Biblio Files
Chick vs. Lit
Elizabeth Merrick didn't know she'd be launching a full-on literary war when she put together the short story collection This is Not Chick Lit. She was simply trying to showcase exceptional modern women writers who write stories that go beyond the chic shoes, domineering bosses and comedic love lives often found in the increasingly popular "chick lit" genre. Read more.
Don't Miss Jackson's Southern Fiction
I hate when I miss the train, and boy did I miss the train. When all my friends were raving about Gods in Alabama by Joshilyn Jackson I didn't pay attention. "I'm not religious," was about as far as my thoughts went before I dismissed the book as something that wouldn't appeal to me. Read more.
Summer Crime Spree
When the days are lazy and hot with sunshine searing away all hints of shadow, I know there's only one type of book that will hold my attention--a good, fast-paced thriller. In the cold darkness of winter it is all too easy to imagine a serial killer lying in wait, ready to torture me with a shot of Windex in my veins. As much as I like a thrill, I always have to wait for the bright days of summer before I dare to immerse myself in the worlds of modern white knights fighting the foulest of evils. Read more.
Self-Publishing
Maybe I've read too much historical fiction, but when I hear the word "self-published" I immediately think of a dressed-up dandy from the early 19th century, sporting a monocle and handle-bar mustache. He is always a filthy-rich fop, churning out bad poetry that he reads at gatherings in his smoking parlor. Read more.
My Nose, Trapped in Her Books
I made a new best friend this month. I've never met her and she doesn't know I have a girlie crush on her and want to spend my every waking moment with her, but I'm not letting that bother me. Surely if Jennifer Weiner just had a chance to meet me, she'd realize that we are soul sisters. We're kindred "larger ladies" and new mothers, destined to share the secrets of motherhood, plus-sized clothing and post-partum sex over a slice of cheesecake. Read more.
WhichBook
If you've been online for long, you've probably come across whichbook.net once or twice. The site, a project by UK librarians, uses data gathered by 150 trained volunteers to help readers pick the perfect book for them. Read more.
Would You Trust a Demon?
What do you get when you take a lonely, half-abused boy and give him access to magic? Quidditch games and Voldemort? Not always.
Go to any book store and you'll find legions of authors and publishers hoping to cash in on the Harry Potter mania. Like most of the western world, I'm caught up in the Harry-craze and would love to find another series that captures my imagination in the way J. K. Rowling's mega-hit series has. It helps that I've been a fantasy fan since long before I knew I was a Muggle. Read more.
The BiblioPhile Gift Guide
Looking for the perfect gift for the bibliophile in your life? Look no further. As a life-long book lover, I've received more than my fair share of book-related gifts. I'm here to navigate you past the duds and straight to the winners to help you make Christmas morning a little more special for the reader in your life. Read more.
Cookbook Addict
When people ask me if I read non-fiction, I always give them a look that implies they've grown a third arm and enthusiastically tell them "no way!" I like to escape from reality, not immerse myself in it. Of course, one can't get through college and be a professional teacher without reading plenty of research material, but I don't consider that to be the real crux of the question. I hear it as "do you enjoy reading non-fiction?" And I don't. Read more.
Bringing Up Baby
I've been in a fiction dry streak the past several months thanks to the impending birth of my son. Instead of immersing myself in stories of horror and gore a la Dean Koontz, I've been immersing myself in stories of horror and gore a la labor and delivery, bleeding nipples, and sleepless nights. I've never been around a baby before, but I've always been a reader. It seems only natural that I'd turn to my local bookstore in an attempt to answer that age old question: Just what am I supposed to do with this impending life form? Read more.
Cover the Butter by Carrie Kabak
I've been a web book reviewer for the past several years in different capacities and have learned to inwardly groan when an author sends me a perky e-mail, offering to send me a free copy of their latest work of genius. All I have to do is review it! Aren't I privileged? Read more.
Harlan Coben
When I find an author whose writing I love, I generally devour everything he's ever published as quickly as I can. Call it interest, call it obsession. Either way, I have an innate need to read every word written by any author that brings me even a modicum of joy. Read more.
Getting Back to Fiction
by Abigail Vint
I'm not quite sure how it started, but one day I just stopped reading fiction. Perhaps it was all the English classes that I had taken. After being forced to read piles of fiction for school–-and even now I can hardly remember any of the titles–-I could only pick up non-fiction titles, stories about real people, to fill my leisure reading time. Read more.
The Unexpected Books That Changed My Life
by Shannan Hunt
I wouldn't call myself a literary expert, but I have read a lot of books. Books by authors such as Vonnegut, Dostoevsky, Kerouac, and the like. Classics by Dickens, Woolf, and even Shakespeare. I usually pride myself on the fact that I can talk about almost any classic book ever published. Despite all of this, I am so in love with the Shopaholic series that I cant stop telling people about them! Read more.
Asia
My tenth-grade English teacher had no idea what she was doing to my taste in reading when she forced her reluctant students to read The Good Earth by Pearl S. Buck. Though I was really too young to understand all the emotional intricacies involved in the tale (I was 14 and never been kissed, what did I understand about marital slavery?) I was captivated by plight of O-lan, the hardworking farm wife who was so terribly abused and neglected by her husband. Read more.
Fairy Tales
Imagine a little girl who insists on wearing a homemade princess hat (you know the type--cardboard cone, covered with pink silk and a long wisp of pink taffeta coming out of the top). Now, imagine what stories that little girl might like to hear. Read more.
Dean Koontz
There's nothing I like better than sitting down with a book that I know is going to scare the socks right off my big ol' feet. I tell most people this and their first reaction is predictable: "What's your favorite King?" Read more.
Jasper Fforde
Looking for a good mystery? How about some old-fashioned time travel? Or maybe it's time to get back to the basics with some classical literature--Shakespeare, Jane Eyre, Heathcliff? So many options, so little time. What's a person to do? Read more.
What the Future Holds
One of the most undervalued, yet interesting genres of literature asks a simple question: What If? Most people call it science fiction. Some people prefer speculative fiction. The title doesn't really matter. The creative speculation about how today's issues will affect the distant and not so distant future fascinates me. Read more.