Meg's bookshelf: all en-US Thu, 09 Jan 2025 08:59:23 -0800 60 Meg's bookshelf: all 144 41 /images/layout/goodreads_logo_144.jpg Wool - Holston (Wool, #1) 12287209
Or you'll get what you wish for.]]> 56 Hugh Howey Meg 3 4.14 2012 Wool - Holston (Wool, #1)
author: Hugh Howey
name: Meg
average rating: 4.14
book published: 2012
rating: 3
read at: 2014/05/01
date added: 2025/01/09
shelves: fiction, scififantasybookclub, own
review:

]]> Mansfield Park 45032 488 Jane Austen Meg 0 3.86 1814 Mansfield Park
author: Jane Austen
name: Meg
average rating: 3.86
book published: 1814
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2024/11/27
shelves: fiction, books-i-recommend, unfinished
review:

]]> Digital Fortress 4219
Caught in an accelerating tempest of secrecy and lies, Susan Fletcher battles to save the agency she believes in. Betrayed on all sides, she finds herself fighting not only for her country but for her life, and in the end, for the life of the man she loves.

From the underground hallways of power to the skyscrapers of Tokyo to the towering cathedrals of Spain, a desperate race unfolds. It is a battle for survival--a crucial bid to destroy a creation of inconceivable genius...an impregnable code-writing formula that threatens to obliterate the post-cold war balance of power. Forever.]]> 370 Dan Brown 0593055063 Meg 3 fiction, own 3.17 1998 Digital Fortress
author: Dan Brown
name: Meg
average rating: 3.17
book published: 1998
rating: 3
read at:
date added: 2024/06/29
shelves: fiction, own
review:

]]> <![CDATA[Michael Turner's Soulfire: The Definitive Edition]]> 9627557
Your wait is finally over! Aspen is thrilled to bring you the most complete collection of Michael Turner's first-ever Aspen series, SOULFIRE, with this amazing SOULFIRE: DEFINITIVE EDITION TRADE PAPERBACK!

Michael Turner set the world ablaze when his SOULFIRE series made its debut in the spring of 2003. Still one of today's most popular independent comic book titles, this long awaited volume 1 collection contains it all! Take a look at what's inside...

The never before solicited Soulfire: Beginnings issues, the rare Soulfire Preview, issue #0, and issues #1 through #10, including the special recap story by Joe Benitez featured in Aspen Seasons: Winter. As well, this incredible TPB contains a huge section of original Soulfire designs, sketches, and script treatments, pin-ups from the Aspen Splash issues, along with a jam-packed complete Soulfire cover gallery and more seldom seen Soulfire goodies as only Michael Turner and Aspen could deliver! It's all here, including Michael Turner's very last illustrated Soulfire art. Combine that together, and you have 376 giant pages of everything that was Soulfire Volume 1. This is THE DEFINITIVE SOULFIRE collection and an absolute must for any Aspen, Soulfire, Michael Turner, or comic book fan, period.]]> 376 Michael Layne Turner 0982362862 Meg 0 4.01 2003 Michael Turner's Soulfire: The Definitive Edition
author: Michael Layne Turner
name: Meg
average rating: 4.01
book published: 2003
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2024/05/29
shelves: fantasy-books, graphic-novels, own, currently-reading
review:

]]> <![CDATA[Emily Wilde's Encyclopaedia of Faeries (Emily Wilde, #1)]]> 60657589
Cambridge professor Emily Wilde is good at many things: She is the foremost expert on the study of faeries. She is a genius scholar and a meticulous researcher who is writing the world's first encyclopaedia of faerie lore. But Emily Wilde is not good at people. She could never make small talk at a party--or even get invited to one. And she prefers the company of her books, her dog, and the Fair Folk.

So when she arrives in the hardscrabble village of Hrafnsvik, Emily has no intention of befriending the gruff townsfolk. Nor does she care to spend time with another new arrival: her dashing and insufferably handsome academic rival Wendell Bambleby, who manages to charm the townsfolk, get in the middle of Emily's research, and utterly confound and frustrate her.

But as Emily gets closer and closer to uncovering the secrets of the Hidden Ones--the most elusive of all faeries--lurking in the shadowy forest outside the town, she also finds herself on the trail of another mystery: Who is Wendell Bambleby, and what does he really want? To find the answer, she'll have to unlock the greatest mystery of all--her own heart.]]> 336 Heather Fawcett 059350013X Meg 4 fantasy-books, fiction, own 3.99 2023 Emily Wilde's Encyclopaedia of Faeries (Emily Wilde, #1)
author: Heather Fawcett
name: Meg
average rating: 3.99
book published: 2023
rating: 4
read at: 2024/05/28
date added: 2024/05/28
shelves: fantasy-books, fiction, own
review:

]]> <![CDATA[The Banned Bookshop of Maggie Banks]]> 60305888 I, Maggie Banks, solemnly swear to uphold the rules of Cobblestone Books.

If only, I, Maggie Banks, believed in following the rules.

When Maggie Banks arrives in Bell River to run her best friend's struggling bookstore, she expects to sell bestsellers to her small-town clientele. But running a bookstore in a town with a famously bookish history isn't easy. Bell River's literary society insists on keeping the bookstore stuck in the past, and Maggie is banned from selling anything written this century. So, when a series of mishaps suddenly tip the bookstore toward ruin, Maggie will have to get creative to keep the shop afloat.

And in Maggie's world, book rules are made to be broken.

To help save the store, Maggie starts an underground book club, running a series of events celebrating the books readers actually love. But keeping the club quiet, selling forbidden books, and dodging the literary society is nearly impossible. Especially when Maggie unearths a town secret that could upend everything.

Maggie will have to decide what's more important: the books that formed a small town's history, or the stories poised to change it all.]]> 336 Shauna Robinson Meg 0 to-read 3.74 2022 The Banned Bookshop of Maggie Banks
author: Shauna Robinson
name: Meg
average rating: 3.74
book published: 2022
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2024/05/04
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> The Other Side of Midnight 22467404 The award-winning author of The Haunting of Maddy Clare and Silence for the Dead, presents another mesmerizing gothic story of intrigue...

London, 1925. Glamorous medium Gloria Sutter made her fortune helping the bereaved contact loved ones killed during the Great War. Now she's been murdered at one of her own séances, after leaving a message requesting the help of her former friend and sole rival, Ellie Winter.

Ellie doesn't contact the dead—at least, not anymore. She specializes in miraculously finding lost items. Still, she can't refuse the final request of the only other true psychic she has known. Now Ellie must delve into Gloria's secrets and plunge back into the world of hucksters, lowlifes, and fakes. Worse, she cannot shake the attentions of handsome James Hawley, a damaged war veteran who has dedicated himself to debunking psychics.

As Ellie and James uncover the sinister mysteries of Gloria's life and death, Ellie is tormented by nightmarish visions that herald the grisly murders of those in Gloria's circle. And as Ellie’s uneasy partnership with James turns dangerously intimate, an insidious evil force begins to undermine their quest for clues, a force determined to bury the truth, and whoever seeks to expose it...]]> 319 Simone St. James Meg 0 to-read 3.80 2015 The Other Side of Midnight
author: Simone St. James
name: Meg
average rating: 3.80
book published: 2015
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2024/04/28
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> <![CDATA[The City of Dreaming Books (Zamonia, #4)]]> 62031 The author of 13 1�2 Lives of Captain Bluebear transports us to a magical world. Optimus Yarnspinner finds himself marooned in the subterranean world of Bookholm, the City of Dreaming Books, where reading can be dangerous, where ruthless Bookhunters fight to the death.

Optimus Yarnspinner, a young writer, inherits from his beloved godfather an unpublished short story by an unknown author. His search for the author's identity takes him to Bookholm--the so-called City of Dreaming Books. On entering its streets, our hero feels as if he has opened the door of a gigantic second-hand bookshop. His nostrils are assailed by clouds of book dust, the stimulating scent of ancient leather, and the tang of printer's ink.

Soon, though, Yarnspinner falls into the clutches of the city's evil genius, Pfistomel Smyke, who treacherously maroons him in the labyrinthine catacombs underneath the city, where reading books can be genuinely dangerous...]]> 461 Walter Moers 0099490579 Meg 0 to-read 4.37 2004 The City of Dreaming Books (Zamonia, #4)
author: Walter Moers
name: Meg
average rating: 4.37
book published: 2004
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2024/04/28
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> Unnatural Creatures 16248246 Ìę
The sixteen stories gathered by Gaiman, winner of the Hugo and Nebula Awards, range from the whimsical to the terrifying.ÌęMagical creatures from the werewolf, to the sunbird,Ìęto beings never before classified will thrill, delight, and quite possibly unnerve you inÌętales by E. Nesbit, Diana Wynne Jones, Gahan Wilson, and other literary luminaries.
Ìę
Sales of Unnatural Creatures benefit 826DC, a nonprofit organization dedicated to supporting students in their creative and expository writing, and to helping teachers inspire their students to write.]]> 462 Neil Gaiman 0062236296 Meg 0 currently-reading 3.86 2013 Unnatural Creatures
author: Neil Gaiman
name: Meg
average rating: 3.86
book published: 2013
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2024/04/22
shelves: currently-reading
review:

]]> North and South 156538
In North and South, Elizabeth Gaskell skillfully fuses individual feeling with social concern, and in Margaret Hale creates one of the most original heroines of Victorian literature.]]> 521 Elizabeth Gaskell 0140620192 Meg 4 fiction, own 4.14 1855 North and South
author: Elizabeth Gaskell
name: Meg
average rating: 4.14
book published: 1855
rating: 4
read at: 2024/04/18
date added: 2024/04/18
shelves: fiction, own
review:

]]> <![CDATA[The Lies of Locke Lamora (Gentleman Bastard, #1)]]> 29588376 ASIN B000JMKNJ2 moved to the more recent edition

An orphan’s life is harsh—and often short—in the mysterious island city of Camorr. But young Locke Lamora dodges death and slavery, becoming a thief under the tutelage of a gifted con artist. As leader of the band of light-fingered brothers known as the Gentleman Bastards, Locke is soon infamous, fooling even the underworld’s most feared ruler. But in the shadows lurks someone still more ambitious and deadly. Faced with a bloody coup that threatens to destroy everyone and everything that holds meaning in his mercenary life, Locke vows to beat the enemy at his own brutal game—or die trying.]]> 752 Scott Lynch Meg 0 4.32 2006 The Lies of Locke Lamora (Gentleman Bastard, #1)
author: Scott Lynch
name: Meg
average rating: 4.32
book published: 2006
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2024/04/08
shelves: audiobook, fantasy-books, unfinished, to-read
review:

]]> <![CDATA[The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue]]> 50623864
Thus begins the extraordinary life of Addie LaRue, and a dazzling adventure that will play out across centuries and continents, across history and art, as a young woman learns how far she will go to leave her mark on the world.

But everything changes when, after nearly 300 years, Addie stumbles across a young man in a hidden bookstore and he remembers her name.]]> 448 Victoria E. Schwab 0765387565 Meg 0 currently-reading 4.16 2020 The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue
author: Victoria E. Schwab
name: Meg
average rating: 4.16
book published: 2020
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2024/04/08
shelves: currently-reading
review:

]]> <![CDATA[To Gaze Upon Wicked Gods (Gods Beyond the Skies, #1)]]> 186872482
Heroes die, cowards live. Daughter of a conquered world, Ruying hates the invaders who descended from the heavens long before she was born and defeated the magic of her people with technologies unlike anything her world had ever seen.

Blessed by Death, born with the ability to pull the life right out of mortal bodies, Ruying shouldn’t have to fear these foreign invaders, but she does. Especially because she wants to keep herself and her family safe.

When Ruying’s Gift is discovered by an enemy prince, he offers her an impossible deal: If she becomes his private assassin and eliminates his political rivals—whose deaths he swears would be for the good of both their worlds and would protect her people from further brutalization—her family will never starve or suffer harm again. But to accept this bargain, she must use the powers she has always feared, powers that will shave years off her own existence.

Can Ruying trust this prince, whose promises of a better world make her heart ache and whose smiles make her pulse beat faster? Are the evils of this agreement really in the service of a much greater good? Or will she betray her entire nation by protecting those she loves the most?]]> 368 Molly X. Chang 0593722248 Meg 0 to-read 3.40 2024 To Gaze Upon Wicked Gods (Gods Beyond the Skies, #1)
author: Molly X. Chang
name: Meg
average rating: 3.40
book published: 2024
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2024/04/01
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> <![CDATA[The Center Cannot Hold: My Journey Through Madness]]> 1098486
Saks was only eight, and living an otherwise idyllic childhood in sunny 1960s Miami, when her first symptoms appeared in the form of obsessions and night terrors. But it was not until she reached Oxford University as a Marshall Scholar that her first full-blown episode, complete with voices in her head and terrifying suicidal fantasies, forced her into a psychiatric hospital.

Saks would later attend Yale Law School where one night, during her first term, she had a breakdown that left her singing on the roof of the law school library at midnight. She was taken to the emergency room, force-fed antipsychotic medication, and tied hand-and-foot to the cold metal of a hospital bed. She spent the next five months in a psychiatric ward.

So began Saks's long war with her own internal demons and the equally powerful forces of stigma. Today she is a chaired professor of law who researches and writes about the rights of the mentally ill. She is married to a wonderful man.

In The Center Cannot Hold, Elyn Saks discusses frankly and movingly the paranoia, the inability to tell imaginary fears from real ones, and the voices in her head insisting she do terrible things, as well as the many obstacles she overcame to become the woman she is today. It is destined to become a classic in the genre.]]> 340 Elyn R. Saks 140130138X Meg 4 non-fiction, biographies 4.29 2007 The Center Cannot Hold: My Journey Through Madness
author: Elyn R. Saks
name: Meg
average rating: 4.29
book published: 2007
rating: 4
read at: 2024/04/01
date added: 2024/04/01
shelves: non-fiction, biographies
review:

]]> <![CDATA[The Tea Dragon Society (Tea Dragon, #1)]]> 34895950 Princess Princess Ever After comes The Tea Dragon Society, a charming all-ages book that follows the story of Greta, a blacksmith apprentice, and the people she meets as she becomes entwined in the enchanting world of tea dragons.

After discovering a lost tea dragon in the marketplace, Greta learns about the dying art form of tea dragon care-taking from the kind tea shop owners, Hesekiel and Erik. As she befriends them and their shy ward, Minette, Greta sees how the craft enriches their lives—and eventually her own.]]> 71 Kay O'Neill 1620104415 Meg 0 to-read 4.35 2017 The Tea Dragon Society (Tea Dragon, #1)
author: Kay O'Neill
name: Meg
average rating: 4.35
book published: 2017
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2024/04/01
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> The Cartographers 55004093 What is the purpose of a map?

Nell Young’s whole life and greatest passion is cartography. Her father, Dr. Daniel Young, is a legend in the field and Nell’s personal hero. But she hasn’t seen or spoken to him ever since he cruelly fired her and destroyed her reputation after an argument over an old, cheap gas station highway map.

But when Dr. Young is found dead in his office at the New York Public Library, with the very same seemingly worthless map hidden in his desk, Nell can’t resist investigating. To her surprise, she soon discovers that the map is incredibly valuable and exceedingly rare. In fact, she may now have the only copy left in existence... because a mysterious collector has been hunting down and destroying every last one—along with anyone who gets in the way.

But why?

To answer that question, Nell embarks on a dangerous journey to reveal a dark family secret and discovers the true power that lies in maps...

From the critically acclaimed author of The Book of M, a highly imaginative thriller about a young woman who discovers that a strange map in her deceased father’s belongings holds an incredible, deadly secret—one that will lead her on an extraordinary adventure and to the truth about her family’s dark history.]]> 392 Peng Shepherd 0062910698 Meg 0 to-read 3.62 2022 The Cartographers
author: Peng Shepherd
name: Meg
average rating: 3.62
book published: 2022
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2024/04/01
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> The Marrow Thieves 34649348 234 Cherie Dimaline 1770864865 Meg 0 to-read 3.94 2017 The Marrow Thieves
author: Cherie Dimaline
name: Meg
average rating: 3.94
book published: 2017
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2024/04/01
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> Interesting Facts about Space 176443380
As her paranoia spirals out of control, Enid must contend with her mounting suspicion that something is seriously wrong with her. Because at the end of the day there’s only one person she can’t outrun—herself.

Brimming with quirky humor, charm, and heart, Interesting Facts about Space effortlessly shows us the power of revealing our secret shames, the most beautifully human parts of us all.]]> 320 Emily R. Austin 1668014238 Meg 0 to-read 3.84 2024 Interesting Facts about Space
author: Emily R. Austin
name: Meg
average rating: 3.84
book published: 2024
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2024/03/26
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> <![CDATA[When Among Crows (Curse Bearer, #1)]]> 195790597 When Among Crows is swift and striking, drawing from the deep well of Slavic folklore and asking if redemption and atonement can be found in embracing what we most fear.

We bear the sword, and we bear the pain of the sword.

On Kupala Night, Dymitr arrives in Chicago’s monstrous, magical underworld with a perilous mission: pick the mythical fern flower and offer it to a cursed creature in exchange for help finding the legendary witch Baba Jaga.

Ala is a fear-eating zmora afflicted with a bloodline curse that’s slowly killing her. She's just desperate enough to say yes to Dymitr, even if she doesn’t know his motives.

Over the course of one night, Ala and Dymitr risk life and limb in search of Baba Jaga, and begin to build a tentative friendship. . . but when Ala finds out what Dymitr is hiding, it could destroy them both.]]> 166 Veronica Roth 1250855489 Meg 0 to-read 3.71 2024 When Among Crows (Curse Bearer, #1)
author: Veronica Roth
name: Meg
average rating: 3.71
book published: 2024
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2024/03/21
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> The Familiar 133286777 From the New York Times bestselling author of Ninth House, Hell Bent, and creator of the Grishaverse series comes a highly anticipated historical fantasy set during the Spanish Golden Age

In a shabby house, on a shabby street, in the new capital of Madrid, Luzia Cotado uses scraps of magic to get through her days of endless toil as a scullion. But when her scheming mistress discovers the lump of a servant cowering in the kitchen is actually hiding a talent for little miracles, she demands Luzia use those gifts to better the family's social position.

What begins as simple amusement for the bored nobility takes a perilous turn when Luzia garners the notice of Antonio PĂ©rez, the disgraced secretary to Spain's king. Still reeling from the defeat of his armada, the king is desperate for any advantage in the war against England's heretic queen—and PĂ©rez will stop at nothing to regain the king's favor.

Determined to seize this one chance to better her fortunes, Luzia plunges into a world of seers and alchemists, holy men and hucksters, where the line between magic, science, and fraud is never certain. But as her notoriety grows, so does the danger that her Jewish blood will doom her to the Inquisition's wrath. She will have to use every bit of her wit and will to survive—even if that means enlisting the help of GuillĂ©n Santangel, an embittered immortal familiar whose own secrets could prove deadly for them both.]]> 387 Leigh Bardugo 125088425X Meg 0 to-read 3.74 2024 The Familiar
author: Leigh Bardugo
name: Meg
average rating: 3.74
book published: 2024
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2024/03/21
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> The Night Circus 9361589
But behind the scenes, a fierce competition is underway—a duel between two young magicians, Celia and Marco, who have been trained since childhood expressly for this purpose by their mercurial instructors. Unbeknownst to them, this is a game in which only one can be left standing, and the circus is but the stage for a remarkable battle of imagination and will. Despite themselves, however, Celia and Marco tumble headfirst into love—a deep, magical love that makes the lights flicker and the room grow warm whenever they so much as brush hands.

True love or not, the game must play out, and the fates of everyone involved, from the cast of extraordinary circus performers to the patrons, hang in the balance, suspended as precariously as the daring acrobats overhead.

Written in rich, seductive prose, this spell-casting novel is a feast for the senses and the heart.]]> 506 Erin Morgenstern Meg 4 audiobook, fiction 4.00 2011 The Night Circus
author: Erin Morgenstern
name: Meg
average rating: 4.00
book published: 2011
rating: 4
read at: 2024/03/20
date added: 2024/03/20
shelves: audiobook, fiction
review:

]]> <![CDATA[Akata Warrior (The Nsibidi Scripts, #2)]]> 18746776 The long-awaited sequel to the genre-breaking Akata Witch by multiple award-winner Nnedi Okorafor!

A year ago, Sunny Nwazue, an American-born girl Nigerian girl, was inducted into the secret Leopard Society. As she began to develop her magical powers, Sunny learned that she had been chosen to lead a dangerous mission to avert an apocalypse, brought about by the terrifying masquerade, Ekwensu. Now, stronger, feistier, and a bit older, Sunny is studying with her mentor Sugar Cream and struggling to unlock the secrets in her strange Nsibidi book.

Eventually, Sunny knows she must confront her destiny. With the support of her Leopard Society friends, Orlu, Chichi, and Sasha, and of her spirit face, Anyanwu, she will travel through worlds both visible and invisible to the mysteries town of Osisi, where she will fight a climactic battle to save humanity.

Much-honored Nnedi Okorafor, winner of the Hugo, Nebula, and World Fantasy awards, merges today’s Nigeria with a unique world she creates. Akata Warrior blends mythology, fantasy, history and magic into a compelling tale that will keep readers spellbound.]]> 496 Nnedi Okorafor 1101598980 Meg 4 4.23 2017 Akata Warrior (The Nsibidi Scripts, #2)
author: Nnedi Okorafor
name: Meg
average rating: 4.23
book published: 2017
rating: 4
read at: 2024/03/17
date added: 2024/03/17
shelves: tween-books, series, teen-books, fantasy-books, fiction, unfinished, own
review:

]]> <![CDATA[Akata Woman (The Nsibidi Scripts, #3)]]> 57841497
Now, those hard lessons and abilities are put to the test in a quest so dangerous and fantastical, it would be madness to go
but deadly not to. With the help of her friends, Sunny embarks on a mission to find a precious object hidden deep in a magical realm. Defeating the guardians of the prize will take more from Sunny than she has to give, and triumph will mean she will be forever changed.]]> 404 Nnedi Okorafor 0451480589 Meg 0 to-read 4.16 2022 Akata Woman (The Nsibidi Scripts, #3)
author: Nnedi Okorafor
name: Meg
average rating: 4.16
book published: 2022
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2024/02/28
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> <![CDATA[A Tempest of Tea (Blood and Tea, #1)]]> 59406549 Why save the world when you can have tea?

On the streets of White Roaring, Arthie Casimir is a criminal mastermind and collector of secrets. Her prestigious tearoom transforms into an illegal bloodhouse by dark, catering to the vampires feared by society. But when her establishment is threatened, Arthie is forced to strike an unlikely deal with an alluring adversary to save it—and she can’t do the job alone.

Calling on some of the city's most skilled outcasts, Arthie hatches a plan to infiltrate the sinister, glittering vampire society known as the Athereum. But not everyone in her ragtag crew is on her side, and as the truth behind the heist unfolds, Arthie finds herself in the midst of a conspiracy that will threaten the world as she knows it.

From the New York Times—bestselling author of We Hunt the Flame comes the first book in a hotly anticipated fantasy duology teeming with romance and revenge, led by an orphan girl willing to do whatever it takes to save her self-made kingdom. Dark, action-packed, and swoonworthy, this is Hafsah Faizal better than ever.]]> 338 Hafsah Faizal 0374389403 Meg 0 to-read 3.49 2024 A Tempest of Tea (Blood and Tea, #1)
author: Hafsah Faizal
name: Meg
average rating: 3.49
book published: 2024
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2024/02/26
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> <![CDATA[From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler]]> 3980
When Claudia decided to run away, she planned very carefully. She would be gone just long enough to teach her parents a lesson in Claudia appreciation. And she would go in comfort - she would live at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. She saved her money, and she invited her brother Jamie to go, mostly because he was a miser and would have money.

Claudia was a good organizer and Jamie had some ideas, too; so the two took up residence at the museum right on schedule. But once the fun of settling in was over, Claudia had two unexpected problems: She felt just the same, and she wanted to feel different; and she found a statue at the Museum so beautiful she could not go home until she had discovered its maker, a question that baffled the experts, too.

The former owner of the statue was Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler. Without her - well, without her, Claudia might never have found a way to go home.]]> 159 E.L. Konigsburg 0744583276 Meg 0 to-read 4.16 1967 From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler
author: E.L. Konigsburg
name: Meg
average rating: 4.16
book published: 1967
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2024/02/25
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> Native Son 15622 Native Son tells the story of this young black man caught in a downward spiral after he kills a young white woman in a brief moment of panic.

Set in Chicago in the 1930s, Wright's powerful novel is an unsparing reflection on the poverty and feelings of hopelessness experienced by people in inner cities across the country and of what it means to be black in America.]]> 504 Richard Wright Meg 5 books-i-recommend, fiction 4.03 1940 Native Son
author: Richard Wright
name: Meg
average rating: 4.03
book published: 1940
rating: 5
read at:
date added: 2024/02/25
shelves: books-i-recommend, fiction
review:

]]> <![CDATA[Jurassic Park (Jurassic Park, #1)]]> 40604658
Until something goes wrong. . . .

In Jurassic Park, Michael Crichton taps all his mesmerizing talent and scientific brilliance to create his most electrifying technothriller.]]> 450 Michael Crichton 0307763056 Meg 0 to-read 4.38 1990 Jurassic Park (Jurassic Park, #1)
author: Michael Crichton
name: Meg
average rating: 4.38
book published: 1990
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2024/02/25
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> Room 7937843
Told in the inventive, funny, and poignant voice of Jack, Room is a celebration of resilience—and a powerful story of a mother and son whose love lets them survive the impossible.

To five-year-old Jack, Room is the entire world. It is where he was born and grew up; it's where he lives with his Ma as they learn and read and eat and sleep and play. At night, his Ma shuts him safely in the wardrobe, where he is meant to be asleep when Old Nick visits.

Room is home to Jack, but to Ma, it is the prison where Old Nick has held her captive for seven years. Through determination, ingenuity, and fierce motherly love, Ma has created a life for Jack. But she knows it's not enough ... not for her or for him. She devises a bold escape plan, one that relies on her young son's bravery and a lot of luck. What she does not realize is just how unprepared she is for the plan to actually work.

Told entirely in the language of the energetic, pragmatic five-year-old Jack, Room is a celebration of resilience and the limitless bond between parent and child, a brilliantly executed novel about what it means to journey from one world to another.]]> 321 Emma Donoghue Meg 0 to-read 4.04 2010 Room
author: Emma Donoghue
name: Meg
average rating: 4.04
book published: 2010
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2024/02/25
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> V for Vendetta 5805 "Remember, remember the fifth of November..."

A frightening and powerful tale of the loss of freedom and identity in a chillingly believable totalitarian world, V for Vendetta stands as one of the highest achievements of the comics medium and a defining work for creators Alan Moore and David Lloyd.

Set in an imagined future England that has given itself over to fascism, this groundbreaking story captures both the suffocating nature of life in an authoritarian police state and the redemptive power of the human spirit which rebels against it. Crafted with sterling clarity and intelligence, V for Vendetta brings an unequaled depth of characterization and verisimilitude to its unflinching account of oppression and resistance.]]> 296 Alan Moore 1401207928 Meg 0 to-read 4.26 1990 V for Vendetta
author: Alan Moore
name: Meg
average rating: 4.26
book published: 1990
rating: 0
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]]> Number the Stars 47281 137 Lois Lowry 0440227534 Meg 5 4.19 1989 Number the Stars
author: Lois Lowry
name: Meg
average rating: 4.19
book published: 1989
rating: 5
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]]> <![CDATA[Interview with the Vampire (The Vampire Chronicles, #1)]]> 43763
Louis and Claudia travel Europe, eventually coming to Paris and the ragingly successful Theatre des Vampires--a theatre of vampires pretending to be mortals pretending to be vampires. Here they meet the magnetic and ethereal Armand, who brings them into a whole society of vampires. But Louis and Claudia find that finding others like themselves provides no easy answers and in fact presents dangers they scarcely imagined.

Originally begun as a short story, the book took off as Anne wrote it, spinning the tragic and triumphant life experiences of a soul. As well as the struggles of its characters, Interview captures the political and social changes of two continents. The novel also introduces Lestat, Anne's most enduring character, a heady mixture of attraction and revulsion. The book, full of lush description, centers on the themes of immortality, change, loss, sexuality, and power.
source: annerice.com]]> 346 Anne Rice 0345476875 Meg 0 fiction, to-read 4.04 1976 Interview with the Vampire (The Vampire Chronicles, #1)
author: Anne Rice
name: Meg
average rating: 4.04
book published: 1976
rating: 0
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]]> The Glass Castle 7445 THE #1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER

The Glass Castle is a remarkable memoir of resilience and redemption, and a revelatory look into a family at once deeply dysfunctional and uniquely vibrant. When sober, Jeannette's brilliant and charismatic father captured his children's imagination, teaching them physics, geology, and how to embrace life fearlessly. But when he drank, he was dishonest and destructive. Her mother was a free spirit who abhorred the idea of domesticity and didn't want the responsibility of raising a family.

The Walls children learned to take care of themselves. They fed, clothed, and protected one another, and eventually found their way to New York. Their parents followed them, choosing to be homeless even as their children prospered.

The Glass Castle is truly astonishing--a memoir permeated by the intense love of a peculiar but loyal family.]]> 288 Jeannette Walls 074324754X Meg 3 fiction 4.32 2005 The Glass Castle
author: Jeannette Walls
name: Meg
average rating: 4.32
book published: 2005
rating: 3
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]]> Dracula 17245 You can find an alternative cover edition for this ISBN here and here.

When Jonathan Harker visits Transylvania to help Count Dracula with the purchase of a London house, he makes a series of horrific discoveries about his client. Soon afterwards, various bizarre incidents unfold in England: an apparently unmanned ship is wrecked off the coast of Whitby; a young woman discovers strange puncture marks on her neck; and the inmate of a lunatic asylum raves about the 'Master' and his imminent arrival.

In Dracula, Bram Stoker created one of the great masterpieces of the horror genre, brilliantly evoking a nightmare world of vampires and vampire hunters and also illuminating the dark corners of Victorian sexuality and desire.

This Norton Critical Edition includes a rich selection of background and source materials in three areas: Contexts includes probable inspirations for Dracula in the earlier works of James Malcolm Rymer and Emily Gerard. Also included are a discussion of Stoker's working notes for the novel and "Dracula's Guest," the original opening chapter to Dracula. Reviews and Reactions reprints five early reviews of the novel. "Dramatic and Film Variations" focuses on theater and film adaptations of Dracula, two indications of the novel's unwavering appeal. David J. Skal, Gregory A. Waller, and Nina Auerbach offer their varied perspectives. Checklists of both dramatic and film adaptations are included.

Criticism collects seven theoretical interpretations of Dracula by Phyllis A. Roth, Carol A. Senf, Franco Moretti, Christopher Craft, Bram Dijkstra, Stephen D. Arata, and Talia Schaffer.

A Chronology and a Selected Bibliography are included.]]> 488 Bram Stoker 0393970124 Meg 4 4.02 1897 Dracula
author: Bram Stoker
name: Meg
average rating: 4.02
book published: 1897
rating: 4
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]]> Memoirs of a Geisha 929
In "Memoirs of a Geisha," we enter a world where appearances are paramount; where a girl's virginity is auctioned to the highest bidder; where women are trained to beguile the most powerful men; and where love is scorned as illusion. It is a unique and triumphant work of fiction - at once romantic, erotic, suspenseful - and completely unforgettable.]]> 503 Arthur Golden 1400096898 Meg 0 to-read 4.31 1997 Memoirs of a Geisha
author: Arthur Golden
name: Meg
average rating: 4.31
book published: 1997
rating: 0
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]]> <![CDATA[The Chronicles of Narnia (The Chronicles of Narnia, #1-7)]]> 11127 Librarian note: An alternate cover for this edition can be found here: 2005.

Journeys to the end of the world, fantastic creatures, and epic battles between good and evil—what more could any reader ask for in one book? The book that has it all is The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, written in 1949 by Clive Staples Lewis. But Lewis did not stop there. Six more books followed, and together they became known as The Chronicles of Narnia.

For the past fifty years, The Chronicles of Narnia have transcended the fantasy genre to become part of the canon of classic literature. Each of the seven books is a masterpiece, drawing the reader into a land where magic meets reality, and the result is a fictional world whose scope has fascinated generations.

This edition presents all seven books—unabridged—in one impressive volume. The books are presented here in chronlogical order, each chapter graced with an illustration by the original artist, Pauline Baynes. Deceptively simple and direct, The Chronicles of Narnia continue to captivate fans with adventures, characters, and truths that speak to readers of all ages, even fifty years after they were first published.]]> 767 C.S. Lewis 0066238501 Meg 5 4.27 1956 The Chronicles of Narnia (The Chronicles of Narnia, #1-7)
author: C.S. Lewis
name: Meg
average rating: 4.27
book published: 1956
rating: 5
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]]> The Maidens 45300567
Mariana Andros is a brilliant but troubled group therapist who becomes fixated on The Maidens when one member, a friend of Mariana’s niece Zoe, is found murdered in Cambridge.

Mariana, who was once herself a student at the university, quickly suspects that behind the idyllic beauty of the spires and turrets, and beneath the ancient traditions, lies something sinister. And she becomes convinced that, despite his alibi, Edward Fosca is guilty of the murder. But why would the professor target one of his students? And why does he keep returning to the rites of Persephone, the maiden, and her journey to the underworld?

When another body is found, Mariana’s obsession with proving Fosca’s guilt spirals out of control, threatening to destroy her credibility as well as her closest relationships. But Mariana is determined to stop this killer, even if it costs her everything—including her own life.]]> 337 Alex Michaelides 1250304458 Meg 3 fiction 3.61 2021 The Maidens
author: Alex Michaelides
name: Meg
average rating: 3.61
book published: 2021
rating: 3
read at: 2024/02/25
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]]> Neuromancer (Sprawl, #1) 6088007 Neuromancer is a cyberpunk, science fiction masterpiece—a classic that ranks with 1984 and Brave New World as one of the twentieth century’s most potent visions of the future.

The Matrix is a world within the world, a global consensus-hallucination, the representation of every byte of data in cyberspace...

Henry Dorsett Case was the sharpest data-thief in the business, until vengeful former employees crippled his nervous system. But now a new and very mysterious employer recruits him for a last-chance run. The target: an unthinkably powerful artificial intelligence orbiting Earth in service of the sinister Tessier-Ashpool business clan. With a dead man riding shotgun and Molly, mirror-eyed street-samurai, to watch his back, Case embarks on an adventure that ups the ante on an entire genre of fiction.

The winner of the Hugo, Nebula, and Philip K. Dick Awards, Neuromancer was the first fully-realized glimpse of humankind’s digital future—a shocking vision that has challenged our assumptions about our technology and ourselves, reinvented the way we speak and think, and forever altered the landscape of our imaginations.]]> 288 William Gibson Meg 0 to-read 3.94 1984 Neuromancer (Sprawl, #1)
author: William Gibson
name: Meg
average rating: 3.94
book published: 1984
rating: 0
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]]> The Martian Chronicles 76778
The Martian Chronicles tells the story of humanity’s repeated attempts to colonize the red planet. The first men were few. Most succumbed to a disease they called the Great Loneliness when they saw their home planet dwindle to the size of a fist. They felt they had never been born. Those few that survived found no welcome on Mars. The shape-changing Martians thought they were native lunatics and duly locked them up.

But more rockets arrived from Earth, and more, piercing the hallucinations projected by the Martians. People brought their old prejudices with them � and their desires and fantasies, tainted dreams. These were soon inhabited by the strange native beings, with their caged flowers and birds of flame.

Contents:
Rocket Summer
Ylla
The Summer Night
The Earth Men
The Taxpayer
The Third Expedition
-And the Moon Be Still As Bright
The Settlers
The Green Morning
The Locusts
Night Meeting
The Shore
Interim
The Musicians
Way in the Middle of the Air
The Naming of Names
Usher II
The Old Ones
The Martian
The Luggage Store
The Off Season
The Watchers
The Silent Towns
The Long Years
There Will Come Soft Rains
The Million Year Picnic]]> 182 Ray Bradbury 0553278223 Meg 0 to-read 4.16 1950 The Martian Chronicles
author: Ray Bradbury
name: Meg
average rating: 4.16
book published: 1950
rating: 0
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]]> Stranger in a Strange Land 350 NAME: Valentine Michael Smith
ANCESTRY: Human
ORIGIN: Mars

Valentine Michael Smith is a human being raised on Mars, newly returned to Earth. Among his people for the first time, he struggles to understand the social mores and prejudices of human nature that are so alien to him, while teaching them his own fundamental beliefs in grokking, watersharing, and love.]]> 525 Robert A. Heinlein Meg 0 to-read 3.93 1961 Stranger in a Strange Land
author: Robert A. Heinlein
name: Meg
average rating: 3.93
book published: 1961
rating: 0
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]]> <![CDATA[Watership Down (Watership Down, #1)]]> 76620 Librarian's note: See alternate cover edition of ISBN13 9780380395866 here.

Set in England's Downs, a once idyllic rural landscape, this stirring tale of adventure, courage and survival follows a band of very special creatures on their flight from the intrusion of man and the certain destruction of their home. Led by a stouthearted pair of friends, they journey forth from their native Sandleford Warren through the harrowing trials posed by predators and adversaries, to a mysterious promised land and a more perfect society.]]> 478 Richard Adams 038039586X Meg 0 to-read 4.08 1972 Watership Down (Watership Down, #1)
author: Richard Adams
name: Meg
average rating: 4.08
book published: 1972
rating: 0
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]]> The Catcher in the Rye 5107 It's Christmas time and Holden Caulfield has just been expelled from yet another school...

Fleeing the crooks at Pencey Prep, he pinballs around New York City seeking solace in fleeting encounters—shooting the bull with strangers in dive hotels, wandering alone round Central Park, getting beaten up by pimps and cut down by erstwhile girlfriends. The city is beautiful and terrible, in all its neon loneliness and seedy glamour, its mingled sense of possibility and emptiness. Holden passes through it like a ghost, thinking always of his kid sister Phoebe, the only person who really understands him, and his determination to escape the phonies and find a life of true meaning.

The Catcher in the Rye is an all-time classic in coming-of-age literature- an elegy to teenage alienation, capturing the deeply human need for connection and the bewildering sense of loss as we leave childhood behind.

J.D. Salinger's (1919�2010) classic novel of teenage angst and rebellion was first published in 1951. The novel was included on Time's 2005 list of the 100 best English-language novels written since 1923. It was named by Modern Library and its readers as one of the 100 best English-language novels of the 20th century. It has been frequently challenged in the court for its liberal use of profanity and portrayal of sexuality and in the 1950's and 60's it was the novel that every teenage boy wants to read.]]> 277 J.D. Salinger 0316769177 Meg 0 to-read 3.81 1951 The Catcher in the Rye
author: J.D. Salinger
name: Meg
average rating: 3.81
book published: 1951
rating: 0
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]]> The Graveyard Book 2213661
There are dangers and adventures for Bod in the graveyard: the strange and terrible menace of the Sleer; a gravestone entrance to a desert that leads to the city of ghouls; friendship with a witch, and so much more.

But it is in the land of the living that real danger lurks, for it is there that the man Jack lives and he has already killed Bod's family.

A deliciously dark masterwork by bestselling author Neil Gaiman, with illustrations by award-winning Dave McKean.]]> 312 Neil Gaiman 0060530928 Meg 5 4.15 2008 The Graveyard Book
author: Neil Gaiman
name: Meg
average rating: 4.15
book published: 2008
rating: 5
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]]> The Lord of the Rings 33 One Ring to rule them all, One Ring to find them, One Ring to bring them all and in the darkness bind them

In ancient times the Rings of Power were crafted by the Elven-smiths, and Sauron, the Dark Lord, forged the One Ring, filling it with his own power so that he could rule all others. But the One Ring was taken from him, and though he sought it throughout Middle-earth, it remained lost to him. After many ages it fell by chance into the hands of the hobbit Bilbo Baggins.

From Sauron's fastness in the Dark Tower of Mordor, his power spread far and wide. Sauron gathered all the Great Rings to him, but always he searched for the One Ring that would complete his dominion.

When Bilbo reached his eleventy-first birthday he disappeared, bequeathing to his young cousin Frodo the Ruling Ring and a perilous quest: to journey across Middle-earth, deep into the shadow of the Dark Lord, and destroy the Ring by casting it into the Cracks of Doom.

The Lord of the Rings tells of the great quest undertaken by Frodo and the Fellowship of the Ring: Gandalf the Wizard; the hobbits Merry, Pippin, and Sam; Gimli the Dwarf; Legolas the Elf; Boromir of Gondor; and a tall, mysterious stranger called Strider.]]> 1216 J.R.R. Tolkien 0618640150 Meg 5 4.52 1955 The Lord of the Rings
author: J.R.R. Tolkien
name: Meg
average rating: 4.52
book published: 1955
rating: 5
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]]> <![CDATA[Mockingjay (The Hunger Games, #3)]]> 7260188 My name is Katniss Everdeen.
Why am I not dead?
I should be dead.

Katniss Everdeen, girl on fire, has survived, even though her home has been destroyed. Gale has escaped. Katniss's family is safe. Peeta has been captured by the Capitol. District 13 really does exist. There are rebels. There are new leaders. A revolution is unfolding.

It is by design that Katniss was rescued from the arena in the cruel and haunting Quarter Quell, and it is by design that she has long been part of the revolution without knowing it. District 13 has come out of the shadows and is plotting to overthrow the Capitol. Everyone, it seems, has had a hand in the carefully laid plans—except Katniss.

The success of the rebellion hinges on Katniss's willingness to be a pawn, to accept responsibility for countless lives, and to change the course of the future of Panem. To do this, she must put aside her feelings of anger and distrust. She must become the rebels' Mockingjay—no matter what the personal cost.]]> 390 Suzanne Collins 0439023513 Meg 4 fiction, teen-books 4.10 2010 Mockingjay (The Hunger Games, #3)
author: Suzanne Collins
name: Meg
average rating: 4.10
book published: 2010
rating: 4
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]]> A Little Princess 3008
This unique and fully annotated edition appends excerpts from Frances Hodgson Burnett 's original 1888 novella Sara Crewe and the stage play that preceded the novel, as well as an early story, "Behind the White Brick," allowing readers to see how A Little Princess evolved. In his delightful introduction, U. C. Knoepflmacher considers the fairy-tale allusions and literary touchstones that place the book among the major works of Victorian literature, and shows it to be an exceptionally rich and resonant novel.]]> 242 Frances Hodgson Burnett 0142437018 Meg 0 to-read 4.22 1905 A Little Princess
author: Frances Hodgson Burnett
name: Meg
average rating: 4.22
book published: 1905
rating: 0
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]]> The Phantom Tollbooth 378 Librarian's Note: For an alternate cover edition of the same ISBN, click here.

This beloved story -first published more than fifty years ago- introduces readers to Milo and his adventures in the Lands Beyond.

For Milo, everything’s a bore. When a tollbooth mysteriously appears in his room, he drives through only because he’s got nothing better to do. But on the other side, things seem different. Milo visits the Island of Conclusions (you get there by jumping), learns about time from a ticking watchdog named Tock, and even embarks on a quest to rescue Rhyme and Reason! Somewhere along the way, Milo realizes something astonishing. Life is far from dull. In fact, it’s exciting beyond his wildest dreams. . . .]]> 248 Norton Juster 0394820371 Meg 0 to-read 4.19 1961 The Phantom Tollbooth
author: Norton Juster
name: Meg
average rating: 4.19
book published: 1961
rating: 0
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]]> The Haunting of Hill House 89717 182 Shirley Jackson 0143039989 Meg 0 to-read 3.85 1959 The Haunting of Hill House
author: Shirley Jackson
name: Meg
average rating: 3.85
book published: 1959
rating: 0
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]]> <![CDATA[The Importance of Being Earnest]]> 92303
Cecily Cardew and Gwendolen Fairfax are both in love with the same mythical suitor. Jack Worthing has wooed Gwendolen as Ernest while Algernon has also posed as Ernest to win the heart of Jack's ward, Cecily. When all four arrive at Jack's country home on the same weekend the "rivals" to fight for Ernest's undivided attention and the "Ernests" to claim their beloveds pandemonium breaks loose. Only a senile nursemaid and an old, discarded hand-bag can save the day!

This Prestwick House Literary Touchstone Edition includes a glossary and reader's notes to help the modern reader appreciate Wilde's wry wit and elaborate plot twists.]]> 89 Oscar Wilde 158049580X Meg 0 to-read 4.17 1895 The Importance of Being Earnest
author: Oscar Wilde
name: Meg
average rating: 4.17
book published: 1895
rating: 0
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]]> Their Eyes Were Watching God 37415 238 Zora Neale Hurston 0061120065 Meg 0 to-read 3.98 1937 Their Eyes Were Watching God
author: Zora Neale Hurston
name: Meg
average rating: 3.98
book published: 1937
rating: 0
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]]> <![CDATA[The Fellowship of the Ring (The Lord of the Rings, #1)]]> 61215351 One Ring to rule them all, One Ring to find them, One Ring to bring them all and in the darkness bind them.

In ancient times the Rings of Power were crafted by the Elven-smiths, and Sauron, the Dark Lord, forged the One Ring, filling it with his own power so that he could rule all others. But the One Ring was taken from him, and though he sought it throughout Middle-earth, it remained lost to him. After many ages it fell into the hands of Bilbo Baggins, as told in The Hobbit.

In a sleepy village in the Shire, young Frodo Baggins finds himself faced with an immense task, as his elderly cousin Bilbo entrusts the Ring to his care. Frodo must leave his home and make a perilous journey across Middle-earth to the Cracks of Doom, there to destroy the Ring and foil the Dark Lord in his evil purpose.]]> 432 J.R.R. Tolkien Meg 5 4.52 1954 The Fellowship of the Ring (The Lord of the Rings, #1)
author: J.R.R. Tolkien
name: Meg
average rating: 4.52
book published: 1954
rating: 5
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]]> Fahrenheit 451 4381 158 Ray Bradbury 0307347974 Meg 5 books-i-recommend, fiction 3.96 1953 Fahrenheit 451
author: Ray Bradbury
name: Meg
average rating: 3.96
book published: 1953
rating: 5
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]]> The Poisonwood Bible 7244 The Poisonwood Bible is a story told by the wife and four daughters of Nathan Price, a fierce, evangelical Baptist who takes his family and mission to the Belgian Congo in 1959. They carry with them everything they believe they will need from home, but soon find that all of it -- from garden seeds to Scripture -- is calamitously transformed on African soil. What follows is a suspenseful epic of one family's tragic undoing and remarkable reconstruction over the course of three decades in postcolonial Africa.]]> 546 Barbara Kingsolver 0060786507 Meg 0 to-read 4.10 1998 The Poisonwood Bible
author: Barbara Kingsolver
name: Meg
average rating: 4.10
book published: 1998
rating: 0
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]]> The Shining (The Shining, #1) 11588 497 Stephen King 0450040186 Meg 0 to-read 4.28 1977 The Shining (The Shining, #1)
author: Stephen King
name: Meg
average rating: 4.28
book published: 1977
rating: 0
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]]> And Then There Were None 16299
"Ten little boys went out to dine; One choked his little self and then there were nine. Nine little boys sat up very late; One overslept himself and then there were eight. Eight little boys traveling in Devon; One said he'd stay there then there were seven. Seven little boys chopping up sticks; One chopped himself in half and then there were six. Six little boys playing with a hive; A bumblebee stung one and then there were five. Five little boys going in for law; One got in Chancery and then there were four. Four little boys going out to sea; A red herring swallowed one and then there were three. Three little boys walking in the zoo; A big bear hugged one and then there were two. Two little boys sitting in the sun; One got frizzled up and then there was one. One little boy left all alone; He went out and hanged himself and then there were none."

When they realize that murders are occurring as described in the rhyme, terror mounts. One by one they fall prey. Before the weekend is out, there will be none. Who has choreographed this dastardly scheme? And who will be left to tell the tale? Only the dead are above suspicion.]]> 264 Agatha Christie 0312330871 Meg 5 books-i-recommend, fiction 4.28 1939 And Then There Were None
author: Agatha Christie
name: Meg
average rating: 4.28
book published: 1939
rating: 5
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]]> The Color Purple 52892857 Read the original inspiration for the new, boldly reimagined film from producers Oprah Winfrey and Steven Spielberg, starring Taraji P. Henson, Danielle Brooks, and Fantasia Barrino.

Winner of the Pulitzer Prize and the National Book Award

A powerful cultural touchstone of modern American literature, The Color Purple depicts the lives of African American women in early twentieth-century rural Georgia. Separated as girls, sisters Celie and Nettie sustain their loyalty to and hope in each other across time, distance and silence. Through a series of letters spanning twenty years, first from Celie to God, then the sisters to each other despite the unknown, the novel draws readers into its rich and memorable portrayals of Celie, Nettie, Shug Avery and Sofia and their experience. The Color Purple broke the silence around domestic and sexual abuse, narrating the lives of women through their pain and struggle, companionship and growth, resilience and bravery. Deeply compassionate and beautifully imagined, Alice Walker's epic carries readers on a spirit-affirming journey towards redemption and love.

â€Áè±đČč»ćŸ±ČÔČ” The Color Purple was the first time I had seen Southern, Black women’s literature as world literature. In writing us into the world—bravely, unapologetically, and honestly—Alice Walker has given us a gift we will never be able to repay.â€� —Tayari Jones

â€�The Color Purple was what church should have been, what honest familial reckoning could have been, and it is still the only art object in the world by which all three generations of Black artists in my family judge American art.â€� —Kiese Laymon]]> 287 Alice Walker 0143135694 Meg 0 to-read 4.40 1982 The Color Purple
author: Alice Walker
name: Meg
average rating: 4.40
book published: 1982
rating: 0
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]]> Dune (Dune, #1) 44767458
When House Atreides is betrayed, the destruction of Paul’s family will set the boy on a journey toward a destiny greater than he could ever have imagined. And as he evolves into the mysterious man known as Muad’Dib, he will bring to fruition humankind’s most ancient and unattainable dream.]]> 658 Frank Herbert 059309932X Meg 5 books-i-recommend, fiction 4.33 1965 Dune (Dune, #1)
author: Frank Herbert
name: Meg
average rating: 4.33
book published: 1965
rating: 5
read at:
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]]> <![CDATA[The Handmaid’s Tale (The Handmaid's Tale, #1)]]> 38447
Funny, unexpected, horrifying, and altogether convincing, The Handmaid's Tale is at once scathing satire, dire warning, and tour de force.]]> 311 Margaret Atwood 038549081X Meg 5 books-i-recommend, fiction 4.15 1985 The Handmaid’s Tale (The Handmaid's Tale, #1)
author: Margaret Atwood
name: Meg
average rating: 4.15
book published: 1985
rating: 5
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]]> Neverwhere (London Below, #1) 14497
"Neverwhere" is the London of the people who have fallen between the cracks.

Strange destinies lie in wait in London below - a world that seems eerily familiar. But a world that is utterly bizarre, peopled by unearthly characters such as the Angel called Islington, the girl named Door, and the Earl who holds Court on a tube train.

Now a single act of kindness has catapulted young businessman Richard Mayhew out of his safe and predictable life - and into the realms of "Neverwhere." Richard is about to find out more than he ever wanted to know about this other London. Which is a pity. Because Richard just wants to go home...]]> 370 Neil Gaiman 0060557818 Meg 4 4.17 1996 Neverwhere (London Below, #1)
author: Neil Gaiman
name: Meg
average rating: 4.17
book published: 1996
rating: 4
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date added: 2024/02/20
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review:

]]> <![CDATA[Parable of the Sower (Earthseed, #1)]]> 52397
Lauren Olamina and her family live in one of the only safe neighborhoods remaining on the outskirts of Los Angeles. Behind the walls of their defended enclave, Lauren’s father, a preacher, and a handful of other citizens try to salvage what remains of a culture that has been destroyed by drugs, disease, war, and chronic water shortages. While her father tries to lead people on the righteous path, Lauren struggles with hyperempathy, a condition that makes her extraordinarily sensitive to the pain of others.

When fire destroys their compound, Lauren’s family is killed and she is forced out into a world that is fraught with danger. With a handful of other refugees, Lauren must make her way north to safety, along the way conceiving a revolutionary idea that may mean salvation for all mankind.]]> 345 Octavia E. Butler 0446675504 Meg 4 4.21 1993 Parable of the Sower (Earthseed, #1)
author: Octavia E. Butler
name: Meg
average rating: 4.21
book published: 1993
rating: 4
read at:
date added: 2024/02/20
shelves: audiobook, books-i-recommend, fantasy-books, fiction
review:

]]> <![CDATA[Caste: The Origins of Our Discontents]]> 51152447 The Warmth of Other Suns examines the unspoken caste system that has shaped America and shows how our lives today are still defined by a hierarchy of human divisions.

“As we go about our daily lives, caste is the wordless usher in a darkened theater, flashlight cast down in the aisles, guiding us to our assigned seats for a performance. The hierarchy of caste is not about feelings or morality. It is about power—which groups have it and which do not.â€�

In this brilliant book, Isabel Wilkerson gives us a masterful portrait of an unseen phenomenon in America as she explores, through an immersive, deeply researched narrative and stories about real people, how America today and throughout its history has been shaped by a hidden caste system, a rigid hierarchy of human rankings.

Beyond race, class, or other factors, there is a powerful caste system that influences people’s lives and behavior and the nation’s fate. Linking the caste systems of America, India, and Nazi Germany, Wilkerson explores eight pillars that underlie caste systems across civilizations, including divine will, bloodlines, stigma, and more. Using riveting stories about people—including Martin Luther King, Jr., baseball’s Satchel Paige, a single father and his toddler son, Wilkerson herself, and many others—she shows the ways that the insidious undertow of caste is experienced every day. She documents how the Nazis studied the racial systems in America to plan their out-cast of the Jews; she discusses why the cruel logic of caste requires that there be a bottom rung for those in the middle to measure themselves against; she writes about the surprising health costs of caste, in depression and life expectancy, and the effects of this hierarchy on our culture and politics. Finally, she points forward to ways America can move beyond the artificial and destructive separations of human divisions, toward hope in our common humanity.]]> 544 Isabel Wilkerson 0593230256 Meg 5 audiobook, non-fiction 4.52 2020 Caste: The Origins of Our Discontents
author: Isabel Wilkerson
name: Meg
average rating: 4.52
book published: 2020
rating: 5
read at:
date added: 2024/02/20
shelves: audiobook, non-fiction
review:

]]> Later 54798175
Later is Stephen King at his finest, a terrifying and touching story of innocence lost and the trials that test our sense of right and wrong. With echoes of King's classic novel It, Later is a powerful, haunting, unforgettable exploration of what it takes to stand up to evil in all the faces it wears.]]> 248 Stephen King Meg 3 audiobook, fiction 3.99 2021 Later
author: Stephen King
name: Meg
average rating: 3.99
book published: 2021
rating: 3
read at:
date added: 2024/02/20
shelves: audiobook, fiction
review:

]]> The Stand 87591651
For hundreds of thousands of fans who read The Stand in its original version and wanted more, this new edition is Stephen King's gift. And those who are listening to The Stand for the first time will discover a triumphant and eerily plausible work of the imagination that takes on the issues that will determine our survival.]]> Stephen King Meg 4 audiobook, fiction 4.42 1978 The Stand
author: Stephen King
name: Meg
average rating: 4.42
book published: 1978
rating: 4
read at:
date added: 2024/02/20
shelves: audiobook, fiction
review:

]]> <![CDATA[The Invisible Library (The Invisible Library, #1)]]> 21416690 Irene must be at the top of her game or she'll be off the case - permanently...

Irene is a professional spy for the mysterious Library, which harvests fiction from different realities. And along with her enigmatic assistant Kai, she's posted to an alternative London. Their mission - to retrieve a dangerous book. But when they arrive, it's already been stolen. London's underground factions seem prepared to fight to the very death to find her book.

Adding to the jeopardy, this world is chaos-infested - the laws of nature bent to allow supernatural creatures and unpredictable magic. Irene's new assistant is also hiding secrets of his own.

Soon, she's up to her eyebrows in a heady mix of danger, clues and secret societies. Yet failure is not an option - the nature of reality itself is at stake.]]> 329 Genevieve Cogman 1447256239 Meg 3 fantasy-books, fiction, own 3.71 2014 The Invisible Library (The Invisible Library, #1)
author: Genevieve Cogman
name: Meg
average rating: 3.71
book published: 2014
rating: 3
read at: 2024/02/20
date added: 2024/02/20
shelves: fantasy-books, fiction, own
review:

]]> <![CDATA[How Long 'til Black Future Month?]]> 40855636 400 N.K. Jemisin 0316491349 Meg 0 to-read 4.27 2018 How Long 'til Black Future Month?
author: N.K. Jemisin
name: Meg
average rating: 4.27
book published: 2018
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2024/02/18
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> <![CDATA[Children of Blood and Bone (Legacy of OrĂŻsha, #1)]]> 34728667 They killed my mother.
They took our magic.
They tried to bury us.

Now we rise.

ZĂ©lie Adebola remembers when the soil of OrĂŻsha hummed with magic. Burners ignited flames, Tiders beckoned waves, and ZĂ©lie’s Reaper mother summoned forth souls.

But everything changed the night magic disappeared. Under the orders of a ruthless king, maji were killed, leaving ZĂ©lie without a mother and her people without hope.

Now ZĂ©lie has one chance to bring back magic and strike against the monarchy. With the help of a rogue princess, ZĂ©lie must outwit and outrun the crown prince, who is hell-bent on eradicating magic for good.

Danger lurks in OrĂŻsha, where snow leoponaires prowl and vengeful spirits wait in the waters. Yet the greatest danger may be ZĂ©lie herself as she struggles to control her powers and her growing feelings for an enemy.]]> 544 Tomi Adeyemi 1250170974 Meg 0 to-read 4.10 2018 Children of Blood and Bone (Legacy of OrĂŻsha, #1)
author: Tomi Adeyemi
name: Meg
average rating: 4.10
book published: 2018
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2024/02/18
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> <![CDATA[The Hate U Give (The Hate U Give, #1)]]> 32075671 An alternate cover edition of ISBN 9780062498533 can be found here.

Sixteen-year-old Starr Carter moves between two worlds: the poor neighborhood where she lives and the fancy suburban prep school she attends. The uneasy balance between these worlds is shattered when Starr witnesses the fatal shooting of her childhood best friend Khalil at the hands of a police officer. Khalil was unarmed.

Soon afterward, his death is a national headline. Some are calling him a thug, maybe even a drug dealer and a gangbanger. Protesters are taking to the streets in Khalil’s name. Some cops and the local drug lord try to intimidate Starr and her family. What everyone wants to know is: what really went down that night? And the only person alive who can answer that is Starr.

But what Starr does—or does not—say could upend her community. It could also endanger her life.

Inspired by the Black Lives Matter movement, this is a powerful and gripping YA novel about one girl's struggle for justice.]]> 454 Angie Thomas 0062498533 Meg 0 to-read 4.46 2017 The Hate U Give (The Hate U Give, #1)
author: Angie Thomas
name: Meg
average rating: 4.46
book published: 2017
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2024/02/18
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> Washington Black 38140077
When his master's eccentric brother chooses him to be his manservant, Wash is terrified of the cruelties he is certain await him. But Christopher Wilde, or "Titch," is a naturalist, explorer, scientist, inventor, and abolitionist.

He initiates Wash into a world where a flying machine can carry a man across the sky; where two people, separated by an impossible divide, might begin to see each other as human; and where a boy born in chains can embrace a life of dignity and meaning. But when a man is killed and a bounty is placed on Wash's head, Titch abandons everything to save him.

What follows is their flight along the eastern coast of America, and, finally, to a remote outpost in the Arctic, where Wash, left on his own, must invent another new life, one which will propel him further across the globe.

From the sultry cane fields of the Caribbean to the frozen Far North, Washington Black tells a story of friendship and betrayal, love and redemption, of a world destroyed and made whole again--and asks the question, what is true freedom?]]> 334 Esi Edugyan 0525521429 Meg 0 to-read 3.93 2018 Washington Black
author: Esi Edugyan
name: Meg
average rating: 3.93
book published: 2018
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2024/02/18
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> <![CDATA[His Majesty's Dragon (Temeraire, #1)]]> 28876 356 Naomi Novik 0345481283 Meg 5 4.06 2006 His Majesty's Dragon (Temeraire, #1)
author: Naomi Novik
name: Meg
average rating: 4.06
book published: 2006
rating: 5
read at: 2023/08/31
date added: 2024/02/18
shelves: audiobook, books-i-recommend, fantasy-books, fiction, series
review:

]]> <![CDATA[The Last Unicorn (The Last Unicorn, #1)]]> 29127 Alternate cover edition of ISBN 9780451450524

She was magical, beautiful beyond belief—and completely alone...

The unicorn had lived since before memory in a forest where death could touch nothing. Maidens who caught a glimpse of her glory were blessed by enchantment they would never forget. But outside her wondrous realm, dark whispers and rumours carried a message she could not ignore: "Unicorns are gone from the world."

Aided by a bumbling magician and an indomitable spinster, she set out to learn the truth. but she feared even her immortal wisdom meant nothing in a world where a mad king's curse and terror incarnate lived only to stalk the last unicorn to her doom...]]> 294 Peter S. Beagle Meg 5 4.16 1968 The Last Unicorn (The Last Unicorn, #1)
author: Peter S. Beagle
name: Meg
average rating: 4.16
book published: 1968
rating: 5
read at:
date added: 2024/02/18
shelves: fiction, kids-books, own, teen-books, tween-books
review:

]]> <![CDATA[La Belle Sauvage (Book of Dust, #1)]]> 9307699
Malcolm Polstead's life in the pub beside the Thames is safe and happy enough, if uneventful. But during a winter of unceasing rain the forces of science, religion and politics begin to clash, and as the weather rises to a pitch of ferocity, all of Malcolm's certainties are torn asunder.

Finding himself linked to a baby by the name of Lyra, Malcolm is forced to undertake the challenge of his life and to make the dangerous journey that will change him and Lyra for ever
]]> 546 Philip Pullman 0385604416 Meg 5 4.19 2017 La Belle Sauvage (Book of Dust, #1)
author: Philip Pullman
name: Meg
average rating: 4.19
book published: 2017
rating: 5
read at:
date added: 2024/02/18
shelves:
review:

]]> The Midnight Library 52578297
When Nora Seed finds herself in the Midnight Library, she has a chance to make things right. Up until now, her life has been full of misery and regret. She feels she has let everyone down, including herself. But things are about to change.

The books in the Midnight Library enable Nora to live as if she had done things differently. With the help of an old friend, she can now undo every one of her regrets as she tries to work out her perfect life. But things aren't always what she imagined they'd be, and soon her choices place the library and herself in extreme danger.

Before time runs out, she must answer the ultimate question: what is the best way to live?]]> 288 Matt Haig 0525559477 Meg 4 3.96 2020 The Midnight Library
author: Matt Haig
name: Meg
average rating: 3.96
book published: 2020
rating: 4
read at: 2024/02/16
date added: 2024/02/18
shelves:
review:

]]> <![CDATA[The Broken Kingdoms (Inheritance, #2)]]> 7904453
Oree's peculiar guest is at the heart of it, his presence putting her in mortal danger -- but is it him the killers want, or Oree? And is the earthly power of the Arameri king their ultimate goal, or have they set their sights on the Lord of Night himself?]]> 384 N.K. Jemisin 0316043966 Meg 4 4.12 2010 The Broken Kingdoms (Inheritance, #2)
author: N.K. Jemisin
name: Meg
average rating: 4.12
book published: 2010
rating: 4
read at: 2024/01/27
date added: 2024/02/18
shelves: fantasy-books, fiction, own, series
review:

]]> <![CDATA[The Fifth Season (The Broken Earth, #1)]]> 19161852
Three terrible things happen in a single day. Essun, a woman living an ordinary life in a small town, comes home to find that her husband has brutally murdered their son and kidnapped their daughter. Meanwhile, mighty Sanze -- the world-spanning empire whose innovations have been civilization's bedrock for a thousand years -- collapses as most of its citizens are murdered to serve a madman's vengeance. And worst of all, across the heart of the vast continent known as the Stillness, a great red rift has been torn into the heart of the earth, spewing ash enough to darken the sky for years. Or centuries.

Now Essun must pursue the wreckage of her family through a deadly, dying land. Without sunlight, clean water, or arable land, and with limited stockpiles of supplies, there will be war all across the Stillness: a battle royale of nations not for power or territory, but simply for the basic resources necessary to get through the long dark night. Essun does not care if the world falls apart around her. She'll break it herself, if she must, to save her daughter.]]> 468 N.K. Jemisin Meg 5 4.29 2015 The Fifth Season (The Broken Earth, #1)
author: N.K. Jemisin
name: Meg
average rating: 4.29
book published: 2015
rating: 5
read at:
date added: 2024/02/18
shelves: audiobook, books-i-recommend, fantasy-books, fiction, own
review:

]]> The Organized Student 7654738

Hands-on strategies for teaching your disorganized child how to organize for school success!

The overstuffed backpack, the missing homework, the unused planner, the test he didn't know about. Sound familiar? When the disorganized child meets the departmentalized structure of middle school, everything can fall apart. Even the academically successful child will start to falter if she misses deadlines, loses textbooks, or can't get to class on time.

This practical book is full of hands-on strategies for helping parents identify and teach organizational skills. Educational consultant Donna Goldberg has developed these methods by working with hundreds of students and in this book she provides:

Assessments to gather information about your child's learning style, study habits, and school requirements

Guidelines for taming that overstuffed binder and keeping it under control

PACK � a four-step plan for purging and reassembling a backpack or locker

Instructions for organizing an at-home work space for the child who studies at a desk or the child who studies all over the house

Ways to help your child graduate from telling time to managing time

Special tips for kids with learning disabilities and kids who have two homes...and more

The Organized Student is a must for any parent who has heard the words, "I can't find my homework!"

]]> 288 Donna Goldberg 0641848048 Meg 0 3.98 2005 The Organized Student
author: Donna Goldberg
name: Meg
average rating: 3.98
book published: 2005
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2023/01/10
shelves: non-fiction, own, psychology-books, to-read, unfinished
review:

]]> <![CDATA[Prince Caspian (The Chronicles of Narnia, #2)]]> 317501 The four Pevensies help Caspian battle Miraz and ascend his rightful throne.

NARNIA... the land between the lamp-post and the castle of Cair Paravel, where animals talk, where magical things happen... and where the adventure begins.

Peter, Susan, Edmund, and Lucy are returning to boarding school when they are summoned from the dreary train station (by Susan's own magic horn) to return to the land of Narnia—the land where they had ruled as kings and queens and where their help is desperately needed.]]> 216 C.S. Lewis 0020442408 Meg 4 Prince Caspian. I found it difficult to read when I was much younger and gave up on it rather easily, but decided to pick it up again after seeing the movie. I did miss the main Old Narnian characters from The Lion, The Witch, and the Wardrobe, but I loved the additions of Trufflehunter and Reepicheep (which I read with Eddie Izzard's voice in my head). I think this book is more endearing than LW&W in its asides. I appreciated little tidbits like, "Edmund had had no gifts because he was not with them at the time. (This was his own fault, and you can read about it in the other book.)" I definitely recommend this book to those who enjoyed LW&W, especially voracious young readers and middle-to-high schoolers. Can't wait to read The Voyage of the "Dawn Treader"!]]> 3.94 1951 Prince Caspian (The Chronicles of Narnia, #2)
author: C.S. Lewis
name: Meg
average rating: 3.94
book published: 1951
rating: 4
read at: 2009/02/16
date added: 2022/07/29
shelves: fantasy-books, fiction, kids-books, tween-books, teen-books, books-i-recommend, own
review:
I am really glad I finally got around to reading Prince Caspian. I found it difficult to read when I was much younger and gave up on it rather easily, but decided to pick it up again after seeing the movie. I did miss the main Old Narnian characters from The Lion, The Witch, and the Wardrobe, but I loved the additions of Trufflehunter and Reepicheep (which I read with Eddie Izzard's voice in my head). I think this book is more endearing than LW&W in its asides. I appreciated little tidbits like, "Edmund had had no gifts because he was not with them at the time. (This was his own fault, and you can read about it in the other book.)" I definitely recommend this book to those who enjoyed LW&W, especially voracious young readers and middle-to-high schoolers. Can't wait to read The Voyage of the "Dawn Treader"!
]]> Pride and Prejudice 84979 Another cover edition for this ISBN

Since its immediate success in 1813, Pride and Prejudice has remained one of the most popular novels in the English language. Jane Austen called this brilliant work "her own darling child" and its vivacious heroine, Elizabeth Bennet, "as delightful a creature as ever appeared in print." The romantic clash between the opinionated Elizabeth and her proud beau, Mr. Darcy, is a splendid performance of civilized sparring. And Jane Austen's radiant wit sparkles as her characters dance a delicate quadrille of flirtation and intrigue, making this book the most superb comedy of manners of Regency England.]]> 334 Jane Austen 0553213105 Meg 4 4.36 1813 Pride and Prejudice
author: Jane Austen
name: Meg
average rating: 4.36
book published: 1813
rating: 4
read at: 2011/02/01
date added: 2021/02/28
shelves: fiction, books-i-recommend, own
review:

]]> <![CDATA[The Invisibles Book One Deluxe Edition (The Invisibles Deluxe Edition, #1)]]> 25810146
Collects THE INVISIBLES #1-12 and ABSOLUTE VERTIGO #1.]]> 326 Grant Morrison 140126140X Meg 2 2.60 2014 The Invisibles Book One Deluxe Edition (The Invisibles Deluxe Edition, #1)
author: Grant Morrison
name: Meg
average rating: 2.60
book published: 2014
rating: 2
read at: 2016/04/01
date added: 2018/12/18
shelves: graphic-novels, scififantasybookclub, own
review:

]]> Witches of America 23847957 "Witches are gathering."

Although a self-proclaimed skeptic, Alex Mar has secretly longed for revelation, envying people with unshakable beliefs. And so when she set out to direct the documentary American Mystic, she was drawn deep into the world of present-day witchcraft. Most people hear "witches" and think of horror films and Halloween, but to the one million Americans who practice Paganism, it's a nature-worshipping, polytheistic, and very real religion.

Witches of America follows Mar on her trip into Paganism and the occult, from its roots in 1950s England to its current American mecca in the Bay Area; from a gathering of more than a thousand witches in the Illinois woods to the New Orleans branch of one of the world's most influential magical societies. She takes part in dozens of rituals, some vast and some intimate, alongside all sorts of people-single mothers, programmers, veterans, and one California priestess who becomes a close friend. This world gives Mar the freedom to confront what she believes is possible-or hopes might be.

With the wit of Susan Orlean and the insight of Leslie Jamison, Mar provides a fresh, unexpected take on faith in America. Whether evangelical, pagan priestess, or atheist, each of us craves a system of meaning to give structure to our lives, and we sometimes find it in unexpected places. Witches of America asks the central question: Why do we choose to believe in anything at all?]]> 288 Alex Mar 0374291373 Meg 4 3.24 2015 Witches of America
author: Alex Mar
name: Meg
average rating: 3.24
book published: 2015
rating: 4
read at: 2018/02/20
date added: 2018/02/20
shelves: non-fiction, own, books-i-recommend
review:

]]> The Dispossessed 25773811 386 Ursula K. Le Guin 0062421077 Meg 0 4.26 1974 The Dispossessed
author: Ursula K. Le Guin
name: Meg
average rating: 4.26
book published: 1974
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2017/11/26
shelves: fantasy-books, fiction, own, scififantasybookclub, to-read, unfinished
review:

]]> <![CDATA[Beasts Made of Night (Beasts Made of Night, #1)]]> 33395234
Taj is the most talented of the aki, young sin-eaters indentured by the mages to slay the sin-beasts. But Taj’s livelihood comes at a terrible cost. When he kills a sin-beast, a tattoo of the beast appears on his skin while the guilt of committing the sin appears on his mind. Most aki are driven mad by the process, but 17-year-old Taj is cocky and desperate to provide for his family.

When Taj is called to eat a sin of a royal, he’s suddenly thrust into the center of a dark conspiracy to destroy Kos. Now Taj must fight to save the princess that he loves â€� and his own life.

A gritty Nigerian-influenced fantasy.]]> 304 Tochi Onyebuchi 044849390X Meg 5 3.27 2017 Beasts Made of Night (Beasts Made of Night, #1)
author: Tochi Onyebuchi
name: Meg
average rating: 3.27
book published: 2017
rating: 5
read at:
date added: 2017/11/26
shelves: books-i-recommend, fantasy-books, fiction, own, teen-books
review:

]]> The Buried Giant 22522805
The Buried Giant begins as a couple set off across a troubled land of mist and rain in the hope of finding a son they have not seen in years.

Sometimes savage, often intensely moving, Kazuo Ishiguro's first novel in nearly a decade is about lost memories, love, revenge, and war.

Included on TIME Magazine's "THE 100 BEST FANTASY BOOKS OF ALL TIME"]]> 317 Kazuo Ishiguro 030727103X Meg 4 fantasy-books, fiction, own 3.56 2015 The Buried Giant
author: Kazuo Ishiguro
name: Meg
average rating: 3.56
book published: 2015
rating: 4
read at:
date added: 2017/11/26
shelves: fantasy-books, fiction, own
review:

]]> Saga #1 18867493 66 Brian K. Vaughan 1106927028 Meg 5 4.20 2012 Saga #1
author: Brian K. Vaughan
name: Meg
average rating: 4.20
book published: 2012
rating: 5
read at: 2014/04/01
date added: 2017/10/25
shelves: fiction, graphic-novels, books-i-recommend, own, scififantasybookclub
review:

]]> <![CDATA[The Brain That Changes Itself: Stories of Personal Triumph from the Frontiers of Brain Science]]> 2246394 "Fascinating. Doidge's book is a remarkable and hopeful portrait of the endless adaptability of the human brain." —Oliver Sacks

The discovery that our thoughts can change the structure and function of our brains—even into old age—is the most important breakthrough in neuroscience in four centuries. In this revolutionary look at the brain, bestselling author, psychiatrist, and psychoanalyst Norman Doidge, M.D., introduces both the brilliant scientists championing this new science of neuroplasticity and the astonishing progress of the people whose lives they've transformed. Introducing principles we can all use as well as a riveting collection of case histories—stroke patients cured, a woman with half a brain that rewired itself to work as a whole, learning and emotional disorders overcome, IQs raised, and aging brains rejuvenatedâ€�the Brain That Changes Itself has "implications for all human beings, not to mention human culture, human learning and human history" (The New York Times).

]]> 427 Norman Doidge 0143113100 Meg 5 4.29 2007 The Brain That Changes Itself: Stories of Personal Triumph from the Frontiers of Brain Science
author: Norman Doidge
name: Meg
average rating: 4.29
book published: 2007
rating: 5
read at: 2009/11/04
date added: 2017/10/01
shelves: psychology-books, own, non-fiction
review:

]]> Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell 76852
But at Hurtfew Abbey in Yorkshire, the rich, reclusive Mr Norrell has assembled a wonderful library of lost and forgotten books from England's magical past and regained some of the powers of England's magicians. He goes to London and raises a beautiful young woman from the dead. Soon he is lending his help to the government in the war against Napoleon Bonaparte, creating ghostly fleets of rain-ships to confuse and alarm the French.

All goes well until a rival magician appears. Jonathan Strange is handsome, charming, and talkative -- the very opposite of Mr Norrell. Strange thinks nothing of enduring the rigors of campaigning with Wellington's army and doing magic on battlefields. Astonished to find another practicing magician, Mr Norrell accepts Strange as a pupil. But it soon becomes clear that their ideas of what English magic ought to be are very different. For Mr Norrell, their power is something to be cautiously controlled, while Jonathan Strange will always be attracted to the wildest, most perilous forms of magic. He becomes fascinated by the ancient, shadowy figure of the Raven King, a child taken by fairies who became king of both England and Faerie, and the most legendary magician of all. Eventually Strange's heedless pursuit of long-forgotten magic threatens to destroy not only his partnership with Norrell, but everything that he holds dear.

Sophisticated, witty, and ingeniously convincing, Susanna Clarke's magisterial novel weaves magic into a flawlessly detailed vision of historical England. She has created a world so thoroughly enchanting that eight hundred pages leave readers longing for more.

Librarian's note: See alternate cover edition with ISBN 1582344167 ahref="/book/show/3...]]> 782 Susanna Clarke 1582344167 Meg 0 3.98 2004 Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell
author: Susanna Clarke
name: Meg
average rating: 3.98
book published: 2004
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2016/06/06
shelves: fiction, fantasy-books, own, to-read
review:

]]> <![CDATA[Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World That Can't Stop Talking]]> 8520610 The book that started the Quiet Revolution

At least one-third of the people we know are introverts. They are the ones who prefer listening to speaking; who innovate and create but dislike self-promotion; who favor working on their own over working in teams. It is to introverts—Rosa Parks, Chopin, Dr. Seuss, Steve Wozniak—that we owe many of the great contributions to society.Ìę

In Quiet, Susan Cain argues that we dramatically undervalue introverts and shows how much we lose in doing so. She charts the rise of the Extrovert Ideal throughout the twentieth century and explores how deeply it has come to permeate our culture. She also introduces us to successful introverts—from a witty, high-octane public speaker who recharges in solitude after his talks, to a record-breaking salesman who quietly taps into the power of questions. Passionately argued, superbly researched, and filled with indelible stories of real people, Quiet has the power to permanently change how we see introverts and, equally important, how they see themselves.

Now with Extra Libris material, including a reader’s guide and bonus content.]]> 333 Susan Cain 0307352145 Meg 5 4.07 2012 Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World That Can't Stop Talking
author: Susan Cain
name: Meg
average rating: 4.07
book published: 2012
rating: 5
read at: 2016/04/01
date added: 2016/04/01
shelves: books-i-recommend, non-fiction, own, psychology-books
review:

]]> House of Leaves 337907
Of course, neither Pulitzer Prize-winning photojournalist Will Navidson nor his companion Karen Green was prepared to face the consequences of that impossibility, until the day their two little children wandered off and their voices eerily began to return another story—of creature darkness, of an ever-growing abyss behind a closet door, and of that unholy growl which soon enough would tear through their walls and consume all their dreams.]]> 709 Mark Z. Danielewski Meg 3 4.03 2000 House of Leaves
author: Mark Z. Danielewski
name: Meg
average rating: 4.03
book published: 2000
rating: 3
read at:
date added: 2016/03/09
shelves: fiction, own, scififantasybookclub, unfinished, to-read
review:

]]> The Night Gardener 18405537 The Night Gardener follows two abandoned Irish siblings who travel to work as servants at a creepy, crumbling English manor house. But the house and its family are not quite what they seem. Soon the children are confronted by a mysterious spectre and an ancient curse that threatens their very lives. With Auxier’s exquisite command of language, The Night Gardener is a mesmerizing read and a classic in the making.]]> 350 Jonathan Auxier 141971144X Meg 0 to-read 4.05 2014 The Night Gardener
author: Jonathan Auxier
name: Meg
average rating: 4.05
book published: 2014
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2016/02/21
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> The Interpreter 13800 304 Suki Kim 0312422245 Meg 0 to-read 3.63 2003 The Interpreter
author: Suki Kim
name: Meg
average rating: 3.63
book published: 2003
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2016/02/21
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> <![CDATA[Without You, There Is No Us: My Time with the Sons of North Korea's Elite]]> 20685373
Every day, three times a day, the students march in two straight lines, singing praises to Kim Jong-il and North Korea: Without you, there is no motherland. Without you, there is no us. It is a chilling scene, but gradually Suki Kim, too, learns the tune and, without noticing, begins to hum it. It is 2011, and all universities in North Korea have been shut down for an entire year, the students sent to construction fields - except for the 270 students at Pyongyang University of Science and Technology (PUST), a walled compound where portraits of Kim Il-sung and Kim Jong-il look on impassively from the walls of every room, and where Suki has accepted a job teaching English. Over the next six months, she will eat three meals a day with her young charges and struggle to teach them to write, all under the watchful eye of the regime.

Life at PUST is lonely and claustrophobic, especially for Suki, whose letters are read by censors and who must hide her notes and photographs not only from her minders but from her colleagues - evangelical Christian missionaries who don't know or choose to ignore that Suki doesn't share their faith. She is mystified by how easily her students lie, unnerved by their obedience to the regime. To them, everything in North Korea is the best, the tallest, the most delicious, the envy of all nations. Still, she cannot help but love them - their boyish enthusiasm, their eagerness to please, the flashes of curiosity that have not yet been extinguished.

As the weeks pass, she begins to hint at the existence of a world beyond their own - at such exotic activities as surfing the Internet or traveling freely and, more dangerously, at electoral democracy and other ideas forbidden in a country where defectors risk torture and execution. The students in turn offer Suki tantalizing glimpses into their lives, from their thoughts on how to impress girls to their disappointment that soccer games are only televised when the North Korean team wins. Then Kim Jong-il dies, leaving the students devastated, and leading Suki to question whether the gulf between her world and theirs can ever be bridged.

Without You, There Is No Us offers a moving and incalculably rare glimpse of life in the world's most unknowable country, and at the privileged young men she calls "soldiers and slaves."]]> 291 Suki Kim 0307720659 Meg 0 3.93 2014 Without You, There Is No Us: My Time with the Sons of North Korea's Elite
author: Suki Kim
name: Meg
average rating: 3.93
book published: 2014
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2016/02/21
shelves: books-i-recommend, non-fiction, own
review:

]]> <![CDATA[How to Be Alone (The School of Life)]]> 20518977 Our fast-paced society does not approve of solitude; being alone is literally anti-social and some even find it sinister. Why is this so when autonomy, personal freedom and individualism are more highly prized than ever before? Sara Maitland answers this question by exploring changing attitudes throughout history. Offering experiments and strategies for overturning our fear of solitude, she to helps us to practise it without anxiety and encourages us to see the benefits of spending time by ourselves, By indulging in the experience of being alone, we can be inspired to find our own rewards and ultimately lead more enriched, fuller lives." From ]]> 162 Sara Maitland 125005902X Meg 0 to-read 3.31 2014 How to Be Alone (The School of Life)
author: Sara Maitland
name: Meg
average rating: 3.31
book published: 2014
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2016/02/21
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> <![CDATA[Dragonfly in Amber (Outlander, #2)]]> 1068825 Outlander... a magnificent epic that once again sweeps us back in time to the drama and passion of 18th-century Scotland...

For twenty years Claire Randall has kept her secrets. But now she is returning with her grown daughter to Scotland's majestic mist-shrouded hills. Here Claire plans to reveal a truth as stunning as the events that gave it birth: about the mystery of an ancient circle of standing stones ...about a love that transcends the boundaries of time ...and about James Fraser, a Scottish warrior whose gallantry once drew a young Claire from the security of her century to the dangers of his ....

Now a legacy of blood and desire will test her beautiful copper-haired daughter, Brianna, as Claire's spellbinding journey of self-discovery continues in the intrigue-ridden Paris court of Charles Stuart ...in a race to thwart a doomed Highlands uprising ...and in a desperate fight to save both the child and the man she loves....]]> 947 Diana Gabaldon 0770428770 Meg 0 4.23 1992 Dragonfly in Amber (Outlander, #2)
author: Diana Gabaldon
name: Meg
average rating: 4.23
book published: 1992
rating: 0
read at: 2015/08/10
date added: 2016/02/10
shelves: own, series, fiction, fantasy-books
review:

]]> <![CDATA[Guards! Guards! (Discworld, #8; City Watch, #1)]]> 64216 376 Terry Pratchett 0061020648 Meg 0 4.33 1989 Guards! Guards! (Discworld, #8; City Watch, #1)
author: Terry Pratchett
name: Meg
average rating: 4.33
book published: 1989
rating: 0
read at: 2016/02/10
date added: 2016/02/10
shelves: own, funny-books, fiction, series
review:

]]> <![CDATA[Mort (Discworld, #4; Death, #1)]]> 386372
Death is the Grim Reaper of the Discworld, a black-robed skeleton with a scythe who ushers souls into the next world. He is also fond of cats and endlessly baffled by humanity. Soon Death is yearning to experience what humanity really has to offer, but to do that, he'll need to hire some help.

It's an offer Mort can't refuse. As Death's apprentice he'll have free board, use of the company horse—and being dead isn't compulsory. It's a dream job—until Mort falls in love with Death's daughter, Ysabell, and discovers that your boss can be a killer on your love life
]]> 243 Terry Pratchett 0061020680 Meg 0 4.24 1987 Mort (Discworld, #4; Death, #1)
author: Terry Pratchett
name: Meg
average rating: 4.24
book published: 1987
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2015/09/05
shelves: funny-books, fiction, fantasy-books, series, own
review:

]]> Cardboard 13356190 288 Doug TenNapel 0545418739 Meg 0 to-read 4.15 2012 Cardboard
author: Doug TenNapel
name: Meg
average rating: 4.15
book published: 2012
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2015/07/24
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> Half of a Yellow Sun 18749 A masterly, haunting new novel from a writer heralded by The Washington Post Book World as “the 21st-century daughter of Chinua Achebe,â€� Half of a Yellow Sun re-creates a seminal moment in modern African history: Biafra’s impassioned struggle to establish an independent republic in Nigeria in the 1960s, and the chilling violence that followed.

With astonishing empathy and the effortless grace of a natural storyteller, Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie weaves together the lives of three characters swept up in the turbulence of the decade. Thirteen-year-old Ugwu is employed as a houseboy for a university professor full of revolutionary zeal. Olanna is the professor’s beautiful mistress, who has abandoned her life of privilege in Lagos for a dusty university town and the charisma of her new lover. And Richard is a shy young Englishman in thrall to Olanna’s twin sister, an enigmatic figure who refuses to belong to anyone. As Nigerian troops advance and the three must run for their lives, their ideals are severely tested, as are their loyalties to one another.

Epic, ambitious, and triumphantly realized, Half of a Yellow Sun is a remarkable novel about moral responsibility, about the end of colonialism, about ethnic allegiances, about class and race—and the ways in which love can complicate them all. Adichie brilliantly evokes the promise and the devastating disappointments that marked this time and place, bringing us one of the most powerful, dramatic, and intensely emotional pictures of modern Africa that we have ever had.]]> 435 Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie 1400044162 Meg 0 to-read 4.34 2006 Half of a Yellow Sun
author: Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
name: Meg
average rating: 4.34
book published: 2006
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2015/07/17
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> Purple Hibiscus 126381
When Nigeria begins to fall apart under a military coup, Kambili’s father sends her and her brother away to stay with their aunt, a University professor, whose house is noisy and full of laughter. There, Kambili and her brother discover a life and love beyond the confines of their father’s authority. The visit will lift the silence from their world and, in time, give rise to devotion and defiance that reveal themselves in profound and unexpected ways.

This is a book about the promise of freedom; about the blurred lines between childhood and adulthood; between love and hatred, between the old gods and the new.]]> 336 Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie Meg 0 to-read 4.14 2003 Purple Hibiscus
author: Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
name: Meg
average rating: 4.14
book published: 2003
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2015/07/17
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> <![CDATA[Graceling (Graceling Realm, #1)]]> 3236307
She never expects to fall in love with beautiful Prince Po.

She never expects to learn the truth behind her Grace—or the terrible secret that lies hidden far away . . . a secret that could destroy all seven kingdoms with words alone.

With elegant, evocative prose and a cast of unforgettable characters, debut author Kristin Cashore creates a mesmerizing world, a death-defying adventure, and a heart-racing romance that will consume you, hold you captive, and leave you wanting more.]]> 471 Kristin Cashore 015206396X Meg 0 to-read 4.07 2008 Graceling (Graceling Realm, #1)
author: Kristin Cashore
name: Meg
average rating: 4.07
book published: 2008
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2015/06/14
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> <![CDATA[Mistakes Were Made (But Not by Me): Why We Justify Foolish Beliefs, Bad Decisions, and Hurtful Acts]]> 522525 Renowned social psychologists Carol Tavris and Elliot Aronson take a compelling look into how the brain is wired for self-justification.

Why is it so hard to say “I made a mistake”—and really believe it?

When we make mistakes, cling to outdated attitudes, or mistreat other people, we must calm the cognitive dissonance that jars our feelings of self-worth. And so, unconsciously, we create fictions that absolve us of responsibility, restoring our belief that we are smart, moral, and right—a belief that often keeps us on a course that is dumb, immoral, and wrong. Backed by years of research, Mistakes Were Made (But Not by Me) offers a fascinating explanation of self-justification—how it works, the damage it can cause, and how we can overcome it.

This updated edition concludes with an extended discussion of how we can live with dissonance; learn from it; and perhaps, eventually, forgive ourselves.]]> 292 Carol Tavris 0151010986 Meg 0 to-read 4.01 2007 Mistakes Were Made (But Not by Me): Why We Justify Foolish Beliefs, Bad Decisions, and Hurtful Acts
author: Carol Tavris
name: Meg
average rating: 4.01
book published: 2007
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2015/06/12
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> <![CDATA[The End of the World Running Club]]> 22617452
So when it does end in a catastrophic asteroid strike and Edgar and his family find refuge in an Edinburgh army barracks, it comes as something of a relief. His world becomes simpler, life becomes easier, things might just be looking up.

But nothing's ever that simple. Returning from a salvage run in the city, Edgar finds his family gone, taken to the south coast for evacuation by an international task force. ÌęSuddenly he finds himself facing a gruelling journey on foot across a devastated United Kingdom. Accompanied by a group of misfits that include a large, hairy tattoo artist and an old man who claims to have run around Australia, Edgar must race against time and overcome his own short-comings, not to mention 100 mile canyons and a very strange council estate, to find the people he loves before he loses them forever.

A vivid, gripping story of hope, long-distance running and how we break the limits of our own endurance.]]> 423 Adrian J. Walker Meg 0 to-read 3.85 2014 The End of the World Running Club
author: Adrian J. Walker
name: Meg
average rating: 3.85
book published: 2014
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2015/06/12
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> <![CDATA[The Orpheus Clock: The Search for My Family's Art Treasures Stolen by the Nazis]]> 23492837
Simon Goodman’s grandparents came from German-Jewish banking dynasties and perished in concentration camps. And that’s almost all he knew about them—his father rarely spoke of their family history or heritage. But when he passed away, and Simon received his father’s old papers, a story began to emerge.

The Gutmanns, as they were known then, rose from a small Bohemian hamlet to become one of Germany’s most powerful banking families. They also amassed a magnificent, world-class art collection that included works by Degas, Renoir, Botticelli, Guardi, and many, many others. But the Nazi regime snatched from them everything they had worked to their remarkable art, their immense wealth, their prominent social standing, and their very lives.

Simon grew up in London with little knowledge of his father’s efforts to recover their family’s prized possessions. It was only after his father’s death that Simon began to piece together the clues about the Gutmannsâ€� stolen legacy and the Nazi looting machine. He learned much of the collection had gone to Hitler and Hermann Goering; other works had been smuggled through Switzerland, sold and resold to collectors and dealers, with many works now in famous museums. More still had been recovered by Allied forces only to be stolen again by heartless bureaucrats—European governments quietly absorbed thousands of works of art into their own collections. Through painstaking detective work across two continents, Simon has been able to prove that many works belonged to his family, and successfully secure their return.

With the help of his family, Simon initiated the first Nazi looting case to be settled in the United States. They also brought about the first major restitution in The Netherlands since the post-war era.

Goodman’s dramatic story, told with great heart, reveals a rich family history almost obliterated by the Nazis. It is not only the account of a twenty-year long detective hunt for family treasure, but an unforgettable tale of redemption and restoration.]]> 368 Simon Goodman 1451697635 Meg 0 to-read 4.12 2015 The Orpheus Clock: The Search for My Family's Art Treasures Stolen by the Nazis
author: Simon Goodman
name: Meg
average rating: 4.12
book published: 2015
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2015/06/12
shelves: to-read
review:

]]>