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July 30, 2007

Self Help in the Most Unexpected Places

Self Help books have been pretty boring of late but three new titles on the scene have changed all that!

Discover Your Inner Economist by Tyler Cowen, the creator of the marginalrevolution.com economics blog shows how economic principles can help you reach your personal goals, from reading that classic novel you checked out of the Library to finding a dentist.

Don Piper, the best-selling author of 90 Minutes in Heaven draws on his own near-death experiences to describe the reality of heaven and how readers can transform life challenges into blessings.

The View's Joy Behar has asked some of her notable friends including Liz Smith, Barbara Bush, Tom Hanks, Bob Dole and others to share words of wisdom, comfort and what they use as inspiration to deal with heartbreak, challenge and adversity in When You Need A Lift: But Don't Want to Eat Chocolate, Pay a Shrink, or Drink a Bottle of Gin.

And speaking of The View, don't miss Rosie O'Donnell's frank discussion of how fame can become an addiction in her new book, Celebrity Detox.

Posted by MaryF at 01:50 PM | Comments (0)

July 25, 2007

Thanks, Danny.

    

It all started when I came across Oh Danny Boy on the Express Book Display: an irresistible title to one whose interest is sparked by all things Irish. I discovered that Danny was the fifth in a series of mysteries by British-born author Rhys Bowen. (Ms. Bowen nows lives in San Francisco.) The series features a 20-something Irish female private investigator named Molly Murphy. As is usual when I discover a book part way through a series, I went back to the beginning and started with the first book, Murphy's Law, and made my way through Death of Riley, For the Love of Mike, and In Like Flynn. I was then ready for Oh Danny Boy. The heroine of this series, Molly Malone, is a modern woman who struggles to be taken seriously as a female PI in turn-of-the-century New York City. Having fled Ireland to escape a troubled past, Molly is never sure whom to trust and whom to turn to when in need. In Dublin''s Fair City, the most recent entry in the series, was published this year and features Molly's return to her homeland on the trail of an Irish-American actor's long-lost younger sister.

Besides the Molly Murphy series, Danny led me to another, even more enjoyable series by the same author: the Constable Evans series, which features an appealing young policeman named Evan Evans who lives and works in the small North Wales village of Llanfair. The series opens with Evans Above, and continues with Evan Help Us, Evanly Choirs, and others. Among the delightful characters we come to know are schoolteacher Bronwen Price, Evan's love interest; Betsy, the flirtatious barmaid who has her eyes set on Evan; and the battling wives of the two local ministers, Mrs. Powell Jones and Mrs. Parry Davies. If you like Miss Marple's neighbors, you'll find their literary descendants among the quaint denizens of Llanfair.

Looking for a new mystery series? I recommend Rhys Bowen and these two series for undemanding, cozy reads. And stay tuned for a review of Her Royal Spyness, the first book in Ms. Bowen's third and newest series, featuring British royal-turned detective Lady Victoria Georgiana Charlotte Eugenie.

Posted by JudyS at 03:08 PM | Comments (0)

July 24, 2007

J. K. Rowling (No spoilers here)

For those who love the story of J. K. Rowling as well as Harry Potter, a visit to her website is mandatory right now. She’s posted a beautiful acknowledgements page that gives us insight into what it must have been like to be the author of these remarkable books.
“There is only one thing left to do: acknowledgements! Here are the people who have joined me at various stages of the seventeen year journey I have taken with Harry, who (if you laid their brains end to end) could tell a story much stranger than fiction, of how weird and wonderful the world of Harry Potter became as it expanded way beyond all of our wildest dreams.”
To read the rest, go to J. K. Rowling’s official website and click on the Eraser to get to the Room of Requirement. There are no tricks or puzzles to work out. Just click on the doorknob, and then click on the letter on the desk.
J.K. Rowling shares Harry Potter’s Birthday. On July 31, 2007 she will be 42 years of age. That's young enough to hope she has many more stories she’d like to share. Harry’s story may be at an end, let’s hope J. K. Rowling’s story is not.

Posted by MaryF at 10:12 AM | Comments (0)

July 22, 2007

Harry Potter: Not a Spoiler

I was surprised yesterday when I found myself procrastinating and lollygagging through my day that was dedicated to the reading of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows. Unlike some of my colleagues, I had not prepared for this momentous occasion by re-reading all the other books, but merely read up on horcruxes thanks to a concise Wikipedia entry on the matter. So I was not particularly on "HP overload."

Don't get me wrong: by the time I went to sleep last night I had read through to page 400. I think I had to come to terms with my wish that the series were not at an end. I finally convinced myself that reading the first part of the book didn't necessarily mean I had to finish it "too soon."

I have finished the book, as of this evening at 11:32 p.m.

Posted by Kim at 11:49 PM | Comments (0)

July 20, 2007

It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single man
in possession of a good fortune must be in want of a wife.

Recognize that line?

People at Penguin publishing didn't along with a handful of other publishers who don't know their Jane Austen.
The Guardian reported that David Lassman, the director of the Jane Austen Festival in Bath made minor changes to Austen's works and sent them off to publishers to see if they'd accept them for publication. There were some interesting rejection letters including the one from Penguin rejecting Pride and Prejudice."Thank you for your recent letter and chapters from your book First Impressions. It seems like a really original and interesting read."

Posted by MaryF at 02:18 PM | Comments (0)

July 17, 2007

Waiting for Harry

While you're waiting for Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, reading Philip Pullman's Dark Materials trilogy will help pass the time. The Golden Compass is the first book in this wonderful series.
Also check out Jonathan Strange & Mister Norrell, equally mesmerizing and engaging.
Both the Pullman books and Susanna Clarke's JS&MN are being made into films.
And William Goldman's The Princess Bride and Mary Stewart's The Crystal Cave are older books not to be forgotten and still to be enjoyed.

Posted by MaryF at 12:10 PM | Comments (0)

July 12, 2007

Is Romance dead?

Say it ain't so! The romance genre has certainly taken a hit with yesterday's untimely demise of Kathleen Woodiwiss, one of the greatest romance novelists of my time, and some might say, all time. Certainly her novels spanned the globe and a few centuries.

I remember exactly where I was and how old I was when I read my first Woodiwiss novel, The Flame and the Flower. Although I have not read her most recent books, I will certainly be watching for the publication of her last book, Everlasting, due out in late October.

A guilty pleasure, she will be sorely missed.

Posted by Kim at 04:14 PM | Comments (0)

July 09, 2007

Ladies and Gentlemen, The Bronx is Burning

Politics, crime and baseball all come together to tell the story of 1977 New York City in Jonathan Mahler's best seller Ladies and Gentlemen, The Bronx Is Burning. George Steinbrenner, Billy Martin and Reggie Jackson all come to the small screen this week in ESPN's eight-episode miniseries based on Mahler's best seller. There are stellar performances by John Turturro, who donned prosthetic ears to portray Martin, and Oliver Platt as Steinbrenner. Summer television never looks so good as when it pairs good actors with a great bestselling book!

Posted by MaryF at 01:37 PM | Comments (0)