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Bookish Podcasts: Part 2

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In continuation of last week’s post, here are 5 more bookish podcasts for your enjoyment. I had originally planned on listing about 7 in total, but then I remembered just how many bookish podcasts I actually listen to….and then I found a few more.

I love each and everyone of these podcasts, neither Part 1 or Part 2 are listed in any kind of order (please don’t make me choose a favorite!).

6. Literary Punk by Helen Milte

The Literary Punk podcast is no longer updating, but their backlog of episodes are sure to please fans of classic literature. Even contemporary fans will love this podcast as the host, Helen Milte, exposes the underlying punkness of each novel they discuss. My favorite episode is her discussion on Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy.

7. The Idle Book Club by Chris and Sarah

Another podcast of a couple of friends just talking about books. I need to read more of their book choices before I can listen to more, but their discussion on The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald is very insightful – reaching far beyond a comparison between the latest film version staring Leonardo Dicaprio (but they still talk about that too!).

 8. The History of Literature by Jack Wilson

If you’re looking for something a little deeper or more profound, or just a fan of classical (think Greek Tragedy) or cultural texts, this is the podcast for you. In his array of topics, Wilson travels back to examine literary devices through history and their effect on the world. “How did literature develop? What forms has it taken? And what can we learn from engaging with these works today?” From epic poetry to contemporary novels, he covers it all. Check out his episode on the best debut novels throughout history.

9. Book Riot Podcast, Get Booked, All the Books

Most everyone these days is familiar with Book Riot. They put out three podcasts that pretty much all cover new releases and feature weekly reviews and reading recommendations. If you’re looking to grow your TBR list, this is another great place look.

10. Book Review by The New York Times

Sometimes a little pretentious, but being honest, I always find myself going to the New York Times for their book reviews. Even if I don’t agree on their review or rating of a novel, they always have some critique or commentary on a theme that makes me a better reader for reading their review, and the same can be said for their podcast. My favorite episode is their episode on reading Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen, they even have Rosamund Pike on the episode!

Honorable Mentions:

There are seriously WAY too many bookish podcasts to go on and on about, so I’ll just list the rest of them here. Most of the remaining podcasts are ones that I’ve recently discovered and haven’t really given a good listen to yet.

What podcasts do you listen to? Do you have any bookish podcasts to add?

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Book Riot’s Read Harder Challenge: Check In

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Earlier this year, I decided to take my reading to another level by completing the 52 book challenge. With that goal in mind, I stumbled upon the Book Riot website by happenstance and found their 2016 Read Harder Challenge. Not doing anything like this before, I had to try it! With 24 individual tasks, it averages out to about 2 a month.

Here are the tasks I’ve already completed:

Read a horror book:

  • Dracula by Bram Stoker

Read a nonfiction book about science:

  • Inheritance: How Our Genes Change Our Lives by Sharon Moalem

Read a book aloud to someone else:

  • The Pearl by John Steinbeck (read to my cat. Does that count?)

Read a biography:

  • Cleopatra: A Life by Stacy Schiff

Read a Dystopian or post-apocalyptic novel:

  • Brave New World by  Aldous Huxley
  • The Scorch Trials (2) by James Dashner
  • The Kill Order (4) by James Dashner
  • Now reading The Passage by Justin Cronin

Listen to an audiobook that has won an Audie Award:

  • Euphoria by Lily Kong

Read a book over 500 pages long:

  • Dragonfly in Amber by Diana Gabaldon
  • City on Fire by Garth Risk Hallberg
  • All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr
  • Now reading The Passage by Justin Cronin

Read a book under 100 pages long:

  • The Pearl by John Steinbeck

Read a book that’s set in the Middle East:

  • A Thousand Splendid Suns by Khaled Hosseini

Read a of historical fiction set before 1900:

  • The Known World by Edward P. Jones

Read a book that was adapted into a movie. Debate which is better:

  • The Book Thief by Markus Zusak (both versions are amazing, but book always wins)
  • Wuthering Heights by Emily Bronte (I watched the version with Tom Hardy which was pretty good, but I can’t really decide seeing as I kind of just detest the story no matter the version)
  • Shawshank Redemption by Stephen King (still need to see the movie!)

Read a book about religion (fiction or nonfiction):

  • Zealot: The Life and Times of Jesus of Nazareth by Reza Alan
  • Now reading The Relic Master by Christopher Huckley

Read a book with a main character that has a metal illness:

  • Black Hole by Bucky Sinister (drug dependence)

Continue reading →

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Weekly Reads: Week 14

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It’s been another slow reading week for me. I feel like I’m in a slump, but hopefully now that Brideshead is out of the way and done, I can move on to better things. Most of my remaining books for the month are text versions, so it’s definitely going to be a challenge to finish them all!

I’m still working on The Passage, but it’s been taking a lot longer than I thought it would since I got caught up in something else. Somehow I got my hands on the audio version from the library, but my time is up and I’m still not half-way through. I might just have to hunker down and buy a copy! Oh well, at least I’ll be prepared for when Cronin visits Houston in May!

What have you been reading lately? Continue reading →

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Bookish Podcasts: Part 1

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In the last two years, I have become obsessed with podcasts. I’ve curated subscriptions to nearly a hundred different podcasts, but most of my favorites are either book or history related. Here are five of my favorite podcasts for all things bookish.

Stay tuned for Part 2 next week!

What are your favorite podcasts? Continue reading →

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Going Back To The Classics

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As you may know already, I’m pretty fond of the classics. Here are a few suggestions based on contemporary novels you may have enjoyed. Some you may have already read, and some you may not be as familiar with – either way, you simply can’t go wrong a classic!

What book reminds you of your favorite classic? Continue reading →

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Weekly Reads: Week 13

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Spring has finally arrived full-force in Houston, and there’s no better way to celebrate than with a good book. This week I finished Stardust, a perfect choice for some Spring inspiring reading. Check out my Spring Reading List to find your next great read!

We celebrated the beautiful weather this weekend by going to the Houston Kite Festival!

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There’s nothing better than spending a day outdoors, and then coming home to good book. This week I spent my nights reading from Little House on the Prairie and Brideshead Revisited, which has proven more daunting than expected.

What have you been reading lately?

Continue reading →

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Reading More: A Juggling Act

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For as long as I can remember I’ve been a reader. As a kid my parents would have to pry a book out of my hands to get me to do my homework or eat dinner. Considering myself an avid reader, I always thought I’d read a lot of books, until I started my Goodreads account this year. I’d read just shy of 200 books, counting everything I’ve read since the beginning of high school. So, in hopes of finally shortening my TBR list, which at this point is a good 250 books, I decided to take on the 52 Book Challenge. But once you start the habit, it’s a little hard to stop and this week I had to up the ante to 100 – I just hope I can make it!

Since my start at the beginning of the year, I’ve managed to read an average of 4 books a week. Of course there have been some weeks when I’ve only managed one or two, particularly when I’ve read a longer novel such as City on Fire (so good!), but the reaction is always the same – you must be a fast reader! I only wish that were true, but matter of fact, I’m a pretty slow reader. I like to take my time to read each passage thoroughly and I often reread parts that are long or confusing, and then I take notes. I’ve had to be a little more dedicated to make time for all that reading, so I’d like to share a few of my secrets.

How do you make time to read? Continue reading →

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Weekly Reads: Week 12

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Happy belated Easter, I hope y’all had a great holiday weekend!

Due to a short work week, I had tons of extra reading time this week, which definitely came in handy since a lot of my time was spent dealing with getting my car fixed and calling the insurance company. Nothing a good book and a glass of wine can’t heal, though!

This week I’ll be reading the classic Brideshead Revisited, a novel I’ve put off for long enough. And, I finally got my hands on the audio version of Stardust! It’s going to be a good week. 🙂

What have you been reading lately? Continue reading →

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Book Haul: Clearance Gone Crazy!

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I have a habit. I have a very bad habit, well maybe not bad for me, but definitely bad for my wallet. There’s a point, every weekend, where you’ve spent too much time at home and you just need to get out of the house. But where to go when there’s nothing to do? To the bookstore, of course!

Luckily, my favorite place to shop is my local Half Priced Books where the clearance shelves are not just fully stocked, but overflowing, and all for under $3! This time was no exception, and quite a few of my picks were from my TBR list. Not bad for a little weekend pick-me-up.

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1. The No. 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency by Alexander McCall Smith

The delightfully smart and sassy Precious Ramots, driven to help others, establishes her own detective agency in Gaborone, Botswana, but quickly finds herself in danger when she takes on the case of a missing boy.

I’ve heard great things about this series, and this was just the push I needed to work it in to my reading list.

2. The Magician’s Assistant by Ann Patchet

After his death, a magician’s assistant and wife uncovers shocking secrets from his past, as well as the family he left behind.

When I find an author I love, I tend to go a little overboard and read absolutely everything they’ve written. And now, Ann Patchet has been added to that list.

3. Little Bee by Chris Cleave

Little Bee is a young Nigerian refugee who has just been release from a British immigration detention center, but alone and without connections in a new country she seeks a one time acquaintance. However, their past encounter had left each woman haunted, but meeting again, they have the chance to help each other to prevail.

Based on all reviews, this is sure to be an emotionally challenging and inspiring read.

4. Icy Sparks by Gwyn Hyman Rubio

Told by the grown up Icy Sparks, the novel recounts her difficult childhood in a small mountain town in eastern Kentucky, from her start as an orphan to being diagnosed with Tourette’s Syndrome.

I was drawn to the cover of the book, but ultimately decided to buy when I noticed it had been a one time selection of Oprah’s Book Club.

5. Beautiful Ruins by Jess Walter

From Amazon: Beautiful Ruins is “the story of an almost-love affair that begins on the Italian coast in 1962 . . . and is rekindled in Hollywood fifty years later.”

I’ve been reading a lot of challenging works lately, so I think it’s about time for a romance novel!

6. Run by Ann Patchett

Bernard Doyle, the former mayor of Boston, wants the best for his sons, which according to him, is a career in politics. But after an accident in a blinding snowstorm, their safety becomes his number one concern.

More Ann Patchett!

7. Shanghai Girls by Lisa See

Beautiful and lively Pearl Chin and her sister May were having the time of their lives growing up in Shanghai, but after their family is left penniless, they are sold to young American suitors and embark on to start a new life in Los Angeles.

I’ve heard great things about her other novel, Snow Flower and the Secret Fan, so this should be a good one.

8. Night of the Radishes: A Novel by Sandra Benitez

Annie Rush has an amazing life: a loving husband, beautiful children, and a rewarding job, but her mother’s death takes her back home where she must face her past and the tragic death of her twin sister as a young girl.

This novel is new to me, but the title and cover art were intriguing.

9. Ahab’s Wife, or The Star-Gazer by Sena Jeter Naslund

Based on a brief mention in Moby Dick, this novel chronicles the life of Ahab’s wife Una, from her childhood spent exiled to a lighthouse to prevailing against all odds when her husband has been consumed by madness and lost to the sea.

Una’s unbending courage and ingenuity are highly noted by every review I’ve read –  I can’t wait to read this!

10. The Lavender Garden by Lucinda Riley

In the summer of  1998, Emilie de la Martinières has inherited the family chateau in the south of France. Once there, she’ll discover long lost secrets, as the chateau may hold the final clues she’ll need to uncover what really happened to her family during World War II.

I was drawn to this novel by the cover art, a beautiful chateau surrounded by a vineyard. I’m sure this novel is bound to be just as intriguing.

11. The Flower Boy by Karen Roberts

The Flower Boy exposes the complexities of life on a British tea plantation in Sri Lanka as cultural boundaries are crossed and deep relationships are formed.

The summaries I’ve read are quite tedious, as this is most definitely a novel spun by plot, but it’s also been said to be a heart wrenching emotional tale of friendship and triumph over tragedy.

12. Before the Frost by Henning Mankell

Before the Frost marks the collaboration between Kurt Wallander and his daughter Linda, who has just graduated from the police academy, as they work against the clock to uncover a religious fanatic on a killing spree.

No book haul would be complete without a compelling mystery-thriller. I’ve never attempted the Millennium Trilogy (The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo), knowing the graphic nature of the plot, but I’m not ready to give up on Swedish mysteries yet. Hopefully this will be just as good but without the hard to read details.