Friday, November 20, 2009

bookfinds and Wish List Questions

It's been a while since I've done one of these posts, but that doesn't mean that I haven't been keeping my eyes peeled for new books to add to my wish lists!

From Amazon Vine to LibraryThing's Early Reviewer to the Poisoned Pen newsletter to Paperback Swap's daily wish list to fellow book bloggers, there's always plenty of places to find mention of a book (or two...or three...) that I just have to have.

Let's back up a step or two. I mentioned that I have multiple wish lists. Mine happen to be on Paperback Swap, Amazon, and Book Depository. How many of you have multiple wish lists? Where are your wish lists located?

Okay. Time to get back on track. I thought I'd share four books with you that I've found recently and added to my wish lists.

The Book of Fires by Jane Borodale.

"It is 1752 and seventeen-year-old Agnes Trussel arrives in London pregnant with an unwanted child. Lost and frightened, she finds herself at the home of Mr. J. Blacklock, a brooding fireworks maker who hires Agnes as an apprentice. As she learns to make rockets, portfires, and fiery rain, she slowly gains his trust and joins his quest to make the most spectacular fireworks the world has ever seen."





On Hallowed Ground: The Story of Arlington National Cemetery by Robert M. Poole.

"In the folds of its hills on the Virginia shore of the Potomac, where its vast array of white tombstones evokes the mesmerizing image of an assembled army in its last resting place, Arlington National Cemetery splendidly honors the generations of self-sacrifice embodied in the nation's military dead. It also encapsulates the flawed story of a country still struggling to come to terms with the human cost of its wars. The central character in On Hallowed Ground, Robert M. Poole's gracefully written, often deeply affecting history, cannot speak. However, Poole succeeds grandly in giving voice to the more than 600 acres of what virtually all Americans consider sacred soil."


The Swan Thieves by Elizabeth Kostova.

"Psychiatrist Andrew Marlowe, devoted to his profession and the painting hobby he loves, has a solitary but ordered life. When renowned painter Robert Oliver attacks a canvas in the National Gallery of Art and becomes his patient, Marlow finds that order destroyed. Desperate to understand the secret that torments the genius, he embarks on a journey that leads him into the lives of the women closest to Oliver and a tragedy at the heart of French Impressionism.

Kostova's masterful new novel travels from American cities to the coast of Normandy, from the late 19th century to the late 20th, from young love to last love. THE SWAN THIEVES is a story of obsession, history's losses, and the power of art to preserve human hope."


Crossing the Gates of Alaska by Dave Metz.

"Driven by his calling to explore the Arctic wilderness, Dave Metz packed up his two beloved Airedale dogs, sled, fifty pounds of food, and set out on a 600-mile adventure across the Gates of Alaska national park, into one of the world’s most remote and least-traveled regions. More people have landed on the moon than have completed the daring four-month-long journey Dave Metz made across the barren, inhospitable terrain.
Metz’s world-class trek is a monumental achievement in wilderness exploration. Many nature enthusiasts share his passion for the great outdoors, but few have the survival skills and sheer will to withstand frigid nights at -20°F, isolation from human comforts, and the inevitable abject exhaustion and despair. “I don’t look back now… I move forward or starve.”

9 comments:

  1. Interesting choices, Cathy! I haven't read them, but the Borodale looks really interesting!

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  2. I have a wishlist at audible but the rest of my wishlist is in a little notebook that I carry with me - can't be bothered doing an online one as I use lots of different stores and it's too hard to keep track of them all.

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  3. I've actually got The Swan Thieves, but Carl has it stuck in his TBR pile. I may have to sneak it out.

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  4. Good list of book. I plan to read Swan Thieves over Thanksgiving weekend.

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  5. I've had my eye on 'Crossing the Gates of Alaska' too...

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  6. The Swan Thieves sound interesting. I will wait and see if you give in to temptation and review it ...

    My wish list is a very simple thing: a list on my own computer where I add finds when I do my blogging rounds. I usually add nationality and the blogger who tempted me (because that also tells me something about what kind of book to expect).

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  7. Margot K-- I don't remember hearing of any other novel with the fireworks making background.

    Bernadette-- I do most of my book acquiring online in one way or another, so if I do visit a bookshop in person, all I have to do is print out my Paperback Swap wish list, and I'm good to go.

    Kathy-- I know that if I were you, I would be sneaking it out! LOL

    Beth-- Happy reading! With my working retail, I don't have to tell you where I'll be that weekend!

    Caite-- It certainly sounds like an incredible feat!

    Dorte-- I need to do a better job of keeping track of where I first learn of book titles.

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  8. Maybe you should consolidate all of your wish lists into one lol. I use Wishlings n it's really good.

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  9. Jane-- I'll check that out. Thanks for the link!

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