Leslie's Bookcase

celebrating books & the literary lifestyle

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After seeing The Killers at Lollapalooza!

In 2005, I listened to “Mr. Brightside” from the Hot Fuss  album all the way to my sister’s law school graduation, about a 3 hour drive! This was the beginning of my – maybe obsessive – relationship with The Killers.

But my (perceived) personal relationship with them began when I happened across the recording of their live performance, The Killers: Live from Royal Albert Hall, on Palladia. This, to me, is the best concert ever, featuring many songs from Sam’s Town. We had it on DVR at the time and I watched it so many times I developed a close relationship with all these songs and with Brandon Flowers. He is so dynamic and beautiful to watch, and the songs are magical to me.

“The stars are blazing like rebel diamonds cut out of the sun
When you read my mind” – from “Read My Mind”

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What do people REALLY ask Google?

I stepped away from my summer reading list to read (quickly!!) some non-fiction: Everybody Lies: Big Data, New Data, and What the Internet Can Tell Us About Who We Really Are.

The author, Seth Stephens-Davidowitz, spent several years analyzing Google data.

What is Google data? It is that phrase or question you type into the search bar in the privacy of your own computer or device.

Would you tell people everything you ask google? Probably not. And thus the appeal of this book (to me anyway). I wanted to know what people are asking Google!! Stephens-Davidowitz takes it further, of course, to explain how this data can be used.

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Win a book from my summer reading list!

We’re halfway through summer, and I’m about halfway through my summer reading list. That means it’s time for a giveaway!!

One lucky winner of my raffle will be able to choose ANY BOOK from my summer reading list, and I will ship it directly to the winner (continental U.S. only).

HOW TO ENTER:

  1. Peruse my summer reading list at this link or below. Note that I have added my own reviews on several of the books already.
  2. Choose one that you are most excited to read.
  3. Complete the steps below in my Rafflecopter giveaway.

I will contact the winner to confirm which book he or she would like.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

 

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A thriller to read before Aug. 21

The latest selection from my summer reading list  is engrossing, informational, and timely; you’ll want to read this before August 21.

He Said/She Said is a psychological thriller set around a complete solar eclipse and characters who chase this phenomenon.

In 1999, Kit and Laura attend the eclipse festival in Cornwall, England. After they behold this rare and beautiful event, Laura witnesses a crime that has lasting implications on their lives and relationship.

The story models the five stages of an eclipse. As usual in modern thrillers (at least the ones I have read), it is told with alternating points of view and chopped-up time frames. This format has become the norm, I suppose, because it usually works to keep the pages turning.

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New TV show about a young Shakespeare – Will

I was “accidentally” eavesdropping on a conversation the other day – it looked like a first date and I just couldn’t help myself because I was well within earshot! Well thank goodness because that’s how I heard of this new show on TNT, Will, about a young Shakespeare.

The girl said she and her roommates or friends were getting together to watch it later that evening (this was Monday – it airs on Monday nights on TNT and is also “On Demand” if you have Comcast.)

Oh how I remember those fun days when I would watch my shows with friends! But now I prefer everyone to be in bed before I even start my show, so I can enjoy the TV to myself in the dark – ha!!

But I am soooo thankful to this girl for turning me on to this show which I checked out last night.

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Magpie Murders – so much fun!

I am thrilled (pun intended) to give the latest recommendation from my summer reading list: 

Magpie Murders!

Billed as a mystery/thriller especially for fans of Agatha Christie books, this book shines because of its clever use of intertextuality (don’t be scared of that word – instead just click on that word to read my previous post on this literary technique!). It is a book within a book.

For the record, I have never read anything by Agatha Christie, and I still loved this “tribute” to classic British crime novels.

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Hunger: A memoir of a body

Because Roxane Gay writes with such raw honesty in Hunger: A Memoir of (My) Body it will be difficult for me to write a blog post in response. The story was so powerful and HERS that it is daunting to attempt to reflect upon it. But because I loved the book and want other people to read it (and I do have a book blog – ha!!!) I will give it a shot.

Roxane Gay, also the author of bestselling  Bad Feminist: Essays, is fat, very fat. She uses this word – “fat” – about herself over and over.

“When I use the world I am not insulting myself. I am describing myself.”

Much of her story is about living as a fat person in this world, including the embarrassment, the despair, the hopelessness.

But her memoir is also about WHY she is fat.

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Evelyn Hugo and her seven husbands

Evelyn Hugo came from nothing and climbs to the top of her profession in old Hollywood. In The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo, she tells her life story to one specific journalist handpicked for a reason that doesn’t become clear until the end.

This book and especially the character of Evelyn Hugo were so engrossing I sometimes forgot she was a fictional character. I felt like she was really sitting there telling me her life story of how and why she married seven times, which turned out to be different from the reasons I expected!

Hanging on every word of this woman who is characterized as a cross between Marilyn Monroe and Elizabeth Taylor, I also enjoyed the snippets from tabloids scattered throughout the novel that referred to the “truth” of the situations she is revealing.

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New books to read this summer!

After reading through publisher notes, sample chapters, and entire books (books that delayed me from writing this post because I couldn’t put them down!!), I am excited to present my summer reading list.

This eclectic list includes several thrillers, some environmental dystopia, a drama about love in Hollywood, new WWII fiction, long-lost stories of F. Scott Fitzgerald, and more. I have covered all my reading personalities and thus included something for everyone. I will update this post with links as I read these books and add my own reviews.

You can click on the titles or pictures for more information or to buy the book from Amazon. Happy summer reading!

 

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How to make your own Bloomsday pub crawl

Today – June 16 – all over the world and especially in Dublin, fans of literature are celebrating Bloomsday, the day on which the masterpiece  James Joyce’s Ulysses is set. Since I did my thesis work on the pubs in Ulysses  I think this day should be celebrated with a pub crawl!

(If you want to know more about Bloomsday and why it deserves a celebration, first read my post on reading Ulysses and celebrating Bloomsday.)

If you, like me, happen to live where no one else (that you know of!) is celebrating Bloomsday, it is entirely possible to pay tribute to the pubs of 1904 Dublin in your own city, assuming you have a decent variety of pubs and gathering places from which to choose.

As Leopold Bloom has shown us, it is even possible to stay sober during this adventure if you so choose!

Here’s your itinerary to celebrate Bloomsday (exact timing is optional):

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