“Waiting On” Wednesday is a weekly event hosted by Jill at Breaking The Spine that spotlights upcoming releases that we’re eagerly anticipating.
Occasionally I’ll read a romance novel and when I do I like it to be clever, charming and fun.
Attachments
by Rainbow Rowell
To be Published: April 14th 2011 by Dutton Adult
Beth and Jennifer know their company monitors their office e-mail. But the women still spend all day sending each other messages, gossiping about their coworkers at the newspaper and baring their personal lives like an open book. Jennifer tells Beth everything she can’t seem to tell her husband about her anxieties over starting a family. And Beth tells Jennifer everything, period.
When Lincoln applied to be an Internet security officer, he hardly imagined he’d be sifting through other people’s inboxes like some sort of electronic Peeping Tom. Lincoln is supposed to turn people in for misusing company e-mail, but he can’t quite bring himself to crack down on Beth and Jennifer. He can’t help but be entertained — and captivated — by their stories.
Top Ten Tuesday is an original feature/weekly meme created at The Broke and the Bookish.
I ended up with two lists. The first list is my top ten debut books that I have read in no particluar order. The second list is books I have on my shelf to be read that I bought because of glowing reviews or recommendations.
Top Ten Best Debut Books
A Canticle for Leibowitz by Walter M. Miller Jr.
Winner of the 1961 Hugo Award for Best Novel and widely considered one the most accomplished, powerful, and enduring classics of modern speculative fiction, Walter M Miller Jr’s A Canticle for Leibowitz is a true landmark of twentieth-century literature– a chilling and still-provocative look at a post-apocalyptic future.
Even though this was written 50 years ago, it’s still relevant today.
Eden Close by Anita Shreve
Seventeen years after he returns to his hometown and first meets Eden, the beautiful girl next door, a young man uncovers the grisly story of her tortuous relationship with her parents.
This is still my favorite book by Anita Shreve.
The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams
Earth is demolished to make way for a galactic freeway.
This book, which I still have, has the distinction of being the very first ARC I ever received way back in 1979.
Read more…
13, rue Thérèse
by Elena Mauli Shapiro
Genre: Historical Fiction
Publisher: Reagan Arthur Books
Publish Date: February 2, 2011
Format: Hardcover | 288 pages
Rating: 4½ of 5
This beautifully written and illustrated book is a magical tale woven around a box of artifacts owned by the author. They tell the story of Louise Brunet, a woman who lived in the early part of the 20th century, as imagined by Trevor Stratton, an American academic working in present day Paris.
Trevor discovers a mysterious box of letters and mementoes in his office that was secretly left there by his secretary. He becomes enchanted by the objects; old love letters, notes, faded photos, pieces of music even a pair of gloves. As he examines each of them he begins to write about their significance in a series of letters to someone identified only as ‘Sir’ and in doing so creates the story of Louise. At the same time Trevor is becoming more aware of his secretary and the role she plays in his discovering the objects.
Louise is not what I would consider a typical woman of the 1920’s. Her thoughts, desires and actions are more consistent with those of someone living today. But then I would remind myself that I was experiencing Trevor’s fantasy of Louise’s life. Childless and married to a man of her father’s choosing, Louise suffered heartbreak when the love of her life was killed in The Great War. While she loves her husband, he is not the man of her dreams. She wants a child. She wants passion. She has neither.
Louise is an intriguing and complex woman; she also has a naughty streak. Thinking about a pair of lace gloves she is wearing while in church causes her mind to wander off on an imagined sexual fantasy. Another time she makes a false confession to shock a priest. She has a desire to sleep with her new neighbor and writes him anonymous letters while at the same time she invites him and his wife to dinner.
Throughout the pages the book is illustrated with color photos of the actual objects which were the inspiration for the novel. Each of the photos are also displayed on an interactive website which can be reached through links in the book, a wonderful enhancement to the story. This is a book that must be seen to be appreciated. Go take a look at that gorgeous site; you will not be disappointed; you will be intrigued.
Love story, romance and fantasy, this is a clever and captivating story that is at times both sexy and adult. It is a puzzle that keeps you wondering until the very end when all the pieces ultimately fall into place. An enjoyable read.
About the Author
Elena Mauli Shapiro was born and raised in Paris, France, in an apartment below the real-life Louise Brunet’s. Shapiro found herself in possession of a box of Louise’s keepsakes after her neighbor died and no relatives arrived to claim them. These postcards, gloves, photographs, coins, letters, and other mementoes utterly captured her imagination. Shapiro has a BA in English and French from Stanford University, a master’s degree in Comparative Literature from the University of California, Davis, and an MFA in Fiction Writing from Mills College. Visit her website at elenamaulishapiro.com
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Source: I received a copy of this book from the publisher for review.
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I participate in Book Review Party Wednesday. Click the link to read more great reviews.
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. This month’s host is Rose City Reader.
Last week’s new books were:
The Tapestry of Love by Rosy Thornton, from the author for review.
A rural idyll: that’s what Catherine is seeking when she sells her house in England and moves to a tiny hamlet in the Cévennes mountains. With her divorce in the past and her children grown, she is free to make a new start, and her dream is to set up in business as a seamstress. But this is a harsh and lonely place when you’re no longer just here on holiday. There is French bureaucracy to contend with, not to mention the mountain weather, and the reserve of her neighbors, including the intriguing Patrick Castagnol. And that’s before the arrival of Catherine’s sister, Bryony.
What I Thought I Knew: A Memoir by Alice Eve Cohen, a win from At Home With Books.
At age forty-four, Alice Eve Cohen was happy for the first time in years. After a difficult divorce, she was engaged to an inspiring man, joyfully raising her adopted daughter, and her career was blossoming. Alice tells her fiancé that she’s never been happier. And then the stomach pains begin.
In her unflinchingly honest and ruefully witty voice, Alice nimbly carries us through her metamorphosis from a woman who has come to terms with infertility to one who struggles to love a heartbeat found in her womb – six months into a high-risk pregnancy.
Twin: A Memoir by Allen Shawn. I’m not sure where this came from, possibly a win.
There was no letter or card inside the envelope.
When Allen and his twin sister were two, she began exhibiting signs of autism. More than fifty years later, Shawn realized their natures were not so different. Twin is about the mystery of being inextricably bonded to someone who can never be truly understood.
I participate in Project Feederwatch, a winter-long survey of birds that visit feeders. My time to observe and count is for an hour or so Saturday and Sunday.
Last weekend the Starlings made an appearance. They are fairly large, aggressive, birds that like to take over the feeders. They are a non-native bird in North America first brought here by Shakespeare enthusiasts in the nineteenth century in an effort to introduce every bird species mentioned in Shakespeare’s works.
The Hairy Woodpecker, a regular visitor in my yard, was having none of that. This is a medium-sized woodpecker that has almost the same black and white markings as the smaller Downy Woodpecker, but he is a more powerful bird with a much longer bill. He chased the Starling off the suet and took his time eating.
The Starling moved away and perched below to wait his turn. [Click the photos for a sharper image.]
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Saturday Snapshots is hosted by Alyce. Head on over to At Home With Books to see more great photos or add your own.
The Book Blogger Hop, a weekly event hosted by Jen at Crazy For Books, is a place just for book bloggers and readers to connect and share our love of the written word!
The Hop lasts Friday through Monday. This week’s question is:
“What book are you most looking forward to seeing published in 2011? Why are you anticipating that book?”
I’ve been waiting and waiting for The Bird Sisters since that beautiful cover and an enticing story line caught my eye way back in October of last year. I won’t have to wait too much longer, the book will be published in April 2011.
The Bird Sisters by Rebecca Rasmussen
When a bird flies into a window in Spring Green, Wisconsin, sisters Milly and Twiss get a visit. Twiss listens to the birds’ heartbeats, assessing what she can fix and what she can’t, while Milly listens to the heartaches of the people who’ve brought them. The two sisters have spent their lives nursing people and birds back to health…more
The publisher is giving away 30 copies of The Bird Sisters on Goodreads. Hurry, the contest ends February 1st.
Even the birds seem tired of the snow.
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Photo taken at Cantigny Gardens.
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More Wordless Wednesday.
Under My Apple Tree 