As I frantically try to keep up with the new books coming into the store, I'm already preparing for the books to come in 2012. Already, our basement storage area at the store is overflowing with advanced reading copies for books due out through August. And yet, I still have ARCs for January on my pile.
I'm excited about what's on the horizon for this next year. It is shaping up to be as promising as this past year. While we're waiting for the sequels to Divergent, Ashes, Ashfall, and eagerly awaiting the upcoming Hunger Games movie, we can fill our thirst for compelling reads with CINDER by Marissa Meyer (out January 3).
I'm not overexaggerating how great this book is. With the re-emergence of fairytale-based stories (Grimm and Once Upon a Time -- television shows), Meyer may just have a mega-hit on her hands. And in August, Stephanie Bodeen's next book, THE RAFT, comes out. Like all her books, this one has to be read from start to finish as quickly as possible.
Also in January, John Green's new YA novel, THE FAULT IN OUR STARS, comes out. A powerful, raw, and poignant look at kids with cancer. Don't miss this one.
And for humor, Meg Rosoff's THERE IS NO DOG will do just fine. This is an irreverent and often humorous answer to the question "What kind of God would...." The answer is hilarious -- and strangely makes a lot of sense.
There are certainly more out there, and I do hope to discover them as they come along. I hope you do too.
Have a great new year!
Showing posts with label children's books. Show all posts
Showing posts with label children's books. Show all posts
Saturday, December 31, 2011
Monday, December 19, 2011
Here and Somewhere Out There
One of the advantages of working as a book reviewer and in a book store is that you get a multitude of advanced reading copies long before the books are published. One of the disadvantages is that you get a multitude of advanced reading copies long before the books are published.
I do like getting the jump on things and having an "in" on books that are highly anticipated. But when I say multitude, I mean just that. Any given season, we get 100-300 ARCs into the store. Now I'm an avid reader, but come on, even I can't keep up with that. Consequently, my pile grows and grows. Often, some books just have to be put on the "someday" pile. And more often than not, a book becomes terribly popular, then the publisher decides an ARC is not needed to create buzz and bolster sales. That means, unlike the general population, I have to wait MUCH longer to read the sequel.
The following books may or may not have sequels, but here's hoping if they do, the publishers won't leave me hanging.
Scorpio Races - Maggie Stiefvater. Carniviorous horses from the sea. A budding romance. A much anticipated race. The perfect combination.
Cinder - by Marissa Meyer. Based on the Cinderella fairytale. This one takes into the distant future and does it well. This quartet (each based on a specific fairytale) will keep everyone wanting more.
The Fault in Our Stars - John Green. We all know that whatever John writes is going to be good, but this one is great. Poignant and heartbreaking, this novel takes a real look at teens with cancer. People will be talking about this one.
I do like getting the jump on things and having an "in" on books that are highly anticipated. But when I say multitude, I mean just that. Any given season, we get 100-300 ARCs into the store. Now I'm an avid reader, but come on, even I can't keep up with that. Consequently, my pile grows and grows. Often, some books just have to be put on the "someday" pile. And more often than not, a book becomes terribly popular, then the publisher decides an ARC is not needed to create buzz and bolster sales. That means, unlike the general population, I have to wait MUCH longer to read the sequel.
The following books may or may not have sequels, but here's hoping if they do, the publishers won't leave me hanging.
Scorpio Races - Maggie Stiefvater. Carniviorous horses from the sea. A budding romance. A much anticipated race. The perfect combination.
Cinder - by Marissa Meyer. Based on the Cinderella fairytale. This one takes into the distant future and does it well. This quartet (each based on a specific fairytale) will keep everyone wanting more.
The Fault in Our Stars - John Green. We all know that whatever John writes is going to be good, but this one is great. Poignant and heartbreaking, this novel takes a real look at teens with cancer. People will be talking about this one.
Thursday, November 17, 2011
Life in a Bookstore
Almost every week that I've worked at the Blue Marble (8 years now), I've had a customer come in and tell me that "it's their dream to own/work at a bookstore someday." I smile and nod.
They go on to say, "It must be great being surrounded by all these books and getting the chance to read them whenever you want." I smile and nod, again.
Why do I do just this? Because telling the truth would not convince them otherwise. They really believe this is the life a bookstore owner/employee -- especially the small, indie kind.
But the truth is, in 8 years I've read one book inside the walls of this store. That's right. One. And it wasn't even a full book, just the last three chapters of a EACH LITTLE BIRD THAT SINGS (and then I had to try to pull myself together in case customer came in).
Most bookstore people don't read in store. (Nor do librarians.)
I do read. At home. The pile of books on my dining room table, my nightstand, and in my car can attest to that. And while I end up loving so many of those books, I rarely look at those ever-growing piles with affection. They are constant reminders of how much work I have to do.
Some books stay on my pile for a long time. For instance, I finally got around to Life of Pi. It got moved up because my son was reading for his AP English class and wanted to talk about it. When a book is read is really dependent on why I need to read it: One of my favorite authors. A friend's book. The author is visiting the store. I just won a major award.
It's all part of the job. And it's a valuable part of what I do. When a customer comes in and asks, "I've been hearing about this book, have you read it or do you know anything about it?", I can smile and nod.
They go on to say, "It must be great being surrounded by all these books and getting the chance to read them whenever you want." I smile and nod, again.
Why do I do just this? Because telling the truth would not convince them otherwise. They really believe this is the life a bookstore owner/employee -- especially the small, indie kind.
But the truth is, in 8 years I've read one book inside the walls of this store. That's right. One. And it wasn't even a full book, just the last three chapters of a EACH LITTLE BIRD THAT SINGS (and then I had to try to pull myself together in case customer came in).
Most bookstore people don't read in store. (Nor do librarians.)
I do read. At home. The pile of books on my dining room table, my nightstand, and in my car can attest to that. And while I end up loving so many of those books, I rarely look at those ever-growing piles with affection. They are constant reminders of how much work I have to do.
Some books stay on my pile for a long time. For instance, I finally got around to Life of Pi. It got moved up because my son was reading for his AP English class and wanted to talk about it. When a book is read is really dependent on why I need to read it: One of my favorite authors. A friend's book. The author is visiting the store. I just won a major award.
It's all part of the job. And it's a valuable part of what I do. When a customer comes in and asks, "I've been hearing about this book, have you read it or do you know anything about it?", I can smile and nod.
Saturday, April 30, 2011
Many hats
In the next few weeks, I'm going to be speaking to several groups about books, reading, and writing. The topics range from non-fiction books and non-fiction writing to books for middle grade and teens (to a group of teens) to elementary librarians and fiction writers.
As I prepare for each of these events, I'm feeling somewhat schizophrenic. My tastes tend to run along the middle grade/young adult line -- fantasy, historical fiction, humor. So when I'm working on speaking events for other topics, I feel as if I'm doing homework. And switching from topic to topic makes it feel just like high school. To be honest, when I'm finished, I feel more of a sense of accomplishment than I did in high school, and I think that's what keeps me agreeing to do more events out of my "comfort zone."
I'm continuing to read for the New Voices committee. It's amazing the variety of books that are being published by new writers. Many of them are really very interesting. I am falling behind on reading though. And my own writing has been suffering because of this. My spare time has been taken up with reading other's work. Not that that's a bad thing.
On a side note, wishing all the best to the readers and writers in the South who are recovering from the devastion of the recent tornadoes. And to the mid-westerners who are dealing with the flooding.
Keep reading.
As I prepare for each of these events, I'm feeling somewhat schizophrenic. My tastes tend to run along the middle grade/young adult line -- fantasy, historical fiction, humor. So when I'm working on speaking events for other topics, I feel as if I'm doing homework. And switching from topic to topic makes it feel just like high school. To be honest, when I'm finished, I feel more of a sense of accomplishment than I did in high school, and I think that's what keeps me agreeing to do more events out of my "comfort zone."
I'm continuing to read for the New Voices committee. It's amazing the variety of books that are being published by new writers. Many of them are really very interesting. I am falling behind on reading though. And my own writing has been suffering because of this. My spare time has been taken up with reading other's work. Not that that's a bad thing.
On a side note, wishing all the best to the readers and writers in the South who are recovering from the devastion of the recent tornadoes. And to the mid-westerners who are dealing with the flooding.
Keep reading.
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