Beatrix

 

What's the better way of celebrating book love than reading books about books? We've prepared 13 fiction and nonfiction titles which will make your connection with books even stronger. And now let's meet other bibliophiles.

 

 

The Book Thief - Markus Zusak 

 

Liesel Meminger is a foster girl living outside of Munich, who scratches out a meager existence for herself by stealing when she encounters something she can’t resist–books. 

 

One of my new favorites

This is a superb book filled with heart, tragedy, and even a lot of moments of genuine humor. It's hard to think how a story about the Holocaust narrated by Death can work, but by golly it does. 

"So ugly and so glorious, so damning and brilliant."

I was writing a long, deep review, but f... it. Markus Zusak is just better at it than me. Brought to you by Death itself, a sassy little shit that made me cry in front of people.  

The Book Thief

I feel very strongly that a good review should praise a book for its strengths and critique it for its flaws. But when I love a book as much as I loved this one, it's hard for me to think of any flaws.

 

 

Fahrenheit 451- Ray Bradbury

 

The hauntingly prophetic classic novel set in a not-too-distant future where books are burned by a special task force of firemen. 

 

Fahrenheit 451

I loved Fahrenheit 451 because it was a book about burning books that was far more than a book about burning books. F451 is a book about the true cost of the loss of culture. 

Fahrenheit 451: Or why we all need to slow down and read more

Reading it now, as an adult in a media saturated time of history, is a kick in the ass I would never have gotten as a teenager. 

 

 

 Mr. Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore - Robin Sloan 

 

A gleeful and exhilarating tale of global conspiracy, complex code-breaking, high-tech data visualization, young love, rollicking adventure, and the secret to eternal life—mostly set in a hole-in-the-wall San Francisco bookstore.

 

Mini Review: Mr. Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore 

The geekery is over the top and you just enjoy where this story takes you. I love that so much of this story revolves around the association of a fantasy dragon trilogy. 

#CBR Book 154. Mr. Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore

As someone who loves books, a book about a mysterious book store and a mystery surrounding reading sounded pretty enticing.

Review | Mr. Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore, Robin Sloan | 5 Stars

Is this book perfect? No. Is it my favorite book I've read this year? Yes.

 

 

The Shadow of the Wind - Carlos Ruiz Zafón 

 

Hidden in the heart of the old city of Barcelona is the 'cemetery of lost books', a labyrinthine library of obscure and forgotten titles that have long gone out of print.

 

Review: The Shadow of the Wind

A novel about books is always a treat for readers, at least for those of us who have such a passion for books.  I’m terribly jealous of Daniel and his father who own a bookshop because they are allowed to spend all day dealing with books.  

A Review of The Shadow of the Wind by Carlos Ruiz Zafon

The author writes in a lyrical prose that is exquisite and many times I found myself re-reading passages I liked just to meditate a while longer on those said passages.

 

 

 Inkheart (Inkheart Trilogy) - Cornelia Funke

 

Meggie loves books. So does her father, Mo, a bookbinder, although he has never read aloud to her since her mother mysteriously disappeared.

 

Review Inkheart

The idea for this book is amazing; it's an idea that makes you wonder why no one wrote it years ago. Every reader would love the chance to meet their favorite characters in person, wouldn't they? 

Review - Inkheart by Cornelia Funke

The concept is a fascinating one. The ability to read characters and things out from the pages of a book. As great as that sounds, the reality of it is more of a curse than a gift as the lead characters find out.

 

 

 

 The Man Who Loved Books Too Much - Allison Hoover Bartlett 

 

Rare-book theft is even more widespread than fine-art theft. Most thieves, of course, steal for profit. John Charles Gilkey steals purely for the love of books.

 

Review: The Man Who Loved Books Too Much

I have some respect for those book thieves that steal because they have a love of rare books. 

The Man Who Loved Books Too Much

I liked reading this, though it's not really about a man who loves books too much, but rather is about The Man Who Couldn't or Wouldn't Stop Stealing Something. 

The Man Who Loved Books Too Much

I mean how can you love books too much?! Well apparently you can and John Gilkey was tremendously good at it.I've always wanted to collect books thanks to Beauty and the Beast, and this was right up my alley.

 

 

 Sixpence House: Lost in A Town Of Books - Paul Collins 

 

Paul Collins and his family abandoned the hills of San Francisco to move to the Welsh countryside-to move, in fact, to the village of Hay-on-Wye, the "Town of Books" that boasts fifteen hundred inhabitants-and forty bookstores.

 

Lost in a Town of Books

The chapter titles are very amusing in and of themselves, and the quotes from antiquarian books and magazines remarkably applicable to modern life. A very entertaining read for a bibliophile. 

Sixpence House

As much as I am a bookaholic, I am glad I do not live in Hay-on-Wye as I believe that I would have no money left for food!

 

 

 A Passion for Books

 

A Passion for Books is a collection of sixty classic and contemporary essays, stories, lists, poems, quotations, and cartoons on the joys of reading, appreciating, and collecting books.

 

A Passion for Books

Another piece I really enjoyed was Umberto Eco's examination of the large personal library, something he most definitely possesses. It's suggested reading for anyone who has ever had a non-bibliophile friend survey your overstuffed shelves and ask "Have you read all of these books?"

 

 

 Used and Rare: Travels in the Book World - Lawrence Goldstone

 

When Nancy Goldstone bought a vintage copy of "War and Peace" to win a birthday bet with co-author Larry, the couple began their journey into the world of book collecting, meeting a hilarious cast of eccentrics along the way.

 

Used and Rare

The Goldstones are clearly a literate couple who delight in the content of the books as well as the joy of owning a first edition “first state,” unlike the people who purchase books by the yard.

 

 

 Ex Libris: Confessions of a Common Reader - Anne Fadiman 

 

For Fadiman, as for many passionate readers, the books she loves have become chapters in her own life story.

 

Ex Libris

They read everything and anything. You have boxes of books on shelves and in corners that really need to be sorted and either kept or given away for someone else to read. 

Confessions of a Common Reader

As enjoyable as this little read was, I have to say that I disagree with Fadiman in some ways: I don't think readers are so clear-cut in the way they love books. 

Ex Libris: Confessions of a Common Reader

Each essay has a different topic, but each touch upon her life and how books have impacted it. There are written with great humor and language.

 

 

 Phantoms on the Bookshelves - Jacques Bonnet 

 

This enthralling study on the art of living with books considers how our personal libraries reveal our true natures: far more than merely crowded shelves, they are living labyrinths of our innermost feelings.

 

Phantoms on the Bookshelves

Jacques Bonnet is a French art historian with a collection of over 40,000 books. In this brief book he discusses the unique challenges that possessing so many books creates and the passions that drive a serious bibliophile.

Phantoms on the Bookshelves

For me this book is a little treasure that I will proudly add to my personal library (in the non-fiction section, alphabetically under author’s name to be precise).

 

 

 A History of Reading - Alberto Manguel 

 

At one magical instant in your early childhood, the page of a book—that string of confused, alien ciphers—shivered into meaning. Words spoke to you, gave up their secrets; at that moment, whole universes opened. You became, irrevocably, a reader.

 

A History of Reading

Overall though, there were plenty of interesting topics covered, from the origins of reading and writing, reading aloud, banned books and even the history of eyeglasses and rise of anti-intellectualism.

 

 

 The Whole Five Feet - Christopher Beha 

 

Beha’s chronicle is a smart, big-hearted, and inspirational mix of memoir and intellectual excursion—and a powerful testament to what great books can teach us about how to live our own lives.

 

The Whole Five Feet

Christopher Beha was in his early 20's, living with his parents and just entering his 5th year of remission from cancer when he decided to tackle a task he had kept in the back of his mind for some time: read through the entire Five Foot Shelf in one year and write a book about it.

 

We'd love to hear your bibliophilic stories :)

 

pic source: via

3.5 stars


Well, this was better than most of the New Adult crap out there. There was no your typical alpha male, for which I was glad.
(Main female character, on the other hand, was so boring I can already see I won't remember anything about her in a month. And of course, she was a virgin, so there's that stereotype.)
But in general, not a bad book.

Although, if you've read your fair share of NA books, you won't find this particularly compelling, because this book won't offer you anything new, no new insights. It's all already seen.
But if you're only looking for a fun read, this one will do the trick.

More Jonathan?
Yes, please!

A new book by Karina Halle? Gimme right now!!

AND it's about the Donner party and the westward expansion; who knew my history course would come in handy ;)

‘Time is too short and good books too many to waste time reading books you don’t enjoy.’ – Andrea Goldsmith


This book is not that bad, I can see some people are going to like it.
But I was not impressed. It started off really weird, then the so called 'romance' between two main characters, I just didn't see it. That was not love, as they called it, that was just lust, mind you.
Okay, I'm no stranger to reading incest books, AND this one is NOT even that, because they're not brother and sister. But the whole thing was just weird and creepy.

And the book is way too long, I skipped alot and the ending is totally predictable.
I started reading and yes, I admit I was intrigued; where the whole thing would go, but then at 30% I stopped, didn't have that much time to read, and after a few days, I didn't feel like returnig to this book.
Now I know I didn't miss out on anything. As the quote at the beginning of my review says, I didn't enjoy this all that much, and I felt my time was wasted.
Goodbye book, I'm going to chose my future reads with more care.

I have not, in a while, read a book that left me so emotionally engaged! I do not think I have the words to sum up what this book will make you feel: at times sad, enraged, disappointed, disgusted, repulsed …and so on, and so forth.

I was mostly okay, up until that fourth part, it is mainly a reason why I gave it 4 stars, even though this is an excellent 5-stars book: with outstanding writing (something that is probably the most important to me), plot, characters, everything; but I had to take my own feelings into consideration, because this book did disturb me, so yes, it is subjective.

Taming the Beast follows a path of a young, damaged woman on the road of self-destruction. It is a portrayal of abuse, in its truest form. Not only was she seduced abused by her English teacher at the tender age of 14, she was also raped at the age of 16;, rejected by her entire family, but in the following 8 years, she self-abused her body, in a series of meaningless sexual encounters, all the while trying to recapture what she experienced with Daniel Carr.

She is like an addict, constantly repeating the same things in the hopes of gaining something higher, but constantly falling back down..

The ending; I expected something along those lines, but it still saddened me. I knew she could not be saved, she’s simply too far gone, but the fact that she recognized the wrongness of it, but still embraced it, affected me the most. We always have a choice in life, and Sarah choose hers – her beast with two backs, for it was an easier way out.

But then, life is a constant withering of possibilities. Some are stolen with the lives of people you love. Others are let go, with regret and reluctance and deep, deep sorrow.

I would not recommend this book to anyone; I’m afraid that people would not see its beauty, would be too repulsed to find a message amongst that horridness.

And I think many people don’t understand Sarah – why she did not go to the police or don’t consider this abuse if she wanted it… No, this is abuse, even if she was not aware of it!

To write this book, author needed a great understanding of human psychology and behaviours of abused person, and I think, to read it, we do too.

I kinda hoped it's a sequel to [b:My Name Is Memory|7135858|My Name Is Memory|Ann Brashares|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1307512606s/7135858.jpg|7399114] when I saw this...

The best one so far!♥

I just couldn't get into this.
For such a serious subject, it lacked depth.

So many great books to read, I'm not wasting time with this..

WANT!!! *__*

All he wanted was to leave the past behind. When he met Jacqueline Wallace, his desire to be everything she needed came so easy…

As easy as it could be for a man who learned that the soul is breakable and that everything you hoped for could be ripped away in a heartbeat.

Aaaaa finally we're getting Lucas' story! I freaking can't wait!!


PS: Dislike this cover, but whatever.. :)

Five amazing dominant stars!

I started reading it with an open mind, because I knew I'm in for controversy. I hoped for nothing, expected everything.
This book is incredibly well written, it’s erotica but at the same time it’s so much more. I’ve read a few BDSM books before, and let me tell you, I just wish I’ve read this first, because my opinion might have been different. But luckily, it’s never too late, I’ve read this beauty and Tiffany Reisz changed some of my views, and that’s a big success, when an author does that.

There are some things that made me uncomfortable, all the rape allusions and definitely the part where Nora took Michael’s virginity. I was like WTF, why?! I don’t understand it. He IS 15!!

Oh and I definitely loved Zach & Gracie, I was secretly rooting for them!

Overall, this book is really something: great writing style, complex characters, taboo themes. Read it, but prepare yourselves for one helluva ride.
You’ve been warned!

Review posted on Way Too Hot Books.


Oh I quite liked this book, how best to summarize it? It’s haunting, beautiful, poetic, sensual and melancholic, all at the same time.

Book begins with Solomon Andrews moving into town, he’s a new teacher. A free spirit, enjoying casual sex and without ever having a serious relationship or intention of one. Main female character, whose name is not mentioned, starts looking him from her bedroom window and very soon she’s bewitched. Solomon is aware of her watching, and thinks it’s just a teenage crush, but after some months and she’s still not bored, letters start to arrive at his doorstep. And they’re his undoing. Beautiful, erotic letters that he can’t resist.

So he doesn’t. The two of them start a secret affair. she thinks of him as her god, she’s 16 and completely in love, whereas he enjoys her fresh skin and innocent youth and he’s giving her and education, a sexual education, teaching her all about pleasure and secrets of sexuality.

This first part of the book was quite interesting, we see her ignorance and innocence, she’s completely unaware of how he sees her, she’s childishly obsessed with him, thinking they’re soulmates, divine and meant to be.

Then comes the second part, some 20 years later. We’re following her story of unsuccessful relationships. She could never forget Solomon, to get over him, in her mind he always stayed a god, untouched, no one compared to him. Because the only way she connected with Solomon was through sex, she seeked that with other men too. But they couldn’t give her what he could, she’d always end up disappointed. She kept imagining, dreaming, contemplating, searching and waiting. Hoping for him to find her one day and proclaim his undying love for her.

All throughout the book MC is referred to as SHE, her name is omitted, in fact it is the last word in the book. It is a metaphor, of her trying to find, reclaim herself. After she’s married, with child, she indeed does meet Solomon again. And then she realized that what she wanted was a fantasy. How she spent all her life living with a memory.

The main reason I enjoyed this book is its writing style, so sensual and poetic. It’s a book about lust and love, about trying to find love through lust.

The only thing I liked a bit less is the MC, her blindness and inability to see the truth, all the while she’s so passive, quietly suffering and wasting her days. But I loved the ending, how the story came full circle, how she came to all the revelations by herself.
All in all, a wonderful read!

A Diffrent Blue is a different kind of teacher/student romance.
In fact, it feels wrong altogether to label it simply as such, because this book is so much more.

Why don’t you focus on where you’re going and less on where you came from?

I liked Blue from the start, and I think her character is done great. When we meet her she’s what we would call a slut, there I said it, and right from the start, Blue is labeled.

She knows it herself and she is fine by it, no not fine exactly, but she’s aware that it’s how people see her and that it’s something she can’t change. It is because she doesn’t know who she is, where she came from or who her real parents are.

And THAT is something what really bothers her, she feels discarded, unwanted, like she doesn’t belong anywhere and she gives the impressions that she doesn’t care about anything.

On top of all that, she’s hiding under this tough girl façade, while underneath she’s this really quiet, contemplating girl. She’s really complex and I couldn’t help but to sympathize with her.

That was until she met Darcy Wilson, her new history teacher.
Right from the start I was worried that their relationship would fall under the usual clichés, but fortunately I was wrong.

Firstly, the age difference, or more precisely the absence of such. Because Blue and Wilson are practically around the same age, the difference being some two, three years. And in the novels of this type, I don’t like it when authors put such small difference in age, because then we really lose the taboo element.

But here, no. Even though Wilson is so young, he felt older than Blue. I felt he was mentally older than her.

Wilson was her pillar, confidant, sometimes her only support and I liked how their relationship progressed so slowly. Naturally in fact, they were there for each other in some of the most important parts of their lives.

And Wilson is British, another thing I thought was going to be so cliché. Bu I liked how the author showed us differences in collocations between American and British English, something that was quite interesting to me as a student of language.

This book is so much more than a teacher/student romance, it is a minor fact in comparison to everything else. It’s a book about finding your true self, accepting, believing, love above all and characters that mature and grow. A story that came full circle, I’d recommend it to everyone who likes reading about real life problems.

Someone told me once that to create true art you must be willing to bleed and let others watch.

I don’t know what to say, I waited so long for this book, and now I feel like I didn’t get what I wanted. It’s just not how I expected the things to turn out.

What bothered me is that the last book ended with a cliffhanger and this one sort of does too.
It ended just like the last one. What we got was Willem’s side of the story, his year, and that is okay, but I wanted mostly to see how their story continues.
Okay she found him, and SHE is the one who found him, but what next?
It all just feels unfinished.

Oh yes and Willem, well he sure is no Adam Wilde. While reading Where She Went I fell in love with Adam. Willem was annoying me at times. Avoiding responsibility, with all this talk of accidents.
But yeah, not fair to compare the two (books).

Nevertheless, the book was enjoyable , the writing is excellent, Gayle Forman is still one of my favorite authors.
It’s just that the whole book I was waiting for something and then bam – end – nothing.

Whole review someday.. maybe.

3.5 stars

First of all, this book was tagged as New Adult romance, but it's not. This is a much more serious story. And the romance is there, but to me it wasn’t a central part. This book is about Sarai, 23 year old girl who’s spent the last 9 years of her life in Mexico in the hands of Javier, a drug lord and all things evil.

I’ve seen a movie a few years back that deals with things mentioned here: sex trafficking, abuse of women.. It’s called Trade, and I’d recommend it, just to get the general image and see the things that happen to girls around the world!

Now back to the story. I guess I just expected something different and was not prepared for such a dark theme. MC Sarai – she’s the victim of abuse, traumatized, mentally scarred for life. She will never be able to function in normal life, because to her murder and death are normal. She’s obviously suffering from Stockholm syndrome. All throughout the book we can see the consequences of abuse she suffered, she’s a ticking time bomb and I truly felt sorry for her.

This book was very serious to me, I don’t know - perhaps the author did intend this to be NA romance, but she wrote about things I take seriously – sex trafficking and I’m very sensitive about that.

Now the other MC Victor – he’s a cold blooded murdered, an assassin and only Sarai managed to break through his shield. At the beginning he’s very cold to her, and that was okay, but as the book progressed I expected some warmth, some sparks between them. But no. Only when we get his POV we can see that he’s thinking about her, but he doesn’t really show it. If this book was only in Sarai’s POV I’d doubt Victor. That is why I had problems with visualizing him, all the while I felt like there was a black veil around him, I couldn’t quite picture him. He’s so cold, robotic; I guess that’s only fair since he is an assassin. But this is not a love story, Sarai fell for Victor, I think in him she saw a protector, she cling to him.

Anyway, this is a good book, I will be reading the second part, I’m curious how the story goes on. The problem was in me, this week I’ve been feeling off and I needed something light to read, this book was anything but. Also I didn’t had much time, so I dragged this on, I couldn’t get into it like I usually do. And I usually don't have a custom to write reviews about books I give lower grades too, but I felt I had to say something about this one.

Overall, a good book, I just didn’t enjoy it that much and when reading this book don’t expect fluffy rainbows and HEA.