Sunday Spotlight--Top Cities

Today's post is a variation on the book list theme . . .

The livability.com website compiles Top 10 lists of American cities in various quality of life categories.  Here are the Top 10 cities lists for book lovers and libraries for children.

Other Top 10 cities lists in categories including college towns, foodie cities, pet cities, affordable vacations, summer fairs, and green cities are available at Top 10.  It's a fun way to explore new vacation spots and relocation possibilities.

Enjoy the virtual tour!

Catherine

Follow me on Twitter: @bookclubreader

Sunday Spotlight--Top Cities was originally published by Catherine for bookclublibrarian.blogspot.com.  This post cannot be republished without express written consent.

Weekend Words

"Reading is to the mind what exercise is to the body."

--Sir Richard Steele, 1672-1729, Irish writer and politician; 

co-founder of The Spectator magazine

See this and more quotes on Quotations Page

Catherine

Follow me on Twitter: @bookclubreader

Weekend Words was originally published by Catherine for bookclublibrarian.blogspot.com. This post cannot be republished without express written consent.

Friday Focus--More 2013 Reading Choices

Sometimes it feels like I spend so much time reviewing new book lists and making my own lists of books to read in the future that it keeps me from reading books in the present.  Oh well.  Since it's way too early in the new year to be cranky, and because old habits die hard, I am indulging myself by sharing two more 2013 book lists with novels and non-fiction promising enough to make my reading list longer still.

The Huffington Post list includes new works by Neil Gaiman, David Sedaris, Lionel Shriver, and Lemony Snicket; Stephen King's sequel to The Shining; Maurice Sendak's last book; and a play written by a 24-year-old Nabokov.

The Atlantic list includes new books by bestselling authors Meg Wolitzer, Khaled Hosseini, Malcolm Gladwell, Tracy Chevalier, and Michael Pollan, and another Stephen King book.

More and more, 2013 is looking like a banner year for books.  But enough list-making for now. Time to spend some time actually reading.  Have a good weekend, readers.

Catherine

Follow me on Twitter: @bookclubreader

Friday Focus--More 2013 Reading Choices was originally published by Catherine for bookclublibrarian.blogspot.com. This post cannot be republished without express written consent.

 

Alexander McCall Smith--Hot Off the Press

Alexander McCall Smith (Photo Source: Phil Wilkinson/scotsman.com)

Alexander McCall Smith fans know how prolific an author he is.  This Zimbabwe-born (then Rhodesia) Scottish writer has published 50 books, including several delightful series, and shows no signs of slowing down.

Among McCall Smith's popular series is 44 Scotland Street, which debuted in 2005 and has 8 published books thus far...and book 9 being unveiled...read on for details...

44 Scotland Street, first book in the series

Prior to publication, books in the 44 Scotland Street series appeared as daily entries in The Scotsman newspaper. The newest addition, Book 9 in the series, is now appearing in daily installments in the The Scotsman.  Fans of young Bertie, Big Lou, and all the other eccentric residents of Scotland Street and their Edinburgh neighbors can read along now, rather than waiting for the novel to be published in book format at its conclusion. Serialization began this week on Monday, January 7, with four installments to date.  You can begin by reading the first  Volume 9, Episode 1.

Here is the full list of books in series order:
2005:  44 Scotland Street
2005:  Espresso Tales
2006:  Love Over Scotland
2007:  The World According to Bertie
2008:  The Unbearable Lightness of Scones
2010:  The Importance of Being Seven
2011:  Bertie Plays the Blues
2013:  Sunshine on Scotland Street

McCall Smith's Other Series:
For Adults
No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency
Isabel Dalhousie
Corduroy Mansions
Professor Dr. von Igelfeld Enterainment
For Children
Max & Maddy
Harriet Bean
Akimbo
Precious Ramotswe

Whichever series you select, enjoy your time in the humorous, entertaining world of Alexander McCall Smith.

Catherine

Follow me on Twitter: @bookclubreader

Alexander McCall Smith--Hot Off the Press was originally published by Catherine for bookclublibrarian.blogspot.com.  This post cannot be republished without express written consent.

                       

Waiting on Wednesday--New Maeve Binchy Novel!

The Waiting on Wednesday concept is a weekly feature of the Breaking the Spine blog.  It's a great way to share information about a forthcoming title that is on my radar screen with other readers.

 Today's anticipated book:

              

         A Week in Winter  

       by Maeve Binchy

      Publication Date: February 12, 2013

     Publisher:  Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group

      Preorder now from online and bricks and mortar bookstores

From barnesandnoble.com:

Stoneybridge is a small town on the west coast of Ireland where all the families know one another. When Chicky Starr decides to take an old, decaying mansion set high on the cliffs overlooking the windswept Atlantic Ocean and turn it into a restful place for a holiday by the sea, everyone thinks she is crazy. Helped by Rigger (a bad boy turned good who is handy around the house) and Orla, her niece (a whiz at business), Chicky is finally ready to welcome the first guests to Stone House’s big warm kitchen, log fires, and understated elegant bedrooms. John, the American movie star, thinks he has arrived incognito; Winnie and Lillian are forced into taking a holiday together; Nicola and Henry, husband and wife, have been shaken by seeing too much death practicing medicine; Anders hates his father’s business, but has a real talent for music; Miss Nell Howe, a retired schoolteacher, criticizes everything and leaves a day early, much to everyone’s relief; the Walls are disappointed to have won this second-prize holiday in a contest where first prize was Paris; and Freda, the librarian, is afraid of her own psychic visions.
      
Sharing a week with this unlikely cast of characters is pure joy, full of Maeve’s trademark warmth and humor. Once again, she embraces us with her grand storytelling.

My thoughts:  Maeve Binchy, a beloved Irish novelist, created memorable characters and interesting contemporary situations in her numerous novels, beginning with Light a Penny Candle in 1982.  I have read and enjoyed many of her books, which are set in her homeland.  I was saddened by her death last year, and the loss of a gifted writer.  It is a delightful surprise to have one last novel from a talented storyteller.

Catherine

Follow me on Twitter: @bookclubreader

Waiting on Wednesday--New Maeve Binchy Novel! was originally published by Catherine for bookclublibrarian.blogspot.com. This post cannot be republished without express written consent.

Tuesday Tidbits--Downton Abbey

Photo Source:  pbs.org

If you are a Downton Abbey fan, you are likely still basking in the glow of Sunday night's debut of Season Three on PBS.  There was plenty of action that left me wanting more.  And the addition of Shirley Maclaine to the cast created more delicious dialogue and delightful sparks.

 
To sustain the mood between episodes, consider filling in the time with a suggested reading list from librarian Lisa Schimmer posted on the Novelist blog.

    The books she recommends are:

                            

Lisa has calculated the amount of time between Downton Abbey episodes in which to read during this season and will be posting new suggestions after DA episodes.  All recommendations will relate to a particular episode's storyline, so be sure to stay tuned. 


Catherine

Follow me on Twitter: @bookclubreader

Tuesday Tidbits--Downton Abbey was originally published by Catherine for bookclublibrarian.blogspot.com. This post cannot be republished without express written consent.

Monday Memory--Zora Neale Hurston

Photo Source: biography.com

"No matter how far a person can go the horizon is still way beyond you."

Zora Neale Hurston, 1891-1960

January 7 is the birthday of southern-born Zora Neale Hurston, an influential African-American novelist, short story writer, playwright, and poet.   An author closely associated with the Harlem Renaissance, Hurston is well known for Their Eyes Were Watching God (1937).

 

Information about the author's life and work is available at the Zora Neale Hurston official website.  Extensive biographical sketches of the author can be found on biography.com and Gale Cengage.  Hurston's contributions to American literature are significant, and her plays are included in the Library of Congress American Memory Project.  Fans of the author will also be interested in the Zora Neale Hurston Museum website.

Read more about the Harlem Renaissance at this link from Encyclopaedia Britannica online.


Catherine

Follow me on Twitter: @bookclubreader

Monday Memory--Zora Neale Hurston was originally published by Catherine for bookclublibrarian.blogspot.com. This post cannot be republished without express written consent.