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I'm sure I've written about this before, but I am a big fan of young adult fiction. I think it is a vastly underrated area and some of the finer books I've read over the years were not directed at "adults."
From what I've read, authors often find their books in the YA section just because the book happens to deal with a young person. As an example, The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night, which became a big hit, was originally published under the YA label.
So, I guess I would encourage readers to stroll to the back of the bookstore once in awhile and take a look at the kids' section.
Just finished The Boyfriend List by E Lockhart. An excellent novel. Ruby Oliver is 15 and has been suffering from panic attacks. The story is structured as a series of chapters where each chapter deals with a boy with whom she has had some (real or imagined) relationship in her life, while at the same time the story moves forward dealing with the traumas of sophmore year. the writing is clever, current and feels very true to life.
I also really enjoyed another book by Lockhart, The Disreputable History of Frankie Landau-Banks, which is another YA gem about a private prep school's secret society.
I purchased Barack Obama's book The Audacity of Hope about a year ago when I was on my way to an Obama fund raising event in the hopes that the then-senator would sign my book. There were only a few hundred people at the event, but still when Obama's staff said he would sign a few books, there was a mad rush to the stage. I pushed my way through the crowd, holding the book open and eventually made my way up to Obama. He signed my book with a smile. After the event I read a few chapters and put the book down.
Because the book is broken down into broad policy based chapters - faith, race, politics...and each is self-contained it didn't make a difference that months went by between chapters. Many of the themes in the book were laid out by Obama during the campaign, but in slightly different forms since the book was written in 2006, well before Obama declared his candidacy.
Obama is a masterful writer, able to weave together his personal story and complex policy ideas in an accessible way. The book is excellent and I plan to read Dreams from My Father before the inauguration!
By the way, the reviews on Amazon make for entertaining/terrifying reading.
Here's a REVIEW:
"I will say right now I did not read this book. Why? I followed the presidential race very closely, and the "man" has nothing to say. One of his best friends tried to blow up the Pentagon, and stomps on the American flag. "
I had a chance to play with the new Amazon Kindle recently. I think I might need it, but I'm not sure whether it's my love of new gadgets that's driving me to it.
The Kindle is about the size of a "quality paperback" and a bit heavier. Books are downloaded via wireless technology that doesn't rely on hot spots to work. You get books in less than a minute and can also download daily newspapers and hundreds of blogs.
I can't decide whether the lack of pages to turn would annoy me. It certainly is better than reading on a computer screen, thanks to the electronic paper technology developed just for Kindle, but it still feels artificial. It's environmentally friendly, but you can't pass on kindle copies to friends.
I think it would be great for travel, though
No real excuse for not updating more frequently.
I haven't been reading as much as I used to - work getting in the way I guess.
But here are a few items....
Rather than lugging around Ken Follett's Pillars of the Earth on a recent trip to Ireland, I downloaded the audiobook. I am not big on historical fiction, but I absolutely loved this book. Part of me thinks I wouldn't have enjoyed the book as much if I had "read" it as opposed to listening to the novel.
The book takes place in the 12th century and concerns the epic task of building the fictional Kingsbridge Cathedral. There are tons of characters, lots of different story lines and a surprising amount of sex!
The unabridged audiobook is about 40 hours long. I listened on the train cutting across Ireland and in Christ Church Cathedral in Dublin which was built in the 13th century. I listened while trapped in the airport during a 5-hour layover and when I returned home. It's an epic tale in the best sense.
I am currently listening to the sort-of sequel, World Without End. It takes place a couple hundred years later, in the same fictional town of Kingsbridge. I'm only a few hours in to the audiobook, but it seems to be holding up well against Pillars. The same reader is used for both books and he is perfect.
