I didn't have plans to buy any specific book when I walked into my local book shop, but since I'd finally finished the last two hardcover books I'd purchased there, I felt a little open-ended shopping was in order.The first book I noticed when I walked in happened to be my current book club book: The Interestings by Meg Wolitzer. For some reason I'd assumed by the title that this was going to be a light&fluffy but it doesn't really look that way! Have you read it?
I bought The Rosie Project because of Emily @ As the Crowe Flies and Reads. I don't really know anything about it, because I'd rather go into it without any preconceived notions, but she read it multiple times last year so I know that it's worth my time.
We Need New Names caught my eye, partially because of the author's intriguing name, and partially because of the interesting title and the airplane on the front (my husband is a private pilot so flight catches my attention). The synopsis wasn't what ended up selling me on the book, (children from Zimbabwe try to escape to America,) it was actually the author bio on the back flap that made me decide to take a chance on something unknown to me. Born in Zimbabwe and living in America with an MFA from Cornell, I think it is safe to say that the author knows her topic.
In other shopping, I stopped in a local boutique that has a lovely array of handpicked items. When I was Christmas shopping in December, I had a really hard time not buying things for myself, but I was strong and waited until February (when it seems only right that one should buy things for one's self). The main thing I coveted was this gorgeous wooden crate with monthly dividers—the perfect arrangement for a tangible view of the books I've read. I also snagged a Library candle based on Leo Tolstoy: black plum, persimmon, and oak moss. Mmmm.
I LOVED The Interestings. If you are big on nostalgia and think about the friends you had when you were younger, you'll love this one. It's long and goes on a bit. I think that is the one complaint that I heard from many but I didn't mind it at all. I didn't want to leave those characters.
ReplyDeleteOh! And The Rosie Project is SO MUCH FUN. If you watch The Big Bang Theory you will love it as the main character is very much like Sheldon Cooper.
I'm so glad to hear this! I'm thinking I might squeeze The Rosie Project in before jumping into The Interestings. I like to save my book club books for the last minute so they're fresh in my mind, but this is a longer one than usual...
Delete:Clap: Clap: All three of those books have been on my radar for the past year. I came close to buying 2 of them recently, but decided to wait until I read some I've already bought. I do the same as you. Buy a few, wait until I read them to buy a few more. (Unless they are a dollar at the library sale or something....)
ReplyDeleteI think it's the PaperbackSwap books and other free/used books that keep my TBR list at a constant number - I can't seem to get it to drop much below 90 books. Of course, many of those are classics, so it takes a little more doing to get them read.
DeleteI was telling my husband that my plan of attack with my local book shop is to read the books I've purchased before buying more, while my plan of attack with a big box store like Barnes & Noble is to try to resist going in altogether. (Harder to have self control around so many options!)