January 8th-January 14th, 2023
The Sunday Post
The Sunday Post is a blog news meme hosted here @ Caffeinated Reviewer. It’s a chance to share news~ A post to recap the past week on your blog and showcase books and things we have received. Share news about what is coming up on your blog for the week ahead. Join in weekly, bi-weekly or for a monthly wrap up. See rules here: Sunday Post Meme
# 15 Life
Last few weeks, believe it or not, were extremely disappointing for me, and it seems as if the trend might not reverse. The New Years gift idea worked, and the four books are ones I got over last two weeks (maybe in December 2023 I shall do entire MONTH of books as New Years presents) and my son loved the gifts he got which included karaoke microphone, art kit, a Lego tank and from his aunt a Lego type airplane that breaks every five minutes and from his dad a toy submarine that moves underwater (he has an idea of using a bathtub to play with submarine.) Certain things that I was expecting didn't happen though; namely I hoped for an Amazon gift card from certain someone as well as four more books and even a few ARCs from a certain publishing company (makes me wonder if I am kicked out or not? I was late with some reviews, but nothing outstanding unless backlog books count?) And right when I was starting to love and become addicted to fantasy...
Last Week On The Blog:
Light Perpetual Author by Andrzej Sapkowski
This Week On The Blog: All That We Are By Mariah Stewart
New Arrivals At Svetlana's Reads and Views :
It's Monday! What Are You Reading?
(From The Book Date)
Top Ten Tuesday
Top Ten Tuesday was created by The Broke and the Bookish in June of 2010 and was moved to That Artsy Reader Girl in January of 2018. It was born of a love of lists, a love of books, and a desire to bring bookish friends together.
How it works:
I assign each Tuesday a topic and then post my top ten list that fits that topic. You’re more than welcome to join me and create your own top ten (or 2, 5, 20, etc.) list as well. Feel free to put a unique spin on the topic to make it work for you! Please link back to That Artsy Reader Girl in your own post so that others know where to find more information.
You’ll find the schedule of upcoming TTT topics below so you can plan ahead. I’ll post a Linky here on the blog each week so you can link up your post (if you want). If you don’t have a blog, post your picks in the comment section below! Have tons of fun talking books and getting to know your fellow bloggers!
NOTE: If a weekly topic is listed as a “freebie”, you are invited to come up with your own topic. Sometimes I will give your topic a theme, such as “love”, a season, or an upcoming holiday. That just means that you can come up with any topic you want that fits under that umbrella.
You’re more than welcome to use the Top Ten Tuesday image I designed above (or any of my older/seasonal ones), or make your own that fits your site’s theme.
January 10: Most Anticipated Books Releasing in the First Half of 2023
1. Courtiers; Intrigue, Ambition and the Power Players Behind the House of Windsor by Valentine Low- I don't really care much for royalty, but with all that stuff happening between Harry and William, I am curious to know what is going on and possibly why.
2. The Critic's Daughter; a Memoir by Priscilla Gillman: this promises to be an examination of a father-daughter relationship as well as the complexities of art. I look forward to learning more.
3. Iron Curtain by Vesna Goldsworthy: Quite often the Eastern Europe is portrayed and seen as evil in the western Europe's eyes. However, I think this will focus both on Western and Eastern Europe and how they are more similar than different.
4. The Foxglove King by Hannah Whitten : I loved the Wilderwood duology that I read last year, and am looking forward to beginning to read The Foxglove King which promises to be exciting and heart-pounding.
5. The God of Endings by Jacqueline Holland: Ooh immortality and exploration of life. Perhaps it will be similar to Dara Horn's Eternal Life? Or perhaps there is a hint of vampirism?
6. The Battle For Your Brain; Defending the Right to Think Freely in the Age of Neurotechnology by Nita A. Farahany books about technology and their future really creep me out (sorry!) but I feel that this is one of the more necessary reads that I want to do.
7. The Hand that Feeds You by Mercedes Rosende: I definitely remember the prequel I read which had really interesting characters and its set in Uruguay. Therefore I am happy to return to that world and to see more fascinating tidbits.
8. The All-American by Joe Milan Jr.: I love stories that are set in Korea or about Korea and it promises to be a pretty exciting tale about a Korea that I might not be familiar with.
9. The Snow Hare by Paula Lichtarowicz:: Thanks to two of Kelly Rimmer's novels, I am a bit introduced to Poland through WWII, especially after Soviet Union took over. This promises another faucet. Maybe the book might be similar to Rachel Barenbaum's novels? I cross my fingers and hope so!
10. Sorry, sorry, sorry; the Case for Good apologies by Marjorie Ingall and Susan McCarthy: I read Marjorie Ingall's book titled Mamaleh which I enjoyed, and I hope to enjoy this one, which promises to analyze different apologies.
Shelf Control
Welcome to Shelf Control — an original feature created and hosted by Bookshelf Fantasies.
Shelf Control is a weekly celebration of the unread books on our shelves. Pick a book you own but haven’t read, write a post about it (suggestions: include what it’s about, why you want to read it, and when you got it), and link up! For more info on what Shelf Control is all about, check out my introductory post, here.
Want to join in? Shelf Control posts go up every Wednesday. See the guidelines at the bottom of the post, and jump on board!
Title: somewhere between life and death
Author: Lurlene McDaniel
Published: 1990
Length: 145
What it’s about (synopsis via Goodreads):
The celebration isn't supposed to end in tragedy. The night of their high-school drama group's cast party starts out as fun for sisters Amy and Erin.
Their lives come crashing down when Amy takes the car to get more food and has a horrible accident. Erin and her family pray for Amy to awaken from her coma. But as the monitor bleeps and the respirator hisses, Amy lies somewhere between life and death.
Erin and her parents must find the courage to accept the fact that Amy's life-support system will never bring her back. When she dies, can the family give some meaning to her senseless death? Can Amy's dying become the hope for someone else's living?
How and when I got it: My sister used to own it, but when she was getting rid of books she didn't want, she decided to gift the two of them to me. Unfortunately I didn't write the date, but I owned it for last ten or more years.
Why I want to read it: I loved Lurlene McDaniel as a teenager and I hope to enjoy these two particular novels.
What do you think? Would you read this book? And if you’ve read it, do you recommend it?
Please share your thoughts!
Books from Backlog
Books from the Backlog is a fun way to feature some of those neglected books sitting on your bookshelf unread. If you are anything like me, you might be surprised by some of the unread books hiding in your stacks.
If you would like to join in, please feel free to enter your link, link back to this post, and then spend some time visiting some of the other posts.
This week’s neglected book
Book Title: time to let go
Series: Erin Bennet Duology
Publisher: Bantam Book
Genres: Grief, letting go, YA, teen, headaches, high school, friendships
Pages: 162
Format: Print
Source: My younger sister kept it and gave it to me. I didn't write date I got it, but I know I owned it for a very long time.
Summary:
The doctors assure Erin Bennett and her parents that they can't find a physical cause for her headaches. But the throbbing, violent pain is so intense that Erin knows she needs help. Even landing the lead in the senior musical opposite David Devlin, the good-looking, popular guy everyone else is wild about, doesn't give Erin much pleasure. In fact, she finds David so annoying that her headaches are getting worse.
Erin knows that the headaches started just after the death of her younger sister, Amy, one year ago. She though her grieving was over, but somehow the headaches must be connected to Amy. The therapist Erin starts seeing begins to help her deal with her pain, but what is it about David that triggers Erin's violent reaction?
Why did I add time to let go to my bookshelf? Simply because it sounds pretty interesting.
What are your thoughts? Have you read this book? Would you recommend it?
Let's Talk Bookish
January 13: Problematic Inspiration (Ikwords @ Words on Key)
Prompts: Can inspiration for a book be problematic?
I think it depends on a subject of a book or the end product of the book. If, for example a traumatic event happened or was witnessed, and the writer or reader uses it as a justification as to why it was good, then yes, very problematic.
What inspiration would you consider to be problematic?
Basically cultural/religious appropriation, or covering events without extensive research nor talking to groups that the trauma happened to. For example, if an author is trying to write about WWII from a Jewish point of view and the author isn't Jewish, then I sincerely hope that the author will do extensive research or talk to survivors or descendants of survivors to understand the trauma. Same thing for any other event.
Should an author be canceled because of a perhaps controversial inspiration for their book?
I do want to say yes, but then I'd say to take their writing in context: when was the book published? What research or sensitivity was covered, if any? I also would say its a slippery slope because what I might find offensive or upsetting, other groups will not care at all, and vice versa. Only thing I can do is to ignore and stay away from authors I might consider offensive (Boris Pasternak, Veronica Roth, Fyodor Dostoevsky's The Brothers Karamazov, William Shakespeare's Shylock, etc.)
In other words, is any kind of inspiration “bad”?
Inspiration itself isn't bad, but how its used and what message the author sends out is a different story.
Stacking the Shelves
Book Titles I got this week: (if available)
Planned Reviews: (If available. Use pictures)
Loved Where the Crawdads Sing, book and movie both. And The Shadow of the Wind is a favorite book. Enjoy!
ReplyDeleteHi Harvee and thanks so much! I hope I will enjoy the book as well. Enjoy your week and reads!
DeleteThe Battle for Your Brain sounds very interesting.
ReplyDeleteMy post: https://lydiaschoch.com/top-ten-tuesday-most-anticipated-books-releasing-in-the-first-half-of-2023/
Hi Anonymous and thanks so much! I hope it will be a good and interesting read! Enjoy your week and reads!
DeleteLots of good sounding books here. Hope you get to read them all.
ReplyDeleteHere is our Top Ten Tuesday. Thank you!
Hi Aymee and thanks so much! I hope the same for you! Enjoy your week and reads
DeleteI'm curious about that first book too!!
ReplyDeleteHi Greg! Which first book? Courtiers? Enjoy your week and reads!
DeleteI hope you enjoy all the books you are anticipating in 2023!
ReplyDeleteMy TTT: https://jjbookblog.wordpress.com/2023/01/10/top-ten-tuesday-402/
Hi iloveheartlandx! Thanks so much and same to you! I hope you enjoy your week and reads!
DeleteI saw they made Where the Crawdads Sing into a movie. I wonder if it's a good adaptation. Hope you enjoy your added books and that your week was less disappointing.
ReplyDelete