If you went to Barnes & Noble and didn’t buy a new book, did you even go?

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Nick and I went to Barnes & Noble in Leominster today to buy our niece a birthday present, but one does not simply walk into Barnes & Noble and leave without buying a new book.

I mean, LOOK AT THIS COVER! How could I not buy it?

The Librarian of Auschwitz

And besides, I got this GORGEOUS new bookcase yesterday, so I obviously have a lot of space to fill! But I digress…

new bookcase

The Librarian of Auschwitz was on a table display for new releases (it looks like it was originally published in Spanish in 2012, but the English version appears to have just come out in October). The cover art is what snagged my attention, but I actually picked it up because the title reminded me so much of The Book Thief, which I read (and loved) last March.

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It’s WWW Wednesday! – 1/10/2018

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WWW Wednesday is a weekly meme hosted by Taking on a World of Words

The 3 Ws are:

  • What are you currently reading?
  • What did you recently finish reading?
  • What do you think you’ll read next?

What are you currently reading?

I’m currently reading The City of Brass by S.A. Chakraborty. It’s the first book in The Daevabad Trilogy.

I spotted this book while perusing the pop-up shop at The Bookery, an independent bookstore coming to Manchester this spring! I actually bought it for my sister-in-law for Christmas (using the “I want to read it, so she’ll want to read it” logic). But about a week after Christmas, I caved and bought it on my Kindle.

I only had a few minutes to start it on Sunday morning, but I was hooked after the first few pages! The City of Brass is a fantasy novel set in 18th-century Cairo. I’ve had a minor obsession with Egyptian culture since I was a child, so this was really the perfect marriage of some of my interests.

I’ll be sure to post my review when I’m finished!

 

What did you recently finish reading?

I just finished re-reading Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury over the weekend.

It had been more than a decade since I read this in high school (eek — that’s a long time!), and although I remember liking it in high school, I actually think I liked it more this time around.

Even though it was terrifying. Highly recommended to ANYONE. Read my review here.

What do you think you’ll read next?

26755479_10215080631349295_1843687110_nThe next book I plan on reading the princess saves herself in this one by Amanda Lovelace.

“Ah, life- the thing that happens to us while we’re off somewhere else blowing on dandelions & wishing ourselves into the pages of our favorite fairy tales.”

A poetry collection divided into four different parts: the princess, the damsel, the queen, & you. the princess, the damsel, & the queen piece together the life of the author in three stages, while you serves as a note to the reader & all of humankind. Explores life & all of its love, loss, grief, healing, empowerment, & inspirations.

The black and white contrast of the cover and the title just grabbed me on this one while I was browsing Barnes and Noble with Sarah on Monday.

I paged through it briefly and instantly HAD to buy it. It’s a little different from my usual reads as I’m not typically into nonfiction, but I do love poetry!

Stay tuned for my thoughts!

What are your 3 Ws? Leave a comment and let me know!

What’s your reading goal in 2018?

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How many books are you planning to read this year?

I’ll be honest, I crashed and burned on my reading goal last year. I aimed for 50, but fell short at four.

Yes. I said four.

Here’s my breakdown over the last few years:

  • 2011: 100+ (no goal set)
  • 2012: 72/100
  • 2013: 50/50
  • 2014: 26/50
  • 2015: 8 (no goal set)
  • 2016: 22/25
  • 2017: 4/50

Oops.

Don’t get me wrong, I did a lot of things last year. Work was crazy, I traveled a lot, and I played a LOT of hockey.

My brain was just too cluttered to focus on reading.

But I started 2018 with a clearer head than I’ve had in years, so I’m going to try for 50 again in 2018!

How many books are you planning to read in 2018? Let me know in the comments, or comment on my Facebook post.

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Review: Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury

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13259220Title: Fahrenheit 451
Author:  Ray Bradbury
Published:  October 1953
Genre:  Dystopian
Format:  Kindle
Source:  Purchased

Guy Montag is a fireman. In his world, where television rules and literature is on the brink of extinction, firemen start fires rather than put them out. His job is to destroy the most illegal of commodities, the printed book, along with the houses in which they are hidden.

Montag never questions the destruction and ruin his actions produce, returning each day to his bland life and wife, Mildred, who spends all day with her television ‘family’. But then he meets an eccentric young neighbor, Clarisse, who introduces him to a past where people did not live in fear and to a present where one sees the world through the ideas in books instead of the mindless chatter of television.

When Mildred attempts suicide and Clarisse suddenly disappears, Montag begins to question everything he has ever known.

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Review: The Winner’s Kiss by Marie Rutkoski

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Winners KissTitle: The Winner’s Kiss
Author: Marie Rutkoski
Published: March 29, 2016
Series: The Winner’s Trilogy
Genre: High Fantasy
Format: Kindle/Audible
Source: Purchased

War has begun. Arin is in the thick of it with untrustworthy new allies and the empire as his enemy. Though he has convinced himself that he no longer loves Kestrel, Arin hasn’t forgotten her, or how she became exactly the kind of person he has always despised. She cared more for the empire than she did for the lives of innocent people—and certainly more than she did for him.

At least, that’s what he thinks.

In the frozen north, Kestrel is a prisoner in a brutal work camp. As she searches desperately for a way to escape, she wishes Arin could know what she sacrificed for him. She wishes she could make the empire pay for what they’ve done to her.

But no one gets what they want just by wishing.

As the war intensifies, both Kestrel and Arin discover that the world is changing. The East is pitted against the West, and they are caught in between. With so much to lose, can anybody really win?

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Review: The Crown by Kiera Cass

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the-crownTitle: The Crown
Author: Kiera Cass
Published: May 3, 2016
Series: The Selection
Genre: Dystopian
Format: Kindle
Source: Purchased

Twenty years have passed since America Singer and Prince Maxon fell in love, and their daughter is the first princess to hold a Selection of her own.

Eadlyn didn’t think she would find a real partner among the Selection’s thirty-five suitors, let alone true love. But sometimes the heart has a way of surprising you…and now Eadlyn must make a choice that feels more difficult—and more important—than she ever expected.

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