6/12/2023 0 Comments Wanderlust rebecca![]() ![]() ![]() Thinkers throughout time have been avid walkers, from William Wordsworth (“The act of walking is indivisible from the act of making poetry: one begets the other,” he argued) to Henry David Thoreau (“The moment my legs begin to move, my thoughts begin to flow,” he wrote in a journal entry dated August 19, 1851). But though walking serves the practical function of getting us from one point to another, it also possesses a profounder power to reinvigorate the mind and replenish the soul. ![]() Ever since we evolved from the quadruped crawling of our toddler years, we’ve been putting one foot in front of the other. Sometimes we stride along the beach joined hand-in-hand with our partner, the coastline melting into a pink-orange sunset other times, we amble through our local park going nowhere in particular still other times, we trek through groves of redwoods and Douglas fir to witness breathtaking panoramic views from the top of a bluff. Is there any occupation as prosaic as walking? We walk from our bed to the kitchen to make our morning coffee, out the front door to go to work, to the corner store to grab groceries. ![]()
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6/12/2023 0 Comments Cloud street by tim winton![]() ![]() The two families-who are working-class and scarred by past failures, and who for 20 years have shared the enormous old house that the Pickleses inherited on Cloud Street-have overcome daunting spiritual, moral, and physical adversities to reach this point. ![]() As Fish Lamb, whose nature and tragedy shape the story, prepares to return to the river he has yearned for ever since he was saved from drowning as a small boy, two families, the Lambs and the Pickleses, picnicking on the riverbank, are celebrating a momentous decision in their joint lives. This marvelous postmodern novel of family life by bestselling Australian writer Winton (Minimum of Two, That Eye, the Sky, etc.) celebrates all the great traditional values in writing that is emphatically contemporary. ![]() 6/12/2023 0 Comments Blackout book marc elsberg![]() ![]() He’s gotten fairly detailed on how these systems actually work, and while some might find it a little over their head, I feel it adds to the understanding of what’s going on–and the plausibility of each successive catastrophe. Elsberg jumps around showing the action from several different perspectives much in the same way a film of that type would. As long as she can stick with Manzano, she’ll be right in the middle of the action.īlackout was an interesting techno-disaster thriller, and it reads kind of like a disaster movie. Lauren Shannon is an American reporter who’s gotten used to playing second fiddle, and she sees the Europe-wide power catastrophe as an opportunity. He ends up traveling to some interesting places, and when the hackers find out he’s put Europol on to them, he needs taken off the board. What he sees troubles him enough to talk to someone in charge of the inquiry. When the power suddenly goes out all over Europe, he uses those skills to hack into his smart meter find out what the hell is going on. ![]() Piero Manzano used to be a hacker, but after a brush with the law, he became a consultant. ![]() 6/12/2023 0 Comments The iron king druon![]() The Times Literary Supplement referred to it as ‘barbaric, sensual, teeming with life… among the best historical novels. The second title in the series is The Strangled Queen – so you know before you start that it will not end well for Marguerite of Burgundy. On the other hand, these novels feel so contemporary. Often, historical fiction can seem unconvincing and contrived as the writer tries to convince the reader of the setting – the tropes feel worn. The pace is relentless – no wasted details in scene setting – certainly no romanticising of the period. The characterisation is vividly drawn and the writer manages to get you to the heart of the drama as it is played out. The books were written in French and have been filmed twice as a series. It follows the fortunes and misfortunes of the House of Capet down through several rulers, beginning with Phillip the Third. ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() Martin From the publishers that brought you A Game of Thrones comes the series that inspired George R.R. As Martin says, the story has it all – battles and betrayals, lies and lust, deception, family rivalries, the curse of the Templars, sin and the doom of a dynasty. This is the original game of thrones George R.R. Martin credits it as supplying the narrative arc for Game of Thrones. This book, The Iron King, is the first in a seven part series – The Accursed Kings – by Maurice Druon, set in 14 th Century France. ![]() 6/12/2023 0 Comments Crisanta knight![]() Not an easy sell when I was prophesized to put an end to his girlfriend. Moreover, we had to do it while figuring out whether or not we could truly be friends. ![]() ![]() Separated from our friends, Daniel and I had to work together to traverse the kingdom of Alderon and evade the antagonists who were trying to destroy us. Between Nadia the queen of villains, and the leader of the Fairy Godmothers, I was in for a lot of trouble in this final phase of our quest to alter our fates. If I was to overcome the obstacles in my path, I had plenty of learning left to do-about myself, and about my enemies. But these bizarre lessons were only just the beginning. I’d figured out how to defeat a fairytale villain with a Toyota 4Runner, how to surf on furniture (à la Aladdin and his magic carpet), and how to confront my wicked step-grandmother. I had learned a lot in the last couple of days. ![]() ![]() If you breathe a word of what we’ve discussed here to the greater public-a single person outside of that little mischievous group you’ve been traveling with-then I can’t be held responsible for what terrible, unspeakable things happen to them. ![]() 6/11/2023 0 Comments Cook korean by robin ha![]() ![]() She is the author and the illustrator of Almost American Girl, a 2020 Harvey Award nominee and 2021 Walter Award honoree memoir, and Cook Korean!: A Comic Book With Recipes, a New York Times bestselling cookbook graphic novel. Robin Ha (She/her) is a Korean American cartoonist based in Virginia. ![]() In this visual presentation, we will explore how our creativity can help us connect with each other and find joy within ourselves in hopes that everyone can open themselves up to becoming more creative.” Creativity lives in all of us and different people express it in different ways. It wasn’t until I became an adult and started cooking for myself that I discovered that making food and making visual art is similar in many ways. Robin Ha: “When I was young, I thought cooking and drawing were not related to each other at all. ![]() Join Robin Ha, a Korean American cartoonist, as she explores the relationship between cooking and visual art. ![]() 6/11/2023 0 Comments Book let the great world spin![]() ![]() The other narratives-the stories that have nothing to do with Corrigan-are held together by the tightrope walk. He occupies a great deal of the novel, whether directly or indirectly, and the majority of the stories engage with either his life working with and befriending prostitutes in the Bronx or with his eventual death in a car crash. Corrigan, an Irishman who becomes a Catholic monk working in the Bronx, is an example of this. This is often brought to bear through the use of several key characters whose stories frequently stand out and resurface in the many others. ![]() At the same time, some of the stories, however disparate, actually do link up with one another. Rather, they often simply overlap with it, even if just for a moment, creating something of a mosaic held together by the unifying event. Unconcerned with forging a linear storyline, the book loosely centers itself around Philippe Petit’s tightrope walk between the Twin Towers on August 7, 1974, though not all of the stories directly relate to this event. Let the Great World Spin is a polyphonic novel, which means that it is written from multiple different perspectives, ultimately following a large cast of characters. ![]() 6/11/2023 0 Comments Elizabeth strout books ranked![]() Lucy Barton later became the main character in Strout's 2017 novel, Anything is Possible. My Name Is Lucy Barton (2016) was met with international acclaim and topped the New York Times bestseller list. Five years later, she published The Burgess Boys (2013), which became a national bestseller. The book was adapted into a multi Emmy Award-winning mini series and became a New York Times bestseller. ![]() The novel won the 2009 Pulitzer Prize for Fiction. Two years later, Strout wrote and published Olive Kitteridge (2008), to critical and commercial success grossing nearly $25 million with over one million copies sold as of May 2017. ![]() Her second novel, Abide with Me (2006), received critical acclaim but ultimately failed to be recognized to the extent of her debut novel. Born and raised in Portland, Maine, her experiences in her youth served as inspiration for her novels–the fictional "Shirley Falls, Maine" is the setting of four of her six novels.Strout's first novel, Amy and Isabelle (1998) met with widespread critical acclaim, became a national bestseller, and was adapted into a movie starring Elisabeth Shue. The Top Books Of Elizabeth Strout 6 ) My Name Is Lucy Barton (2016) 5 ) The Burgess Boys (2013) 3 ) Amy and Isabelle (1998) 3 ) Abide with Me (2006) 1 ). She is widely known for her works in literary fiction and her descriptive characterization. Elizabeth Strout (born January 6, 1956) is an American novelist and author. ![]() 6/10/2023 0 Comments Fifth avenue 5 am sam wasson![]() ![]() ![]() Yes, Capote was not happy with the film version, with its possibility of multiple endings. ![]() Author Sam Wasson is now adding his own take on the classic in Fifth Avenue, 5 A.M.: Audrey Hepburn, Breakfast at Tiffany's, and the Dawn of the Modern Women.Īnyone even slightly interested in Capote /Hepburn/ Breakfast at Tiffany's will delight in his account, although a lot of it is old news. Much has been written about Truman Capote 's novella Breakfast at Tiffany 's, and just as much has been written about the movie of the same name. Her hair is swept up, her demeanor that of quiet sophistication, her little sleeveless dress is black. building on Fifth Avenue, strolls over to a window and begins to nibble on a Danish pastry as she eyes the jewels inside. Audrey Hepburn steps out of a cab in the early morning darkness, looks up at the Tiffany & Co. It's one of the most famous scenes in film history. ![]() 6/10/2023 0 Comments Death in her hands ottessa![]() ![]() 'A beautiful novel' Sunday Times Read moreĭeath in her Hands is a return to the dark humour that marks Moshfegh's work to date, making it sure to hit the sweet spot with established fans. 'A brilliant off-kilter detective story' Evening Standard 'A fine line between shocking realism and the absurd' New Statesman 'A new kind of murder mystery' New Yorker 'Routinely hailed as one of the most exciting young American authors working today' Guardian Her brooding about the note grows quickly into a full-blown obsession: who was Magda and how did she meet her fate?įrom the Booker-shortlisted author of Eileen comes this razor-sharp, chilling and darkly hilarious novel about the stories we tell ourselves and how we strive to obscure the truth. ![]() Shaky even on her best days, Vesta is also alone, and new to the area, having moved here after the death of her husband. ![]() While on her daily walk with her dog in the woods near her home, Vesta comes across a chilling handwritten note. 'This is a story about what might happen when a woman takes charge. From one of our most provocative literary talents, a novel of haunting metaphysical suspense ![]() |