Living History - Hillary Rodham Clinton

Living History

Way back at Christmas, I picked up a stack of books from the second-hand store where my mother-in-law works.  Their inexpensive prices convinced me to a grab a few for which I normally would not have paid.  While I get most of my new reads from the library, it can be so nice to own a book and not ever have to worry about when it's due.  That applies especially in cases like this, where the book is one I won't be tearing through in under a week.

Living History chronicles Hillary Rodham Clinton's life up through her years as First Lady.  The memoir is a bit dated now; it was published in 2003.  Clinton has been and continues to be a polarizing figure in American politics.

Matched - Ally Condie

Matched

What is it exactly that has so captured the world about futuristic, dystopian novels lately?  Does anyone have a good answer to that?  Because here I am with another one.

You would think after books like The Hunger Games or Divergent or most definitely Wool, I would quit while ahead.  I already know there are far more duds in this genre than delights.  Still, I soldier on, hoping for another winner.

I wanted to like Ally Condie's Matched.  I really, truly did.  It has enjoyed a level of popularity that falls just under that of books which make it to the silver screen.  

August Chapter

Happy Friday!

Starting today, I will be posting a monthly wrap-up.  I plan to touch on the books I read that month, the progress I made in my 100 Best Novels goal, give you a few book-related Internet gems I discovered lately, as well as general blog news.  If there is something else you'd like to see added to these monthly "chapters," just say the word! I'm open to ideas!

Dust - Hugh Howey

Dust

It's no secret that I've become obsessed with Hugh Howey's Silo trilogy this summer.  After reading Wool in June at a coworker's suggestion, I was hooked.  I finished Shift at the start of this month.  In a perfectly timed coincidence, the final book, Dust, was released on my birthday.  Thanks for the awesome birthday present, Hugh Howey.  What a thoughtful author, am I right?

Despite having finished Shift not even two weeks previously, I did struggle getting into the beginning of Dust.  The story picks up at the simultaneous ends of Wool and Shift.  The story in Dust moves consistently between Silos 18, 17, and 1 as the isolated world get closer and closer to converging.  Warning: Spoilers Ahead

Through Glass - Cover Reveal

As you may or may not have noticed lately, I have been taking steps to promote the blog and increase readership.  As a part of that, I will be interacting more with other book blogs and participating in some book tours.  In fact, I have my very first book tour book ever sitting next to me as I write this.  You can look for my review of that book on September 10.  

Today, however, I'm joining a cover reveal for Rebecca Ethington's Through Glass.  The book releases on September 20 - just a few short weeks away.  I have not actually read anything written by Ethington, but she is a highly rated Goodreads author who writes mainly young adult work.  Through Glass looked intriguing to me, which is why I agreed to participate in this cover reveal.  

C.S. Lewis: A Life - Alister McGrath

C.S. Lewis: A Life: Eccentric Genius, Reluctant Prophet

As the summer does truly close out, so has come the time for the end of the summer reading program I have been loosely participating in since June.  The program requires reading at least five books from Tyndale's list.  I posted about book four last week.  Alister McGrath's biography of the great C.S. Lewis is my fifth and final.

While nearly everyone who grows up in an American, evangelical Christian home has heard of C.S. Lewis and his writings, I realized that I actually knew very little about his personal history.  I knew he converted and subsequently became and influential defender of the faith.  Beyond that, I knew nothing.  Seeing McGrath's book on Tyndale's list seemed like the perfect opportunity to resolve that problem.

A Passage to India - E.M. Forster

A Passage to India

In my continuing quest to read Modern Library's list of the 100 Best Novels, I found myself again facing a book and author I had never heard of before this challenge.  I have a feeling this will be a recurring theme.  It's amazing how much quality literature a solid education omits.  Or maybe the amazing thing is how much quality is out there to begin with...

Unlike my experience with Booth Tarkington's work, E.M. Forster's novel does fall into a historical period which habitually enchants me.  The book is set in colonial India around the 1920s.  At the time of its publication, the novel paralleled current events.  Forster, in fact, wrote the work based on his own experiences in the country.