You may have noticed that I haven't posted as many posts in the last few weeks, and I have to apologise. It's not because I haven't got lots to say about the books I've been reading, just that a lot of my time at the moment has been taken up with a little project I am embarking on (or maybe not so little). I am opening a bookshop! My expected opening will be in early August but at the moment the shop is still being finished inside, and then there's the bookshelves to be built and books to buy, as well as computers and software and ... The list is a bit daunting but I've got most of it in hand. I'm sure there will be some hiccups on the path to opening day.
I thought I would start writing a regular end of the week post about what is happening on the sales charts (as provided by Nielsen Bookscan) and new books that I'm finding out about as I select books for the shop. So here's the first.
The fastest mover on the charts for the week ending 29 May 2010 was the non fiction book, Slow Death by Rubber Duck by Rick Smith and Bruce Lourie (University of Queensland Press, $34.95). Featured in The Age today, the book is the outcome of research by Smith and Lourie to measure how much of the chemicals that are part of the products that we use everyday, are absorbed by our bodies. Using themselves as lab rats, their conclusions will make us all think twice of the products we buy.
In the fiction department, the vampire books still rein with the latest in the Vampire Academy series, Spirit Bound, by Richelle Mead at number 1 and Dead in the Family (the Sookie Stackhouse books that the True Blood TV series is based on) by Charlaine Harris is at number 6. I have read the first few of the Sookie Stackhouse books and they are certainly good for a bit of escapism if you like this genre.
In the charts for independent bookshops (that will be me), these two feature in the top 10 as well, but they are joined by Lionel Shriver's new book So Much for That (author of We need to talk about Kevin) and Hitch-22: A memoir by Christopher Hitchen, a well known British born but American resident, political and social commentator. Jasper Jones by Craig Silvey has also entered the top 10 given it's short list selection for the Miles Franklin Award this year. You can read my review of this here.
Showing posts with label Non-fiction. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Non-fiction. Show all posts
Saturday, June 12, 2010
Thursday, March 4, 2010
Stuck for something to read?
Stuck for something to read? Need some help working out which book on the bookstore shelves might be the one for you? Here are a few ideas that have caught my eye as I’ve trawled through cyberspace or have found in book reviews I have read recently.
Have you read Eat, Pray, Love by Elizabeth Gilbert?
Then you might want to immerse yourself in her life again and read the continuation of her story in Committed: A Sceptic Makes Peace with Marriage. I have to confess that I have yet to read Eat, Pray, Love but it is on my to-read list after I found an interesting discussion of both books on the site of one of my favourite bloggers, Mia Freedman. You can read Mia’s post on Committed here, and one on Eat, Pray, Love here.
Where Have You Been? by Wendy James
I first read about this in the Bookseller + Publisher Magazine Summer 2009/10 edition and the synopsis dragged me in. Like all good thrillers, the novel revolves around unanswered questions. Karen waved goodbye to her sister one night and her sister never came back. Then after marriage and children, the long lost sister reappears. Where has she been? What has she been doing? Is she really who she says she is? Hopefully the author will keep me guessing until the very end. For more story about this book you might want to read this review of the book on the Readings Bookstore website.
Day After Night by Anita Diamant
The new book from the author of The Red Tent, Day After Night follows the story of four Jewish women who have survived in Nazi Europe during World War II, only to be interned in a Palestinian transit camp for “illegal immigrants”. Based on a true story about an escape by 200 prisoners from a camp named Atlit, the book review I read enticed me to find out more and I discovered this video of Anita talking about her book on the website of the book’s publisher, Simon and Schuster.
Have you read Eat, Pray, Love by Elizabeth Gilbert?
Then you might want to immerse yourself in her life again and read the continuation of her story in Committed: A Sceptic Makes Peace with Marriage. I have to confess that I have yet to read Eat, Pray, Love but it is on my to-read list after I found an interesting discussion of both books on the site of one of my favourite bloggers, Mia Freedman. You can read Mia’s post on Committed here, and one on Eat, Pray, Love here.
Where Have You Been? by Wendy James
I first read about this in the Bookseller + Publisher Magazine Summer 2009/10 edition and the synopsis dragged me in. Like all good thrillers, the novel revolves around unanswered questions. Karen waved goodbye to her sister one night and her sister never came back. Then after marriage and children, the long lost sister reappears. Where has she been? What has she been doing? Is she really who she says she is? Hopefully the author will keep me guessing until the very end. For more story about this book you might want to read this review of the book on the Readings Bookstore website.
Day After Night by Anita Diamant
The new book from the author of The Red Tent, Day After Night follows the story of four Jewish women who have survived in Nazi Europe during World War II, only to be interned in a Palestinian transit camp for “illegal immigrants”. Based on a true story about an escape by 200 prisoners from a camp named Atlit, the book review I read enticed me to find out more and I discovered this video of Anita talking about her book on the website of the book’s publisher, Simon and Schuster.
Thursday, February 18, 2010
Writers at the Convent - #2. Stephanie Dowrick
Continuing on from my last post, I went to three other sessions at the Writers at the Convent Festival. After lunch was the an interesting session with Stephanie Dowrick, author of books dealing with "personal, social, and ethical development" such as "Choosing Happiness" (for more on Stephanie see her website at http://www.stephaniedowrick.com/.
Why Stephanie you might ask? The "Mind, Body, Soul" genre is one of the fastest growing genres in book sales in the US and I'm sure that is so for Australia also. Why are we looking for answers on happiness, intimacy, solitude, and forgiveness (all the subjects of some of Stephanie's bestselling books)? I wanted to hear more from someone who is working in this genre everyday. Stephanie's latest book "In the Company of Rilke" started life as a Phd thesis, and looks at the work of the 20th century German poet, Rainer Rilke.
Why Rilke? Rilke lived during a time when the world was changing rapidly, becoming more mechanistic. He wrote poetry about how we experience life - how my life connects with yours. Rilke's poetry conveyed the message of not struggling to have answers, and to live the questions, at odds with the society in which he was living. Stephanie could see parallels in society today, and talked about the idea of "surrendered living" to "awaken to whatever it is with freshness, and not be burdened by our preconceptions". Putting it in my own context, I likened it to current parenting styles where "control" over outcomes has been the goal in recent years. (That's the subject for another post).
Stephanie admitted that this book is very different from her previous books and thus would have a smaller audience, but she really wanted to make people less afraid of poetry, so that they might give it a go. While much of what she said reflected the spirituality of her role as an interfaith minister, I did find much to ponder as I left the room.
Why Stephanie you might ask? The "Mind, Body, Soul" genre is one of the fastest growing genres in book sales in the US and I'm sure that is so for Australia also. Why are we looking for answers on happiness, intimacy, solitude, and forgiveness (all the subjects of some of Stephanie's bestselling books)? I wanted to hear more from someone who is working in this genre everyday. Stephanie's latest book "In the Company of Rilke" started life as a Phd thesis, and looks at the work of the 20th century German poet, Rainer Rilke.
Why Rilke? Rilke lived during a time when the world was changing rapidly, becoming more mechanistic. He wrote poetry about how we experience life - how my life connects with yours. Rilke's poetry conveyed the message of not struggling to have answers, and to live the questions, at odds with the society in which he was living. Stephanie could see parallels in society today, and talked about the idea of "surrendered living" to "awaken to whatever it is with freshness, and not be burdened by our preconceptions". Putting it in my own context, I likened it to current parenting styles where "control" over outcomes has been the goal in recent years. (That's the subject for another post).
Stephanie admitted that this book is very different from her previous books and thus would have a smaller audience, but she really wanted to make people less afraid of poetry, so that they might give it a go. While much of what she said reflected the spirituality of her role as an interfaith minister, I did find much to ponder as I left the room.
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