nomadreader

I, like many, have been eagerly awaiting the June 14 & 21, 2010 issue of The New Yorker  for its announcement of the latest 20 Under 40 list of fiction writers. The list is here , people. Thanks to the careful analysis of The New York Times , I can tell you half are women. Whether truly accidental as they claim or not, I'm thrilled to see this emerging group of female voices. Only two are under thirty, and both are women. The list represents "a significant number of writers who hail from outside the United States or have parents who do." The list is full of writers I already adore, writers I've been meaning to read for far too long, and writers I've never heard of. I plan to embark on a reading journey to explore the current and future works of these twenty writers, and I would love for you to join me! I am overly ambitious, and I hope to read every book by these twenty authors, but I also am not setting a time limit. This reading project will continue for...

The backstory: Admittedly, I had not heard of Vincere  when it opened at my favorite independent movie theater , but I try to see almost every film showing there. The basics: Vincere  is the story of Ida Dalser, who was Mussolini's little known first wife and the mother of his child. It's in Italian with English subtitles. Overall: I'll be honest. Vincere  is beautiful, moving and absolutely depressing. If it weren't a true story, I would hate the writer and director for telling such a bleak story. I've seen several films about Mussolini, but this one unabashedly take a look at both him as a leader and a human being. He denied his marriage to Ida and denied being the father of their child. Ida was seen as desperate, crazy and frightening to the government. Her child was taken from her, and she was placed in a mental institution. The verdict:  See it, but be prepared to be depressed.  Rating: 5 stars Length: 128 minutes Release date: It's still playin...

The backstory: I've read all of Emily Giffin's books, and I've enjoyed them. She's pigeonholed as chick lit, but she writes so well about human emotions and manages to give depth to what may be perceived as villains, that I don't think she gets enough literary credit. I was eagerly awaiting her newest novel, Heart of the Matter, which I pre-ordered on my Kindle. The basics: Heart of the Matter  is essentially the story of two Wellesley women: Tessa and Valerie. Their story is told in alternating chapters. Tessa is the wife of a plastic surgeon (the good kind). Valerie is the mother of a young child who was burned, and Tessa's husband Nick is her doctor.  My thoughts: There were good and bad things about this novel. For fans of Giffin, Tessa is Dex's sister. It was fun to see snippets of what Dex and Rachel are up to, but if you didn't already know their story, the quick reveal would seem awkward. It's always a difficult choice to write with new...

Living up to being a nomad reader: I'm back home in Albany after a whirlwind two weeks away. One of my closest friends from college got married in northeast Iowa the weekend before BEA, and Mr. Nomadreader and I drove out for the festivities. We stopped to see a close high school friend in Ohio for a couple of nights, my parents in Des Moines for one night, then spent two nights at the wedding festivities. On the way home, we spent one exhausted night in Buffalo and had sixteen hours at home to unpack, do laundry and repack for New York City. Whew! New York City: New York was wonderful. We rented a small studio apartment, through AirBnB , a wonderful site I discovered through the Frugal Traveler . It felt like I was living in New York again because I had an apartment where I could cook my own meals or easily order delivery. It was delightful. The downfall was that I didn't spend BEA: Book Expo America (BEA) was delightful, chaotic and overwhelming. I went in with a list ...

In April, I had the privilege to read and review Deception , the first in the new Haunting Emma young adult paranormal series by Lee Nichols. I really enjoyed the book, and in conjunction with its release June 8, Lee Nichols graciously agreed to write a guest post about her love of libraries. You can also win a copy of Deception  by filling out the form at the end of this post. Lee Nichols on libraries: I can still remember my elementary school librarian’s voice, and the books she read: How to Eat Fried Green Worms, Tomas and the Red-Headed Angel, and The Gift of Magic. My class sat between the stacks of picture books, as she mesmerized us in the late afternoons. Lois Duncan became a favorite of mine, and it’s where discovered the joys of Judy Blume. I’ll also never forget the Jones Library in Massachusetts, where as I college student I came across one of Marion Chesney’s Regency romances in the new books section. Nothing is better than falling for a new author and discoverin...