Tag Archives: literary fiction

April 30, 2014 · 9:40 pm

The Storied Life of A. J. Fikry

18293427Title: The Storied Life of A. J. Fikry
Author: Gabrielle Zevin
Source: from publisher for She Reads Book Club
Rating: ★★★★★
Summary: I am on a roll with wonderful books that make me cry. This book was beautifully written with well-rounded, believable character and a very enjoyable focus on books.

A. J. Fikry, owner of Island Books, has become something of a loner. After his wife’s death, his bookstore is doing poorly and he’s doing his best to push away help from friends and family. However, as A. J. deals with a mysterious package which appears in his store, he slowly realizes that he needs help. Beginning to reach out to others, he begins to change his life and the lives of those around him for the better. Continue reading →

21 Comments

Filed under Literary, Romance

Tagged as , , , , , , ,

April 24, 2014 · 7:00 am

The Word Exchange

18209339Title: The Word Exchange
Author: Alena Graedon
Source: from publisher for review
Rating: ★★★★★
Review Summary: This book uses words in the most fantastic and beautiful of ways. It made me think, it made me work, and it completely won me over. I don’t think I’ve ever read a book crafted with more attention to detail and it was a joy to read.

In the future, even definitions can be bought and sold. Books have essentially become obsolete. Technology has advanced to the point where people can relive memories, create art with no talent or training, and access any information they like without knowing anything. Anana’s father is one of the last anti-technology hold outs and is also responsible for publishing what will almost certainly be the last print dictionary. Right before publication Anana’s father disappears, leaving only a cryptic clue suggesting that he’s in grave danger. As Anana tries to find out what happened to him, she stumbles onto a conspiracy larger than she ever could have imagined. She’ll find herself in danger too as a mysterious word flu spreads, because language is power and some people will do whatever it takes to control that power themselves. Continue reading →

16 Comments

Filed under Fiction, Literary

Tagged as , , , , , language, , words, writing

March 16, 2014 · 5:49 pm

The Divorce Papers

18142403Title: The Divorce Papers
Author: Susan Rieger
Source: from publisher for review
Rating: ★★★★☆
Review Summary: I loved this modernization of the epistolary form, especially the beautiful formatting of letters from different sources and the unique voice each character had, although the ending felt a bit unemotional.

Sophie Diel is a criminal lawyer who “very much appreciates that most of her clients are behind bars”. Despite her professed lack of people skills, when she’s asked to fill in for a colleague at an initial interview with Mia Meiklejohn Durkheim they hit it off right away. Mia is heartbroken and angry at her husband’s request for a divorce. She likes Sophie and believes that her direct approach may be just what’s needed to win custody of her daughter and perhaps take her smug husband down a peg or two. The story of Sophie’s experience with the divorce and the ways it makes her reconsider her own relationships is told in epistolary style. This includes “personal correspondence, office memos, emails, articles, and legal papers.” (quotes from goodreads description) Continue reading →

10 Comments

Filed under Fiction, Women's Fiction

Tagged as , , , epistolary, law,

March 11, 2014 · 6:55 am

Coincidence

CoincidenceTitle: Coincidence
Author: J. W. Ironmonger
Source: from publisher for TLC Book Tour
Rating: ★★★★★
Review Summary: This was one of those books where the writing was so perfect and the plot was so engaging, I had a hard time stopping reading long enough to take notes.

Azalea Lewis believes that everything happens for a reason. Given the astonishing coincidences that have shaped her life, perhaps this should come as no surprise. However, it does make her relationship with Professor Thomas Post rather difficult, since he’s made a career of rationalizing away people’s belief in meaningful coincidences. When Azalea’s study of her past leads her to believe that she will die on Midsummer’s Day, Thomas begins to fear that her belief in coincidences will be proved right if he doesn’t do something to save her. Continue reading →

24 Comments

Filed under Fiction, Literary

Tagged as arc, blew my mind, , , , , , thought provoking, uganda

February 3, 2014 · 7:38 am

Some Almost Awesome Fiction in Mini-Reviews

17333319Title: Burial Rites
Author: Hannah Kent
Source: library
Rating: ★★★★☆

The writing in this book was as beautiful as all the reviews say. Hannah Kent has the rare skill of finding new metaphors which speak right to the soul without relying on the familiarity of a cliche. The emotions, the tension, and the scenery were all very vividly brought to life. I was less impressed with the plot. Although I knew to expect this to be sadder than my typical fare, I was surprised by just how bleak things got. I was also unimpressed by the main characters’ naivete and inability to escape the bad situation which led to her present plight. Finally, while I loved the inclusion of “primary sources” and the real feel they gave the book, the author’s use of a report to unemotionally wrap up the ending felt very anticlimactic. The writing impressed me enough that I would still be happy to read more by Hannah Kent. Continue reading →

22 Comments

Filed under Fiction, Historical Fiction

Tagged as beautiful writing, , , , , , magical realism

September 10, 2013 · 10:14 pm

The Book Thief – Discussion 1/3

We here at Doing Dewey are very anti-spoiler but for read-a-longs, there’s really no way to avoid them. So, if you haven’t read the first three parts of The Book Thief which are being discussed in the It’s All About Books read-a-long, this post is going to be COMPLETELY SPOILERY. You have been warned.

This read-a-long for The Book Thief is one of the first read-a-longs I’ve done, so first I’m going to tell you a bit about how I’m liking it. Then I’ll answer some of the discussion questions from our host, Suey. I don’t like to be reading multiple books at one time, so I was surprised at how easy it was to read this between two other books. It was very hard to stop reading because I was enjoying this book a lot, but it’s worth it to me to get to discuss the book with other bloggers. I can’t wait for the twitter chat tomorrow!

Discussion Questions

  1. What’s your first impression of Death as a character/narrator? Continue reading →

11 Comments

Filed under Blogger Events

Tagged as , , books read-a-long, , , literary, , markus zusak, , , , the booke thief, WWII