April 18, 2013
Hello
In this issue of BookBrowse Highlights we review Amity and Sorrrow by Peggy Riley and go "beyond the book" to explore the eventful year of 1961 - the setting for William Kent Krueger's Ordinary Grace. We also feature four books that our members have been reading recently for First Impressions; and have copies of Kristin Hannah's Fly Away to give away, the long awaited sequel to Firefly Lane.
In addition, I invite you to browse some excellent books from small presses, get a sneak peak of some soon to publish books, and please join us to talk about any of the five books we're currently discussing (with a further five discussions due to open between now and early June).
Best regards,
Davina,
BookBrowse Editor
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Readers Recommend
Each month we give away books to members to read and review (or discuss). Members who choose to take part tend to receive a free book about every three months. Here are their opinions on four recently published books:
 Where You Can Find Me: A Novel
by Sheri Joseph
Publisher: Thomas Dunne Books
Publication Date: 04/16/2013
Novel, 336 pages
Number of reader reviews: 36
Readers' consensus: 
BookBrowse Members Say
"Don't miss reading this book! Rich in character development, captivating peephole into family dynamics, adolescent sibling relationships, and so much more. You will ponder what you've read after each exposure and definitely its content will enter and reenter your mind for some time. An excellent choice for book clubs to explore. This book will assuredly be chosen for best reads lists." - Beth B. (New Wilmington, PA)
"This novel would usually be something I avoid because it involves child abuse. That said, I found it to be thought-provoking in a way that I had not thought of before. How does a person find themselves after a mind-bending event? Caleb was kidnapped when he was eleven, and returned to his family three years later. He finds himself wondering who he really is, how should he behave--as the family would want him to be, or what? And his family has to figure out how to relate to him. It's about finding one's place, parallel to introducing captive animals to their natural habitat, another part of the novel." - Mary P. (Bellingham, WA)
"What a great read! Caleb, recently found after being kidnapped by pederasts, is safely home again. The family dynamics have changed with a vengeance! The book is about how families reconstitute themselves after horrific tragedies. I highly recommend this wise book" - William E. (Honolulu, HI)
Above are 3 of the 36 reviews for this book
Read all the reviews
Buy at Amazon
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Readers Recommend
 One Minus One: Nancy Pearl's Book Lust Rediscoveries
by Ruth Doan MacDougall
Publisher: Amazon Publishing
Publication Date: 02/19/2013
Novels, 184 pages
Number of reader reviews: 16
Readers' consensus:
BookBrowse Members Say
"I understand why Nancy Pearl chose this one for Book Lust Rediscoveries. Excellent plot growing from a believable character, who, while she may not react as I would, reacts in a truly reasonable manner to the forces around her. As with all truly good books, once I turned the last page, I found myself imagining how Emily's life might go on. I will look for more by Ruth Doan MacDougall." - Carol T. (Ankeny, IA)
"I can't wait to read another book by Ruth Macdougall. I thoroughly enjoyed One Minus One. Having graduated college in the 60's and started my first teaching job shortly after there were many aspects of Emily's life that I could relate to, even her teacher's salary which was higher than mine! Emily feels that she is nothing without her husband. It's difficult to forget about an important part of your life and start again." - Bess W. (Marlton, NJ)
"Good story relating the emotional pain of a suddenly single young woman as she ventures into the reality of being 'one'. This period piece also captures New Hampshire as a background character slowly facing decline as the manufacturing plants begin their demise. The author engages the reader with a strong portrayal of confusion and yearning and the foolish decisions humans make to ease pain. A good read for book club discussions." - Barbara O. (Maryland Heights, MO)
Above are 3 of the 36 reviews for this book
Read all the reviews
Buy at Amazon
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Readers Recommend
 Palisades Park by Alan Brennert
Publisher: St. Martin's Press
Publication Date: 04/09/2013
Novel, 432 pages
Number of reader reviews: 28
Readers' consensus: 
BookBrowse Members Say
"Palisades Park is the history you wish you had, for your family. The timeline stretches 50 years, from the early 1920s to the early 1970s, encompassing wars (two), desegregation (slowly), and crime (organized). Palisades Amusement Park, a landmark in New Jersey, was the primordial soup in which the Stopka family evolved, providing a livelihood, an extended family, and a classless university. For book clubs, Palisades Park has themes to discuss: trials by water and fire, leaving as a necessity to coming home, illusion and reality." - Mark O. (Wenatchee, WA)
"Alan Brennert won me over with Molokai so I was eager to read another novel by this multitalented author. He hit it out of the ballpark in my opinion. Wonderfully written." - Karen R. (Locust Grove, VA)
"My review has to start with two facts; I'm 80 years old and I live in New Jersey. My memories mixed with those in the book and they made me happy and they made me cry. I never went to Palisades Park but this beautifully written book reminded me of so many things. But you don't have to be a Jersey girl or and old lady to enjoy this book. The story is of a girl with ambition and how she follows her dream. The author has done true justice to her and Palisades Park." - Portia A. (Mount Laurel, NJ)
"Palisades Park is equal parts an adventure, fictional memoir and historic account. I believe it will lead to superb discussions in book clubs." - Ann B. (Bethlehem, PA)
Above are 4 of the 28 reviews for this book
Read all the reviews Buy at Amazon
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Readers Recommend
 A Nearly Perfect Copy
by Allison Amend
Publisher: Nan A. Talese
Publication Date: 04/09/2013
Novels, 304 pages
Number of reader reviews: 21
Readers' consensus:
BookBrowse Members Say
"I enjoyed this story of art forgery juxtaposed against cloning and alternating between New York and Paris. The story entered the world of art galleries and the nefarious world of art forgeries and the intricacies of making the forgeries believable. I recommend this to book clubs; I think the issues which were raised make great fodder for discussion." - Linda M. (Windsor, CA)
"A Nearly Perfect Copy by Allison Amend is a fascinating character study about two self-centered people, Elm & Gabriel, trying to cope in the worlds they created. It's a story about profound loss, art forgers and forgeries, cloning & how two unrelated people stories are intertwined. And a tour of the art world from the Paris art community to the auction houses of New York. From the very first page you'll be hooked." - Charlene M. (Murrells Inlet, SC)
"The story is intricately plotted with twists I never saw coming. Allison Amend draws a sharply satirical and slyly humorous picture of the art world, and those people, some fragile, some venal, some supremely selfish, yet very human, who populate it. I recommend this novel to anyone interested in an intelligent story, with complex characters and plotting." - Mary M. (Beverly Hills, FL)
"It is an interesting, intelligent, thought provoking novel that reaches far beyond the art world. Much like Jodi Piccoult, Allison Amend makes you consider your stance on timely, moral issues. If you are interested in the art world, or the medical field, you will find this a great addition to your 'to read' shelf." - Melinda H. (Midlothian, VA)
Above are 4 of the 21 reviews for this book
Read all the reviews
Buy at Amazon |
Featured Review
Below is part of BookBrowse's review of Amity & Sorrow. Read the review in full here  Amity & Sorrow by Peggy Riley Hardcover (Apr 2013), 320 pages. Publisher: Little Brown & Company ISBN 9780316220880 BookBrowse Rating:  Critics' Consensus: Review: Two girls sit in the backseat of a car, tied at the wrist. They are teen sisters, Amity and Sorrow. They share the memory of screaming and fire, and the longing to return home, as their mother drives them away from everything the girls have ever known. Later, at a farm abutting an abandoned service station, the three seek help from a farmer who lives there with his elderly father and a boy named Dust. All this - just in the first ten pages! We soon learn that Amaranth, the girls' mother, is the first of fifty wives and has been living in a religious community off the grid in the panhandle of Idaho. The community, headed by a charismatic patriarch preacher, Zachariah, has spent the past decade and a half preparing for the end of the world. Amaranth, who had been lost, homeless and an alcoholic at age seventeen, was 'saved' by and married to Zachariah, at nineteen. Having only been a part of this religious community, her daughters, Amity and Sorrow, know nothing of the modern world. They don't know towns, they've never heard of television or computers. They don't know where they've come from or where they are; they've never seen a map. They don't even know how to read. They've been raised to be wives. They live by strict rules: No talking to men or boys. No stepping inside any man's house. Cover your hair at all times. It is forbidden to go into a field-the patriarch's rule accepted with no explanation. It isn't until later in the story that the dark origins of this rule are revealed. Amity, the younger daughter, believes their leaving, their rule breaking, will finally bring on the end of the world. For her part, Sorrow will not forgive their mother for taking her away from her father. She believes she is the chosen one, the Oracle - that God sends her and only her, signs of what he wants. But while Sorrow can be proud, cruel, and condemning, loyal only to her father and to God, Amity is curious and hopeful and loyal beyond reason to her sister. Chapters seamlessly alternate between Amaranth, Amity and Sorrow's points of view, toggling between the past and present. Written in spare lyrical prose, the compelling story unfolds as a mystery, giving readers just enough information about what has happened to keep us fascinated. The chapters set in the past show us glimpses of a dystopia founded on extreme faith. The further into the novel we get, the more we sense the presence of evil, with references to Jonestown and Waco and parallels to David Berg and The Family. We are reminded that when rules are made and enforced for the sole convenience and benefit of the leader over his followers, the result is an oppressive nightmare. Riley manages to lay this all out without ever coming off as didactic or preachy - on the contrary, all the characters are presented with compassion and richly drawn. They are complex beings, all struggling with the choices they must make and the consequences they must face. I was especially struck by the many intricately woven relationships filled with conflict: mother-daughter; sister-sister; husband-wife; father-daughter; the sisterhood of wives. We see what comes of relationships built on lies and false hopes - and what happens when it all unravels. Amaranth, for one, realizes that all that she'd bought into and accepted must be broken down and separated like wheat from the chaff, in order to survive outside the small, strict, religious compound. Before they fled, Sorrow was to become wife fifty-one, married to her own father. Amaranth struggles with the weight of her guilt for raising her daughters in ignorance, and knows she must break the rules she has lived by all of her adult life. She must make herself useful in order to stay on the farm where she and her daughters have landed. Despite Amaranth's efforts, Sorrow does everything in her power to get back to her father. She creates a temple in the service station bathroom and waits for a sign that will guide her home and back to the community, while Amity, loyal to a fault, defers to her sister and keeps her secrets. In the end, each memorable character makes a life-altering choice, leaving readers breathless and heartbroken but ultimately satisfied. Amity and Sorrow is a highly fulfilling read about mothers and daughters, the nature of family, the complexity of relationships, of faith lost and found, of courage and new beginnings. I think women might enjoy this story more easily than men, but I would recommend this book for any adult who enjoys good storytelling, complex, well-drawn characters, and exquisite, lyrical writing. Reviewed by Sharry Wright Above is BookBrowse's review of Amity & Sorrow. Read the review and backstory in full, plus an excerpt and more.
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Beyond the Book
At BookBrowse, we don't just review books, we go 'beyond the book' to explore interesting aspects relating to the story.
The Year, 1961
Ordinary Grace is set in the Midwestern United States in 1961. Although it was a time of peace and prosperity for much of the country, many important events were taking place around the world that year:
January 20:  43-year-old John F. Kennedy was sworn in as the 35th President of the United States, still the youngest person ever to hold the office.
January 31: Ham the Astrochimp became the first primate launched into outer space. The Cameroon-born Ham (which is an acronym for the Holloman Aerospace Medical Center where Ham was prepped), was five years old at the time. He returned successfully to earth and retired to the National Zoo in Washington. He died in 1983 at the age of 26.
February 9: The Beatles performed for the first time at the Cavern Club in Liverpool, England. From 1961 to 1963 they performed 292 times at the club. The venue was also where their manager, Brian Epstein, first saw them play (November 9, 1961). Click on the video below to watch the Beatles performing at the Cavern Club:
March 1: President Kennedy established the volunteer Peace Corp with goals that included providing technical assistance (generally social and economic development), helping people outside the U.S. understand American culture, and helping Americans understand the cultures of other countries. As of 2012, over 210,000 volunteers and trainees have served in 139 countries.
April 11: The trial of Adolf Eichmann, one of the major organizers of the Holocaust, began in Jerusalem. He had lived in Argentina under assumed names until his apprehension by Mossad agents in 1960. He was found guilty of crimes against humanity and hanged in 1962 in Ramla, Israel
April 17: The CIA-funded Cuban Brigade 2506 attempted to overthrow the leftist government of President Osvaldo Torrado by invading La Batalla de Giron, known in the United States as The Bay of Pigs. The invasion was announced a failure by Cuba's Prime Minister, Fidel Castro, on April 20.
May 5:  Alan Shepard became the first American in space during a 15-minute suborbital flight and subsequent splashdown (one month after Soviet Yuri Gagarin's 108-minute orbital flight). The launch was broadcast live on television and seen by millions.
May 14: A Freedom Riders bus was fire-bombed near Anniston, Alabama. The civil rights activists, who rode into the segregated United States South to challenge prejudicial policies, were also beaten by an angry mob of white citizens. Later in the month the state's governor, John Patterson, declared martial law after race riots broke out.
May 15: Heinrich Matthaei performed experiments leading to the understanding of the genetic code. This day is considered the birthdate of the science of modern genetics.
May 30:Rafael Trujillo, totalitarian despot of the Dominican Republic since 1930, was killed in an ambush.
June 16:  Famed Russian ballet dancer Rudolf Nureyev defected in France. By the end of the following week, he was performing with a leading French ballet company.
... continued
Reviewed by Kim Kovacs
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Blog: What is Metafiction
Metafiction is an elastic concept covering a wide range of fiction but in essence boils down to stories in which the book blurs the line between reality and fiction by drawing attention to itself in some shape or form. To boil it down even further, you could say that it is fiction about fiction.
William H. Gass is attributed with establishing the term metafiction in a 1970 essay titled "Philosophy and the Form of Fiction". Commenting on American fiction of the 1960s, he pointed out that a new description was needed for the emerging genre of experimental texts that openly broke with the tradition of literary realism still dominant in post-WWII American literature.
 Some metafiction is like nesting dolls. For example, stories about readers reading books such as Elizabeth Kostova's The Historian (2005). Or writers writing books, such as Andrea Levy's The Long Song (2010), in which a woman is writing a book about Miss July, a slave. That woman turns out to be Miss July herself and she periodically comments on her experience of writing the story with her son looking over her shoulder as editor. Or the story might contain partial or complete stories within them such as David Mitchell's Cloud Atlas.  Stories in which characters are aware that they are part of the story are metafiction. For example Jasper Fforde's Thursday Next novels; or where the narrator is shown to be the author of the story, such as The Brief and Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao by Junot Diaz.
 Books where the reader of the story can influence how the story develops are also considered to be metafiction. Children's picture books, where readers feel they influence the action, provide a rich vein of examples, such as Kenn Nesbitt's More Bears! In fact, there's likely a good case to make that the fast growing wealth of ebooks for children where the reader influences the course of the book by interacting with it are, in essence, examples of metafiction.
Continue Reading...
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Win d
Fly Away
by Kristin Hannah
Publication Date: Apr 2013
Enter the Giveaway
From the Jacket
Once, a long time ago, I walked down a night-darkened road called Firefly Lane, all alone, on the worst night of my life, and I found a kindred spirit. That was our beginning. More than thirty years ago. TullyandKate. You and me against the world. Best friends forever. But stories end, don't they? You lose the people you love and you have to find a way to go on...
An emotionally complex, heart-wrenching novel about love, motherhood, loss, and new beginnings, Fly Away reminds us that where there is life, there is hope, and where there is love, there is forgiveness. Told with her trademark powerful storytelling and illuminating prose, Kristin Hannah reveals why she is one of the most beloved writers of our day.
Reviews:
"Readers will be reaching for tissues as they watch the characters they grew to love in Firefly Lane struggle to make peace with Kate's death and find happiness and love." - Booklist
"...fans will appreciate the depth of character as they wade toward a neatly tied-up and heart-warming denouement." - Publishers Weekly
"A moving read about mothers and daughters, families, friends, second chances, love, heartbreak, faith, grieving, and healing. Tissues required." - Library Journal
5 people will each win a hardcover copy of Fly Away. This giveaway is open to residents of the USA & Canada only, unless you are a BookBrowse member, in which case you are eligible to win wherever you might live. Enter the giveaway here Past Winners |
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Discussions Opening Soon
The House of Rumour opens April 23
 Five Days
opens May 7 
The Comfort of Lies opens May 21 
In The Shadow of the Banyan opens Jun 3 
The Execution of Noa P. Singleton opens Jun 10
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Featured Reading List:
Small Press Titles
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Author Interviews
In a dramatic book trailer/video interview, Deborah Crombie talks about the development of her characters in No Mark Upon Her.
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Author Stephen Dau discusses the inspiration behind his debut novel, The Book of Jonas and how his work in international development has influenced his writing.
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Wordplay
Solve this clue "H F T Best A
P F T W" and be entered to win the book of your choice Entry & DetailsAll winners are contacted by email. View list |
Answer to the Last Wordplay
All O B T S All Over Bar The Shouting Meaning: The outcome is not in doubt, now it's time to celebrate
Background: Sometimes: All over but the shouting
The earliest known written use of this expression is in The Sporting Magazine (a UK journal) in 1942, in an article by Charles James Apperley, writing under the pseudonym of Nimrod.
But there are two conflicting origins for the expression. The first dates back to the nineteenth century when ballots were counted by hand and the results were not available until long after the polls had closed (due to the time taken to hand count). The announcement of the start of the count often triggered a loud roar from those who had voted. In a one sided contest, it would be obvious who the winner was at this time because of the volume of cheering for a particular person. In other words, the outcome was unofficial but decided - it was all over bar the shouting.
The second is that the shouting refers to any arguments that take place after the outcome of an event is already decided which, taking the expression at face value, would seem to be the more plausible option. Continued
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News
Apr 15 2013: After failing to declare a fiction winner in 2012, the 2013 Pulitzer Prize for Fiction has been awarded to Adam Johnson for� The Orphan Master's Son...(more)
Apr 15 2013: Kobo has introduced a new high resolution eInk eReader called the Kobo Aura HD, offering a $169.99 answer to Amazon�€™s $179.99 Kindle Paperwhite 3G. Like other Kobo devices, the new device lets readers access ePUB titles a format not available on...(more)
Apr 15 2013: The London-based literary journal Granta has announced its new list of Best Young British Novelists (more)
Apr 10 2013: Nook Media, a subsidiary of Barnes & Noble, has launched Nook Press, a self-publishing e-book program designed with input from PubIt!, B&N's original self-publishing platform, and using technology from partner...(more)
Apr 09 2013: Nine colleges and universities are testing a Coursesmart program that allows professors to monitor students' usage of e-textbooks. CourseSmart is owned by Pearson, McGraw-Hill and other major publishers, which see an opportunity to cement their dominance in digital textbooks by offering...(more)
Apr 08 2013: Workman Publishing Company founder, Peter Workman, 74, died of cancer on Sunday, April 7 at his home in New York. In addition to Workman's six imprints are Workman, Artisan, Algonquin, Black Dog & Leventhan, Highbridge, Storey, and Timber...(more)
Apr 08 2013: Scott Turow writes on the slow death of the American author due to the many changes in the publishing industry over the last few years, including the undermining of copyrights and, most recently, the Supreme Court's decision to allow the importation and resale of foreign editions of American...(more)
Apr 04 2013: Film critic and author Roger Ebert died today aged 70. He had been in poor health over the past decade, battling cancers of the thyroid and salivary gland. He posted an upbeat message on his blog just two days before his death...(more)
Read these news stories, and many others, in full
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