Things I'm Excited About!

Greetings, fellow readers! I thought I'd take a short break from my summer reading log posts to share with you some of the other bookish things (besides books, of course) I'm excited about this summer.

1. Free stuff. You would not believe how much free stuff I get working in a bookstore. Free limited edition Batman comics? No problem. Free samples of a new fantasy series from Tor.com? We've got a whole box of 'em to give away. Free magazines? You had me at Entertainment Weekly's special coverage of San Diego ComiCon! Which, by the way, I am crushed I was not able to attend this year--I was in California a week too early. Ah well, I'm still young! And I did score a pretty sweet vintage Doctor Who t-shirt online brought back special for the event.

2. Indie bookstores. While I realize that in some ways my working for a chain bookstore could be considered selling out to The Man, I spend quite a few of my hard-earned dollars at The Bookmark, Neptune Beach's independent bookstore-by-the-sea. Seriously, if you live in the Jax Beaches area or are here for a visit (please come!), you HAVE to check this place out. It's small and sunny and full of signed copies from their weekly author events. They're even bringing Tomie DePaola of children's book fame to speak in October! That's one I can't miss.

I was there yesterday with my dad, intending to buy one book (the third book in Cathrynne M. Valente's Fairyland series) but I ended up coming away with four--I should really know better by now that books are like Lay's potato chips: you can't have just one. In addition to the Fairyland book, I found the most beautiful illuminated copy of Walt Whitman's Song of Myself that I absolutely couldn't live without (Thank you, Brain Pickings, for breaking my checkbook with your covet-inducing reviews!), a centennial Penguin Deluxe edition of James Joyce's Dubliniers with a drool-worthy cover, and the Penguin Great Ideas edition of Niccolo Machiavelli's The Prince. This is a neat little series that I discovered at Foyles while I was in England last summer. Penguin has collected the most world-changing essays and works of nonfiction into a lovely series with minimalist covers that capture the ethos of the ideas themselves. I already have two, which I bought in London, and I think Signor Machiavelli will feel quite at home with his compatriots on my shelves.

How I feel at the end of each new haul.

3. Magazines. Normally, I'm not a big magazine reader (other than the occasional Mental Floss for long plane trips) but lately I've become enamored of Wired and its sleek synthesis of art, technology, and design, not to mention the thought-provoking, often hilarious, articles. Jerry Sinefeld on Google Glass--guys, you have to check this one out. I feel a certain kinship with the good folk of Wired: I'm excited about all the new developments in technology and what we can do with things like prehistoric superfoods and tablet journalism, but I also admire beautiful things and the tradition of human artistry that predates the digital age. Wired succeeds where many other observers fail to combine the two and create something new and awesome--so awesome, in fact, I might even subscribe.

4. BookTube! Readers of this blog will be well acquainted with my obsession with Ron Lit and, more recently, Words of a Reader, but lately, my YouTube channel has exploded with BookTube videos. I can't stop watching them! Or subscribing! Or fighting the urge to go out and buy all the awesome books these rockin' ladies recommend!!! (I am highly caffeinated right now, in case you couldn't tell.) If you're looking for your next great read, or just wanting to expand your literary horizons, go to BookTube. The channels I've tagged will give you a good start, and once you're down the rabbit hole, like Alice, you'll go wherever your heart takes you. 

So that's about it for today--let me know what you think of this post by commenting below! As always, I'm all about da recommendations.

Until next time,

Anna

Summer Reading List, Part 5

Greetings, fellow readers! I have returned from the west coast with my head full of space exploration and my suitcase full of completed books. While I was in California, I got to take a tour of the SpaceX factory floor (which was mind-blowingly amazing!) and visit the California ScienCenter, where the space shuttle Endeavour is kept. All of these adventures, plus spending lots of time with Jacob, made this one of the best weekends of the whole summer.

Here are some reviews of what I've been reading since my last post:

Sweet Tea Revenge by Laura Childs. Another guilty pleasure summer mystery, this book was nothing special, but still fun to read.

Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell. I loved this book! My friend Elli recommended it, and I couldn't be happier I decided to read it. It's about a girl named Cath who writes fan fiction for a Harry Potter-esque book series. She and her twin sister have always worked on these stories together, but when they leave for college, their relationship is strained as each girl adjusts to new experiences. This is a sweet little ode to the stories we write and the books we love best. Highly recommend.

The Weed that Strings the Hangman's Bag, A Red Herring Without Mustard, I am Half-Sick of Shadows, Speaking from Among the Bones, and The Dead in Their Vaulted Arches, all by Alan Bradley. Now that I am all caught up on the Flavia de Luce series, I can only say I'm sad I have to wait another year until the new book comes out! These mysteries are awesome--I recommend you give them a shot if you're in the mood for something clever.

All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr. This was a really good book about two teenagers, one French and one German, growing up during World War Two. Part coming of age novel, part historical mystery, this book went by so quickly for me: I couldn't stop reading it! Definitely a keeper.

Sally Ride: America's First Woman in Space by Lynn Sherr. A good biography of the US's first woman astronaut, including an intensely personal look at the woman behind the NASA portraits.

The School for Good and Evil by Soman Chainani. This one was a recommendation from my youngest sister. Two girls, Sophie and Agatha, are sent to a school to train as either fairy tale heroes or villains. Upon arriving, however, each girl is convinced she has been placed in the wrong school. The story follows their adventures as they try to undo the mistake while remaining true to their natures.

Boxers and Saints by Gene Luen Yang. This is a two-part graphic novel about the Boxer Rebellion in China that I found at The Bookmark, our local independent bookstore. Being new to graphic novels, I didn't really know what to expect, but I thought the artwork was really good and the two perspectives gave an interesting interpretation of this time in history.

A Wrinkle in Time: The Graphic Novel by Madeleine L'Engle and Hope Larson. The original novel was one of my favorites as a kid--still is--so I was delighted to see that the graphic novel turned out so well. The blues and blacks of the panels evoke the space and time travel of the original novel, and the characters' personalities really shine through the drawings. This is one I will probably go out and purchase for myself.

The Goldfinch by Donna Tartt. One of the best, most consistent books I have read in a long time. I can see why it won the Pulitzer prize. This book is about a teenage boy and a piece of stolen art, and the story follows them both on their interconnected journey through life. It is also about the trauma of loss and the power of art to heal and hurt us. I honestly can't do this book justice--you just have to read it for yourself. It's long, but I promise you, it will be worth it.

Until next time,

Anna

Summer Reading List, Part 4

Greetings, fellow readers! The dog days of summer are upon us, and I finally feel like I'm getting into the swing of things this season. While it may seem to you readers like books cover my hobbies, exercise, and social life, (which they do!) I have been up to a few other things this summer. I've been writing letters by snail mail to friends (if you want a letter, message me your address and I'll send you one right away), practicing my writing in the archaic German script Suetterlin, spending a lot of time at the beach and the gym, and making friends with all the neighborhood dogs, including Lulu, an English Sheepdog puppy who is just as goofy as I am (her hair's pretty poofy, too, so we have a lot in common!) I am also planning a trip to California later this month and continuing to work away at the bookstore.



(Behold, the Penguins of Florida!)

Fortunately, my reading has not suffered at all! Here's what I've enjoyed lately.

The Astronaut Wives' Club by Lily Koppel. I loved Koppel's first book, The Red Leather Diary, which is a true story of how the author found a journal from the 1920's inside and old trunk and tracked down the woman who wrote it so many years ago. I've always wished something like that would happen to me, and this book gave me the chance to live my dream vicariously.

Of course I was ecstatic to hear she'd written another--this book is about the wives of the astronauts who flew in the Mercury, Gemini, and Apollo missions. Their story has never been told before (imagine that!), but seriously, without these women, the Apollo missions wouldn't have made it off the ground, and the U.S. wouldn't have put a man on the moon.

It wasn't easy to live with the pressure of being in the public eye, not to mention the stress and worry of having a husband in space when no such thing had ever been done before. The wives banded together, offering each other support and friendship through good times and bad. Their camaraderie survived divorce, suicide, alcoholism, and NASA politics, and ushered in the feminist movement and a new age of scientific discovery and exploration. I highly recommend this book.

A Burnable Book by Bruce Holsinger. This is a historical mystery (my favorite!) set in medieval England. It concerns a book of prophecies suspected to contain a plot for the death of the king. Poet John Gower (a real person, by the way) and his friend Geoffrey Chaucer, of Canterbury Tales fame, must unmask the conspiracy before the king is murdered.

Not only was the writing in this book fabulous, but so was the scholarship. The author is an expert on medieval literature who teaches at the University of Virginia, and I can attest to his thorough research, having read many of the books in his bibliography myself. I think this is the first in a new series--I sincerely hope so because I can't wait to read the second one!

Sense and Sensibility by Joanna Trollope. This is also the first in a new series called The Austen Project, where bestselling authors rewrite Jane Austen's classics set in the modern day. The writing wasn't stellar, but I enjoyed it because I love the original. I'm looking forward to the retelling of Northanger Abbey, which is my favorite Austen.

The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie by Alan Bradley. Summer really is the season for mysteries! It's my favorite genre, but still. This novel, also the first in a series, came to me from a BookTuber--you can watch her recommendation video here.

First of all, I love, love, LOVE! the protagonist of this book. She is eleven years old, her name is the Flavia de Luce, and she is the smartest little evil genius I ever did see. Basically, she's me as a child, only with a passion for chemistry that I never had. Flavia solves murders all on her own, despite the obstacles set forth by condescending grownups, and she does so in a way that is both extremely intelligent and roaringly funny. This book made me chuckle out loud several times, and I can't wait to read the next one.

The Deception of the Emerald Ring by Lauren Willig. I'm currently reading this one, which is the third in the Pink Carnation series--more historical mysteries, but with a strong romantic component. This one is about a group of English spies and their attempts to thwart an Irish rebellion. Again, the author has a J.D. and a Ph.D. in History, both from Harvard, so these books are immaculately researched, good for smart people who like a nice love story now and then.

FYI: the author, Lauren Willig, is really nice. I've emailed her a few times, so if you like her book, write her a fan letter, and I'm sure she'll reply.

Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell by Susana Clarke. This is another one I'm reading currently; it came as a recommendation from my friend Alex, and I bought it used for 50 cents (impressive when you consider the hardcover retails for $27.99). This one is about a society of scholarly English magicians during the Napoleonic wars who find their authority threatened by two men, the title characters, who--gasp!--can actually do magic. I'm not very far into this one--it's almost 800 pages--but I like it so far. More thoughts to come later.

That's it for now! I think it's about time for a cup of tea and a book . . . the only question is, which one?

Until next time,

Anna

Summer Reading List, Part 3

Greetings, fellow readers! I'm happy to report that as we approach the midpoint of the summer this Saturday, I am reading more than ever. Unfortunately, my book record-keeping system is in need of repair: ever since I filled up my last reading logbook, I haven't been able to settle on a way to record the titles I've finished. I tried Goodreads for a while but couldn't stick with it, perhaps because my TBR is mainly concentrated in my (very large) Amazon Wishlist. I've been writing book reviews for my library's adult summer reading program, but those have to be turned in to the reference desk, leaving me no paper trail with which to jog my memory.

That being said, I will do my best to reconstruct a list of what I've finished since my last post:

The Storied Life of A.J. Fikry by Gabrielle Zevin. I'll admit, once I realized this book was authored by the same woman who penned some very lackluster YA fiction a few years ago, I was less enthusiastic about reading it than I was after reading the blurb. However, I was pleasantly surprised by this touching hybrid between George Eliot's Silas Marner and Penumbra-esque homage to bookstores and those who love them. I don't know what's causing the recent proliferation of books about books, but whatever it is, please, keep them coming! This book is bittersweet, delightful, and heartwarming, a must-read for all book lovers.

The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Nighttime by Mark Haddon. This was another excellent recommendation from Jacob, which I finished last weekend. It tells the story of an autistic teenager who sets out to solve the murder of a neighborhood dog and gets more than he bargained for. This is a tale of family, thought, and altered perspective. I liked it very much; I enjoyed both the mystery and the character's distinctive voice. Reminded me of Flowers for Algernon and its sympathetic portrayal of mental disability.

Art and Physics: Parallel Visions in Space, Time, and Light by Leonard Shlain. This history of humanities and science written by a California surgeon took me back to the Good Ol' Days of my Science and Literature class. Shlain explores the predictive capabilities of art and examines how shifts in artistic perspective and representation prefigure new discoveries in physics. The "world soul" stuff at the end was a little too theoretical for me, but I really enjoyed Shlain's scholarship and idolization of Leonardo Da Vinci. This book made me appreciate modern art because of the way it taught me to see the world. It also sparked my interest in the life and work of the French artist Marcel Duchamp, about whom I cannot wait to read more.

Tales of the Otori: Across the Nightingale Floor by Liam Hearn. My friend Grant told me about this series, which he described as "Eragon set in medieval Japan." With a description like that, how could I not be curious? All I can say is, I'm so glad this book is part of a series because the story is so awesome, I don't want it to end. Though there are some fantastic elements, the book is based on Japan's rich history, something which I firmly believe people in the West should know more about. I can't wait to read the second one.

Circle of Friends by Maeve Binchy. I'm almost finished with this one, and though it is Binchy's Big Break, I'm not really a fan. For one thing, the storyline is pretty depressing: girl suffers from negative body image, unrequited love, and feelings of stagnation in provincial Irish town. Men and women alike are mean to this girl: they use her, make fun of her, and play with her affections. The other reason why I'm not a huge fan of this book is that I've seen what Maeve Binchy can do, and this is not it. In many ways, this prefigures the richness of Whitethorn Woods and Quentins, but it's not all there yet. I suppose that's what you get for going back and reading the early stuff after reading what the author wrote in her prime.

The Art of Racing in the Rain by Garth Stein. I just got this one from the library today, and I'm about halfway through it. I remember when this book came out, I thought it was silly to have a book for adults told from the point of view of a dog. How wrong I was. This dog is more human than I am, for goodness sake! I love this book--I know I will be sad to see it end.

That's it for now--I went to the library this morning and came home with a pretty sizable haul, so it'll probably be a while before I have enough finished to write another post. In the meantime, maybe I'll figure out a suitable way of recording the books I read!

Until next time,

Anna

Summer Reading List, Part 2

Greetings, readers! Before I get started on this second installment of my summer reading list for grownups, I have some exciting news: I got a job in a bookstore this summer! Needless to say, this is a dream come true for me, and I'm looking forward to many new literary adventures in the weeks and months ahead.

I haven't finished any more books since my last post, but I am currently reading four:

Firefly Summer by Maeve Binchy. I usually turn to Maeve Binchy for some literary comfort, but this book was actually really sad. It's very Great Gatsby-esque, with an American hotel tycoon expanding his business to a small Irish village in pursuit of his dream of returning to his homeland. However, his values clash with those of the villagers, with disastrous consequences. Nobody wins in this book; it was more of a bittersweet read than a comforting one.

The Vigilante Poets of Selwyn Academy by Kate Hattemer. Another YA recommendation from Book Riot, this novel is a hilarious account of what happens when the set of a reality tv show invades an arts high school in northern Minnesota. Though I am a bit older than the target audience for this book, I'm enjoying the jokes that only people who did music or drama in high school will understand. If this sounds like you, give this book a shot for a light, entertaining summer read.

My Life in Middlemarch by Rebecca Mead. I've discovered I have a penchant for literary memoirs, and My Life in Middlemarch is my latest fix in this genre. Some of you know that I wrote a 30-page thesis on George Eliot's first novel, Adam Bede, during my senior year of high school, and as I read this memoir, I'm reliving my own year of reading, research, and total immersion in Eliot's work. While the biographical sections are a little repetitive for me (I did read something like three different 800-biographies of Eliot while I was writing my thesis), this is a wonderful trip down memory lane for anyone who has enjoyed Eliot's work.

The Beetle by Richard Marsh. This is a gothic novel recommended by BookTuber Ron Lit. It's about a beetle that causes a political scandal in the British parliament. This book is very strange, and it's taking me forever to get through it because the story moves so slowly. My bookmark is languishing about halfway through this one.

Until next time,

Anna

Summer Reading List

I love summer. To me, it's the time when, freed at last from course syllabi and lists of required reading, I can sit back and relax with a cup of Darjeeling and a book of my own choosing. It reminds me of when I was a little kid and my mom would take me and my sister Brigid to the summer reading programs at the library, the same library where I worked throughout high school. Each week, we'd be entertained by the traveling Mashed Potato Players comedy shows or an exhibit of animals from the Jacksonville Zoo. We'd line up to have our reading logs stamped and collect our prizes for reading five books each week, a benchmark which I never failed to reach and often surpassed. I still have my collection of plastic clown bookmarks from one of those reading-filled summers.

This post is the second in a series about my Summer Reading Log for Grown-Ups. Since I last wrote, I finished

Revolution by Jennifer Donnelly. Don't waste your time on this one. I thought the book really had it going until the very end, where, between a gimmicky time travel scene and an irritating necessity on the part of the author to wrap up each and every loose end with a red ribbon, I became so disgusted I could barely finish.

A Soldier of the Great War by Mark Helprin. If Revolution was the raw burger at a two-star diner, A Soldier of the Great War was dinner at La Cupole. This book was a delight from start to finish (thank you, Jacob, for the recommendation). The writing was descriptive and blessedly consistent; the story remained light in spite of the heavy subject matter (for more on lightness in literature, I recommend Six Memos for the Next Millennium by Italo Calvino); and most importantly, the book made me want to go to the places I had read about. I credit my vast experience with British literature as the inspiration for my trip to England last summer, and after finishing this book, I must go to Italy. I highly recommend this one.

The Enchantress of Florence by Salman Rushdie. While not the best of his books, this one is sure to please old Rushdie fans. If you're new, hold off on this one and read The Moor's Last Sigh first. You'll know after that one whether you like him or not. This novel takes us to Renaissance Florence and the court of the Mughal emperor Akbar. A mysterious Florentine traveler, revealed later to be none other than Niccolo Machiavelli, travels to India and explores many questions of power, passion, and human nature with the emperor. A good read, if you are a Rushdie fan.

Great by Sarah Benincasa. This beach read aimed at a young adult audience is a fun, if predictable, retelling of The Great Gatsby, this time with a lesbian twist. I bought this one on my Kindle after spotting it on a recommended reading list from the folks over at Book Riot.

White Teeth by Zadie Smith. I. Love. This. Book. A loaner from my friend, Jordan, White Teeth is one of the freshest novels I've read in a long time. First of all, Zadie Smith's writing is absolutely hilarious--it is very difficult for me to find a book that makes me laugh out loud, but this one did. Smith looks at British suburban life in the 80's through a lens that's slightly askew, and her novel is populated with characters as eccentric as the ones you'll find next door. Everyone should read this book; it should be required reading for high schoolers everywhere. It deals with so many questions of race, suicide, education, friendship, and literature in an honest, funny way that is very true to life. White Teeth examines how the stories we tell about our past shape who we are now, a fitting homage to the power of literature to create our worlds.

The Strange and Beautiful Sorrows of Ava Lavender by Leslye Walton. This one I finished just today; I read it on my Kindle after finding it on the same list as Great. This book is magical realism with a strong Gothic component. Though it's aimed at the YA audience, it resonates equally well with older readers, I think. It is the story of a family, a girl with wings, and the characters' journeys as they endure heartbreak and learn to love themselves. A fun summer read--I breezed through it in less than a day.

Until next time,

Anna

Put me in summer and I'll be a . . .

Greetings, fellow readers! I, like Olaf, am overjoyed that summer is finally here! The semester is over, final grades are in, and now it's time for me to dive into my summer reading stack. Here's a quick overview of what I've read so far this summer:

The Crimson Petal and the White by Michael Faber. This account of a Victorian era prostitute's ascent through the social strata of London promised to be an excellent read, at least for the first couple hundred pages. The vocabulary is lush and descriptive and the writing so mesmerizing I found myself immersed in the book for hours at a time. However, the story bogged down after a while in the minutiae of the characters' inner lives. I realize that's precisely what a novel is supposed to be about, but all the characters except Sugar (the prostitute) and Emmeline Fox (who doesn't get a lot of narration time anyway) were thoroughly detestable. As anyone who's ever been to the movies with me will attest, I do not like whiny characters, and this novel, alas, was full of them.

Conclusion: A good book, but not one I'd leap out of my chair to recommend to a friend.

A Soldier of the Great War by Mark Helprin. This one came to me last summer from an excellent recommender, but as the book is nearly 800 pages long, I had to wait until this summer to start it. It's the story of an Italian alpine veteran of World War One, and it reads a lot like A Farewell to Arms, only without the misogyny. The main character's reminiscences have a more Romantic bent as well, which I can appreciate. I'm about a quarter of the way through this delightful book--it's one I'll enjoy reading slowly.

Revolution by Jennifer Donnelly. I read her first novel, A Northern Light, last summer at the recommendation of my friend Elli. It was ok, but Revolution is better. Perhaps that's because the plot centers around one of my most cherished dreams: a young girl finds a diary from the past hidden away and commences to solve the mystery of its origins and contents. In this case, protagonist Andi is a musician who travels to Paris to work on her senior thesis. The diary she discovers is from the time of the Revolution and the Terror, which just so happens to be the very period she is researching for her project. I just started the book yesterday, so the mystery is still in its early stages, but I am excited to know what happens.

Not a bad list for my first week back home! Stay tuned for more updates and reading adventures this summer.

Until next time,

Anna