Oct 28
There is no such thing as a universally loved book. Each month, we’ll feature a book from Time Magazine‘s list of the best 100 English language novels of all time. From the mean to the funny, to the downright absurd, we will highlight some of the strange reasons why some people hate these great reads. See what we picked for our first book. Read more
Oct 26
It’s time for the announcement of our fourth and final weekly theme and the reveal of the random weekly winner. You can read more about it on our challenge page. Are you brave enough to take on the challenge? And the weekly theme is…. Read more
Oct 24
Oct 21
I have always believed that instilling a love of reading at an early age is fundamental. My husband and I have read at least one book to our daughter every night since she was a few days old. But I have to admit that there have been some books that are so mind-numbingly awful that each time I read them, I feel a part of my brain dying (e.g. some of the fairy tale adaptations for little kids). Even the good books can get tiring after the 100th time. There was a time when the mere mention of Good Night Moon was enough to evoke nightmares (of giant frolicking kittens wearing mittens, chasing a red balloon and eating a bowl of mush).
This brings me to one of my personal favorite children authors, Mo Willems. Mo Willems writes children’s books that in many ways are really for parents. I have yet to get bored of reading any of his books and we own quite of few of them. So this month’s Kid’s Corner is dedicated our favorite Mo Willems book. Find out which one and read E’s review after the jump (spoiler alert – it’s not a pigeon book). Read more
Oct 20
The French Lieutenant’s Woman by John Fowles
First published: 1969
Reviewed by: Jen & Book Worm
Find it here: The French Lieutenant’s Woman
Synopsis (from Goodreads): The scene is the village of Lyme Regis on Dorset’s Lyme Bay…”the largest bite from the underside of England’s out-stretched southwestern leg.” The major characters in the love-intrigue triangle are Charles Smithson, 32, a gentleman of independent means & vaguely scientific bent; his fiancée, Ernestina Freeman, a pretty heiress daughter of a wealthy & pompous dry goods merchant; & Sarah Woodruff, mysterious & fascinating…deserted after a brief affair with a French naval officer a short time before the story begins. Obsessed with an irresistible fascination for the enigmatic Sarah, Charles is hurtled by a moment of consummated lust to the brink of the existential void. Duty dictates that his engagement to Tina must be broken as he goes forth once again to seek the woman who has captured his Victorian soul & gentleman’s heart.
Jen’s Review
4 stars
I have avoided this book for many years due to my own misconceptions. I don’t typically enjoy reading romance-heavy novels because I find them formulaic and overly simplistic. I had assumed that this novel was a Victorian style romance. Boy was I wrong. I really enjoyed this book and I’m glad that others encouraged me to pick it up. First off, I loved the writing style which I found witty and at times unexpectedly snarky. Fowles injects himself into the novel, critiquing various elements of Victorian society with significant humor. For example, there is this passage (which goes on for a few pages):
What are we faced with in the nineteenth century? An age where woman was sacred; and where you could buy a thirteen-year-old girl for a few points — a few shillings, if you wanted her for only an hour or two. Where more churches were built than in the whole previous history of the country; and where one in sixty houses in London was a brothel (the modern ratio would be nearer one in six thousand). Where the sanctity of marriage (and chastity before marriage) was proclaimed from every pulpit, in every newspaper editorial and public utterance; and where never- or hardly ever – have so many great public figures, from the future king down, led scandalous private lives [page 267].
I wouldn’t quite call this a feminist book, although the author has been known to make this claim, because the main female character is never given her own voice. However, it is feminist leaning in that Sarah is a strong, independent, and intelligent woman who fails to conform to Victorian gender ideals in a magnificent way. The French Lieutenant’s Woman is not a sappy romance novel where the weak-willed woman falls in love with the strong gentleman and they all live happily ever after. Instead, it is more commentary on Victorian society (and its hypocrisy) and an analysis of gender and class restrictions than it is a romance. I highly recommend it.
Book Worm’s Review Unlike Jen I don’t mind romance stories. Sometimes there is nothing better than getting lost in happily ever after, however this book is not your traditional romance and like Jen I really enjoyed it because of that.
Jen has covered the main points that make this a great book I will just add that I love the way the author interjects and turns what you have just read onto its head. This really is at least 2 books in 1.
Want to try it for yourself? You can find it on Amazon here: The French Lieutenant’s Woman
We want to hear from you! Have you read this book? What did you think?
Oct 20
Looking for a good Halloween read with a literary fiction slant? David Mitchell’s newest book, Slade House might be perfect for you! Read more
Oct 19
It’s time for the announcement of our third weekly theme and the reveal of the random weekly winner. You can read more about it on our challenge page. Keep reading to find out what it is and to find out whether you won the $10 Amazon gift card. And the weekly theme is…. Read more
Oct 16
The Bone Clocks by David Mitchell
Published in: 2014
Reviewed by: Jen
Rating: 4 stars
Find it/buy it here: The Bone Clocks
I should start off by disclosing that David Mitchell is my author crush and I spent a good 10 minutes just staring at the cover photo before even opening the book. Cloud Atlas is perhaps one of my all time favorite novels and I love how he views his individual books as being parts of a larger work. As a reviewer from the New Yorker so aptly stated, “each of his novels are porcelain babushkas hiding inside Mitchell’s meta-Russian-nesting-doll oeuvre.” Read more
Oct 15
Normally for our featured author post, Book Worm and I feature an author we have both read and then we list our favorite books from that author. This month we thought we’d do something a little different and explore the life and works of the most recent winner of Nobel in Literature: Svetlana Alexievich. Read more
Oct 14
It has been a busy month in the literary world. Last week they announced of the winner of the Nobel Prize in Literature (we are featuring her tomorrow). Yesterday the winner of the 2015 Man Booker Prize was announced. Then this morning the finalists for the National Book Awards were announced. All these announcements and awards have wreaked havoc on our blog schedule as BW and I have struggled to read the variety of books and we have moved from 3 times a week to almost daily posting. We will go back to our regular post schedule (3-4 times a week) in the next couple of weeks.
The National Book Awards feature 4 primary categories including fiction, non-fiction, poetry and young people’s literature. Keep reading to see if your favorite books made it onto the list of finalists. Read more
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