Jon McGregor is an award-winning British novelist and short story writer. His newest novel to be released this month tells the story of an Antarctic research expedition gone wrong and the far-reaching consequences. Gripping and insightful. Here's a review.
Tag: books
“Nobody Will Tell You This But Me”
Funny and heartwarming, Bess Kalb's new book narrated by her grandmother is just what our weary, fearful souls need right now. A must read for Bobby Bell's message of resilience, grace and wit.
Jon McGregor’s superb “Reservoir 13”
Truly a unique novel, one of the best I’ve read in a long time. How and why a teen-aged girl disappears becomes secondary to the impact on the nearby English village.
Letters from bewilderment
This new collection of essays -- "The Correspondence" -- is so smartly entertaining I read many parts of it out loud to savor the enjoyment. Here's a glimpse of J. D. Daniels' debut.
Eudora Welty & Larry McMurtry
There are so many wonderful books published in the past, waiting to be read. Here are two I indulged in these recent weeks, plus a link to a list of "21 Books You've Been Meaning to Read."
Three anthropologists, four liars
Lily King's highly acclaimed novel "Euphoria" draws its plot from the life of anthropologist Margaret Mead. E. Lockhart's popular Young Adult novel "We Were Liars" intrigues with a mysterious accident. These are two very different books and stories, and they are brought together here by a January habit of mine.
My picks from The Edgars® “Bests”
"Ordinary Grace" is one of the most enjoyable books I've read this year. Of note, it just won the the Edgar Award for best novel, announced last week. Two other winners appear here, as well as a link to the full list of nominees and winners in all the categories for the Mystery Writers of America 2014 Edgar Allan Poe Awards.
When there were monsters
Neil Gaiman is the author of more than twenty books and the recipient of numerous literary honors. His newest novel is "The Ocean at the End of the Lane."
The question of his life
I read an essay in "The New York Review of Books" about author James Baldwin in which Darryl Pinckney wrote, "I fell under the spell of Baldwin's voice." Pinckney's story about reading Baldwin connected me to "Giovanni's Room," Baldwin's bold second novel, a classic I'd skipped in my reading journey. Now I can say it's one of the most moving books I've ever read.
What if there are no more books like these?
Looking for a summer reading list? It's right here in James Patterson's call-to-action advertisement about saving books, bookstores and libraries.
Good reading: faith, passion & madness
Frances and Bernard meet at a writers' colony and thereafter begin a friendship that becomes a romance in this first novel by Carlene Bauer. It's the 1950's, and Bauer creates a small narrative gem that draws from the lives of novelist Flannery O'Connor and poet Robert Lowell.
Sleuthing for mysteries in Tribeca
There's nothing like the browse-and-discover experience inside an independent bookshop, especially when it's filled with crime novels and mysteries. Here's a peek inside NYC's terrific The Mysterious Bookshop, plus the books I purchased.
Tales from this antiquarian book shopper
Here's some insight into what can happen to a book lover in a giant room filled with exhibitors of used and rare books.
Reading Tessa Hadley
What happens when you read a book by an author whose work is consistently, highly praised, and yet you're unimpressed? I discovered the first take doesn't always ring true. Here's what I experienced when I read "Married Love," a collection of short stories by Tessa Hadley.
Caught in the sweet flypaper of life
20th century African-American photographer Roy DeCarava and poet Langston Hughes collaborated on a small book of black-and-white photos depicting everyday life in 1950's Harlem. Published in 1955, "The Sweet Flypaper of Life" reveals this time and place with a poignancy that eludes history books.
The Longest Chapter 