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277th Virtual Poetry Circle

October 25, 2014 by

Welcome to the 277th Virtual Poetry Circle!

Remember, this is just for fun and is not meant to be stressful.

Keep in mind what Molly Peacock’s book suggested.

Look at a line, a stanza, sentences, and images; describe what you like or don’t like; and offer an opinion. If you missed my review of her book, check it out here.

Today’s poem is from Claude McKay, recited by Connor Noonan:

Romance

To clasp you now and feel your head close-pressed,
Scented and warm against my beating breast;

To whisper soft and quivering your name,
And drink the passion burning in your frame;

To lie at full length, taut, with cheek to cheek,
And tease your mouth with kisses till you speak

Love words, mad words, dream words, sweet senseless words,
Melodious like notes of mating birds;

To hear you ask if I shall love always,
And myself answer: Till the end of days;

To feel your easeful sigh of happiness
When on your trembling lips I murmur: Yes;

It is so sweet. We know it is not true.
What matters it? The night must shed her dew.

We know it is not true, but it is sweet—
The poem with this music is complete.

What do you think?

Filed Under: virtual poetry circle Tagged With:

Something Wicked Read-a-Long

October 24, 2014 by

Ti and Sandy are hosting the Something Wicked This Way Comes by Ray Bradbury read-a-long.  We’re discussing it on blogs and Twitter with the hashtag #EnterTheRingmaster.

We read the second section, which is Ch. 25-44, and it is getting tougher to hold off reading the rest before the final discussion on Halloween!

This section moved a lot more quickly for me with the hiding from the carnival gang and the boys being scared out of their minds.  Will and Jim are still a bit interchangeable to me, but at this point I’m over it.  And the language hasn’t been as difficult to get through — it’s like they have some kind of mid-western dialect or some language that’s all their own.  The revelations about the carnival were not all that revealing to me, but maybe that’s because I’ve read too much Stephen King and other odd little stories about carnivals.  But it wasn’t so predictable that it made me stop reading.

I am still wondering about the relationship between Will and his father and why they have never communicated before now, and where are Jim’s parents — we know he at least have a mother — but where has she been all this time.  It seems like his parents are not around much for him, which is why he seems to be expected to get in trouble.

Filed Under: announcements Tagged With: , ,

By the Book: Writers on Literature and the Literary Life from The New York Times Book Review by Pamela Paul

October 23, 2014 by

Source: Henry Holt & Company
Hardcover, 336 pgs
On Amazon and on Kobo

By the Book: Writers on Literature and the Literary Life from The New York Times Book Review edited by Pamela Paul, foreword by Scott Turow, is a collection of question-and-answers from The New York Times Book Review with authors, scientists, and more.  Some of these questions stay the same, like what their favorite books are, what genres are their guilty pleasures, and what books disappointed them.  Any book lover who does or does not read the Book Review (though why wouldn’t you) will want this book to get the inside scoop on writers and their writing and reading lives.

Pamela Paul knows just what questions other readers want answered from their favorite authors, and she knows that starting conversations about what people are reading can lead to some in-depth and interesting questions — even philosophical ones.  “Asking someone what she’s read lately is an easy conversational gambit … It also serves an actual purpose: we may find out about something we want to read ourselves,” Pamela Paul says in the introduction.

As Turow says in his foreword, “whether a given writer likes or abhors a given book, all writers probably would concede that … they are who they are because of every one of the books with which they’ve ‘stoofed’ themselves during their lifetimes.”  Book lovers of all ages will love this compilation because they will find something else to read, increase the size of their stacks, and experience the deep appreciation writers and artists have for one another and their work.

By the Book: Writers on Literature and the Literary Life from The New York Times Book Review edited by Pamela Paul, foreword by Scott Turow, is a fantastic compilation of interviews.  Some interviews are humorous, while others are more serious.  The book itself is likely to garner The New York Times Book Review a few more subscribers.

About the Author:

Pamela Paul is the editor of The New York Times Book Review and the author of Parenting, Inc., Pornified, and The Starter Marriage and the Future of Matrimony. Prior to joining the Times, Paul was a contributor to Time magazine and The Economist, and her work has appeared in The Atlantic, The Washington Post, and Vogue. She and her family live in New York.  Visit her website and her on Twitter.

72nd book for 2014 New Author Reading Challenge.

Filed Under: ARC, challenges, New Authors Challenge, nonfiction, Read in 2014, reviews Tagged With: , , ,

Giveaway: Still, At Your Door by Emma Eden Ramos

October 21, 2014 by

Earlier this year, I had the pleasure of reading the latest work from Emma Eden Ramos, Still, At Your Door, which I reviewed in February.  It is not only a story about a young girl, Sabrina Gibbons, who wants a normal family life, but also a young lady looking for herself among the wreckage of her family and in the world around her.  A Streetcar Named Desire plays a strong role in the story, but it is by no means a retelling — it becomes a way for the author to parallel Tennessee Williams‘ work. Bri’s mother is like Blanche the main character in the play, clinging to her youth as much as she can, even as it slips away.  But this is Bri’s story.

I really enjoyed this ambitious work that explores not only coming of age in a broken home, but also bipolar disorder and its effect on the family.  For more on Ramos’ psychology angle and thoughts on her writing, check out my interview with her.

Here’s the synopsis of the novel:

Sabrina “Bri” Gibbons has only a few short minutes to pack her things and help her sisters pack theirs before running with their mother to the bus that will whisk them away from Butler, Pennsylvania, an abusive relationship, and a secret that none of them wish to acknowledge. She was not prepared, though, for her mother to drop them on the streets of New York with the promise that she would be right back. Haunted by the sight of her mother running back to the cab, Bri, with Missy and Grace in tow, settles in with their grandparents. Thoughts of her present and her future collide with memories of her past, her dead father, and her mother’s bizarre episodes. She watches her sisters struggle with school and acceptance, all the while knowing the lack of any sense of security will make it impossible for them to carry on as ‘normal’ children. She finally lets her guard down enough to allow someone else in and sees a faint glimmer that her dreams might be attainable. Disaster strikes again, this time targeting her sister. Is it possible for Bri to find that balance between her dreams and her family’s realities?

She’s received great reviews from the likes of the San Francisco Book Review.  “While there at first seems to be a deficiency in description and character and world development, surprisingly, Still At Your Door becomes one of those unique stories where less is more. This quick read flows smoothly from beginning to end, and is filled with glimpses of how life ought to be, but how for three young girls it greatly missed the mark. It provides readers with a deeper understanding of the physical and emotional effects of mental illness on the family as a whole and the need for broader awareness to allow children to maintain their childhood in innocence. This beautifully written book is one I would recommend for readers of any age,” Kim Heimbuch said in the review.

Her publisher also has nominated Emma Eden Ramos for The Next Generation Indie Award and A NIEA Award.

For those of you who are in the United States, I’m offering 1 copy of Still, At Your Door by Emma Eden Ramos to a lucky reader who comments before Oct. 31, 2014. 

Filed Under: giveaway Tagged With: , ,

Land of Dreams by Kate Kerrigan

October 20, 2014 by

tlc tour host

Source: William Morrow and TLC Book Tours
Paperback, 336 pages
On Amazon and on Kobo

Land of Dreams by Kate Kerrigan, the third book in the Ellis Island trilogy (Ellis Island and City of Hope), could be read alone as Kerrigan provides enough background on Ellie Hogan that new readers could pick this one up without a problem, but readers may find a richer reading experience when they read all three.

(If you haven’t read the other 2 books, this review could contain spoilers for those books)

Ellie Hogan has come into her own as a wife, mother, and artist, only to have her life disrupted when her oldest adopted son Leo runs away from his upstate New York boarding school.  Ellie is a first generation Irish immigrant who has lost a lot to the Irish war against the English, but she’s also gained a sense of purpose in America, learning to make her own way.  Her artist’s life is very isolated on Fire Island, and with her son, Tom, she has a quiet existence among the people who have become like family.  But when her son, Leo, runs away to Hollywood, she has to make a choice — send the police or go after him herself.  Making her away across the United States, Ellie tries to keep her fears at bay while being thankful that her youngest son is in the care of good friends while she makes the journey.  Along the way, she meets Stan, a composer who escaped from Poland before the Nazis took over.

“Yet surely the desire for fame was not so different from the desire to be loved, and everyone in the world wants to be loved.  The desire for fame and love is born from a deep human need to be seen, and I felt as if I could really see this young woman now, beyond the mules and the dye and her ridiculous ideas and affectations.  So I started to draw her.”  (pg. 122)

Ellie may have been a quintessential landscape painter with her own signature for delivering paintings to her clients, but in Los Angeles, she’s a mother in search of a star-struck son.  She must decide whether at 16 he should pursue his dream or return to New York and school, and it is a tough decision for any mother with a son who has finally found something to be passionate about.  Ellie’s experiences in a restrictive Catholic home in Ireland inform her ultimate decisions, as she decides that she would rather be more open-minded than her parents had been with her.  Kerrigan easily tackles the ideas of nature versus nurture in Ellie’s parenting, touches upon the seedier side of Hollywood — though not as much as some readers would expect — and incorporates significant details about World War II and the internment of Japanese-Americans.

Land of Dreams by Kate Kerrigan is a satisfying conclusion to this trilogy about seeking out a home and family, but also stability.  But it is also about the realization of dreams across generations and having the gumption to take the leap.  While everything is not as it appears in Hollywood, the facades of the city also mirror those of Ellie’s own adopted country — a land of freedom and opportunity that still oppresses certain minorities and immigrants seeking a better life.

About the Author:

Kate Kerrigan is the author of three previous novels. She lives in Ireland with her husband and their two sons.  Visit Kate’s website at www.katekerrigan.ie and follow her on Twitter: @katekerrigan.

 

 

35th book for 2014 Historical Fiction Reading Challenge.

 

 

 

 

29th book (WWII) for the 2014 War Challenge With a Twist.

 

 

 

4th Book for the Ireland Reading Challenge 2014.

Filed Under: 2014 Historical Fiction Reading Challenge, 2014 War Challenge With a Twist, challenges, Harper Collins, historical fiction, Ireland Challenge, Publishers/Publicists, Read in 2014, review copy, reviews, tlc book tours Tagged With: , ,

Mailbox Monday #293

October 19, 2014 by

Mailbox Monday, created by Marcia at To Be Continued, formerly The Printed Page, has a permanent home at its own blog.

To check out what everyone has received over the last week, visit the blog and check out the links.  Leave yours too.

Also, each week, Leslie, Vicki, and I will share the Books that Caught Our Eye from everyone’s weekly links.

Here’s what I received:

1.  The Wing Wing Brothers: Geometry Palooza! by Ethan Long for review from Holiday House.

Your favorite five wacky birds are at it again. This time teaching readers the building blocks of geometry, while trying not to topple over themselves!

 

 

2.  Plants Feed Me by Lizzy Rockwell for review from Holiday House.

A cheerful cast of multicultural kids demonstrates how plants are instrumental parts of what we eat in the latest from Rockwell (The Busy Body Book, 2004). Detailed colored-pencil-and-gouache illustrations show plants and the parts we harvest for food—leaves from lettuce and chard plants; roots and tubers from carrot and potato plants; fruits from apple trees, tomato plants, blueberry bushes, and pumpkin vines; seeds from wheat grass and walnut trees; and all kinds of beans from pods of many shapes. Full-page spreads depict children in the garden and on a farm harvesting fruits and vegetables, and helpful cross sections and close-ups reveal plants above and below the ground, with each part clearly labeled and a recognizable image of what that plant looks like once it gets to a grocery store. It’s easy to forget where everyday food comes from, but this gentle, colorful picture book explains, simply and accurately, how food gets from the garden and farm onto dining-room tables. Preschool-Kindergarten. –Sarah Hunter and BookList

3.  Mice Mischief: Math Facts in Action by Caroline Stills for review from Holiday House.

Ten colorful and acrobatic circus mice demonstrate how the numbers from 1-9 can add up to 10, matching the kindergarten Common Core State Standards for operations and algebraic thinking.

 

 

 

4. Jane Austen Cover to Cover: 200 Years of Classic Book Covers by Margaret C. Sullivan for review from Quirk.

Jane Austen’s six novels are true classics, still immensely popular some 200 years after their first publication. But although the celebrated stories never change, the covers are always different. Jane Austen Cover to Cover compiles two centuries of design, from elegant Victorian hardcovers and the famed 1894 “Peacock” edition to 1950s pulp, movie tie-in editions, graphic novels, foreign-language translations, and many, many others. Filled with beautiful artwork and insightful commentary, this fascinating and visually intriguing collection is a must for Janeites, design geeks, and book lovers of every stripe.

5.  The Company of Strangers by Robert Wilson for 50 cents from the library sale.

The stifling summer streets of Lisbon are teeming with spies and informers when Andrea Aspinall, an English mathematician turned spy, disappears under a new identity. Military attaché Karl Voss, experienced in the illusions of intrigue, arrives in Lisbon under the German Legation, though he is secretly working against the Nazis so that atomic and rocket technology do not find their way into Hitler’s hands.

In the lethal tranquility of a corrupted paradise Andrea and Karl meet and attempt to find love. Tragically, a night of violence leaves Andrea the keeper of a secret that triggers a lifelong addiction to the clandestine world. From Portugal to England and finally Cold War Berlin, she gradually discovers that the deepest secrets aren’t held by governments, but by those closest to you.

What did you receive?

Filed Under: mailbox monday, meme Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , ,

Sisterhood of the Bloggers World Award!

October 19, 2014 by

Many thanks and good wishes to Diane of FictionZeal for nominating me for the Sisterhood of the Bloggers World Award! Here’s the post she did.

Diane’s blog is new to me, but from the posts I’ve seen, she likes some great historical crime fiction and fantasy-like novels.

Here are the rules:

  1. Thank the blogger that nominated you and link back to their site
  2. Post the award’s logo on your blog
  3. Answer the 10 questions you’ve been asked
  4. Nominate 10 bloggers
  5. Set 10 new questions for your nominees

Here are my nominees:

Diane’s questions for the nominees:

    1. What’s the last book you’ve read and why did it appeal to you?

I read several books at a time, but the last book I finished was Not My Father’s Son by Alan Cumming, which is a memoir that is not only about his relationship with his father, but also about his whole family and how his past influenced him as an adult. I have a hard time finding memoirs I love, but since I love his acting on The Good Wife, I couldn’t resist reading this one.

    1. Do you have a favorite book? Please name it.

My favorite book…just one?! That’s tough, but it’s a tie between The Phantom of the Opera by Gaston Leroux and Pride & Prejudice by Jane Austen.

    1. I could drink coffee all day. If you’re a coffee lover, what do you take in it?  If not, what do you drink in the morning?

I LOVE coffee, but French Vanilla or dark roasts. I take mint creamer when its available or some kind of caramel creamer.

    1. How do you choose books to review?

I choose books to review based on mood, synopsis, and author. I have authors I love to read no matter what they write and then there are wars that I like to read about — WWII and Vietnam War — but I also like books set in Spain, Portugal, and Asia.

    1. What does your review process look like?

I tend to write up the reviews right after I read the book. I take an hour or so between the end of the book and when I begin writing a review. If there are aspects of a book that bother me, I tend to put notes in my review to go back and look at those things. Sometimes I incorporate those notes in the review and sometimes I don’t, especially if by the end of the book they are no longer as bothersome or important to my enjoyment or lack thereof of the book.

    1. If you could sit with any author for the day (living or dead), who would it be and what would you talk about?

I honestly have no idea who I would choose. Probably the poet Sylvia Plath to talk about her poetry and her work as a poet. Whether she ever struggled to write poems or if they just flowed freely.

    1. Do you have any suggestions for bloggers who are just starting?

Be true to yourself and write reviews that tell the truth about how you felt or liked a book — do not compromise your integrity for a free book.

    1. Do you have any authors that you consider ‘autobuy’?

Some of my auto-buy authors are Stephen King, Yusef Komunyakaa, Anita Shreve, Jill Mansell, Mary Oliver, Richard Blanco, Isabel Allende, Beth Kephart, Billy Collins, Pam Jenoff, Syrie James, Sarah McCoy, Pablo Neruda — there are many more….

    1. What do you find most challenging about blogging?

Time management because it isn’t just writing reviews, but also reading entire books. I have a 3-yr-old who demands a lot of attention, not to mention house work, a full-time job, and a husband. I have to juggle quite a bit.

    1. What was the process in choosing your blog’s name?

There was no process really. It just came to me at first as Savvy Verse (for poetry) and Wit just happened to come naturally — hence Savvy Verse & Wit.

Here are the questions for the nominees:

  1. Why/when did you start to love reading?
  2. Ebooks, Paperback or Hardcover?
  3. Who would be your fictional boyfriend?
  4. What’s the last book you’ve read and why did it appeal to you?
  5. How do you choose books to review?
  6. What does your review process look like?
  7. If you could sit with any author for the day (living or dead), who would it be and what would you talk about?
  8. What do you find most challenging about blogging?
  9. Do you have any authors that you consider ‘autobuy’?
  10. If you could only read series or standalone books for the rest of your life, which would it be?
Filed Under: announcements Tagged With:

276th Virtual Poetry Circle

October 18, 2014 by

Welcome to the 276th Virtual Poetry Circle!

Remember, this is just for fun and is not meant to be stressful.

Keep in mind what Molly Peacock’s book suggested.

Look at a line, a stanza, sentences, and images; describe what you like or don’t like; and offer an opinion. If you missed my review of her book, check it out here.

Today’s poem is from Samuel Menashe, recited by John Reese:

At Cross Purposes

      1
Is this writing mine
Whose name is this
Did I underline
What I was to miss?

      2
An upheaval of leaves
Enlightens the tree
Rooted it receives   
Gusts on a spree

      3
Beauty makes me sad
Makes me grieve
I see what I must leave

      4
Scaffold, gallows
Do whose will
Who hallows wood
To build, kill

      5
Blind man, anvil
No hammer strikes
Your eyes are spikes

What do you think?

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The Monuments Men Read-a-Long

October 17, 2014 by

The read-a-long of The Monuments Men by Robert M. Edsel and Bret Witter with Anna from Diary of an Eccentric has begun at the War Through the Generations blog.  Last week, we read Ch. 1-14, and this week we read Ch. 15-28.

If you missed the first discussion, go here.

If you are ready for the second discussion, go here.

Next Friday, we’ll be discussing Ch. 29-42.

Filed Under: announcements Tagged With: , , , , ,

Not My Father’s Son by Alan Cumming

October 16, 2014 by

Source: Dey St. and William Morrow
Hardcover, 304 pgs
On Amazon and on Kobo

Not My Father’s Son by Alan Cumming is one of the most honest, heartfelt, and engaging memoirs out there.  Cumming is the son of a Scottish family, and his father was verbally and physically abusive, but that’s just part of this story.  Despite the abuse, Cumming had dreams, dreams that he ultimately hoped to achieve and did, even if they just began as fantasies of escape.  As a young boy, he was given impossible tasks by his father on a Scottish estate where they lived as caretakers, and really they were given so that he could fail and be the subject of his own father’s wrath. His escape from that life was acting and school, but he was careful after several early incidents to never show too much passion or love for anything because his father would take it away.  Although his relationship with his father shaped some of his anxieties that he took with him later in life, it is his relationship with his mother that solidified his confidence in becoming the talented actor he is today.

“You see, I understood my father.  I had learned from a very young age to interpret the tone of every word he uttered, his body language, the energy he brought into a room.  It has not been pleasant as an adult to realize that dealing with my father’s violence was the beginning of my studies of acting.”  (page 4 ARC)

Parallels between Cumming’s past and that of his mother’s father, the grandfather he never knew, are drawn easily in his mind and throughout the memoir after he agrees to uncover the truth about his grandfather’s death in Malaysia sometime after WWII.  Like his mother, Cumming did not have a real relationship with his father, but unlike his mother, his father lived with him for most of his life until he left for Glasgow for acting school.  Shifting between past and present in his own life, Cumming also examines his relationship to his deceased grandfather and how memory is subjective and that most people remember in an emotional way.

Not My Father’s Son by Alan Cumming is not about how his father drops a bombshell on him that he is not his son.  The memoir is about how Cumming is his own man and nothing like the abusive, angry father he had, and in many ways how he is more like the grandfather he never met.  This is a contender for the Best of list this year because it is told with such honesty, self-reflection, and humor that readers will not be able to avoid examining their own lives and familial relationships.

About the Author:

Alan Cumming is an award-winning actor, singer, writer, producer and director. He recently starred in an acclaimed one-man staging of Macbeth on Broadway, and appears on the Emmy Award-winning television show The Good Wife. He won a Tony Award for his portrayal of the Emcee in the Broadway musical Cabaret, a role he is reprising in 2014.  He hosts PBS Masterpiece Mystery and has appeared in numerous films, including Spy Kids, Titus, X2: X-Men United, The Anniversary Party, Any Day Now and Eyes Wide Shut.  Photo by Ricardo Horatio Nelson.

25th book for 2014 European Reading Challenge; (Set in Scotland and England)

 

 

 

 

71st book for 2014 New Author Reading Challenge.

Filed Under: 2014 European Reading Challenge, ARC, challenges, Harper Collins, memoir, New Authors Challenge, Publishers/Publicists, Read in 2014, reviews Tagged With: , , ,

War in the Balkans: The Battle for Greece and Crete 1940-1941 by Jeffrey Plowman

October 15, 2014 by

Source: Pen & Sword Books
Paperback, 160 pgs
I am an Amazon Affiliate

War in the Balkans: The Battle for Greece and Crete 1940-1941 by Jeffrey Plowman is a photographic history of the year in which the Balkans became the battleground for the Nazi’s in World War II as it worked with Italy and sought to advance on Russia.  Plowman is very detailed in troop movements and the artillery used, but the pictures were more helpful in ascertaining what tanks, bombers, etc., he was talking about.  Most of the book is photographs that were not been used previously or published before, and the text is a backdrop to these photos.  Plowman clearly has done his research as he follows the accumulation of weapons as they prepare for war, and the unexpected strength of the forces the Nazi’s encountered, even when they were outnumbered.

“This led Britain to discuss the possibility of a coordinated defense of Crete but the Greeks would not allow any landings on their soil without a declaration of war.  Nor did the Italians have much luck either in their discussions with Germany.  When they sought German support for an attack on Jugoslavia, Adolf Hitler was adamant that he did not want to see the war spread to the Balkans.”  (page 11)

There were a high number of casualties in this battle for Greece and Crete, and those were accounted for by nationality — British, Australian, etc. — in the epilogue.  The stance of the major leaders of these governments shifted over time as it looked like the British would enter the war and the Nazis could face harsher opposition than from those of smaller nations’ armies.  This is a book that would be best read over a longer period, with readers taking in small amounts each time.  War in the Balkans: The Battle for Greece and Crete 1940-1941 by Jeffrey Plowman is a fascinating look at one series of battles in WWII, and the pictures flesh out his text well.

24th book for 2014 European Reading Challenge; (Set in Greece and Crete)

 

 

 

 

28th book (WWII) for the 2014 War Challenge With a Twist.

 

 

 

 

70th book for 2014 New Author Reading Challenge.

Filed Under: 2014 European Reading Challenge, 2014 War Challenge With a Twist, challenges, New Authors Challenge, nonfiction, Read in 2014, review copy, reviews Tagged With: , ,

The Lollipop Monster’s Christmas by Eric T. Krackow, illustrated by Heather Krackow

October 14, 2014 by

Source: Schiffer Publishing
Hardcover, 64 pgs
I am an Amazon Affiliate

The Lollipop Monster’s Christmas by Eric T. Krackow, illustrated by Heather Krackow, is a children’s story about the meaning of Christmas through engaging colored pencil drawings.  Reading this together, my daughter and I talked about the presents the monsters receive from one another, the cocoa they drank, and how they opened their hearts and home to a monster who was spending the holiday alone in the woods.  Larry’s favorite holiday is Christmas, not because of the gifts, but because he can spend quality and fun time with his friends.

At 64 pages, this was a little long for a young toddler, but she did take to heart what we discussed as Larry made the monster at home in his house and among his other friends.  She learned that holidays — and generally, most ever day — should be about spending time with friends and family and enjoying one another.  The text was not too much for her per page, which was nice, and the illustrations were colorful, but not overly vivid.

The Lollipop Monster’s Christmas by Eric T. Krackow, illustrated by Heather Krackow, is an engaging story, though we would have liked it a little bit shorter.  Otherwise, the story has a good message for young kids learning about the holidays and what is truly meaningful about spending time with family and friends.

69th book for 2014 New Author Reading Challenge.

Filed Under: challenges, children's fiction, New Authors Challenge, Read in 2014, review copy, reviews Tagged With: , , ,