Goodies

I think we can all agree on this now: I will never be a photographer. No matter, I got some goodies over the weekend that I wanted to share with you. I am still reading The Knife of Never Letting Go, and although I do like it very much, right now it feels like the book of never letting go, especially with this little pile taunting me every day.

My next read is perched right there on top: A.S. Byatt’s The Children’s Book, which I won from the lovely Nymeth. Thanks so much Nymeth! I cannot wait to read it.

The next three are more ARCs from HarperCollins (I know, I know–stop accepting books!). Shadow Tag, Louise Erdich’s latest novel, tells the story of a marriage in dissolution. The wife, a scholar, discovers that her husband, a painter, has been reading her journal, believing she is having an affair. When she discovers his secret, she starts recording her thoughts in a new journal, which she keeps stashed in a safe deposit box at the bank, and turns the one her husband has been reading into a sort of farce. I read the first few pages, but I’m suspending judgment. The next book is a memoir/collection of essays by feminist scholar Terry Castle titled The Professor and Other Writings, in which she investigates her relationship with a female professor and how it shaped who she became as a person and a scholar. Under that one…The Devil’s Star, Jo Nesbo’s latest Harry Hole novel. I have not read Nesbo yet, but I keep seeing his name everywhere, so I am looking forward to this one (and hoping I can jump right in, as it’s a series and I haven’t read the other books yet).

And on the bottom of the pile there, a couple of library books: Victorian London, by Liza Picard, a book about…well, Victorian London, which I picked up just to learn some more interesting facts about life in London during that time and refresh my memory a bit, as I plan to tackle both Wilkie Collins and Dickens in the next few months. And finally, Libba Bray’s A Great and Terrible Beauty, which I am reading as part of my YA discovery. I hate to admit it, but I actually laughed out loud when I got this book home from the library and skimmed the first few pages (I am not the only one who reads the first few pages of every book she receives, am I?): the font is HUGE. (Update: Dummy did not realize she picked up a large print version of the book. Duh.) I had a moment of nostalgia then for when I used to teach writing, and students would turn in triple-spaced papers with eighteen point font (yes, despite the guidelines). It looked like Dr. Seuss had edited their papers. I am not judging the story, but I imagine it will be a quick read. That will be a good thing if I enjoy it enough to read the other books in the trilogy.

Happy Monday! I am off to watch Chuck, our Monday night guilty pleasure.