Tuesday, March 15, 2011

Mailbox Monday: A day late and a dollar short edition



Mailbox Monday is a weekly meme for book bloggers to share their recent acquisitons.  I've been meaning to start up the feature here for weeks, but something always gets in the way.  So, here I am, a day late and a dollar short--as I so often am.  But I'm going for it.  How many weeks can I procrastinate?  Different bloggers do this different ways, and I'm not quite sure yet what I want this feature to be, so let's just see how things evolve, okay?

Books acquired this week:


Iron House
by John Hart
Release date:  7/12/2011
Source:  paper galley from publisher

This will be the fourth stand alone novel by this much-lauded master of the literary thriller.  I'm pretty sure I have galleys of most of them, yet I've read none.  I really have to rectify that.  Maybe this time?



Between Shades of Gray
by Ruta Sepetys
Release date:  3/22/2011
Source:  paper galley from publisher

Okay, I don't mind telling you that this YA novel set in Stalin's Russia does not look like my cup of tea.  But that's okay.  I'm collecting YA titles to donate to the adolescent treatment center over at Children's Hospital in Oakland.  They put books in the waiting room, and they want the kids to be able to take them home if desired.  Bookcrossing to the rescue.

One of Our Thursday's is Missing
by Jasper Fforde
Release date:  3/8/2011
Source:  Hardback purchased from M is for Mystery Bookshop

Yes, after all that hype, the book went on sale last week.  And despite having read the galley graciously supplied by the publisher, I went out and bought a copy.  I love Jasper Fforde and I love my local independent booksellers.  I'm happy to put my money where my mouth is in order to support their livelihoods.  Plus, Jasper was signing.  Hopefully, I'll find time to blog about his event.


Books read in the past week: 

A whole lot of ABNA submissions.  Don't ask.

Currently reading:

The Tiger's Wife by Tea Obreht (trade paper galley)

The Weird Sisters by Eleanor Brown (audiobook)


So, I think that's all for last week.  I predict a very long post next Monday.  I'm going to have to start logging these things as they come in from various sources, because I really feel like I'm forgetting something...

Part of the fun of Mailbox Monday is reader contributions.  What books have you acquired this week?  What are you reading?  I would love to hear from you!  It may take a while, but I am hopeful that regular readers will join in the Mailbox Monday fun.  At the very least, it'll give you an idea of what reviews may be forthcoming.

A final note:  A winner was just drawn for the Pale Demon Giveway.  Please check the comments thread here for the winner.  And there are just a few hours remaining to enter The Bone Yard giveaway here.  Competition is less fierce, so good luck!

5 comments:

  1. Susan.

    I strongly urge you to give John hart a try.He is quickly moving up my list of favorite authors.

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  2. Hey Craig,

    Well, that's an attention-grabbing statement. Mr. Hart just moved several notches up on my priority list. Thanks!

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  3. Maybe you should read Between Shades of Grey after all. I am not into YA but just today I saw a short review (postive at that!) by someone who doesn't read YA either. Read the first 20 pages and see what it's like. :-)

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  4. Hi Susan!

    How are you? i love the look of your blog! You never fail in adding more books to my reading list... I agree with previous commentator about reading Between Shades of Grey - of course international settings is my thing in books.

    I can't wait to hear your review of The Tiger's wife - this new release has been catching my eye as I've seen its reviews circulate in several magazines.

    I just finished this incredible book set in Palestine called "mornings in jenin" by Susan Abulhawa - hope to share about it at the next book crossings.

    See you soon,
    Kat

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  5. Hey Kat,

    Thanks for the kind words! Is it possible that I gave you Mornings in Jenin? I definitely gave away a copy at some point.

    So, this is awesome, having people tell me what books I should be reading. A new use of crowd sourcing. And you guys may be right. Between Shades of Gray got a very respectable write-up in this week's EW:

    "They took me in my nightgown." So begins Sepetys' stirring tale of 15-year-old Lina, a Lithuanian girl deported to a Siberian work camp in 1941. Shoved into the same boxcar as her 10-year-old brother, her marvelously elegant mother--the most fully alive of the characters--and a horde of terrified neighbors. Lina, a promising art student, uses her drawings to document their brutal experience and relay messages to her father's prison camp. Sepetys' debut novel may lack the oomph of The Book Thief, but brave Lina is a heroine young and old readers can believe in. Grade: B

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