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BookBrowse Highlights
| March 20, 2014
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Hello,
The Storied Life of A. J. Fikry is this issue's featured book preview. It is a charming novel, rich in humanity and a shoo-in for anyone who loves books and bookstores. It is also the #1 Indie Next Pick for April and one of BookBrowse's upcoming book club picks.
Also to recommend are two thrillers set in Egypt that our members have recently read and reviewed for First Impressions: City of the Sun is set during World War II, while The Cairo Affair has the Arab Spring as its backdrop.
We have two new book discussions running for The Weight of Blood and A Constellation of Vital Phenomena. If you have read one or both please do join in the conversation - and if you haven't yet read them you'll find links to more about both books.
And don't miss our latest Book Club Q&A in which librarian Marika Zemke shares information about her novel concept for a book club that reads pre-pub copies of books and educates its members on how and why books get published.
Thanks for reading!
Best regards
Davina, BookBrowse Editor
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Are you passionate about books? Do you like to spend your reading hours curled up with captivating storytelling and provocative ideas?
If that's you, you'll love being a BookBrowse member. Although you can view a lot of BookBrowse for free, full access to our online magazines including reviews, previews, backstories and more is for members only. Find out more!
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 Editor's Choice
The Blazing World by Siri Hustvedt
Hardcover (March 11, 2014), 368 pages.
Publisher: Simon & Schuster.
ISBN 9781476747231
BookBrowse Rating: 5/5 Critics' Consensus: 4.6/5 Siri Hustvedt's The Blazing World seeks to explore the mystery surrounding the last years of one fictional spurned artist, Harriet Burden. Widow of the infamous art dealer Felix Lord, Burden decides to play a prank on the art world. From 1999-2003, she embarks on a project called Maskings, enlisting three male artists to pose as "pseudonyms" for her, exhibiting her art as their own. The project is meant to both "expose the antifemale bias of the art world" and "uncover the complex workings of human perception and how unconscious ideas about gender, race and celebrity influence a viewer's understanding of a given work of art." And once the gag is pulled off, once the critics and collectors are slavering all over the work and treating the pseudonyms as the newest art world gods, Harriet Burden will "unmask" herself, proving once and for all how ridiculous the whole notion of fame is. Unfortunately for Burden, things go horribly, painfully awry... continued Read the full review, backstory and an excerpt
Reviewed by Morgan Macgregor More Editor's Choice features Although visitors can view a lot of BookBrowse for free, full access to our reviews, previews, backstories and more is for members only. But you will always find four free Editor's Choice reviews and backstories on our homepage.
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 First Impressions: Members Recommend
Each month we give away books to US resident members to read and review (or discuss). Members who choose to take part receive a free book (including free shipping) about every three months. Here are their opinions on two recently published books:  
The Cairo Affair by Olen Steinhauer
Publisher: St. Martin's Minotaur
Publication Date: Mar 2014
Thriller, 400 pages
Number of reader reviews: 34
Readers' consensus: 4.0/5.0
Members Say
"From the very first sentence I was pulled into a tense and exciting thriller, reminiscent of Le Carre. What a white knuckle adventure, set in today's Arab turmoil. A tale of romance. Of intrigue. Of betrayal. The Cairo Affair is something to be savored. Take your time reading it, because you will not want it to end." - George M. (Antioch, CA)
"I appreciated this timely story being told from several points of view...There is much to discuss for book clubs and others about ever-changing international events, America's involvement or lack of involvement in those events, the idealism of spies, what attracts some people to immoral behavior, how people's world views and philosophy change over time, etc." - Chris W. (Temple City, CA)
"I LOVED this book.I am generally not a spy/thriller reader but this story was so current and gripping...The tying in of the Arab Spring made the story even more immediate. Highly recommended!" - Beverly D. (Palm Harbor, FL)/East Lake Community L
| Read all the reviews | Buy at Amazon
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 City of the Sun by Juliana Maio Publisher: Greenleaf Book Group Press Publication Date: Mar 2014 Historical Fiction/Thriller, 380 pages Number of reader reviews: 19 Readers' consensus: 3.5/5.0 Members Say "A family consisting of father, brother Erik and sister Maya flee Nazi Germany and find themselves in Cairo as the war is being fought in North Africa. It is 1942 and the war is very close to Egypt. Erik is a scientist with knowledge of the development of atomic weaponry. They are taken in by a Jewish family that has deep roots in Egypt. At the same time, a Nazi spy is looking for the scientist so that the Nazis can use his knowledge and an American journalist who wants to rescue the scientist and send him to the U.S. so that he can help them work on the atomic bomb... I certainly recommend it as a nice, fast paced thriller." - Harriette K. (Weston, FL) "The plot pulled me into the World War II Egyptian setting right away and kept me interested. Sometimes when I vacillate between rating a book a 4 or a 5, I have to remember that it is books like this one which make the higher 5 rating easy. As I read, I found myself making notes of things I wanted to research in greater depth. I am so glad to have had an opportunity to receive this book on BookBrowse as I'm not sure it would have caught my eye otherwise." - Rebecca R. (Las Vegas, NV) " City of the Sun is a captivating read. In turns, historical, the intrigue of spies and the politics of World War II, a romance and murder. This book has it all. Bravo." - Barbara O. (Maryland Heights, MO)
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 Publishing Soon Each month BookBrowse previews 80-100 notable books publishing the following month. Here is one in particular that we urge you not to miss! 
The Storied Life of A.J. Fikry by Gabrielle Zevin
Publishes April 1 Algonquin Books, 272 pages The #1 Indie Next Pick for April 2014. Also a pick for BookBrowse's Book Club.
About this bookA faded sign hangs above the porch of the Victorian cottage that is home to Island Books. It bears the adage, "No Man is an Island; Every Book is a World." A.J. Fikry, the bookstore's irascible owner, is about to discover what that means. Set in a modern-day bookstore, The Storied Life of A.J. Fikry is an unforgettable tale of transformation and second chances, an irresistible affirmation of why we read, and why we love. Reviews
"The Storied Life of A. J. Fikry reminds us what saves us all from a life of loneliness and isolation: our sense of empathy; our ability to love and be loved; our willingness to care and be cared for. Gabrielle Zevin has written a wonderful, moving, endearing story of redemption and transformation that will sing in your heart for a very, very long time."
- Garth Stein, author of The Art of Racing in the Rain
"This novel has humor, romance, a touch of suspense, but most of all love - love of books and bookish people and, really, all of humanity in its imperfect glory." - Eowyn Ivey, author of The Snow ChildRead more reviews, an excerpt and a Q&A with the author More Books Publishing Soon
More New & Notable
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Book Clubs & Discussions |
 The BookBrowse Book Club
Please Join Us to Discuss:
The Weight of Blood by Laura McHugh
Published Mar 2014 320 pages
For fans of Gillian Flynn, Scott Smith, and Daniel Woodrell comes a gripping, suspenseful novel about two mysterious disappearances a generation apart.
More about this book | Join the discussion A Constellation of Vital Phenomena by Anthony Marra
Published Feb 2014
400 pages
A brilliant debut novel that brings to life an abandoned hospital where a tough-minded doctor decides to harbor a hunted young girl, with powerful consequences.
More about this book | Join the discussion
 Discussions Opening Soon
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Also Recommended for Book Clubs
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 Book Club Interview - The Pre-Pub Book Club  Librarian Marika Zemke of the Pre-Pub Book Club shares her unique model for a book club - one that, among other things, educates its members on how and why books get published.
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Beyond The Book
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 Sabriye Tenberken and Braille Without Borders  Every time we review a book we also go "beyond the book" to explore a related topic, such as this article about For the Benefit of Those Who See by Rosemary Mahoney. In her nonfiction book For the Benefit of Those Who See, Rosemary Mahoney recounts her experiences at Braille Without Borders, an international development organization that helps blind and partially sighted students gain independence, workplace skills, and professional training. Founded in Lhasa, Tibet, the organization is the brainchild of Sabriye Tenberken. A German native, Tenberken was born with a degenerative disease of the retina and by age 12 was completely blind. Mahoney's book recalls some of Tenberken's experiences growing up. She felt patronized by her teachers and, by contrast, was ostracized and bullied by her classmates. For years she denied her blindness and even tried to hide it. "Not until I accepted my blindness," Tenberken told Mahoney, "did I begin to live." ... continued Read this backstory in full, plus an excerpt & BookBrowse's review
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 Trending on Facebook Did you know that BookBrowse is also on Facebook, Twitter and Pinterest? If you don't already follow us, please consider doing so - and we promise not to bombard you with posts. For example, unlike some sites that post multiple times in a day, we only post on Facebook 2-3 times a week.
Here's a recent post that is proving particularly popular. In the past 5 days it's been shared over 21,000 times and viewed by over 1.7 million! BookBrowse on Facebook | Twitter | Pinterest |
 Author Interview |
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 News
Mar 14 2014 More than two-thirds of Americans are actively engaged with public libraries, according to a new survey from the Pew Research Center, which polled 6,224 Americans ages 16 and older. The study, which was released yesterday, examined the spectrum of Americans' relationships with public libraries to ...(more)
Mar 13 2014 The National Book Critics Circle have announced the recipients of their 2014 book awards (for books published in 2013):
Poetry: Frank Bidart, Metaphysical Dog (Farrar, Straus & Giroux)
Criticism: Franco Moretti, Distant Reading (Verso)
Autobiography: Amy Wilentz, Farewell, ...(more)
Mar 12 2014 A research report from the English charity Booktrust, based on a survey of 1,500 adults, indicates a "worrying cultural divide" with poor adults much less likely to read books than their richer neighbors. The country is divided into two nations, those who read weekly or daily, and those who prefer...(more)
Mar 11 2014 In a move that seems a victory for the Southern California Independent Booksellers Association, the Los Angeles Times is in the process of adding IndieBound buy buttons to the Festival of Books' website author page, which initially sent consumers exclusively to Amazon. SCIBA president Maureen ...(more)
Mar 10 2014 Since the launch of Indies First Storytime Day just two weeks ago, more than 50 authors have signed on to read at independent bookstores across the USA on May 17, as part of this year's celebration of Children's Book Week (May 12-18). Among them is Kate DiCamillo, the Library of Congress' 2014-2015 ...(more)
Mar 07 2014 According to stats from the American Bookseller Association, areas that have active Local First organizations, encouraging people to shop locally, saw a big difference in foot traffic and sales during the holidays and throughout the year. Independent businesses in cities with active Local First ...(more)
Mar 07 2014 Fallout from the Los Angeles Times decision to partner with Amazon for its Festival of Books website sales continued yesterday, with an increasing number of indie bookstores and small presses weighing in on the situation while deciding what action to take in light of a potentially devastating drop ...(more)
Mar 07 2014 Barnes & Noble's filing with the SEC for the third quarter of fiscal 2014 shows how dramatically the company is scaling back its Nook operations. During the period ended January 25, 2014, Nook capital expenditures were $7.4 million, a decline of 74% from the money spent on the group in the ...(more)
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Free & Fun
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 Wordplay Solve this clue "M T Cut O" and be entered to win the book of your choice: Enter
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 Why Do We Say? "Hope for the best and prepare for the worst" Find out the origins of this well-known expression, and many others!
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 Win This Book  The Wives of Los Alamos by TaraShea Nesbit Publication Date: Feb 2014 Enter the Giveaway From the Jacket Their average age was twenty-five. They came from Berkeley, Cambridge, Paris, London, Chicago - and arrived in New Mexico ready for adventure, or at least resigned to it. But hope quickly turned to hardship as they were forced to adapt to a rugged military town where everything was a secret, including what their husbands were doing at the lab. They lived in barely finished houses with P.O. box addresses in a town wreathed with barbed wire, all for the benefit of a project that didn't exist as far as the public knew. Though they were strangers, they joined together - adapting to a landscape as fierce as it was absorbing, full of the banalities of everyday life and the drama of scientific discovery. And while the bomb was being invented, babies were born, friendships were forged, children grew up, and Los Alamos gradually transformed from an abandoned school on a hill into a real community: one that was strained by the words they couldn't say out loud, the letters they couldn't send home, the freedom they didn't have. But the end of the war would bring even bigger challenges to the people of Los Alamos, as the scientists and their families struggled with the burden of their contribution to the most destructive force in the history of mankind. The Wives of Los Alamos is a novel that sheds light onto one of the strangest and most monumental research projects in modern history. It's a testament to a remarkable group of women who carved out a life for themselves, in spite of the chaos of the war and the shroud of intense secrecy. Reviews This well-researched and fast-paced novel gives a panoramic view of the lives of ordinary women whose husbands worked on the atomic bomb during World War II. Recommended both for its important subject matter and for the author's vivid storytelling. - Library Journal Starred Review. The author's writing - by turns touching, confiding, and matter-of-fact - perfectly captures the commonalities of the hive mind while also emphasizing the little things that make each wife dissimilar from the pack...Engrossing, dense, and believable. - Publishers Weekly Starred Review. Nesbit artfully accumulates the tiny facts of an important historical moment, creating an emotional tapestry of time and place. - Kirkus Reviews Tender and mundane details of marriage and domesticity quietly collide with the covert and solemn work at hand. With chilling implications and charged, sure-footed prose, this is a novel - and writer - of consequence. - Paula McLain, author of The Paris Wife Hypnotic and filled with elegaic details; Nesbit offers fascinating and disturbing insight into the secret life of the Los Alamos families. - Madeline Miller, author of The Song of Achilles I am in awe of this novel. TaraShea Nesbit's brave and brilliant choice of point of view for these women living inside their earth-shattering secret crucible brings home to us in the fullest way possible that our personal story is never just ours. - Gail Godwin, author of Flora5 people will each win a hardcover copy of The Wives of Los Alamos. This giveaway is open to residents of the USA only, unless you are a BookBrowse member, in which case you are eligible to win wherever you might live. Enter the giveaway Past winners
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