Library Loot: 8-20

Library Loot is a weekly event hosted by A Striped Armchair that encourages bloggers to share the books they’ve checked out from the library.

Seven books from my request list all hit at the same time...where to start??

The Last Bridge by Teri Coyne

Labor Day by Joyce Maynard

Sometimes Mine by Martha Moody

While I'm Falling by Laura Moriarty

Finger Lickin' Fifteen by Janet Evanovich

Best Friends Forever by Jennifer Weiner

Bird in Hand by Christina Baker Kline

"Waiting On" Wednesday: Whistlin' Dixie in a Nor'easter

"Waiting On" Wednesday is a weekly event, hosted here, that spotlights upcoming releases that we're eagerly anticipating.

This week's pre-publication "can't-wait-to-read" selection is:

Whistlin' Dixie in a Nor'easter

By Lisa Patton

Publication Date: September 29

From Books-a-Million:

"Leelee Satterfield seemed to have it all: a gorgeous husband, two adorable daughters, and roots in the sunny city of Memphis, Tennessee. So when her husband gets the idea to uproot the family to run a quaint Vermont inn, Leelee is devastated...and her three best friends are outraged.

But when an unexpected hardship takes Leelee by surprise, she finds herself left alone with an inn to run, a mortgage to pay, and two daughters to raise. But this Southern belle won't be run out of town so easily. Drawing on the Southern grit and inner strength she didn't know she had, Leelee decides to turn around the Inn, her attitude and her life. In doing so, she makes friends with her neighbors, finds a little romance, and realizes there's a lot more in common with Vermont than she first thought."

What's your "waiting on" pick this week?

Want to participate? Grab the logo, post your own WoW entry on your blog, and leave a link in the comments section!

"Waiting On" Wednesday: The Pursuit of Other Interests

"Waiting On" Wednesday is a weekly event, hosted here, that spotlights upcoming releases that we're eagerly anticipating.

This week's pre-publication "can't-wait-to-read" selection is:

The Pursuit of Other Interests

By Jim Kokoris

Publication Date: October 27

From Amazon:

"Charlie Baker is a neurotic but charming 50-year-old workaholic CEO of a major Chicago ad agency who seems to have it all: an impressive house in an upscale suburb, an equally impressive salary, the requisite pretty wife, and accomplished son. All of this comes crashing down when Charlie is unceremoniously fired. In an instant, his life is transformed from corporate titan to just another out-of-work American. As Charlie reluctantly embarks on a journey of self-discovery, he finds out what happens when his work life is lost and his real life begins."

What's your "waiting on" pick this week?

Want to participate? Grab the logo, post your own WoW entry on your blog, and leave a link in the comments section!

Sunday Salon: Weekend Wrap-Up

I saw the highly anticipated Julie and Julia movie this weekend, and it exceeded my expectations. While I really enjoyed the book, I had read several reviews that lauded the "Julia" portions of the movie (What do you expect? It's the great Meryl Streep!) and expressed disappointment in the "Julie" parts of the movie.

I, thankfully, found this not to be the case. I was equally enthralled by both elements, watching these characters develop as cooks and the impact of food on their lives. It makes me want to work my way through an entire cookbook...just not a Julia Child one! :)

Needless to say, it's a "must see."

Also, I finished The Embers by Hyatt Bass, an intriguing story of a family so fractured that the notion of putting themselves back together seemed nearly impossible...but their path toward reconciliation was thoroughly engaging.

Finally, I read in one sitting today That Old Cape Magic by Richard Russo, who consistently writes books that make you put aside everything else to keep reading...and his latest doesn't fail to deliver.

"Waiting On" Wednesday: Family Album

"Waiting On" Wednesday is a weekly event, hosted here, that spotlights upcoming releases that we're eagerly anticipating.

This week's pre-publication "can't-wait-to-read" selection is:

Family Album

By Penelope Lively

Publication Date: October 29

From Amazon:

"All Alison ever wanted was a blissful childhood for her six children, with summers at the beach and birthday parties on the lawn at their family home. Together with Ingrid, the family au pair, she has worked hard to create a real old-fashioned family life. But beneath its postcard sheen, the picture is clouded by a distant father, Alison's inexplicable emotional outbursts, and long-repressed secrets that no one dares mention. For years, Alison's adult children have protected her illusion of domestic perfection—but as each child confronts the effects of past choices on their current adult lives, it becomes evident that each must face the truth."

What's your "waiting on" pick this week?

Want to participate? Grab the logo, post your own WoW entry on your blog, and leave a link in the comments section!

Summer Reading, Part I

I have had a crazy summer, with work and putting my house on the market...and while I have been steadily reading, I have NOT been steadily reviewing! That said, I didn't want to let more time go by without calling out six of my favorite summer reads so far:

So Happy Together by Maryann Mcfadden

The Castaways by Elin Hilderbrand

The Fixer Upper by Mary Kay Andrews

Dune Road by Jane Green

Summer House by Nancy Thayer

Beach Trip by Cathy Holton

On a disappointing note, I was really looking forward to Return to Sullivan's Island by Dorothea Benton Frank and Last Light Over Carolina by Mary Alice Monroe, but I just couldn't stick with either one of them enough to finish.

Booking Through Thursday: Recent Funny

The question of the week at Booking Through Thursday is:

What’s the funniest book you’ve read recently?

I primarily read women's fiction, which typically isn't "funny," but my answer to this question came to me immediately:

I Like You: Hospitality Under the Influence

By Amy Sedaris

I checked this out from the library, but halfway through, I returned it and bought my own copy. I also bought one for my mom, who is one of the funniest people I know and holds people who can make her laugh in the highest esteem. My phone rang off the hook for three days as she made her way through it. Needless to say, it owned her.

It's hilarious, quirky, entertaining, visually appealing, outrageous, and yet surprisingly practical. The gal knows her way around a kitchen...the recipes alone make it worth owning. Her Southern background comes through in a big way, making those obscure references really hit home for me, heightening the appeal and comedy factor.

This...book...is...FUNNY.

"Waiting On" Wednesday: Cleaving

"Waiting On" Wednesday is a weekly event, hosted here, that spotlights upcoming releases that we're eagerly anticipating.

I think this is my first non-fiction WOW, but y'all know I'm a sucker for food memoirs. And, in light of the upcoming release of the movie version of Julie & Julia, it seemed appropriate.

Cleaving: A Story of Marriage, Meat, and Obsession

By Julie Powell

Publication Date: December 1

From Amazon:

"Julie Powell thought cooking her way through Julia Child's Mastering the Art of French Cooking was the craziest thing she'd ever do--until she embarked on the voyage recounted in her new memoir, CLEAVING.

Her marriage challenged by an insane, irresistible love affair, Julie decides to leave town and immerse herself in a new obsession: butchery. She finds her way to Fleischer's, a butcher shop where she buries herself in the details of food. She learns how to break down a side of beef and French a rack of ribs--tough, physical work that only sometimes distracts her from thoughts of afternoon trysts.

The camaraderie at Fleischer's leads Julie to search out fellow butchers around the world--from South America to Europe to Africa. At the end of her odyssey, she has learned a new art and perhaps even mastered her unruly heart."

What's your "waiting on" pick this week?

Want to participate? Grab the logo, post your own WoW entry on your blog, and leave a link in the comments section!

Booking Through Thursday: Preferences

It's been awhile since I participated...here's this week's Booking Through Thursday:

Which do you prefer? (Quick answers–we’ll do more detail at some later date)

Reading something frivolous? Or something serious?
Serious

Paperbacks? Or hardcovers?
Hardcovers

Fiction? Or Nonfiction?
Fiction

Poetry? Or Prose?
Prose

Biographies? Or Autobiographies?
Autobiographies

History? Or Historical Fiction?
Historical fiction

Series? Or Stand-alones?
Stand-alones

Classics? Or best-sellers?
Best-sellers

Lurid, fruity prose? Or straight-forward, basic prose?
Straight-forward, basic prose

Plots? Or Stream-of-Consciousness?
Plots

Long books? Or Short?
Long

Illustrated? Or Non-illustrated?
Non-illustrated

Borrowed? Or Owned?
Borrowed from library

New? Or Used?
New

"Waiting On" Wednesday: A Friend of the Family

"Waiting On" Wednesday is a weekly event, hosted here, that spotlights upcoming releases that we're eagerly anticipating.

This week's pre-publication "can't-wait-to-read" selection is:

A Friend of the Family

By Lauren Grodstein

Publication Date: November 10

From Amazon:

"Pete Dizinoff has spent years working toward a life that would be, by all measures, deemed successful. A skilled internist, he’s built a thriving practice in suburban New Jersey. He has a devoted wife, a network of close friends, and an impressive house, and most important, he has a son, Alec, on whom he’s pinned all his hopes. Pete has afforded Alec every opportunity, bailed him out of close calls with the law, and even ensured his acceptance into a good college.

But Pete never counted on the wild card: Laura, his best friend's daughter—ten years older than Alec, irresistibly beautiful, with a past so shocking that it’s never spoken of. When Laura sets her sights on Alec, Pete sees his plans for his son not just unraveling but being destroyed completely. Believing he has only the best of intentions, he sets out to derail this romance and rescue his son. He could never have foreseen how his whole world would shatter in the process.

Lauren Grodstein delivers a riveting story in the tradition of The Ice Storm, American Beauty, and Little Children, charting a father's fall from grace as he struggles to save his family, his reputation, and himself."

What's your "waiting on" pick this week?

Want to participate? Grab the logo, post your own WoW entry on your blog, and leave a link in the comments section!