Category: Books Page 65 of 171

I knew this was going to be a quiet week here, but…it’s been too quiet for me. Hoping to get back into the swing of things next week, but I’m not going to promise anything. How are ya’ll doing?

Odds ‘n ends about books and reading that caught my eye this week. You’ve probably seen some/most/all of them, but just in case:
It’s the 10th Annual Independent Bookstore Day—go out there and support at least one!
S.A. Cosby Is Finding His Religion—in case you weren’t already excited for All the Sinners Bleed
Neil Gaiman is Releasing an Album?—sure, why not? Looks promising.
MWA Announces the 2023 Edgar Award Winners
As interesting as the awards are, I’m more excited because the Edgars means that it’s time for Crime Reads to post their The State of the Crime Novel Roundtable Discussion with the Edgar Nominees Part 1 and Part 2
For Poetry Month, Tor.com put together this list of Eight SFF Books Written in Verse—a.k.a. 8 Novels I Won’t Read, but Some of You Might Want to Try
“Holmes and Watson in Manhattan”: Musings on the Creation of Nero Wolfe and Archie Goodwin—I will always read and always share a good Wolfe and Archie piece
What I Need Is a Literary Mood Ring—Molly Templeton asks, “how does a person go in search of the precisely right book that will incite a feeling?”
Duty Is Heavier Than A Mountain: A Ramble on Men and Mental Burdens in Early Epic Fantasy—Peat Long continues to ramble on men and Early Epic Fantasy
The Magic of Rereading Children’s Books
The Pain of Publishing
My Read-bait Words in the Synopsis or Reviews
Should We Be Paying More For Books?—I’m cheap enough to want to say no, but I’m pretty sure we should be
Star Rating System: Keep it or Abandon it Altogether?
What Plots Peat Likes—another good series by Peat continues…
Real Books: Funny Covers from Published Titles (I’ve read one of these and have had two others on my to-buy list for a bit, might have to add more)

This Week’s New Releases that I’m Excited About and/or You’ll Probably See Here Soon:
The Eden Test by Adam Sternbergh—a thriller about a marriage on the brink. Not typically my kind of thing, but Sternbergh’s going to have a great take on this idea up his sleeve.
Small Mercies by Dennis Lehane—”an all-consuming tale of revenge, family love, festering hate, and insidious power, set against one of the most tumultuous episodes in Boston’s history.”

I spent more hours this week interacting with people after work hours than I’m used to (well, people who don’t live with me), which meant that I had very little time to do the kinds of reading that leads to things getting posted here. C’est la vie…

Odds ‘n ends about books and reading that caught my eye this week. You’ve probably seen some/most/all of them, but just in case:
National Library Week kicks off on Monday, the theme this year is “There’s More to the Story,” spotlighting the all the things libraries do.
I spent all night at the Last Bookstore. Things got spooky—a bookstore sleepover is such a great idea
Memes-field Park? ‘Digital natives’ are flirting with Jane Austen’s vision of the ideal man all over again
What Do Modern Mystery Novels and Medieval Mystery Plays Have in Common? Sin.
Nancy Drew and the Case of the Guilty Pleasure—how a young reader jumped the gap between blue-spined mysteries to those with yellow-spines
It’s Not The Size Of The Dog: A ramble on Small Men in early Epic Fantasy—a fun follow-up to Peat’s previous ramble about Large Men in Fantasy
Top 5 Tolkien Metal Bands—I didn’t even know this was a thing…
Stop the Audiobook Hate—it seems so stupid that this is a thing that people need to say, but…
What Worldbuilding Peat Likes—another follow-up from Peat Long, some good stuff here (probably doesn’t need to be said)

This Week’s New Releases that I’m Excited About and/or You’ll Probably See Here Soon:
City of Dreams by Don Winslow—the second of Winslow’s swan-song trilogy is out, and getting nothing but (likely well-deserved) raves
The Rhythm of Time by Questlove and S. A. Cosby—I’m super-curious about what a collaboration between these two authors would produce—and then you make it a MG Fantasy (that sounds fun no matter who wrote it)? I’m dying to find out.
Hard Rain by Samantha Jayne Allen—she solved one murder as an amateur, what can Annie McIntyre do as she trains as a P.I.? I had some very positive things to say about it recently.

Lastly, I’d like to say hi and extend a warm welcome to Bachir Bastien, who followed the blog this week. I hope you enjoy the content and keep coming back.

I didn’t set out to share a bunch of recommendation lists this week, but, it ended up that way (and I axed a couple before publishing). Actually, I’m a little surprised to see that I have much to share. I spent most of my blog-hopping/social media/reading time this week doing things with people—a strange occurrence for this introverted homebody (all pleasant, don’t get me wrong–just strange).

Odds ‘n ends about books and reading that caught my eye this week. You’ve probably seen some/most/all of them, but just in case:
Bristol library exhibition of forgotten items left in books—I always enjoy these stories about odd things found in library books. (also, wow, is the BBC more comfortable with silence than US news. There’s no way that a US newscast wouldn’t impose a voiceover on those shots).
How Bookshop.org Survives—and Thrives—in Amazon’s World—(and yes, I would’ve shared this story even if I hadn’t recently been transitioned over to Bookshop.org for my purchase links)
Are these the most influential novelists of 2023?—LitHub’s Emily Temple trimmed TIME magazine’s 100 Most Influential People of 2023 down to the bookish people.
Judy Blume forever: the writer who dares to tell girls the plain truth—a nice piece about her on the eve of the long-awaited adaptation of her classic novel
Behind the Scenes of Barack Obama’s Reading Lists: Does the president really read all those books? The answer might surprise you.—huh. With lists like his (which are always interesting to peruse, even if they don’t move me to read anything) being so influential, it’s nice to get a behind-the-scenes glance.
How Ian Fleming Wrote Casino Royale and Changed Spy Fiction Forever
Don Winslow recommends 6 novels that have informed his craft
The 15 Best Modern Sci-Fi Authors Who Are Writing Today
What Characters Peat Likes
ARC Book Review Etiquette
Discussion: Star ratings need not be part of reviews
Revisiting my old blog posts—I don’t know that I’d have the guts to do this
Not So Gentle Giants: A Ramble on Big Men in early Epic Fantasy—a fun little ramble
Real Funny Books – Random Titles—some people would move on and try to forget these titles. Other people make lists with them.

This Week’s New Releases that I’m Excited About and/or You’ll Probably See Here Soon:
Blood Runs Cold by Neil Lancaster—The newest DS Max Craigie promises to be disturbing as it focuses on human trafficking victims being re-abducted. It took me months to get to the last Max Craigie–I’m hoping my priorities are in better shape now.

Lastly, I’d like to say hi and extend a warm welcome to Damien de Soto, who followed the blog this week. I hope you enjoy the content and keep coming back.

Odds ‘n ends about books and reading that caught my eye this week. You’ve probably seen some/most/all of them, but just in case:
What’s going on with all the empty author signing pics?—Lit Hub asks the question many of us have been asking lately.
Author James Patterson rips New York Times over its ‘bonkers’ Best Sellers list—On the one hand, it feels rather self-serving for this industry-unto-himself to take umbrage. But it could end up helping others, too.
Judy Blume Slams Gov. DeSantis’ Florida Censorship in Passionate Speech: ‘Teachers Are Under Fire’
A new edition of Gone With the Wind comes with a warning.—I could not care less about Mitchell’s work, but this warning is such a breath of fresh air following the Dahl, Christie, Fleming, etc. hubbub lately. This is how to do it.
Points mean pages: why I’ve embraced the world of online reading challenges
The Secret Codes Hidden in the Books of a Scottish Library—I’m pretty sure I’ve shared the link to this story before, but I saw a couple of people talking about it this week and had to do it again. How do you not smile about this?
Eli Cranor: An Author That’s Ozark Tough—A nice interview with Cranor
If you’re like me, when you think Eli Cranor your next thought is Sandra Boynton. Pop Culture of My Life: Sandra Boynton on Ted Lasso, Eloise, and her new book Woo Hoo! You’re Doing Great!—Okay, no one has ever thought that until now, but I thought the two pieces worked well. Also, I need a poster of that cover next to my desk.
Word love: In addition to being a fictionophile – I am also a logophile.—some great words are featured here (and some I’m trying to add to my working vocabulary now)—and the graphics are as good, if not better.
Breaking out of Completionist Mode—I’ve read this a few times just because I can appreciate where Alex is and have felt this so often.
For Adults Who Want to Try Kids Books

This Week’s New Releases that I’m Excited About and/or You’ll Probably See Here Soon:
Ozark Dogs by Eli Cranor—I’m not going to try to summarize the story, if you need to know the plot, click the link. But the author’s name should be enough.
The Part About The Dragon Was (Mostly) True by Sean Gibson—not a new release, but a snazzy re-issue. This snarky bard’s story of a dragon hunt should not be missed.
Nic Blake and the Remarkables: The Manifestor Prophecy by Angie Thomas—Thomas tries her hand at MG Fantasy “inspired by African American history and folklore.” This looks fun.
This Bird Has Flown by Susanna Hoffs—I’m not the target audience for this, but I’ve stumbled onto a couple of reviews this week and I’m very curious now. A love story, a celebration of pop music, a look at fame, and probably more, too.

Lastly, I’d like to say hi and extend a warm welcome to Mike Finn and mehsi, who followed the blog this week. I hope you enjoy the content and keep coming back.