Bookmarks Autumn 2005 - BOOKLOFT NEWSLETTER
What's Mary Been Reading? ~ New Release from Bear Creek Press ~ Guest Review by Audrey Arment ~ Armadillo Staff Pick ~ Fall Releases of Interest
URSULA, UNDER by Ingrid Hill
After a summer of somewhat mediocre readingwhen there was any time at all to read I finally found this wonderful novel. It won the Great Lakes Booksellers Award for Fiction (book awards by booksellers are always a sign of good reading ahead).
Set in the upper peninsula of Michigan, the novel is about two-year old Ursula who falls into an abandoned mine shaft. But the novel is much more than just the story of a tragedy. The plot shifts from the present crisis back thousands of years to the stories of Ursula's Chinese and Finnish ancestors. As we move back and forth from past to present, we learn about her family history and the many quirks of life which have resulted in her birth to her parents, Justin Wong and Annie Maki. There are many themes that run through the narrative, including the frailty of life and the unexpected joy of children born to couples who have given up hope of conception. As the story draws to its exciting conclusion these themes converge. It is a tightly woven story which the author manages to make both intimate and epic. $14.00 Penguin Trade Paper
BURNING FENCE: A Western Memoir of Fatherhood by Craig Lesley
Burning Fence is a memoir of Lesley's years growing up in Eastern Oregon. It also deals with his fatherhood experiences.. His own father deserted the family when Craig was an infant. His step-father drove Craig's mother to flee with two young children. Craig's own attempts to be a foster father to a young native American boy suffering the effects of fetal alcoholism syndrome were full of trouble and turmoil. Yet his writing style is such that it does not result in a depressing or horrifying book. Craig very bravely describes his life, and we get a real sense of where much of the material for his novels came from. $24.95 St. Martins's Press
New Release from Bear Creek Press
SOMEWHERE IN OREGON - On the road across the state by Pat Wilkins
For more than twenty years as an on-the-road TV reporter for Portland's KATU, Pat Wilkins traveled the highways and backroads of Oregon in a quest to find the people, places, and history that make the state so special. Now thirty of his favorite stories are collected in Somewhere in Oregon. Wilkins' stories range all across Oregon, and along the way he introduces readers to, among other things, a cave-dwelling family and frog-jumping contests, to the man who invented erector sets and a boy who's a champion buckaroo, to a dog that stood trial and a cat that owned a city hall-even to the death of his friend, former governor Tom McCall. $12.95 Trade Paperback
INKSPELL by Cornelia Funke
Inkspell is another exciting and wonderful book by Cornelia Funke (and the sequel to Inkheart). The story starts out when Dustfinger, a fire eater, goes back into his book Inkheart. Farid, Dustfinger's apprentice, is left behind so he seeks out Meggie, a young girl who can read people into books. She and Farid go into Inkheart to find Dustfinger. Soon after they find him, they learn that Meggie's parents are captured in the book, too, and in BIG TROUBLE! I would recommend this book to those who enjoy the magic of Harry Potter. It's worth every hour spent reading it! $19.99 Chicken House Hardcover
Are you suffering from PPD?? (Post Potter Depression) We have some suggestions to get you through this difficult time:
ELDEST by Christopher Paolini
The sequel to Eragon and the second in the Inheritance series looks to be as thrilling as the first book by this amazing new young author. $21.00 Knopf Hardcover
I, CORIANDER by Sally Gardner
This entrancing book for young adults combines elements of historic fiction and fairy tales. There's an evil stepmother, a handsome prince, and, of course, magic and fairies. The main character, Coriander, experiences great personal trouble, and must decide whether to let her fears dictate her actions or be brave and take steps to help others. $16.99 Dial Books
JONATHAN STRANGE & MR. NORRELL by Susanna Clarke
This novel has been described as a Harry Potter for adults. It certainly fits the bill. It's huge, Gothic, and full of magic being put to good and bad uses. It was also the independent booksellers' favorite novel of 2004. That's quite an achievement as we booksellers devour a lot of wonderful books in a year. $15.95 Bloomsbury Trade Paperback
SMALL ISLAND by Andrea Levy
During WW II, British citizens from all corners of the empire were called upon to help in the war effort. Small Island is about the experiences of two veterans, one British, the other Jamaican. After the war they each return to England with their wives. As we discover, their experiences during the war and after are hugely different.
In a narrative that shifts back and forth from postwar 1948 to each individual's past, we learn about these four people. During their training for the war, the Jamaicans feel superior to the "small islanders" from other parts of the West Indies. But when they're transferred to England, they soon realize that they are themselves "small islanders" when compared to the British.
As each of the four characters comes to realize the extent of postwar prejudice, they react differently-by becoming a part of the problem, by trying to act fair-minded, by being innocently oblivious, and by trying to ignore it. As their lives entwine, the issue comes to a head in a surprising way. Winner of the 2004 Whitbread Book of the Year Award and the 2004 Orange Prizefirst book to win both prizes. $14.00 Picador Trade Paper
~ A new "Scottish time traveler" novel by Diana Gabaldon, A Breath of Snow and Ashes, takes Jamie and Claire to the eve of the revolutionary war. Jamie discovers a newspaper clipping reporting his death in 1776. Can it be true?
$28.00 Delacorte Hardcover
~ Robert Jordan has cranked out #11 in The Wheel of Time series, Knife of Dreams. Does he fulfill our dreams of an actual end to this series? $29.95 Tor Hardcover
~ After several years of announcements and cancellations, the publication of the fourth book of George R.R. Martin's A Song of Ice and Fire Saga, A Feast for Crows, is supposed to be published this November. If you're a fan, let me know and I'll keep you posted. These books are definitely worth waiting for. $28.00 Spectra Hardcover
~ Baxter Black has a new novel: Hey Cowgirl, Need a Ride? $23.95 Crown Hardcover
~ S is for Silence, the latest Sue Grafton book will be out in December. $26.95 Putnam Hardcover
~ Jan Karon's final volume in the Mitford Years series, Light From Heaven, is due in November. $26.95 Viking Hardcover
Bookmarks Archive
Past Bookmarks Newsletters (without graphics) are available by clicking on links below:
