Wednesday, August 22, 2012

LOTR--Pick a Style!

See how confused poor Frodo looks?  =>

There's a good reason for that.

He's been uprooted on Changing the Times.  To my great amusement. they've rewritten passages of Lord of the Rings as other authors.  And okay, yes, it's an entry dating back to May 2011, but cut me some slack--the internet gets update faster than I can read it!

Take a gander when you have a moment, just don't make the same mistake I did and read the P.G. Wodehouse entry with a cup of coffee in your hand.  I'm pretty sure this stain won't be coming out.

Tuesday, August 14, 2012

Attention Book Groups

The Art of Fielding is a fictional story about baseball star Henry Skrimshander.  It has been called "baseball fiction the way Moby Dick is just a fish story" (Nicholas Dawidoff).  It is a warmhearted novel about ambition and its limits, about family and friendship and love, and about commitment--to oneself and to others.

Available as a Book Group to Go Bag 

Thursday, August 9, 2012

From Page to Screen -- On the Road

So...  In a post-Twilight world, wherever will we get our Kirsten Stewart fix?
Answer: film adaptations of Jack Kerouac novels.  Not bad, eh?

Initial reviews of the film as a whole are good--and that will have to sustain us all the way through until almost Christmas: the release date is December 21st.  Ouch.
Good thing you've got ye faithful librarian to point you to the book to keep you occupied...
You're welcome.
Happy Reading!

Newly Notable -- In My Father's Country

I can admit it--by and large, if it shows up on The Daily Show, I'm interested and will likely end up reading the book.  I will say, however, that this interview is very unlike Jon Stewart's typical fare...
The Daily Show with Jon StewartMon - Thurs 11p / 10c
Saima Wahab
www.thedailyshow.com
Daily Show Full EpisodesPolitical Humor & Satire BlogThe Daily Show on Facebook

Click here to place a hold on the book.
Happy Reading!

Thursday, August 2, 2012

From Page to Screen -- Anna Karenina

So, there have been a bunch of screen adaptations of Anna Karenina, but here's one with a unique spin.  Watch this "featurette" clip for an upcoming adaptation....

...right.  I'm not quite sure what to make of that, either.
Anyway, in case you've not done so already, try to read the book.  I'm linking my favorite translation--by Richard Pevear and Larissa Volokhonsky (very cool story--husband and wife translating team--he's American, she's Russian--they work together and come up with these incredibly easy to read, engaging translations of what can otherwise be kinda' daunting undertakings--their work on Dostoyevsky is really remarkable).  The film debuts on November 9.
So....  Yep--starting today, that's plenty of time to tackle a Russian classic!

Wednesday, August 1, 2012

Attention Book Groups

In his book Have a Little Faith, bestselling author Mitch Albom has written about two very different clergymen, an elderly rabbi from his home synagogue in New Jersey and an African-American pastor ministering to Detroit's homeless population.  He talks about both of these very different men and their messages of faith.



Available as a Book Group to Go Bag

Attention Book Groups

The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie by C. Alan Bradley

Here's a new book for Book Groups starring Flavia DeLuce, a precocious 11-year-old girl, who lives in a large, old house in England with her stamp collecting father and two mean older sisters.  She has a passion for chemistry, and is very good at solving mysteries.  When a dead man is found in the family garden, she sets out to find out how he died and solve the mystery.

Available as a Book Group to Go Bag