Both my sister and my husband tagged me with this on Facebook: Don’t take too long to think about it. Fifteen FICTIONAL characters (television, films, plays, books) who’ve influenced you and who will always stick with you. List the first fifteen you can recall in no more than fifteen minutes. Forget the “Rule of 15”- after almost three days, I barely came up with a dozen, and I decided to call it quits there. I don’t […]
Beautiful Maria of My Soul Oscar Hijuelos Hyperion (2010), Hardcover (ISBN 1401323340 / 9781401323349) Fiction, 352 pages Source: ARC provided by the publisher via LibraryThing Early Reviewers Reason for reading: Review, sequel to earlier novel Opening Lines: “Over forty years before, when Nestor Castillo’s future love, one Maria Garcia y Cifuentes, left her beloved valle in the far west of Cuba, she could have gone to the provincial capital of Pinar del Rio, where her […]
Christmas Holiday Edition! Since we’re deep in the midst of the 12 Days of Christmas, it’s not too late for some seasonally-appropriate reading…and besides, things were so busy last week you may have missed these posts anyway. First, an interview with a certain Bethlehem innkeeper (go read the whole thing, but here’s a snippet): So the baby is born, and they place him in the manger. Which, by the way, I told them not to […]
He (Younger Nephew) is a little bigger this Christmas… …and this is my first one without her in a decade… …but I wonder if we’ll see Gangsta Snowman again this year? For those of you who are celebrating, Merry Christmas to you and yours – and if this isn’t your holiday, have a great weekend doing whatever you do! Subscribe to Blog via Email Enter your email address to subscribe to this blog and receive […]
The Stupidest Angel: A Heartwarming Tale of Christmas Terror Christopher Moore (blog) William Morrow (2004), Edition: 1st, Hardcover (ISBN 0060590254 / 9780060590253) Fiction, 288 pages Source: Personal/purchased copy Reason for reading: Seasonally appropriate re-read (not previously reviewed) Note: There’s a second edition of this novel available with a new chapter added (ISBN: 0060842350) – that’s not the edition I have. Opening Lines: “Christmas crept into Pine Cove like a creeping Christmas thing: dragging garland, ribbon, […]
Stiltsville: A Novel Susanna Daniel Harper (2010), Hardcover (ISBN 0061963070 / 9780061963070) Fiction, 320 pages Source: Provided by publisher Reason for Reading: Participation in online book club discussion (today), hosted by Gayle at Everyday I Write the Book Opening Lines: “On a Sunday morning in late July, at the end of my first-ever visit to Miami, I took a cab from my hotel to Snapper Creek marina to join a woman named Marse Heiger, whom […]
I set it under the tree for a few days, but in the end, I couldn’t hold off on opening the package I received from my Secret Santa in the Book Bloggers’ Holiday Swap! Santa checked my list and chose one of the books on it to send me, along with a some Christmas-themed decor (if I don’t use the cookie cutter for its intended purpose, it could always be an ornament). Many thanks and […]
Weekend Assignment # 349: Party Hardy or Party Hardly? This is the time of year for office parties, family reunions, New Year’s Eve parties and holiday parties in general. Are you a party animal or a party avoider? Do you go to parties because you want to, or out of obligation, or not at all? Extra Credit: How many parties are you likely to attend between now and New Year’s Day? I’m not likely to […]
Current and upcoming reading: The Lotus Eaters: A Novel by Tatjana Soli (TLC Book Tour, January 2011) Indie Lit Awards Long List, Non-Fiction: At Home by Bill Bryson Let’s Take the Long Way Home by Gail Caldwell Cleopatra: A Life by Stacy Schiff The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skloot The Warmth of Other Suns by Isabel Wilkerson I’m planning to post my year-end reading roundup for next week’s Salon, but I’ve started […]
These were taken during my family’s 2006 and 2007 visits to the place my sister calls “The House That Threw Up Christmas.” This truly is a local institution – according to their website, their first Christmas was in 1964, the same year as my first Christmas. They’ve got a photo archive through 2005, so you can see how the display has evolved over the years – well, “grown” is a more accurate word than “evolved;” […]
After answering my friend Kim‘s question on Twitter not long ago, I thought it might be a good time to revisit this post from December 2007. Suzanne made a little goof in her daily DearReader.com letter (on December 17, 2007), and I wonder if this is a common misperception: “This morning, first thing when I woke up, the realization hit me–Christmas is almost here–should have started singing The Twelve Days of Christmas four days ago, […]
