Books

I am familiar with Meike Ziervogel in her role as founder of Peirene Press but now I've had the chance to think of her as a novelist. (It's an aside but I find Peirene's progress encouraging and inspiring. People talk about the death of the book and other such nonsense, but the success of small independent publishers shows that the world is a much better, and much more interesting, place than some would have us believe.) Some time in the dim and distant past I watched a documentary about Magda Goebbels and I've found her an interesting character ever since. The idea of mothers who harm their children seems to have a power to shock like nothing else (nothing else I can think of anyway) but when I first watched that documentary it seemed to me quite possible to empathise with Magda's decision to kill her children, uncomfortable, but possible.I also read somewhere that the British have such an obsession with the second world war that more books are published about it here than anywhere else in the world, I'm still not quite sure what I make of that but I am interested in how Germany has come to terms with it's 20th century history, and more specifically how we, the British, can accept and discuss that changing relationship with the past. The book that started this interest was Bernhard Schlink's 'The Reader', easily the first time I'd seen a Nazi portrayed with any sympathy, it's an excellent book but Schlink chose to make his heroine a victim of circumstance. 'Magda' moves that process along, Magda is hardly a victim but Ziervogel does make her human.Fiction that uses real people or events isn't always my cup of tea and I must admit that whilst I enjoyed the first half of 'Magda' enough to carry on reading it wasn't until the second half of the book - when the family arrive in the bunker - that it really came alive to me. The bunker is deftly sketched, mentions of the dark, the close air, the impact of bombs falling over head, drunken soldiers gathered in corners, and whispered conversations as Eva Braun and Hitler's wedding preparations are made heighten the sense of tension and claustrophobia as the story winds towards it's inevitable conclusion. It's at this point that Magda's eldest daughter, Helga, really makes her impact on the narrative. She's recording her experiences in the bunker - the day to day life, first love, and a growing sense of unease with her mother. For Helga and the children there is the idea that life is the thing, and that the future will take care if itself. They have been shielded from the reality of war, even into the last days the possibility of defeat is inconceivable, the talk of soldiers who say it's so seems iconoclastic to the point of blasphemy. For Magda there is the reality of the situation, she knows what the consequences of defeat are likely to be for the first lady of the Reich. Ziervogal chooses to have Magda believe in Hitler with a religious fervour so that her final act is a blend of loyalty and protectiveness amongst other things.In truth I've always been inclined to see what Magda did as at least in part an act of compassion. Her children would have had a hard legacy to bear. In a letter to her eldest son from a previous marriage Magda stated that Our glorious idea is ruined and with it everything beautiful and marvellous that I have known in my life. The world that comes after the Führer and national socialism is not any longer worth living in and therefore I took the children with me (or at least something like it, that quote is lifted from wikipedia). What kind of life can you imagine for those children, and later yet their children? 'Magda' is a complex portrait of a difficult and emotive situation. It's good to read about these names from history as people rather than monsters, and worthwhile to try and understand what drives a person to do terrible things. The result is something that has lingered in my mind and imagination weeks after reading it and which I wholeheartedly recom

Reviewed by Melanie Kline Drop 7 foods. Lose 7 pounds. In just 7 days. Sounds amazing, doesn’t it? I couldn’t wait to get my hands on this book. Food intolerance is the real cause of weight gain? Yeah, sure! Sounds great – where do I start? Sign me up! Not quite so fast. The Virgin Diet is jammed full of testimonials. I wound up skipping about half of the book because frankly, if I don’t personally know you and believe that I can take you at your word, then your testimonial is just a waste of my time. I want to see it for myself and since I already have the book in my hands, I’m not going to bother reading what other people have to say. Overall, The Virgin Diet provides some good points to ponder and that make a whole lot of sense. For example, food intolerance creates inflammation. Not so good if you are trying to get that lean, flat stomach you had when you were young. You have to eat fat to burn fat. Even this makes sense once you read the explanation and examples. Basically, The Virgin Diet gives you a list of 7 problem foods to remove from your diet. Not as easy as it sounds though. Sure you can quit eating corn on the cob, canned corn, frozen corn, etc., but corn is also found in corn fed chickens and the eggs they lay, and so on. After you eliminate these foods, you slowly start adding them back into your diet so that you can tell which ones you are intolerant to and viola, you lose weight after getting rid of all the problematic food. This is a great concept, but I did not lose one ounce and people really looked at me funny when I ordered “grass-fed beef tenderloin” and “pasture-fed pork tenderloin” at the grocery store meat counter. Can’t say I had much luck with ordering “wild fish” when I went out to eat either. This concept might work extremely well for some, but since I have neither the time nor money to research out and purchase all of the “pure” foods necessary to truly follow this diet in the way it is designed, I guess I’m stuck with my muffin top. Rating: ★★☆☆☆ Review copy was provided free of any obligation by Harlequin. No monetary or any other form of compensation was received. Pin It

...The losing game of writing books to win The trouble starts at the moment when you get the crazy idea that not winning a prize means you're no good. It doesn't mean that at all. I have been a member of several judging panels. I have witnessed the strange dynamic of their functioning. Forces that outsiders can't even conceive of are at work in those meeting rooms. Under all their beautiful intelligent reasoning, prize judges, like people in every sphere of action, are driven by unconscious urges. How could it be otherwise? They are not sphinxes, or oracles, or disembodied spirits. They are people, subject to moods, full of contradictions and unacknowledged emotions and thwarted longings of their own.

Book Description Release date: June 4, 2013 In this new novel based on the #1 bestselling Skinny Bitch books, a twenty-something chef loses her dream job—only to find happiness after she launches a vegan cooking school and falls for a sexy carnivore. Twenty-six-year-old Clementine Cooper is an ambitious sous chef at a hot vegan restaurant in Santa Monica. When an important food critic visits the restaurant, a backstabbing coworker sabotages her vegan dish by adding butter. Fired from her job and blackballed in L.A., Clementine has hit rock bottom. Not one to wallow, she decides to launch her own cooking school and personal chef business called Skinny Bitch. Every day, Clementine passes a space for lease in her neighborhood and fantasizes about opening her own restaurant. Fifteen tables. A juice bar. Cali-meets-Moroccan décor. She plans to work hard, save money, and buy the space. But on the first day of her cooking classes, she discovers that millionaire restaurateur Zach Jeffries is opening a steakhouse in the same space! Zach is the antithesis of everything she stands for, but she’s incredibly attracted to him. And it seems like he might be attracted to her too, since he immediately enrolls in her cooking school. Can two people who are so fundamentally different actually find love? As Clementine rebuilds her life with new friendships, romance, and recipes, she finds that there are healthy choices to make both in and out of the kitchen. About the Author Kim Barnouin lives in California with her husband and son. Kim coauthored the #1 New York Times bestselling Skinny Bitch series, which includes such hit titles as Skinny Bitch, Skinny Bitch in the Kitch, Skinny Bastard, Skinny Bitch: Ultimate Everyday Cookbook, and Skinny Bitch Book of Vegan Swaps. SOURCE PUBLISHER MY THOUGHTS LOVED IT Clementine has just about hit the pinnacle of being a vegan chef, when at only twenty-six, she is sent in to cook for the ill chef and THE main LA critic is coming into review the restaurant. All goes well until she is sabotaged by a fellow worker who adds a bit of unauthorized butter into a sauce. The whole staff is fired and Clem in blackballed. Not wanting to give up her Santa Monica lifestyle, she decides to start a cooking school and meal service. Her first client is the guy who dumped her six months ago and she gets another shock when she shows up and his fiancee meets her at the door of her dream home. As Clem winds her way through descriptions of food and the different men she meets in her quest for the right ones, you learn a bit about the vegan lifestyle and how it might work for you. When the site where Clem had dreamed about opening her own cafe is rented to serve as a steak house, she goes a bit ballistic. She storms right over to confront the owner, Zach, who of course turns out to be just right for her. Even though their different backgrounds and life philosophies are completely different, they do seem to work it all out. Her roommate Sarah is a real kick and serves as a "project" for Clem to help prove just how good her lifestyle can be for one's body since Sarah does end up losing weight and feeling better. This is dialogue driven snark so you know how much I enjoyed this! It is a well written beachy, chick-lit read and I can see this as a series as Clem helps convert more people to the vegan lifestyle. Disclosure If you are considering purchasing this book or anything else from Amazon, please use my link above since I earn a very small percentage of the sale which helps pay for shipping my giveaways! I received this book from the publisher at no charge and in no way influenced my review. WANT TO WIN A COPY OF THIS BOOK? Contest is open to anyone over 13 years old with a US or Canadian mailing address (no PO Boxes) Contest ends on 6.3.13 Winner will be chosen by Random.org and posted in comments. Winner will have 48 hours to r

The Longreads team has teamed up with Syracuse assistant professor Aileen Gallagher in order to “search for and share outstanding student work.” If you’ve read (or written) something fantastic this past school year, they encourage you to tag it #college #longreads on Twitter or Tumblr. Related posts: Behind the Longreads On January 25th, if you’re in New York City, you... Top Longreads of 2011 They say you’re only as good as the company you... Pump the longreads at SXSW Our own founding editor C. Max Magee is teaming up...

I am forever urging my students to mark up their books, to scribble, deface and decode.  It's only by interacting with the books we admire at the sentence level that writers can begin to unlock the secrets of how one's heroes have accomplished their magic.  (I should add this need came painfully to me, as I do have the collector's gene, courtesy of my father, and am always aware of the value of objects.  But in the end, I forced myself to pick up a pen, and I've never looked back.) So I'm especially interested today, for a number of reasons, to see this item from The Guardian, in which John Banville has annotated a copy of The Sea.  One of the nine screencaps is below: The annotations are called out on the website, and I found this one most interesting and amusing: p.88 [on 'succubus'] 'Really should get hold of a dictionary. I'll be interested to see if he/she got to the end of the book before selling it to the second-hand shop. Could have exchanged it for a Chambers or a Shorter Oxford.' The notion of Banville with a dictionary should resonate for anyone who has read him.  I was also struck by this one: p.244 'Never noticed before the pre-echo of p.264. K[afka] is right, one works in deepest darkness.' It always fascinates me when writers detect their influences after the fact.  In contrast, I suppose I should confess that my second novel is heavily indebted to Banville's own The Book of Evidence - nothing after the fact there.  I recently worked my way through the book, taking it apart, trying to figure out how he could break so many rules and still have the book succeed marvelously.  Here's a sample of my own, far messier, marginalia: I cannot figure out why this keeps posting on its side, but you get the general idea. I will leave it to future readers to determine how well I've internalized the lessons of this novel but I remain devoted to my idea that if you are a writer and there is a book you adore, there is no better exercise than stripping the thing down to its foundations to see what it's made of.  

If you're wondering what films based on books will release in Summer 2013 (May - August), BookBrowse has the answer!  The Great Gatsby Starring: Leonardo DiCaprio, Carey Mulligan, Isla Fisher, Tobey Maguire Director: Baz Luhrmann Opened: May 10 in USA (opens in 60+ other countries during May and early June) A Midwestern war veteran finds himself drawn to the past and lifestyle of his millionaire neighbor. Based on the 1925 novel of the same name by F. Scotts Fitzgerald Rated: PG-13 IMDB Rating: 7.5/10 Epic Starring: Amanda Seyfried, Beyoncé Knowles, Josh Hutcherson Director: Chris Wedge Opens: May 24 in USA (and 70+ other countries during May and early June) Summary: A group of bugs call on the mythical Leaf Men to save their garden from the evil Spider Queen. Based on the children's book The Leaf Men and the Brave Good Bugs by William Joyce Rated: PG IMDB Rating: 6/7/10 Man of Steel Starring: Henry Cavill, Amy Adams, Russell Crowe Director: Zack Snyder Opens: June 14 USA (and 40+ other countries in June) Summary: A young journalist, Clark Kent, is forced to confront his secret extraterrestrial heritage when Earth is invaded by members of his race. Based on the comic book superhero created by Jerry Siegel and Joe Schuster, and first published in 1933. Rated: PG-13 World War Z Starring: Brad Pitt, James Badge Dale, Mireille Enos Director: Marc Forster Opens: June 21 in USA (and in about 65+ other countries between June and August) Summary: United Nations employee Gerry Lane traverses the world in a race against time to stop the Zombie pandemic that is toppling armies and governments, and threatening to decimate humanity itself. Based on World War Z: An Oral History of the Zombie War by Max Brooks Release Date: 21 June 2013 Starring: Brad Pitt, Matthew Fox, Mireille Enos The Lone Ranger Starring: Johnny Depp, Armie Hammer, William Fichtner Director: Gore Verbinski Opens: July 3 in USA (and in about 40 other countries between July and early August) Summary: Native American warrior Tonto recounts the untold tales that transformed John Reid, a man of the law, into a legend of justice. Based on the 1933 radio show written by Frank Striker, that led to a series of books also written by Striker; and then a TV series, comic books and movies. Not yet rated The Wolverine Starring: Famke Janssen, Hugh Jackman, Will Yun Lee Director: James Mangold Opens: July 26 in USA (and 60+ other contries between late July and August) Summary: Wolverine makes a voyage to modern-day Japan, where he encounters an enemy from his past that will impact on his future. Based on the graphic novel saga wherein Logan goes to Japan and falls in love with a woman who is the daughter of a crime lord. Wolverine first appeared in the final "teaser" panel of The Incredible Hulk in October 1974 written by Len Wein and drawn by Herb Trimpe. Not yet rated R.I.P.D. Starring: Ryan Reynolds, Jeff Bridges, Kevin Bacon Director: Robert Schwentke Opens: July 19 in USA (and in 20+ countries between July and August) Summary: A recently murdered cop teams up with a group of undead police officers to find the man who killed him Based on R.I.P.D. by Peter Lenkov Not yet rated Percy Jackson: The Sea of Monsters Starring: Alexandra Daddario, Logan Lerman, Nathan Fillion Director: Thor Freudenthal Opens: August 7 in USA (and 30+ other countries in August) Summary: In order to restore their dying safe haven, the son of Poseidon and his friends embark on a quest to the Sea of Monsters to find the mythical Golden Fleece and to stop an ancient evil from rising. Based on the second book in Rick Riordan's five book series. Not yet rated but presumably will be PG, like the first Percy Jackson movie Paranoia Starring: Amber Heard, Harrison Ford, Liam Hemsworth

In My Mailbox is a weekly book blog feature hosted by The Story Siren. It gives book bloggers the opportunity to share the books we get each week with other bloggers, and our followers. Over the past few weeks I got...+ several eBooksThis Strange and Familiar Place (So Close to You, #2) by Rachel Carter (ARC)Thanks to HarperTeenWild Awake by Hilary T. Smith (ARC)Thanks to Katherine TegenThe Dark Shore (The Atlanteans, #2) by Kevin Emerson (ARC)Thanks to Katherine TegenShadow of the Mark (Carrier of the Mark, #2) by Leigh Fallon (ARC)Thanks to HarperTeenDefy the Dark edited by Saundra Mitchell (ARC)Thanks to HarperTeenRush (The Game, #1) by Eve Silver (ARC)Thanks to Katherine TegenThe Distance Between Us by Kasie West (ARC)Thanks to HarperTeenInferno (Chronicles of Nick, #4) by Sherrilyn Kenyon (hardcover)Thanks to St. Martin’s GriffinThis Song Will Save Your Life by Leila Sales (ARC)Thanks to Farrar, Straus, & GirouxTumble & Fall by Alexandra Coutts (ARC)Thanks to Farrar, Straus, & GirouxHorde (Razorland, #3) by Ann Aguirre (ARC)Thanks to Feiwel & FriendsThe Revelations of Jude Connor by Robin Reardon (paperback)Thanks to KensingtonThe Whatnot (The Peculiar, #2) by Stefan Bachmann (eARC)Thanks to Greenwillow, via EdelweissEyes Wide Open (The Blackstone Affair, #3) by Raine Miller (eARC)Thanks to Atria, via EdelweissLeap of Faith by Jamie Blair (eARC)Thanks to Simon & Schuster, via EdelweissTo Be Perfectly Honest by Sonya Sones (eARC)Thanks to Simon & Schuster, via EdelweissInvisible by Marni Bates (eARC)Thanks to K-Teen, via NetGalleyTouching Melody (Forever First, #1) by RaShelle Workman (eARC)Thanks to All Night Reads, via NetGalleyPlaying Tyler by T.L. Costa (eARC)Thanks to Strange Chemistry, via NetGalleyAsylum by Madeline Roux (eARC)Thanks to Harper, via EdelweissOutcast by Adrienne Kress (eARC)Thanks to Diversion, via NetGalleyFangirl by Rainbow Rowell (eARC)Thanks to St. Martin’s Griffin, via NetGalleyRelic (The Books of Eva, #1) by Heather Terrell (eARC)Thanks to Soho Teen, via EdelweissDragonfly by Leigh Talbert Moore (eARC)Thanks to All Night Reads, via NetGalleySex & Violence by Carrie Mesrobian (eARC)Thanks to Carolrhoda Lab, via NetGalleyGated by Amy Christine Parker (eARC)Thanks to Random House, via EdelweissDance of the Red Death (Masque of the Red Death, #2) by Bethany Griffin (eARC)Thanks to Greenwillow, via EdelweissHow to Love by Katie Cotugno (eARC)Thanks to Balzer + Bray, via EdelweissOnce We Were (The Hybrid Chronicles, #2) by Kat Zhang (eARC)Thanks to Harper, via EdelweissRock and a Hard Place (The Jamieson Brothers, #1) by Angie Stanton (eARC)Thanks to HarperTeen, via EdelweissSnapshot (The Jamieson Brothers, #2) by Angie Stanton (eARC)Thanks to HarperTeen, via EdelweissShadowlark (Skylark, #2) by Meagan Spooner (eARC)Thanks to Carolrhoda Lab, via NetGalleyLosing It edited by Keith Gray (eARC)Thanks to Carolrhoda Lab, via NetGalleyBelieve by Sarah Aronson (eARC)Thanks to Carolrhoda Lab, via NetGalleyA Wounded Name by Dot Hutchinson (eARC)Thanks to Carolrhoda Lab, via NetGalleyThe Summer I Became a Nerd by Leah Rae Miller (eARC)Thanks to Entangled Teen, via NetGalley

Ireland debuted a new stamp featuring a 224-word short story written by Dublin teenager Eoin Moore. Related posts: History of the Most Widely Used Font Katherine Eastland has written an interesting piece on the history... Celtic Tiger’s Collapse Gabriel O’Malley‘s “Letter From Dublin” for n+1 is an interesting... Cheese or Font? Serious foodie or just extremely well read? Play this game...

… First Known When Lost: "I Stood Still And Was A Tree Amid The Wood".