Coincidence: A Novel (previously published in the UK as The Coincidence Authority) J.W. Ironmonger (Twitter) Harper Perennial (2014), Paperback (ISBN 0062309897 / 9780062309891) Fiction, 304 pages Source: ARC from the publisher, via TLC Book Tours Visit the other stops on this TLC Book Tour for more discussion of Coincidence. I received a copy of the book to facilitate this post, but was not otherwise compensated for participation in this blog tour. Comments: I like this […]
One More Thing: Stories and Other Stories B.J. Novak (Twitter) Knopf (February 2014), Hardcover (ISBN 0385351836 / 9780385351836) Fiction (short stories), 288 pages A version of this review was previously published in Shelf Awareness for Readers (2/14/2014). Shelf Awareness provided me with a publisher-furnished galley to facilitate the review, and compensated me for the review they received and posted. Actor/writer B.J. Novak (The Office) bucks the linked-short-stories trend in his first fiction collection, One More Thing: Stories and Other Stories, but […]
Going Clear: Scientology, Hollywood, and the Prison of Belief Lawrence Wright Audiobook read by Morton Sellers Vintage (November 2013), Paperback (ISBN 0385393040 / 9780385393041) Nonfiction, 560 pages Source: Purchased audiobook (Random House Audio, January 2013, ISBN 9780385393058; Audible ASIN B00AYLFLCM) I’ve spent about 40% of my life in places where the Church of Scientology’s presence is hard to ignore: the obvious one is here in Los Angeles, and the other one is Tampa Bay. (The […]
The Days of Anna Madrigal: A Novel Armistead Maupin Harper (January 2014), Hardcover (ISBN 0062196243 / 9780062196248) Fiction, 288 pages A version of this review was previously published in Shelf Awareness for Readers (January 24, 2014). Shelf Awareness provided me with a publisher-furnished galley to facilitate the review, and compensated me for the review they received and posted. It may surprise you to know–it surprises me, when I think about it– that I’ve re-read the […]
from the official Pinterest boards for American Hustle American Hustle official movie site Comedic drama, 2013 (Rating: R) Starring: Amy Adams, Christian Bale, Bradley Cooper, Jennifer Lawrence, Jeremy Renner Directed by: David O. Russell Written by: Eric Warren Singer and David O. Russell Official synopsis, via RottenTomatoes.com: A fictional film set in the alluring world of one of the most stunning scandals to rock our nation, American Hustle tells the story of con man Irving Rosenfeld (Christian Bale), […]
Fin and Lady Cathleen Schine Audiobook read by Anne Twomey FSG/Sarah Crichton Books (2013), Hardcover (ISBN 1427231540 / 9780374154905) Fiction, 288 pages Source: Purchased audiobook (Macmillan Audio, 2013, ISBN 9781427231550; Audible ASIN B00CTNXS0A) When I first encountered reviews of Cathleen Schine’s Fin and Lady last year, the fact that there was a character in it actually named “Lady” reminded me an exchange from one of my all-time favorite movies, Almost Famous: (William and Penny are […]
Someone Else’s Love Story: A Novel Joshilyn Jackson (Twitter) (Facebook) William Morrow (November 2013), Hardcover (ISBN 0062105655 / 9780062105653) Fiction, 320 pages Source: ARC from publisher She Reads Book Club selection (November 2013) I’m not adding a lot of “women’s fiction” to the shelves of TBR Purgatory lately. It seems to have lost some freshness for me, and I’ve wanted some time away from that book-club-friendly space where character relationships and plot development braid together […]
One Summer: America, 1927 Bill Bryson (Facebook) Audiobook read by the author Doubleday (October 2013), hardcover (ISBN 0767919408 / 9780767919401) Nonfiction: History, 528 pages Source: Purchased audiobook (Random House Audio, October 2013, ISBN 9780739315309; Audible ASIN B00EF9PJU8) It’s hard for those of us who came in late to grasp this fully, but the pace of change may never have been faster than it was in the 1900s in the United States. As a child of the […]
I Want My MTV: The Uncensored Story of the Music Video Revolution Rob Tannenbaum and Craig Marks Penguin Plume (2012), trade paper (ISBN 0452298563 / 9780452298569) Nonfiction: pop culture (oral history), 592 pages Source: Purchased ebook (iBooks ISBN 9781101562415) Reason for reading: Personal The popular music of my lifetime is divided, in my mind, between “before MTV” and “after MTV.” I first saw Music Television in the fall of 1982–my boyfriend’s family had cable–and was […]
Fractures: A Novel Lamar Herrin Thomas Dunne Books (November 2013), hardcover (ISBN 1250032768 / 9781250032768) Fiction, 320 pages A version of this review was previously published in Shelf Awareness for Readers (November 26, 2013). Shelf Awareness provided me with a publisher-furnished galley to facilitate the review, and compensated me for the review they received and posted. The politics and economics of alternative energy are filtered through one family’s experience in Lamar Herrin’s Fractures. In one […]
Some Nerve: Lessons Learned While Becoming Brave Patty Chang Anker (Twitter) (Facebook) (blog) Riverhead (October 2013), hardcover (ISBN 1594486050 / 9781594486050) Nonfiction (memoir/self-help), 368 pages Source: ARC from publisher Reason for reading: Personal I don’t usually quote more than the opening passage when I write about books here, but Patty Chang Anker captured something that smacked me in the face on page 161 (ARC) of Some Nerve: Lessons Learned While Becoming Brave (emphasis added): “The […]
Orange Is the New Black: My Year in a Women’s Prison Piper Kerman (Twitter) (Facebook) Audiobook read by Cassandra Campbell Speigel & Grau (2011), trade paper (ISBN 1452657661 / 9780385523394) Nonfiction: memoir, 352 pages Source: Purchased audiobook (Tantor Audio, 2012) ISBN 9781452657660 / Audible ASIN B008AF2JDS) Reason for reading: Personal Orange Is the New Black is a book that’s been on my radar for a while, but I really hadn’t found a compelling reason to […]
