Archive for the 'bookish things' Category

My TBR list is always hundreds of titles long, but here’s a peek at some of the books that I could not leave behind at the bookstore most recently:

Yoga for People Who Can’t Be Bothered to Do It by Geoff Dyer: I brought this travel/memoir at Brooklyn Flea, because I’m currently reading & am obsessed with Dyer’s collection of essays, Working the Room. I want to read everything Geoff Dyer’s ever written. Also, the title is pretty amazing.

You Deserve Nothing by Alexander Maksik: This was an impulse purchase at Strand, I had never heard of it before I saw it in their basement bins of new paperbacks. Three factors: a 50% off price tag, intriguing jacket copy, and the fact that I’ve never been steered wrong by a Europe Edition combined forces and this one had to come home with me.

Wendy and the Lost Boys by Julie Salamon: This is a pretty fantastic book cover, yes? But of course we would never buy a book just because it has a pretty cover, would we? We’d also flip through it and think that the subject matter looks fascinating and that we’d enjoy reading it. This was one of those times where instead of putting it back down and pondering it for a few more days/weeks/months/until paperback release, I just went for it and purchased it.

Paris: The Collected Traveler, An Inspired Companion Guide, edited by Barrie Kerper: This is one in a newish series of books (all under “The Collected Traveler” title) that looks fantastic. It’s a non-traditional guidebook that combines in-depth articles and history with essays and interviews with many writers & experts of the city. There’s a little seed recently planted in my head that’s telling me to go to Paris next year for my vacation, and I’m indulging it with books while I ponder the potential trip.

Walk the Blue Fields by Claire Keegan: I read this article on NPR, and then I absolutely needed this book. I miss Ireland very much, and reading literature about the beautiful countryside, quaint towns, and rich culture helps make up for the fact that I’m not still driving through the green hills in the little red rental car with Emma, stopping frequently to stare at the view in amazement.

The power of saying good night each night to Lena is great. On the first night that Lena was gone, Vaclav said good night to her, put the good night out into the scary, lonely darkness, and meant each word in a very specific way. Good night. Good night. He wanted her to have a good night. Not a scary night. Not a dangerous night. Not a cold or lonely or nightmare-filled night. He filled the words with all his love and care and worry for Lena and launched them out to her, and like homing pigeons, he trusted them to find her, and he felt, that night, that his words would keep Lena safe, that if he thought about her and cared about her and showed this to the universe, then bad things would not happen to her. Vaclav was not asking an omnipotent god to grant him a wish. He was stirring in himself his own very true emotions, his pure feelings, and pushing them, birthing them into the universe, giving flight to a powerful energy that he trusted would do what as a child he was powerless to do.

-From Vaclav and Lena by Haley Tanner, pages 144-145

_____

Teaser Tuesdays is a fun weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. I change the rules a little bit to suit my own purposes: I hand pick the teaser, rather than choose one randomly. I also very frequently post more than two sentences. :)

When a line in a book makes you laugh out loud in a very high volume, it deserves to be posted. :)

Mrs. Next came back into the room. “You never told me you’d bought a gold-plated toilet.”
Landon frowned. “We don’t have a gold-plated toilet.”
“Oh, dear,” said Mrs. Next. “I think I’ve just peed in your tuba.”

-From One of Our Thursdays Is Missing by Jasper Fforde, page 205

Today’s Teaser Tuesday is just one line. The best first line of a novel that I’ve read in a while.

Hello, this is Paul Chowder, and I’m going to try to tell you everything I know.

-From The Anthologist by Nicholson Baker, page 1

_____

Teaser Tuesdays is a fun weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. I change the rules a little bit to suit my own purposes: I hand pick the teaser, rather than choose one randomly. I also very frequently post more than two sentences. :)

Posting my yearly reading recap is always my favorite post of the year.  I get quite nerdy breaking down the stats of all the books I’ve bought and read during the previous year. I hope you enjoy this year’s recap in all its nerdiness!

Previous annual installments include: 2009, 2008, 2007. (Also, my 2007 Book Flow Chart.)

2010 Books and Reading Recap:

Total Books Read: 91

Fiction: 65
Non-Fiction: 26

By Genre (some books may be in more than one genre):

Contemporary Fiction: 21
Memoir: 11
Kid’s/YA Lit: 21
Fantasy: 14
Classics: 13
Graphic Novel: 9
Food Writing: 2
Short Story Collections: 2
Travel Writing: 4
Books about Books/Reading: 3
Poetry: 4
History: 2
Plays: 1
Collection of Letters: 1

Total Pages Read: (does not include unfinished books): 26,670
Average Number of Pages/Book: 293

Shortest Book Read: About Alice by Calvin Trillin (78 pages)
Longest Book Read: Skippy Dies (661 pages)

Books that were Re-reads: 18

Number of Books Read by Decade:

2010: 24
2000s: 40
1990s: 10
1980s: 1
1970s: 2
1960s: 2
1950s: 2
1940s: 5
<1900: 5

Total Number of Different Authors: 68

Multiple Books Read by One Author:

J. K. Rowling: 7
Hilary McKay: 4
Maud Hart Lovelace: 4
Bill Bryson: 3
Suzanne Collins: 3
Calvin Trillin: 3
Jasper Fforde: 2
Maira Kalman: 2
Daniel Clowes: 2

“New to Me” Authors: 41

Books by Male Authors: 44
Books by Female Authors: 47

Books by Dead Authors: 17
Books by Living Authors: 74

Books by Non-American Authors: 33
(21 English, 5 Irish, 2 Scottish, and 1 each: Chinese, Swiss, French, Canadian, Japanese)

Audio Books Listened To: 8
(audio books are counted in all categories above as well, as if they were paper books, with the exception of “Longest Book Read” where I decided to disqualify Harry Potter, 3 of which were longer than Skippy Dies)

Favorites of  2010 (Books that were re-reads are excluded):

Top Five Favorite Fiction Books:
1. The Postmistress by Sarah Blake
2. Auntie Mame By Patrick Dennis
3. The Help by Kathryn Stockett
4. Skippy Dies by Paul Murray
5. World War Z by Max Brooks
Other Favorites: One Day by David Nicholls, Shades of Grey by Jasper Fforde, Finny by Justin Kramon

Top Five Favorite Non-Fiction Books:
1. At Home by Bill Bryson
2. And the Pursuit of Happiness by Maira Kalman
3. The Heroine’s Bookshelf by Erin Blakemore
4. McCarthy’s Bar by Pete McCarthy
5. A Secret Map of Ireland by Rosita Boland
Other Favorites: American Fried by Calvin Trillin, Stitches by David Small, Round Ireland With a Fridge by Tony Hawk

Top Five Favorite YA/Kid’s Lit:
1. The 10 p.m. Question by Katie De Goldi
2. Indigo’s Star by Hilary McKay
3. The Boyfriend List by E. Lockhart
4. Clementine, Friend of the Week by Sara Pennypacker
5. The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins

Top Five Favorite Book Covers: (click on the title to view the cover)
1. Skippy Dies by Paul Murray
2. Inklings by Jeffrey Koterba
3. The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie by Muriel Spark
4. A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens
5. Great House by Nicole Krauss

Top Five Favorite Book Titles:
1. A Concise Chinese-English Dictionary for Lovers by Xiaolu Guo
2. Skippy Dies by Paul Murray
3. Alice, Let’s Eat by Calvin Trillin
4. Round Ireland With a Fridge by Tony Hawk
5. The Heroine’s Bookshelf by Erin Blakemore
Other Favorites: How Did You Get This Number by Sloane Crosley, Squirrel Seeks Chipmunk by David Sedaris

Total Number of Books Purchased: 125

Number of Books Purchased from an Independent Bookstore: 70

Book/Author Events Attended:
Jasper Fforde 1.4.10, Barnes and Noble Lincoln Center
Yann Martel 4.16.10 Borders Park Ave
Bill Bryson 10.15.10 Barnes and Noble Union Square
Book Expo 5.27.10: R. L. Stine, Sara Gruen, Justin Cronin, Bernadette Peters

For a complete list of the books bought and read in 2010, click here.

For the people who were shovelling away on the housetops were jovial and full of glee; calling out to one another from the parapets, and now and then exchanging a facetious snowball — better-natured missile far than many a wordy jest — laughing heartily if it went right, and not less heartily if it went wrong.

-From A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens

_____

Teaser Tuesdays is a fun weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. I change the rules a little bit to suit my own purposes: I hand pick the teaser, rather than choose one randomly. I also very frequently post more than two sentences. :)

When children are lonely, they invent imaginary friends to talk to. Adults such as myself invent imaginary television shows to keep the howling dogs of alienation at bay. Nobody is lonely in a sitcom. The characters show up at bars, diners, or sporting events, and everyone they know is already there. I often think that all I have ever wanted in life is a group of people to stand with on a soundstage, in front of a Christmas tree, while we chant in unison, “Happy holidays from NBC.”

-from Everything is Going to be Great: An Underfunded and Overexposed European Grand Tour by Rachel Shukert, page 130

_____

Teaser Tuesdays is a fun weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. I change the rules a little bit to suit my own purposes: I hand pick the teaser, rather than choose one randomly. I also very frequently post more than two sentences. :)

Three years have passed since he could accurately describe himself as a visitor to the staffroom, but the surreality of being here, amidst these figures of terror or hilarity from his youth – these imagos, these caricatures, now ambling around him, saying good morning, making tea, acting as if they were normal people – still descends on him from time to time. For a long time he found himself expecting them to give him homework, and being surprised, unpleasantly, when instead they would tell him about their lives. But every day it feels more ordinary, which he finds more unpleasant still.

-from Skippy Dies by Paul Murray, page 60

_____

Teaser Tuesdays is a fun weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. I change the rules a little bit to suit my own purposes: I hand pick the teaser, rather than choose one randomly. I also very frequently post more than two sentences. :)

She began walking again, south towards The Mound. ‘Live each day as if it’s your last,’ that was the conventional advice, but really, who had the energy for that? What if it rained or you felt a bit glandy? It just wasn’t practical. Better by far to simply try and be good and courageous and bold and to make a difference. Not change the world exactly, but the bit around you.

-from One Day by David Nicholls, page 433

_____

Teaser Tuesdays is a fun weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. I change the rules a little bit to suit my own purposes: I hand pick the teaser, rather than choose one randomly. I also very frequently post more than two sentences. :)

Fall is my favorite season for many reasons, and the fact that it’s also the most exciting time of the year for book releases is a definite reason to get giddy! Here are the books I’m looking forward to this fall.

SEPTEMBER

Ape House by Sara Gruen: I’ve never heard of anyone who read Gruen’s mega-bestseller, Water for Elephants, and didn’t love it, so her next book has been eagerly awaited. I got an ARC of it at Book Expo, and it was one of my most treasured finds of the day. (Sept 7)

Earth (The Book): A Visitor’s Guide to the Human Race by Jon Stewart: Does this one even need an explanation? Very excited for the latest humor book from The Daily Show team. (Sept 21)

A Week at the Airport by Alain de Botton: I like Alain de Botton’s books, and this one has a fascinating background:

Given unprecedented access to one of the world’s busiest airports as a “writer-in-residence,” Alain de Botton found it to be a showcase for many of the major crosscurrents of the modern world—from our faith in technology to our destruction of nature, from our global interconnectedness to our romanticizing of the exotic. He met travelers from all over and spoke with everyone from baggage handlers to pilots to the airport chaplain. Weaving together these conversations and his own observations—of everything from the poetry of room service menus to the eerie silence in the middle of the runway at midnight—de Botton has produced an extraordinary meditation on a place that most of us never slow down enough to see clearly. Lavishly illustrated in color by renowned photographer Richard Baker, A Week at the Airport reveals the airport in all its turbulence and soullessness and—yes—even beauty. (Sept 21)

Squirrel Seeks Chipmunk: A Modest Bestiary by David Sedaris: Unlike most of David Sedaris’s other books, this one is fiction. Which makes it very intriguing. (Sept 28)

The Best American Comics 2010 edited by Neil Gaiman: I always look forward to the Best American Comics collections, they highlight a lot of great work, and I often go out and read the full pieces of the things they’ve excerpted. The BAC 2010 edition is super exciting, since Neil Gaiman is editing. (Sept 28)

Knuffle Bunny Free by Mo Willems: The third of the Knuffle Bunny books (excellent children’s books by the awesome Mo Willems) – and I’ve heard this one is a tear-jerker. (Sept 28)

OCTOBER

The America’s Test Kitchen Healthy Family Cookbook: A New, Healthier Way to Cook Everything from America’s Most Trusted Test Kitchen: America’s Test Kitchen can do no wrong, in my opinion. Their recipes start as experiments, where they try different techniques, equipment, and ingredients to find out what recipe will turn out the best, every time. Their latest book is a spiral bound family cookbook, this time focusing on healthy recipes. I’ve made many of the light recipes published in their magazines, and they manage to cut fat and calories from comfort foods, while still keeping an amazing taste. I can’t wait to get this cookbook and start testing recipes! (Oct 1)

At Home: A Short History of Private Life by Bill Bryson: One of my favorite things I bought in Ireland was the British edition of this book, which came out a few months ago. :) Bill Bryson is one of my favorite authors, and this book is spectacular. I will post a review for the US release. (Oct 5)

Great House by Nicole Krauss: The History of Love is one of my top ten favorite books, and Great House is Nicole Krauss’s latest novel. Another spectacular BEA 2010 score (thanks to Michelle’s eagle-eyes); I’m looking forward to starting this one soon. (Oct 12)

And the Pursuit of Happiness by Maira Kalman: Maira Kalman is my favorite artist, and her beautiful and whimsical columns on nytimes.com are stunning. This is the second collection of her columns, and I’m excited to own her beautiful work in print. (Oct 14)

NOVEMBER

Simple Times: Crafts for Poor People by Amy Sedaris: I Like You, Hospitality Under the Influence, Amy Sedaris’s first book, was one of the most fun books to come out in 2006. Four years is too long to have to wait for another fabulous how-to book from Amy, but at least it’s almost here now! (Nov 2)

I Remember Nothing: and Other Reflections by Nora Ephron: Nora’s other books, both fiction and non-fiction, have been sharp and funny and easy to relate to. It’s likely this one will be too. (Nov 9)

The Autobiography of Mark Twain, Vol 1 by Mark Twain: There are no words to describe how exciting this book release is. (Twain instructed that it could not be published in full until 100 years after his death.) The early reviews have been spectacular, and I’m so excited to read it! (Nov 15)

DECEMBER

Children and the Tundra (HOW) by Dr. Doris Haggis-on-Whey & Benny Haggis-on-Whey: Dave Eggers and his brother write these spectacular, humorous encyclopedias as Dr. and Mr. Haggis-on-Whey. This is the latest volume. The HOW series is hilarious, and Doris and Benny’s characters come through in full quirkiness. (Dec 1)

What books are you looking forward to this Fall?