pickA Bend in the Stars is a riveting book. My only quibble with A Bend in the Stars is that it doesn‘t have an afterword in addition to Barenbaum‘s Q &A explaining the science or history in the book in more detail, and I had a lot of questions by the time I finished reading. Visit pickingbooks.com/blog/a-bend-in-the-stars for the answers to some of the biggest questions I had.
How much of a historical fiction purist are you? I‘m loosey goosey about the books I review on my historical book review site because there‘s so much historical relevance in both literature and books that take place after the time frame most people think historical should be set. Read more: https://pickingbooks.com/blog/historical-fiction-definition
What‘s on your TBR list? The Art or Leaving is still on mine along with Writer‘s Digest Guide to Magazine Article Writing, The Art of Gathering, Fashionopolis, Crisis Caravan, How Fascism Works, White Kids, and The Secrets We Kept. How will I find the time? 🤔😩
What are you reading? https://pickingbooks.com/blog/the-books-i-picked-aka-my-currently-reading-list
Anyone else get the urge to make the food you read about in books? I never had Turkish food before reading this one. Now I‘m obsessed: https://pickingbooks.com/blog/ezme
pickI previously rated this book as so-so, because I found it a little hard to get through. It‘s been a while since I read it though, and the part where Grace muses, “that is the same with all quilts, you can see them two different ways by looking at the dark pieces, or else the light,” STUCK WITH ME. Read more: https://pickingbooks.com/blog/aliasgrace
so-so‘The Key to the Half Words‘ by Andrew Chaplin is the perfect gateway fantasy novel for reluctant fantasy readers like me. I‘m learning that you don‘t have to be obsessed to enjoy fantasy, and fantasy is SO much more than ‘The Lord of the Rings‘ and ‘A Game of Thrones.‘ More important, there‘s a lot to learn from fantasy despite its status as “genre fiction.” Read more on https://pickingbooks.com/blog/fantasy
pickAny moms out there who think they should have enough time for everything but can‘t find the time? Do you stay at home and wonder whether your education was worth it? I think I should be able to finish my to-do list, spend time with their family, and carve out an hour for personal pursuits but I CANNOT find the time! The Ten-Year Nap speaks to all these frustrations an more. Full review here: https://pickingbooks.com/blog/the-ten-year
pickThe three leading ladies in ‘In the Shadow of 10,000 Hills‘ come from different backgrounds, but they all work together and support each other. This juxtaposed against the close-mindedness that caused the Rwandan genocide, makes ‘In the Shadow of 10,000 Hills‘ a beautiful work of art. Learn more about the book and the genocide on Picking Books: https://pickingbooks.com/blog/in-the-shadow-of-10000-hills
bailedI didn‘t care for ‘Father Divine‘s Bikes,‘ but it introduced me to a historical figure I had never heard of, Father Divine (though Father Divine is more of a character in spirit). Father Divine was an African-American religious figure who rose to prominence in the 1930s. PBS calls his International Peace Mission Movement, “one of the most unorthodox religious movements in America.” Learn more: https://pickingbooks.com/blog/father-divine
so-soYou can learn so much from books! Even a silly YA adventure taught me something about Italian culture. Rocissono uses Italian folklore and some Italian literature as inspiration for the Beyond the Wicked Willow. Rocissono‘s reference to La Befana was my favorite reference though: https://pickingbooks.com/blog/beyondthewickedwillow
pickSome books are meant to be devoured. Others should be savored. I devoured The Great Alone by Kristin Hannah. With ever-increasing stakes and intense themes like survival, love, and abuse, you can‘t help but binge read it. Full review and discussion questions: https://pickingbooks.com/blog/the-great-alone-review
In her MasterClass, Atwood says, “When I wrote ‘The Handmaid‘s Tale‘ nothing went into it that had not happened in real life somewhere at some time. The reason I made that rule was that I didn‘t want anybody saying you certainly have an evil imagination, you made up all these bad things. I didn‘t make it up.” Seriously, she didn‘t. Read more: https://pickingbooks.com/blog/the-handmaids-tale
pickIn “Alias Grace,” Margaret Atwood challenges readers to determine whether Grace Marks is guilty of murder or not, to choose whether to look “at the dark pieces, or else the light.” This concept is useful not only in contemplating the slippery nature of truth. It‘s also a useful way to approach many of life‘s challenges, big or small. Read more: https://pickingbooks.com/blog/mans-search-for-meaning
History doesn‘t repeat itself. Instead, it‘s patterns of human behavior that repeat, as James Holland, author of “Normandy ‘44: D-Day and the Battle for France,” pointed out on NPR and WBURs “Here & Now.” Understanding history means understanding people. But if that‘s not enough for you, and it shouldn‘t be, consider this: https://pickingbooks.com/blog/a-book-blog-inspired-by-history
According to Holland, history doesn‘t repeat itself, human patterns of behavior repeat. By understanding history we can better understand each other. Read more: https://pickingbooks.com/blog/a-book-blog-inspired-by-history
My view for lunch at Brugge on North in City in Asylum in Pittsburgh. Itching to finish lunch so I can shop!
pickI enjoyed this book. It‘s a relaxing read, and it‘s an interesting look at women‘s issues “then and now.” It‘s not the most riveting or fast paced book, but I loved Lillian. Read more: https://pickingbooks.com/blog/2017/5/1/lillian-boxfish-takes-a-walk-book-review
pickCute, light hearted, and well-researched. I live in Pittsburgh, so this book got me interested in the local history and Andrew Carnegie. Read more: https://pickingbooks.com/blog/carnegiesmaid
Nothing quite like a well worn book! 😁
Does anyone else read every part of a book without fail—Introduction, prologue, afterword, acknowledgements etc?
“I thought at times that poetry might be an elegant way of screaming.”
-Kathleen Rooney, Lillian Boxfish Takes a Walk @stmartinspress
#bookquotes #bookquote #stmartinspress #historicalfiction #amreading #igreads #bookstagram #bookstagrammer #pickingbooks #poetryislife #poetrylove #poetrylover #booklovers #tbr #bookrecommendations #bookrecommendation #feministbooks #bookclub #booknerdigans #booknerds #booknerdigan
“I don't know how to put this but I'm kind of a big deal... I'm very important. I have many leather-bound books and my apartment smells of rich mahogany.” -Will Farrell as Ron Burgundy in Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy. 🤣
In all seriousness though, who else loves the Barnes and Noble leather-bound classics? They are beautiful! 🥰
This one is one of my favorites. 🥰📚 #historybuff #amreadinghistoricalfiction #bookrecommendation #bookstagram #bookreview #pickingbooks #history #historicalfiction
“The past is an inheritance, a gift and a burden. It can‘t be shirked. You carry it everywhere. There‘s nothing for it but to get to know it.”
-Jill Lepore, These Truths: A History of the United States
#historybuff #history #historybooks #historynerd #igreads #bookworm #books #bookstagram #bookish #summerreading #summerreads #beachreads #bookstgrammer #bookspine #bookspines #compassion #understanding
“‘My dear Mrs Casaubon,‘ said Farebrother, smiling gently at her ardour, ‘character is not cut in marble - it is not something solid and unalterable. It is something living and changing, and may become diseased as our bodies do.‘
‘Then it may be rescued and healed,‘ said Dorothea.
-George Eliot, Middlemarch
#quotestoliveby #quotestoinspire #positivepsychology #middlemarch #bookstagram #bookcover #igreads #pickingbooks #amreading
Themed bathroom reading. 😂 #captainunderpants #havingfun😄 #funnyshit #books #amreading #igreads #bookstagram #bookish #childrensbooks #pickingbooks #bathroomreading
In honor of Juneteenth, learn about Lincoln‘s surprising views on emancipation and how they changed in the Picking Books review of Precept by Matthew de Lacey Davidson.📚 https://pickingbooks.com/blog/preceptquotes
“Four babies playing a game can make a play-world which licks your real world hollow.” -Puddleglum, The Silver Chair by C.S. Lewis
”I couldn‘t forgive him or like him, but I saw that what he had done was, to him, entirely justified. It was all very careless and confused. They were careless people, Tom and Daisy — they smashed up things and creatures and then retreated back into their money or their vast carelessness, or whatever it was that kept them together, and let other people clean up the mess they had made. . . .”
“‘They were obliged to have him with them,‘ the Mock Turtle said: ‘no wise fish would go anywhere without a porpoise.‘ ‘Wouldn't it really?‘ said Alice in a tone of great surprise. ‘Of course not,‘ said the Mock Turtle: ‘why, if a fish came to me, and told me he was going a journey, I should say ‘With what porpoise?‘”
Bed time reading! So excited to start this one! Anyone read it yet? Thoughts?
“Another belief of mine: that everyone else my age is an adult, whereas I am merely in disguise.” -Margaret Atwood, Cat‘s Eye
pickWas anyone else skeptical of Marie Kondo‘s take on tidying up? I was, but her new Netflix series “Tidying Up” piqued my interest. So, I checked out Marie Kondo‘s audiobook, “The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up,” on Libby. By the time the introduction was over, I found myself folding laundry Marie Kondo style into little rectangles that stand up on their own. Read more: https://pickingbooks.com/blog/marie-kondo-konmari-method
pick“The Master and Margarita” by Mikhail Bulgakov is another reminder that we are all, in the words of George Eliot, “struggling, erring human creatures.” I loved the book and learned a lot about Soviet Russia thanks to the detailed notes sprinkled throughout. Read more: https://pickingbooks.com/blog/two-reasons-youll-love-the-master-and-margarita #bookreview
pick“Calm The F*ck Down” by Sarah Knight (provided to me by the publisher) is a tongue-in-cheek guide to accepting the things you cannot change, finding the courage to change the things you can, and using straight up logic to tell the difference. I loved it! Read more: https://pickingbooks.com/blog/calm-the-fuck-down-review
”That everyone is a critic means, or should mean, that we are each of us thinking against our own prejudices, of balancing skepticism with open-mindedness, of sharpening our full and glutted senses and battling the intellectual inertia that surrounds us.”
Can‘t wait for February! What‘s on your TBR list for February? https://pickingbooks.com/blog/the-books-i-picked-for-february-my-tbr-list
Looks like 2019 is going to be a busy reading year. 😁 Anyone else prefer a paper reading list?
Anyone else get the urge to make the food you read about in books? I never had Turkish food before reading this one. Now I‘m obsessed: https://pickingbooks.com/blog/ezme
so-soI love Margaret Atwood, and Alias Grace was interesting, but Atwood‘s writing style is so different in Alias Grace than in her other work. Still a good book, but a little slow. I did love decoding all the hidden meaning in the book though. Read more on https://pickingbooks.com/blog/aliasgrace.
I recently read “On Keeping a Notebook.” I liked Didion‘s take on notebooks, but I struggle to keep one, only junk journaling when I‘m particularly stressed out. Do you keep a notebook, journal, or diary?
so-so‘The Key to the Half Words‘ by Andrew Chaplin is the perfect gateway fantasy novel for reluctant fantasy readers like me. I‘m learning that you don‘t have to be obsessed to enjoy fantasy, and fantasy is SO much more than ‘The Lord of the Rings‘ and ‘A Game of Thrones.‘ More important, there‘s a lot to learn from fantasy despite its status as “genre fiction.” Read more on https://pickingbooks.com/blog/fantasy
This is how we learn from books: https://pickingbooks.com/blog/a-book-blog-inspired-by-history
pickI loved ‘The Ten-Year Nap.‘ Great literature is unique in its ability to transcend the self and reveal universal truths, and the universal truth at the heart of The Ten-Year Nap is that motherhood is a paradox. Full review here: https://pickingbooks.com/blog/the-ten-year-nap
pickThis book is incredibly helpful for anyone who writes articles or blog posts! I used it for a write up about journalism, fake news, and what we can do to pop our filter bubbles: https://pickingbooks.com/blog/how-to-spot-fake-news
A London Fog, a slice of toast, and a new book! Can‘t ask for a better way to spend a drizzly Saturday afternoon. Photo courtesy of my five-year-old, hence the patronizing smile.
pickThe three leading ladies in ‘In the Shadow of 10,000 Hills‘ come from different backgrounds, but they all work together and support each other. This juxtaposed against the close-mindedness that caused the Rwandan genocide, makes ‘In the Shadow of 10,000 Hills‘ a beautiful work of art. Learn more about the book and the genocide on Picking Books: https://pickingbooks.com/blog/in-the-shadow-of-10000-hills
“I‘d wager that the upsurge in printed-book sales, such as it is, is due to greater exports and the continuation of, in the asset at least, a storage demographic reversal, since for the first time in history we have societies where the old significantly out numbering the young.” —Will Self in this month‘s issue of Harper‘s
This explains why most of my readers are 65 and older!
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