Mailbox Monday: Montana Treasures

Thanks for joining me for Mailbox Monday! MM was created by Marcia, who graciously hosted it for a long, long time, before turning it into a touring event. Mailbox Monday has now returned to its permanent home where you can link to your MM post.

I was in polar-cold Montana last week for work and found several books at the Friends of the Library shop in the Missoula Library. It is one of my favorites and I always stop there when I am in town.



The Lonely Polygamist by Brady Udall. This was very popular, but I have not read it yet.



Apple of My Eye by Helene Hanff. A memoir about Manhattan by the author of 84, Charring Cross Road, one of my favorites.



Flush: A Biography by Virginia Woolf. This is the novel-like biography of Elizabeth Barrett Browning's cocker spaniel.



Eleanor Roosevelt's Book of Common Sense Etiquette. How fabulous is this vintage treasure!

Book Beginning: Goodbye Crocodile

THANKS FOR JOINING ME ON FRIDAYS FOR BOOK BEGINNING FUN!

Please join me every Friday to share the first sentence (or so) of the book you are reading, along with your initial thoughts about the sentence, impressions of the book, or anything else the opener inspires. Please remember to include the title of the book and the author's name.

EARLY BIRDS & SLOWPOKES: This weekly post goes up Thursday evening for those who like to get their posts up and linked early on. But feel free to add a link all week.

FACEBOOK: Rose City Reader has a Facebook page where I post about new and favorite books, book events, and other bookish tidbits, as well as link to blog posts. I'd love a "Like" on the page! You can go to the page here to Like it. I am happy to Like you back if you have a blog or professional Facebook page, so please leave a comment with a link and I will find you.

TWITTER, ETC: If you are on Twitter, Google+, or other social media, please post using the hash tag #BookBeginnings. I try to follow all Book  Beginnings participants on whatever interweb sites you are on, so please let me know if I have missed any and I will catch up.

YOUR BOOK BEGINNING



MY BOOK BEGINNING

On my 12th birthday, my father came to my bed in the quiet of night.

-- from "The Late Train to Santa Fe," the first story in Goodbye Crocodile: Short Stories by Conor Patrick. Don't worry, it is not as creepy as the first sentence suggests!

The London Magazine published this collection of 12 short stories by an American author living in England.  The book is available in America in a Kindle edition or from the published in a paperback edition.

The London Magazine is the UK's oldest cultural journal -- first published in 1732! It features original poetry, short fiction, cultural reviews, and literary essays. Learn more about The London Magazine, including how to subscribe, at the magazine's website, facebook page, and twitter.

Challenge Wrap Up: 2014 European Reading Challenge -- COMPLETED!

The European Reading Challenge
January 1, 2014 to January 31, 2015

COMPLETED!

This is my wrap-up post.

TO ADD YOUR OWN WRAP UP POST, GO TO THIS PAGE 

TO POST A REVIEW, GO TO THIS PAGE

The gist: The idea is to read books by European authors or books set in European countries (no matter where the author comes from). The books can be anything – novels, short stories, memoirs, travel guides, cookbooks, biography, poetry, or any other genre. You can participate at different levels, but each book must be by a different author and set in a different country – it's supposed to be a tour.

I host this challenge, so I signed up at the highest level, the Five Star (Deluxe Entourage) level, to read at least five books by different European authors or books set in different European countries. I read a total of eight books, but I didn't review many of them. I was pretty busy starting my own law firm this year, so didn't have the time or attention to review many of the books I read. I barely had time to read them!

MY BOOKS

Kristin Lavransdatter by Sigrid Undset (Norway)

Nights of Rain and Stars by Maeve Binchy (Greece; reviewed here)

The Sharper Your Knife, the Less You Cry: Love, Laughter, and Tears in Paris at the World's Most Famous Cooking School by Kathleen Flinn (France; reviewed here)

Sinful Folk by Ned Hayes (United Kingdom; discussed here)

Pillar of Iron by Taylor Caldwell (Italy; Ancient Rome, really, but . . .)

Prague by Arthur Phillips (Hungary, despite its title)

The Book of Laughter and Forgetting by Milan Kundera (Czechoslovakia)

Nomad: From Islam to America: A Personal Journey Through the Clash of Civilizations by Ayaan Hirsi Ali (Holland)

Thank you, Veterans!

Teaser Tuesdays: Fallon's Orphans by Bill Kroger

Sarah, amazingly calm, jumped into action now, pulled the knife from the deputy's side, grabbed George by the arm and began to pull him from the area. "We must go now before the police come. Quick!"

Fallon's Orphans by Bill Kroger, is a new thriller set in Cairo, Istanbul, and other exotic locations. A ragtag band of skilled amateurs, or "orphans" to their leader Fallon MacEwan, rally to revenge the terrorist murder of MacEwan's girlfriend.  They get some help from an ancient religious sect sworn to oppose the terrorists.  Filled with international intrigue and contemporary world politics, this is a perfect read-in-a-weekend thriller for any reader looking for a new voice in a crowded genre.

Fallon's Orphans is also available in a Kindle edition.

Teaser Tuesdays is hosted by Should Be Reading, where you can find the official rules for this weekly event.