"The Book of Someday" by Dianne Dixon~Ravishing

SUMMARY :


With a tone reminiscent of Jodi Picoult, Kristin Hannah, and Carol Cassella, Dixon pulls at the threads between regret and nostalgia, forgiveness and blame, denial and acceptance. Emotional without being overwrought, The Book of Someday is an enchanting story."-Booklist

Three women. One stranger in a shimmering silver dress. Whatever binds them together has already destroyed one life. It just might consume them all.

Someday, Livvi Gray will break free from her past. Someday, she will escape her recurring nightmare about that stranger in a shimmering silver dress. Someday, she will have a family of her own. Now she's found Andrew, and someday seems to be right around the corner. But there's so much Livvi doesn't know.

Shortly before her thirtieth birthday, she will come face-to-face with the stranger from her dream-an encounter that will alter Livvi's future and crack open everything she knew about her past. Livvi is swiftly moving toward the ultimate turning point in her life-and she's not the only one. Linked by an unforgettable mystery, photographer Micah and young mother AnnaLee are also being rapidly drawn into a web of devastating secrets about the unexpected ways in which we choose to protect-and betray-the people we love.

PARTICULARS OF THE BOOK  :

Published by:  Sourcebooks
Pages:  368
Author:  Diane Dixon
Genre:  Fiction
Author website:  http://www.diannedixon.com
Purchase:  Amazon


ABOUT THE AUTHOR :

As a television writer Dianne Dixon (winner of the Humanitas Prize for Excellence in Screenwriting and double Emmy nominee) regularly received glowing reviews: “Her characters dance off the page.” (Jane Hewland/Sky Television, UK) “An enormously gifted writer.” (LaVerne McKinnon/CBS Television)  “Her knowledge of storytelling is both clear and articulate.” (Nate Hopper/Sony Pictures). Now Dianne is receiving equally enthusiastic response to her work as a novelist: “Captivating, fascinating.” (Seattle Post-Intelligencer) “Absorbing and provocative.” (Huffington Post) “Convincing prose, particularly the dialogue.” (Kirkus) “An exciting new writer, capable of creating a well-paced, emotional page-turner of the best kind.” (Katie Crouch, New York Times bestselling author of Girls in Trucks and The Magnolia League).

Dianne is a former Visiting Professor of Creative Writing at Pitzer College in Claremont, California, a nominee for the Mary Routt Chair of Writing at Scripps College, and has taught screenwriting at the Dodge College of Film & Media at Chapman University in Orange, California.
The Language of Secrets is Dianne’s first novel—The Book of Someday is her second.



THE BOOKISH DAME REVIEWS :

This is an absolutely stunning book.  I was thrilled with it.  I'm so happy when I find one that keeps me reading and won't let me put it down.  "The Book of Someday" is one of those.

Dianne Dixon is a wonderful writer who captivates.  Initially, we are pulled into the story through the brutal confrontation of a father and his little daughter.  Just a nightmare setting that is visceral and grabs your attention.  The story moves on from there with the speed of a train, bouncing you back and forth between women in different situations, but who are unwittingly connected to each other in time.  The book is about these connections. This is a novel that really is a page-turner while it's sweeping and gorgeously written.

I found myself holding my breath when the story of Livvi was unfolding.  She is the primary character and the one I most identified with.  Dixon has a way with description and characterization that is mesmerizing.  The mystery of the lady in silver with pearl buttons on her shoes sparked my attention like a beacon or a ghostly presence...

I hardily recommend this book to everyone.  It's storytelling in the old tradition, and; yet, it's refreshing and devastating in a good way.  The wrap-up is a great ending.  This is a book about love, loss and the things that draw us to one another.


5 stars                 Deborah/TheBookishDame

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"The Girl She Used To Be" by David Cristofano~Mafia Makes Nice

SUMMARY :

When Melody Grace McCartney was six years old, she and her parents witnessed an act of violence so brutal that it changed their lives forever. The federal government lured them into the Witness Protection Program with the promise of safety, and they went gratefully. But the program took Melody's name, her home, her innocence, and, ultimately, her family. She's been May Adams, Karen Smith, Anne Johnson, and countless others—everyone but the one person she longs to be: herself. So when the feds spirit her off to begin yet another new life in another town, she's stunned when a man confronts her and calls her by her real name.

Jonathan Bovaro, the mafioso sent to hunt her down, knows her, the real her, and it's a dangerous thrill that Melody can't resist. He's insistent that she's just a pawn in the government's war against the Bovaro family. But can she trust her life and her identity to this vicious stranger whose acts of violence are legendary?


PARTICULARS OF THE BOOK :

Published by:  Grand Central/Hachette Publishing
Pages:  241
Genre:  Fiction/Suspense/Thriller
Author:  David Cristofano
Website:  http://www.davidcristofano.com

Nominated for an Edgar Award for Best First Novel by an American Author (2010).

The movie rights for THE GIRL SHE USED TO BE have been sold to Mark Johnson’s Gran Via Productions (THE NOTEBOOK, MY SISTER’S KEEPER) and Julie Lynn’s Mockingbird Pictures (ALBERT NOBBS, THE JANE AUSTEN BOOK CLUB), with screen adaptation by Laeta Kalogridis (SHUTTER ISLAND, AVATAR

ABOUT THE AUTHOR :

David Cristofano has earned degrees in Government & Politics and Computer Science from the University of Maryland at College Park and has worked for different branches of the Federal Government for over a decade.  He currently works in the Washington, D.C. area where he lives with his wife, son and daughter. 


THE BOOKISH DAME REVIEWS :

I'm a huge fan of David Cristofano since I read his first book "The Exceptions."  He does mafia better than anyone.  You learn to love them more than hate them.  It's a fantastic ride.  The primary mafia son, Jonathan, in these novels is absolutely irresistible.  I couldn't stop myself from fantasizing about him...gorgeous and good!  This is a book you can't put down until the end. 

Cristofano is not only a wizard at characterization in that he makes his people come jumping off the pages at you, but they are so sympathetic.  The bad guys are as love able as the good guys!  He has a way of turning the ordinary on its ear, so you find yourself rooting for the "wrong" side most of the time...  He has the feds down perfectly and enriches the life of Melody in her world of Witness Protection Program in its stark reality.  Great descriptions of both sides of the law.

I fell in love with Jonathan, the mafia son who sadly had the experience of seeing Melody's parents flee the scene of his dad's crime when she was so little.  His life and her life are sculpted by the one event.  He becomes the anti-mafia amongst the core of gangsters.  He's beautiful in so many ways.  Just irresistible as a character.

This is a book I found so moving and intriguing that I couldn't stop reading it.  Finally, this one picked up the slack from the recent downers I've had in the last weeks!  There really are great books out there and I'm not losing it!!

I promise you'll love "The Girl She Used To Be," as the girl's side of the horrific life in the Witness Protection Program and being chased by mafia hit men, and you'll want to read Jonathan's side of the story afterwards, "The Exceptions."  I've now read both and they're both heart-wrenchingly good!

Better than "The Godfather..."  Take a chance on this one and you won't look back.

5 stars                           Deborah/TheBookishDame

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"Sisterland" by Curtis Sittenfeld~Slowly But Surely

SUMMARY :

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER

“Novelists get called master storytellers all the time, but Sittenfeld really is one. . . . What might be most strikingly excellent about Sisterland is the way Sittenfeld depicts domesticity and motherhood.”—Maggie Shipstead, The Washington Post
 
“Psychologically vivid . . . Sisterland is a testament to [Curtis Sittenfeld’s] growing depth and assurance as a writer.”—Michiko Kakutani, The New York Times
 
“[Sittenfeld’s] gifts are in full effect with this novel, and she uses them to create a genuinely engrossing sense of uncertainty and suspense.”—Sloane Crosley, NPR’s All Things Considered

Curtis Sittenfeld, author of American Wife and Prep, returns with a mesmerizing novel of family and identity, loyalty and deception, and the delicate line between truth and belief.

From an early age, Kate and her identical twin sister, Violet, knew that they were unlike everyone else. Kate and Vi were born with peculiar “senses”—innate psychic abilities concerning future events and other people’s secrets. Though Vi embraced her visions, Kate did her best to hide them.

Now, years later, their different paths have led them both back to their hometown of St. Louis. Vi has pursued an eccentric career as a psychic medium, while Kate, a devoted wife and mother, has settled down in the suburbs to raise her two young children. But when a minor earthquake hits in the middle of the night, the normal life Kate has always wished for begins to shift. After Vi goes on television to share a premonition that another, more devastating earthquake will soon hit the St. Louis area, Kate is mortified. Equally troubling, however, is her fear that Vi may be right. As the date of the predicted earthquake quickly approaches, Kate is forced to reconcile her fraught relationship with her sister and to face truths about herself she’s long tried to deny.

Funny, haunting, and thought-provoking, Sisterland is a beautifully written novel of the obligation we have toward others, and the responsibility we take for ourselves. With her deep empathy, keen wisdom, and unerring talent for finding the extraordinary moments in our everyday lives, Curtis Sittenfeld is one of the most exceptional voices in literary fiction today.

Praise for Sisterland
 
“What’s most captivating about Sisterland is the intimate, intense portrayal of identical twin sisters. . . . [The novel] unfolds like a good prophecy—inevitable and shocking.”—San Francisco Chronicle
“In [Sisterland], the accomplished Sittenfeld . . . is as skillful as ever at developing an intriguing premise and likable characters. . . . Sittenfeld’s affectionate take on sibling rivalry is spot-on.”—People

“The power of [Sittenfeld’s] writing and the force of her vision challenge the notion that great fiction must be hard to read. She is a master of dramatic irony, creating fully realized social worlds before laying waste to her heroines’ understanding of them. . . . Her prose [is] a rich delight.”—The Boston Globe

“Wise and often wickedly entertaining . . . Readers who have siblings—especially women with sisters—will likely come away feeling as if the author really is psychic, able to learn the truth of their own dark secrets, and forgive them.”—USA Today


PARTICULARS OF THE BOOK :

Published by:  Random House
Pages:  397
Genre:  Fiction/Contemporary Fiction
Author:  Curtis Sittenfeld
Website:  http://www.curtissittenfeld.com
Available also on Random House Audio
Purchase:  Barnes & Noble  or Amazon


ABOUT THE AUTHOR :

Curtis Sittenfeld is the author of the bestselling novels Sisterland, American Wife, Prep, and The Man of My Dreams, which have been translated into twenty-five languages. Prep was chosen as one of the Ten Best Books of 2005 by The New York Times, and American Wife was chosen as one of the Ten Best Books of 2008 by Time, People, and Entertainment Weekly; both were nominated for the UK’s Orange Prize. Curtis’s non-fiction has appeared in many publications, including The New York Times, The Atlantic Monthly, Salon, Slate, Glamour, and on public radio’s “This American Life.” A graduate of Stanford University and the Iowa Writers’ Workshop, Curtis has interviewed Michelle Obama for Time, appeared as a guest on NPR’s “Fresh Air” and CBS’s “Early Show,” and been a strangely easy “Jeopardy!” answer.


INTERVIEW WITH THE AUTHOR:

The Bookish Dame Reviews :

"Sisterland" is a book I waited a while to read because it was like a secret chocolate that was too good to rush into, I thought.  It sat in my TBR stacks for a couple of months where I could see it on a daily basis and savor the time when I could pick it up for a wonderful reading experience.  I had such high hopes.  Maybe my hopes were too high...  I did enjoy the book, but I found it slow-going for the bits of pleasure it gave. 

Curtis Sittenfeld gives us a study in relationships in this novel.  Primarily, it's the study of sisters, of course, but it's also the interactions between friends and husbands and wives, and parents and children.  She is a keen observer of such relationships without a doubt, because no leaf is left unturned, it seemed.  I had a problem, however, in that I found much of the story dragged and I wasn't inclined to become attached to any of the characters so their individual characterizations and "feelings" didn't much touch me.  The closest I came to caring was when she told about the twins as young girls and their relationship to their mother...a sort of non-relationship.

I don't know.  The book left me cold, and I was sorry about that.  I wanted to like it so much!

The supernatural/psychic aspects of the novel were beautifully couched in 21st century skepticism and the fear and trepidation of the other identical twin.  I did enjoy this aspect of the book, but it wasn't enough to carry the whole for me.  I liked the realism of this situation as it played upon the two sisters and their outer circles.

I have to admit this is one of those books I skimmed to the end.  I rarely if ever do that.  I was sad to have to do that here.  Even so...it was a disappointment.  It's one of those books that didn't even conclude in a way I'd hoped.  But, I have to say it was a very well-devised ending!

Here's my conclusion:  I would give the book a 3 stars and a recommendation to wait until it comes out in paperback unless you're just crazy about reading about sister relationships in the finest and not too exciting detail.

Sorry.

Deborah/TheBookishDame

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Book Haul~Thanksgiving Week & Before

A very sparse Book Haul this time around.  This is what came in in the past two weeks up to this Monday, December 2nd.  I think Thanksgiving week had something to do with it, but it could also be that the publishing blitz has already happened for the fall and we may be at a slow point.  Nevertheless, these are some really good books!  Let me begin to share them with you:

First is a book by an author I'm not familiar with but who is a freelance editor, Maggie Barbieri.  This should, in that case, be a great book!  Looks really good.  I'm grateful to Minotaur Books for this copy.

Summary:  

Maeve Conlon's life is coming apart at the seams. Her bakery is barely making ends meet, and one of her daughters spends as much time grounded as the other does studying. Her ex-husband has a new wife, a new baby, and a look of pity for Maeve that's absolutely infuriating. Her father insists he's still independent, but he's slowly and obviously succumbing to Alzheimer's. And now, her cousin Sean Donovan has been found dead, sitting in his car in a public park, shot through the head.

There was never much love lost between Maeve and Sean and she's not exactly devastated by his death, but suddenly the police are poking around asking the family questions. It's just one more hassle Maeve doesn't have time for, until she realizes that her father, whose memory and judgment are unreliable at best, is a suspect in the murder. Maeve is determined to clear his name, but is she prepared to cope with the dark memories and long-hidden secrets that doing so might dredge up?

Maggie Barbieri will mesmerize readers with Once Upon a Lie, a gripping novel about family, justice, and the choices we make that define who we are.

Then, I happily received a copy of "Becoming Josephine" from the wonderful publishers at Plume, a Penguin Group Publishing book. 

Overview:

A sweeping historical debut about the Creole socialite who transformed herself into an empress

Readers are fascinated with the wives of famous men. In Becoming Josephine, debut novelist Heather Webb follows Rose Tascher as she sails from her Martinique plantation to Paris, eager to enjoy an elegant life at the royal court. Once there, however, Rose’s aristocratic soldier-husband dashes her dreams by abandoning her amid the tumult of the French Revolution. After narrowly escaping death, Rose reinvents herself as Josephine, a beautiful socialite wooed by an awkward suitor—Napoleon Bonaparte.

“A debut as bewitching as its protagonist.” —Erika Robuck, author of Hemingway’s Girl and Call Me Zelda

“Vivid and passionate.” —Susan Spann, author of The Shinobi Mysteries


In came an ARC from St. Martins which I'm so psyched for!!  "The Midnight Witch" written by Paula Brackston who is the author of "The Witch's Daughter."  Can't wait to read this one!!  This is not the black covered ARC copy you see above...I'm sorry....

SUMMARY:

THE NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER

An enthralling tale of modern witch Bess Hawksmith, a fiercely independent woman desperate to escape her cursed history who must confront the evil which has haunted her for centuries

My name is Elizabeth Anne Hawksmith, and my age is three hundred and eighty-four years. If you will listen, I will tell you a tale of witches.  A tale of magic and love and loss.  A story of how simple ignorance breeds fear, and how deadly that fear can be.  Let me tell you what it means to be a witch.

In the spring of 1628, the Witchfinder of Wessex finds himself a true Witch. As Bess Hawksmith watches her mother swing from the Hanging Tree she knows that only one man can save her from the same fate: the Warlock Gideon Masters. Secluded at his cottage, Gideon instructs Bess, awakening formidable powers she didn’t know she had. She couldn’t have foreseen that even now, centuries later, he would be hunting her across time, determined to claim payment for saving her life.

In present-day England, Elizabeth has built a quiet life. She has spent the centuries in solitude, moving from place to place, surviving plagues, wars, and the heartbreak that comes with immortality. Her loneliness comes to an abrupt end when she is befriended by a teenage girl called Tegan. Against her better judgment, Elizabeth opens her heart to Tegan and begins teaching her the ways of the Hedge Witch. But will she be able to stand against Gideon—who will stop at nothing to reclaim her soul—in order to protect the girl who has become the daughter she never had?

Praise for The Witch’s Daughter

“Lushly written with a fascinating premise and an enthralling heroine, The Witch’s Daughter will linger long in memory after the last page has been savored.  Highly recommended.” — Sara Poole, author of The Borgia Betrayal
"A beautifully written, brilliantly crafted page-turner that completely invests you in the lives and loves of the witch's daughter. A true reading event." —Melissa Senate, author of The Love Goddess' Cooking School
“A lyrical and spell-binding time travel fantasy featuring an immortal witch who must summon all her powers to defeat the evil hounding her through the centuries.” –Mary Sharratt, author of Daughters of the Witching Hill

“With her first novel, author Paula Brackston conjures up a riveting tale of sorcery and time travel. By mixing feminine heroism with masculine might, Brackston successfully captivates readers with characters Bess, an immortal witch, and sinister dark lord, Gideon….  It's almost impossible not to root for the underdog in this magical twist on the classic David vs. Goliath tale. Plus, the skill with which Brackston weaves her characters through time makes this book a fascinating take on global history.” –Marie Claire

"Brackston’s first novel offers well-crafted characters in an absorbing plot and an altogether delicious blend of historical fiction and fantasy." —Booklist
"This pleasantly romantic historical fantasy debut flips lightly between the past experiences of ageless witch Elizabeth Anne Hawksmith and her present-day life in Matravers, England... Bess's adventures are fascinating." —Publishers Weekly
“Stretching her tale over several centuries, British-based Brackston brings energy as well as commercial savvy to her saga of innocence and the dark arts….  History, time travel and fantasy combine in a solidly readable entertainment.” —Kirkus
"An engaging, well-written novel that will appeal to fans of historical fiction and fantasy alike." —Portland Book Review
"Part historical romance, part modern fantasy, The Witch’s Daughter is a fresh, compelling take on the magical, yet dangerous world of witches. Readers will long remember the fiercely independent heroine who survives plagues, wars, and the heartbreak of immortality to stay true to herself, and protect the protégé she comes to love." —NightOwlReviews.com
"The Witch’s Daughter is a wonderful combination of historical fiction and paranormal. Brackston’s story alternates between past and present as she mixes tales of Elizabeth’s early life with the present day, tying in historical events including Jack the Ripper and the horrors of WWI... Overall, a really enjoyable read." —BookBitch.com

"Readers who enjoy historical fantasy built around an epic struggle between good and evil should enjoy this original take on the theme." —HistoricalNovels.info

"An enjoyable read." —Genre Go Round Reviews 
"This tale spans centuries and walks the line between good and the darker side of magic.  Magic and those who possess it have been feared and persecuted throughout most of human history.  Find out what it is like to live for hundreds of years, mostly in solitude, and have to struggle with having the power to help people, but being afraid to use that power." —Affaire de Coeur

“Women will certainly love the independent, feisty female characters, but the narrative is wonderfully imaginative and the plot fast-moving and filled with action. This novel is highly recommended for witches and warlocks alike.” –Historical Novel Society

"The combination of stories from the past and the present meld nicely, and the author adds some clever twists so the reader never knows exactly from whom the next Gideon apparition will arise. Perhaps the best twist is the ending—leaving an opening for another book, but at the same time furnishing the reader with quite a satisfactory ending." —The National Examiner (UK)

"Ambitious and thought-provoking, this book will lure you into vivid, visceral worlds where evil lurks at every turn. The beautifully crafted BOOK OF SHADOWS will be etched on my mind for a long time. What an action-packed, emotionally powerful film it would make too." Sally Spedding, author of STRANGERS WAITING

"An unforgettable story by a highly original new writer." —Rebecca Tope, author of the Cotswold crime series

And, finally, this beautifully covered ARC of Brandy Purdy's new "The Boleyn Bride!"  Very graciously sent with a note from the publishers at Kensington.  I never miss an opportunity to read this author of historical fiction!

 

From carefree young woman to disillusioned bride, the dazzling lady who would become mother and grandmother to two of history's most infamous queens has a fascinating story all her own...


That's the extent of my recent Book Haul.  What did you get in books lately????

Deborah

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Father Christmas Ornaments~Cross stitching

Here, on the eve of December 1st, I've started my first 2013 Christmas Ornament.  This year I'll be stitching "Father Christmas" figures from "The Prairie Schooler Book No. 43."  It's an older book, but still a beautiful one with its rustic little figures.  I like these kind of Santas best of all.

Every year I try to stitch something for my daughter and grandson for their tree.  They look forward to the ornament for their collection.  My little grand has a whole box of them that he loves to hang every year.  He's only 5, but he knows his ornaments!

Two Christmas lap quilts were mailed out yesterday to another pair of grandson's in CA, featuring Santa as a centerpiece holding his huge sack of toys.  They were fun to make...bright and patched with gingerbread boys, holly, small santas, and other fabrics.  I failed to take pictures for my blog....


As I sit here listening to early Christmas music on dulcimer and country instruments, I think of New England and our winters there.  Near Boston...the wintry cold so freezing it would get in my bones, but the house toasty and filled with all my quilting, knitting and needlework supplies so I could make my yearly gifts for my 5 children and little grands. 

Our house was outside of Boston in Sturbridge, known for Old Sturbridge Village an actual reproduction and functioning historic village.  As a local, it was also known for a plethora of quilting and antique shops where I could lose myself and my money on a regular basis!  Brimfield Antiques Fair was only a step away twice a year...a nationally known fair.

When we decided to get healthier, size down and move to FL, I had to leave behind so much of all I loved in Boston and Sturbridge.  First of all my son, Jason, and his little family...and then our big house with all the room I needed for my arts and needlework, and furniture.  Then, the beautiful landscape and culture of New England.  The seasons are a thing we miss here in our paradise of a steady 75-80 degrees during the fall and winter in Naples, FL.   Sometimes, I wonder if warm bodies, working joints and sunshine are all they're cracked up to be!!  It was fun to wrap up in gorgeous winter clothes at times.  And, I particularly miss my son and family.

I'll be stitching away in the coming weeks, so I'll post my progress on the Father Christmases.

Meanwhile, I hope you all will be doing what makes you happiest as the Good Season approaches!

Warmest wishes,


Deborah/TheBookishDame

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Sharing Reading Habits

 

This is another of those Tags from Debra's Book Café which I thought might be fun to share with you.  I don't have anything to do this morning except drink Nantucket Blend coffee and cook breakfast for my husband and myself, so it's a good time killer while I do laundry and that!  I'm just between books and looking to finish "Camille," as well, by Alexander Dumas fils.  A wonderful classic, by the way.

I hope this isn't too long and boring, but I'll give it a try:

1)  Do you have a particular place to read?

I do.  I most often read in my little recliner which is a mini one...perfect for my 5'l" size.  It folds out into a chaise lounge.  It's candy apple green and I love it.  I can't get more comfortable than that.  I have a regular lamp and a reading lamp.  It's very rare that I read anywhere else.

2)  Bookmark or random piece of paper?

Bookmark, absolutely!  I love bookmarks and can't resist them in bookstores.  I like the paper ones best although I've just found a metal one with a fox on it that clips to the page and has a ribbon.  I like bookmarks with embellishment "tails" of tassels or ribbons.

3)  Can you just stop reading anywhere or do you have to stop at the end of a chapter?

Unless I'm interrupted for a sort of an emergency, I have to stop at the end of a chapter.  I'm compelled!

4)  Do you eat or drink when reading?

I generally have a diet coke beside me.  I do eat on the occasion though that's really not my norm.  I'll have a piece of cheese or something small...a bit of chocolate...guilty pleasure.  Have to be very careful with chocolate, though, when handling a book!

5)  Multi-tasking:  music or tv when reading?   I choose to read in silence.  I think anything else is distracting.  But once in a while I listen to movie themes or classical music if it fits a book that's a classic.

6)  One book at time or several at once?  I like to read more than one book at a time.  I got into this habit years ago.  I concentrate on one book, but I always have another one or two in the wings started.

7)  Reading at home or elsewhere?  I don't like to read elsewhere although I've tried it at the doctor's office, the pool and eating out alone.  I never seem to get very far with the book.  It's unnatural for me and I worry about soiling my book.  OCD!!  :P

8)  Read out loud or silently in your head?   Interesting question.  I read in my head 99% of the time, but when I find a book is confusing or difficult to begin or at any point in the story, I read aloud to myself.  It clarifies the section for me somehow.  It rarely happens anymore but I got into the habit when I was in college and it helps sometimes.  Mostly, I read silently, though.

And, since I've become a grandmother, I read aloud to my grandchildren on cassette tapes.  I send them these at least once or twice a year because we don't live close to each other. 

9)  Read ahead or skip pages?   I flip through the book, but I don't read ahead.  Sometimes I try to get the name of new characters to see how many there are, but I'm not into spoilers.  I'd never read the ending, for instance.

10)  Breaking the spine or keeping like new?   I would practically have my arm broken before I'd break a spine!!!  I cringe at the thought!  It ruins a book as far as I'm concerned.

11) Do you write in your books?   Don't have a fit here my bookish friends... once in a while I do.  I put a note in one here and there, but it's very rare.  If the author completely knocks my head off with something, I'm likely to put a star or comment beside it.  I figure I'm probably the only one who'll read the book, and I always use pencil.  If the book is ever read by my family or sold, it will be a "find" for someone else, I figure.

12)  What type of book do you buy...hard or soft cover?   I buy both.  However, if it's something I know I want to keep permanently in my library, I always buy a hard copy.  I only buy the larger paperbacks when I buy a soft cover...I don't like the small ones.

13)  How long does it take you to read a book?  I can read a book in one sitting if it's within 300 pages.  If it's longer, it may take two sittings.

14)  Do you carry your books around the house with you?   LOL  Isn't it crazy?!  I do sometimes!!
I treat them like my darlings! 

15)  Do you keep all the books you read?  No.  If they are only fair to good books and aren't on my fabulous list, I don't keep them.  Or if they aren't collectible or written by my favorite authors, I don't. I have special friends who like to read and can't afford books, or I give them to Goodwill.

16)  How many books do you own?  I've never counted, but I would say I have over 1,000 books.  I have 4 bookcases, a huge armoire and boxes in the garage that I've collected.  Not to mention the stacks I have everywhere!  I try to cull them out at least two or three times a year because it gets overwhelming but it's difficult for me to do!


So that's all I know to share with you!  If you have more questions or comments, please leave them for me below.  I'd love to know any reading habits you have, as well.  And if you follow this tag, please let me and my other readers know so we can follow you!!

Deborah

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"Longbourn" by Jo Baker~Fabulous "Downstairs!"

SUMMARY :

• Pride and Prejudice was only half the story •
 
If Elizabeth Bennet had the washing of her own petticoats, Sarah often thought, she’d most likely be a sight more careful with them.
 
In this irresistibly imagined belowstairs answer to Pride and Prejudice, the servants take center stage. Sarah, the orphaned housemaid, spends her days scrubbing the laundry, polishing the floors, and emptying the chamber pots for the Bennet household. But there is just as much romance, heartbreak, and intrigue downstairs at Longbourn as there is upstairs. When a mysterious new footman arrives, the orderly realm of the servants’ hall threatens to be completely, perhaps irrevocably, upended.

Jo Baker dares to take us beyond the drawing rooms of Jane Austen’s classic—into the often overlooked domain of the stern housekeeper and the starry-eyed kitchen maid, into the gritty daily particulars faced by the lower classes in Regency England during the Napoleonic Wars—and, in doing so, creates a vivid, fascinating, fully realized world that is wholly her own.


PARTICULARS OF THE BOOK :

Published by:  Knopf Doubleday Publishing
Pages:  352
Genre:  Fiction
Author:  Jo Baker
Find this book:  Amazon
Author's website: 



ABOUT THE AUTHOR :

Jo Baker was born in Lancashire, England, and educated at Oxford University and Queen’s University Belfast. She is the author of The Undertow and of three earlier novels published in the United Kingdom: Offcomer, The Mermaid’s Child, and The Telling. She lives in Lancaster.



YouTube live with Ms Baker:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=53C78TclDyE

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oI51tP1sOxE

Interviews & Essays   (with thanks to Barnes & Noble)

A conversation with Jo Baker, Author of Longbourn

Have you always been a fan of Jane Austen and in particular of Pride and Prejudice?

I can't even remember when I first read Pride and Prejudice - it seems like I've always known it. Jane Austen's work was my first real experience of grown-up literature, and I've kept on returning to her work throughout my life; I just love her books - I'm a sucker for all that buttoned-up desire and wish-fulfillment. But also, as a writer, I admire her - the immaculate prose, the deft plotting, the briskness of the characterization. I didn't, though, for a moment consider trying to write like her. It's impossible to do nowadays without shifting into parody - which is something I really did not want.

How did your family history in some ways inspire Longbourn?

As a child, reading Jane Austen, I became aware that if I'd been living at the time, I wouldn't have got to go to the ball. I would've been stuck at home, with the housework.

We've got some battered old silver cutlery at home, which we inherited from my great aunt. She and her sisters had been in service, and she always said the silverware was a gift from her employer when she left—my grandmother maintained, however, that she'd nicked it. Just a couple of generations back, my family were servants.

And so once I was aware of that - of that English class thing - Pride and Prejudice began to read a little differently. I noticed other presences. A footman enters, a housemaid is told to run along and do something. I also began to realize that some things that seemed to just "happen" - notes arriving, carriages being brought round, meals being served - would of course require human agency to make them occur. I became fascinated by these little flickers of activity: I started to see a whole other life going on below the surface of the book.

But Longbourn really began to take shape when I got snagged on the line "the very shoe-roses for Netherfield were got by proxy". It's the week before the ball, the weather is far too bad for the Bennet girls to venture forth, and so they send a servant out to get soaked on their behalf. And that made it really stark for me. A maid has to trudge out in the rain, and get soaked to the skin, just to get these frivolous little decorations for the other women's dancing shoes.

Then, reading Jane Austen's letters, I stumbled across a reference to two sisters whom she employed to do some sewing for her. Their surname was Baker. Okay, it's a common name, but still, the coincidence struck me! It seemed a confirmation of my instincts.

Any hesitation about reimagining a classic?

I did hesitate. I hesitated for ages. I'd been thinking about this book for years before I first put pen to paper. That said, I don't really think of it as a "re-imagining". For me it's a "reading" of the classic. I just happen to "read" it a bit more intensively than might be usual, to include some elements that Austen didn't actually write.

I'll admit that Austen was peering over my shoulder while I was writing. Metaphorically speaking. But, again, when it came to characterization, I didn't want to write like her; I wanted to develop characters who could hold their own alongside hers, who would create space for themselves, who would be noticed in a crowded room. On a more personal level, I wanted to write characters who interested me, and kept surprising me. And they did.

Is there a character in Longbourn that you feel a particular affinity for?

I think I feel affinity for aspects of every one of them, really - I think when you're writing you seek to understand what's going on behind everybody's social mask. Writing fiction is all about empathy, really. So though we might be rooting for Sarah or James, I still love Mrs Bennet for her unarticulated sadness, and Mr. Hill for his acts of kindness, even though he might be gruff. Even Wickham, whose behaviour is dreadful - I do feel for him, because in this rigid, formal world he lacks a place - he doesn't belong anywhere.

What kind of feedback have you had from readers and Austen fans?

Readers, on the whole, whether already Austen fans or no - have been overwhelmingly positive. I've only had a very few entirely negative responses to the book so far - and in each case from people who hadn't actually read it. One gentleman was keen to inform me about an ancestor of his who was testified against by a servant - the servant had witnessed him in 'criminal conversation' with a married lady. This was in the 1700s; the family had to ten thousand pounds in compensation to the lady's husband, and the young man was banished to France. The present-day gentleman seemed be holding a grudge against servants in general as a result. He certainly seemed to think they didn't merit the attention I had given them.

Who have you discovered lately?

I've been reading Graham Robb's marvelous book Parisians: an Adventure History of Paris. A kind of psychogeography, it moves from the establishment of the city of Paris to the present day, using the stories of individual inhabitants to trace the history of a city. There's a fabulous section on Marie Antoinette and Louis XVI's attempted escape, and the piece on the Vel d'Hiv roundup was so desperate and moving that I had to read it sidelong, not really looking. A fabulous book.

 

THE BOOKISH DAME REVIEWS :

If you're looking for a book to snuggle up with over this Thanksgiving weekend, look no further whether you're an Austen fan (or not).  This is a new  "Pride and Prejudice" -inspired novel with more grace and panache than any I've read in the past few years. It's also a wonderful stand alone novel in its own right.  I absolutely gobbled it down like pumpkin pie...or mincemeat treats, shall we say?  Loved it!

Jo Baker is no novice author and it shows.  She has a way with words and uses them to perfect descriptive timing in her new book.  This is a beautifully written story.  The characters are wistfully and masterfully drawn.  You won't be able to resist these downstairs servants.  The way they think and feel will grab you by the collar and clinch your heart.  Even the characters of P & P are enhanced by them.  I dare you not to be enchanted by the strong-of-heart and hand, Sarah.

"Longbourn" is one of those books you just love to cherish in every way.  It's original and charming, and it's a fabulous "downstairs" read without being a copycat "Downton Abbey" or the like.

Happy reading and Happy Thanksgiving!!

5 stars                    Deborah/TheBookishDame

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