December 31, 2012 / Leslie

Mailbox Monday

Mailbox Monday was created by The Printed Page. It is the gathering place for readers to share the books that came into their home last week.

Mailbox Monday is currently on tour, hosted by a different blog each month. The December host is Susan at Suko’s Notebook .

Another year of Mondays has ended. I hope everyone had a nice Holiday Week.

I didn’t ask for any books for Christmas this year but I did get one on birds from my brother which should be a fun read. I also got a Nexus Tablet that I can use as an e-reader although for now I still prefer paper books.

From the publicist for review and giveaway:

Gathering Strength:
Conversations with Afghan Women
by Peggy Kelsey

Professional photographer, Peggy Kelsey traveled to Afghanistan in 2003 and 2010 to photograph and interview women. In Gathering Strength, these interviews come together under different topics creating conversations that illustrate the women’s different stories, concerns and issues. Peggy’s own story and comments serve as a bridge between the reader and Afghan women. Although the book addresses intractable issues and situations that the women face, it is ultimately hopeful.

A Christmas gift:

Good Birders Don’t Wear White
Edited by Lisa White

In these 50 light and fun original essays, the biggest names in birding dispense advice to birders of every level, on topics ranging from feeding birds and cleaning binoculars to pishing and pelagic birding. Whether satirizing bird snobs or relating the traditions and taboos of the birding culture, each essay is as chock-full of helpful information as it is entertaining.

From the publisher for review:

Madman’s Daughter
by Megan Shepherd

Sixteen-year-old Juliet Moreau has built a life for herself in London—working as a maid, attending church on Sundays, and trying not to think about the scandal that ruined her life. After all, no one ever proved the rumors about her father’s gruesome experiments. But when she learns he is alive and continuing his work on a remote tropical island, she is determined to find out if the accusations are true. Inspired by H. G. Wells’s classic The Island of Dr. Moreau, The Madman’s Daughter is a dark and breathless Gothic thriller about the secrets we’ll do anything to know and the truths we’ll go to any lengths to protect.

From the publisher for review:

Midwinterblood
by Marcus Sedgwick

An archaeologist who unearths a mysterious artifact, an airman who finds himself far from home, a painter, a ghost, a vampire, and a Viking: the seven stories in this compelling novel all take place on the remote Scandinavian island of Blessed where a curiously powerful plant that resembles a dragon grows. What binds these stories together? What secrets lurk beneath the surface of this idyllic countryside? And what might be powerful enough to break the cycle of midwinterblood? From award-winning author Marcus Sedgwick comes a book about passion and preservation and ultimately an exploration of the bounds of love.

What are you reading?