It’s not easy writing about nothing, she will say as the first sentence of the book. Patti is now a woman enjoying the loneliness of her small apartment where she lives with her cats when not traveling, she likes to drink black coffee, eat toast and write about nothing. If Just Kids detailed the relationship Patti Smith had with artist Robert Mapplethorpe in her youth, M Train is placed under the memory of Fred, whom she lost to heart failure when he was only 45. As writing is for Patti a daily discipline, she hops on the train, free of expectations, allowing her thoughts to absorb past and present, reality and dreams, creating a poetical story haunted by the remembrance of musician Fred Sonic Smith, her husband. M Train is an atypical memoir it is a journey without a destination, through memories and people that marked Patti along her life. And it seems we share the love for coffee, Haruki Murakami and detective shows she will repeatedly mention The Killing, the series with the two popular detectives Sarah Linden and Stephen Holden. She’s gifted, profound and beautifully sincere. I fell in love with Patti Smith’s writing while reading Just Kids. In limba romana: Trenul M, Editura Polirom Published 2016 by Bloomsbury (first published in 2015), 280p.
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Tales from the Cafe is exactly as sweet, as strong, as playful, sorrowful, touching, and awkward as Before the Coffee Gets Cold was. The concept of a cafe corner which sends people back in time is a bottomless well of narrative ideas, and Kawaguchi does a wonderful job of continuing to plunge its depths. Tales from the Cafe follows this exact same conceit, even down to the same four-act structure. In that short window, a customer may choose to take her seat and use it to travel back in time there, they can remain until the coffee gets cold. Once a day, she will leave her seat and visit the bathroom. In this unassuming cafe there exists an unassuming table and chair, in which sits the not-so-unassuming ghost of a woman. Before the Coffee Gets Cold was a collection of four interwoven stories, all set in a single Tokyo cafe. But being paid to review a book is surely not as compromising and unhelpful as the reviewer being friends with the author, which Hornby invariably is. "Being paid to read a book and then write about it creates a dynamic which compromises the reviewer in all kinds of ways, very few of them helpful," he claims. This is of course perfectly reasonable - everyone dislikes reviewers (especially reviewers) - but his reasons for disliking them seem disingenuous. He complains frequently about reviewers, including those on .uk ("They're bastards"), though his real rage is directed towards the "clever-dick reviewer". He doesn't regard himself as actually reviewing any of the books he writes about, reviewing books being an activity he regards as far beneath him. Hornby's world-weariness and waywardness are, as always, entertaining, if not always enlightening. When Tom Vanderbilt’s young daughter wanted him to teach her how to play chess, he first needed to learn the game for himself. Have you learned a new skill or taken up a new activity? Learned how to make something that you can hold in your hands and say, Hey, look at what I just made!? Or, check out this new dance I’ve learned or my awesome yoyo tricks. We’re talking about beginning to learn how to do something new. Sigh.Ī very fitting topic for this New Years Day episode of the show. While I spend a ridiculous amount of time learning about things, I have neglected to learn how to physically do much of anything over the past decade. Too Old to Be a Beginner? When was the last time you learned a new skill as opposed to learning about something?Īpparently, I have been kidding myself. "Crackles with wit, humor, and enormous love. Summer of Salt by Katrina Leno If you want a beach read that also feels like Practical Magic, this is the book for you. Readers of all ages will find themselves swept away." - VOYA Summer of Salt by Katrina Leno Review Thursday, Title: Summer of Salt Author: Katrina Leno Age Group: Teen/Young Adult Genre: Magical Realism Series: Standalone Star Rating: 4 out of 5 Stars I borrowed this book from my local library and reviewed it. Over the course of her last summer on the island-a summer of storms, falling in love, and the mystery behind one rare three-hundred-year-old bird-Georgina will learn the truth about magic, in all its many forms. But with her eighteenth birthday looming at the end of her last summer on the island, Georgina fears her gift will. But with her eighteenth birthday looming at the end of this summer, Georgina fears her gift will never come. Georgina Fernweh waits impatiently for the tingle of magic in her fingers-magic that has touched every woman in her family. Practical Magic meets Nova Ren Suma's Imaginary Girls and Laura Ruby's Bone Gap in this lush, atmospheric novel by acclaimed author Katrina Leno. Through it all moves the shadow of the Fire Dragon. He is helped by the man he loves, the handsome but crippled ex-firefighter, Zashi, a man tormented by demons of his own. Mysterious foes are smuggling illegal guns into his city, and they will stop at nothing, not even arson, kidnapping, and murder, as they wage their secret war. Yet as he attempts to keep his city safe from fire, he finds his own life in peril as he stumbles across dangerous secrets. He surprises-and annoys-everyone by taking his job seriously. Although he knows nothing about fire fighting, he must protect his city from gangsters, disgraced warriors, and assassins. Kei discusses his latest novel, a gay Asian science fiction/fantasy novel, entitled 'Fire Dragon.' In it, Shuibai, an untouchable, is suddenly appointed Fire Warden for his town. Kei, Author of FIRE DRAGON by Yancy Carpentier Special Feature Our Story GLBTQ Historical Fiction: Interview with M. Parts of the story were just heartbreaking while others brought hope and laughter. In the end, I enjoyed Meg Rossoff’s writing, characters, world and writing style. I wasn’t positive I would care for the author’s unique way of telling the story. So I’ll be focusing on short/sweet reviews and give each book a ‘love’ rating based on the rating system below.ĭECEMBER_ĭecember 2010: The Report: My sister suggested this book to me Title: How I live Now Author: Meg Rosoff Pages: 194 ISBN:0553376055 (ISBN13: 9780553376050) RATING: 4♥♥♥♥ bff’s Mostly it’s nice to know whether a person loved a particular book, or felt like it was a huge disappointment. I’m a fan of reviews, but don’t always like finding out all there is to know about a book before reading one. The Short Reviews:Perfect Chemistry, Rules of Attraction and How I Live Now Dee is intrigued by this woman who won’t take No for an answer and doesn’t let on to who she really is. Only later does Austen find out the Dee is actually THE Danielle Saunders, AKA Attila the Hun, and sister to her new boss and also is her bosses Boss. Austen being the bossy yet sweet lady she is gets the reluctant Dee to the hospital emergency room despite Dee’s arguments. The mystery woman manages to dislodges the crystal star on the top of the tree to which lands on the top of her head and shatters, cutting her. At the end of the day she see’s another woman messing with her tree lights. The theme is Wishes… Everyone is to write their wish on a star and hang it on the tree. On her first day she volunteers to decorate the Corporate Christmas Tree. Austen gets a new job at Kudo’s Entertainment. Opposing forces attempt to thwart the mission. Expensive, exotic technologies are put to use. This is the Peripheral of the title.Īs for the plot, the general outlines follow a pattern that Gibson has used (to excellent effect) several times before:Ī wealthy, powerful, and secretive cabal of dubious moral standing employs the protagonists to achieve some goal. Gibson also tosses in the ability to shift one’s consciousness into a custom-designed body. I do know the book explores drones, 3D printing, time travel, and a post-apocalyptic future that is remarkably clean and tasteful, and still requires the services of public relations professionals (chilling!). What is The Peripheral about? I’d love to provide a tidy précis, but Gibson’s prose is so spare, the exposition so subtle, and the cultural/historical/technological references so layered, I was never 100 percent certain what the hell was going on. The Peripheral is engrossing, sometimes aggravating, often mind-expanding, and always compelling. So it was with some trepidation that I bought the hardcover version of The Peripheral, which came out last fall.īut the investment was well worth it. However, my response to his last few books has been more…muted. William Gibson blew my mind with Neuromancer back in 1984. "Deep breath, contented sigh, big smile on my face, warm fuzzy feeling in my chest. I will be reading this story again for sure." Siren Book Reviews She's falling for the stern owner of Dark Haven, and he's beginning to care for her.until the day he learns why she's in his club."The emotional and physical connection between the two lit the pages up, along with understanding, forgiveness, and courage. As he draws her into truly participating, she, in turn, begins to fill his world.Ever since meeting Xavier, Abby questions everything she believes about herself. Although she's intriguingly intelligent, beautifully submissive, and sweetly vulnerable, her defenses keep her on the fringe of life. Under the unyielding hands of the master known as my Liege, she discovers a need to be more than an observer.Xavier's new receptionist is striving to keep an emotional distance, and he's intrigued. When the owner calls upon her to assist in a demonstration, she's appalled. Planning to covertly observe behavior in the notorious Dark Haven BDSM club, she takes a receptionist job. Yep, I finished reading Cherise Sinclair's My Liege of Dark Haven." You Gotta Read ReviewsThreatened by university cutbacks, Professor Abigail Bern's only hope is to publish a provocative research paper-soon. Aprašymas "Deep breath, contented sigh, big smile on my face, warm fuzzy feeling in my chest. |