While many people around the world will be out and about celebrating the New Year with spirited whoops of mirth and laughter and glasses at the ready for toasting, I will be at home--far away from careening crowds, celebrating the event with one of many books that I seldom seem to find the time to read. Here are just a few titles from the pile I will be choosing from, come Friday night. Perhaps you'll find one of interest and start your own tradition of Reading in the New Year.
If Big Stone Gap means anything to you, you'll be happy to know that Adriana Trigiani has begun another family saga--this time centering around the Roncalli and Angelini families. Filled with Trigiani's signature hilarity and endearing family dynamics, the first installment in the new trilogy is Very Valentine.
You don't have to be a birdbrain to enjoy Alex & Me, the true account of an amazing parrot and a heartwarming relationship between bird and scientist. Written by Irene Pepperberg, this bestselling book just may change the way you think about animal intelligence.
Writing about Love is a Four-Letter Word, a collection of breakups and broken hearts edited by Michael Taeckens, one reviewer has this to say, "These dispatches from the deep, dark depths of romantic doom will make you cringe, laugh, wince, sigh, laugh again and nod along." This handful of bestselling authors baring their souls and sharing their own tales of love's woes may be just the thing to make you feel better about not having someone to kiss when the ball drops!
With the tragedy of Hurricane Katrina deep in the recesses of our memories, Tom Piazza brings the importance of reviving New Orleans back to the front seat of our minds with Why New Orleans Matters. Both heartwrenching and hilarious, the author asks the reader to consider the spirit, grace and soul of this resilient city.
New York Times bestselling author Jon Katz has written yet another winning tale about Izzy, a rescued Border Collie and resident of Bedlam Farm. In Izzy & Lenore, you'll meet two dogs who bring comfort and companionship to people who need it the most. Izzy and Lenore's boundless capacity for love will steal your heart and their real life jobs as trained hospice volunteers can only open your eyes to the ways in which animals can make a huge and lasting difference in our lives.
A graduate of Yale and Oxford, author Charles Finch made his writing debut in the Charles Lenox series with A Beautiful Blue Death, a book which was nominated for an Agatha Award. The ongoing detective work of this mid-Victorian sleuth continues to intrigue readers in The September Society. The case begins in the middle of the night, with Lady Annabelle Payson insisting on seeing Lenox. Her son George at Oxford has disappeared in alarming circumstances.
The health of the planet is literally within our power to alter--whether for better or for worse.
The World without Us by Alan Weisman adds a bit of fiction to science as it depicts the spectacle of humanity's impact on the planet Earth in language and scenario that will rattle the reader to the core. Hang onto your seat for a bumpy, yet strangely optimistic ride on the road to humankind's disappearance from the earth.
And on that note, this busy reader wishes everyone a most happy and book-filled New Year!
If Big Stone Gap means anything to you, you'll be happy to know that Adriana Trigiani has begun another family saga--this time centering around the Roncalli and Angelini families. Filled with Trigiani's signature hilarity and endearing family dynamics, the first installment in the new trilogy is Very Valentine.
You don't have to be a birdbrain to enjoy Alex & Me, the true account of an amazing parrot and a heartwarming relationship between bird and scientist. Written by Irene Pepperberg, this bestselling book just may change the way you think about animal intelligence.
Writing about Love is a Four-Letter Word, a collection of breakups and broken hearts edited by Michael Taeckens, one reviewer has this to say, "These dispatches from the deep, dark depths of romantic doom will make you cringe, laugh, wince, sigh, laugh again and nod along." This handful of bestselling authors baring their souls and sharing their own tales of love's woes may be just the thing to make you feel better about not having someone to kiss when the ball drops!
With the tragedy of Hurricane Katrina deep in the recesses of our memories, Tom Piazza brings the importance of reviving New Orleans back to the front seat of our minds with Why New Orleans Matters. Both heartwrenching and hilarious, the author asks the reader to consider the spirit, grace and soul of this resilient city.
New York Times bestselling author Jon Katz has written yet another winning tale about Izzy, a rescued Border Collie and resident of Bedlam Farm. In Izzy & Lenore, you'll meet two dogs who bring comfort and companionship to people who need it the most. Izzy and Lenore's boundless capacity for love will steal your heart and their real life jobs as trained hospice volunteers can only open your eyes to the ways in which animals can make a huge and lasting difference in our lives.
A graduate of Yale and Oxford, author Charles Finch made his writing debut in the Charles Lenox series with A Beautiful Blue Death, a book which was nominated for an Agatha Award. The ongoing detective work of this mid-Victorian sleuth continues to intrigue readers in The September Society. The case begins in the middle of the night, with Lady Annabelle Payson insisting on seeing Lenox. Her son George at Oxford has disappeared in alarming circumstances.
The health of the planet is literally within our power to alter--whether for better or for worse.
The World without Us by Alan Weisman adds a bit of fiction to science as it depicts the spectacle of humanity's impact on the planet Earth in language and scenario that will rattle the reader to the core. Hang onto your seat for a bumpy, yet strangely optimistic ride on the road to humankind's disappearance from the earth.
And on that note, this busy reader wishes everyone a most happy and book-filled New Year!
