Wednesday 19 December 2012

Chick Lit Party

I recently indulged in reading two wonderful 'chick lit' authors since it seems that I've been reading a lot of heavier books as of late and my mind needed to escape to the lovely and sexy mindscapes of romance literature.

I had never read Lisa Kleypas before but had picked up the first novel in her Friday Harbour Series when at Powell's earlier this year.  With a title like Christmas Eve at Friday Harbour, it felt like a good time of year to read this! Well I enjoyed this one so much that I immediately picked up Rainshadow Road (which was also lovely!) and Dream Lake (currently on my to-read pile), the next two installments in the series.  Being a west coaster, I really enjoyed the Seattle setting in these novels and all the visual imagery Kleypas uses to paint a picture of life on this side of the world.  She writes strong women characters and sexy men to accompany them; a fun series if you are looking for something contemporary, light-hearted, and a touch magical.

I had read the first two books in Eloisa James' Fairy Tale series before but I enjoyed them so much that I really felt the need to revisit these characters.  Book one is A Kiss at Midnight and is James' retelling of the Cinderella story with a feisty heroine named Kate and a dashing prince / budding archaeologist named Gabriel, along with a sexy half brother / butler, a saucy older godmother, a kind yet dimwitted step sister, and a bunch of little dogs.  Add this all together and you have a fun few hours in which you can get lost in this book.  The second book, When Beauty Tamed the Beast tackles the Beauty and the Beast tale and again we see James putting her own spin on things.  The Beauty of the story is socially ruined (and believed to be knocked up) Linnet and the Beast is the cranky doctor / duke Piers (modeled after tv's 'House').  Lots of fun dialogue between our lovers and some very sexy stuff sprinkled in.  There are at least 2 more novels and 3 novellas (eBooks only as far as I know) in this series and I'm looking forward to reading them!

If you too need something fun to read, grab any of these books and you won't be disappointed!

Wednesday 21 November 2012

Great Graphic Novels

After my post on graphic novels yesterday, I thought it would be fun to recommend some of my favourites!  There are a number of graphic novels that I'm wanting to read so hopefully this list will continue to grow!

1) Fables and Jack of Fables
Both by Bill Willingham

Both great series but I would recommend reading Fables first since Jack of Fables is a continuation / spinoff.  My favourite graphic novel series out there, my husband and I are always excited when a new comic comes out!

2) Archie: The Married Life
Who doesn't love Archie?!
My Review

3) Maus
By Art Spiegelman
My Review

A stunning series by a fantastic writer and artist!  A story of a Jewish survivor of Hitler's Europe and his son, a cartoonist who tries to come to terms with his father's story and history itself.
  
4) Hark! A Vagrant
By Kate Beaton
My Review 

Love love Kate Beaton!  

5) Smile
By Raina Telgemeier

I had the opportunity to meet Raina a few years ago and she is lovely! Her debut graphic novel is wonderful and definitely a great read for anyone who has ever had braces (not a requirement to read though!)

6) Bone
By Jeff Smith

All 9 comics in the series are wonderful! A great adventure story for readers of all ages!

7) Scott Pilgrim
By Bryan Lee O'Malley

"Scott Pilgrim's life is totally sweet. He's 23 years old, he's in a rockband, he's "between jobs", and he's dating a cute high school girl. Nothing could possibly go wrong, unless a seriously mind-blowing, dangerously fashionable, rollerblading delivery girl named Ramona Flowers starts cruising through his dreams and sailing by him at parties. Will Scott's awesome life get turned upside-down? Will he have to face Ramona's seven evil ex-boyfriends in battle? The short answer is yes."

8) Castle Waiting 
By Linda Medley

The Story of an isolated, abandoned castle, and the eccentric inhabitants who bring it back to life.  Lots of fun!

9) The Exile: An Outlander Graphic Novel
By Diana Gabaldon, Hoang Nguyen

My favourtie novelists first graphic novel! Outlander from Jamie's perspective!

10) Marvel 1602
By Neil Gaiman

"All's not well in the Marvel Universe in the year 1602 as strange storms are brewing and strange new powers are emerging. Spider-Man, the X-Men, Nick Fury, Dr. Strange, Daredevil, Dr. Doom, Black Widow, Captain America, and more appear in the waning days of the reign of Queen Elizabeth."  
  
Happy Reading! 

Monday 19 November 2012

Raise a Glass to Graphic Novels

I found this article on the Chapters / Indigo Blog really interesting and thought I would share it.  One of the editors discusses how their list "The Best Books of 2012" was chosen and why certain titles made the cut or did not.  I'm especially interested in the following blurb:

"We as a group weren’t all on the same page about the titles either – there were several heated discussions about the inclusion of some of them (I’m looking at you, Batman), and the exclusion of others. Obviously, most of our Indigo Spotlight titles are there (not all), but some titles that were pitched for Spotlight unsuccessfully did make the cut here.
But back to Scott Snyder’s Batman: The Court of Owls. Yes, it’s there. Thank you to those of you who love its inclusion, and apologies to those of you who question it. Again, I’m the guy who nominated it – and I got some grief when I did.  Truth of the matter is that I happen to think Scott Snyder is the best thing to happen to Batman since Christopher Nolan."
 (To read the rest of the article, go here. )

I love that a graphic novel made the cut and I find it fascinating that there was apparent controversy to its inclusion.  Graphic novels are still the underdog in the literary world and it makes me wonder what it's going to take for them to start getting the credit they deserve.  There are some AMAZING graphic novels out there; in fact, when Time Magazine did their list of "All Time 100 Novels" they included 10 graphic novels.  For anyone who has ever read any of them, you know that they are very worthy.

A really interesting literary issue to watch in the coming years!  I work in a book store and everyday I see more and more people (both kids and adults) buying graphic novels and, as I mentioned earlier, there are some really good ones out there! The stories are great, the art is beautiful, and they often take just as much time and energy to read as a good novel.

Saturday 17 November 2012

“What happens to you changes you. Fer good or ill, yer changed ferever. There ain't no goin back. No matter how many tears you cry.”

I LOVED Moria Young's debut novel, Blood Red Road, so I was super excited to read the sequel in this planned trilogy, Rebel Heart which just landed on the shelves this month.  I finished it a few nights ago and am still in the process of forming an opinon of it.  I gotta say, I'm feeling somewhat disappointed.  I find that with sequels I often have one of two reactions: 1) It is even better than the first book (ex: Catching Fire in my opinion), or, 2) It falls short of the first book.  Which is sadly what happened here. 

The books starts off on a high note.  We pick up right where we left off with Saba, Lugh, Emmi, and Tommo traveling west in hopes of a better life; Jack having left them to deliver the news of Ike's death to his sweetheart Molly.  There is a lot of interesting things going on with these people. Saba and her subconscious as her guilt over Epona's death (and many others) catch up with her.  The reader is also left wondering what is going on with Lugh; what really happened to him during his captivity and why is he having such extreme mood swings?  The character of Emmi is also becoming more intersting as we see her developing even more into a strong willed young woman.  We also see the side story of Tommo's developing feelings for Saba.  Most interesting is trying to figure out who exactly Jack is and what side is he on?

So clearly there is a lot happening here so I should be jumping up and down with excitement.  And I will admit, I was loving parts of this novel.  However, I really am not sure how I'm feeling about a side story that Young brought in halfway through the novel (and clearly is going to be a big plot point in the next book) involving the former Tonton leader, DeMalo.  It just felt somewhat out of place to the rest of the story as well as how out of character for some.  I don't want to give to much away for those of you who haven't read this yet so I will leave it at that!  I think I might need to reread this in a few months and see if a second reading changes my mind.  Despite everything I'm still really looking forward to the third book since I'm interested to see how Young ties up everything.

"I wish I could say I was afraid, but I wasn’t. Quite the contrary. This was by far the most interesting thing that had ever happened to me in my entire life”

I am in love with young Flavia de Luce, the young heroine of Alan Bradley's debut novel, The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie

When I first read about the premise of the novel, the first in a series of mysteries staring an eleven year old aspiring chemist with a passion for poisons, I just wasn't' sure what to make of the concept.  Most novels I have read that have a young adult as the main character either read like a YA or Teen novel or just read poorly, as if the author really has no idea how to write in the voice of a young person.  Alan Bradley does a wonderful job tapping into the mind of Flavia!  He gives her a unique voice that manages to make her seem wise beyond her years yet still give the impression of her youth.

The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie takes place in the summer of 1950 when a series of unexplainable events occur at Buckshaw, the falling apart English Mansion that Flavia's family calls home.  A dead bird is found on the doorstep with a postage stamp pinned to its beak. Hours later, Flavia finds a man lying in the cucumber patch and watches as he takes his dying breath. For Flavia, who is both appalled and delighted, life begins in earnest when murder comes to Buckshaw.  

A delightful series for cozy mystery fans! I'm looking forward to having more adventures with Flavia!(and what a great name, right?)

Flavia de Luce Series

1. The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie (2009)
2. The Weed that Strings the Hangman's Bag (2010)
3. A Red Herring Without Mustard (2011)
4. I am Half Sick of Shadows (2011)
5. Speaking From Among the Bones (2013)
6. The Dead in Their Vaulted Arches (2014)
 

Monday 12 November 2012

October / November Reads

I've been so busy reading good books that I've barely had time to write about them!  Here's what I've been reading in the last few weeks:

The Spindlers by Lauren Oliver

Imagine a book that is a mix between Neil Gaiman's Coraline and the children's classic Alice in Wonderland and you have Lauren Oliver's newest YA novel.  I would really love for her to publish an illustrated version of this because the imagery she creates with her words would be fantastic in large scale pictures.  Creepy and delightful, this was a very fun read!

Death on Demand by Carolyn Hart

My mom has been talking about this mystery series for years because she loved the book shop that the main character, Annie Laurance, runs.  After having read the first book in this mystery series I have to agree with her; I'm hooked!  What a fantastic book shop that our leading lady runs! All she sells are mystery books of all kinds!  One of the ongoing themes of the series is a contest whereby the first customer who correctly identifies a series of five mysteries from the clues in a painting hanging in the shop wins his or her choice of a novel.  There is also a coffee shop with hand painted mugs featuring the titles of famous mystery novels.  The location is amazing, the characters are fun, and the mystery at hand keeps you guessing till the end.  A fun series for cozy mystery fans!

In the Bleak Midwinter by Julia Spencer-Fleming

The first book in the Rev. Clare Fergusson and Russ Van Alstyne mystery series, this novel centers around an abandoned baby found on the steps of the local church one snowy night and the murder of a young woman found half frozen in the local river.  I found the angle of having the lead characters as a priest and a police chief quite interesting and look forward to reading more in this series!

The Perfect Hope by Nora Roberts

The final book in Roberts' Inn BoonsBoro series, this story deals with Innkeeper Hope and the third Montgomery brother, Ryder.  As per usual, Robert's delivers excellent dialogue (especially between women), a beautiful setting, and a tender and engaging love story.  A great end to a lovely series.

Ready Player One By Ernest Cline

One of the best and most fun book's I have read this year!  My inner geek screamed with happiness for pretty much the entire novel.  So many excellent 80's references! From video games, to sci-fi and fantasy novels, to films, and music, this book had them all!  Well written, engaging, fun, and action packed, Ready Player One is going to be on my favourite reads of 2012 list!

The Fabulous Susin Nielsen!

I have the opportunity to meet YA author, Susin Nielsen, this week and in preperation I decided to read a couple of her books.  Can I just say, WOW! 

Nielsen's latest novel, The Reluctant Journal of Henry K. Larsen, deals with big issues such as bullying and teen suicide.  It is the heartbreaking yet humourous story of Henry, the little brother left behind to pick up the pieces of his family and his life after the incident that left them all broken.  Written in diary style, this was such a fantastic read and one that I really recommend to both adults and teens.  I'm clearly not the only one who thinks books is great; it was nominated for the Governor General Award this year!

Dear George Clooney: Please Marry My Mom is Nielsen's second novel and very much a lighthearted and charming read.  After Violet's parents divorce and her dad moves to L.A. with his new wife and family, Violet begins to think life is never going to be normal again.  It doesn't help that her mom keeps dating all these losers that Violet knows aren't right for her.  So what does she do? Writes a letter to Hollywood heartthrob, George Clooney, to try and convince him that he is perfect for her mom.  While all this is going on, Violet is also dealing with a falling out with her father and his wife and new children (in a hilarious and horrifying scene) and mean girls and cute boys at school.  A great read for anyone who has had unexpected and unwanted changes in their life and for anyone who has ever had to deal with the trial and tribulations of growing up.

Next up: Susin Nielsen's first novel Word Nerd!

Thursday 18 October 2012

Coming Soon to a Theater Near You....

This fall / holiday season, Hollywood is taking the literary world by storm by adapting a number of well loved novels into feature films.  Here are some of the biggies coming to a theater near you (all plot summaries from Goodreads):

Cloud Atlas 
by David Mitchell

"A reluctant voyager crossing the Pacific in 1850; a disinherited composer blagging a precarious livelihood in between-the-wars Belgium; a high-minded journalist in Governor Reagan’s California; a vanity publisher fleeing his gangland creditors; a genetically modified “dinery server” on death-row; and Zachry, a young Pacific Islander witnessing the nightfall of science and civilisation—the narrators of Cloud Atlas hear each other’s echoes down the corridor of history, and their destinies are changed in ways great and small.

In his captivating third novel, David Mitchell erases the boundaries of language, genre and time to offer a meditation on humanity’s dangerous will to power, and where it may lead us."






Les Miserables
by Victor Hugo

"In this story of the trials of the peasant Jean Valjean--a man unjustly imprisoned, baffled by destiny, and hounded by his nemesis, the magnificently realized, ambiguously malevolent police detective Javert--Hugo achieves the sort of rare imaginative resonance that allows a work of art to transcend its genre.

 

The Great Gatsby
by F. Scott Fitzgerald

"In 1922, F. Scott Fitzgerald announced his decision to write "something new--something extraordinary and beautiful and simple and intricately patterned." That extraordinary, beautiful, intricately patterned, and above all, simple novel became The Great Gatsby, arguably Fitzgerald's finest work and certainly the book for which he is best known. A portrait of the Jazz Age in all of its decadence and excess, Gatsby captured the spirit of the author's generation and earned itself a permanent place in American mythology. Self-made, self-invented millionaire Jay Gatsby embodies some of Fitzgerald's--and his country's--most abiding obsessions: money, ambition, greed, and the promise of new beginnings. "Gatsby believed in the green light, the orgiastic future that year by year recedes before us. It eluded us then, but that's no matter--tomorrow we will run faster, stretch out our arms farther.... And one fine morning--" Gatsby's rise to glory and eventual fall from grace becomes a kind of cautionary tale about the American Dream.
It's also a love story, of sorts, the narrative of Gatsby's quixotic passion for Daisy Buchanan. The pair meet five years before the novel begins, when Daisy is a legendary young Louisville beauty and Gatsby an impoverished officer. They fall in love, but while Gatsby serves overseas, Daisy marries the brutal, bullying, but extremely rich Tom Buchanan. After the war, Gatsby devotes himself blindly to the pursuit of wealth by whatever means--and to the pursuit of Daisy, which amounts to the same thing. "Her voice is full of money," Gatsby says admiringly, in one of the novel's more famous descriptions. His millions made, Gatsby buys a mansion across Long Island Sound from Daisy's patrician East Egg address, throws lavish parties, and waits for her to appear. When she does, events unfold with all the tragic inevitability of a Greek drama, with detached, cynical neighbor Nick Carraway acting as chorus throughout. Spare, elegantly plotted, and written in crystalline prose, The Great Gatsby is as perfectly satisfying as the best kind of poem."


 
Anna Karenina
by Leo Tolstoy

"Described by William Faulkner as the best novel ever written and by Fyodor Dostoevsky as “flawless,” Anna Karenina tells of the doomed love affair between the sensuous and rebellious Anna and the dashing officer, Count Vronsky. Tragedy unfolds as Anna rejects her passionless marriage and must endure the hypocrisies of society. Set against a vast and richly textured canvas of nineteenth-century Russia, the novel's seven major characters create a dynamic imbalance, playing out the contrasts of city and country life and all the variations on love and family happiness."









 The Hobbitt
by J.R.R Tolkien

"Written for J.R.R. Tolkien’s own children, The Hobbit met with instant critical acclaim when it was first published in 1937. Now recognized as a timeless classic, this introduction to the hobbit Bilbo Baggins, the wizard Gandalf, Gollum, and the spectacular world of Middle-earth recounts of the adventures of a reluctant hero, a powerful and dangerous ring, and the cruel dragon Smaug the Magnificent."  







Life of Pi
by Yann Martel 
  
"Growing up in Pondicherry, India, Piscine Molitor Patel -- known as Pi -- has a rich life. Bookish by nature, young Pi acquires a broad knowledge of not only the great religious texts but of all literature, and has a great curiosity about how the world works. His family runs the local zoo, and he spends many of his days among goats, hippos, swans, and bears, developing his own theories about the nature of animals and how human nature conforms to it. Pi’s family life is quite happy, even though his brother picks on him and his parents aren’t quite sure how to accept his decision to simultaneously embrace and practise three religions -- Christianity, Hinduism, and Islam.

But despite the lush and nurturing variety of Pi’s world, there are broad political changes afoot in India, and when Pi is sixteen his parents decide that the family needs to escape to a better life. Choosing to move to Canada, they close the zoo, pack their belongings, and board a Japanese cargo ship called the Tsimtsum. Travelling with them are many of their animals, bound for zoos in North America. However, they have only just begun their journey when the ship sinks, taking the dreams of the Patel family down with it. Only Pi survives, cast adrift in a lifeboat with the unlikeliest of travelling companions: a zebra, an orang-utan, a hyena, and a 450-pound Royal Bengal tiger named Richard Parker.

Thus begins Pi Patel’s epic, 227-day voyage across the Pacific, and the powerful story of faith and survival at the heart of Life of Pi. Worn and scared, oscillating between hope and despair, Pi is witness to the playing out of the food chain, quite aware of his new position within it. When only the tiger is left of the seafaring menagerie, Pi realizes that his survival depends on his ability to assert his own will, and sets upon a grand and ordered scheme to keep from being Richard Parker’s next meal.

As the days pass, Pi fights both boredom and terror by throwing himself into the practical details of surviving on the open sea -- catching fish, collecting rain water, protecting himself from the sun -- all the while ensuring that the tiger is also kept alive, and knows that Pi is the key to his survival. The castaways face gruelling pain in their brushes with starvation, illness, and the storms that lash the small boat, but there is also the solace of beauty: the rainbow hues of a dorado’s death-throes, the peaceful eye of a looming whale, the shimmering blues of the ocean’s swells. Hope is fleeting, however, and despite adapting his religious practices to his daily routine, Pi feels the constant, pressing weight of despair. It is during the most hopeless and gruelling days of his voyage that Pi whittles to the core of his beliefs, casts off his own assumptions, and faces his underlying terrors head-on.
"


The Perks of Being a Wallflower
by Stephen Chbosky

"This is the story of what it's like to grow up in high school. More intimate than a diary, Charlie's letters are singular and unique, hilarious and devastating. We may not know where he lives. We may not know to whom he is writing. All we know is the world he shares. Caught between trying to live his life and trying to run from it puts him on a strange course through uncharted territory. The world of first dates and mixed tapes, family dramas and new friends. The world of sex, drugs, and The Rocky Horror Picture Show, when all one requires is that perfect song on that perfect drive to feel infinite." 





 


"But in the country death comes, uninvited, during the day."

I have recently discovered the wonderful Canadian author, Louise Penny, and I have fallen head over heels in love with the Quebec village of Small Pines where she has set her Chief Inspector Gamache series.  The setting is picturesque, the type of place you would love to visit and then possibly stay forever.  The town's people jump out from the page and make you feel as if you've know them your whole life.  They are delightfully flawed and yet still irresistible. 

I have so far read the first three books in the series and I can't wait to get my hands on the next installment.  The central crime / murder of each novel is very simple at first glance but as the story weaves around the village and the locals, the reader is treated to a plot that is not simple at all but very complex and left me guessing right up to the end.

A wonderful 'cozy' mystery series that will keep you reading past your bedtime!

Chief Inspector Gamache
1. Still Life (2005)
2. Dead Cold (2006)
     aka A Fatal Grace
3. The Cruellest Month (2007)
4. The Murder Stone (2008)
     aka A Rule Against Murder
5. The Brutal Telling (2009)
6. Bury Your Dead (2010)
7. A Trick of the Light (2011)
8. The Beautiful Mystery (2012)
The Hangman (2011)

Thursday 11 October 2012

Get Your Spook On!

In honour of Halloween, I decided to make a list of recommendations for the upcoming spooky season.  If you are looking for something scary or just plain fun, check out some of these books!

The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman

"After the grisly murder of his entire family, a toddler wanders into a graveyard where the ghosts and other supernatural residents agree to raise him as one of their own.

Nobody Owens, known to his friends as Bod, is a normal boy. He would be completely normal if he didn't live in a sprawling graveyard, being raised and educated by ghosts, with a solitary guardian who belongs to neither the world of the living nor of the dead. There are dangers and adventures in the graveyard for a boy. But if Bod leaves the graveyard, then he will come under attack from the man Jack—who has already killed Bod's family . . ."


A great story for both young and old by master storyteller Neil Gaiman. 

Dracula by Bram Stoker

An oldie and a goody for a reason! Written in entirely in letters and diary entries, the classic vampire story is a must read, especially for those of you who think you know all about vampires (hint: they don't sparkle)


Relic by Douglas Preston 
and Lincoln Child

This book scared the hell out of me the first time I read it and has continued to do so on my multiple rereads.  Definitely will make you nervous to go into a museum after hours!

 
The Passage by Justin Cronin
 
So scary I haven't even been able to finish it! If you want to be scared for a weekend then this is a must read! Have had so many recommendations from friends and coworkers that I know I'm going to have to tough it out and finish it.  I'll just have to make sure I leave all the lights on in the house while doing so... 


Happy Halloween!


The Happiest Place On Earth (For Book Lovers)

I was recently down in Portland visiting my sister-in-law and was able to visit one of my favourite places in the world...Powell's City of Books.  This is like Disneyland for book crazed adults with its floor to ceiling bookshelves taking up an entire city block.  Everytime I get so excited I almost need paper bag assisted breathing; it's that fantastic.  I have learned after my many visist that it is just to overwhelming to go into Powell's without some sort of plan or strategie.  The first few visits consisted of me wandering up aisle after aisle for hours on end and somehow accumulating more baskets of books then I could carry (I started sliding them down the aisles with my foot), much to my husband's chagrin as well as the already full bookcases in our homes.  This time I was smart and developed a list of specific books I wanted to look for as well as certain sections I wanted to browse.  We got out of the store after only a measly 2 hours and with only a little over $100 spent.  A personal best if I do say so myself.  Here's what I got:

The Cater Street Hangman (Book 1 of the Charlotte & Thomas Pitt Series)
The Face of a Stranger (Book 1 of the William Monk Series)
Both by Anne Perry

I had heard that both Anne Perry's Victorian mystery series were excellent not only as mysteries but as novels depicting life during the Victorian Ages, especially dealing with gender and class issues.  I have so far read The Cater Street Hangman and really enjoyed it.  This novel introduces us to Thomas Pitt and when he first meets Charlotte before they are married.  They have great chemistry as a couple and I look forward to reading about more of their adventures in later books.

Cleopatra by Stacey Schiff

Ever since this biography came out I have been wanting to read it.  It sounds so interesting and I really enjoy historical bios based on famous women.  I always seem to need more time reading non-fiction so I don't often get them out of the library since I always need more time then the alot 2-3 weeks.  I'm looking forward to this one!

Song of the North (Dalriada Trilogy, Book 3) by Jules Watson

I read the first two books in the Dalriada Trilogy (The White Mare and The Dawn Stag) some time ago and really enjoyed this series set in Roman Britain.  I had heard there was a third book but could never seem to find it anywhere.  It will be nice to be able to finish this epic story.

I Was Told There Would Be Cake By Sloane Crosley

I have been looking for a book of comedic essays that could hold a candle to the wonderful Jenn Lancaster and this was one of the authors that was recommend to me.  I've read a few essays and so far so good! Though not as laugh out loud funny as Lancaster, Crosley has a subtlety to her that I find delightfully amusing. 

The Book of Mordred by Vivian Van Velde

  A coworker recommended this to me and being a fan of Arthurian Legend, I decided to pick it up.  I'm interested in the idea that the story is from Mordred (a usual villain) point of view so we shall have to see how this one is.

Christmas Eve at Friday Harbour and Rainshadow Road by Lisa Kleypas

I have never read anything by Lisa Kleypas, however she sounds like my cup of tea.  I grabbed the first two novels in her Friday Harbour series and am looking forward to curling up with them closer to the Holiday season.

Wednesday 3 October 2012

Banned Book Week!

Banned Book Week is happening right now! It's from September 30th - October 6th so make sure you celebrate the freedom to read by reading one of the many banned books from this year or previous ones!  There is a lot if great information here as well as links to lists of the books that have been banned over the years as well as reasons why...my favorite? "The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian" is apparently racist....have they read the book / understand what it's about?

Also, here is a fantastic cartoon by the wonderful Grant Snider for your enjoyment!


Monday 24 September 2012

Looking For What To Read Next?

First of all, check out this fantastic website that can help you find books based on what you last read / authors you like / etc...  What Should I Read Next?

I also love this fantastic Flow Chart which helps readers of all ages find books to read in all genres!  Thanks to The Out Of Print Clothing Blog Literary News You Can Use!


Where To Begin....

I have never read Stephen King but have had the desire to do so as of late.  I found this handy dandy chart which I think will be helpful and I thought I would share it!  Thanks to the book blog The Insatiable Book Sluts !


Tuesday 14 August 2012

“Hell may have all the best composers, but heaven has all the best choreographers.”

According to The Nice and Accurate Prophecies of Agnes Nutter, Witch (the world's only completely accurate book of prophecies, written in 1655, before she exploded), the world will end on a Saturday.  Next Saturday, in fact.  Just before dinner. 

So the armies of Good and Evil are amassing, Atlantis is rising, frogs are falling, tempers are flaring.  Everything appears to be going according to Divine Plan.  Except a somewhat fussy angel and a fast-living demon - both of whom have lived amongst Earth's mortals since The Beginning and have grown rather fond of the lifestyle - are not actually looking forward to the coming Rapture.

And someone seems to have misplaced the Antichrist...

Neal Gaiman + Terry Pratchett = Amazingness.  Hilarious, profound, and thoroughly enjoyable, Good Omens, just goes to show you that one can find humour in the end of the world.

“People couldn't become truly holy, he said, unless they also had the opportunity to be definitely wicked.”

“But now I can see that there is redemption and beauty in an accident emanating from love.”

Chick Lit Superstar Emily Giffin is back!  I was starting to have my doubts about Miss Giffin for awhile there.  I, like many, fell in love with Something Borrowed and Something Blue.  However, things started to go downhill for me with Baby Proof and Love the One You're With.  I just couldn't connect with the characters and the stories the same way I did with her earlier novels.  I was concerned.  Things got better with Heart of the Matter and I think that with her newest novel, Where We Belong, we are back in business! 

Marian Caldwell is a thirty-six year old television producer, living her dream in New York City. With a fulfilling career and satisfying relationship, she has convinced everyone, including herself, that her life is just as she wants it to be. But one night, Marian answers a knock on the door . . . only to find Kirby Rose, an eighteen-year-old girl with a key to a past that Marian thought she had sealed off forever. From the moment Kirby appears on her doorstep, Marian’s perfectly constructed world—and her very identity—will be shaken to its core, resurrecting ghosts and memories of a passionate young love affair that threaten everything that has come to define her.

For the precocious and determined Kirby, the encounter will spur a process of discovery that ushers her across the threshold of adulthood, forcing her to re-evaluate her family and future in a wise and bittersweet light. As the two women embark on a journey to find the one thing missing in their lives, each will come to recognize that where we belong is often where we least expect to find ourselves—a place that we may have willed ourselves to forget, but that the heart remembers forever


I loved Kirby right off the bat and Marian grew on me by the end of the novel.  A perfect summer beach read!

“She’s like Bruce Lee, the Hulk and Neo from The Matrix all rolled in to one.”

Just your average boy-meets-girl, girl-kills-people story...

I loved this book! (and it's cover! Isn't it lovely and haunting?)  Kendare Blake is officially my new Teen author to watch!  Here's a quick synopsis of Anna Dressed in Blood, the first in a trilogy (Book two just came out this month and is currently sitting on my bedside table!)

Cas Lowood has inherited an unusual vocation: He kills the dead.

So did his father before him, until his gruesome murder by a ghost he sought to kill. Now, armed with his father’s mysterious and deadly athame, Cas travels the country with his kitchen-witch mother and their spirit-sniffing cat. Together they follow legends and local lore, trying to keep up with the murderous dead—keeping pesky things like the future and friends at bay.

When they arrive in a new town in search of a ghost the locals call Anna Dressed in Blood, Cas doesn’t expect anything outside of the ordinary: move, hunt, kill. What he finds instead is a girl entangled in curses and rage, a ghost like he’s never faced before. She still wears the dress she wore on the day of her brutal murder in 1958: once white, but now stained red and dripping blood. Since her death, Anna has killed any and every person who has dared to step into the deserted Victorian she used to call home.

And she, for whatever reason, spares his life
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Cas and Anna may be my new favourite supernatural couple (especially since I think they would annihilate Edward and Bella in a heartbeat).  Read this book!

“You make me want things I can't have.”

“What we have here is a riddle wrapped in a mystery inside an enigma.”

I can't believe I haven't mentioned one of my favourite mystery / thriller series here before! If you are looking for a great read then you cannot go wrong with Douglas Preston and Lincoln Child's Agent Pendergast series.  Aloysius X. L. Pendergast is an FBI agent who works out of New Orleans but frequently travels out of state to investigate cases of interest, mostly those that appear to be the work of serial killers.  I often recommend this series to fans of Micheal Crichton, especially Relic, the first book in the series.  Relic deals heavily with scientific elements and things that go bump in the night (specifically in the New York Natural History Museum) and very much reminds me of the style Crichton exhibited in Jurassic Park.  Pendergast is such a fascinating character and he continues to get better and better in each book.  The recently published (and soon to be finished!) 'Helen Trilogy' delves heavily into the reader discovering just who Pendergast is and how he became the man he is.  A great summer (or anytime) read!

Pendergast Series

1. Relic
2. Reliquary
3 The Cabinet of Curiosities
4. Still Life With Crows
5. Brimstone (Book 1 in the Diogenes Series)
6. Dance of Death (Book 2 in the Diogenes Series)
7. Book of the Dead (Book 3 in the Diogenes Series)
8. Wheel of Darkness
9. Cemetary Dance
10. Fever Dream (Book 1 in the Helen Trilogy)
11. Cold Vengeance (Book 2 in the Helen Trilogy)
12. Two Graves (Book 3 in the Helen Trilogy) (coming Fall 2012)

“The question I've asked more often during our marriage, if not out loud, if not to the person who could answer. I supposed these questions stormcloud over every marriage: What are you thinking how are you feeling? Who are you? What have we done to each other? What will we do?”

Gillian Flynn officially rocks my world.  After all the buzz about her latest novel Gone Girl, I knew I had to jump on the bandwagon and check it out.  OH MY GOD.  Now here is a lady who knows how to weave a psychological thriller.  I sat down one evening to start the book and finished it the next night; I literally could not put it down.  I haven't met a psychopath quite like the one Flynn has created and my god I couldn't get enough of it.  Amy and Nick are some of the most in depth and fascinating characters I have encountered in a long time and despite being disgusted with them at times, I found that my curiosity got the best of me and I had to keep reading to find out how these two were going to continue to mess with each others minds.  This one is topping my best reads of the year list so far.

I so enjoyed Gone Girl that I picked up Flynn's debut novel, Sharp Objects.  While I didn't enjoy it quite as much, it was still fantastic.  The reader has a love-hate relationship with reporter Camille Preaker, who returns to her home town to investigate two brutal murders of two little girls.  Camille's mother and step-sister are unnerving and keep the reader continually guessing about what exactly is going on in these women's heads.

I hope to soon read Flynn's second novel, Dark Places.  I have a feeling I'm gonna love that one too.

“We were like gods at the dawning of the world, & our joy was so bright we could see nothing else but the other.”

I have always been interested in stories of the Trojan War (despite the fact that I have yet to make it through The Iliad and The Odyssey...one day!).  I had already planned on picking up Madeline Miller's novel The Song of Achilles when it won the prestigious Orange Prize.  Talk about extra motivation!

What a wonderful novel.  Beautifully written and it succeeds in creating a new and interesting way of telling an age old tale.  The protagonist is not the hero Achilles, but instead Patroclus, a character that appeared in the original story, played a vital role in the downfall of Achilles, but did not get a lot of 'screen time'.  This is not only a story of war but also one of love and the role it plays in one of the greatest stories ever told.  An amazing debut novel and definitely an author to watch.

“Name one hero who was happy."
I considered. Heracles went mad and killed his family; Theseus lost his bride and father; Jason's children and new wife were murdered by his old; Bellerophon killed the Chimera but was crippled by the fall from Pegasus' back.
"You can't." He was sitting up now, leaning forward.
"I can't."
"I know. They never let you be famous AND happy." He lifted an eyebrow. "I'll tell you a secret."
"Tell me." I loved it when he was like this.
"I'm going to be the first." He took my palm and held it to his. "Swear it."
"Why me?"
"Because you're the reason. Swear it."
"I swear it," I said, lost in the high color of his cheeks, the flame in his eyes.
"I swear it," he echoed.

“The problem with wanting is that it makes us weak”

Looking for a teen read that is not about love struck vampires / werewolves / other supernatural beings?  Check out Leigh Bardugo's debut novel Shadow and Bone, book one in the Grisha Trilogy.  As teen author Veronica Roth puts it, "Unlike anything I've ever read".  Here's a quick synopsis:
  
Alina Starkov doesn’t expect much from life. Orphaned by the Border Wars, the one thing she could rely on was her best friend and fellow refugee, Mal. And lately not even that seems certain. Drafted into the army of their war-torn homeland, they’re sent on a dangerous mission into the Fold, a swath of unnatural darkness crawling with monsters who feast on human flesh.

When their convoy is attacked, all seems lost until Alina reveals a dormant power that not even she knew existed. Ripped from everything she knows, she is whisked away to the royal court to be trained as a member of the Grisha, the magical elite led by the mysterious Darkling. He believes she is the answer the people have been waiting for: the one person with the power to destroy the Fold.

Swept up in a world of luxury and illusion, envied as the Darkling’s favorite, Alina struggles to fit into her new life without Mal by her side. But as the threat to the kingdom mounts, Alina uncovers a secret that sets her on a collision course with the most powerful forces in the kingdom. Now only her past can save her . . . and only she can save the future
.


A really well written and engaging debut.  Bardugo has created a world that is unlike any I've read before and I very much enjoyed visiting it!  Alina is a wonderfully relate able character, the underdog who can't quite contemplate her own worth.  The Darkling is mysterious and seductive and you spend a lot of the novel trying to figure out his intentions and motivations.  Mal, the seemingly unattainable boy, is not physically present for much of the book but he more then makes up for that by the end. A new male to challenge Edward and Friends for the title of 'Literary Crush'!  Can't wait for the next installment!

“I've been waiting for you a long time, Alina" He said. "You and I are going to change the world.”


Thursday 14 June 2012

“Why would anyone say this stuff about themselves on the Internet? It's crazy!”

Jay Asher and Carolyn Mackler have teamed up and written a wonderful teen novel called "The Future of Us."  Here's what it's about:

"It's 1996, and Josh and Emma have been neighbors their whole lives. They've been best friends almost as long - at least, up until last November, when Josh did something that changed everything. Things have been weird between them ever since, but when Josh's family gets a free AOL CD in the mail,his mom makes him bring it over so that Emma can install it on her new computer. When they sign on, they're automatically logged onto their Facebook pages. But Facebook hasn't been invented yet. And they're looking at themselves fifteen years in the future.

By refreshing their pages, they learn that making different decisions now will affect the outcome of their lives later. And as they grapple with the ups and downs of what their futures hold, they're forced to confront what they're doing right - and wrong - in the present"


Such a clever concept and one that is so prevalent in today's day and age!  Asher and Mackler's writing styles flow nicely together and they have created characters that you are interested in and rooting for in Emma and Josh.  I read this in a day and really enjoyed it.  While I would say this is a fairly light read, there are some profound moments in the novel.  One of my favourite scenes happens between Emma and her best girl friend Kellan when they are talking about boys.


“Emma:“He broke your heart! How can you call it love when he hurt you so badly?”
Kellan:“It was love because it was worth it.”

That sums it up nicely I say.

“I guess it goes to show that you just never know where life will take you. You search for answers. You wonder what it all means. You stumble, and you soar. And, if you’re lucky, you make it to Paris for a while.”

Ever since I returned from a vacation in Paris, I have been consumed by a desire to read books about the city of lights.  I recently came across a biography by Amy Thomas, "Paris, My Sweet: A Year in the City of Lights (and Dark Chocolate)" and immediately grabbed it.  A very sweet (pun intended!) story about Thomas and her move from New York to Paris for work.  She gets a dream job working as a writer for a fashion house in Paris and decides this is a sign that she is meant to see how living in her favourite city is.  What makes Thomas' story even more enticing is that she is a dessert junkie and this memoir not only chronicles her life in Paris but the many many wonderful sweets that she eats while she is there.  She does a compare and contrast of the desserts she fines in Paris with the ones from New York, ranging from chocolate chip cookies, to macarons, to cakes, and to hot chocolate.  I was pretty much drooling the entire time I was reading this yummy memoir!  An added bonus is that she lists her favourite spots in both cities so if you are going to visit either then you know just where to go to get your favourite sweet treats! Another thing that was really great about this memoir was that it often talks about how Thomas is taking a chance making this move and how sometimes we have to take the leap to find what it is we really want and need in life.  She quotes Joseph Campbell at the beginning and I want to share the quotation she uses because I just think it is fantastic:

"And I have the firm belief in this now, not only in terms of my own experience but in knowing about the experience of others, that when you follow your bliss, door will open where you would not have thought there were going to be doors and where there wouldn't be a door for anybody else. If you follow your bliss, you put yourself on a kind of track, which has been there all the while, waiting for you, and the life that you ought to be living is the one you are living"

 A fun and light summer read and definitely one that will make you hungry!

Archie Andrews is all Grown Up!

A couple Christmas' ago, I got a great collection of Archie comics called The Married Life.  It told two parallel stories of what happens to the town of Riverdale and all the gang if Archie married Betty vs. if Archie married Veronica.  It was a really cool idea and for a Archie fan such as myself (I had stacks of these comics when I was younger!) it was very nostalgic.  I recently found out that they have created more comics following the married life of Archie and his two best gals and I got the opportunity to read two volumes which goes into more detail about what happens to the two very different Andrews families from the time they get married.  This critically acclaimed series (called by some the best comic writing in years) is fantastic and so much fun to read!  Whose team will you be on? Team Veronica or Team Betty?  I've personally always been a fan of Betty (her being a blond like me!) but I had someone recently lay this tidbit on me that has gotten me thinking: Betty is too good for Archie; Archie and Veronica deserve each other.  What do you think?  Whatever team you are rooting for, this is definitely a series to check out, especially if you want to revisit Riverdale!

Thursday 7 June 2012

Recent Reads

I haven't posted in awhile! Life has been to busy apparently! However, no matter how busy I am, I always have time to read a good book and I have read some excellent books lately!  Here's are several that I have read in the last month that I think you should know about:

Daring to Dream by Nora Roberts
The first book in her Dream Trilogy, it tells the story of Margo, the wild child who left home at a young age and now returns to the small town she grew up in to try to get her life back together.  Being a Nora Roberts novel, there is naturally a romantic element.  A definite beach read.

Jeneration X by Jen Lancaster
Love Love Love Jen Lancaster! Her most recent memoir chronicles, as she eloquently puts it, how "one reluctant adult attempts to unarrest her arrested development; or, why it's never to late for her dumb ass to learn why Froot Loops are not for dinner."  Not my favourite of her's (that would be "Bright Lights, Big Ass") but still a very fun read.

Let's Pretend This Never Happened by Jenny Lawson
The hot memoir of the summer (so far), this is a very very funny, and at times horrific, read.  I enjoyed the first half the most where Lawson shared stories of growing up with a taxidermist for a dad.  A few of her stories had me howling with laughter and causing my husband concern about my sanity.  Loved it.

The Dovekeepers by Alice Hoffman
Such a beautifully written and incredibly moving novel.  This tells the story of 5 incredible  women in 70 CE.  During this time, nine hundred Jews held out for months against armies of Romans on a mountain in the Judean desert, Masada.  According to the ancient historian Josephus, two women and five children survived.  This is Hoffman's telling of this story and it is just fabulous.  A great read for the summer.

A Stopover in Venice by Kathryn Walker
I really liked this book because I a) Love Venice, and b) love art history, especially the Renaissance period.  If you are thinking, :hmm that sounds like me!" then you should pick this one up! 

Goddess of Legend
Warrior Rising
Both by P.C. Cast
These are two books in Cast's Goddess Summoning Series.  One of my favourite fun, fast, and sexy series! Cast puts a really fun spin on ancient myths and the Greek gods, these two dealing with the Trojan War and the legend of King Arthur and Camelot.  Other books in the series include:

Goddess of the Sea
Goddess of Spring
Goddess of Light
Goddess of the Rose
Goddess of Love

The Corinthian by Georgette Heyer
Reading Georgette Heyer is always a delight.  This one was lots of fun!  This tells the story of Sir Richard Wyndham who finds himself running away from a potential marriage with a beautiful young fugitive, who he finds climbing from her window by knotted sheets, who is also looking to escape a marriage of her own.

The Council of Mirrors (Sisters Grimm #9) by Micheal Buckly
The final book in the amazing young reader series, The Sisters Grimm.  I love this series and always recommend it to younger readers.  Lots of fun, great characters, well written, and full of fun illustrations.  This was a great finish to a great series.







“Most of the time, there is no truth, only various levels of interpretation. Fact is a construct we provide to the public.”

The Ashford Affair  by Lauren Willig I really enjoyed Lauren Willig's Pink Carnation series and thought I would give one of her stan...