Well, meeting the artist/illustrator. Close enough, right? If you read any of the big names in fantasy, chances are you’ve come across some of Charles Vess’s artwork. Listening to him talk last night was like listening to a who’s who in the world of fantasy publishing. Names like Neil Gaiman, Charles de Lint, George R.R. […]
The Frog Prince by Stephen Mitchell: Book Review
4 Stars. It’s been several years since I read this, so I can’t say much about it except that I liked it. And I saved this quote from the book: “There are two kinds of women: those who marry princes and those who marry frogs. The frogs never become princes, but it is an acknowledged fact that a prince may very well, in the […]
The Temptation of the Night Jasmine by Lauren Willig: Book Review
3.5 Stars. Charlotte just isn’t quite Henrietta, Letty, or even Mary. She spent much of the book just fantasizing about Robert. While interesting enough, I kept waiting for the comedy of misunderstandings and the adventure of French spies pitted against our faithful British crew to get started. About halfway through, things […]
Sarah Addison Allen: Meeting the Author
Sarah Addison Allen, author of Garden Spells and The Sugar Queen, had a signing at a local bookstore today, so my mom and I braved the cold and the flurries to go see her. We both just love her books, and our reading tastes rarely overlap. She was very sweet, even when we approached her […]
Mama Makes Up Her Mind by Bailey White: Book Review
4 Stars. You should see my copy of this book. One of my co-workers, who, for various reasons, has only recently seen how much I read, saw all the neon post-it flags sticking out of the side of my book and asked me what on earth I was doing. I blushed and tried to explain how the people in Bailey White’s humorous little […]
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Olive Kitteridge by Elizabeth Strout: Book Review
4 Stars. Olive is obviously at the heart of this collection of stories. It’s very easy for fictional characters to be all good or all bad. I had moments where I hated Olive, cheered her on, admired her, pitied her, and even loathed her. But if you look deeply inside all of us, isn’t that the way we would really feel about […]
Poison Study by Maria V. Snyder: Book Review
5 Stars. I just loved Yelena. She is so smart, sarcastic, ever-hopeful, and talented in ways that even she doesn’t realize. She’s the biggest reason I rated this book five stars. So my question is, with all the kick-ass female characters out there for teen girls to read, why is whiny Bella the one that most seem to have latched […]
Which Authors Are You Thankful For? Booking Through Thursday
Booking Through Thursday “What books and authors are you particularly thankful for this year?” The Book Thief by Markus Zusak–I don’t have the words to say how much I love this book. The characters, the story of The Word Shaker, Jesse Owens and Rudy Steiner, Papa’s shining spirit…I could go on and on. This immediately […]
Happy Thanksgiving!
Happy Thanksgiving! Thanksgiving has never been one of my favorite holidays. I’m a picky eater. I usually end up with macaroni, a roll, sausage balls and pineapple casserole on my plate–until dessert. Then I load up! But it is good to set aside at least one day to really focus on your blessings, and let […]
The Girl Who Played with Fire by Stieg Larsson: Book Review
4 Stars. I enjoyed this one so much more than the first one that I was left wondering if I just read that one at the wrong time or if Larsson really improved that much between one book and the next. Whatever it was, this was way, way better than I expected, and I’m glad it was chosen as one of my groups’ monthly reads. In all […]