Tolstoy and the Purple Chair Review

Tolstoy and the Purple Chair: My Year of Magical Reading  

 by Nina Sankovitch

Genre: Adult Non-fiction

Publisher: Harper

Source: Library

Book Description:

When Sankovitch lost her older sister to cancer, she was determined to "live her life double" in order to make up for her family's painful loss. But after three years spent at a frenetic pace, Sankovitch decided to slow down and rediscover the pleasure of books in order to reconnect with the memory of her sister. Despite the day-to-day responsibilities of raising four sons—and the holidays, vacations, and sudden illnesses that accompany a large family—Sankovitch vowed to read one book a day for an entire year and blog about it. In this entertaining bibliophile's dream, Sankovitch (who launched ReadAllDay.org and was profiled in the New York Times) found that her "year of magical reading" was "not a way to rid myself of sorrow but a way to absorb it." As well as being an homage to her sister and their family of readers, Sankovitch's memoir speaks to the power that books can have over our daily lives. Sankovitch champions the act of reading not as an indulgence but as a necessity, and will make the perfect gift from one bookworm to another.

Review:

They say music soothes the savage beast, but for others it’s books.  I loved this book and could relate to how books can help us through rough times in our lives.

Nina did this project as a way to remember the sister she lost and to honor her by reading books that she liked and some that she would have liked if she had lived.

For the author, “remembrance is acknowledging that a life was lived.”  I can’t think of a better way than sharing a love of reading.  To some people it sounds like she did nothing but read, but she did work out a way to keep up with the day to day things one must do. 

She also started a blog http://www.readallday.org/blog/  that chronicles all the books she’s read since starting the year of magical reading. 

If you love reading and have a loved one you want to remember and honor, then share a book that that person enjoyed and maybe you will have a year of magical reading.

Happy Reading!

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Liar Liar Review

Liar, Liar : A Cat DeLuca Mystery  by K J Larsen

Genre: Adult Fiction

Publisher: Poisoned Pen Press

Source: Library

Book Description:

This debut mystery from a trio of sisters is entertaining and just a little offbeat. Caterina DeLuca is the proprietor of Pants on Fire Detective Agency in Chicago. She’s working a case that seems pretty simple: follow around a wayward husband, snap some incriminating photos, and report back to his wife, the client. Only it turns out the wayward husband maybe isn’t so wayward, and the client maybe isn’t his wife. Then, when a building explodes with the man in it, he maybe doesn’t die like the FBI says he did, and the explosion was maybe caused by a bomb, not the gas leak the FBI claims was the cause. That’s an awful lot of maybes, but Cat attacks them with vigor—perhaps too much vigor because it looks like somebody’s after her, too. The novel is a lot of fun, with a likable, series-worthy protagonist.

Review:

What a fun read this was.  Cat DeLuca is a fun loving, single, Italian woman in Chicago that takes pride in her job, even though her family would prefer she be a dispatcher for the Chicago PD.   Her dad, brothers and uncles are current or former PD officers and they try to help Cat stay out of trouble when a case she’s working on gets a little sticky. 

If you’re fans of Janet Evanovich then you’ll love Cat.  This book has humor, intrigue and a little romance.  I loved Cat and her sidekick, Inga, her sausage loving dog.  If you want a mystery that will make you laugh and cheer when the case is solved then you’ll love this book.

Happy Reading!

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Teaser Tuesday

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly meme, hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. Just do the following:

1. Grab your current read

2. Open to a random page

3. Share two “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page

4. BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)

5. Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!

Mine is from pg.73 of Tolstoy and the Purple Chair : My Year of Magical Reading by Nina Sankovitch

Because words are witness to life : they record what has happened, and the make it all real.  Words create the stories that become history and become unforgettable.  Even fiction portrays truth, good fiction is truth.

Happy Reading!

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Promise the Night Review

Promise the Night by Michaela Maccoll

Genre: Juvenile Non-Fiction  (Dec. 21, 2011)

Publisher: Chronicle Books

Source: Library Thing Early Review Win

Book Description:

Immediately compelling and action-packed, this carefully researched work of historical fiction introduces young readers to the childhood of the famous yet elusive Beryl Markham, the first person to fly solo from England to North America. As in her debut novel, Prisoners in the Palace, MacColl propels readers into a multilayered story with an unforgettable heroine and evocative language that brings the backdrop of colonial British East Africa to life. A fascinating read for anyone with a thirst for adventure.

Review:

I won this from Library Thing as part of their early reviewers program and I’m glad I won this great read.

I’d heard of Beryl Markham, but didn’t know anything about her.  This book chronicles her formative years in Africa trying to find her way in the world despite she’s told “she’s a girl” and can’t do certain things.  She had a little formal education, but learned how to be a warrior, how to fight, and became a horse trainer and pilot in a time when women were not thought of to hold those jobs. 

It’s a great book for girls to read and full of adventure and shows girls that if they have a dream to not let anyone or anything stand in there way.

Thank you to Library Thing for allowing me to read and share this book with you.

Happy Reading!

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Rozlyn Press looking for submissions.

If you are looking to get published or know someone you wants to get published check out Rozlyn Press.

Greetings blogger friends,


I hope this email finds you all well and enjoying some fabulous fall-weather literature. Rozlyn Press is quite busy at the moment, A Long-Forgotten Truth by Rachel Ballard was released this past July, and our second novel, The Galveston Chronicles by Audra Martin D'Aroma will be released in January. On top of that, we're accepting new submissions!



I'm hoping you may be interested in posting a brief shout-out on your blog to let your readers know about our current submission call for female fiction novelists. All the details can be found on our website at http://rozlynpress.com/submissions.



Please feel free to contact me if you have any questions! Have a great day.



Sincerely,

Alayne

Publisher - Rozlyn Press

My Lucky Life Review

My Lucky Life In and Out of Show Business : a Memoir by Dick Van Dyke

Genre: Adult Non-Fiction  

Publisher: Crown Archetype

Source: Local Library

Book Description:

Dick Van Dyke, indisputably one of the greats of the golden age of television, is admired and beloved by audiences the world over for his beaming smile, his physical dexterity, his impeccable comic timing, his ridiculous stunts, and his unforgettable screen roles.

           

His trailblazing television program, The Dick Van Dyke Show (produced by Carl Reiner, who has written the foreword to this memoir), was one of the most popular sitcoms of the 1960s and introduced another major television star, Mary Tyler Moore. But Dick Van Dyke was also an enormously engaging movie star whose films, including Mary Poppins and Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, have been discovered by a new generation of fans and are as beloved today as they were when they first appeared. Who doesn’t know the word supercalifragilisticexpialidocious?

           

A colorful, loving, richly detailed look at the decades of a multilayered life, My Lucky Life In and Out of Show Business, will enthrall every generation of reader, from baby-boomers who recall when Rob Petrie became a household name, to all those still enchanted by Bert’s “Chim Chim Cher-ee.” This is a lively, heartwarming memoir of a performer who still thinks of himself as a “simple song-and-dance man,” but who is, in every sense of the word, a classic entertainer.

Review:

I grew up watching The Dick Van Dyke Show, Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, Mary Poppins and Diagnosis Murder and I like a lot of people love watching Dick Van Dyke.  I don’t read a lot of memoirs, but this one was as entertaining as watching him on tv. 

He is not your typical Hollywood star, though like a lot of them, he had problems with alcohol and other mishaps, but he is the same man from Danville who remembers his roots and tries to be a good person and do right, but has fun at his job.  He doesn’t sugar coat anything and tells you what he feels from the heart.  He’s a man who’s lost and loved two strong incredible women and has a wonderful family that he’s proud to have helped become the people they are. 

If you want a feel good book that like the show will make you laugh and cry then I highly recommend you read this one.  I want to thank Dick Van Dyke for making movies and tv shows that anyone can enjoy and that he stayed true to himself and loves what he does and loves putting a smile on your face and hopefully a little love in your heart.

Happy Reading!

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Great article

Check out this article about hispanic novels every student should read.

(http://www.onlinecollegecourses.com/2011/09/01/50-great-hispanic-novels-every-student-should-read/) (http://www.onlinecollegecourses.com/2011/09/01/50-great-hispanic-novels-every-student-should-read/)