Tag: reading

Book Review: The Storied Life of A.J. Fikry

91hvgvo-tl imagesGabrielle Zevin has written a lovely novel for those who can make a day of paging through the shelves of a small, independent bookstore.  To fully appreciate the story, it’s best if you touch the paper pages and mark your place with a scrap of paper or the dust cover flap.

A.J. Fikry is a throwback. A man in his 30’s, he is the owner/proprietor of a small bookstore on a rather isolated island in Massachusetts. Quite cantankerous for a young man, he was embittered by the sudden death of his wife and partner, an Alice Island native, for whom the creation of a bookstore and event locale was the realization of a lifelong dream.

Bereft in his widowhood, A.J. is only interested in stocking books to his taste, eschewing popular children’s titles or books that might appeal to the island’s summer people. Author events are too messy, emails and the internet an unnecessary intrusion. And then in rapid succession a novice publisher’s representative disrupts his solitary routine, a prized Poe first edition is stolen, and an abandoned baby appears with instructions for A.J. to raise her.

Alice Island is a tight-knit and quirky community held together by a love of place and acceptance of one another. As Fikry’s life is turned upside down dealing with new and different circumstances, those around him change as well.  Take the time to meet A.J. and the rest of the people of Alice Island. It will be time well spent.

Zevin cleverly uses quotes from favorite authors to front each chapter and show Fikry’s transformation. From page to page and chapter to chapter, Gabrielle Zevin has written a love letter to readers who cherish the special book on the shelf and the writers and booksellers who put it in their hands.

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  • Genre: Fiction
  • Locale: Massachusetts
  • Time: Contemporary
  • Book Group Potential: Excellent
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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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Readers, guilty pleasures need a PR makeover

I admit, when I have no book in hand I’ve been known to read anything from all the ads in a subway car to the back (and sides) of a cereal box. Desperate times call for desperate measures.  Don’t knock it. As I recall, there was a time when there  were short stories on the back of a specially constructed Cap’n Crunch box that had an extra flap for more story.  I could take or leave the cereal, but to have something to read at the table – that was something special.

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“So, what are you reading?” is a question I ask of a new acquaintance or someone I haven’t seen for a while.   Continue reading Readers, guilty pleasures need a PR makeover

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I’ve moved! Virtually, that is

The combination of unceasingly cold weather and the common cold have kept me close to my computer. With a bit of help, you are now seeing this blog and my website in their new home.  The look is much the same for now but the address is streamlined.  And if you find me from somewhere other than your phone, the subscribe option is readily visible.

The great news about virtual moves is that there are no packing boxes to unload or shelves to build so I am squeezing in some other activities. I’m a bit behind but I am watching the BET miniseries, The Book of Negroes, that I discussed a few weeks ago. The first 2 hours were what I imagined while reading the book, a very pleasant surprise.

My front-burner reading right now is a grand mix.  A discussion of  Jhumpa Lahiri’s The Lowland is rescheduled for next week. Lahiri grabbed me from the first sentence and sent me off in search of info on the Naxalite movement in India that is the catalyst for the story. I’m also tasting some upcoming titles on my iPad. Having the chance to find a great story before it has been promoted and dissected to death is such fun. Of course, many of these advance reads are also good candidates for the remainder section of the bookstore. I just abandoned an upcoming novel about George Sand by a writer I usually enjoy. Her writing of semi-fictional accounts of real people is less appealing to me than the characters she creates on her own. An upcoming debut novel by Rebecca Dinerstein landed on my iPad. It is due out in April and I hope to have a review to share. She’s created two parallel threads, each with a distinct narrator. So far it is worth the read and I’m looking forward to seeing where she takes it.

Before I leave this space, I’d like to share the promise of spring. Back in 2010 the DC area was gripped by Snowmaggedon. It took a while, but the season changed and the cherry blossoms bloomed. I spent a glorious day with a camera watching nature reborn and people from all corners of the earth walking the Tidal Basin in celebration of Washington and spring.

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Reading, a portable vacation

Forget the 10835269_904426496256072_731989134103596863_ogroundhog! You don’t need a rodent to tell you that winter’s got a firm grip on the U.S. Like everyone else, I’d be thrilled to have warm winds and long sunlit days but it’s not to be. The upside of howling winds and darkness is the pull of a comfy chair and lots of good books. How apt that February is Love of Reading Month. Continue reading Reading, a portable vacation

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