It's been a year since we last talked about books. Looking back on the 5 books I had to look forward to reading at that time I can say I wish I could read 4 of them all over again. I guess I could read them all over again but it wouldn't be the same because, ya know, I've already read them.
In the past year I've read some good and some not so good books (as is often the case with books). The 5 I'm going to tell you about today are at a minimum "really good" with one that I'd say is absolutely GREAT.
The Woefield Poultry Collective isn't a book that everyone would think is really good but if you read this blog of mine, chances are you will. The book is well written, funny, and revolves around Prudence Burns a twenty-something New Yorker who inherits her Uncle's derelict farm and pledges to bring it back to life without an "iota of related skills or experience". It's an easy, enjoyable, fast read. Plus of course, there are chickens in it, so .....
Sous Chef I loved. It was written by New York City Sous Chef Michael Gibney and outlines a typical 24 hours inside a restaurant kitchen in real time. I have no idea how this would read for someone who isn't a food or restaurant lover, but for someone who is ... it's a really good read. Gibney takes you through his day and life working in an upscale New York restaurant kitchen, laying out what every person in the kitchen is responsible for, how they do what they do and what kind of personalities the business attracts. What makes it exceptional is that Michael Gibney isn't just a good writer for a chef, he's a good writer period. Named one of the 10 best non-fiction books of the year by Time.
Funny Girl by Nick Hornby was recommended to me by someone I trade reading recommendations with all the time. We pretty much trust each other's judgement. I say "pretty much" because she once made me read Swamplandia which I hated and I once made her read Middlesex which I don't think she ever even got through. I had given up on Nick Hornby around 3 novels ago but my friend convinced me to give Funny Girl a try. I like Nick Hornby again. I don't About a Boy or High Fidelity like him again, but I do like him again. In Funny Girl, Hornby introduces us to Sophie Straw. A small town girl who becomes a sitcom star in 1960's London.
Tell the Wolves I'm Home by Carol Rifka Brunt is the absolutely great book on this list. And it's the one I recommended to my friend in exchange for Funny Girl. The book brings us into the life of a young girl whose uncle has died. Here's the Amazon description.
"1987. There’s only one person who has ever truly understood fourteen-year-old June Elbus, and that’s her uncle, the renowned painter Finn Weiss. Shy at school and distant from her older sister, June can only be herself in Finn’s company; he is her godfather, confidant, and best friend. So when he dies, far too young, of a mysterious illness her mother can barely speak about, June’s world is turned upside down. But Finn’s death brings a surprise acquaintance into June’s life—someone who will help her to heal, and to question what she thinks she knows about Finn, her family, and even her own heart."
Tell the Wolves I'm Home is charming and touching and funny and sad.
City of Thieves was the book I read immediately after Tell the Wolves I'm Home, so it was doomed from the very beginning. I have no idea how I heard of it or came across this book but I loved it. Sometimes that's the way isn't it? When you have low expectations of a movie, show, song or book and then really like it .... well the good parts seem maybe even better than they really are. I don't think that's what happened with City of Thieves. I think it really is a great book that I would have loved regardless of how low my expectations of it were. The book is a fictional account based on the real life stories of the author's grandfather who lived through World War II in Russia. I haven't done the synopsis justice so read the Amazon version. I think charming is what I'd describe this book as. And likeable. And thought provoking. Had I known when I picked it up that it was written by the executive producer, writer and show runner for Game of Thrones I never would have read it. Which would have been stupid.
With those 5 books under my belt, I can now look to the growing stack on my dresser and bedside table. Which I LOVE having. For someone who loves reading, having a stack of books you're looking forward to is like a candy addict having a dresser drawer full of Snickers.
Happy Hens & Fresh Eggs is a cookbook, chicken book, garden book, story book all rolled into one. Written by chef Signe Langford (who gave me her lemon curd recipe a couple of months ago for my mother's birthday cake) and photographed by Donna Griffith (who has photographed my house many times for magazines). The book also features quotes and tips from guest chefs and chicken owners including Lisa from Fresh Eggs Daily and ... me! And yes. The lemon curd recipe is in the book.
All the Light We Cannot See is one of those books I'm so looking forward to reading that ... I don't read it. It's been on my bedside table for a good 6 months now because I know I'm going to love it. I haven't met a Pulitzer Prize winning book yet that I haven't loved. For me the Pulitzer Prize is a way better indication of quality than an Oscar is for a movie. Shakespeare in Love over Saving Private Ryan. Really??? All the Light We Cannot See fits into one of my favourite book categories, books about WWII. And that's pretty much all I need to know about it to be excited to read it. 1. Pulitizer Prize winner 2. Based on WWII.
Is Everyone Hanging out Without Me? by Mindy Kaling is the book I want to read but always choose a "book-book" instead. But I've made it a point that right after the heaviness of All the Light We Cannot See, I'm going to read Mindy's book. Because I love Mindy. And then I'm sure I'll order and read her latest book.
The Illegal by Lawrence Hill is the latest from the author of one of my favourite books. The Book of Negroes, or Someone Knows My Name as it was titled in America for some bizarre reason, is a MUST read for everyone. The Illegal, focuses on a runner from a (fictionalized) corrupt African country that is discovered as an illegal refugee. I've managed to make what I'm sure is an incredible book sound fantastically boring but I'm sure it will be anything but.
The Truth According to Us by Annie Barrows, co-author of The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Society, takes place in my second favourite book setting ... the small town. I wasn't completely in love with The Guernsey Literary book, but I liked it enough to give this other small town tale of the author's a shot.
As always feel free to leave your own book choices in the comment section and by the end of the day we'll have enough book recommendations to get most of us through the next year of reading and gift buying. Speaking of gift buying, according to The Christmas Pledge today you're supposed to make a list of everyone you have to buy for. If you want to get even further ahead you can put the name of one of these books by their name, order it and have your gift buying underway.
Or don't. But remember. You could end up like Julie.
Daniela
When you're done with All the Light We Cannot See (which is fantastic by the way), add A God In Ruins, Life After Life, and The Nightingale to your list. All incredible novels set during WWII. You'll love.
Karen
O.K. Consider them added. Thx Daniela!~ karen
joanne
Loved "The Nightingale"
Paam
Thanks for all the great suggestions. One of my favorite reads recently was At Home by Bill Bryson. I don't read many books twice but this, I think, I will read over and over. Find the hard cover Special Illustated Edition, if you can.
Wendy
Books I have loved as an adult:
"Fall on Your Knees" by Anne Marie MacDonald. Sprawling Canadian family epic sort of thing.
"Disobedience" by I can't remember who. A woman's extra marital affair as seen through the eyes of her teenage son. I remember loving it.
"Middlesex." I missed Cal, the narrator, as soon as the novel was over. I loved him/her so much I couldn't even think about reading when I was done.
"Wicked" by Gregory McGuire. Don't let the musical get in your way. The sequels weren't nearly as good, but his vision of Elphaba, the green, tortured wicked witch of the west haunts me forever after.
"Eleanor Rigby" by Douglas Coupland. I like his work, and I liked this book very much.
"Until I Find You" by John Irving. I laughed out loud many times, especially throughout the school days in Toronto, which took place in my childhood neighbourhood.
All 13 Sookie Stackhouse vampire mystery/adventure books. Not like the ones above, in terms of richness . . . but somehow I missed Sookie when I was done. And also, the books didn't get in the way of my enjoyment of the series, even after it jumped the shark with witches, etc.
That's what's coming to mind, and that's the last 20 years of my reading.
Kristin ferguson
May be a stupid question, but have you read the Harry Potter series? I read them all in my forties after witnessing my daughter obsess over them from age eight to age eighteen, and I finally got it! (I had read the first book at the time she first engaged with them, but I got distracted and didn't follow up with any of the others. When I finally did, wow.) I loved them so much that I see other people reading them for the first time and I envy them. I bought several of your recommendations today--and I bought several the last time you gave out your reading list. And of course buying one book brings up Amazon recommendations and there's the rabbit hole. Wonderful.
Karen
I haven't Kristin. I've thought about it but have never got around to it. I'm sure I'd love them. ~ karen!
Abbi D
A Brief History of the Dead, by Kevin Brockmeier. There are gaps, and the story isn't perfect, but its a weird little story that has come back to me time and again over the passing years. And it is little so read it all. :) Thanks
LaineyDid
"The Signature of all Things". A fantastic book that you'll get lost in and be sad he story ended. It's written by Elizabeth Gilbert if "Eat, Pray, Live fame. This book could not be more different from that. It is an outstanding read! I cannot recommend it highly enough. You're welcome ;)
Stefani
The book about Michael Rockefeller that Donna was talking about is Savage Harvest by Carl Hoffman. I love books like that-not fiction and kind of weird. Some of my favorite books are about the Franklin mystery in the Arctic and thank your Canadian crew for finding one of his lost ships. I honestly hoped that some of the questions would be answered in my lifetime.
Jan in Waterdown
I loved loved loved "Room" by Emma Donoghue. It made me cringe and laugh and cry and smile. I have no idea whether the movie will be any good. Think I'll read it again and the Poisonwood Bible too. That's one of the good things about getting a wee bit older, I sometimes can't remember the plot . . .
Karen
Bought it, thought I'd love it, didn't love it. In fact couldn't get through more than a couple of pages of it. Maybe I'll try again another time. Sometimes it just isn't the right time for the right book. ~ karen!
Jan in Waterdown
Yeah, funny how that works . . .guess that's why it can be tricky recommending books, one person loves it and the other person is wondering if you've lost your mind lol!
Jennie Lee
I can't pass up a chance to promote books I love! Laura Hillenbrand's "Unbroken" is very good, but I like her book "Seabiscuit: An American Legend" even more. "The Man Who Mistook His Wife for a Hat and Other Clinical Tales" by Oliver Sacks, MD and "Blink" by Malcolm Gladwell will both tell you fascinating things about how our brains work. "A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland Indiana" by Haven Kimmel is the funniest book I ever read. And any book by Melanie Rawn is good; start with "The Dragon Prince", "Touchstone", or "The Golden Key".
Denise Potter
Wow, I have added many of the books recommended. Just recently I read Wool by Hugh Howey. It is science fiction or perhaps dystopian themed. I loved his writing and the story was so original. It begins sometime in the future when earth's remaining residents live in a silo about 100 stories underground. The atmosphere is toxic but I guess they saw it coming. It's a story that has many themes things to consider. This was released over time and there are several books or ONE (1-5) that contains all the stories. I'd go for that one.
Second was The Storied Life of A.J. Fikry. In short is about a bookstore owner living on an island off the east coast of the U.S./Canada. He is a widower and a curmudgeon, until someone leaves a baby girl in his store, disappearing afterward. I loved this book so much, it made me feel like I had a cozy spot with a comfy blanket next to a fire and a cup of hot cocoa. It is a short book and could be a quick read, but I was enjoying myself so much, I lingered as much as I could.
Karen
People who write books about bookstores are smart. Anyone who loves books loves to read about the setting of a bookstore owner, lol. I like the look of this one. ~ karen!
LaineyDid
If you like psychological thrillers, "Memory Man" is a good one :)
Karen
I found a free Kindle preview of the first 8 pages of Memory Man on Amazon ... http://amzn.to/1PnCxCV ~ karen!
Nancy Blue Moon
Cloe is looking quite comfy there..I have a cat who like to sleep on top of me in bed...I have recently read The Lovely Bones..The Death of Bees..Station Eleven..The Returned..The Memory Keepers Daughter (finished last night)..I will start The Book Thief tonight...Thanks for all of the recommendations people!...Happy Reading Everyone!
Karen
Happy reading to you too Nancy. ~ karen!
tj
The Matthew Shardlake series of books by C.J. Sansom were wonderful! If you like the TV show Tudors you will likely love reading these books set in 16th century England (Henry VIII era). Excellent novels with wonderful details of historical events, fashion and a revealing look at the vicious ruthlessness of the era. Just a fantastic set of books - each one better than the last. I'm reading Chesapeake now by James Mitchner which is very good also. I don't know why I haven't read much from him before, but I will read Covenant next. Philipa Gregory is purported to be very good (per my Mum, from whom I get all by book suggestions).
Sherry (BTLover2)
I love every post you write, but I'm partial to the book ones. You're a girl after my own heart in more ways than one. Definitely putting Sous Chef on the wish list!
You'll enjoy ATLWCS. I gave it 4 out of 5 stars.
Couple suggestions (I'll let you read the descriptions via Amazon or some other source):
Yellow Crocus by Laila Ibrahim
Wreckage by Emily Bleeker
Z: A Novel of Zelda Fitzgerald by Therese Ann Fowler
The Storyteller by Jodi Picoult (I don't usually read her but I loved this book)
Mademoiselle Chanel: A Novel by C.W. Gortner
Happy Reading!
Sherry
Karen
Thanks Sherry! They all look good. Agreed on Jodi Picoult. I'm not a reader of her books but might (might) *might* look into this one. ;) ~ karen!
Valerie
Erik Larson is a very hard working author. He digs out history and builds it into fascinating stories.
Two I would recommend are:
In the Garden of Beasts - circa WW II
The Devil in the White City - how a group of men put together the world's fair in Chicago at the turn of the century ( one finds out that that was the inauguration of the ferris wheel ) interspersed with a serial murder's movements in Chicago during the same time period; quite the combo of subjects.
Karin
Both of those Erik books are fabulous. I learned so much while being completely entertained.
Karin
I should have typed Erik Larson!
Cathy Reeves
One of your best posts, thanks. I want to make some bookmarks for you. Part of my Christmas Pledge 2015.
2 birds, one rock.
amy watson
Oh how l love books...., l have an e reader, but there is nothing like the feel of a real book.....my house is full of books, l have a hard time letting go of the ones l really really love....on that list is Book Thief, All The Light We cannot See, Poisonwood Bible, and many others...l am reading Go Set A Watchman right now and will add a few of the suggestions here...
Rachel
This really makes me smile. Bear with me but reading this with all the comments lets me peep through a window of my past before life had hit the fan. The last books I've had time to read: The Spark, The Reason I Jump, a number of books on ABA, other biographies on Autism including everything on Temple Grandin, one on dealing with loss of a loved one from cancer and numerous homeschooling and Montessori instructionals. Oh, and my current handbook Shakespeare for Autism, (the Heartbeat method) which is a Godsend. Life changes drastically for a person with a kid on the Spectrum and believe me, no one understands or cares. I'm the Debbie Downer of the book club! But to tell you honestly, these books have led me to where I really want to be and where I should be and I love them as I love my life. But still it's nice to know the joy of exploring the world of books is alive and well. I'm currently reading The Tempest to my son but Happy Hens and Fresh Eggs sounds like a delightful road to take with him. So Thanks!
Nancy S in Winnipeg
I understand. Hang in there. My 33-year old son has Asperger's. I only wish I had had the resources then, that are now available. The thing to hang onto is that they can learn to fit in, kind of. It won't always be so difficult.
Have you read Born on a Blue Day? It helped me to understand so many of the things that drove me mad when my son was growing up. He wasn't actually doing those things to test my patience.
I love my son dearly and I think we have a good relationship now.
Rachel
To be honest I never got my hands on Born on a Blue Day, but my ex fiancé with MS mentioned Tammet to me when he first met my son and so I researched him heavily back then. I will buy it today. But my son was born with hydrocephalus so he's a rare case and now 7 years old he has grown into a combination of Jerry Lewis and Cassanova with birthplace Twin Peaks. I have to thank you so much Karen, it's really great to be understood and knowing you do from personal experience makes it even more so! Right now I'm just looking for books on how to keep my tail out of jail cause my kid didn't mean what you just heard him say! But I have to say that your articles, especially on gardening, gives me great ideas for a more holistic approach to his education and I plan to use some of your lessons in the future for projects pertaining to our Blue Horse Foundation for Autism and educating others with AS kids in my country. Maybe you could lend your expertise to the AS community where you live. You're the kind of person therapists need right now. I hope I could be as great a mom as you, as it's only fitting you and your son now have a great relationship! Have a great night and thanks again!
Karen
Hi Rachel! It's actually Nancy S who has the 33 year old son with Aspergers. :) Although I, like I'm sure a lot of people, do have experience with family or friends that are dealing with an autistic child. Or children! So I'm afraid I won't be able to be any sort of therapist for those dealing with Aspergers or Autism, but I *can* act as therapist to the nutters who come here to get a bit of balance in their lives. :) ~ karen! p.s. If I had a 33 year old son I'd had to have had him before I think I even got my period, lol!
Rachel
Oh! That happens when emails come straight to my box with no name attached! And to tell you the truth I was bothered about that age thing but my mother taught me not to judge, but that's a relief. Still hope you think about helping with the AS community though. I think you'd be a blast! Have a great day!
Rachel
Oh, and I forgot to add that no one needs to be a therapist to help out in AS communities, that's the key message all people in this field are trying to get out in the whole world, to make all people in the world be a part of this existence since eventually we will all be dealing with an AS person as the population grows and will no longer be restricted to the random household. We all need everyone to lend their expertise and interact so they can spread the word that anyone can have a relationship with an Autistic or Aspergers or any Special needs kid and they will love anything you are willing to do with them. And more so for extra talented people like yourself. I have so little people like you in my community or like all of these commenters who seem so talented as well. Sigh, forgive me, just wishing I guess. Have a great one!
Ann
I will have to go read that book. I am part of a family that I swear they wrote the Aspberger's description from.
Debbie
I loved All the light we cannot see! If you haven't read it already, you might try The Seamstress, by Sara Tuval Bernstein. It's a memoir of Sara's life throughout the Holocaust. Incredible!
Kristin ferguson
Karen, do you have a Kindle? I see stacks of books in your pictures, so I guess you don't use an e-reader. I got one for Christmas (from my husband) and I don't love it, but I'm getting used to it. It has a lot of advantages. No dead trees, not cluttered bookshelves, you can read at night without waking your guy up with a light, you can start reading a book within seconds of ordering it, the battery charge lasts quite a long time, it's lightweight but can hold an entire library of books all at once, and you can change the typeface to enlarge or...ensmall? Kindle versions of books are almost always cheaper, and you can find free ones or "borrow" them. It also has some disadvantages. You can't flip back a few pages to reread some bit like you do with a real book. I mean, you can go back, of course, but you don't have that tactile sense of how far back you need to flip, and you can't keep your current place by sticking your thumb there. You can place a "bookmark", but it's a small pain to do so. You know that sense you have reading a book, where you can sort of remember a particular passage by where it was on the page--left or right page, high up or near the bottom, etc.? You don't get that with the Kindle. And you probably shouldn't read the Kindle in the bathtub--at least not if you are starting to get sleepy. That said, I'm working at a new job and have decided to remain carless (my beloved Mini Cooper was totaled last year and we've been experimenting with being a one-car family), so I'm getting to read much more than before on the subway, and the Kindle is very convenient. I'm warming to it. Curious as to what you think of e-readers.
Jennie Lee
Kristin, I've been reading my Kindle for several years, and love it. I'm glad you mentioned it, but there are a few things you said that might give a mistaken impression to a prospective owner. There is no need to do anything to mark the place you left off reading; the Kindle automatically takes up where you left off. It's easy to find something you remember reading: you can "search" the book for a key word or words, and it will show you every occurrence of them in the book. And not only does the charge last a good while, you don't replace the battery, you just plug it in, and it recharges in a short time.
Kristin ferguson
Jennie, you are right about the search feature and I do love that. But what I meant about the bookmark bit was that sometimes you have stop and go back to reread some part of the book to clarify something--especially in murder mysteries!--and with a paper book you just stick your thumb in the page you're on and flip back to find what you need, and it's easy and intuitive, whereas with the Kindle you have to set a bookmark to save your page so you can get back to it after you scroll back through the pages to find the part you wanted to reread. It isn't the end of the world, but it is slower and less fluid.
Jennie Lee
I get your meaning, Kristin, I just want to make sure you know that there is no need to set a bookmark in that situation; you just press "search" and then "synch to furthest point read" and it takes you back where you were. Even though I use a Kindle 3/ Keyboard version that's about 6 years old, it still amazes me with how handy it is!
Karen
Hi Kristin! I'm not an e-reader. Although I haven't tried a real one, just my iPad, which I have the Kindle app for. I can see the appeal of them but I don't think it's for me. I like books. I like how they look, I like how they feel, I like forcing them on people around me when I think they should read them, I like turning the pages down when there are things I want to remember (yes .. I really turn pages down). I like closing them at night and looking at the cover. I just like 'em. ~ karen!
Kristin ferguson
I so totally get it. I like--love--books too. I'd prefer them in almost every situation. But I have been using my Kindle and I enjoy its advantages, though I'd honestly prefer a real book every time. But I'm currently reading the Kinsey Millhone mysteries ("A is for Alibi", etc.), and when I finish one I simply download the next in the series in about ten seconds and continue reading without pause, which is a delight. Actually, the fact that I can download any book I want in a few seconds is kickass. But I love real books, just like you. I miss them, and not because of some esoteric soulful union I have with the smell of paper or that kind of sappy stuff (though yeah, I do feel a soulful connection to real books), but because they are so user-friendly and intuitive. We all have such an easy connection to them, and we flip around in them like an old friend we don't have to pretend with. I compulsively try to read the title on books other nearby people are reading.
Nancy S in Winnipeg
Love the Kinsey Milhone books by Sue Grafton. And the Sharon McCone books by Marcia Muller. And the Rosie Project.
In autobiographical category I have just recently finished A House in the Sky by Amanda Lindhout - very good.
A few months ago I read Girls Like Us: Fighting for a World Where Girls Are Not for Sale: A Memoir by Rachel Lloyd. Great, thought provoking.
I'm adding Woefield and Happy Hens to my list. Thanks.