Week 5:

 Romance

I've been monitoring all three of the links for the Romance genre. One thing that I've really been exploring is the romance subgenres. I knew about a few of them such as historical, erotic, and paranormal, but I've also come to learn about hockey/sports romances, small town, time travel and inspirational. It's been interesting to learn how the settings, plots and characters can very so much within Romances. Reading book excerpts reviews, as well as author interviews, has been very informative in expanding my knowledge of the Romance genre and its subgenres.

Early Word

Early Word is a site that I haven't used much in the past, but I plan to start visiting every couple of days simply because of the sheer information it gives you about books and authors. In particular, the monthly twitter discussions about galleys and the vast amount of news given for collection development and readers advisory were particularly useful. I also love the different lists that they've compiled for website visitors to explore: Coming Soon, Awards, Best Book Spreadsheets and Movies and TV shows based on books. 

Amazon Best Books of July 2015: Bull Mountain

Bull Mountain is a multi-generational family saga with a sweeping storyline. It has an atmospheric and violent tone that focuses on the landscape and culture of rural Appalachia and a brotherly battle of good and evil . It is similar to books like Above the Waterfall, The Wapshot Chronicle and The Children's Crusade in that they are all family sagas that strongly evoke the setting to set the mood for the story.

Bull Mountain would appeal to fans of adult fiction authors and books that use atmospheric and violent tones. Two authors who fit this bill are Ron Rash and Patrick deWitt.

 

Week 4: Goodreads

Goodreads: Likes and Dislikes


There were aspects of Goodreads that I liked and others I found to not be useful. In particular, the Recommendations section of the website was of limited use. Even though I have rated books from a multitude of genres, the vast majority of my recommendations were for one genre. Furthermore, I didn't find many of the recommended books to be of much interest.

I did find the Explore tab to be very informative and user-friendly. I mostly use Amazon for browsing for books and  for reading user reviews. I find that Goodreads provides a much better experience for engaging in these activities.


Recommendations


Autobiography of Miss Jane Pittman by Ernest J. Gaines

Recommended to: Brenda
I recommended this classic work of fiction to you because of your positive ratings for three books: Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglas, The Autobiography of Malcolm X and The Help.


I thought you would be interested in the Autobiography of Miss Jane Pittman because of the composite picture it gives of the African American experience over a 100 year period. Both Narrative and The Autobiography of Malcolm X have character-driven storylines. On the other hand, The Autobiography of Miss Jane Pitman has a sweeping storyline that covers the events from the times of Frederick Douglas (Slavery and Reconstruction) to those of Malcolm X (the Civil Rights movement). 



In addition, Jane Pitman is told from the point of view of a strong, self-reliant and bold African American, similarly to parts of The Help, a book that you clearly liked.





The Killing Moon by N.K. Jemisin

Recommended to: Katie



I recommended this to you for two reason. First, you want read another title authored by Jemisin, The Hundred Thousand Kingdoms. Secondly, you are clearly interested in high/epic fantasy. The extensive world-building that Jemisin uses to lay the groundwork for her story completely immerses the reader. While the setting has traces of ancient Egypt, it clearly is Jemisin's creation with in-depth descriptions of the people, temples, religious system, and historial background. The Killing Moon is mainly told from the point of view of the three main characters. The plot revolves around a system of magic rooted in Freudian dream theory and ancient Egyptian medicine.  There isn't a lot information thrown at the reader at one time; instead, the author adds depth to her world bit by bit with interludes and small sections at the beginning of each chapter. So in summary, I thought that an immersion  story with rotating points of view, extensive world-building and a plot that revolves around political intrigue and magic might be of interest to you.

Week 3: Conversations

Conversation #1

 I would recommend The Bread of Angels by Stephanie Saldana, even though it’s a more serious read than Eat, Pray, Love.  This is primarily due to two things:

The book is centered around a young woman’s quest for God. It is the story of a Westerner’s journey of self-discovery in a Middle Eastern city that is a mixture of people of differing faiths, ideologies and cultures. Stephanie’s quest spans monasteries and mosques, and includes a romantic relationship with a monk.

Damascus offers many situations and people for Stephanie. As a result, we get to see her thoughts on these matters: God, family, the future, religious discipline, the role of women in the secular and religious spheres as well as love and heartbreak.

Although she is a Christian, Stephanie tackles studying the Quran. We learn about her immense struggles during this process. There are also a bevy of other experiences that serve to reveal joy, hope, love, anger and surprise that Stephanie experiences during her journey. All of this would appeal to this particular reader.

Secondly, the narrative paints an incredibly vivid picture of Damascus. The story takes place during a time when a predominantly Christian nation is waging war against countries with primarily Muslim populations. Damascus has Christian and Muslims communities’ existing side-by-side. There contrasting views and ideologies within the same community and between the differing communities. The narrative is able to strongly convey the tension that exists in the region during this time.  It gives the reader a fascinating portrait as the people of Damascus weed through the demands and realities of everyday life.

Books that focus on self-discovery through travel really interests Reader #1 and therefore, The Bread of Angels should interest him/her.

Conversation #2

I would recommend I am Legend by Richard Matheson. First, it’s not a very long read at approximately 150 pages. This should provide some initial appeal to the reader.

 Secondly, it’s a completely different kind of vampire story from Twilight. There are no real romantic themes. I am Legend is an action-adventure story.  There is little dialogue as the only person who can communicate is the main character. In fact, the main character is the only major character in the whole story. The book uses flashback scenes to explain the current setting. Therefore, there is a strong focus on the main character’s actions and inner thoughts. These actions and inner thoughts provide the scaffolding for the progression of the story. Instead of being a love story that relies heavily on teenage angst, I am Legend is a horror-thriller that focuses on themes like alienation, prejudices, and survival.

It seems likely that a short vampire story with entirely different themes from Twilight would at least pique the interest of Reader #2.  

Conversation #3

For Reader #3, In the Kingdom of Ice would be my recommendation. My post about the book in Week 2 clearly shows why this book would be recommended.

Week 2: Appeal Factors

Annotations for some of my favorite books

1. Wonder by R.J. Palacio

Wonder is a story about Auggie Pullman, a 5th grader born with a rare genetic defect that causes extreme  facial deformities. Because of his numerous medical problems, as well as the cruelty of the outside world, Auggie has been home-schooled by his parents. Auggie's health eventually improves and the story opens with him beginning his first year of public school at Beecher Prep.

The story is almost entirely character-driven. We not only see things from Auggie's view, but from family members and friends also. We're given a full and honest portrait of Auggie. in addition, we see the effects that his condition has on the other characters as they try to navigate through their own lives.

Because of this, Wonder isn't fast-paced or filled with action or suspense. Instead, it painstakingly paints an honest portrait of how the daily life of a physically disfigured boy might look as he immerses himself into the outside world for the first time.


2. In the Kingdom of Ice: The Grand and Terrible Polar Voyage of the USS Jeannette by Hampton Sides

This adventure narrative is driven by it's characters and the detailed portrayal of the harsh challenges of Arctic travel.  Side does an excellent job of providing detailed portraits of the two main characters involved with the expedition: George De Long and James Bennett. De Long is brought to life as a highly disciplined and determined sailor who was committed to reaching his goals. On the other hand, Bennett was the extremely rich and highly eccentric publisher of the New York Herald.

Furthermore, Side delves into the lives of the other members of the USS Jeannette as they traveled together to the far North. It is this setting, the far North, that provides the meat of the book. We read about the explorers getting stuck in the sea ice near Wrangel Island and surviving on seals and polar bears. Our hopes are dashed as their boat is smashed by shifting ice floes. We follow the crew members as they set out on a 1000 mile journey over the frozen seas of the Siberian Mainland.  The setting provides the stage for the most trragic of adventures.


3. All the Light We Cannot See by Antony Doerr

All the Light We Cannot See is the tale of two children who get caught up in the tragedy of World War II. It is a fast-paced book that centers on the distinct personalities of its two main characters, Werner and Marie-Laure.  The story is highly suspenseful. We follow Marie-Lerner, who is blind, as she has to flee her hometown after the Nazi invasion of France in 1940.The story presents a realistic portrait of the challenges her blindness provides, as well as the fatherly love that helps her to meet these challenges.

The story of Werner gives the reader a look at the workings of a training school for the Nazi military elite. He becomes fully indoctrinated and helps the Nazis find the senders fo illegal radio transmissions.

As the story movss toward a meeting between Werner and Marie-Laure, we encounter two things. First the development of Werner's character as he becomes increasingly sickened by what his findings lead to. Secondly, we get an extremely suspenseful adventure story that the moves back and forth in time seamlessly.

Week 1

For the resources listed in the "Recommended Links-Books" box, I initially decided on NPR as the website that I would visit on a regular basis. This was simply due to numerous author interviews that are found on NPR's website, in addition to the book reviews and other resources.


With that written, I eventually settled on EarlyWord as my website/resource of choice during the training. EarlyWord links to many features on NPR's website. It also incorporates YouTube videos and links to reviews found on other websites. It provides a myriad of resources-visual, audio and print. There are book reviews from The Wall Street Journal, as well as Entertainment Weekly.


I immediately knew what resource I would chose in the "Recommended Links-Genre" box. I've never been too keen on reading anything that falls under the Romance genre, so this gives me a chance to explore a genre I'm somewhat unfamiliar with.