The Summer Prince

I used to be a die-hard read-to-the-end reader. Maybe it was Puritan work ethic from growing up in New England; maybe it was optimism; maybe I had too much time on my hands? Over the years as a bookseller, my willingness to put a book down developed to what I imagine as near the decisiveness editors and agents must have. Unless someone I know and trust has recommended something, if a book doesn't grab me right away, I often put it down and move right on the the next in my overflowing to-read pile.
When I picked up The Summer Prince by Alaya Dawn Johnson and read the first page, for some reason I wasn't hooked. Carnivale and an execution? Nah. I pushed it aside. But the next morning, the book called to me from my discard pile. I tried again. After several chapters, I came up for air--briefly-- then dove right back in.
This unique and fascinating teen novel is like Margaret Atwood with a samba beat. Once I let the language and the future-foreignness absorb me, I was completely hooked.
Wakas are the young people and grandes are the mature ruling class of Palmares Tres, a tenuous paradise city built of interconnected glass bubbles, floating on the ocean and ruled by a matriarchy of Aunties and the Queen-- a government that is cyclically blood-thirsty, requiring the sacrifice of a chosen Summer King every five years to sanctify the reign of the Queen.
June is an aspiring artist and the stepdaughter of one of the Aunties. June and her best friend, Gil, a dancer, are prone to large gestures and devotion to Art. When Enki, a dancer who came up from the lower class in the verde, the bottom level of the pyramid and society, is chosen as the Summer King, both June and Gil are attracted to Enki's charisma, elegance, power, and message. What could have been a traditional love triangle (albeit with one couple a same-sex couple) becomes a much more complicated dance when not just sex but art causes passions to flame.
Over the whole book lies the knowledge of Enki's impending sacrifice.
Suspense, drama, love, steamy sensuality, justice, art-- to think I might have missed all that on a snap judgment! I'm so glad I picked this back up. Let me be the one to tell you--give The Summer Prince at least a chapter. And if you're not into it by then, just set it aside and wait for a day you're feeling adventurous and willing to go out on a reading limb. It's strange and satisfying, fresh and fascinating.

Love Water Memory by Jennie Shortridge

I get a huge kick out of reading advance reader copies from publishers before a book is published, but there's something even more exciting: reading a manuscript from an author I love before the publisher even puts the galleys out.
In 2012, I had the honor and privilege of reading the manuscript for Love Water Memory by Jennie Shortridge. The novel comes out April 2, 2013 from Gallery Books in a beautiful hardcover edition. I can't wait for others to catch on to this delight!
This is the rare novel that is thoroughly loving and romantic, sweet without being sappy.
Lucie is discovered knee-deep in San Francisco Bay. Just weeks before her wedding and her 40th birthday, something traumatic happened, and she lost her memory. Now her fiance Grady reclaims her, but their relationship is full of tension as they try to protect each other, putting their deep love at risk with their cautiousness.
Truths in the story tease out beautifully-- with suspense, care, and insight. The reader's gentle discovery and characters' revelations make this a book that lingers in the heart.
This is my favorite novel by Jennie Shortridge yet-- a bold statement from me, not only because I've loved her others so but also because I usually have a hard time picking favorites. But the uplift of hope and emotional suspense filling this novel make it a stand-out even among well-loved titles.

Music that I would recommend with this novel: soulful, romantic, atmospheric female vocalists like Etta James, Carla Bruni, Jolie Holland.

The Double Game by Dan Fesperman

Here's another fantastic read that I pulled from my pile!
In itself, it is a fun and satisfying middle-aged-man Cloak & Dagger story, but the layers of spy fiction fan geekiness push it over the top into the CAN'T MISS THIS category for fans who just can't get enough of Le Carre, Furst, Fleming et al.
Bill Cage, a 53-year-old former international journalist, current reluctant PR hack, divorce, disappointing dad, and beloved only son of former State Department employee Warfield Cage, gets the chance to live out the plots of his favorite spy novels. But when real danger strikes and he realizes how much he has to lose, is playing the game still worth it?
A mysterious note referencing favorites in the spy genre kicks it all off. Soon Bill is leaving Georgetown to revisit Cold War sites from his childhood. There are book codes, clues leading through deliciously old-world bookshops, microfilms from the KGB, and tons of references to spycraft's golden era.
Great drama, great character, and also great that even though there are some very thrilling scenes, some of the major cruxes of the story have wonderful psychological depth.
Watch for Litzi, a competent, smart femme who doesn't necessarily need to be fatale to be completely magnetic.
Perhaps best of all is the full bibliography at the end. I made a two-page wish list in my reading journal just from that.
The drink of this book: whiskey, neat. But also vodka, slivovitz, red wine...

I think readers who enjoy this might also try Pavel & I by Dan Vyleta (a spy thriller set in post-WWII Berlin, with loads of twists and turns), Restless by William Boyd (a 1970s mother-daughter story in London intertwined with mom's shenanigans as a spy in WWII) and-- a bit more of a stretch, but there's something about the deep reading, the family ties, and the layers of fiction-- The Tragedy of Arthur by Arthur Phillips (a contemporary drama about a son, his conman father, and the undiscovered Shakespearean play that won't let them go). 

Snowdrops by A. D. Miller

I finally got around to reading this Man Booker 2011 shortlist title, and I'm so glad I did. I usually like Man Booker shortlisters, I often like a book set in Russia, several customers had read and recommended it, so I was a little worried about it living up to expectations. Phew-- what a relief that it completely sucked me in with its sharp writing, suspenseful storytelling, and completely evocative and atmospheric style.
This contemporary novel is told as Nick/Kolya's confession to his fiancee before their wedding. It chronicles a London lawyer's fourth and final expat year in the depraved but beautiful, captivating yet horrifying Wild Wild East of Moscow, where bribes are necessary for everything, who you know could make or break you, and people really might do the unthinkable.
Miller doles out pithy and clever descriptions as well as heartbreaking statements about midlife, ambition, and love. The emotion is powerful and fascinating.
From the beginning, we know that a corpse has been uncovered near Kolya's flat. ("Snowdrops" are, in addition to flowers, corpses that are discovered after the snow melts in Russia.) This lends a sense of suspense and lurking danger throughout the story.
But the story is not a murder mystery; it is a love story, a story of intrigue and manipulation, and a business cautionary tale.
I found this well-written and gripping, if rather bleak. Bundle up, pour yourself some cocoa with a shot of vodka, and hunker down for a read-in-one-sitting winter's indulgence.
For more about Snowdrops (and to find it at an indie bookstore near you), click here. 

Angelmaker by Nick Harkaway

Zany, quirky, and enigmatic-- a very fun and unusual adventure.
This novel reads like a combination of Neil Gaiman, Alan Kurzweil, and Gail Carriger.
Joe Spork, a clockmaker, is in his 30s-- a quiet, kind, concentrated type of man. He runs the old clock shop his grandfather Daniel started in London. Joe worries about paying his taxes on time and treating women with more respect than his loutish friend Billy. He tries very hard to distance himself from the legacy of his dad, Mathew, a gangster who ran the secret underworld Night Market.
Joe gets snared in intrigue when Billy introduces him to client Edie Bannister, an old woman with a bad-breathed, blind pug named Bastion (who gets interior monologues from time to time). Edit has Joe work on repair jobs, including a clockwork device that is part book-- and part world-changing mechanical beehive. This is the Angelmaker, aka Apprehension Machine.
The story goes back and forth between the present-day troubles Joe has with government types and creepy religious/craftsman fundamentalists and Edie's youth (her special agent training, heroic transgender-disguised rescue, bonus baby elephant...).
There is a lot of the bizarre in the plot, and I'm sure I missed some of the twists and turns, but I enjoyed the quirky characters an over-the-top adventure. Perhaps my favorites, aside from Edie's training days above the  steampunk codebreaking train the "Ada Lovelace", were the scenes with Mercer Cradle, lawyer extraordinaire, and the smart and sexy Polly. 

'Tis the Season!

Without my usual retail holiday work, the season has kind of snuck up on me this year. Luckily, the Random Acts of Reading blog gave me a gift-giving prompt this month.
Read how I responded to, "What book do you want to give this year? What book do you want to get?" here.
What book would you love to get this year? 

Random Acts of Reading guest post: backlist

I love the book blog prompts Erin at Random Acts of Reading gives us every month. For November, we got to think about older favorites for kids. No surprise that the other bloggers' contributions had me going, "Oooh! Oooh! Oooh! I knew she was a kindred spirit!"

See the whole fabulous list and sing a variation of that song from childhood: "Read new books, but read the oll-lld; Some are silver and the others GOLD."

The post is here. 

A page-turner: "12.21" by Dustin Thomason

Back in the 1990s, I studied Biology and read Michael Crichton medical thrillers for escapism... and I also met a very nice boy who had been friends with my best friend from childhood.
We all wound up in college together, and that nice boy and I took some pre-med requirements together. He went on to med school, but that wasn't all-- he also wrote a best-seller called The Rule of Four with another friend, Ian Caldwell. Yowzah! That's right, I can say I knew Dustin Thomason when.

This summer, Dusty's first solo book came out, and it's a terrific medical thriller with history, romance, and plenty of drama! 12.21 features a long-lost Mayan codex, a mysterious and devastating outbreak, and a race for a cure that kept me turning the pages. I'd write more, but I'm pretty tired from staying up late to read...

If you've been craving an edge-of-your-seat medical thriller, let me recommend 12.21 by Dustin Thomason-- a great book by a great guy. 

"Goodbye for Now" by Laurie Frankel

As an independent bookseller, I take great pride in introducing readers to books they might not have found by themselves. One of the challenges of handselling is coming up with a bookseller-to-customer-pitch that conveys exactly why I think this particular book will be the right fit for this particular reader in their current reading mood.

I’m thrilled to make reader matches for Laurie Frankel’s Goodbye for Now (on sale August 7th) because I think it’s just the kind of unexpected delight so many of my customers rely on indie booksellers to recommend. But because I love this book so much, I want it to find an audience beyond just the curious readers who come into my store. As much as I like to feel indispensable, it would feel even better to know I helped this book get the chance it deserves on bookshelves around the country.

Its gorgeous cover will definitely draw readers in, but I offer this little tutorial on “How to Handsell Goodbye for Now” in hopes that all my bookselling brothers and sisters will help a wide, receptive audience discover this wonderful novel. We all know how enthusiastic readers and word of mouth can push a book to the bestseller list! I think this has the indie-driven hit potential of The Art of Racing in the Rain by Garth Stein and Wild by Cheryl Strayed.

Here are some of the leading questions I might ask to determine whether a customer will love Goodbye for Now as much as I did:

“Are you interested in a story that sucks you in and feels like a light read but also has lots to ponder?” The writing and characters make the reading effortless, but the story has such depth that readers will want to linger.

“Did you like The Art of Racing in the Rain?” 
Because really, who didn’t? But, between us, a book about a dying dog, race cars, and a true love who dies of a brain tumor doesn’t sound like any easier a sell than a book about true love, start-ups, and ever-lasting life through technology, does it? They’re both great books! It’s all in how we set expectations and convey our enthusiasm.

“Are you in the mood for a contemporary novel with romance, a Seattle setting, and technology?” 
Our store is located near Microsoft, Google, Adobe, and many other tech companies. Frankel captures the start-up culture and programmer/user/sales dynamic so perfectly, many of our readers will connect through their life experience.

“Did you like Set This House in Order?” 
Matt Ruff’s Set This House in Order is one of Queen Anne Books’ backlist stars and one of our favorite book club recommendations. Like that novel, Goodbye for Now appeals to both men and women and uses technology in the plot to delve deeply into emotions.

“Can you imagine a book that reads kind of like a mix between John Irving and Mary Shelley/ William Gibson and Jodi Picoult, but has its own distinct heart and voice? Sound good? It is.” 
Goodbye For Now has the charm, quirk, and sad sweetness of The World According to Garp matched with the science-has-its-consequences drama of Frankenstein. Like Gibson’s novels, it convincingly ponders the impacts of technology in near future, and like Picoult’s, it raises ethical questions that pack a punch, all while giving you characters you don’t want to let go. How are those for mash-ups? Pretty darn amazing, I think.

To sum it all up, I’m very excited to sell Goodbye for Now, and I hope others are, too! 

Booksellers, publicists, reviewers, readers, bloggers: if you want to talk to me about it, let me know; it would be my pleasure. 



For your further Frankel edification:
Laurie Frankel's author site, complete with a hilarious book trailer. (Watch for fingerpuppets of Einstein talking about an Adam Sandler movie, Virginia Woolf going into the drink, and more.)
My recommendation of Goodbye for Now for Queen Anne Books.
My recommendation of Laurie's first novel, The Atlas of Love, for Queen Anne Books.

The shortlist for the 2011 PNBA Book Awards, which includes The Atlas of Love.

Treasure Island!!! Book club, here we come...

Just finished Treasure Island!!! by Sara Levine. Fast, fun, sly, and oddly and unexpectedly sweet. 
I get to lead discussion of it Saturday night at Book Mixer. Here's hoping we get a good crowd!!! 

Music pairings for this book might be songs by The Decembrists, The Pogues, and Regina Spektor. Other suggestions?

Drink pairing: definitely something with rum. Perhaps a custom cocktail called "The Dead Parrot" made with rum, nutmeg, ginger ale, and lime. Serve with a side of mac & cheese.

The Mirage by Matt Ruff

Matt Ruff, author of Set This House in Order and Bad Monkeys, has written another page-turning, mind-reeling masterpiece-- on sale February 7, 2012. 

Imagine a world where the United Arab States is threatened by Christian fundamentalist terrorists, a world where a few good Homeland Security Agents have to fight corruption and conspiracies to protect all they believe in, a world where evil and mass deception threaten everything. I predict this is the novel that everyone will be talking about in 2012. 

And it’s not just provocative, it’s a darn good read! With characters I cared about, a plot that doesn’t let up, and a premise that still has me thinking, The Mirage exceeded my expectations. Now I just can’t wait for the paperback so I can recommend it to every book club.

Lucky me, Matt Ruff is doing an event at my bookstore on Tuesday February 28 at 6pm!! WOO HOO!

Also lucky me, my recommendation for The Mirage was chosen for the Indie Next list! Thanks, guys!

(Nancy, this one's for you... Can't wait to hear/read your take on it!)

Top Teen books of 2011

Here we go! I compiled a Top 10 list of books for teens for the store, but my personal list has a few differences...


I'm going to go ahead and use my commentary from the store lists when applicable, though.


TEGAN'S FAVORITE TEEN READS FROM 2011


Putting Makeup on Dead People by Jen Violi.  The title/subject may seem offputting, but it's one of the most beautiful (and funny) books about grief I've read. Violi nailed it.


Legend by Marie Lu. Dystopian thrills abound as June, the government's prodigy, is pitted against Day, its Enemy #1.


Beauty Queens by Libba Bray. A planeful of teen pageant contestants gets stranded on a desert island-- "Miss Congeniality" crossed with Lord of the Flies, with a healthy dose of fierce feminism.


Divergent by Veronica Roth. In this page-turner dystopian thriller set in Chicago of the future, the city is divided into five factions, with each valuing one trait above all else. Beatrice's choice to give up the gentleness of Abnegation for the power of Dauntless is riveting, and the romance made my heart race, too.


To Timbuktu by Casey Scieszka and Steven Weinberg. I'm always on the lookout for great non-fiction for teens, and this memoir (written and drawn by recent college grads) about travelling the world is fantastic: inspiring and entertaining.


Words in the Dust by Trent Reedy. I still think about Zulaikha, the rural Afghan girl in this story. Hope and perseverance make this a rewarding read.


Imaginary Girls by Nova Ren Suma. The modern gothic atmosphere and mysterious characters make this contemporary story of two sisters so fascinating.


The Name of the Star by Maureen Johnson. Need a stay-up-late-then-sleep-with-the-lights on read? Jack the Ripper stalks the streets of modern London in this first of a series.


Hourglass by Myra McEntire. I thought I was done with any paranormal romance, but this was fresh and oh-so-readable. Think teens with super-powers instead of vampires/werewolves/zombies etc. More! More!


Enclave by Ann Aguirre.  A vivid post-apocalyptic world, a tougher than nails protagonist, and the battles for survival left me breathless. The surprise bonus? A character named Tegan! 


Blood Magic by Tessa Gratton. This was creepy and suspenseful, and I just couldn't stop reading, even though I wanted to shake the characters and force them to make better choices. It's my surprise compulsion title of the year.


Wherever You Go by Heather Davis. This heartfelt contemporary novel about a teen who has to grow up too fast to care for her little sister and her grandfather with Alzheimer's, all while dealing with grief from her boyfriend's death, is powerful, and thanks to some beyond-the-grave communication, wonderfully healing.


Finally, an adult book I'd recommend to teens, or to adults who are feeling in that escapist, easy-to-get-lost-in kind of mood: The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern. Atmospheric and engrossing, this is a grown-up Harry Potter fanatic kind of book, where magic feels real. The story, about two young magicians who are raised to fight a lifelong battle in an enchanted circus on behalf of their teachers, is really just an excuse for amazing images and flights of incredible imaginative fantasy. Don't worry about how it all works; if you're in the right frame of mind, just let yourself just get swept away. There's nothing to make this inappropriate for teens (except, perhaps, for the higher hardcover price of an adult title).

Working on my lists...

It's the time of year for Best of 2011 lists. And I'm hard at work on mine for the store. I won't have a chance to post here until 2012, but here's a teaser:
"'Miss Congeniality' crossed with Lord of the Flies, with a healthy dose of fierce feminism."
Any guesses which one that is?
While you eagerly await my list, I also offer up links to some other year-end lists:

• The New York Times Top 10 (also known as "you probably can't get this for Christmas" list):  http://www.nytimes.com/2011/12/11/books/10-best-books-of-2011.html
• WhatNotToRead.com's Top 10: http://whatnottoread.com/2011/12/08/what-not-to-reads-top-10-books-of-2011/ 
• Top Ten from Library Journal: http://reviews.libraryjournal.com/2011/11/best-of/top-10/best-books-2011-the-top-ten/
• 32 of 2011's best books, as compiled by the Seattle Times: http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/books/2016960581_bestbooks11.html (I love their system... I'm doing tens for the store lists, but you'll get the uncut FAVES lists here in the new year!)
• LA Public Library's top books for adults from 2011: http://www.lapl.org/LAPLreads/bookList.php?id=84
• LA Public Library's teen list: http://www.lapl.org/LAPLreads/bookList.php?id=83
• LA Public Library's kids list: http://www.lapl.org/LAPLreads/bookList.php?id=70 (picture books and chapter books)

Happy reading! Did anything just move to the top of your pile?

The Many Deaths of the Firefly Brothers

If you're a fan of "Miller's Crossing" and liked "The Brothers Bloom," you must read the latest Thomas Mullen novel, out recently in paperback.

The Many Deaths of the Firefly Brothers is a very entertaining 1930s gangster book with an alluring element of magical realism.

I picked this up on total impulse, despite my HUUUUUGGGGE pile of things I had to read, and I have zero regrets.

Carpe diem! I encourage you to read your next book just because... It's very liberating and satisfying, kind of like playing hooky to go do something really educational.

A Single Man by Christopher Isherwood

Saturday's Book Mixer discussion was fantastic. I loved A Single Man, and I loved hearing all the other readers' different interpretations of it. There was spirited but respectful disagreement on the ending, the character's intentions, and major plot points. Most of us loved it, some were not quite as infatuated, but I think we all came away with great appreciation for the novel and the participants in the discussion.

About three quarters of the way through the book, I went to my fantastic local, indie video store (shout out to Video Isle and Alex, who makes movie magic happen!) and rented the movie. Yowzah. It was a very different story, but I thought the atmosphere and questions raised were in keeping with the spirit of the book. How does one take a very internal novel and make an Oscar-winning movie from it? Yup, you may need to add some big drama, change who's had affairs and why, substitute two adorable dogs for a garage-ful or animals, and attach geniuses like Colin Firth and Julianne Moore to the project. I have to say THANK YOU TOM FORD-- the changes added even more to my thoughts about the novel, and we had that much more to talk about! We discussed for two hours and could have kept going.

I highly recommend A Single Man for book clubs. If you can make everyone watch the movie, do that, too.

Why so quiet?

Yes, it's been a while, but I blame my non-blogging behavior on my bad secret-keeping skills. This year I served on the Pacific Northwest Booksellers Association award committee, and while I was reading the oodles of books nominated, I didn't feel right blogging because I was afraid I'd let something slip about the award.

The awards are given in January, but I can breathe easier-- and blog!-- because the shortlist has been revealed. Phew-- now I can just direct you to our shortlist announcement and stop worrying.

I think I can also tell you that my write-ups were used for the committee comments for The Atlas of Love, Shell Games, and What We Are. I loved many other books on the list, but fellow committee members beat me to the recommendations on those. (There's also one I hated, but I'm trying to take a page out of Nancy Pearl's book and never put anything mean about a book in writing, so that title will stay my dirty little secret.)

Another reason I've been quiet on the blogging front is that book writing and agent-seeking have been on the front burner. Oh, and this little thing in retail we like to call The Christmas Season has also been taking some time.

Thank you for stopping by! I hope to make the blog worth bookmarking now that I'm over my secrecy anxieties.

SummerReadingJack

Last week, I asked my rising sixth-grader student if I could share the link to his summer reading blog, and he said yes. So for everyone who has been curious about what it's like to read "Where the Red Fern Grows" and "Uglies" in the summer before you're twelve, here's summerreadingjack!

Reading and discussing with Jack this summer has been a blast. He's been a reading dynamo, and he's also gotten some great writing in. I'm still impressed when I remember how quickly he cranked out a thank you letter to Grandpa as if he were the main character in "Where the Red Fern Grows." Mad skills!

We just started in on a third book, "The Red Pyramid" by Rick Riordan. This was Jack's choice, and I am so thrilled! I've been looking for an excuse to move the first of the Kane Chronicles to the top of my reading stack.

Reader Confession

I set the timer on our microwave so I don't read away the whole morning when I don't have to work until the afternoon. Today, while reading Matterhorn, I originally set it for 90 minutes. Then another 40 more... then another 40... and I still kept reading. I wasn't at all productive, but the Marines are in a hot zone!!! How can I leave them to go to work?

"Crossed Bones" aka "The Tenth Gift"

I just finished a swashbuckling romance (but not the Fabio-cover kind) lent to me by a kind customer. She picked it out of the piles at our galley giveaway and was very pleasantly surprised. It's by Jane Johnston, and the published title is The Tenth Gift I'm going to go on record: I prefer the piratical "Crossed Bones" as a title; the published title isn't explained until most of the way through the book, and it just kept reminding me of slimeball character Michael, the adulterous husband-of-her-best-friend who dumps contemporary heroine Julia. (He gives her an exquisite antique book as parting gift, but then, a-hole that he is, spends the rest of the book trying to get it back.)

The novel has two related narratives: Julia's life in London and Cornwall, and the life of Cat, a 17th century Cornish woman who is abducted by Salee pirates! They are connected through Cat's book/journal and their shared love of embroidery. The dual narrative kind of reminded me of "Julie & Julia" in that the contemporary character's story line was less compelling for much of the book than Cat's incredible journey. Things did get spiced up in today's world, though, and romance blossoms in both.

This was a fun and engaging novel that taught me more about the history of Cornwall, pirates, and the corsair culture. Fascinating and entertaining light fare!

"Bitter in the Mouth" by Monique Truong

I would not have read this novel if I hadn't been invited to a dinner with the author. (THANK YOU, Random House! I'm looking forward to it!) Why not? It's kind of a family saga; I don't usually think I like family sagas. (Although I really do like them if they're edgy enough, i.e. The Family Tree by Carole Cadwalladr, The Corrections by Jonathan Franzen, A Fraction of the Whole by Steve Toltz). It's also set in the South. I don't mean to offend, but for some reason, I also don't think I usually like novels set in the South. (Again, there are big exceptions: To Kill a Mockingbird and Special Topics in Calamity Physics, for example.) The third strike? The main character is a Yale grad. (Ha! Just kidding! Kind of...)

Despite those prejudices, I am so glad I am reading this! I had heard wonderful things about Truong's previous novel, The Book of Salt, so I knew I would be able to find something nice to say to her if I got to sit near her by the author dinner. Oh, will I ever!

The title refers to the fact that the narrator, Linda, has synesthesia that makes her taste words as she hears and speaks them. (This is quite different from the girl who can taste emotions in The Particular Sadness of Lemon Cake, but I do find myself wanting to read Bender's book just to think about these characters who are so affected by taste.) This element of the story is fascinating, but it is sometimes distracting as well-- during dialog, we read the words and the tastes they evoke to Linda. Example: "Did youcannedgreenbeans readpotatochips it?" I understand that the tastes are distracting and disorienting to Linda, but they're even more so to a reader. Yes, it helps us empathize with her sometimes-torment with the "incomings" (taste perceptions linked to words), but because the tastes are not really linked to the words themselves, I am starting to skip/skim the italicized words. And that bothers me a little, because Truong is such a good writer that I have to believe that every word is deliberate, and I should give every word its deserved attention. Like Linda, I have to anesthetize myself somewhat, and that bugs me sometimes.

But there's so much to savor in this book, too!

I love, love, love Linda's friendship with neighbor Kelly. Their letters to one another remind me of childhood correspondence that deepened friendships in my life. I also adore Linda's great uncle Baby Harper. He will be dancing in my mind long after this book is over!

I have about 50 more pages to go. I'm not rushing to finish it because I want to linger. It's that kind of novel. Ahhhh.

It will be on sale August 31. If it sounds good to you, please make your local independent bookseller extremely happy by pre-ordering a copy of Bitter in the Mouth by Monique Truong!