Little Thoughts About Books and Stuff

Book Club For August we read A Courtesan's Guide to Getting Your Man by Celeste Bradley and Susan Donovan. I really liked the part written by Celeste Bradley. 2011 Support your Local Library Challenge I checked out seven books this month (as well as a few DVDs). I had a little bit of everything mixed in this month. Lord of the Fading Lands by C.L. Wilson The Little Women Letters by Gabrielle Donnelly The Borrower by Rebecca Makkai Cook this, not that! by David Zinczenko WeightWatchers new complete cookbook The good neighbor cookbook by Sara Quessenberry King of Sword and Sky by C. L. Wilson Men in Uniform 2011 Reading Challenge I didn't read any Men in Uniform books this month, but I did read quite a few about Highlanders in Kilts.

I found this over on the blog read this! : The Personal Libraries of Celebrities Diane Keaton's Home Library Some of these libraries are absolutely stunning.  I'm very green with envy, seeing as my own personal library is a few wooden book cases and baskets filled with books crammed into any available space in my house.  I will say that not all of them are my taste. I think a home library should be warm and inviting some place you want to curl up in and read a book, for me Keith Richards' would be my ideal followed by Nigella Lawson's but only if there's a big comfy chair to sit in. Click here to see the 19 other libraries that made the list . 

Now I'll be honest I'm not a huge James Patterson fan.  I've read a few of his books and I've enjoyed them, but I'm not reaching for his novels first.  I know he's very popular, his books are in constant circulation at the library and the holds list for his new book is always incredibly long.  That being said I don't think he should be considered for this list because of this co-author deal with his novels. I know authors use ghost writers and I'm fairly certain that some of my favorite authors use them too, but they still have novels coming out at a normal pace of one or two a year, sometimes three. But in this one year span James Patterson is credited with 10 books. He released 9 in 2010 and has currently 6 books out in 2011. I just question how involved he is in the writing of all these books and how much is the co-author and how much is him.  I kind of want to be cynical and think that it's the co-author writing the book and he just approves ...

I saw this over at Gallycat yesterday and just laughed. I laugh because it's absurd that one Sherlock Holmes book would be challenged over another when both would have questionable material.  I can understand challenging a book and I can understand when a book is removed (though I don't always agree it was the right decision). I don't understand why they would only challenge one book for one character's thought and not all Sir A.C. Doyle's books for the main characters continual use of drugs. Sherlock Holmes is a drug addict. If you've read the books, you know this fact. I can understand not wanting sixth graders to read about a man who uses cocaine when he's bored. If the book was challenged and banned from the reading list for this reason I'd accept it, it's understandable. The book wasn't. I've done some digging and found that A.C. Doyle apologized for his portrayals of Mormons in this book and admitted that he had been misled by the...

A Courtesan's Guide to Getting Your Man Author: Celeste Bradley, Susan Donovan Published: 2011 Publisher: St. Martin's Paperbacks # Pages: 384 Plot Regency London’s most celebrated courtesan, The Blackbird, was a woman before her time—uninhibited, financially independent, and free to live by her own rules. Schooled in the sensual arts by the one man she loved the most, she recorded every wicked detail in her diaries… When Boston museum curator Piper Chase-Pierpont unearths The Blackbird’s steamy memoirs, she’s aroused and challenged by what she finds.  Could the courtesan’s diaries  be used as a modern girl’s guide to finding love and empowerment? One curious curator—and one very lucky man—are about to find out… (Goodreads.com) Review The book was written by two authors and from two points of view and was divided into four volumes. The historical story was about Ophelia Harrington, or as she was known for a time The Blackbird. The contemporary story was about Pi...

Book Club For July we read The Bride by Julie Garwood. Normally characters and plots like this one annoy me but I really enjoyed reading this book. 2011 Support your Local Library Challenge I checked out sevenbooks this month (as well as a few DVDs). I had a little bit of everything mixed in this month. I had a mystery, a historical romance, a nonfiction selection and cookbooks. Crocodile on the Sandbank by Elizabeth Peters SEAL Team Six: Memoirs of an elite Navy Seal Sniper by Howard Wasdin  The Pleasures of Cooking for One by Judith Jones Solo Suppers: Simple Delicious Meals to Cook for Yourself by Joyce Goldstein The Wedding by Julie Garwood The Filter Bubble by Eli Pariser Beyond Heaving Bosoms by Sarah Wendell & Candy Tan Men in Uniform 2011 Reading Challenge SEAL Team Six: Memoirs of an elite Navy Seal Sniper by Howard Wasdin  The Cop Next Door by Jenna Mills