Bookanalia (Books, Bookstores…)

To read, perchance to dream…
To read…a book in a bookstore or library or park or garden or street corner, waiting for the bus anywhere in the world, is to dream while living, while wide awake yet transported to another dimension.
Here live books which have transported me, which would make great travel companions for you (and there’s one which just makes sense for blog writers and might still be nice for a short trip). You may also find stories about specific and wondrous bookstores I have visited. There eventually will be libraries here, too. Parks. Gardens. Street corners. Anywhere a book may be found or one reading it, is fair game for this page of dreams…

Londoners by Craig Taylor

Oh, it’s good, and a great book to read before a trip to London! In it, the writer collected hundreds of oral histories form Londoners and compiled many into this book. Here are stories of Londoners in their own words. And a diversity of stories there are. Because each chapter is a different voice, a … Read More

“Long Live the Writers! Long Live the Readers! Long Live Shakespeare & Company!”

No, it’s not the original established in 1922 by Sylvia Beach at 12 rue de l’Odéon in the 6th arrondissement, which closed forever in 1940, during the German occupation of Paris. It is not that famed enclave of Ezra Pound, Ernest Hemingway, James Joyce and Ford Madox Ford. But it is a worthy bookstore eventually … Read More

All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr

All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr My rating: 4 of 5 stars A beautiful, suspenseful, and at times, heart-hurting book. I did not want to stop reading it and I didn’t want it to end. It is completely understandable why it took Anthony Doerr ten years to write it. Each word is … Read More

Inferno by Dan Brown

Inferno by Dan Brown My rating: 3 of 5 stars Well, Dan Brown’s writing can be formulaic, of course. (Why corrupt a successful and lucrative recipe, after all?) Robert Langdon, pre-eminent art historian, finds himself on a quest to save the world and must use his powers of decoding and deep knowledge of art history … Read More

Wuthering Heights by Emily Brontë

Wuthering Heights by Emily Brontë My rating: 3 of 5 stars I’ve finally finished Wuthering Heights. I say “finally” because the evil transmogrified in Heathcliff made me almost constantly want to run away from the book. Surely Heathcliff must be one of literature’s most loathsome villains. I was pulled in, however, and made to persevere … Read More

The Children’s Book by A. S. Byatt

The Children’s Book by A.S. Byatt My rating: 4 of 5 stars Short-listed for the Man Booker Prize. Expansive. Covering years from 1880’s to end of WWI in England. Many intertwined personalities with whom we become intimately acquainted. Victoria and Albert Museum prominent in 1st half of book. Pottery. Ceramics. Textiles. Puppetry. Marionettes. Germans. Munich. … Read More

Medium Raw by Anthony Bourdain

Medium Raw: A Bloody Valentine to the World of Food and the People Who Cook by Anthony Bourdain Yes, of course, it is a book about food. And some of Bourdain’s descriptions of culinary wonders make me sigh. But, in Medium Raw, it’s not only about the food because, now, Bourdain shares his experiences as a new … Read More

Night Falls on the City by Sarah Gainham

My rating: 3 of 5 stars I am very glad I read this WWII saga and have learned much about Vienna during that era: the Anschluss, the SS and Gestapo, the enduring importance of culture and theater as the war evolved, the Russians. Vienna itself is a major character in the novel and its war-time … Read More

Team of Rivals by Doris Kearns Goodwin

I listened to the audio version of this book, narrated by the author, and thought it excellent. (Authors as narrators is a not always complimentary concept, but in this case, Goodwin herself proved worthy as both author and narrator.) This biography of not only Abraham Lincoln but key cabinet members – including Henry Seward, Salman P. Chase, … Read More

The Poacher’s Son by Paul Doiron

Something happens, I think, when a book is written from a place of deep love for its subject. That affection brings about a desire for more knowing and a desire to share what we know. That’s the mark of a great educator, that passion. In the novel, The Poacher’s Son, Paul Doiron educates us by … Read More

Contents May Have Shifted by Pam Houston

I have been fortunate enough in this life to read many books which have touched me deeply and resonated profoundly. Usually, when I come across soul-touching passages in these books, I have to pause in my reading and copy them into my journal. Houston’s book, Contents May Have Shifted, definitely gave me pause. The book implies travel, … Read More

Juiet, Naked by Nick Hornby

I enjoyed this. Nick Hornby reminds me a bit of a male Sophie Kinsella in the way he is able to get into the head of one of the protagonists, British-and-proper-but-not-wanting-to-be-so-much, Annie. There is her boyfriend, Duncan, who is obsessed with an obscure and isolationist rocker, Tucker Crowe. There is Tucker Crowe, whose low self-worth … Read More

The Art of Social Media by Guy Kawasaki and Peg Fitzpatrick

I was excited by the readability of this book and the obvious practical wisdom regarding effective social media tactics. However, upon starting the book, I was immediately disappointed that, because I had the hardcover edition and not the digital version, I did not have access to the rich source of links available on just about … Read More

And the Mountains Echoed by Khaled Hosseini

A beautiful read. The book tells the story of an Afghani brother and sister – Abdullah & Pari, separated from one another at young ages – by presenting the perspective and stories of people either directly or tangentially involved in their lives. It is an interweaving: a fabric with at once golden and frayed threads. … Read More

Euphoria by Lily King

Euphoria by Lily King My rating: 4 of 5 stars “I think above all else it is freedom I search for in my work, in these far-flung places, to find a group of people who give each other the room to be in whatever way they need to be. And maybe I will never find … Read More

Inspector Thomas Lynley Series by Elizabeth George

I’ve hit on a series that hits back hard, keeping me engrossed and coming back for more. This British-genre mysteries authored by a prolific American writer are un-put-downable! The BBC agrees and has created the Inspector Lynley Mysteries television series based on George’s books as the photo above attests to. (I steadfastly refuse to watch … Read More

The Travelers by Chris Pavone

Implausible and silly at times, it was however fun to travel around the world while reading the book.

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Bookanalia (Books, Bookstores…)

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