I Got Blurbed!

 

It just came to my attention that my wee book blog was blurbed on the back of Alina Bronsky's wonderful Baba Dunja's Last Love.

How cool is that!! Thank you Europa Editions!

Bookish Goings On

-It's been announced that a new bookstore, Belmont Books, will be opening in Belmont, Mass., in March 2017. I'm excited about this because (a) new bookstore in my old neighborhood (Belmont is right next door to Cambridge) and (b) the owners are two of the smartest and nicest people I know. Chris Abouzeid is a YA author and former bookseller at Porter Square Books and his wife Kathy Crowley is an author as well; both have been friends for a couple of years. Their store is going to be spectacular.

-My friend and fellow blogger Lisa Espenschade has been short-listed for the 2016 Read Russia Translation Prize for her translation of Laurus, by Eugene Vodolazkin. If you don't keep up with her blog Lizok's Bookshelf you should- it's a must-read.

-In the world of adaptations, the Merchant-Ivory E.M. Forster adaptations, as well as the duo's other films, are returning to the big screen this fall as part of a 50th anniversary retrospective. This is going on all over the US and I was lucky enough to catch "Howards End" in New York with director James Ivory in attendance to answer questions. I can't wait to see more of my favorites and I hope you get a chance to check them out too.

-Finally Publisher's Weekly reported that book reading is steady while e-book reading has stayed the same. Whenever I tell someone that I work in the book world, almost the first response is "books are going away, what are you going to do?" I always say that if books are going away I'm about to have a lot more room in my apartment but until then I'll keep reading and selling them if I can. Nice to have some validation for what we all know- that plenty of people still read real paper books.

-One last thing! Facebook tells me it's been 2 years since my last day at Porter Square Books in Cambridge. I miss those folks! 

Bookish Things On My Mind

• I was thrilled to hear about Print Bookstore, soon to be opened in Portland, Maine, by Josh Christie and Emily Russo. I've known Josh from here and there for a few years now and I can't wait for the store to open so I can go visit. They are both tremendous booksellers and I know their store is going to be amazing. For now you can follow them on social media (@PrintBookstore on Twitter) and sign up for their newsletter from their website, http://www.printbookstore.com. 

• I'm really excited about Alex Garland's adaption of Jeff Vandermeer's Annihilation after reading this interview on Tor.com. I only dabble in science fiction but I really enjoyed the book and since the interview came out I started reading book two in the Southern Reach Trilogy, Authority. I'm very intrigued by the thought that he's adapting Annihilation without having read the other books; it means his version won't include references or hints or connections, making the experience of watching the adaptation more like the experience of reading the first book, where you can't reference anything outside the first book itself. Neat!

• On that note I love all the upcoming adaptations- Justin Cronin's Passage trilogy is in the works, Margaret Atwood's MaddAdam series as well as a remake of The Handmaid's Tale. Now when are we going to get Amitav Ghosh's Ibis trilogy adapted? It would have to be almost as long as "Game of Thrones" but can you imagine, like an old-style PBS series along the lines of "The Jewel in the Crown" and I bet it could be as wonderful as that series too. Are there any upcoming adaptations, whether for TV or the movies, that you're excited about? 

• Speaking of "Game of Thrones," now that it's over for the season, what literary adaptations are you watching? I'm thinking of dipping my toes into "Outlander." Thoughts?

• One last comment on adaptations. I heard the Broadway adaptation of Alison Bechdel's wonderful Fun Home is closing in September. I'm really sorry to hear this as it's a great show and a moving, beautiful book, but I'm glad I did get to go see it for my birthday last year. I don't see many Broadway shows but I am grateful we made time for this one, and that I took the opportunity to re-read the book afterwards. Whatever happens with the show I do highly, highly recommend the book.

• The Man Booker longlist was announced recently. I'm a little embarrassed to admit I haven't read any of them but I'm pleased to see Paul Beatty recognized. I loved his book Slumberland (my review here) and I've got The Sellout in my TBR pile. And it's great to see perennial favorite and two-time winner J.M. Coetzee listed again too. The Man Booker people have so many awards now it's hard to keep track, but this is the original and my personal favorite award to watch and read from.

Sunday Salon: I'm Back

So I changed up my logo back to my original picture, because the black color scheme and nighttime photo were depressing me. I know it's not "BB in NYC" anymore but that identity doesn't suit me. I'll always be a Boston girl no matter where I live.

A couple of other things are changing. The Europa Challenge is ending at the end of this year. I've run this blog challenge for five years now and diminishing participation has convinced me it's time to call it quits. Part of a good social media strategy is knowing when something isn't doing what it used to do. It's been a lot of fun. I've met some great bloggers, read a lot of wonderful books and getting to know the Europa Editions team, in particular visiting their offices both in NYC and in Rome, has been a real treat. Some of the most compelling reading I've done in the last 10 years has been under their banner, and I'll still be one of their biggest fans. If anyone wants to take it over from me, just let me know and I'd be happy to hand over the reins.

I'm going to try to make my blog more community-oriented and participate more in the larger blogging community. Somehow I've lost sight of that over the past few years. For starters I'll be taking part in the Thankfully Reading event on Thanksgiving weekend. I won't have a ton of time to read but I should have some, and I'm looking forward to sharing it with my fellow bloggers. It's hosted by Jenn at Jenn's Bookshelves and should be fun. And I hope to be getting back to the Sunday Salon community, too.

I added an Etsy link to the top left of the blog too, so if you're interested in any of the things I make and sell, take a look. There are purses, pouches, jewelry and lots of other items too, many with bookish fabric or themes. I also do a lot with Doctor Who and other novelty fabric. Check it out!

I've been going through my old reviews and taking out buy links and doing other updates. My goal is to have my blog affiliate-link-free by the end of this year. And I'm taking another break from Facebook, so if you follow me there and I haven't been liking your posts lately, it's because I'm not reading any.

The more things change the more they stay the same!

June is International Crime Month!

Do you read crime fiction? If so, this is the month for you. And if you don't, there' s never been a better time to start. This month, Grove Press, Akashic Press, Melville House and Europa Editions are getting together to promote the crime genre.

Start with World Noir, a sampler published by Europa Editions. You can pick it up for free from independent bookstores, or download it here.

The book features essays by publishers, crime writers and critics with tributes, essays and interviews. Then, there is a series of samplers from Europa crime titles like Jean-Claude Izzo's classic Total Chaos, Kirkus-starred The Crocodile by Maurizio de Giovanni and Philippe Georget's Summertime All the Cats are Bored. The book also features a country-by-country guide to crime fiction, including those published and not published by Europa Editions.

I read this book through and really enjoyed it. I learned a lot about what characterizes Mediterranean Noir as well as its literary and cultural heritage. I strongly recommend this book to anyone interested in international mystery and crime!

The participating publishers are running a number of special events at various bookstores around the U.S.; check the events calendar of your local indie to see if something's coming your way!

LIFE OF PI Movie Trailer!

Are we excited or what? I can't wait for this movie to come out. Life of Pi is one of my favorite books; I loved its magic and beauty and lyricism, and the questions it asks about the nature of truth. I'm so intrigued by the trailer and I really hope the movie is as great as it looks so far! It hits theaters in 2D and 3D on November 21. I think this is going to be this year's Thanksgiving movie!

World Book Night!

Are you in?

World Book Night is an event during which people all over America and elsewhere are volunteering to give out copies of favorite books to strangers to encourage and promote literacy and reading in their community.

From the site:

We need book-loving volunteers to fan out across America on April 23, 2012! Just take 20 free copies of a book to a location in your community, and you just might change someone's life. Please sign up by Feb. 6 EST at midnight. 

The goal is to give books to new readers, to encourage reading, to share your passion for a great book. The entire publishing, bookstore, library, author, printing, and paper community is behind this effort with donated services and time. 

The first World Book Night was held in the UK last year, and it was such a big success that it's spreading around the world! Please volunteer to be a book giver in the U.S. Sign up now to be a book giver.

You choose books you'd like to give away from their list; I signed up for The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian as well as two backup choices. You should have read the book you're given away, and you should love it, so you can be a great evangelist for it.

It costs you nothing, and it might help someone else discover the joys of reading. It's such a great opportunity to spread the word about a book you love! Sign up today. You have until February 6 to volunteer!

What I'll be Reading in 2012- And What You Should Read, Too!

The first half of 2012 is going to be filled with amazing new books. Here are some of my picks for what to look out for.

The first new book I'm going to start in 2012 is Simonetta Angello Hornby's The Nun, out now from Europa Editions. From the publisher:

August 15, 1839. Messina, Italy. In the home of Marshall don Peppino Padellani di Opiri, preparations for the feast of the Ascension are underway. This may be the last happy day in the life of Agata, the Marshall's daughter. She and the wealthy Giacomo Lepre have fallen in love. Agata however must forsake her beloved Giacomo for the good of her family. Unfortunately the extended families of these illicit lovers cannot come to an agreement in their efforts to put the tawdry matter of their offspring's affair to rest and when Marshall don Peppino dies, Agata's mother decides to ferry her daughter far from Messina, to Naples, where she hopes to garner a stipend from the King. The only boat leaving Messina that day is captained by the young Englishman, James Garson.

Adam Johnson's The Orphan Master's Son is a dense, long and engrossing thriller set in North Korea. It's Random House's big winter book and it's one with which to curl up next to the fireplace. I've been reading it slowly for a while now and I think it's a great book for some serious winter hibernation! Out in January.

Also in January:

• The Little Russian, by Susan Sherman (Counterpoint),
• The Last Nude, by Ellis Avery (Riverhead),
• What They Do in the Dark, by Amanda Coe (W.W. Norton).

The Flight of Gemma Hardy is out February, and it's Margot Livesey's retelling of Jane Eyre set in Scotland of the 1960s. I read this already and I liked it- I think Eyre fans will want to read it and I think it will make a splash among womens' fiction readers. HarperCollins.

Also out in February from Grove Press is Me and You, by Niccolo Ammaniti. From the publisher:

From internationally best-selling author Niccolò Ammaniti, comes a funny, tragic, gut-punch of a novel, charting how an unlikely alliance between two outsiders blows open one family’s secrets.

Lorenzo Cumi is a fourteen-year-old misfit. To quell the anxiety of his concerned, socially conscious parents, he tells them he’s been invited on an exclusive ski vacation with the popular kids. On the morning of the trip, Lorenzo demands that his mother drop him off before they arrive at the train station, insisting that his status will be compromised if he shows up accompanied by his mother. Reluctantly, she agrees, and as soon as she is safely out of the vicinity, he turns around and makes his way back to his neighborhood, to put his real plan in motion: for one blessed week, Lorenzo will retreat to a forgotten cellar in his family’s apartment building, where he will live in perfect isolation, keeping the adult world at bay. But when his estranged half-sister, Olivia, shows up in the cellar unexpectedly, his idyll is shattered, and the two become locked in a battle of wills—forced to confront the very demons they are each struggling to escape.

Also in February:

• Three Weeks in December, by Audrey Schulman (Europa Editions), and
• All That I Am, by Anna Funder (HarperCollins).

Literary fiction readers take note- April brings a new one from William Boyd, Waiting for Sunrise, coming from HarperCollins. 

But May is going to be month when I blow my hardcover allowance! Coming up in May we have

• The Twelve, by Justin Cronin, his long-awaited sequel to The Passage,
• The Chemistry of Tears, the latest by Booker Prize winner Peter Carey,  and
• Bringing Up the Bodies, Hilary Mantel's sequel to her Booker Prize winner Wolf Hall.

What are you looking forward to in 2012? Do you have some galleys in your pile right now? What have you already dipped into? I'm always looking for more ideas!

The 2012 Europa Challenge- It's Almost Here!

Seeing as it's kind of small press week here, I wanted to remind you all about the 2012 Europa Challenge, which starts in just a couple of weeks!!

We had great participation in the first six months of the Europa Challenge blog, with over 20 participants from all over the world. Our latest participant signed up last week, and we were even mentioned in a story in Italy's largest-circulation newspaper!

Do you like Europa Editions books? Have you thought about joining? The levels have been revised so the minimum entry point is only 2 books!

The challenge runs from January 1 until December 31, 2012.

• Ristretto Level (2 Europas-just try a little) 
• Espresso Level (4 Europas-a little more)
• Cappuccino Level (6 Europas)
• Caffe Luongo Level (12 Europas)

You can see more details about special challenges and guidelines at the Europa Challenge blog. We also offer giveaways from time to time and exclusive content like interviews with Europa staff and authors.

In 2012 we've got member-designed challenges coming up, as well as a holiday gift swap towards the end of the year. How can you pass up all this bookish fun? Send an email to the challenge moderator (that's me, BTW) to join today!

Sunday Salon- Not Much Reading Today, and An Intriguing Bookish Rumor

Today is the last weekend day before Christmas and the day I start my cookie baking. Today I'm making chocolate chip cookies; every day for the rest of the week, up to and including Friday, I'll be baking something. I have a list; I have a schedule; I have ingredients. I'm ready.

Reading? Well, this week I read the very short and very haunting From the Land of the Moon, Milena Agus's novel about the life and loves of an Italian woman in the early 20th century. I loved this book and I need to read it again. I'll have a review shortly. I don't want to wait to tell you more. I'm still working my way through David Grossman's To the End of the Land (I know, similar titles) and I'm really enjoying it but it's a slow read and a long book, which is why I have to take breaks with shorter (if not necessary lighter) books. This is the second such short book I've read in the last week or so; earlier I read Bad Marie, a very different book but one that I enjoyed as well.

Today most of the reading I'll be doing is on the back of the Ghirardelli chocolate chip package, where I get my cookie recipe.

From the Rountree Alice

It's kind of a non-sequitur but I heard a very intriguing book-related rumor recently. About a year ago  I came across an incredibly striking illustrated version of Alice in Wonderland with pictures I'd never seen before, by an illustrator named Harry Rountree. A little research told me that his version is relatively rare, particularly this one, the 1908 edition with 92 color plates. This book was over $300 and I couldn't afford it but I never forgot about it and my husband has been checking around different places in hopes of finding a more affordable copy. Recently, a bookseller told him that he had just sold an intact copy to someone who purchased it with the express purpose of republishing it, spectacular illustrations and all, which this person believes are out of copyright.

If a new edition of the Rountree Alice ever sees the light of day, run don't walk to buy it- I know I will. The pictures are stunning and nothing like the traditional Tenniel pictures. If anything, they look like something out of Hayao Miazaki. Some of the pictures could have come straight out of Spirited Away or one of his other films. I really hope something comes of this.

Anyway that's it for this Sunday Salon. Have a great Sunday, whatever you're up to!
More Sunday Salon here.

Bits & Pieces

I have no Friday Finds this week (I know- what's up with that?) so in lieu of a list of new books I wanted to share some news and other interesting stuff with you.

China Miéville won an unprecedented third Arthur C. Clarke Award for his novel The City and The City, published last year by Random House. Here's my review of the book, and what happened when I met him at a reading. He's an amazing writer and a true gentleman- congratulations, China!

He's also got a new book coming out in June, Kraken. A story about a sect of squid worshippers and a giant squid that disappears before the eyes of scientist-protagonist Billy Harrow, it sounds like a departure from what he did in The City and The City- and like a lot of fun.



Tomorrow, May 1, is Free Comic Book Day. Comic book stores nationwide will be conducting giveaways of samplers and short comics on a first-come, first-served basis. You can go to the official website for more information about participating stores near you. I know I'll be up early on Saturday to troll the comic shops of Harvard Square for freebies- and to bring them back for you in an upcoming giveaway.


Finally, Jeremy, fellow Boston bibliophile and writer of the great blog Philobiblos, alerted me to the Boston Antiquarian Book Fair, happening today and tomorrow at Boston University. Click the highlighted link above for official information and if you're in the area, I hope you get a chance to check it out. I'm planning to attend Saturday!

Finally, and nothing to do with books, Saturday is also the annual Harvard Square May Fair. If you're around, it's going to be great weather and the fair is always a good time with food, music and lots to see and do.

What are you up to this weekend? Hopefully I have some new finds for you next week. Have a great time whatever you end up doing.

New in Paperback, Reviewed by Me

Here are a few books I've seen out in paperback recently, that I reviewed here when they were out in hardback:

My Father's Paradise, by Ariel Sabar. One of my absolute favorite reads last year, a wonderful family history and memoir,

The Heretic's Daughter, by Kathleen Kent. Perfect for this time of year, a wonderful novel about the Salem Witch Trials, based on the author's ancestor's true story.

The Black Tower, by Louis Bayard. I wasn't crazy about this French Revolution novel, but you might be.

The Lace Reader, by Brunonia Barry. Another engaging novel about the city of Salem, Massachusetts.

One More Year, stories by Sana Krasikov. An award-winning collection of stories about Russian emigres.

I hope there's something great here for you!

Booker Winner Announced!

Congratulations to Hilary Mantel, for her 2009 Man Booker Prize win for Wolf Hall!

Book News

A few interesting book links and news I found around the web this week:

A "Frog and Toad" discovery, from the Los Angeles Times. Was Frog and Toad are Friends one of your childhood favorites? It was one of mine and I was thrilled to hear this news.

The 2009 Man Booker Prize longlist is announced. Are there any of your favorites listed? Do you think you might read them now that they're nominated for this prestigious prize?

Alternatively, The Guardian has announced the Not the Booker Prize, a reader-nominated award whose prize is a coffee cup. Vote for your favorite.

Finally, Publisher's Weekly has what may be the first review of Vladimir Nabokov's posthumously published The Original of Laura, coming out in November.

Sami Rohr Prize for Jewish Literature Announced

The Jewish Book Council announced today that Sana Krasikov is the winner of the 2009 Sami Rohr Prize, a $100,000 award for the best in contemporary Jewish writing, for her debut short story collection, One More Year.

You can read my review of One More Year here. I loved it!

The other finalists were:

Elisa Albert for The Book of Dahlia (Free Press)

Anne Landsman for The Rowing Lesson (Soho Press)

Dalia Sofer for The Septembers of Shiraz (Ecco)

Anya Ulinich for Petropolis (Viking Penguin)

Congratulations to Ms. Krasikov on her well-deserved honor.

News: Just Announced, this year's Man Booker Prize winner!

Aravind Adiga's The White Tiger has just been announced as the winner of this year's Man Booker Prize!

Congratulations, Mr. Adiga!

I haven't read it yet myself but I'm sure I'll buy it sometime soon. It looked the most interesting to me of all the nominees and I'll definitely add it to my TBR pile in the next month or two.

National Book Critics Circle Best of 2007

Another best-of-2007 list for your perusal, this one from the National Book Critics Circle. Enjoy!

I like these lists a lot. There are a lot of similarities between them sometimes but it's neat to see that overlap, as well as to see where different groups differ. And the more categories the better!

Publisher's Weekly's Best of 2007

PW's Best Books of the Year is another terrific annotated list of 2007's best; what I like about this list is that it's broken up into so many sections- fiction, poetry, religion, comics, children's, even children's comics, just to name a few- that there is truly something for everybody here.

I'm going to add this to my del.icio.us links as well because I know I'm going to refer to it again and again!

NYT Top 100 Notable Books

November has been a slow month for me in terms of blogging but as we approach the end of the year there are going to be lots of opportunities for updates other than reviews- top 10 lists, favorites, holiday offerings, etc. So, to get things started, here is the link to the New York Times's Top 100 Notable Books.

Included are titles I've reviewed such as The Septembers of Shiraz by Dalia Sofer and The Gathering, by Anne Enright. It's a great resource for anyone looking for that next great read, or a great gift, to catch up on something you might have missed or just to validate your own wonderful taste in books. Enjoy!