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BookBrowse Highlights
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Sept 24, 2015
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Hello,
Salman Rushdie has always borrowed from the pot of Islamic traditions to craft his immensely sprawling and absorbing stories. He shot to fame with his second novel, the Booker Prize-winning Midnight's Children, a moving capture of post-colonialism and its effects on India.
Since then he's published ten novels, perhaps the best known being The Satanic Verses (1988) which was perceived as a slight on Islam so that Rushdie, who was born and brought up in a Kashmiri Muslim family in Mumbai, found himself the target of a fatwa issued by the Ayatollah of Iran. The fatwa was renewed as recently as 2006.
His latest, Two Years Eight Months and Twenty- Eight Nights, a reference to the 1001 tales of the Arabian nights, is a contemporary take on the classic. I suspect the story is particularly close to his heart, as the book's lead protagonist is the 12th century philosopher Ibn Rushd, whom Rushdie's father held in such high esteem that he derived his own last name from the philosopher's.
This and much more to discover in today's issue.
Happy reading!
Your editor, Davina |
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1. Editor's Choice
Two Years Eight Months and Twenty-Eight Nights by Salman Rushdie
Hardcover & ebook (Sep 2015), 304 pages. Publisher: Random House. BookBrowse Rating: 5/5, Critics' Consensus: 4.8/5 Buy at Amazon | B&N | Indie
In Salman Rushdie's words, Two Years Eight Months and Twenty-Eight Nights is "a wonder tale about the way we live now, a rich and multifaceted work that blends history, mythology, and a timeless love story to bring alive a world - our world - that has been plunged into an age of unreason. Inspired by 2,000 years of storytelling tradition yet rooted in the concerns of our present moment." Told from the perspective of over a thousand years from now, the novel describes events that take place in our near future (21st century), and connects them to a fictional fight between two 12th century philosophers. ... continued Full access to our reviews & beyond the book articles are for members only. But there are always four free Editor's Choice reviews and beyond the book articles available.
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2. Beyond the Book: Ghazali and Ibn Rushd?
Every time we review a book we also explore a related topic. Here is a recent "beyond the book" article written by Davida Chazan for Two Years Eight Months and Twenty-Eight Nights:
Those versed in Muslim philosophy and theology have probably heard of both Ghazali and Ibn Rushd, but when I first read Two Years Eight Months Twenty-Eight Months I thought they were fictional. When I discovered they were real people who had written the books Rushdie talks about, I decided to find out more about them.... continued Read in full | More about this book
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3. Editor's Choice: Paperback
The Same Sky by Amanda Eyre Ward
Paperback & ebook (Sep 2015), 304 pages. Publisher: Ballantine Books. BookBrowse Rating: 5/5, Critics' Consensus: 4.7/5 Buy at Amazon | B&N | Indie
Emotionally charged and and compellingly written, our readers couldn't help but empathize with the two central characters in The Same Sky. 34 out of 38 readers gave Amanda Eyre Ward's novel a 4 or 5-star rating. Why did our readers feel so connected to this novel? The Same Sky covers the lives of Alice, who lives in Texas dealing with the heartache of not not being able to have a child; and Carla, an eleven-year-old girl who, with her brother, tries to make her way from Honduras to Texas. What I liked most about these two characters was their resilience and faith to believe that they will get what they want ... continued Full access to our reviews & beyond the book articles are for members only. But there are always four free Editor's Choice reviews and beyond the book articles available.
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4. Beyond the Book: Konrad Adenauer Every time we review a book we also explore a related topic. Here is a recent "beyond the book" article for The Same Sky by Amanda Eyre Ward
We all live under the same sky, but we don't all have the same horizon. Amanda Eyre Ward's novel The Same Sky takes its title from a quote attributed to Konrad Adenauer, Chancellor of the Federal Republic of Germany from 1949-1966. Konrad Adenauer was born in Cologne, Germany on January 6, 1876. His family was hard working and lived simply, and he grew up believing in frugality, and dedication to work and religion. After practicing law for a number of years, in 1906 he successfully applied for and became a member of the Cologne City Council. During the First World War, Adenauer showed his creativity and ingenuity by organizing the food supply of the city ... continued Read in full | More about this book
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5. Publishing Soon
Each month BookBrowse previews 80+ notable books. Here is one of these upcoming books. Pop Goes the Weasel by M. J. Arlidge Thriller, 416 pages. Publisher: NAL. Oct 6, 2015 Buy at Amazon | B&N | Indie
From the international bestselling author of Eeny Meeny comes a second thriller featuring Detective Helen Grace investigating a serial killer who prays on "family men" who lead hidden double lives.
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6. Blog: Best Fall Mysteries Set in Exotic Locations
At BookBrowse, we love mysteries, and we love traveling to interesting new places between the pages of good books. Put the two together and you get this month's special edition of BookBrowse Highlights: ten recently published or soon to publish mysteries set in far flung locations including China, Kenya, India, France, Bosnia, South Korea, Israel, Italy and Australia. Whether you like your mysteries cozy or hard-boiled, classic or thrilling, we've got you covered! ... Continued
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8. Win This Book
Monday, Monday by Elizabeth CrookPublished Apr 2014 352 pages
Enter the Giveaway
From the Jacket With electrifying storytelling and powerful sense of destiny, Elizabeth Crook's Monday, Monday explores the ways in which we sustain ourselves and one another when the unthinkable happens. At its core, it is the story of a woman determined to make peace with herself, with the people she loves, and with a history that will not let her go. A humane treatment of a national tragedy, it marks a generous and thrilling new direction for a gifted American writer. Reviews "Starred Review. Framing a story in the context of calamity--in this instance, mass murder--invites both sensationalism and sentimentality; there have been few memorable successes, Jonathan Safran Foer's Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close and Wally Lamb's The Hour I First Believed among them. Add Crook's latest to the plus side of the list....confident and lyrical as it smartly engages terror and its aftermath." - Kirkus "Authentic... harrowing... makes us believe the characters were there... Crook's exploration of Whitman's massacre and its lingering effects will have relevance for years to come." - Dallas Morning News 5 people will each win a paperback copy of Monday, Monday. 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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