“The Train of Small Mercies” by David Rowell
The Train of Small Mercies follows one day in the lives of six people who encounter the funeral train of Robert F. Kennedy as it travels from New York to Washington, DC.
“The Misanthrope’s Guide to Life” by Meghan Rowland and Chris Turner-Neal
Scratching your head over what to get for your favorite misanthrope this holiday season? At a loss over what to slip into your post-collegiate kids’ stockings? You can’t go wrong with The Misanthrope’s Guide to Life, a slim, humorous book by Meghan Rowland and Chris Turner-Neal.
NaNoWriMo “Winner”!
You’ve probably noticed how quiet my blog has been lately–even quieter than usual. That’s because I participated in NaNoWriMo this year. In the month of November, I wrote more than 50,000 words of a novel. First of all, let me say: WOOOOOO! I’M A WINNER! I’M AWESOME! I set out to write a what seemed like an impossible number of words last month–not to mention maintaining a full-time job, buying a new car, keeping my house clean and in good repair, celebrating […]
“Swamplandia!” by Karen Russell
The Bigtrees are the proud, indebted owners of Swamplandia!, a macabre and thrilling theme park devoted to “Seths”—their nickname for alligators. But when their star wrestler Hilola dies and a rival theme park, the World of Darkness, opens nearby, they hemorrhage customers.
Thirteen-year-old Ava is stricken with grief at the loss of her mother, the famous alligator wrestler Hilola Bigtree. Hilola died not from an aggressive gator attack but from cancer, and Ava finds herself adrift. She’s not the only one. Her father, known as the Chief; her seventeen-year-old brother Kiwi; and her sixteen-year-old sister Osceola (Ossie) also break and slide apart.
Poem: Halloween Haunting
I’ve written a prose-poem. That’s not exactly new, since I’ve done that before. But today I’m seized by the impulse to share it. I’ve been toying with the idea of posting some of my more creative/adventurous work on this blog, so I thought I’d go with it. I just wrote the poem today, and I’ll probably hate it tomorrow, but now it will live forever. What do you think? It is Halloween Ghosts and monsters wait Around corners once familiar The here […]
Down by the Bay in Dar es Salaam
I’m so excited to be in Tanzania with the International Reporting Project (IRP). Yesterday, I had a few moments to myself. I walked through an overpriced market, but I only had eyes for the coastline. Dar es Salaam sits beside a bay of the same name that links up with the Indian Ocean. The water is gorgeous and calm.
“The Scar” by China Miéville
Bellis Coldwine is unhappily fleeing her home in New Crobuzon for a colony across the world. Bellis, a cold, competent linguist, soon finders herself impressed by pirates and dropped onto the floating city of Armada.
“Stanley Finnigan and the Race Around the Universe” by Dan Cuoco
Stanley Finnigan is having a bad day. The bully of the seventh grade won’t leave him alone, his teachers all seem like alien life forms, and to top it all off, the weird new kid in town joined his science project. But he forgets all of that when the space ship lands next to him.
“Gone Girl” by Gillian Flynn
Title: Gone Girl Author: Gillian Flynn ISBN: 9780307588364 Pages: 432 Release date: June 5, 2012 Publisher: Crown Genre: Thriller Format: Ebook Source: […]
Twelve Nonfiction Books on Tanzania
In just a few weeks, I’m leaving for Tanzania! Naturally, my mind first turns to books about or from Tanzania. Last week, I listed six novels I’d like to read before/after the trip; this week, I’m focusing on nonfiction titles. Guides & Wonky Stuff Bradt Guide to Tanzania by Philip Briggs Hunger and Shame: Child Malnutrition and Poverty on Mount Kilimanjaro by Mary Theresa Howard The Hadza: Hunter-Gatherers of Tanzania by Frank Marlowe Personal accounts The Shadow of the Sun by Ryszard Kapuściński […]
“Pandemonium” by Lauren Oliver
Title: Pandemonium Author: Lauren Oliver Series: Delirium, #2 ISBN: 9780061978067 Pages: 384 Release date: March 2012 Publisher: HarperCollins Genre: Dystopian fiction; young […]
Six Novels on Tanzania
This month, I head out for my next IRP trip: Tanzania! Naturally, my mind first turns to books about or from Tanzania. As I learned on my recent trip to Zambia, there are many fine books that I’m sure I won’t discover until I set foot in the country. But these titles should help me prepare for the trip. Unlike my research for Zambia, I’ve found a ton of interesting books from and about Tanzania. First, I’m looking at six novels that […]
