Tag: reviews

(Audio)Book Talk: LIFE ITSELF, by Roger Ebert
June 6, 2013 reading

(Audio)Book Talk: LIFE ITSELF, by Roger Ebert

Life Itself: A Memoir Roger Ebert Audiobook read by Edward Herrmann (IMDb) Grand Central Publishing (September 2012), Paperback (ISBN 0446584967 / 9780446584968) Memoir/essays, 448 pages Source: Purchased audiobook (Hachette Audio, 2011, ISBN 9781611133226; Audible ASIN B005MM7F1S) Reason for reading: Personal, via DearReader.com and the Slate Culture Gabfest podcast Opening lines: “I was born inside the movie of my life. The visuals were before me, the audio surrounded me, the plot unfolded inevitably but not necessarily. […]

(Audio)Book Talk: THE HITCHHIKER’S GUIDE TO THE GALAXY Trilogy, by Douglas Adams
June 4, 2013 reading

(Audio)Book Talk: THE HITCHHIKER’S GUIDE TO THE GALAXY Trilogy, by Douglas Adams

Douglas Adams‘ Hitchhiker’s Guide to The Galaxy, Parts 1-3 The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy Audiobook read by Stephen Fry (IMDb) Crown, 2004, hardcover (ISBN 1400052920 / 9781400052929) Fiction (sci-fi/humor/satire), 224 pages Audio edition: Audible ASIN B0009JKV9W (Random House Audio, 2005) The Restaurant at the End of the Universe Audiobook read by Martin Freeman (IMDb) Del Rey, 1997, paperback (ISBN 0345418921 / 9780345418920)  Fiction (sci-fi/humor/satire), 256 pages  Audio edition: Audible ASIN B000GPCO0S (Random House Audio, […]

(Book Club) Book Talk: ORPHAN TRAIN, by Christina Baker Kline
May 23, 2013 reading

(Book Club) Book Talk: ORPHAN TRAIN, by Christina Baker Kline

Orphan Train: A Novel (book trailer) Christina Baker Kline (Facebook) (Twitter) (Goodreads) William Morrow Paperbacks (April 2013), paperback original (ISBN 0061950726 / 9780061950728) Fiction (historical), 304 pages Source: Publisher, for review consideration Reason for Reading: SheReads Book Club selection, May 2013 Opening lines (Prologue): “I believe in ghosts. They’re the ones who haunt us, the ones who have left us behind. Many times in my life I have felt them around me, observing, witnessing, when no […]

Book Talk: THE EDGE OF THE EARTH, by Christina Schwarz
May 21, 2013 reading

Book Talk: THE EDGE OF THE EARTH, by Christina Schwarz

The Edge of the Earth: A Novel Christina Schwarz Atria Books (April 2013), hardcover (ISBN 1451683677 / 9781451683677) Fiction (historical), 288 pages Source: ARC from publisher Reason for reading: Intended for review in Shelf Awareness for Readers, but didn’t finish reading the book in time to meet my deadline Opening Lines, from the Prologue: “I’m not going to let on I was born here. People always ask what it was like to grow up in a […]

Book Talk: TELEGRAPH AVENUE, by Michael Chabon
May 16, 2013 reading

Book Talk: TELEGRAPH AVENUE, by Michael Chabon

Telegraph Avenue: A Novel Michael Chabon Harper (September 2012), Hardcover (ISBN 0061493341 / 9780061493348) Fiction, 480 pages Source: ARC received at Book Expo America 2013 Reason for reading: #readchabon group read Opening lines: “A white boy rode flatfoot on a skateboard, towed along, hand to shoulder, by a black boy pedaling a brakeless fixed-gear bike. Dark August morning, deep in the Flatlands. Hiss of tires. Granular unraveling of skateboard wheels against asphalt. Summertime Berkeley giving […]

Book Talk: THE CAT, by Edeet Ravel (via Shelf Awareness)
May 2, 2013 reading

Book Talk: THE CAT, by Edeet Ravel (via Shelf Awareness)

The Cat  Edeet Ravel Pintail (March 2013), trade paper original (ISBN 0143186450 / 9780143186458) Fiction, 240 pages A version of this post was previously published as a starred review in Shelf Awareness for Readers (April 12, 2013). Shelf Awareness provided a galley of the book (via the publisher) and compensation for the review. Opening lines: “Her cage was in the upper corner of the room. There were three rows of cages, and many of the […]

(Audio)Book Talk: GIRL WALKS INTO A BAR…, by Rachel Dratch
April 18, 2013 reading

(Audio)Book Talk: GIRL WALKS INTO A BAR…, by Rachel Dratch

Girl Walks into a Bar . . .: Comedy Calamities, Dating Disasters, and a Midlife Miracle Rachel Dratch (Twitter) Gotham (February 2013), Paperback (ISBN 1592407579 / 9781592407576) Nonfiction/memoir, 272 pages Source: Purchased audiobook (Penguin Audio, 2012; Audible ASIN B007R6B0AY) Reason for reading: Personal Opening lines: “‘Hey, I know you!’ said the stranger. “I was on Third Avenue in New York, emerging from the Starbucks. “The stranger turned to his friend and nudged him. ‘Do you know […]

Book Talk: OLEANDER GIRL, by Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni (via Shelf Awareness)
April 9, 2013 reading

Book Talk: OLEANDER GIRL, by Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni (via Shelf Awareness)

Oleander Girl: A Novel Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni Free Press (March 2013), hardcover (ISBN 1451695659 / 9781451695656) Fiction, 304 pages A version of this review was previously published in Shelf Awareness for Readers (March 29, 2013). Shelf Awareness provided a galley of this book (furnished by the publisher) in order to facilitate the review, and compensated me for its original publication. Opening lines: “I’m swimming through a long, underwater cavern flecked with blue light, the cavern […]

(Audio)Book Talk: SOCIETY’S CHILD, by Janis Ian
March 26, 2013 reading

(Audio)Book Talk: SOCIETY’S CHILD, by Janis Ian

Society’s Child: My Autobiography Janis Ian (Facebook) (Twitter) Audiobook read by the author Tarcher (2009), trade paper (ISBN 1585427497 / 9781585427499) Autobiography/memoir, 384 pages Source: Purchased audiobook (Audible, Inc.; ASIN B0089IC1KC) Reason for reading: Personal; 2013 Grammy Award winner, Best Spoken-Word Album; 2013 Audie Awards nominee, Narration by Author(s) Opening lines (from the Prologue): “I was standing alone on a stage in Encino, California, halfway through the first verse of my song ‘Society’s Child.’ ‘Come […]

Shelf Awareness Book Talk: WHERE THE PEACOCKS SING, by Alison Singh Gee
March 5, 2013 reading

Shelf Awareness Book Talk: WHERE THE PEACOCKS SING, by Alison Singh Gee

Where the Peacocks Sing: A Palace, a Prince, and the Search for Home Alison Singh Gee (Facebook) St. Martin’s Press (February 2013), hardcover (ISBN 0312378785 / 9780312378783) Memoir, 288 page A version of this review was previously published in Shelf Awareness for Readers (February 26, 2013). Shelf Awareness provided a galley for review purposes and payment for the review. Opening lines: “I never knew peacocks could fly. “I never knew they could do much of […]

TLC Book Tour: NOT LESS THAN EVERYTHING, edited by Catherine Wolff
February 27, 2013 reading

TLC Book Tour: NOT LESS THAN EVERYTHING, edited by Catherine Wolff

Not Less Than Everything: Catholic Writers on Heroes of Conscience, from Joan of Arc to Oscar Romero Catherine Wolff, editor HarperOne (February 2013), trade paper original (ISBN 0062223739 / 9780062223739) Nonfiction (essays/biography/religion), 352 pages Source: Publisher Reason for reading: TLC Book Tour Opening lines (from the Introduction): “This book has been a long time coming. I grew up in a Catholic family in San Francisco during the 1950s and ‘60s. when it seemed like everybody […]

BlogHer Book (Club) Talk: A GOOD AMERICAN, by Alex George
February 21, 2013 reading

BlogHer Book (Club) Talk: A GOOD AMERICAN, by Alex George

A Good American Alex George (Twitter) (Facebook) Berkley Trade (February 2013), Paperback (ISBN 0425253171 / 9780425253175) Fiction, 432 pages Source: Purchased e-book (iBooks edition: ISBN 9781101559895) Reason for reading: BlogHer Book Club The BlogHer Book Club is sponsored by Penguin Group. BlogHer compensates me for this review and participation in online discussions. All opinions expressed are my own. Opening lines: “Always, there was music. “It was music— Puccini, to be precise— that first drew my […]