Tag: books

Ellen in Wonderland – Day 3

This partial view of the floor at Book Expo provides an inkling of the vast territory we explored each day.  IMG_2905While you’d think it’s all about the books, the reality is a conference of this size is also about all the many people, from the author to the publisher to the bookseller and reviewer who help bring it to life. Everyday there was an extensive agenda of presentations and a far larger lists of author signings. The publisher’s goal is to get their books into the hands of broadest range of consumers. My goal is to search out great titles I can share with readers, through book groups, topical presentations or book reviews on this blog.  To do this, I hone in first on smaller publishers whose lists have proven to be well-written and thought-provoking. Continue reading Ellen in Wonderland – Day 3

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Ellen in Wonderland – Day 2

imageThe best laid plans…  I learned that hotel wifi isn’t up to the needs of a blogger so I am catching up. I apologize for the posting delay!

Thanks to Dan, the good spouse, I stayed not far from an entrance to The High Line, the magnificent above ground urban park on the west side of Manhattan. A recent extension brings it to 34th Street, a stone’s throw from the entrance to the Javits Convention Center, home to Book Expo America.

So before walking the endless aisles at BEA15, I took the opportunity to see how The High Line had changed since my visit in frigid March. IMG_2881Lush green replaced the dormant winter brown and occasional flowering plants are blooming. And the crowds! Even on a sticky, overcast morning, there were people everywhere – more power-dodging than power walking.

Arriving in the main entry, it’s clear which books the publishers want on a REALLY big stage. Notice the enormous Go Set A Watchman cover art for Harper Lee’s upcoming title and the itty-bitty ant-people below.

IMG_2906 As a true bookie, being at BEA makes me feel like a kid in a candy shop. No calories but with all the book giveaways, lots of extra weight. The day is spent going from booth to booth getting a sense of what new authors are writing and then racing back to pick up a galley from a favorite author.  Lines are long for author signings but all are quite gracious in the 10-second encounters with each of several hundred readers.

For some authors, tickets are required.  Each year I try to get at least one special title for each of my parents.  This year my pick for Dad is Al Roker’s The Storm of the Century.  IMG_2885Talk about a hardworking man – here he is signing the advance copy at 4 in the afternoon.

 

 

 

 

And there are truly books for everyone. Here I am posing before I pick up a children’s title for my great-nephews.IMG_2886 - Version 2

For the evening I went back to Mom-mode and helped my daughter finish moving out of her apartment and cleaning up.  My reward?  A late night (at least for me) dinner at Diner in Williamsburg. It is a very hip modern restaurant with wonderful food.  Then back to Chelsea, rinse and repeat on Thursday.

 

 

 

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My To-Be-Read Pile Has More Than 32 Flavors

(This is part of my Blogging101 education. Thanks for learning with me!)

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For some, running the table of a beloved author’s titles is a great tribute and accomplishment. I tried that strategy with the Nancy Drew books only to realize that the more I read, the more appeared in the stores. Just as I enjoy trying new local foods when I travel, I strive to expand my reading horizons by sampling the “32 Flavors of Reading.” Now, I haven’t actually counted the genres or categories of titles I have on my shelves but here are a sample of some of the groupings not found in most bookstores:

  1. Mysteries by local authors in places I’ve visited
  2. Writers on reading (memoir or commentary)
  3. Cookbooks with cultural narratives
  4. Histories that read like literature
  5. Re-tellings of classic stories in different cultural settings
  6. Contemporaneously written novels of countries in the midst of war

While I may initially pigeon-hole a book, many end up in very unexpected categories after talking with others about them.  I’m fortunate to have spoke to some authors about their books. It turns out they are often surprised by the insights readers have about their characters and their motivations. Books provide endless opportunities to read between the lines and recalibrate my outlook.

What does your list look like?

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Coming to a (small) screen near you! Part 2 – The Dovekeepers by Alice Hoffman

Getting a chance to read an upcoming title before the critics have weighed in is a real treat.  I was fortunate to snag a copy of Alice Hoffman’s The Dovekeepers the summer before its publication in 2011. Screen Shot 2015-01-22 at 12.54.35 PMHoffman imagines the final days of the 900 person Jewish community on the mountain top of Masada in 70 CE as the Romans came to destroy them. Told through the eyes of four strong women, it is a novel of personal challenges, love and magic – all traits that run through much of Hoffman’s work. The only contemporaneous account of the tragic destruction of the community was by Josephus, and that has been called into question by many scholars.

I loved the pacing of the book and its ties to the changing seasons and natural elements.  I could feel the dry heat of the mountain and the dust on my feet as I read. Each of the women had a distinctive voice and look that stayed with me throughout the novel. Magical realism doesn’t usually carry me away but I was prepared to stay on the journey to follow the story to its end. A long read, it is worth the effort.  It is nice to have an earthbound story completely different in time and setting with very strong female characters.

On March 31 and April 1 (right before Passover and Easter) CBS will show a version of the The Dovekeepers. Screen Shot 2015-01-22 at 12.54.00 PMHaving watched the trailer it’s clear it will differ quite a bit from the book. So what’s a reader to do? Well, if you’ve had The Dovekeepers on your to-be-read (TBR) pile, I’d get cracking. Once you’ve seen a director’s take on a book it can be difficult to create your own mental imagery, even if the plot lines and characters don’t match up. Roma Downey of Touched by An Angel and The Bible fame brings a very definite perspective to her work, one very different from that of the author.

So, will I watch The Dovekeepers on TV? Well, my guess is it will be on in the background as I prepare my kitchen for the upcoming holiday. Having watched the trailer, I’m glad the actors aren’t all speaking upper crust Victorian English. Imagination can only take me so far.

Interested in Part 1 – The Book of Negroes/Someone Knows My Name? Find it here!

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Oh, so what are you reading?

It used to be so simple. Hardback or paperback. Own or borrow or library copy. Not so easy anymore.  Next week a book group I coordinate will be discussing The Paris Architect by Charles Belfoure (Sourcebooks Landmark).  A friend asked to borrow a paper copy, which I used to have. It had long since been loaned out and then replaced with an ebook before another discussion in January (see post) since my “real” copy had never made it back home and the library continues to have a substantial waiting list .

I take great pleasure in matching up readers with books. Continue reading Oh, so what are you reading?

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