Book Club, Fiction, Historical, Romance, Young Adult

Lovely War by Julie Berry

On the store blog today my coworker Anna and I featured our favorite new romances, all contemporary save one, as we thought it time we feature the books that bring us joy in the world right now. Lovely War I read because I'm going to be joining Anna's YA for All Book Club that she… Continue reading Lovely War by Julie Berry

Biography, Diary of a Bookseller, Fantasy, Fiction, Historical, Memoir/Autobiography, Nonfiction, Psychology, Sociology, STEM

Holiday Gift Picks

Every year at the bookstore I work at, I have everyone choose a few books from the year to highlight as their top gift choices, as well as a selection of backpack backlist titles for our annual Jolabokaflod display (Jolabokaflod post will be next week). Below are my eight choices for the holidays with their… Continue reading Holiday Gift Picks

Bookish Tuesday, Fantasy, Fiction, Historical, Young Adult

YA Fab Five

Over the last few weeks I mentioned that I have a personal “YA Fab Five” and that I really don’t read much other YA, disputed reading a great deal of it up until the last few years. I still like the general but have been finding the writing quality to have fallen off recently as… Continue reading YA Fab Five

Bookish Tuesday, Fantasy, Fiction, Nonfiction, Romance, Sociology

Favorite Reads of 2019 So Far

I've had a good reading year so far, better than previous years - I've only hated 3 books so far! But below are my favorites thus far - not necessarily published in 2019 but read in 2019. And surprisingly, only 1 work of nonfiction and 3 fiction. Range by David Epstein An enjoyable psychology/sociology minded… Continue reading Favorite Reads of 2019 So Far

Fantasy, Fiction

Nevernight by Jay Kristoff

Nevernight Chronicle #1 I've been trying to read Nevernight for the better part of two and a half years. Which is weird, because I really like it. I don't know why it's taken me so long to read it, save for my occasionally annoying new obsession with all thing nonfiction that makes fiction seem boring.… Continue reading Nevernight by Jay Kristoff

Contemporary, Fantasy, Fiction, Young Adult

Killer Unicorns duology by Diana Peterfreund

Rampant & Ascendant Unicorns are a pretty hot topic these days so I figured it was time to honor someone who led the charge for unicorns before the train even left the station. Rampant Synopsis Forget everything you ever knew about unicorns… Astrid Llewelyn has always scoffed at her eccentric mother’s stories about killer unicorns. But… Continue reading Killer Unicorns duology by Diana Peterfreund

Fantasy, Fiction, Science Fiction, Young Adult

Reduction Duology by Diana Peterfreund

For Darkness Shows the Stars & Across a Star-Swept Sea Diana Peterfreund is one of my most favorite authors. I first discovered her works when I was getting ready to head off to college in 2007 and I stumbled upon the Secret Society Girl series. It is one of the few series that actually covers college age… Continue reading Reduction Duology by Diana Peterfreund

Biography, History, Nonfiction

Princesses Behaving Badly by Linda Rodriguez McRobbie

Real Stories from History Without the Fairy-Tale Endings I found this book on my very first visit to the Strand in New York City right after I finished student teaching. I’ve always loved multi-story books about historical women. Additionally, while reading this book at the Greyhound station in New York City while waiting for my… Continue reading Princesses Behaving Badly by Linda Rodriguez McRobbie

Fantasy, Fiction, Retelling

Mermaid by Carolyn Turgeon

I love a good fairy tale adaptation and when I first heard the true story of the Little Mermaid, I became a bit obsessed with all accurate adaptations. Synopsis Princess Margrethe has been hidden away while her kingdom is at war. One gloomy, windswept morning, as she stands in a convent garden overlooking the icy sea,… Continue reading Mermaid by Carolyn Turgeon

Contemporary, Fiction

Brida by Paulo Coelho

One of my GED students from Brazil recommended this book to me as the author is from her home country (though she read it in English) and she really enjoyed the premise. I agreed to read it in an effort to continue to encourage her to read in English, but I was not quite as… Continue reading Brida by Paulo Coelho