is about what happens when you fail and the roads you take to figure out what next?

Salinger - What to say...

I know I'm a little bit delayed in putting my two cents into the life and death of author J.D. Salinger. Like almost everyone and their mom, I read Catcher in the Rye for a high school literature class. I'll state here that I loved that book then and I still love it now.

Of course, I owned (and still do) a battered copy of the old red cover version:

I wish I knew where my old paper was that I wrote on it. I compared (I think) Holden's life to my own and I believe I came up with a lot of similarities. Which is odd...because reading a few other people's opinions, it doesn't seem that a whole lot of people still resonate with this classic. But I did. Yes, a teenage girl who played basketball and who lived in Alaska could relate to a fairly affluent Upper East New York City boy.

I think it's because we all hit that growing-up period when you realize that you are at a point of no return. Growing up is scary. One minute you are a fairly intelligent and innocent kid and the next you are one of them. One of those idiotic adults who do stupid things like work at awful jobs for too many hours, or cheat on you wife/husband, or all those mindless things we do as adults. Not that I've DONE those specific things, but you know what I mean.

I think I was smarter as a teenager than I am now. I can only imagine what today's teenagers think of us adults. Being an adult is almost like a descent into madness. Is that what Holden felt? Like we either need to go mad or not, but watching the descent is the terrifying part. How do you stop it?

Anyway, like it, love it, or hate it, The Catcher in the Rye made an impact on a lot of people. I was even more fascinated with J.D. Salinger's removal from the public eye. I never understood that.

That is until recently.

I was asked to read and review a book called Salinger: The Classical Critical and Personal Portrait by More Than Twenty of His Contemporaries...
At first I thought (after wondering about the extremely long subtitle), "Wow, that was fast!". They've already published a book on Salinger. But then I looked closer. This is a reprint from 1962 BEFORE J.D. Salinger removed himself from the public eye. And I thought, "No wonder!". I would retreat too! Can you imagine publishing a few short stories and one novel and then this comes out? A whole book of your contemporaries critiquing you. And not just your work but a CRITICAL and PERSONAL portrait. Wow. No wonder.

So I have yet to read this but will let you know what I think about everyone's critical and personal portraits of one of my favorite authors. And here's to you, J.D. Salinger...I hope you had a wonderful and full life. And thank you.

"That's the whole trouble. You can't ever find a place that's nice and peaceful, because there isn't any. You may think there is, but once you get there, when you're not looking, somebody'll sneak up and write "F*** you" right under your nose." - The Catcher in the Rye

“I'm sick of not having the courage to be an absolute nobody.” - Franny and Zooey

"An artist's only concern is to shoot for some kind of perfection, and on his own terms, not anyone else's." - J.D. Salinger

Olive Reader's English 101 Bookclub

I was reading the Weblog of Harper Perennial called The Olive Reader when I noticed that they are starting a little book club for 2010 called English 101. How cool!

They will be reading a book a month rehashing past favorite classics and some never read. January's book is A Tree Grows in Brooklyn -- which has been on my TBR list for way too long. I'm on chapter six and am already loving eleven year old Francie. Any girl who sits on her tree enshrouded fire escape while reading books from the library...well, yeah, she's already an all-time favorite character.

If you want to join in, here's the schedule for the year:

January - A Tree Grows in Brooklyn
February – Brave New World
March – Poisonwood Bible
April – So Big
May – Daughter of Fortune
June – To Kill a Mockingbird
July – The Sheltering Sky
August – One Hundred Years of Solitude
September – The Golden Notebook
October – Native Son
November – Unbearable Lightness of Being
December – Their Eyes Were Watching God

What I Read in November

I am so proud of myself this month. I read 13 Books!! That is the MOST I've ever read in a month. I've read a total of 87 books this years so just 13 more and I'll read my goal of 100 books this year. Think I can do it?

Here's the recap:

November

75. Gourmet Rhapsody - Muriel Barbery
76. Smoke and Mirrors - Neil Gaiman

77. Her Fearful Symmetry - Audrey Niffenegger

78. Only Milo - Barry Smith
79. Now & Then - Jacqueline Sheehan
80. The Graveyard Book - Neil Gaiman
81. Giv: The Story of a Dog and America - Boston Teran

82. The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society - Mary Anne Shaffer & Annie Barrows
83. The Creed of Violence - Boston Teran

84. The Sandman Vol 1.: Preludes and Nocturnes - Neil Gaiman

85. Arch Enemy - Frank Beddor
86. The Information Officer - Mark Mills
87. Hunter - Campbell Jefferys


Don't worry, my reviews will be coming ASAP.

**What all did you read this month? Did you have a favorite?

Dog Days of November

I got the idea of Dog Days of November from The Literate Housewife during her Dog Days of Summer stint.

My husband and I read The Art of Racing in the Rain and both really liked it and I've been meaning to review it. I just finished Now & Then yesterday and am reading Giv: The Story of a Dog and America.

So I figured, what the hey. Let celebrate these dog-centric books by having a few reviews and a few giveaways. Yeah??

Stick around for these three reviews and giveaways for The Art of Racing in the Rain AND Now & Then.

And of course, can't help posting a photo of me and my dog, Charlie:
*Note: I do like my feet nice and toasty and no...I didn't burn my socks off.

100+ Challenge Update - October

October has been, by far, my best reading month ever. I've been trying real hard to get in some books so I can complete the 100+ Challenge. I've read 75 books this year so do you all think I can read 25 books in the next two months?? Eek!

October
63. The Last Dickens - Matthew Pearl
64. The Little Prince - Antoine de Saint-Exupery
65. Sacred Hearts - Sarah Dunant
66. The Elegance of the Hedgehog - Muriel Barbery
67. The Mystery of Edwin Drood - Charles Dickens
68. The Strain - Guillermo Del Toro & Chuck Hogan
69. Wide Sargasso Sea - Jean Rhys
70. The Hunger Games - Suzanne Collins
71. Real Murders - Charlaine Harris
72. Seeing Redd - Frank Beddor
73. The Old Man and the Sea - Ernest Hemingway
74. Sunflowers - Sheramy Bundrick

Dewey's Read-a-thon Update

Good morning!

This is my first Read-a-thon post. I'm currently listening to Muriel Barbery's book on CD, Gourmet Rhapsody. I have to admit that I have a hard time listening to books. My mind tends to wander and I have to back track a lot. Does anyone else have that problem? I've taken a break from reading The Hunger Games. Ok...I am really glad I jumped on that bandwagon.

Anyway...time for my photos!

Here's my table of goodies. (Please ignore the pile on the windowsill. I've run out of bookshelf space. I know I know.)
This is one pile of books. These are the kids book section and graphic books.


Here's my second pile. The top one is my audio book. The rest are easier quick reads. Here's my third pile. I went on a library spree and picked up some short classics. You know, Steinbeck, Hemingway, Tolstoy, and Dostoevsky. Then I found a couple un-read ones in our books shelf. The Vonnegut one is my husband's book and the Rilke one is a wedding gift that I have yet to read.
Ok. Time to make some breakfast. The husband is looking hungry and I told him I'd make it today. Scrambled eggs and little smokies. Hehehe....

How are you all coming along?

Reath-a-thon Challenge

1. I'm reading from the second half of our living room - the table and computer area. The husband is doing a Grand Theft Auto marathon in the other half. :)

2. I have 21 books. Eek!

3. My goal is five books. I think that's reasonable.

4. Not really a veteran read-a-thoner...failed miserably last year.

Man Booker Prize

The winner for the 2009 Man Booker prize for fiction is Wolf Hall by Hilary Mantel. The book sounds so interesting since I love historical fiction.

I love the Man Booker prize since so many books and authors I like or want to read are on the list. I'm not going to make this a "challenge" par say but more of a reading list for future TBR books.

I loved The Last Orders, really liked Blind Assassin, appreciated The English Patient, and did NOT like Life of Pi.

Have you read any Man Booker prize winners and did you like it?

*** Update: S. Krishna's Book blog also has a great post on the Man Booker Award as part of her Booker Challenge. Her list includes the winners as well as the ones that were shortlisted from 2009-1990 as well as the Best of the Booker. Go check it out!


Here's the Winner's list:

2009 Wolf Hall - Hilary Mantel
2008 The White Tiger - Aravind Adiga
2007 The Gathering - Anne Enright
2006 The Inheritance of Loss - Kiran Desai
2005 The Sea - John Banville
2004 The Line of Beauty - Alan Hollinghurst
2003 Vernon God Little - DBC Pierre
2002 Life of Pi - Yann Martel
2001 The History of the Kelly Gang - Peter Carey
2000 The Blind Assassin - Margaret Atwood
1999 Disgrace - J.M. Coetzee
1998 Amsterdam - Ian McEwan
1997 The God of Small Things - Arundhati Roy
1996 Last Orders - Graham Swift
1995 The Ghost Road - Pat Barker
1994 How Late It Was, How Late - James Kelman
1993 Paddy Clarke Ha Ha Ha - Roddy Doyle
1992 The English Patient - Michael Ondaatje
1991 The Famished Road - Ben Okri
1990 Possession - A.S. Byatt
1989 The Remains of the Day - Kazuo Ishiguro
1988 Oscar and Lucinda - Peter Carey
1987 Moon Tiger - Penelope Lively
1986 The Old Devils - Kingsley Amis
1985 The Bone People - Keri Hulme
1984 Hotel du Lac - Anita Brookner
1983 The Life & Times of Michael K - J.M. Coetzee
1982 Schindler's Ark - Thomas Keneally
1981 Midnight's Children - Salman Rushdie
1980 Rites of Passage - William Golding
1979 Offshore - Penelope Fitzgerald
1978 The Sea, The Sea - Iris Murdoch
1977 Staying On - Paul Scott
1976 Saville - David Storey
1975 Heat and Dust - Ruth Prawer Jhabvala
1974 The Conservationist - Nadine Gordimer
1974 Holiday - Stanley Middleton
1973 The Siege of Krishnapur - J.G. Farrell
1972 G - John Berger
1971 In a Free State - V.S. Naipaul
1970 The Elected Member - Bernice Rubens
1969 Something to Answer for - P.H. Newby

All About the Books

A while back I received a HUGE surprise when I got home. A large box was waiting for me. Birthday? Nope. Christmas? Nope. Who was sending me something?

Turns out, I won tons of books from Reading Group Choices. After I started a book club here with some co-workers, I went searching for some websites for book clubs. If you've never checked out this website before, head on over there. They've got a great newsletter that I receive and obviously have contests for books as well. This month is National Reading Group Month and they have a fabulous website set up for it. This is a great resource so go on and register.

Oh. Here's the stack of books I won:Yeah, wow right? My husband just shook his head at me and wondered where we were going to house all the new books. He then proceeded to dig and in and has read three or four of them already. Sheesh. :)

I've read one and will be posting the review up soon.

Oh. This month's newsletter linked to this literary quiz. Seriously hard. I won't tell how many I got right or wrong...

This is the end of Banned Book Week (Sept 26-Oct 3). Take a look at the ALA's website on some of the frequently banned classics. Wow. Some of these are some of my all-time favorites.

Also, the book The Gargoyle by Andrew Davidson won the Sunburst Award this year. I read this book awhile back and have yet to do a review. Let me just say I LOVED it so...yeah. Will definitely get that up.

I'm looking forward to seeing who this year's Man's Booker Award winner is. I have honestly never read any of the books by the authors in the running...but I THINK that Sarah Waters and A.S. Byatt will be two of next year's favorite all-time authors.

And while you are at it, go vote for the favorite National Book Foundation book. It's a goal of mine (if you hadn't noticed Rachel's and my National Book Award Challenge) to read a lot more of those award winning books. I LOVED Three Junes...just saying...

And that's all for today!

September Wrap Up

Ok. So I have a suspicion that I'm not going to get this one completed but I'm going to try! I'd have to read at least 13 books each month for the next three months. Yikes!

Well...we'll see.

Here's how I did this September:

September
57. The Harrowing - Alexandra Sokoloff

58. Dark Star - Alan Furst

59. The Seamstress - Frances de Pontes Peebles

60. The Romanov Bride - Robert Alexander

61. Gone Tomorrow - Lee Child

62. The Return - Victoria Hislop (review coming soon)

While these were all pretty good reads, I have to say that my favorite was The Seamstress by Frances de Pontes Peebles.

What was your favorite book read this month?

Housing Works Booksale

One of the great things I've found with using Twitter is that I get good updates regarding some of the bookstores and events in the City. I follow @HousingWorksBks and they mentioned a book fair going on this past weekend. My husband had to work so I tromped on down to the book sale alone. I seriously carried these ten books all over the City. What a workout! It was worth it though. 10 books for 10 bucks and I bought a tote. 1. Three Junes - Julia Glass
2. The Boleyn Inheritance - Philippa Gregory
3. The Mysterious Flame of Queen Loana - Umberto Eco
4. Special Topics in Calamity Physics - Marisha Pessl
5. Cross Country - Robert Sullivan

6. The Lady and the Unicorn - Tracy Chavalier
7. The Five Forty-Five to Cannes - Tess Uriza Holthe
8. Anthropology of an American Girl - Hilary Thayer Hamann
9. Labyrinth - Kate Mosse
10. The Queen of Subtleties - Suzannah Dunn


Now I just need to find more room in our tiny apartment to house all my loot.

For past Housing Works posts: June 2009 Loot and June 2009 Post

Not me...

I love reading her "not me" posts over at SoJo's blog. I know it's not Monday, but...what they hey...



I did NOT just suffer the chaos, cops, traffic near the Waldorf Astoria to pick up some library book sale books on my lunch break.

Here's what I did NOT pick up:

And I did NOT pick up a cool book (not shown) as a gift for my husband. Not me!