Sunday, January 12, 2014

The Goldfinch by Donna Tartt


Bestselling Book of the Month: October 2013.

The Goldfinch is a masterpiece in the classic style of the Bildungsroman. The recounting of Theo Decker's unfolding awareness of the world, its complications, its criminality and injustice, the lack of stability in his life, his sense of being isolated and his ability to love are all affected by one significant event of terrorism in the modern world that skews his view of reality and effectively leaves him an orphan. What follows is a remarkably detailed account that covers every aspect of Theo's life in detail and the storytelling is never anything less than wonderful. It's almost Dickensian in scope and treatment, the book drawing obvious parallels with Great Expectations and even making references and nods to Oliver Twist, but in its own way it is also a thoroughly modern work.

 Running to almost 800 pages, The Goldfinch is going to require a substantial investment of your time, but I think anyone would be prepared to give Donna Tartt's new novel that much. What you might not realise until it is too late however is the amount of personal investment a book like this demands. By the time you get to the even half-way through the extraordinary 14 year journey that has taken Theo Decker to Amsterdam, the dawning realisation that this has to eventually come to an end suddenly hits you. Drawing out the inevitable isn't possible either as there's not a moment of The Goldfinch that doesn't have you completely in its thrall, reluctant to put it down and feeling bereft at its conclusion.




About Author:
Donna Tartt was born in Greenwood, Mississippi and is a graduate of Bennington College. She is the author of the novels The Secret History and The Little Friend, which have been translated into thirty languages.

Thursday, October 10, 2013

Doctor Sleep: A Novel by Stephen King

HARDCOVER FICTION. Best Sellers - The New York Times. October, 2013


Stephen King returns to the character and territory of one of his most popular novels ever, The Shining, in this instantly riveting novel about the now middle-aged Dan Torrance and the very special twelve-year-old girl he must save from a tribe of murderous paranormals.  

Doctor Sleep is on my list! I will read this book at least once a year. This book has everything, horror, heartbreak, friendship, fear, rage and revenge, and of course love. If you're a Stephen King fan you won't be disappointed. After reading this book I''m left wondering about Abra, maybe we will read her story someday. If you haven't read The Shining do that before you read this book. The movie was great, the books better.

Thursday, May 30, 2013

The Guns at Last Light is The Liberation Trilogy, by Rick Atkinson

Rick Atkinson is the bestselling author of An Army at Dawn (winner of the Pulitzer Prize for history), The Day of Battle, The Long Gray Line, In the Company of Soldiers, and Crusade. His many other awards include a Pulitzer Prize for journalism, the George Polk award, and the Pritzker Military Library Literature Award.

His The Guns at Last Light: The War in Western Europe, 1944-1945 is the twentieth century’s unrivaled epic: at a staggering price, the United States and its allies liberated Europe and vanquished Hitler. In the first two volumes of his bestselling Liberation Trilogy, Rick Atkinson recounted how the American-led coalition fought through North Africa and Italy to the threshold of victory. Now he tells the most dramatic story of all the titanic battle for Western Europe.

The brutal fight in Normandy, the liberation of Paris, the disaster that was Operation Market Garden, the horrific Battle of the Bulge, and finally the thrust to the heart of the Third Reich all these historic events and more come alive with a wealth of new material and a mesmerizing cast of characters. Atkinson tells the tale from the perspective of participants at every level, from presidents and generals to war-weary lieutenants and terrified teenage riflemen. When Germany at last surrenders, we understand anew both the devastating cost of this global conflagration and the enormous effort required to win the Allied victory.

Top 5 The New York Times Best Sellers

Inferno, Dan Brown's latest book, maintained the top spot on the U.S. best-sellers list.
In this riveting new thriller, Brown returns to his element and has crafted his highest-stakes novel to date.


COMBINED PRINT & E-BOOK FICTION

INFERNO, by Dan Brown
THE HIT, by David Baldacci
EYES WIDE OPEN, by Raine Miller
12TH OF NEVER, by James Patterson and Maxine Paetro
DEAD EVER AFTER, by Charlaine Harris

COMBINED PRINT & E-BOOK NONFICTION

THE GUNS AT LAST LIGHT, by Rick Atkinson
HAPPY, HAPPY, HAPPY, by Phil Robertson with Mark Schlabach
LET'S EXPLORE DIABETES WITH OWLS, by David Sedaris
LEAN IN, by Sheryl Sandberg with Nell Scovell
PROOF OF HEAVEN, by Eben Alexander


HARDCOVER FICTION

INFERNO, by Dan Brown
DEAD EVER AFTER, by Charlaine Harris
SILKEN PREY, by John Sandford
12TH OF NEVER, by James Patterson and Maxine Paetro
THE HIT, by David Baldacci


HARDCOVER NONFICTION

THE GUNS AT LAST LIGHT, by Rick Atkinson
HAPPY, HAPPY, HAPPY, by Phil Robertson with Mark Schlabach
LEAN IN, by Sheryl Sandberg with Nell Scovell
LET'S EXPLORE DIABETES WITH OWLS, by David Sedaris
COOKED, by Michael Pollan