a quill and vellum

Top Ten Tuesday for 17 June 2014

Today's Top Ten Tuesday asks that we compose a Top Ten Books On My Summer TBR list.

1.  The Lowland by Jhumpa Lahiri

2.  This is How You Lose Her and Drown by Junot Diaz

3.  Little Bee by Chris Cleave

4.  The Initiate Brother by Sean Russell

5.  In the Shadow of the Banyan: a Novel by Vaddey Ratner

6.  The Hundred Foot Journey by Richard C. Morais

7.  Americanah by Chimamanda Ngozi Adiche

8.  The Cookbook Collector by Allegra Goodman

9.  The Genizah at the House of Shepher by Tamar Yellin

10.  The Healing by Jonathan O'dell

BONUS Read - Brooklyn by Colm Toibin

-Joseph
Soli Deo Gloria

Top Ten Tuesday: Top Ten Books in my Man Purse!

Top Ten Tuesday is a meme that was created by The Broke and the Bookish and is something that I will begin participating in. For Tuesday, 3 June, bloggers and vloggers are asked to list the top ten books that will, or should, be in their beach bags.  I have no plans to go about the water in the near future, so let's assume these books will be in my man purse.

1.  The Name of the Wind by Patrick Rothfuss.  I have been seeing this quite a bit in YouTube videos and I have owned the eBook version for two years, so it is time to give this a read.

2.  The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier and Clay by Michael Chabon.  I have owned this book for several years and have never read it, although I cannot understand why. I like Michael Chabon as a writer and the book deals with Judaism and comic books!

3.  The Final Empire by Brandon Sanderson.  I have been in love with Brandon Sanderson for quite some time but have never read any of his novels.  I have a strong desire to read the Mistborn Trilogy, which I suppose is now a tetralogy.

4.  The Angel's Game by Carlos Ruiz Zafon.  My first foray into the Cemetery of Forgotten Books was AMAZING and I can't wait to read the next installment in the series.

5.  The Initiate Brother by Sean Russell.  Sean Russell is a Canadian author who has created a fantasy duology with asian-themes!  I have been in love with asian-themed fantasy since  I read Eon and Eona by Alison Goodman.

6.  Pillars of the Earth by Ken Follett.  This book comes highly rcommended to me by a reader whose reading tastes I fully respect.

7.  The Cookbook Collector by Allegra Goodman.  I read Goodman's Kaaterskill Falls and beceome enamored by her writing style so i wish to further discover her talents.

8.  The Genizah at the House of Shepher by Tamar Yellin.  This is one interesting sounding book with I discovered through a GoodReads recommendation.

9.  Poet's Pub by Eric Linklater.  Classical literature.....beautiful Penguin cover....what more could you ask?

10.  Brooklyn by Colm Toibin.  I have heard several people discussing Toibin and I need to give him a try to see if I like his writing and story telling.

Friday Reads for 24 May 2013

This weekend, I will be reading The Initiate Brother by Sean Russell.  

Good Reads Description:  Plague and warfare has swept across the Orient, ravaging the ancient kingdom of Wa, devastating the royal line, and leaving a new dynasty on the throne--a new Emperor, Akantsu, filled with fear of all who might seek to wriest the Empire from his grasp. Among those out of favor with the new liege is the Order of the Botahist Monks, whose mystical powers have enabled them to hold positions as Spiritual Adviseres to the Imperial court for nearly ten centuries. But Emperor Akantsu fears none so greatly as he does Lord Shonto, the brilliant leader of the most important of the Old Families, whose infludence could rally the Great Houses against the throne and whose adopted daughter, the beautiful and talented Lady Nishima, is the last surviving member of the old royal family.

Sent to be military Governor of a northern border province long threatened by barbarian invaders, Lord Shonto knows he is being lured to his death. But Akantsu has underestimated his foe, for not only is Lord Shonto the greatest military genius of the age, but he has with him a Spiritual Adviser from the Botahist Order--a young man gifted with extraordinary martial skills and magical abilities, Initiate Brother Shuyun. And even Lord Shonto does not realize the true potential of this young monk. Only time will reveal that Shuyun's magical powers have not seen their equal in nearly a thousand years--not since the Perfect Master himself walked the paths of the Empire.

Good Reads Rating:  4.05

October 2012 TBR

Welcome to October, my most favorite month of the entire year, for it ushers in Autumn which I dearly love.  This month, I will be reading six books.

CLASSICAL LITERATURE:  Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte.  In September, I read Jasper Fforde's The Eyre Affair which whetted my appetite to read this overlooked piece of classical literature. 

HISTORICAL  FICTION:  Russka by Edward Rutherfurd.  I am reading this as a precursor to Glenn Meade's The Romanov Conspiracy.  Russian history fascinates me; especially, the history of the Tsars. 

CONTEMPORARY LITERATURE:  The Romanov Conspiracy by Glenn Meade.  I stumbled upon this in the new book section of the public library.

SCIENCE FICTION/FANTASY:  The Initiate Brother by Sean Russell.  This was recommended to me by a Canadian friend.  I am really looking forward to it because it combines fantasy with Asian themes!

MYSTERY:  The Murder at the Vicarage by Dame Agatha Christie.   In my early teens, I was a huge Agatha Christie fan, probably due to my facsination with Murder She Wrote.  The Murder at the Vicarage is the novel which introduces Miss Jane Marple.

REVIEW COPY:  The Fourth Fisherman by Joe Kissack.  This book was provided as a free, review copy from WaterBrook Press