Books Distilled » Archive
Book Review: The Peach Keeper
Happy Memorial Day! I was a little ahead on my reading and had another post planned for today. But then this week I started The Peach Keeper, by Sarah Addison Allen, and I read it in two days. I decided it is the perfect beach book, so I’m reviewing it today in honor of the unofficial kickoff to summer! The Peach Keeper is the story of a small town in North Carolina, Walls of Water. Willa … Read entire article »
Filed under: Contemporary Literature
Posts Distilled
Hope you’re all having a relaxing long weekend! Did anyone get to the beach? A peek into the awesome posts I’ve been reading this week … The Modern-Day Woman: How Entrepreneurship Is Saving Us From Ourselves. Guest post by Ash Ambrige of The Middle Finger Project, over at Rowdy Kittens. My dear friend Caroline (of 5 Books I Can’t Live Without fame!) writes about finding meaning in challenging relationships at A Wish Come Clear. She just posted a … Read entire article »
Filed under: Posts Distilled
Author Interview: Da Chen
Welcome my first author interviewee, Da Chen! As I’ve mentioned on numerous occasions (have you been paying attention?), Da is my professor this semester through Fairfield University’s MFA program. His best advice to me so far? “Show me the money!” He wrote that in my second set of comments because I had been spending too much time setting up conflict and not enough time letting the characters hash it out. Da is a very easy person to … Read entire article »
Filed under: Author Interviews
Book Review: Brothers
As promised in an earlier post, today I’m reviewing Da Chen‘s novel Brothers. Da is my professor this semester through Fairfield University’s MFA program. I have been so privileged to work with him on my own novel over the past few months. Exciting news for you: Da was kind enough to allow me to interview him last week! I’ll post his insightful thoughts on the writing process, favorite writers, and a synopsis of his new … Read entire article »
Filed under: Contemporary Literature
Exciting Announcement! And Posts Distilled
Exciting Announcement! Books Distilled has been chosen as a featured blog for TLC Book Tours, a virtual book tour website. Authors utilize TLC when they are publicizing a new book, and the book “tours” across several blogs over the course of a month or two. The author is also available to the blogger for interviews and Q&As. I’m thrilled to be working with TLC. I’ll be reviewing Wanderlust, a travel memoir by Elisabeth Eaves, … Read entire article »
Filed under: Posts Distilled
Books into Movies: Water for Elephants
I finally got out to the movie theater! As a continuation of my love for elephants mentioned in my Monday review of the book The White Bone, here’s my analysis of the movie Water for Elephants, starring Robert Pattinson and Reese Witherspoon, based on the novel by Sara Gruen. I enjoyed the movie, but I loved the book. That’s a pretty typical reaction for me of great books that are made into movies–which is better than … Read entire article »
Filed under: Books into Movies
5 Books I Can’t Live Without: Caroline McGraw
Happy Wednesday, everyone! Welcome my second guest poster, Caroline McGraw. Caroline and I have been friends and writing partners since college, when we would meet for coffee to edit each other’s English papers. We’ve continued the trend by exchanging drafts of books we’re writing. I’m thrilled to welcome her to Books Distilled to share the five books she can’t live without! 1. Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte. You may have been forced to read this too … Read entire article »
Filed under: Guest Posts: Books I Can't Live Without
Book Review: The White Bone
If you know me well, you know that I really love elephants. When I lived in DC I loved the fact that I could go over to the National Zoo and see the elephants whenever I wanted! For free! Sadly, no other city I’ve lived in has had such a great perk. (Now I have to rely on the San Diego Zoo’s Elephant Cam.) Recently I was reading on Barbara Kingsolver’s website (she’s one of my … Read entire article »
Filed under: Contemporary Literature
Lessons Learned: Love in the Time of Cholera
I have had the extreme privilege of studying this semester with Da Chen, writer of the memoirs Colors of the Mountain and Sounds of the River, and of the novel Brothers (review coming soon!) When we were assembling my reading list for the semester, he strongly recommended that I add Gabriel Garcia Marquez’s Love in the Time of Cholera. His exact words were: “I think it is the perfect novel.” … Read entire article »
Filed under: Lessons Learned
Strategies to Glean More from Stories You Love
Aside from putting into practice all those reading strategies you learned in high school (noticing themes; classifying conflicts according to the man vs. nature, man vs. himself paradigms), how can you glean more from all that time you put into reading? Or simply get more out of reading so you’ll actually spend more time doing it? Here are some methods that work for me. 1. Make notes in the margins. I read a lot and cannot … Read entire article »
Filed under: Thoughts on Literature
About Me
Ever stand in the bookstore or library, gazing around blankly, overwhelmed by choices, jealous of the other purposeful browsers? This blog is for you.
I read. A lot.
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