Thursday, February 22, 2007

I love book lists!

Wow -- someone with a lot of time on their hands compiled this list:
Listology: "1001 Books You Must Read Before You Die"

Tuesday, February 13, 2007

Time on my hands...

So getting prepared for the birth of your first child should make you anxiously clean house, straighten cupboards, organize shelves, right? Well...sort of.


I've done some of that, but mostly I've been reading! My due date having come and gone, I'm hoping to get through at least another one or two novels before baby arrives. I just finished reading Resurrection Men by Ian Rankin: another superb outing in the Inspector John Rebus novels. This novel takes Rebus back to school, reform school that is. Rebus is sent to Tuliallan College, where the force sends their rough cops to straighten out and is mixed in with the resurrection men of the novel's title. What ensues is a police procedural of old cases, old enemies, new murders and new characters. Rankin is superior at describing the rank and decay of old Edinburgh alleys and dusky pubs while giving the reader a rousing good police story, with crusty DI's thrown in (thats "Detective Inspector" to you British procedural newbies!). This was one of the better stories and part of this comes from the time that has been investing in reading each entry in this series. It really does help to read the Rebus novels in order, many old characters do pop up in the newer entries.

British public not "clever or lofty" readers...

According to an article in today's British paper, The Guardian, latest figures show that the popular reading tastes of Britain's library-going public lends itself to the likes of Danielle Steel, Catherine Cookson and Josephine Cox: a certifiable triumvirate of romance and suspense. Is this really a surprise? Read the Guardian article here...

Opinions on the Caldecott & Newberry winners

Some commentary this week on the recent award winners of the prestigious Caldecott & Newberry Awards, given annually to the best illustrated and written (respectively) books for children over at the blog, Book Blog | BlogCentral.TheReporter.com

Go the ALA website for more information on the Caldecott & Newberry Award winners...