Rose City Reader

Saturday, November 19, 2016

The 2017 European Reading Challenge is Available for Sign Ups Now!

The European Reading Challenge
January 1, 2017 to January 31, 2018

The 2017 European Reading Challenge is ready now! Find the challenge page with information and the sign up list in the bar above. Or click the picture or here.

Tour Europe through books. And have a chance to win a prize. Please join us for the Grand Tour!

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.

Thursday, November 17, 2016

Book Beginning: The River and the Sea

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.

TIE IN: The Friday 56 hosted by Freda's Voice is a natural tie in with this event and there is a lot of cross over, so many people combine the two. The idea is to post a teaser from page 56 of the book you are reading and share a link to your post. Find details and the Linky for your Friday 56 post on Freda’s Voice.

YOUR BOOK BEGINNING

MY BOOK BEGINNING

I lay back in bed recovering from knee surgery with my knee hooked up to a cooling pad. I leaned back on the pillows, Missy Higgins singing oon the player, and closed my eyes as the music carried me back to the beach of the Tasman Sea in Punakaiki, New Zealand . . .

The River and the Sea: A Story of Forgiveness by Julia Laughlin

When Julia Laughlin was 21, she was brutally raped, beaten, and tortured by a man she had known and trusted. Now, over 30 years later, she has published the story of that attack, the criminal trial of her assailant, and the enduring trauma in her life.

She wrote this book to share what she discovered about sexual violence, how it affects a person, and how to find a way to live with and heal from from trauma so that others whose lives has been marred by sexual violence might also find a way to heal.

Tuesday, November 15, 2016

Teaser Tuesday: Babe in the Woods

Never one to dote on my looks or femininity, I see myself now, rough around the edges and more at home in myself in the wild than packaged and polished back in the city. The soles of my feet are as tough as the soles of my moccasins.

Babe in the Woods: Building a Life One Log at a Time by Yvonne Wakefield. When she was 18, Wakerfield took the inheritance intended to pay for her college, bought 80 acres in the Oregon mountains, and built her own log cabin home.

Wakefield's new memoir looks at her "relationship with woodsy things" and how she built a life for herself after becoming an orphan at 14.

Teaser Tuesdays is hosted by MizB at Books and a Beat, where you can find the official rules for this weekly event.

Monday, November 14, 2016

Mailbox Monday: True Faith and Allegience

Alberto Gonzales spoke at a book signing event in Portland last week and I got a copy of his new book:

True Faith and Allegiance: A Story of Service and Sacrifice in War and Peace. Although he was a controversial figure as George W. Bush's Attorney General, his story of growing up in poverty in Texas, going to Harvard Law, and working his way to a seat on the Texas Supreme Court before joining the Bush administration is inspiring. I look forward to reading his story in his own words.

He was a thoughtful and articulate speaker and it was interesting to get his big picture view of our recent election.

What books came into your house last week?

Thanks for joining me for Mailbox Monday, a weekly "show & tell" blog event where participants share the books they acquired the week before. Visit the Mailbox Monday website to find links to all the participants' posts and read more about Books that Caught our Eye.

Mailbox Monday is graciously hosted by Leslie of Under My Apple Tree, Serena of Savvy Verse & Wit, and Vicki of I'd Rather Be at the Beach.

Thursday, November 10, 2016

Book Beginning: Babe in the Woods

THANKS FOR JOINING ME ON FRIDAYS FOR BOOK BEGINNING FUN!

On the lower berth of the maple bunk bed, my younger sister sobs in bursts and spurts.

Babe in the Woods: Building a Life One Log at a Time by Yvonne Wakefield. At age 14, Wakefield became an orphan. At age 18, she headed off to the Oregon mountains to singlehandedly build a log cabin on 80 acres, using her college money to buy the land.

Wakefield's new memoir, which includes her original artwork, is the first of three volumes about her "relationship with woodsy things."

Tuesday, November 8, 2016

Teaser Tuesday: The Hot Climate of Promise and Grace

One there was a woman who, through strange and random circumstances, jost her job. She took it hard, as might be expected, for she was down on her luck anyway.

-- From "The Panhandler" one of 64 very short stories about women in The Hot Climate of Promise and Grace by Steven Nightingale, published by Counterpoint Press.

The stories in Nightingale's book really were collected, not made up out of his head. He provides a note before each one explaining where the story came from, usually something about who told it to him and the circumstances of the telling, or that it is a biography of a woman he met or loved. He packs 64 stories into 220 pages, so none are more than a few pages, some are only one page long, all celebrate the remarkable women Nightingale has encountered throughout his life.

Teaser Tuesdays is hosted by MizB at Books and a Beat, where you can find the official rules for this weekly event.

Monday, November 7, 2016

Mailbox Monday: Al Capone

A new biography showed up in my mailbox last week. What books came into your house?

Al Capone: His Life, Legacy, and Legend by Deirdre Bair. Al Capone's story in Boardwalk Empire was riveting. It made me want to learn more about America's legendary gangster. I'm looking forward to this brand-new biography from Deirdre Bair, who won the National Book Award for her biography of Samuel Becket.

Thursday, November 3, 2016

Book Beginning: The Hot Climate of Promise and Grace

THANKS FOR JOINING ME ON FRIDAYS FOR BOOK BEGINNING FUN!

Once upon a time there was a cat-burglar who worked assiduously to improve her technique of robbing houses and apartments.

-- From "The Cat Giver," the first story in The Hot Climate of Promise and Grace by Steven Nightingale. This is a new collection of 64 very short stories published by Counterpoint Press.

Tuesday, November 1, 2016

Teaser Tuesday: Fill the Sky

She thought back to the cold, the water, and tried to remember what had happened. An image began to poke its way through the cotton balls clogging her brain.

Fill the Sky by Katherine Sherbrooke. Three friends travel to Ecuador so one can seek cancer treatment from traditional healers. Their friendship is tested and each faces her own demons, in this sophisticated debut novel that is already getting a lot of attention.

Teaser Tuesdays is hosted by MizB at Books and a Beat, where you can find the official rules for this weekly event.

Monday, October 31, 2016

Mailbox Monday: Babe in the Woods by Yvonne Wakefield

What books came into your house last week? One fun new book arrived in my mailbox:

Babe in the Woods: Building a Life One Log at a Time by Yvonne Wakefield. This new memoir kicks off an upcoming trilogy, starting here with the story of how Wakefield build a log cabin be herself, for herself when she was 18.

PUBLISHER'S DESCRIPTION

At age eighteen, in 1974, Yvonne sets out to build a home from trees on eighty acres she’s bought on an Oregon mountainside. Log by log she creates a cabin and heals from an orphaned past, finding a new family in the forest and with people in a valley named John Day. This true story of one woman’s survival in the wilderness puts an honest and gritty face on the fantasy of living alone in the forest. Readers of My Side of the Mountain and Wild—and fans of Pilgrim at Tinker Creek and Walden alike—will eagerly follow along on the journey through this candid, revealing account. Babe in the Woods includes original artwork and ledgers, further authenticating the construction of this three-story log cabin built by hand from trees on land Yvonne still owns today. It is the first in a three-book series about her relationship with woodsy things in a place of risk and isolation but also peace, quiet beauty, and repose.

Thursday, October 27, 2016

Book Beginning: Fill the Sky by Katherine Sherbrooke

THANKS FOR JOINING ME ON FRIDAYS FOR BOOK BEGINNING FUN!

Tess hung up the phone and fought against an overwhelming sense of powerlessness. She wasn't willing to accept her inability to help, to do something.

Fill the Sky by Katherine Sherbrooke. Tess is in turmoil because her friend is diagnosed with cancer and wants to go to Ecuador to seek treatment from traditional healers.

Fill the Sky came out last week and has received a great deal of attention.

Tuesday, October 25, 2016

Teaser Tuesday: City of Weird

They're at the bottom, inspecting Aisha's body. They're definitely not human.

-- from "Alder Underground" by Jonah Barrett in City of Weird: 30 Otherworldly Portland Tales, Edited by Gigi Little, published by Forest Avenue Press.

Set in Portland, Oregon, the 30 stories in City of Weird explores the dark, scary, funny side of America's favorite eccentric city. So of course there has to be a zombie story!

Teaser Tuesdays is hosted by MizB at Books and a Beat, where you can find the official rules for this weekly event.

Monday, October 24, 2016

Mailbox Monday: Fill the Sky by Katherine Sherbrooke

What books came into your house last week? I got a new novel that looks terrific!

Fill the Sky by Katherine Sherbrooke. It's the story of three women who travel to Ecuador, hoping to find cancer treatment for one, but all must face deep truths about themselves and their friendship. It has Book Club writ large all over it.

Fill the Sky releases this week, on October 20, and has already generated a lot of buzz from the likes of Anita Shreve and others.

Thursday, October 20, 2016

Book Beginning: City of Weird

THANKS FOR JOINING ME ON FRIDAYS FOR BOOK BEGINNING FUN!

There was this one time I sold my soul to the devil.

-- from the Editor's Foreword to City of Weird: 30 Otherworldly Portland Tales, Edited by Gigi Little, published by Forest Avenue Press.

City of Weird is a collection of 30 imaginative stories honoring Portland's dark, creepy, funny, weirdness, from the gothic to the sublime. Perfect for this cold and drippy Halloween season!

Monday, October 17, 2016

Mailbox Monday

What books came into your house last week? Three fun new releases came to my house:

City of Weird: 30 Otherworldly Portland Tales, Edited by Gigi Little, published by Forest Avenue Press. Perfect for this Halloween season!

The Hot Climate of Promise and Grace by Steven Nightingale. A collection of 64 very short stories published by Counterpoint Press.

Through a Green Lens: Fifty Years of Writing for Nature by Robert Michael Pyle, published by OSU Press.

Thursday, October 13, 2016

Book Beginning: Bloody Marys: Sanguine Solutions for a Slew of Situations by Judy Bennett

THANKS FOR JOINING ME ON FRIDAYS FOR BOOK BEGINNING FUN!

After a couple Bloody Marys, you're almost cute.

-- Bloody Marys: Sanguine Solutions for a Slew of Situations by Judy Bennett. This is a very funny book, filled with reminiscences, girlfriendly advice, and recipes for every kind of Bloody Mary you can think of. It's a lot of fun.

Tuesday, October 11, 2016

Teaser Tuesday: The Drake Equation by Bart King

And at that moment the school shook again. Suddenly, I found myself on the floor as a series of groans and crashes came from up and down the hallway.

The Drake Equation by Bart King, author of the wildly popular nonfiction book, The Big Book of Boy Stuff.

The Drake Equation is King's first novel. With a middle school audience in mind, it's a funny science fiction adventure about Noah Grow, who is drawn into galactic intrigue when he finds a mysterious disc while out pursuing his favorite hobby -- birdwatching.

Teaser Tuesdays is hosted by MizB at Books and a Beat, where you can find the official rules for this weekly event.

Monday, October 10, 2016

Mailbox Monday

What books came into your house last week? I got a memoir and a mystery:

A Monk Swimming by Malachy McCourt. This could bookend his brother Frank's memoir, Angela's Ashes.

A Banquet of Consequences, by Elizabeth George. This is her 19th Inspector Lynley novel. I've only read the first two and have many more on my TBR shelf, but wonder if I'll get to them all.

Thursday, October 6, 2016

Book Beginning: The Drake Equation by Bart King

THANKS FOR JOINING ME ON FRIDAYS FOR BOOK BEGINNING FUN!

Imagine it's the middle of the night.
And you're way out in the wilderness.

The Drake Equation by Bart King, author of the wildly popular nonfiction book, The Big Book of Boy Stuff.

The Drake Equation is a science fiction adventure story for middle schoolers about a young birdwatcher drawn into galactic intrigue when he finds a mysterious disc while out searching for a wood duck.

Wednesday, October 5, 2016

Book Review: A Week in Yellowstone's Thorofare

A Week in Yellowstone's Thorofare: A Journey Through the Remotest Place by Michael J. Yochim

In 2014, Yochim and two friends spent a week exploring the Thorofare, a remote region in Yellowstone National Park. That expedition, undertaken mostly by canoe because Yochim was in the early stages of ALS, became the backbone of his book. He also draws on the first-person accounts of the rangers who patrol the area, historical documents, and his earlier personal experiences working in Yellowstone and Yosemite.

Yochim argues for the need to preserve "wildness" in the wilderness and buttresses his argument by giving readers a glimpse into one of the Lower 48’s most remote, still wild areas. A Week in Yellowstone's Thorofare is a good choice for celebrating 100 years of our National Parks, learning more about Yellowstone in particular, or thinking more deeply about the importance of wilderness and wildness in nature.

There is no question that Yochim’s medical condition, which he addresses frankly, adds poignancy and melancholy to the story. He shares a part of the country he loves with readers who will probably never see it for themselves, knowing he will never see it again.

NOTES

A Week in Yellowstone's Thorofare is published by OSU Press.

OTHER REVIEWS

Forward Reviews

National Parks Traveler

Tuesday, October 4, 2016

Teaser Tuesday: The Honor Was Mine by Elizabeth Heaney

It occurred to to me that few civilians knew what it might be like to manage the intricacies of a marriage and a family while on their own for a year. These spouses weren't simply separated; they were separated while one of them faced life-threatening situations, every day, far across the world.

The Honor Was Mine: A Look Inside the Struggle of Military Veterans by Elizabeth Heaney. Heaney left her private therapy practice to work with returning war vets and their families.

Her new book, The Honor Was Mine, tells the story of her experience and gives voice to their stories.

Teaser Tuesdays is hosted by MizB at Books and a Beat, where you can find the official rules for this weekly event.

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