Top Ten Tuesday is a meme hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl, featuring a different top 10 theme each week. This week’s topic is Favorite Book Quotes.
My focus this time around is quotes about reading. Here are some quotes I love:
“The person, be it gentleman or lady, who has not pleasure in a good novel, must be intolerably stupid.”
– Jane Austen, Northanger Abbey
“Never trust anyone who has not brought a book with them.”
– Lemony Snicket, Horseradish
“… a mind needs books as a sword needs a whetstone, if it is to keep its edge.”
– George R. R. Martin, A Game of Thrones
“She is too fond of books, and it has turned her brain.”
– Louisa May Alcott, Work: A Story of Experience
“A library is infinity under a roof.”
– Gail Carson Levine
“Despite his money and his looks and all the good-on-paper attributes he possessed, he was not a reader, and well, let’s just say that is the sort of nonsense up with which we will not put.”
– Eleanor Brown, The Weird Sisters
“After nourishment, shelter and companionship, stories are the thing we need most in the world.”
– Philip Pullman
“Reading one book is like eating one potato chip.”
– Diane Duane, So You Want to Be a Wizard
“A children’s story that can only be enjoyed by children is not a good children’s story in the slightest.”
― C.S. Lewis
“Make it a rule never to give a child a book you would not read yourself.”
― George Bernard Shaw
What book quotes do you love? Please share your TTT link!
Welcome to Shelf Control — an original feature created and hosted by Bookshelf Fantasies.
Shelf Control is a weekly celebration of the unread books on our shelves. Pick a book you own but haven’t read, write a post about it (suggestions: include what it’s about, why you want to read it, and when you got it), and link up! For more info on what Shelf Control is all about, check out my introductory post, here.
Want to join in? Shelf Control posts go up every Wednesday. See the guidelines at the bottom of the post, and jump on board!
Title: The Light We Lost Author: Jill Santopolo Published: 2017 Length: 328 pages
What it’s about (synopsis via Goodreads):
He was the first person to inspire her, to move her, to truly understand her. Was he meant to be the last?
Lucy is faced with a life-altering choice. But before she can make her decision, she must start her story—their story—at the very beginning.
Lucy and Gabe meet as seniors at Columbia University on a day that changes both of their lives forever. Together, they decide they want their lives to mean something, to matter. When they meet again a year later, it seems fated—perhaps they’ll find life’s meaning in each other. But then Gabe becomes a photojournalist assigned to the Middle East and Lucy pursues a career in New York. What follows is a thirteen-year journey of dreams, desires, jealousies, betrayals, and, ultimately, of love. Was it fate that brought them together? Is it choice that has kept them away? Their journey takes Lucy and Gabe continents apart, but never out of each other’s hearts.
How and when I got it:
I bought it at least a year ago.
Why I want to read it:
I first heard of The Light We Lost when it was selected as a Hello Sunshine book group book. I tend to shy away from most celebrity book clubs, but I find that the Reese/Hello Sunshine books tend to be really, really good!
From the Hello Sunshine website:
“This book is all about different kinds of love – the kind that engulfs you like a wildfire and the kind that keeps you warm like a hearth fire. This love story spans decades and continents as two star-crossed lovers try to return to each other.
Life, motherhood, and distance get in the way. Will they ever meet again? This book kept me up at night, turning the pages to find out. Can’t tell you the ending but definitely have tissues close by!! I loved it!” x Reese
This definitely sounds like something I’d enjoy. I haven’t read much contemporary fiction lately, and I like the sound of a love story that spans years and years.
Now that this book is on my mind again, I think I’m going to bump it higher up my to-read list.
Top Ten Tuesday is a meme hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl, featuring a different top 10 theme each week. This week’s topic is Books On My Fall 2020 TBR.
So many books to look forward to! Most are upcoming new releases, but I’m including a couple of books from my shelves too.
(Click on any of the book cover images to see larger versions.)
A Deadly Education by Naomi Novik
Dying With Her Cheer Pants On by Seanan McGuire. A collection of three new stories… and of course I’ll read anything she writes.
Black Sun by Rebecca Roanhorse
Serpentine by Philip Pullman: A new novella set in the world of His Dark Materials.
The Rules of Magic by Alice Hoffman: It’s been almost a year since I bought a copy of this book! It’s about time to read it.
The Once and Future Witches by Alix E. Harrow
The Children of Red Peak by Craig DiLouie
A Stitch in Time by Kelley Armstrong
The Hollow Places by T. Kingfisher
Equal Rites by Terry Pratchett — my next Discworld book
What books are you most excited to read this fall? Please share your TTT link!
Welcome to Shelf Control — an original feature created and hosted by Bookshelf Fantasies.
Shelf Control is a weekly celebration of the unread books on our shelves. Pick a book you own but haven’t read, write a post about it (suggestions: include what it’s about, why you want to read it, and when you got it), and link up! For more info on what Shelf Control is all about, check out my introductory post, here.
Want to join in? Shelf Control posts go up every Wednesday. See the guidelines at the bottom of the post, and jump on board!
Title: There There Author: Tommy Orange Published: 2018 Length: 294 pages
What it’s about (synopsis via Goodreads):
Tommy Orange’s wondrous and shattering novel follows twelve characters from Native communities: all traveling to the Big Oakland Powwow, all connected to one another in ways they may not yet realize. Among them is Jacquie Red Feather, newly sober and trying to make it back to the family she left behind. Dene Oxendene, pulling his life together after his uncle’s death and working at the powwow to honor his memory. Fourteen-year-old Orvil, coming to perform traditional dance for the very first time. Together, this chorus of voices tells of the plight of the urban Native American–grappling with a complex and painful history, with an inheritance of beauty and spirituality, with communion and sacrifice and heroism. Hailed as an instant classic, There There is at once poignant and unflinching, utterly contemporary and truly unforgettable.
How and when I got it:
i found a brand-new copy of this book at a library thrift store about a year ago, and couldn’t resist!
Why I want to read it:
I read so many stellar reviews for this book when it was first released, and it’s either won or been nominated for some really prestigious literary awards. so it’s been on my radar for a while now.
I’m eager to read more Native American fiction, and the description of this book makes it sound really moving and very beautifully written.
Welcome to Shelf Control — an original feature created and hosted by Bookshelf Fantasies.
Shelf Control is a weekly celebration of the unread books on our shelves. Pick a book you own but haven’t read, write a post about it (suggestions: include what it’s about, why you want to read it, and when you got it), and link up! For more info on what Shelf Control is all about, check out my introductory post, here.
Want to join in? Shelf Control posts go up every Wednesday. See the guidelines at the bottom of the post, and jump on board!
Title: Mr. Kiss and Tell (Veronica Mars, #2) Author: Rob Thomas & Jennifer Graham Published: 2015 Length: 330 pages
What it’s about (synopsis via Goodreads):
In the second book in the New York Times bestselling mystery series, Veronica Mars is back with a case that will expose the hidden workings of one of Neptune’s most murderous locations.
The Neptune Grand has always been the seaside town’s ritziest hotel, despite the shady dealings and high-profile scandals that seem to follow its elite guests. When a woman claims that she was brutally assaulted in one of its rooms and left for dead by a staff member, the owners know that they have a potential powder keg on their hands. They turn to Veronica to disprove—or prove—the woman’s story.
The case is a complicated mix of hard facts, mysterious occurrences, and uncooperative witnesses. The hotel refuses to turn over its reservation list and the victim won’t divulge who she was meeting that night. Add in the facts that the attack happened months ago, the victim’s memory is fuzzy, and there are holes in the hotel’s surveillance system, and Veronica has a convoluted mess on her hands. As she works to fill in the missing pieces, it becomes clear that someone is lying—but who? And why?
How and when I got it:
I bought it because VERONICA MARS.
Why I want to read it:
The simple answer is, I’m a VMars fan through and through, and always will be. Yes, even after the less-than-inspiring season 3 (which I mostly choose to ignore) and the very upsetting ending to the recent season on Netflix. I love these characters, and will always be there for more.
I read the first Veronica Mars book, The Thousand Dollar Tan Line, about a year ago, and was surprised by how much I enjoyed it. I’m not usually a fan of novelizations of movies or TV shows, but in this case, the show’s creator wrote a story that advanced the overall plotlines and felt really true to the characters and their world.
I’ve been meaning to read #2 ever since, and hope to dive into it in the next few months. And who knows, maybe I’ll be inspired to go back and do another re-watch. Because there can never be too much Veronica Mars!
What do you think? Would you read a book based on a favorite TV show or movie?
Welcome to Shelf Control — an original feature created and hosted by Bookshelf Fantasies.
Shelf Control is a weekly celebration of the unread books on our shelves. Pick a book you own but haven’t read, write a post about it (suggestions: include what it’s about, why you want to read it, and when you got it), and link up! For more info on what Shelf Control is all about, check out my introductory post, here.
Want to join in? Shelf Control posts go up every Wednesday. See the guidelines at the bottom of the post, and jump on board!
Title: The Guns of the South Author: Harry Turtledove Published: 1992 Length: 528 pages
What it’s about (synopsis via Goodreads):
January 1864 –General Robert E. Lee faces defeat. The Army of Northern Virginia is ragged and ill-equipped. Gettysburg has broken the back of the Confederacy and decimated its manpower.
Then, Andries Rhoodie, a strange man with an unplaceable accent, approaches Lee with an extraordinary offer. Rhoodie demonstrates an amazing rifle: Its rate of fire is incredible, its lethal efficiency breathtaking–and Rhoodie guarantees unlimited quantitites to the Confederates.
The name of the weapon is the AK-47….
“It is absolutely unique–without question the most fascinating Civil War novel I have ever read.” –Professor James M. McPherson – Pultizer Prize winning Battle Cry of Freedom
How and when I got it:
I picked up a copy at a library sale, probably about 5 years ago.
Why I want to read it:
If you’re thinking this is an odd choice for me, you’re absolutely correct. I’m not a fan of weaponry or reading about battle strategies. So why would I have this book on my shelves?
It’s a personal story.
My father, age 88, has been living in a nursing home for the past several years. In his earlier retirement, after a lifetime of rarely reading, he suddenly became a voracious reader, picking up historical novels, personal stories, crime thrillers, and more. But, more recently, his eyesight and his cognitive skills have both been on the decline, and he’s no longer able to read.
The Guns of the South is a book that he read at least 10 years ago, and I remember how excited he was to tell me about it at the time. Now, when I visit him (only remotely these days), he still brings up this book every so often. He doesn’t read at this point, but whenever the topic gets around to books, he gets really enthusiastic about telling me about The Guns of the South and what a great read it was. Sure, each time he thinks he’s telling me about it for the first time, but that’s okay. I’m always impressed by how much of the plot and details he’s retained.
Do I want to read this book? If it were just a question of my own tastes in fiction, then I’d probably skip it. But knowing how much this book fired up my dad’s imagination, I want to read it after all. Even if it doesn’t mean much to him at this point, I think it’ll make me happy to know we’ve shared this experience.
What do you think? Would you read a book that might not appeal to you on its own, but has special meaning to a loved one?
Welcome to Shelf Control — an original feature created and hosted by Bookshelf Fantasies.
Shelf Control is a weekly celebration of the unread books on our shelves. Pick a book you own but haven’t read, write a post about it (suggestions: include what it’s about, why you want to read it, and when you got it), and link up! For more info on what Shelf Control is all about, check out my introductory post, here.
Want to join in? Shelf Control posts go up every Wednesday. See the guidelines at the bottom of the post, and jump on board!
Title: What Should Be Wild Author: Julia Wild Published: 2018 Length: 368 pages
What it’s about (synopsis via Goodreads):
In this darkly funny, striking debut, a highly unusual young woman must venture into the woods at the edge of her home to remove a curse that has plagued the women in her family for millennia—an utterly original novel with all the mesmerizing power of The Tiger’s Wife, The Snow Child, and Swamplandia!
Cursed. Maisie Cothay has never known the feel of human flesh: born with the power to kill or resurrect at her slightest touch, she has spent her childhood sequestered in her family’s manor at the edge of a mysterious forest. Maisie’s father, an anthropologist who sees her as more experiment than daughter, has warned Maisie not to venture into the wood. Locals talk of men disappearing within, emerging with addled minds and strange stories. What he does not tell Maisie is that for over a millennium her female ancestors have also vanished into the wood, never to emerge—for she is descended from a long line of cursed women.
But one day Maisie’s father disappears, and Maisie must venture beyond the walls of her carefully constructed life to find him. Away from her home and the wood for the very first time, she encounters a strange world filled with wonder and deception. Yet the farther she strays, the more the wood calls her home. For only there can Maisie finally reckon with her power and come to understand the wildest parts of herself.
How and when I got it:
I bought the paperback version last year.
Why I want to read it:
Forests and curses? Yes, please! I remember reading the description when the book was released — I love books that are dark and mysterious, with hints of magic in a natural setting. The family’s curse sounds like something I need to know more about!
Welcome to Shelf Control — an original feature created and hosted by Bookshelf Fantasies.
Shelf Control is a weekly celebration of the unread books on our shelves. Pick a book you own but haven’t read, write a post about it (suggestions: include what it’s about, why you want to read it, and when you got it), and link up! For more info on what Shelf Control is all about, check out my introductory post, here.
Want to join in? Shelf Control posts go up every Wednesday. See the guidelines at the bottom of the post, and jump on board!
Title: The Book of M Author: Peng Shepherd Published: 2018 Length: 485 pages
What it’s about (synopsis via Goodreads):
Set in a dangerous near future world, The Book of M tells the captivating story of a group of ordinary people caught in an extraordinary catastrophe who risk everything to save the ones they love. It is a sweeping debut that illuminates the power that memories have not only on the heart, but on the world itself.
One afternoon at an outdoor market in India, a man’s shadow disappears—an occurrence science cannot explain. He is only the first. The phenomenon spreads like a plague, and while those afflicted gain a strange new power, it comes at a horrible price: the loss of all their memories.
Ory and his wife Max have escaped the Forgetting so far by hiding in an abandoned hotel deep in the woods. Their new life feels almost normal, until one day Max’s shadow disappears too.
Knowing that the more she forgets, the more dangerous she will become to Ory, Max runs away. But Ory refuses to give up the time they have left together. Desperate to find Max before her memory disappears completely, he follows her trail across a perilous, unrecognizable world, braving the threat of roaming bandits, the call to a new war being waged on the ruins of the capital, and the rise of a sinister cult that worships the shadowless.
As they journey, each searches for answers: for Ory, about love, about survival, about hope; and for Max, about a new force growing in the south that may hold the cure.
How and when I got it:
I picked up a paperback copy over a year ago.
Why I want to read it:
The timing may be a little off — do I really need to read about yet another pandemic or worldwide catastrophe right now? Probably not.
But timing aside, I’m always up for a good disaster story, especially one that has unusual twists and compelling characters to ground the bigger picture. I’m fascinated by the idea of global memory loss and what it might mean to people’s lives, especially to their intimate families and relationships.
I remember seeing a bunch of good reviews when this came out, which is probably why I bought a copy in the first place! I really like the sound of the premise, and I’m eager to see how it all pans out… just maybe not right now.
Welcome to Shelf Control — an original feature created and hosted by Bookshelf Fantasies.
Shelf Control is a weekly celebration of the unread books on our shelves. Pick a book you own but haven’t read, write a post about it (suggestions: include what it’s about, why you want to read it, and when you got it), and link up! For more info on what Shelf Control is all about, check out my introductory post, here.
Want to join in? Shelf Control posts go up every Wednesday. See the guidelines at the bottom of the post, and jump on board!
Title: Flight or Fright: 17 Turbulent Tales Edited by: Stephen King & Bev Vincent Published: 2018 Length: 332 pages
What it’s about (synopsis via Goodreads):
Fasten your seatbelts for an anthology of turbulent tales curated by Stephen King and Bev Vincent. This exciting new anthology, perfect for airport or airplane reading, includes an original introduction and story notes for each story by Stephen King, along with brand new stories from Stephen King and Joe Hill.
About the Book:
Stephen King hates to fly.
Now he and co-editor Bev Vincent would like to share this fear of flying with you.
Welcome to Flight or Fright, an anthology about all the things that can go horribly wrong when you’re suspended six miles in the air, hurtling through space at more than 500 mph and sealed up in a metal tube (like—gulp!—a coffin) with hundreds of strangers. All the ways your trip into the friendly skies can turn into a nightmare, including some we’ll bet you’ve never thought of before… but now you will the next time you walk down the jetway and place your fate in the hands of a total stranger.
Featuring brand new stories by Joe Hill and Stephen King, as well as fourteen classic tales and one poem from the likes of Richard Matheson, Ray Bradbury, Roald Dahl, Dan Simmons, and many others, Flight or Fright is, as King says, “ideal airplane reading, especially on stormy descents… Even if you are safe on the ground, you might want to buckle up nice and tight.”
How and when I got it:
It was an impulse buy while I was visiting a favorite bookstore about a year ago.
Why I want to read it:
I’m not a short story reader, but every once in a while, a collection catches my eye… and how could I resist this one? I mean, look at the authors included!
Table of Contents: Introduction by Stephen King Cargo by E. Michael Lewis The Horror of the Heights by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle Nightmare at 20,000 Feet by Richard Matheson The Flying Machine by Ambrose Bierce Lucifer! by E.C. Tubb The Fifth Category by Tom Bissell Two Minutes Forty-Five Seconds by Dan Simmons Diablitos by Cody Goodfellow Air Raid by John Varley You Are Released by Joe Hill Warbirds by David J. Schow The Flying Machine by Ray Bradbury Zombies on a Plane by Bev Vincent They Shall Not Grow Old by Roald Dahl Murder in the Air by Peter Tremayne The Turbulence Expert by Stephen King Falling by James L. Dickey Afterword by Bev Vincent
I have a feeling I’ll be terrified and will never want to get on a plane again… but then again, with the pandemic’s end nowhere in sight, it’s not like I’m traveling anyway. So maybe now really is the perfect time to read this collection!
Welcome to Shelf Control — an original feature created and hosted by Bookshelf Fantasies.
Shelf Control is a weekly celebration of the unread books on our shelves. Pick a book you own but haven’t read, write a post about it (suggestions: include what it’s about, why you want to read it, and when you got it), and link up! For more info on what Shelf Control is all about, check out my introductory post, here.
Want to join in? Shelf Control posts go up every Wednesday. See the guidelines at the bottom of the post, and jump on board!
For the Colleys of southeastern Missouri, the War between the States is a plague that threatens devastation, despite the family’s avowed neutrality. For eighteen-year-old Adair Colley, it is a nightmare that tears apart her family and forces her and her sisters to flee.
The treachery of a fellow traveler, however, brings about her arrest, and she is caged with the criminal and deranged in a filthy women’s prison. But young Adair finds that love can live even in a place of horror and despair. Her interrogator, a Union major, falls in love with her and vows to return for her when the fighting is over. Before he leaves for battle, he bestows upon her a precious gift: freedom.
Now an escaped “enemy woman,” Adair must make her harrowing way south buoyed by a promise…seeking a home and a family that may be nothing more than a memory.
How and when I got it:
I picked up a copy at a library sale a few years ago.
Why I want to read it:
After reading News of the World last week and absolutely loving it, I was surprised and happy to realize that I had another book by Paulette Jiles already on my shelves! Isn’t it strange when that happens? I’d completely forgotten that I owned this one.
The writing in News of the World was so gorgeous, and it made me very interested in reading more of her work. From what I understand, there’s some cross-over between that book and Enemy Women, with a character from News of the World appearing here as well (I think).
I have my eye on at least one of Paulette Jiles’s other backlist books too, as well as her newest release (Simon the Fiddler). I love finding a new-to-me author whose writing just sings to me!
Bookshelf Fantasies 