Booking Through Thursday: Conditioning

From Booking Through Thursday

Are you a spine breaker? Or a dog-earer? Do you expect to keep your books in pristine condition even after you have read them? Does watching other readers bend the cover all the way around make you flinch or squeal in pain?

I like my books to end up in about the same condition they were in before I started reading them when I finish. If I picked up a book at a library sale that's in not-so-good condition, I'm less careful with it and mind less if the spine is already cracked or a page or two folded.

However, I will NOT do these things myself. If I have a new or fairly new book that I'm reading, I'm very careful with it. No bending the cover around, no dog-earing the pages. Other people can do whatever they want to their own books; it doesn't bother me. But the minute they start doing them to ones they've borrowed from me--intentionally or not--I am not a happy camper!

I guess it's because even though I read my books (meaning they're not just for decoration), they take up so much of my wall space when I'm not reading them that I want them to look nice. Books are an investment that I paid for, so I like to spare them unnecessary damage.

Teaser Tuesdays: October 28, 2008

From Teaser Tuesdays

TEASER TUESDAYS asks you to:

Grab your current read.

Let the book fall open to a random page.

Share with us two (2) “teaser” sentences from that page, somewhere between lines 7 and 12.

You also need to share the title of the book that you’re getting your “teaser” from … that way people can have some great book recommendations if they like the teaser you’ve given!

Please avoid spoilers!

From The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins, an amazing and creepily scary read about the fusing of reality TV with teen gladiators under the government's command...

"The people begin to point at us eagerly as they recognize a tribute train rolling into the city. I step away from the windows, sickened by their excitement, knowing they can't wait to watch us die."

It's really good. In a really creepy, gives-you-a-lot-to-think-about sort of way.

Booking Through Thursday: Coupling

“Name a favorite literary couple and tell me why they are a favorite. If you cannot choose just one, that is okay too. Name as many as you like–sometimes narrowing down a list can be extremely difficult and painful. Or maybe that’s just me.”

I'm probably not thinking of tons of great couples, but the one that jumps to mind most readily is Claire & Henry from The Time Traveler's Wife by Audrey Niffinegger. I can't say too much without giving away the plot, but the way they cling together through all their different meetings throughout time makes them hard to forget. Romantic, bittersweet, plus it's a mental workout to follow them!


Edit: I thought of another one! It's a YA novel called My Most Excellent Year by Steve Kluger. Alejandra and T.C. are adorable, when they finally get it together. He's the cool boy with the good heart, and she's the fiercely independent woman who's not above being swept off her feet if the guy gets it right. It takes them a while, but even when they're not an official couple, they're great together!

Teaser Tuesdays: October 21, 2008

TEASER TUESDAYS asks you to:

Grab your current read.

Let the book fall open to a random page.

Share with us two (2) “teaser” sentences from that page, somewhere between lines 7 and 12.

You also need to share the title of the book that you’re getting your “teaser” from … that way people can have some great book recommendations if they like the teaser you’ve given!

Please avoid spoilers!

Well, for the past 2 weeks I've taken teasers from the first two Larry books by Janet Tashjian. I'm guessing no one will be surprised that this week's is taken from the third, which is Larry and the Meaning of Life!

"I made sure he was on the other side of the pond before rifling through his stuff. I unfolded a stained piece of notebook paper and stared at the words scribbled across the page in pencil."

It really is a good YA series. Fast moving, interesting, raises lots of good issues. And the main character is very mature, so it doesn't always feel like YA. I'm definitely enjoying the books!

Booking Through Thursday: What's Sitting on Your Shelf?

From Booking Through Thursday

What tomes are waiting patiently on your shelves?

Oh my. So very many. Mostly fiction, a lot of classics and older, obscure books. I also have a bookshelf of memoirs in which I've hardly made a dent.

There are several factors to blame for my current state.

First, I had a year when I went library sale crazy. I would hit up every library sale I could find, often twice, nearly always for the "bag sale" portion of the weekend. I also had a great used book store clearance section easily accessible. As a result, my shelves are literally overflowing with books I picked up for pennies apiece.

I now work in a book store, and I've found my tastes have become much more refined. I can go to a sale and pick out the two or three books I actually want to read without bringing home the other 20 (or more!).

I've also gotten really good at using the library. It used to be that I'd check out a bunch of books, put of bringing them back, and then owe a ton of money in overdue fines. Now I limit the number I check out. When a library book comes in for me at my local branch, it takes priority over any other books waiting in line, and when I've finished it, I return it ASAP. No fines, no clutter.

So, the incoming book waves have diminished. However, the tomes previously acquired continue to stare patiently at me from their shelves (and piles, and stacks, and boxes), waiting for their turn. Meanwhile, I'm so busy trying to read new stuff for my job that I never even touch the old ones I already have.

It's ridiculous.

Teaser Tuesdays: October 14, 2008

From Teaser Tuesdays

TEASER TUESDAYS asks you to:
- Grab your current read.
- Let the book fall open to a random page.
- Share with us two (2) “teaser” sentences from that page, somewhere between lines 7 and 12.
- You also need to share the title of the book that you’re getting your “teaser” from … that way people can have some great book recommendations if they like the teaser you’ve given!
- Please avoid spoilers!

My teaser for today comes from the second book in what is so far a trilogy about Larry, the alter ego of a teenager named Josh. Janet Tashjian is the author. I did a teaser last week from the first book, The Gospel According to Larry. This week, it's from Vote for Larry (I'm cheating and putting 3 sentences, to give a little more context):

"Then the kidnapper sitting next to me reached for his hood. Of all the faces that had flashed before me in the three minutes since they had burst into my room, this one was not on the list.

"It was Beth."

Review: My Most Excellent Year

Last night I finished My Most Excellent Year: A Novel of Love, Mary Poppins, & Fenway Park by Steve Kluger. It was, indeed, a novel of all those things, and so much more.

The Short
Three teens share their ninth grade year through diary entries, emails, and instant messages. Read it if you enjoy realistic young adult fiction, endearingly real characters, and/or endings that are utterly heartwarming without being cheesy.

The Long
The novel is written in diary entries, with chapters rotating among the three main characters. TC is a baseball playing diehard Red Sox fan intent on making Ale fall in love with him. Ale, a foreign diplomats daughter, is just as intent on keeping TC far, far away. Augie, TC's self-appointed brother, is gay and in love with Andy Wexler, which everyone knows except for him.

You can tell a lot about the characters just by looking at whom they choose to address in their journal entries. TC writes to his mother (Mama), who passed away when he was a child. Ale writes to her idol, Jacqueline Kennedy. And Augie writes to a rotating Diva of the Week. Through their entries, we learn about Hucky, a 6-year-old Mary Poppins obsessed Deaf orphan whom TC takes under his wing; Lori, whom TC's father is trying desperately (but subtly) to date; Augie's secret agonies over Andy; and Ale's newfound talent as a musical theatre diva. The story cumulates in a grand finale that's about as heartwarming as you can get while still being funny and not the least bit cheesy.

Interspersed with the journal entries are emails to, from, and between parents, school personnel, and family friends, as well as instant messages between the main characters. Kluger gives each character such a distinct voice that you feel like you know them all by the end.

To give you a taste, here's the blurb on the back. It's Ale, responding to TC's note expressing his interest in being her boyfriend:

Dear Anthony:
I appreciate your recent interest, but I’m not accepting applications at this time. Your letter will be kept in our files and someone will get back to you if there is an opening. Thank you for thinking of me.
Respectfully,

Alejandra Perez
P.S. It’s not “Allie.” It’s “Ale.”

This one was definitely worth the read. I'll keep it on my shelf for years to come.

Booking Through Thursday: Book Meme

From Booking Through Thursday

What was the last book you bought?

The Pocket Idiot's Guide to Living on a Budget by Peter J. Sander and Jennifer Basye Sander. I don't usually go for the Idiot's and Dummy guides, but this one is really excellent.

Name a book you have read MORE than once.

Their Eyes Were Watching God by Zora Neale Hurston. Both times I read it for school: once in high school (hated it) and once in college (loved it). It's amazing how your opinion of a book can change!

Has a book ever fundamentally changed the way you see life? If yes, what was it?

It was actually a combination of several books. I read Plenty, In Defense of Food, Animal, Vegetable, Miracle, and The Omnivore's Dilemma in direct succession, and together they completely changed the way I look at food, including where I shop and what I buy.

How do you choose a book? eg. by cover design and summary, recommendations or reviews

I used to get a lot of books at library sales, where I would pick a book up because of its cover and buy it (or not) because of the jacket flap and the first page or so. Since I started working at the book store, however, I've started taking recommendations from both fellow staff members and our excellent customers. Though I still read a few pages before I decide to read a book, because I'm just not good at tolerating bad writing.

Do you prefer Fiction or Non-Fiction?

Fiction, usually, unless it's non-fiction on a topic in which I'm really interested or it reads like a novel. The exception is memoir, which I love.

What’s more important in a novel - beautiful writing or a gripping plot?

They have to be in balance. A novel with beautiful writing in which nothing happens will quickly end up in my "to donate" pile, though no faster than an exciting book that's terribly written. An interesting plot moved along through beautiful writing -- those are the books I finish!

Most loved/memorable character (character/book)

There are a lot of them, of course, but one that stands out in my mind right now is Henry James from Colm Toibin's novel The Master, which I read for a class last year. Toibin brings this beautifully human element to his mostly fictitious portrayal of James, and it has stuck with me.

Which book or books can be found on your nightstand at the moment?

The Gospel According to Larry by Janet Tashjian, Hands of My Father by Myron Uhlberg, and Rebuilt by Michael Chorost

What was the last book you’ve read, and when was it?

I just finished My Most Excellent Year: A Novel of Love, Mary Poppins, and Fenway Park by Steve Kluger last night.

Have you ever given up on a book half way in?

Oh yes. If I'm not trying to find time to read a book, it's not something I'll end up finishing. I finally realized that, so I waste less time trying to get through books that don't interest me! The last one I put down was Priestess of Avalon by Marion Zimmer Bradley. I liked Mists of Avalon, but Priestess of Avalon just dragged for me.

Teaser Tuesdays: The Gospel According to Larry

From Teaser Tuesdays

TEASER TUESDAYS asks you to:

Grab your current read.

Let the book fall open to a random page.

Share with us two (2) “teaser” sentences from that page, somewhere between lines 7 and 12.

You also need to share the title of the book that you’re getting your “teaser” from … that way people can have some great book recommendations if they like the teaser you’ve given!

Please avoid spoilers!

From The Gospel According to Larry by Janet Tashjian, a YA novel and the first in a series of three, which I just started last night (a piece of the sentence before is spliced in to make the situation a little clearer):

"I could, I suppose, [brag about it to someone like Beth], but there's something pretty slimy about a philosopher seeking attention for personal gain. So I found myself in the awkward position of starting my own fan club."

Review: At A Crossroads

Today I read my first graphic novel. Okay, actually, it was a graphic memoir.

Graphic books have ever really appealed to me. First, they're generally about things I'm not so interested in. Second, they're not substantial enough for me to feel like I've accomplished something when I'm done. And finally, I feel like they're cheating, like I can't finish it and go, "Hey, I just read a book in an hour!". Kind of like a picture book for adults. Which is fine, but I've just never been interested.

For some reason, I felt like reading one today. This urge is not one I can explain, but I went with it. The graphic book I chose was At A Crossroads: Between a Rock and My Parents' Place by Kate T. Williamson. I'm not sure it's really a typical graphic book; for example, each page is pretty much just one page, unlike the others I've looked at where each page is formatted more like a comic strip.

At A Crossroads is the story of the 23 months the author spent living at her parents' house after graduating college and living for a year in Japan. It speaks to those of us who have taken time at any point to wander a bit from the straight-and-narrow paths of our lives. Williamson encounters an infestation of squirrels, fends of her parents' friends' inquisitive natures, attends a Cher concert just because it allegedly involves 8 tractor trailer loads of sets and costumes, and hangs out with her high school friends in her hometown.

And yet, it isn't a story of depression or desperation. To me, it was more just a story about being at a certain point in your life, knowing it will change but not being sure how or when. I can definitely relate.

Williamson's watercolors made the book for me. They're beautiful, yes, but they also match perfectly with the text to deliver a package story. The book wouldn't work without the pictures. Which, I guess, is the point of a graphic novel/memoir.

I'm still not interested even the slightest bit in manga; nor am I impressed by graphic retellings of classics like Shakespeare. I don't want to read blood-and-guts tales or stories about superheroes. But I guess I'm not against all graphic books.

Have you ever read a book that changed your mind about a genre? Is it easy or difficult for you to branch out beyond what you normally read?

Booking Through Thursday: Best

From Booking Through Thursday

What, in your opinion, is the best book that you haven’t liked? Mind you, I don’t mean your most-hated book–oh, no. I mean the most accomplished, skilled, well-written, impressive book that you just simply didn’t like.

Like, for movies–I can acknowledge that Citizen Kane is a tour de force and is all sorts of wonderful, cinematically speaking, but . . . I just don’t like it. I find it impressive and quite an accomplishment, but it’s not my cup of tea.

So . . . what book (or books) is your Citizen Kane?

This prompt took me a while to answer. I actually had to go back through my GoodReads library and look at the list of books I've read over the past few years. However, as soon as I saw it, I knew which book I'd pick: The Kite Runner.

I loved the first half of the book. I loved that it held my interest without big events happening every few pages. I loved that it focused on the ordinary life of the characters.

I did not love the second half of the book. I thought it got too fast, to the point that it no longer became believable to me. The careful development that I loved about the first half seemed to have been tossed out the window in favor of a high speed play-by-play of extreme events.

I stayed up until 4 in the morning to finish it, but more because I had to get it done. The emotional reactions I'd had to the characters in the first half were long gone, and I was essentially reading because I was curious how the book would end. I finished it, went "Wait...what?", went to bed, and picked up a new book in the morning.

I know the book is well written, relevant, and probably more realistic than I might think. I know the rest of the world loved it. I thought I was going to love it, but I didn't.