Britt's bookshelf: to-read en-US Fri, 28 Apr 2023 17:52:45 -0700 60 Britt's bookshelf: to-read 144 41 /images/layout/goodreads_logo_144.jpg Black Cake 57926137 We can’t choose what we inherit. But can we choose who we become?

In present-day California, Eleanor Bennett’s death leaves behind a puzzling inheritance for her two children, Byron and Benny: a black cake, made from a family recipe with a long history, and a voice recording. In her message, Eleanor shares a tumultuous story about a headstrong young swimmer who escapes her island home under suspicion of murder. The heartbreaking tale Eleanor unfolds, the secrets she still holds back, and the mystery of a long-lost child challenge everything the siblings thought they knew about their lineage and themselves.

Can Byron and Benny reclaim their once-close relationship, piece together Eleanor’s true history, and fulfill her final request to “share the black cake when the time is right�? Will their mother’s revelations bring them back together or leave them feeling more lost than ever?

Charmaine Wilkerson’s debut novel is a story of how the inheritance of betrayals, secrets, memories, and even names can shape relationships and history. Deeply evocative and beautifully written, Black Cake is an extraordinary journey through the life of a family changed forever by the choices of its matriarch.]]> 385 Charmaine Wilkerson Britt 0 to-read 4.06 2022 Black Cake
author: Charmaine Wilkerson
name: Britt
average rating: 4.06
book published: 2022
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2023/04/28
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> <![CDATA[The Three-Body Problem (Remembrance of Earth’s Past, #1)]]> 20518872 472 Liu Cixin Britt 0 to-read 4.07 2006 The Three-Body Problem (Remembrance of Earth’s Past, #1)
author: Liu Cixin
name: Britt
average rating: 4.07
book published: 2006
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2021/10/04
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> Such a Fun Age 43923951 Such a Fun Age is a page-turning and big-hearted story about race and privilege, set around a young black babysitter, her well-intentioned employer, and a surprising connection that threatens to undo them both.

Alix Chamberlain is a woman who gets what she wants and has made a living, with her confidence-driven brand, showing other women how to do the same. So she is shocked when her babysitter, Emira Tucker, is confronted while watching the Chamberlains' toddler one night, walking the aisles of their local high-end supermarket. The store's security guard, seeing a young black woman out late with a white child, accuses Emira of kidnapping two-year-old Briar. A small crowd gathers, a bystander films everything, and Emira is furious and humiliated. Alix resolves to make things right.

But Emira herself is aimless, broke, and wary of Alix's desire to help. At twenty-five, she is about to lose her health insurance and has no idea what to do with her life. When the video of Emira unearths someone from Alix's past, both women find themselves on a crash course that will upend everything they think they know about themselves, and each other.

With empathy and piercing social commentary, Such a Fun Age explores the stickiness of transactional relationships, what it means to make someone family, and the complicated reality of being a grown up. It is a searing debut for our times.]]> 310 Kiley Reid 052554190X Britt 0 to-read 3.76 2019 Such a Fun Age
author: Kiley Reid
name: Britt
average rating: 3.76
book published: 2019
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2021/01/11
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> Anxious People 49127718 A poignant, charming novel about a crime that never took place, a would-be bank robber who disappears into thin air, and eight extremely anxious strangers who find they have more in common than they ever imagined

Looking at real estate isn't usually a life-or-death situation, but an apartment open house becomes just that when a failed bank robber bursts in and takes a group of strangers hostage. The captives include a recently retired couple who relentlessly hunt down fixer-uppers to avoid the painful truth that they can't fix up their own marriage. There's a wealthy banker who has been too busy making money to care about anyone else and a young couple who are about to have their first child but can't seem to agree on anything, from where they want to live to how they met in the first place. Add to the mix an eighty-seven-year-old woman who has lived long enough not to be afraid of someone waving a gun in her face, a flustered but still-ready-to-make-a-deal real estate agent, and a mystery man who has locked himself in the apartment's only bathroom, and you've got the worst group of hostages in the world.

Each of them carries a lifetime of grievances, hurts, secrets, and passions that are ready to boil over. None of them is entirely who they appear to be. And all of them—the bank robber included—desperately crave some sort of rescue. As the authorities and the media surround the premises, these reluctant allies will reveal surprising truths about themselves and set in a motion a chain of events so unexpected that even they can hardly explain what happens next.

Humorous, compassionate, and wise, Anxious People is an ingeniously constructed story about the enduring power of friendship, forgiveness, and hope—the things that save us, even in the most anxious of times.

Includes short story - The Last Round of Golf]]> 336 Fredrik Backman 198216963X Britt 0 to-read 4.17 2019 Anxious People
author: Fredrik Backman
name: Britt
average rating: 4.17
book published: 2019
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2020/08/25
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> Women Who Run With the Wolves 241823
In "Women Who Run With the Wolves," Dr Estes unfolds rich intercultural myths, fairytales and stories, many from her own family, in order to help women reconnect with the fierce, healthy, visionary attributes of this instinctual nature. Through the stories and commentaries in this remarkable book, we retrieve, examine, love, and understand the Wild Woman, and hold her against our deep psyches as one who is both magic and medicine. Dr Estes has created a new lexicon for describing the female psyche. Fertile and life-giving, it is a psychology of women in the truest sense, a knowing of the soul.]]> 537 Clarissa Pinkola Estés 0345409876 Britt 0 to-read 4.12 1992 Women Who Run With the Wolves
author: Clarissa Pinkola Estés
name: Britt
average rating: 4.12
book published: 1992
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2019/01/03
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> <![CDATA[The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck: A Counterintuitive Approach to Living a Good Life]]> 28257707 Alternate cover edition of ISBN 9780062457738

In this generation-defining self-help guide, a superstar blogger cuts through the crap to show us how to stop trying to be "positive" all the time so that we can truly become better, happier people.

For decades, we’ve been told that positive thinking is the key to a happy, rich life. "F**k positivity," Mark Manson says. "Let’s be honest, shit is f**ked and we have to live with it." In his wildly popular Internet blog, Manson doesn’t sugarcoat or equivocate. He tells it like it is—a dose of raw, refreshing, honest truth that is sorely lacking today. The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F**k is his antidote to the coddling, let’s-all-feel-good mindset that has infected American society and spoiled a generation, rewarding them with gold medals just for showing up.

Manson makes the argument, backed both by academic research and well-timed poop jokes, that improving our lives hinges not on our ability to turn lemons into lemonade, but on learning to stomach lemons better. Human beings are flawed and limited�"not everybody can be extraordinary, there are winners and losers in society, and some of it is not fair or your fault." Manson advises us to get to know our limitations and accept them. Once we embrace our fears, faults, and uncertainties, once we stop running and avoiding and start confronting painful truths, we can begin to find the courage, perseverance, honesty, responsibility, curiosity, and forgiveness we seek.

There are only so many things we can give a f**k about so we need to figure out which ones really matter, Manson makes clear. While money is nice, caring about what you do with your life is better, because true wealth is about experience. A much-needed grab-you-by-the-shoulders-and-look-you-in-the-eye moment of real-talk, filled with entertaining stories and profane, ruthless humor, The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F**k is a refreshing slap for a generation to help them lead contented, grounded lives.]]> 212 Mark Manson Britt 0 have-to-read, to-read 3.87 2016 The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck: A Counterintuitive Approach to Living a Good Life
author: Mark Manson
name: Britt
average rating: 3.87
book published: 2016
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2019/01/03
shelves: have-to-read, to-read
review:

]]> 10% Happier 18505796
Eventually Harris stumbled upon an effective way to rein in that voice, something he always assumed to be either impossible or useless: meditation, a tool that research suggests can do everything from lower your blood pressure to essentially rewire your brain. "10% Happier" takes readers on a ride from the outer reaches of neuroscience to the inner sanctum of network news to the bizarre fringes of America's spiritual scene, and leaves them with a takeaway that could actually change their lives.]]> 256 Dan Harris 0062265423 Britt 0 have-to-read, to-read 3.87 2014 10% Happier
author: Dan Harris
name: Britt
average rating: 3.87
book published: 2014
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2019/01/03
shelves: have-to-read, to-read
review:

]]> <![CDATA[Salt, Fat, Acid, Heat: Mastering the Elements of Good Cooking]]> 30753841
In the tradition of The Joy of Cooking and How to Cook Everything comes Salt, Fat, Acid, Heat, an ambitious new approach to cooking by a major new culinary voice. Chef and writer Samin Nosrat has taught everyone from professional chefs to middle school kids to author Michael Pollan to cook using her revolutionary, yet simple, philosophy. Master the use of just four elements—Salt, which enhances flavor; Fat, which delivers flavor and generates texture; Acid, which balances flavor; and Heat, which ultimately determines the texture of food—and anything you cook will be delicious. By explaining the hows and whys of good cooking, Salt, Fat, Acid, Heat will teach and inspire a new generation of cooks how to confidently make better decisions in the kitchen and cook delicious meals with any ingredients, anywhere, at any time.

Echoing Samin’s own journey from culinary novice to award-winning chef, Salt, Fat Acid, Heat immediately bridges the gap between home and professional kitchens. With charming narrative, illustrated walkthroughs, and a lighthearted approach to kitchen science, Samin demystifies the four elements of good cooking for everyone. Refer to the canon of 100 essential recipes—and dozens of variations—to put the lessons into practice and make bright, balanced vinaigrettes, perfectly caramelized roast vegetables, tender braised meats, and light, flaky pastry doughs.

Featuring 150 illustrations and infographics that reveal an atlas to the world of flavor by renowned illustrator Wendy MacNaughton, Salt, Fat, Acid, Heat will be your compass in the kitchen. Destined to be a classic, it just might be the last cookbook you’ll ever need.

With a foreword by Michael Pollan.]]> 480 Samin Nosrat 1476753830 Britt 0 to-read 4.39 2017 Salt, Fat, Acid, Heat: Mastering the Elements of Good Cooking
author: Samin Nosrat
name: Britt
average rating: 4.39
book published: 2017
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2019/01/02
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> The Book Thief 19063 Librarian's note: An alternate cover edition can be found here

It is 1939. Nazi Germany. The country is holding its breath. Death has never been busier, and will be busier still.

By her brother's graveside, Liesel's life is changed when she picks up a single object, partially hidden in the snow. It is The Gravedigger's Handbook, left behind there by accident, and it is her first act of book thievery. So begins a love affair with books and words, as Liesel, with the help of her accordian-playing foster father, learns to read. Soon she is stealing books from Nazi book-burnings, the mayor's wife's library, wherever there are books to be found.

But these are dangerous times. When Liesel's foster family hides a Jew in their basement, Liesel's world is both opened up, and closed down.

In superbly crafted writing that burns with intensity, award-winning author Markus Zusak has given us one of the most enduring stories of our time.

(Note: this title was not published as YA fiction)]]> 592 Markus Zusak Britt 0 to-read 4.38 2005 The Book Thief
author: Markus Zusak
name: Britt
average rating: 4.38
book published: 2005
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2019/01/02
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> <![CDATA[The First Fifteen Lives of Harry August]]> 35066358 417 Claire North Britt 0 to-read 4.03 2014 The First Fifteen Lives of Harry August
author: Claire North
name: Britt
average rating: 4.03
book published: 2014
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2019/01/02
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> Eleanor & Park 15745753 "So did Jerry Lee Lewis," Eleanor answers.
"I'm not kidding," he says.
"You should be," she says, "we're 16."
"What about Romeo and Juliet?"
"Shallow, confused, then dead."
"I love you," Park says.
"Wherefore art thou," Eleanor answers.
"I'm not kidding," he says.
"You should be."

Set over one school year in 1986, Eleanor & Park is the story of two star-crossed misfits—smart enough to know first love almost never lasts, but brave and desperate enough to try.]]> 328 Rainbow Rowell 1250012570 Britt 0 to-read 3.92 2012 Eleanor & Park
author: Rainbow Rowell
name: Britt
average rating: 3.92
book published: 2012
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2018/12/05
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> <![CDATA[We Are Never Meeting in Real Life.]]> 33381433 We Are Never Meeting in Real Life., "bitches gotta eat" blogger and comedian Samantha Irby turns the serio-comic essay into an art form. Whether talking about how her difficult childhood has led to a problem in making "adult" budgets, explaining why she should be the new Bachelorette--she's "35-ish, but could easily pass for 60-something"--detailing a disastrous pilgrimage-slash-romantic-vacation to Nashville to scatter her estranged father's ashes, sharing awkward sexual encounters, or dispensing advice on how to navigate friendships with former drinking buddies who are now suburban moms--hang in there for the Costco loot--she's as deft at poking fun at the ghosts of her past self as she is at capturing powerful emotional truths.

Chapter titles:

My Bachelorette application --
A blues for Fred --
The miracle porker --
Do you guys pay your fucking bills or what? --
You don't have to be grateful for sex --
A Christmas carol --
Happy birthday --
A case for remaining indoors --
A total attack of the heart --
A civil union --
Mavis --
Fuck it, bitch. Stay fat --
Nashville hot chicken --
I'm in love and it's boring --
A bomb, probably --
The real housewife of Kalamazoo --
Thirteen questions to ask before getting married --
Yo, I need a job --
Feelings are a mistake --
We are never meeting in real life]]> 275 Samantha Irby 1101912197 Britt 0 to-read 3.90 2017 We Are Never Meeting in Real Life.
author: Samantha Irby
name: Britt
average rating: 3.90
book published: 2017
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2017/12/05
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> <![CDATA[The Effortless Experience: Conquering the New Battleground for Customer Loyalty]]> 17924011 Rick DeLisi 1469055589 Britt 0 to-read, shopify 3.89 2013 The Effortless Experience: Conquering the New Battleground for Customer Loyalty
author: Rick DeLisi
name: Britt
average rating: 3.89
book published: 2013
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2016/08/15
shelves: to-read, shopify
review:

]]> <![CDATA[Mindset: The New Psychology of Success]]> 40745 A newer edition of this book can be found here.

After decades of research, world-renowned Stanford University psychologist Carol S. Dweck, Ph.D., discovered a simple but groundbreaking idea: the power of mindset. In this brilliant book, she shows how success in school, work, sports, the arts, and almost every area of human endeavor can be dramatically influenced by how we think about our talents and abilities. People with a fixed mindset � those who believe that abilities are fixed � are less likely to flourish than those with a growth mindset � those who believe that abilities can be developed. Mindset reveals how great parents, teachers, managers, and athletes can put this idea to use to foster outstanding accomplishment.

In this edition, Dweck offers new insights into her now famous and broadly embraced concept. She introduces a phenomenon she calls false growth mindset and guides people toward adopting a deeper, truer growth mindset. She also expands the mindset concept beyond the individual, applying it to the cultures of groups and organizations. With the right mindset, you can motivate those you lead, teach, and love � to transform their lives and your own.]]> 276 Carol S. Dweck Britt 0 to-read, shopify 4.09 2006 Mindset: The New Psychology of Success
author: Carol S. Dweck
name: Britt
average rating: 4.09
book published: 2006
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2016/08/11
shelves: to-read, shopify
review:

]]> <![CDATA[The Art of Learning: A Journey in the Pursuit of Excellence]]> 857333 265 Josh Waitzkin 0743277457 Britt 0 shopify, to-read 4.01 2007 The Art of Learning: A Journey in the Pursuit of Excellence
author: Josh Waitzkin
name: Britt
average rating: 4.01
book published: 2007
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2016/08/11
shelves: shopify, to-read
review:

]]> One Day 6280118
So where will they be on this one day next year? And the year after that?

And every year that follows?
--back cover]]> 435 David Nicholls 0340896965 Britt 0 to-read 3.86 2009 One Day
author: David Nicholls
name: Britt
average rating: 3.86
book published: 2009
rating: 0
read at: 2016/02/01
date added: 2016/04/11
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> Exit Here. 1240370 Enter apathy.

Travis is back from college for the summer, and he's just starting to settle in to the usual pattern at home: drinking, drugging, watching porn, and hooking up.

But Travis isn't settling in like he used to; something isn't right. Maybe it's that deadly debauch in Hawaii, the memories of which Travis can't quite shake. Maybe it's Laura, Travis's ex, who reappears on the scene after a messy breakup and seems to want to get together -- or not. Or maybe it's his suddenly sensing how empty and messed up his life is, and wanting out.

But once you're at the party, it's tough to leave...

]]> 464 Jason Myers 1416917489 Britt 0 to-read 3.89 2007 Exit Here.
author: Jason Myers
name: Britt
average rating: 3.89
book published: 2007
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2016/04/06
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> Giovanni’s Room 38462 here.

Baldwin's haunting and controversial second novel is his most sustained treatment of sexuality, and a classic of gay literature. In a 1950s Paris swarming with expatriates and characterized by dangerous liaisons and hidden violence, an American finds himself unable to repress his impulses, despite his determination to live the conventional life he envisions for himself. After meeting and proposing to a young woman, he falls into a lengthy affair with an Italian bartender and is confounded and tortured by his sexual identity as he oscillates between the two.

Examining the mystery of love and passion in an intensely imagined narrative, Baldwin creates a moving and complex story of death and desire that is revelatory in its insight.]]> 159 James Baldwin Britt 0 to-read 4.31 1956 Giovanni’s Room
author: James Baldwin
name: Britt
average rating: 4.31
book published: 1956
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2016/04/06
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> Of Human Bondage 31548
Marked by countless similarities to Maugham’s own life, his masterpiece is “not an autobiography,� as the author himself once contended, “but an autobiographical novel; fact and fiction are inexorably mingled; the emotions are my own.”]]> 684 W. Somerset Maugham 0451530179 Britt 0 to-read 4.13 1915 Of Human Bondage
author: W. Somerset Maugham
name: Britt
average rating: 4.13
book published: 1915
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2016/04/06
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> <![CDATA[The Defining Decade: Why Your Twenties Matter - And How to Make the Most of Them Now]]> 13523061 241 Meg Jay 0446575062 Britt 0 to-read 4.09 2012 The Defining Decade: Why Your Twenties Matter - And How to Make the Most of Them Now
author: Meg Jay
name: Britt
average rating: 4.09
book published: 2012
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2016/04/06
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> Walden or, Life in the Woods 16902 352 Henry David Thoreau Britt 0 to-read 3.77 1854 Walden or, Life in the Woods
author: Henry David Thoreau
name: Britt
average rating: 3.77
book published: 1854
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2016/04/06
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> <![CDATA[The Art of Asking; or, How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Let People Help]]> 20980987
Even while Amanda is both celebrated and attacked for her fearlessness in asking for help, she finds that there are important things she cannot ask for-as a musician, as a friend, and as a wife. She learns that she isn't alone in this, that so many people are afraid to ask for help, and it paralyzes their lives and relationships. In this groundbreaking book, she explores these barriers in her own life and in the lives of those around her, and discovers the emotional, philosophical, and practical aspects of The Art Of Asking.

Part manifesto, part revelation, this is the story of an artist struggling with the new rules of exchange in the twenty-first century, both on and off the Internet. The Art Of Asking will inspire readers to rethink their own ideas about asking, giving, art, and love.]]> 339 Amanda Palmer 1455581089 Britt 0 to-read 3.89 2014 The Art of Asking; or, How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Let People Help
author: Amanda Palmer
name: Britt
average rating: 3.89
book published: 2014
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2016/04/06
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> <![CDATA[Wild: From Lost to Found on the Pacific Crest Trail]]> 12262741 An alternative cover edition for this ISBN can be found here

At twenty-two, Cheryl Strayed thought she had lost everything. In the wake of her mother’s death, her family scattered and her own marriage was soon destroyed. Four years later, with nothing more to lose, she made the most impulsive decision of her life. With no experience or training, driven only by blind will, she would hike more than a thousand miles of the Pacific Crest Trail from the Mojave Desert through California and Oregon to Washington State � and she would do it alone.

Told with suspense and style, sparkling with warmth and humor, Wild powerfully captures the terrors and pleasures of one young woman forging ahead against all odds on a journey that maddened, strengthened, and ultimately healed her.]]> 336 Cheryl Strayed 0307592731 Britt 0 to-read 4.06 2012 Wild: From Lost to Found on the Pacific Crest Trail
author: Cheryl Strayed
name: Britt
average rating: 4.06
book published: 2012
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2016/04/06
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> Cue for Treason 643898
Set in the turbulent days of Elizabeth I, this classic story of danger and intrigue conjures up a world of mystery, twists and turns and thrilling action.]]> Geoffrey Trease 014030231X Britt 0 to-read 3.59 1940 Cue for Treason
author: Geoffrey Trease
name: Britt
average rating: 3.59
book published: 1940
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2016/03/27
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> <![CDATA[The Rosie Project (Don Tillman, #1)]]> 16181775
Don Tillman, professor of genetics, has never been on a second date. He is a man who can count all his friends on the fingers of one hand, whose lifelong difficulty with social rituals has convinced him that he is simply not wired for romance. So when an acquaintance informs him that he would make a “wonderful� husband, his first reaction is shock. Yet he must concede to the statistical probability that there is someone for everyone, and he embarks upon The Wife Project. In the orderly, evidence-based manner with which he approaches all things, Don sets out to find the perfect partner. She will be punctual and logical—most definitely not a barmaid, a smoker, a drinker, or a late-arriver.

Yet Rosie Jarman is all these things. She is also beguiling, fiery, intelligent—and on a quest of her own. She is looking for her biological father, a search that a certain DNA expert might be able to help her with. Don's Wife Project takes a back burner to the Father Project and an unlikely relationship blooms, forcing the scientifically minded geneticist to confront the spontaneous whirlwind that is Rosie—and the realization that love is not always what looks good on paper.

The Rosie Project is a moving and hilarious novel for anyone who has ever tenaciously gone after life or love in the face of overwhelming challenges.]]> 292 Graeme Simsion 1476729085 Britt 0 to-read 4.00 2013 The Rosie Project (Don Tillman, #1)
author: Graeme Simsion
name: Britt
average rating: 4.00
book published: 2013
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2016/01/14
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> <![CDATA[The Rosie Effect (Don Tillman, #2)]]> 23492671
Don sets about learning the protocols of becoming a father, but his unusual research style gets him into trouble with the law. Fortunately his best friend Gene is on hand to offer advice: he's left Claudia and moved in with Don and Rosie.

As Don tries to schedule time for pregnancy research, getting Gene and Claudia to reconcile, servicing the industrial refrigeration unit that occupies half his apartment, helping Dave the Baseball Fan save his business, and staying on the right side of Lydia the social worker, he almost misses the biggest problem of all: he might lose Rosie when she needs him the most.]]> 368 Graeme Simsion 1476767327 Britt 0 to-read 3.62 2014 The Rosie Effect (Don Tillman, #2)
author: Graeme Simsion
name: Britt
average rating: 3.62
book published: 2014
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2016/01/14
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> <![CDATA[Your Heart Is a Muscle the Size of a Fist]]> 25604513
On a rainy, cold day in November, young Victor--a boyish, scrappy world traveler who's run away from home--sets out to sell marijuana to the 50,000 anti-globalization protestors gathered in the streets. It quickly becomes clear that the throng determined to shut the city down--from environmentalists to teamsters to anarchists--are testing the patience of the police, and what started as a peaceful protest is threatening to erupt into violence.

Over the course of one life-altering afternoon, the lives of seven people will change forever: foremost among them police chief Bishop, the estranged father Victor hasn't seen in three years, two protestors struggling to stay true to their non-violent principles as the day descends into chaos, two police officers in the street, and the coolly elegant financial minister from Sri Lanka whose life, as well as his country's fate, hinges on getting through the angry crowd, out of jail, and to his meeting with the president of the United States.

In this raw and breathtaking novel, Yapa marries a deep rage with a deep humanity, and in doing so casts an unflinching eye on the nature and limits of compassion.]]> 314 Sunil Yapa 0316386537 Britt 0 to-read 3.58 2016 Your Heart Is a Muscle the Size of a Fist
author: Sunil Yapa
name: Britt
average rating: 3.58
book published: 2016
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2016/01/13
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> <![CDATA[The Life and Death of Sophie Stark]]> 23281949 Gripping and provocative, The Life and Death of Sophie Stark tells a story of fame, love, and legacy through the propulsive rise of an iconoclastic artist.

“It’s hard for me to talk about love. I think movies are the way I do that,� says Sophie Stark, a visionary and unapologetic filmmaker. She uses stories from the lives of those around her—her obsession, her girlfriend, and her husband—to create movies that bring her critical recognition and acclaim. But as her career explodes, Sophie’s unwavering dedication to her art leads to the shattering betrayal of the people she loves most.

Told in a chorus of voices belonging to those who knew her best, The Life and Death of Sophie Stark is an intimate portrait of an elusive woman whose monumental talent and relentless pursuit of truth reveal the cost of producing great art, both for the artist and for the people around her.]]> 288 Anna North 0399173390 Britt 0 to-read 3.68 2015 The Life and Death of Sophie Stark
author: Anna North
name: Britt
average rating: 3.68
book published: 2015
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2016/01/13
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> <![CDATA[Trigger Warning: Short Fictions and Disturbances]]> 22522808 New York Times bestselling author Neil Gaiman returns to dazzle, captivate, haunt, and entertain with this third collection of short fiction following Smoke and Mirrors and Fragile Things--which includes a never-before published American Gods story, "Black Dog," written exclusively for this volume.

In this new anthology, Neil Gaiman pierces the veil of reality to reveal the enigmatic, shadowy world that lies beneath. Trigger Warning includes previously published pieces of short fiction--stories, verse, and a very special Doctor Who story that was written for the fiftieth anniversary of the beloved series in 2013--as well "Black Dog," a new tale that revisits the world of American Gods, exclusive to this collection.

Trigger Warning explores the masks we all wear and the people we are beneath them to reveal our vulnerabilities and our truest selves. Here is a rich cornucopia of horror and ghosts stories, science fiction and fairy tales, fabulism and poetry that explore the realm of experience and emotion. In "Adventure Story"--a thematic companion to The Ocean at the End of the Lane--Gaiman ponders death and the way people take their stories with them when they die. His social media experience "A Calendar of Tales" are short takes inspired by replies to fan tweets about the months of the year--stories of pirates and the March winds, an igloo made of books, and a Mother's Day card that portends disturbances in the universe. Gaiman offers his own ingenious spin on Sherlock Holmes in his award-nominated mystery tale "The Case of Death and Honey". And "Click-Clack the Rattlebag" explains the creaks and clatter we hear when we're all alone in the darkness.

A sophisticated writer whose creative genius is unparalleled, Gaiman entrances with his literary alchemy, transporting us deep into the realm of imagination, where the fantastical becomes real and the everyday incandescent. Full of wonder and terror, surprises and amusements, Trigger Warning is a treasury of delights that engage the mind, stir the heart, and shake the soul from one of the most unique and popular literary artists of our day.]]> 310 Neil Gaiman 0062330268 Britt 0 to-read 3.90 2015 Trigger Warning: Short Fictions and Disturbances
author: Neil Gaiman
name: Britt
average rating: 3.90
book published: 2015
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2016/01/04
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> <![CDATA[Yoga and the Quest for the True Self]]> 139360
Millions of Americans know yoga as a superb form of exercise and as a potent source of calm in our stress-filled lives. Far fewer are aware of the full promise of yoga as a 4,000-year-old practical path of liberation—a path that fits the needs of modern Western seekers with startling precision. Now Stephen Cope, a Western-trained psychotherapist who has lived and taught for more than ten years at the largest yoga center in America, offers this marvelously lively and irreverent "pilgrim's progress" for today's world. He demystifies the philosophy, psychology, and practice of yoga, and shows how it applies to our most human dilemmas: from loss, disappointment, and addiction, to the eternal conflicts around sex and relationship. And he shows us that in yoga, "liberation" does not require us to leave our everyday lives for some transcendent spiritual plane—life itself is the path. Above all, Cope shows how yoga can heal the suffering of self-estrangement that pervades our society, leading us to a new sense of purpose and to a deeper, more satisfying life in the world.]]> 358 Stephen Cope 055337835X Britt 0 yoga-book-list, to-read 4.12 1999 Yoga and the Quest for the True Self
author: Stephen Cope
name: Britt
average rating: 4.12
book published: 1999
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2015/12/18
shelves: yoga-book-list, to-read
review:

]]> <![CDATA[Happier: Learn the Secrets to Daily Joy and Lasting Fulfillment]]> 302971
YES . . . according to the teacher of Harvard University's most popular and life-changing course. One out of every five Harvard students has lined up to hear Tal Ben-Shahar's insightful and inspiring lectures on that ever-elusive state: HAPPINESS.

HOW?
Grounded in the revolutionary "positive psychology" movement, Ben-Shahar ingeniously combines scientific studies, scholarly research, self-help advice, and spiritual enlightenment. He weaves them together into a set of principles that you can apply to your daily life. Once you open your heart and mind to Happier 's thoughts, you will feel more fulfilled, more connected . . . and, yes, HAPPIER.

"Dr. Ben-Shahar, one of the most popular teachers in Harvard's recent history, has written a personal, informed, and highly enjoyable primer on how to become happier. It would be wise to take his advice."
--Ellen J. Langer, author of "Mindfulness" and "On Becoming an Artist"

"This fine book shimmers with a rare brand of good sense that is imbedded in scientific knowledge about how to increase happiness. It is easy to see how this is the backbone of the most popular course at Harvard today."
--Martin E. P. Seligman, author of "Authentic Happiness"]]> 192 Tal Ben-Shahar 0071492399 Britt 0 yoga-book-list, to-read 3.80 2007 Happier: Learn the Secrets to Daily Joy and Lasting Fulfillment
author: Tal Ben-Shahar
name: Britt
average rating: 3.80
book published: 2007
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2015/12/18
shelves: yoga-book-list, to-read
review:

]]> <![CDATA[Start Where You Are: A Guide to Compassionate Living]]> 815715 Start Where You Are is an indispensable handbook for cultivating fearlessness and awakening a compassionate heart. With insight and humor, Pema Chödrön presents down-to-earth guidance on how we can "start where we are"—embracing rather than denying the painful aspects of our lives. Pema Chödrön frames her teachings on compassion around fifty-nine traditional Tibetan Buddhist maxims, or slogans, such as: "Always apply only a joyful state of mind," "Don't seek others' pain as the limbs of your own happiness," and "Always meditate on whatever provokes resentment."

Working with these slogans and through the practice of meditation, Start Where You Are shows how we can all develop the courage to work with our inner pain and discover joy, well-being, and confidence.]]> 176 Pema Chödrön 1570628394 Britt 0 yoga-book-list, to-read 4.22 1994 Start Where You Are: A Guide to Compassionate Living
author: Pema Chödrön
name: Britt
average rating: 4.22
book published: 1994
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2015/12/18
shelves: yoga-book-list, to-read
review:

]]> The Great Work of Your Life 13573312 From the Senior Scholar-in-residence and Ambassador forĚýthe famed Kripalu Center for Yoga and Health comes an incisive and inspiring meditation on living the life you were born to live. Ěý In this fast-paced age, the often overwhelming realities of daily life may leave you feeling uncertain about how to realize your life’s true purpose—what spiritual teachers call dharma. But yoga master Stephen Cope says that in order to have a fulfilling life you must, in fact, discover the deep purpose hidden at the very core of your self. In The Great Work of Your Life, Cope describes the process of unlocking the unique possibility harbored within every human soul. The secret, he asserts, can be found in the pages of a two-thousand-year-old spiritual classic called the Bhagavad Gita—an ancient allegory about the path to dharma, told through a timeless dialogue between the fabled archer, Arjuna, and his divine mentor, Krishna. Ěý Cope takes readers on a step-by-step tour of this revered tale, and in order to make it relevant to contemporary readers, he highlights well-known Western lives that embody its central principles—including such luminaries as Jane Goodall, whose life trajectory shows us the power of honoring The Gift; Walt Whitman, who listened for the call of the times; Susan B. Anthony, whose example demonstrates the power of focused energy; John Keats, who was able to let his desire give birth to aspiration; and Harriet Tubman, whose life was nothing if not a lesson in learning to walk by faith. This essential guide also includes everyday stories about following the path to dharma, which illustrate the astonishingly contemporary relevance and practicality of this classic yogic story. Ěý If you’re feeling lost in your own life’s journey, The Great Work of Your Life may provide you with answers to the questions you most urgently need addressed—and may help you to find and to embrace your true calling.Praise for The Great Work of Your Life Ěý “Keep a pen and paper handy as you read this remarkable It’s like an owner’s manual for the soul.â€�—Dani Shapiro, author of DevotionĚý “A masterwork . . . You’ll find inspiration in these pages. You’ll gain a better appreciation of divine guidance and perhaps even understand how you might better hear it in your own life.â€�—Yoga JournalĚý “I am moved and inspired by this book, the clarity and beauty of the lives lived in it, and the timeless dharma it teaches.â€�—Jack Kornfield, author of A Path with HeartĚý “A rich source of contemplation and inspiration [that] encourages readers . . . to discover and fully pursue their inner self’s calling.â€�—Publishers Weekly Ěý “Fabulous . . . If you have ever wondered what your purpose is, this book is a great guide to help you on your path.â€�—Y´Ç˛µ˛ą±á˛ą°ů˛ąFrom the Hardcover edition.]]> 304 Stephen Cope 0345535685 Britt 0 to-read, yoga-book-list 4.29 2012 The Great Work of Your Life
author: Stephen Cope
name: Britt
average rating: 4.29
book published: 2012
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2015/12/18
shelves: to-read, yoga-book-list
review:

]]> <![CDATA[The Four Agreements: A Practical Guide to Personal Freedom]]> 6596 The Four Agreements, don Miguel Ruiz reveals the source of self-limiting beliefs that rob us of joy and create needless suffering. Based on ancient Toltec wisdom, the Four Agreements offer a powerful code of conduct that can rapidly transform our lives to a new experience of freedom, true happiness, and love. The Four Agreements are: Be Impeccable With Your Word, Don't Take Anything Personally, Don't Make Assumptions, Always Do Your Best.]]> 152 Miguel Ruiz 1878424505 Britt 0 yoga-book-list, to-read 4.20 1997 The Four Agreements: A Practical Guide to Personal Freedom
author: Miguel Ruiz
name: Britt
average rating: 4.20
book published: 1997
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2015/12/18
shelves: yoga-book-list, to-read
review:

]]> <![CDATA[The Big Tiny: A Built-It-Myself Memoir]]> 18079552 stuff for? Multiple extra rooms, a kitchen stocked with rarely used appliances, were things that couldn’t compare with the financial freedom and the ultimate luxuryâ€�łŮľ±łľ±đâ€�that would come with downsizing.
ĚýĚýĚýĚýĚýĚýĚýĚýĚýĚýĚý Deciding to build an eighty-four-square-foot house—on her own, from the ground up—was just the beginning of building a new life. Williams can now list everything she owns on one sheet of paper, her monthly housekeeping bills amount to about eight dollars, and it takes her approximately ten minutes to clean the entire house. It’s left her with more time to spend with family and friends, and given her freedom to head out for adventure at a moment’s notice, or watch the clouds and sunset while drinking a beer on her (yes, tiny) front porch.
ĚýĚýĚýĚýĚýĚýĚýĚýĚýĚýĚý The lessons Williams learned from her “ahaâ€� moment post-trauma apply to all of us, every day, regardless of whether or not we decide to discard all our worldly belongings. Part how-to, part personal memoir, The Big Tiny is an utterly seductive meditation on the benefits of slowing down, scaling back, and appreciating the truly important things in life.]]> 304 Dee Williams 0399166173 Britt 0 yoga-book-list, to-read 3.77 2014 The Big Tiny: A Built-It-Myself Memoir
author: Dee Williams
name: Britt
average rating: 3.77
book published: 2014
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2015/12/18
shelves: yoga-book-list, to-read
review:

]]> The Flame Alphabet 11325011 Ěý
With Claire nearing collapse, it seems their only means of survival is to flee from their daughter, Esther, who laughs at her parents� sickness, unaware that in just a few years she, too, will be susceptible to the language toxicity. But Sam and Claire find it isn’t so easy to leave the daughter they still love, even as they waste away from her malevolent speech. On the eve of their departure, Claire mysteriously disappears, and Sam, determined to find a cure for this new toxic language, presses on alone into a world beyond recognition.]]> 289 Ben Marcus 030737937X Britt 0 to-read 2.88 2012 The Flame Alphabet
author: Ben Marcus
name: Britt
average rating: 2.88
book published: 2012
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2015/12/09
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> Super Sad True Love Story 7334201 The Russian Debutante’s Handbook and Absurdistan, Gary Shteyngart has risen to the top of the fiction world. Now, in his hilarious and heartfelt new novel, he envisions a deliciously dark tale of America’s dysfunctional coming years—and the timeless and tender feelings that just might bring us back from the brink.

In a very near future—oh, let’s say next Tuesday—a functionally illiterate America is about to collapse. But don’t that tell that to poor Lenny Abramov, the thirty-nine-year-old son of an angry Russian immigrant janitor, proud author of what may well be the world’s last diary, and less-proud owner of a bald spot shaped like the great state of Ohio. Despite his job at an outfit called Post-Human Services, which attempts to provide immortality for its super-rich clientele, death is clearly stalking this cholesterol-rich morsel of a man. And why shouldn’t it? Lenny’s from a different century—he totally loves books (or “printed, bound media artifacts,� as they’re now known), even though most of his peers find them smelly and annoying. But even more than books, Lenny loves Eunice Park, an impossibly cute and impossibly cruel twenty-four-year-old Korean American woman who just graduated from Elderbird College with a major in Images and a minor in Assertiveness.

After meeting Lenny on an extended Roman holiday, blistering Eunice puts that Assertiveness minor to work, teaching our “ancient dork� effective new ways to brush his teeth and making him buy a cottony nonflammable wardrobe. But America proves less flame-resistant than Lenny’s new threads. The country is crushed by a credit crisis, riots break out in New York’s Central Park, the city’s streets are lined with National Guard tanks on every corner, the dollar is so over, and our patient Chinese creditors may just be ready to foreclose on the whole mess. Undeterred, Lenny vows to love both Eunice and his homeland. He’s going to convince his fickle new love that in a time without standards or stability, in a world where single people can determine a dating prospect’s “hotness� and “sustainability� with the click of a button, in a society where the privileged may live forever but the unfortunate will die all too soon, there is still value in being a real human being.

Wildly funny, rich, and humane, Super Sad True Love Story is a knockout novel by a young master, a book in which falling in love just may redeem a planet falling apart.
Ěý]]> 331 Gary Shteyngart 1400066409 Britt 0 to-read 3.45 2010 Super Sad True Love Story
author: Gary Shteyngart
name: Britt
average rating: 3.45
book published: 2010
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2015/12/09
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> Freedom 7905092
But now, in the new millennium, the Berglunds have become a mystery. Why has their teenage son moved in with the aggressively Republican family next door? Why has Walter taken a job working with Big Coal? What exactly is Richard Katz—outré rocker and Walter's college best friend and rival—still doing in the picture? Most of all, what has happened to Patty? Why has the bright star of Barrier Street become "a very different kind of neighbor," an implacable Fury coming unhinged before the street's attentive eyes?

In his first novel since The Corrections, Jonathan Franzen has given us an epic of contemporary love and marriage. Freedom comically and tragically captures the temptations and burdens of liberty: the thrills of teenage lust, the shaken compromises of middle age, the wages of suburban sprawl, the heavy weight of empire. In charting the mistakes and joys of Freedom's characters as they struggle to learn how to live in an ever more confusing world, Franzen has produced an indelible and deeply moving portrait of our time.
(jacket)]]> 562 Jonathan Franzen 0374158460 Britt 0 to-read 3.78 2010 Freedom
author: Jonathan Franzen
name: Britt
average rating: 3.78
book published: 2010
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2015/12/09
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> The Secret History 29044 559 Donna Tartt 1400031702 Britt 0 to-read 4.17 1992 The Secret History
author: Donna Tartt
name: Britt
average rating: 4.17
book published: 1992
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2015/12/09
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> City on Fire 24189224 New York Times
Ěý
New York City, 1976. Meet Regan and William Hamilton-Sweeney, estranged heirs to one of the city’s great fortunes; Keith and Mercer, the men who, for better or worse, love them; Charlie and Samantha, two suburban teenagers seduced by downtown’s punk scene; an obsessive magazine reporter and his idealistic neighbor—and the detective trying to figure out what any of them have to do with a shooting in Central Park on New Year’s Eve.
Ěý
The mystery, as it reverberates through families, friendships, and the corridors of power, will open up even the loneliest-seeming corners of the crowded city. And when the blackout of July 13, 1977, plunges this world into darkness, each of these lives will be changed forever.
Ěý
City on Fire is an unforgettable novel about love and betrayal and forgiveness, about art and truth and rock ’n� roll: about what people need from each other in order to live . . . and about what makes the living worth doing in the first place.


From the Hardcover edition.]]> 911 Garth Risk Hallberg 0385353774 Britt 0 to-read 3.39 1997 City on Fire
author: Garth Risk Hallberg
name: Britt
average rating: 3.39
book published: 1997
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2015/11/02
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> Undermajordomo Minor 25089757
Undermajordomo Minor is an ink-black comedy of manners, an adventure, and a mystery, and a searing portrayal of rural Alpine bad behaviour, but above all it is a love story. And Lucy must be careful, for love is a violent thing.]]> 352 Patrick deWitt 1770894144 Britt 0 to-read 3.74 2015 Undermajordomo Minor
author: Patrick deWitt
name: Britt
average rating: 3.74
book published: 2015
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2015/09/09
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> <![CDATA[Two Years Eight Months and Twenty-Eight Nights]]> 24292310
Inspired by 2,000 years of storytelling yet rooted in the concerns of our present moment, this is a spectacular achievement--enchanting, both very funny and terrifying. It is narrated by our descendants 1000 years hence, looking back on "The War of the Worlds" that began with "the time of the strangenesses": a simple gardener begins to levitate; a baby is born with the unnerving ability to detect corruption in people; the ghosts of two long-dead philosophers begin arguing once more; and storms pummel New York so hard that a crack appears in the universe, letting in the destructive djinns of myth (as well as some graphic superheroes). Nothing less than the survival of our world is at stake. Only one, a djinn princess who centuries before had learned to love humankind, resolves to help us: in the face of dynastic intrigue, she raises an army composed of her semi-magical great-great--etc.--grandchildren--a motley crew of endearing characters who come together to save the world in a battle waged for 1,001 nights--or, to be precise, two years, eight months and twenty-eight nights.]]> 304 Salman Rushdie 081299891X Britt 0 to-read 3.36 2015 Two Years Eight Months and Twenty-Eight Nights
author: Salman Rushdie
name: Britt
average rating: 3.36
book published: 2015
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2015/09/09
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> Under the Udala Trees 23719408 Under the Udala Trees is a deeply searching, powerful debut about the dangers of living and loving openly.

Ijeoma comes of age as her nation does; born before independence, she is eleven when civil war breaks out in the young republic of Nigeria. Sent away to safety, she meets another displaced child and they, star-crossed, fall in love. They are from different ethnic communities. They are also both girls.

When their love is discovered, Ijeoma learns that she will have to hide this part of herself. But there is a cost to living inside a lie.

As Edwidge Danticat has made personal the legacy of Haiti's political coming of age, Okparanta's Under the Udala Trees uses one woman's lifetime to examine the ways in which Nigerians continue to struggle toward selfhood. Even as their nation contends with and recovers from the effects of war and division, Nigerian lives are also wrecked and lost from taboo and prejudice. This story offers a glimmer of hope � a future where a woman might just be able to shape her life around truth and love.]]> 328 Chinelo Okparanta 0544003446 Britt 0 to-read 4.02 2015 Under the Udala Trees
author: Chinelo Okparanta
name: Britt
average rating: 4.02
book published: 2015
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2015/09/09
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> Penpal 14578407 Penpal began as a series of short and interconnected stories posted on an online horror forum. Before long, it was adapted into illustrations, audio recordings, and short films; and that was before it was revised and expanded into a novel!

How much do you remember about your childhood?

In Penpal, a man investigates the seemingly unrelated bizarre, tragic, and horrific occurrences of his childhood in an attempt to finally understand them. Beginning with only fragments of his earliest years, you'll follow the narrator as he discovers that these strange and horrible events are actually part of a single terrifying story that has shaped the entirety of his life and the lives of those around him. If you've ever stayed in the woods just a little too long after dark, if you've ever had the feeling that someone or something was trying to hurt you, if you remember the first friend you ever made and how strong that bond was, then Penpal is a story that you won't soon forget, despite how you might try.]]> 243 Dathan Auerbach 098554550X Britt 0 to-read 3.84 2012 Penpal
author: Dathan Auerbach
name: Britt
average rating: 3.84
book published: 2012
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2015/07/27
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> The Goldfinch 17333223
Aged thirteen, Theo Decker, son of a devoted mother and a reckless, largely absent father, survives an accident that otherwise tears his life apart. Alone and rudderless in New York, he is taken in by the family of a wealthy friend. He is tormented by an unbearable longing for his mother, and down the years clings to the thing that most reminds him of her: a small, strangely captivating painting that ultimately draws him into the criminal underworld. As he grows up, Theo learns to glide between the drawing rooms of the rich and the dusty antiques store where he works. He is alienated and in love - and his talisman, the painting, places him at the centre of a narrowing, ever more dangerous circle.

The Goldfinch is a haunted odyssey through present-day America and a drama of enthralling power. Combining unforgettably vivid characters and thrilling suspense, it is a beautiful, addictive triumph - a sweeping story of loss and obsession, of survival and self-invention, of the deepest mysteries of love, identity and fate.]]> 771 Donna Tartt 0316055433 Britt 0 to-read 3.94 2013 The Goldfinch
author: Donna Tartt
name: Britt
average rating: 3.94
book published: 2013
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2015/07/27
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> Your Money or Your Life 17777610 400 Joe Dominguez 1440665133 Britt 0 to-read 4.03 1992 Your Money or Your Life
author: Joe Dominguez
name: Britt
average rating: 4.03
book published: 1992
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2015/07/13
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> Thirteen Reasons Why 1217100 You can’t stop the future.
You can’t rewind the past.
The only way to learn the secret . . . is to press play.

Clay Jensen returns home from school to find a strange package with his name on it lying on his porch. Inside he discovers several cassette tapes recorded by Hannah Baker–his classmate and crush–who committed suicide two weeks earlier. Hannah’s voice tells him that there are thirteen reasons why she decided to end her life. Clay is one of them. If he listens, he’ll find out why.

Clay spends the night crisscrossing his town with Hannah as his guide. He becomes a firsthand witness to Hannah’s pain, and as he follows Hannah’s recorded words throughout his town, what he discovers changes his life forever.]]> 288 Jay Asher 1595141715 Britt 0 to-read 4.00 2007 Thirteen Reasons Why
author: Jay Asher
name: Britt
average rating: 4.00
book published: 2007
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2015/06/29
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> The Time Traveler's Wife 18619684 537 Audrey Niffenegger 1939126010 Britt 0 to-read 4.07 2003 The Time Traveler's Wife
author: Audrey Niffenegger
name: Britt
average rating: 4.07
book published: 2003
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2015/06/29
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> Safekeeping 23130304 Safekeeping, Jessamyn Hope’s luminous, irreverent, and ambitious first novel, shows how a single item � a medieval brooch made by a Jewish artisan for his wife � connects people across time and history. Full of romance, tragedy, betrayal, and the constant reminder that chaos is a driving force in everyone’s story, Safekeeping is a wise and memorable debut by a novelist of great talent and originality.� �The Boston Globe

It’s 1994 and Adam, a drug addict from New York City, arrives at a kibbutz in Israel with a medieval sapphire brooch. To make up for a past crime, he needs to get the priceless heirloom to a woman his grandfather loved when he was a Holocaust refugee on the kibbutz fifty years earlier.

There Adam joins other troubled people trying to turn their lives around: Ulya, the ambitious and beautiful Soviet émigré; Farid, the lovelorn Palestinian farmhand; Claudette, the French Canadian Catholic with OCD; Ofir, the Israeli teenager wounded in a bus bombing; and Ziva, the old Zionist Socialist firebrand who founded the kibbutz. By the end of that summer, through their charged relationships with one another, they each get their last chance at redemption.

In the middle of this web glows the magnificent sapphire brooch with its perilous history spanning three continents and seven centuries. With insight and beauty, Safekeeping tackles that most human of questions: how can we expect to find meaning and happiness when we know that nothing lasts?]]> 371 Jessamyn Hope 1941493068 Britt 0 to-read 3.62 2015 Safekeeping
author: Jessamyn Hope
name: Britt
average rating: 3.62
book published: 2015
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2015/06/29
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> Mama Black Widow 351242 "One of the most exciting literary revival series since the rediscovery of Jim Thompson's novels" (Playboy), Old School Books "is subtly transforming the landscape of post-war black fiction" (Bomb).

"Mama Black Widow" is the nickname of Otis Tilson, a comely and tragic black queen adrift with his brothers and sisters in the dark ghetto world of pimpdom and violent crime. His story is told in the gut-level language of the homosexual underworld-an unforgettable testament of life lived on the margins of a racist and predatory urban hell.]]> 312 Robert Beck 0870679317 Britt 0 to-read 4.19 1969 Mama Black Widow
author: Robert Beck
name: Britt
average rating: 4.19
book published: 1969
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2015/06/08
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> I'll Give You the Sun 20820994
Years later, they are barely speaking. Something has happened to change the twins in different yet equally devastating ways... but then Jude meets an intriguing, irresistible boy and a mysterious new mentor. The early years are Noah's to tell; the later years are Jude's. But they each have only half the story, and if they can only find their way back to one another, they'll have a chance to remake their world.

This radiant, award-winning novel from the acclaimed author of The Sky Is Everywhere will leave you breathless and teary and laughing—often all at once.

Printz Award Winner Stonewall Honor Book.]]> 371 Jandy Nelson 0803734964 Britt 0 to-read 4.14 2014 I'll Give You the Sun
author: Jandy Nelson
name: Britt
average rating: 4.14
book published: 2014
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2015/06/08
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> <![CDATA[The Unbearable Lightness of Being]]> 9717 The Unbearable Lightness of Being, Milan Kundera tells the story of a young woman in love with a man torn between his love for her and his incorrigible womanizing and one of his mistresses and her humbly faithful lover. This magnificent novel juxtaposes geographically distant places, brilliant and playful reflections, and a variety of styles, to take its place as perhaps the major achievement of one of the world’s truly great writers.]]> 314 Milan Kundera 0571224385 Britt 0 to-read 4.12 1984 The Unbearable Lightness of Being
author: Milan Kundera
name: Britt
average rating: 4.12
book published: 1984
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2015/06/08
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> The Piano Teacher 219879 The Piano Teacher, the most famous novel of Elfriede Jelinek, who was awarded the 2004 Nobel Prize in Literature, is a shocking, searing, aching portrait of a woman bound between a repressive society and her darkest desires.

Erika Kohut is a piano teacher at the prestigious and formal Vienna Conservatory, who still lives with her domineering and possessive mother. Her life appears to be a seamless tissue of boredom, but Erika, a quiet thirty-eight-year-old, secretly visits Turkish peep shows at night to watch live sex shows and sadomasochistic films. Meanwhile, a handsome, self-absorbed, seventeen-year-old student has become enamored with Erika and sets out to seduce her. She resists him at first, but then the dark passions roiling under the piano teacher's subdued exterior explode in a release of sexual perversity, suppressed violence, and human degradation.

Celebrated throughout Europe for the intensity and frankness of her writings and awarded the Heinrich Böll Prize for her outstanding contribution to German letters, Elfriede Jelinek is one of the most original and controversial writers in the world today. The Piano Teacher was made into a film, released in the United States in 2001, was awarded the Grand Jury Prize at Cannes.]]> 288 Elfriede Jelinek 0802118062 Britt 0 to-read 3.65 1983 The Piano Teacher
author: Elfriede Jelinek
name: Britt
average rating: 3.65
book published: 1983
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2015/06/08
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> The Wasp Factory 567678
The Wasp Factory is a work of horrifying compulsion: horrifying, because it enters a mind whose realities are not our own, whose values of life and death are alien to our society; compulsive, because the humour and compassion of that mind reach out to us all. A novel of extraordinary originality, imagination and comic ferocity.]]> 184 Iain Banks 0684853159 Britt 0 to-read 3.78 1984 The Wasp Factory
author: Iain Banks
name: Britt
average rating: 3.78
book published: 1984
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2015/06/08
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> Heart-Shaped Box 153025
But what UPS delivers to his door in a black heart-shaped box is no imaginary or metaphorical ghost, it's the real thing. And suddenly the suit's previous owner is everywhere - behind the bedroom door... seated in Jude's restored vintage Mustang... staring out from his widescreen TV - dangling a gleaming razor blade on a chain from one hand...]]> 376 Joe Hill 0061147931 Britt 0 to-read 3.85 2007 Heart-Shaped Box
author: Joe Hill
name: Britt
average rating: 3.85
book published: 2007
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2015/06/08
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> <![CDATA[The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao]]> 297673
Diaz immerses us in the tumultuous life of Oscar and the history of the family at large, rendering with genuine warmth and dazzling energy, humor, and insight the Dominican-American experience, and, ultimately, the endless human capacity to persevere in the face of heartbreak and loss. A true literary triumph, The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao confirms Junot Diaz as one of the best and most exciting voices of our time.]]> 335 Junot DĂ­az 1594489580 Britt 0 to-read 3.89 2007 The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao
author: Junot DĂ­az
name: Britt
average rating: 3.89
book published: 2007
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2015/04/22
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> The Interestings 15815333
The summer that Nixon resigns, six teenagers at a summer camp for the arts become inseparable. Decades later the bond remains powerful, but so much else has changed. In The Interestings, Wolitzer follows these characters from the height of youth through middle age, as their talents, fortunes, and degrees of satisfaction diverge.

The kind of creativity that is rewarded at age fifteen is not always enough to propel someone through life at age thirty; not everyone can sustain, in adulthood, what seemed so special in adolescence. Jules Jacobson, an aspiring comic actress, eventually resigns herself to a more practical occupation and lifestyle. Her friend Jonah, a gifted musician, stops playing the guitar and becomes an engineer. But Ethan and Ash, Jules's now-married best friends, become shockingly successful—true to their initial artistic dreams, with the wealth and access that allow those dreams to keep expanding. The friendships endure and even prosper, but also underscore the differences in their fates, in what their talents have become and the shapes their lives have taken.

Wide in scope, ambitious, and populated by complex characters who come together and apart in a changing New York City, The Interestings explores the meaning of talent; the nature of envy; the roles of class, art, money, and power; and how all of it can shift and tilt precipitously over the course of a friendship and a life.]]> 468 Meg Wolitzer 1594488398 Britt 0 to-read 3.58 2013 The Interestings
author: Meg Wolitzer
name: Britt
average rating: 3.58
book published: 2013
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2015/04/22
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> Will Grayson, Will Grayson 6567017
It's not that far from Evanston to Naperville, but Chicago suburbanites Will Grayson and Will Grayson might as well live on different planets. When fate delivers them both to the same surprising crossroads, the Will Graysons find their lives overlapping and hurtling in new and unexpected directions. With a push from friends new and old - including the massive, and massively fabulous, Tiny Cooper, offensive lineman and musical theater auteur extraordinaire - Will and Will begin building toward respective romantic turns-of-heart and the epic production of history's most awesome high school musical.]]> 320 John Green 0525421580 Britt 0 to-read 3.70 2010 Will Grayson, Will Grayson
author: John Green
name: Britt
average rating: 3.70
book published: 2010
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2015/04/20
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> We Were Liars 16143347 A private island.
A brilliant, damaged girl; a passionate, political boy.
A group of four friends—the Liars—whose friendship turns destructive.
A revolution. An accident. A secret.
Lies upon lies.
True love.
The truth.

We Were Liars is a modern, sophisticated suspense novel from New York Times bestselling author, National Book Award finalist, and Printz Award honoree E. Lockhart.

Read it.

And if anyone asks you how it ends, just LIE.]]> 242 E. Lockhart 0385741278 Britt 0 to-read 3.65 2014 We Were Liars
author: E. Lockhart
name: Britt
average rating: 3.65
book published: 2014
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2015/04/20
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> <![CDATA[Galileo's Middle Finger: Heretics, Activists, and the Search for Justice in Science]]> 22571733 Galileo’s Middle Finger is one American’s eye-opening story of life in the trenches of scientific controversy. For two decades, historian Alice Dreger has led a life of extraordinary engagement, combining activist service to victims of unethical medical research with defense of scientists whose work has outraged identity politics activists. With spirit and wit, Dreger offers in Galileo’s Middle Finger an unforgettable vision of the importance of rigorous truth seeking in today’s America, where both the free press and free scholarly inquiry struggle under dire economic and political threats.

This illuminating chronicle begins with Dreger’s own research into the treatment of people born intersex (once called hermaphrodites). Realization of the shocking surgical and ethical abuses conducted in the name of “normalizing� intersex children’s gender identities moved Dreger to become an internationally recognized patient rights� activist. But even as the intersex rights movement succeeded, Dreger began to realize how some fellow progressive activists were employing lies and personal attacks to silence scientists whose data revealed uncomfortable truths about humans. In researching one such case, Dreger suddenly became the target of just these kinds of attacks.

Troubled, she decided to try to understand more—to travel the country to ferret out the truth behind various controversies, to obtain a global view of the nature and costs of these battles. Galileo’s Middle Finger describes Dreger’s long and harrowing journeys between the two camps for which she felt equal empathy: social justice activists determined to win and researchers determined to put hard truths before comfort. Ultimately what emerges is a lesson about the intertwining of justice and of truth—and a lesson of the importance of responsible scholars and journalists to our fragile democracy.

]]> 337 Alice Domurat Dreger 1594206082 Britt 0 to-read 3.70 2015 Galileo's Middle Finger: Heretics, Activists, and the Search for Justice in Science
author: Alice Domurat Dreger
name: Britt
average rating: 3.70
book published: 2015
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2015/04/17
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> Jane Eyre 10210 Alternate editions can be found here and here.

A gothic masterpiece of tempestuous passions and dark secrets, Charlotte Brontë's Jane Eyre is edited with an introduction and notes by Stevie Davis in Penguin Classics.

Charlotte Brontë tells the story of orphaned Jane Eyre, who grows up in the home of her heartless aunt, enduring loneliness and cruelty. This troubled childhood strengthens Jane's natural independence and spirit - which prove necessary when she finds employment as a governess to the young ward of Byronic, brooding Mr Rochester. As her feelings for Rochester develop, Jane gradually uncovers Thornfield Hall's terrible secret, forcing her to make a choice. Should she stay with Rochester and live with the consequences, or follow her convictions - even if it means leaving the man she loves? A novel of intense power and intrigue, Jane Eyre dazzled readers with its passionate depiction of a woman's search for equality and freedom.]]> 532 Charlotte Brontë 0142437204 Britt 0 to-read 4.14 1847 Jane Eyre
author: Charlotte Brontë
name: Britt
average rating: 4.14
book published: 1847
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2015/04/07
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> 11/22/63 10644930
In 2011, Jake Epping, an English teacher from Lisbon Falls, Maine, sets out on an insane � and insanely possible � mission to prevent the Kennedy assassination.

Leaving behind a world of computers and mobile phones, he goes back to a time of big American cars and diners, of Lindy Hopping, the sound of Elvis, and the taste of root beer.

In this haunting world, Jake falls in love with Sadie, a beautiful high school librarian. And, as the ominous date of 11/22/63 approaches, he encounters a troubled loner named Lee Harvey Oswald...]]> 849 Stephen King 1451627289 Britt 0 to-read 4.33 2011 11/22/63
author: Stephen King
name: Britt
average rating: 4.33
book published: 2011
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2015/04/07
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> The Giver (The Giver, #1) 3636 208 Lois Lowry 0385732554 Britt 0 to-read 4.12 1993 The Giver (The Giver, #1)
author: Lois Lowry
name: Britt
average rating: 4.12
book published: 1993
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2015/04/07
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> The Alchemist 865 197 Paulo Coelho 0061122416 Britt 0 to-read 3.85 1988 The Alchemist
author: Paulo Coelho
name: Britt
average rating: 3.85
book published: 1988
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2015/03/30
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> <![CDATA[The Answer to the Riddle Is Me: A Memoir of Amnesia]]> 17165884 304 David Stuart MacLean 0547519273 Britt 0 to-read 3.60 2014 The Answer to the Riddle Is Me: A Memoir of Amnesia
author: David Stuart MacLean
name: Britt
average rating: 3.60
book published: 2014
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2015/03/30
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> The Heart Is a Lonely Hunter 37380 359 Carson McCullers 0618084746 Britt 0 to-read 3.99 1940 The Heart Is a Lonely Hunter
author: Carson McCullers
name: Britt
average rating: 3.99
book published: 1940
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2015/03/26
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> <![CDATA[Special Topics in Calamity Physics]]> 3483
Special Topics in Calamity Physics is a darkly hilarious coming-of-age novel and a richly plotted suspense tale told through the distinctive voice of its heroine, Blue van Meer.]]> 514 Marisha Pessl 067003777X Britt 0 to-read 3.72 2006 Special Topics in Calamity Physics
author: Marisha Pessl
name: Britt
average rating: 3.72
book published: 2006
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2015/03/26
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> The Flamethrowers 15803141
The Flamethrowers is an intensely engaging exploration of the mystique of the feminine, the fake, the terrorist. At its center is Kushner’s brilliantly realized protagonist, a young woman on the verge. Thrilling and fearless, this is a major American novel from a writer of spectacular talent and imagination.]]> 383 Rachel Kushner 1439142009 Britt 0 to-read 3.51 2013 The Flamethrowers
author: Rachel Kushner
name: Britt
average rating: 3.51
book published: 2013
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2015/03/26
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> On the Road 70401 307 Jack Kerouac 0140042598 Britt 0 have-to-read, to-read 3.63 1957 On the Road
author: Jack Kerouac
name: Britt
average rating: 3.63
book published: 1957
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2014/11/12
shelves: have-to-read, to-read
review:

]]> The Grapes of Wrath 18114322
First published in 1939, Steinbeck’s Pulitzer Prize-winning epic of the Great Depression chronicles the Dust Bowl migration of the 1930s and tells the story of one Oklahoma farm family, the Joads—driven from their homestead and forced to travel west to the promised land of California. Out of their trials and their repeated collisions against the hard realities of an America divided into Haves and Have-Nots evolves a drama that is intensely human yet majestic in its scale and moral vision, elemental yet plainspoken, tragic but ultimately stirring in its human dignity. A portrait of the conflict between the powerful and the powerless, of one man’s fierce reaction to injustice, and of one woman’s stoical strength, the novel captures the horrors of the Great Depression and probes into the very nature of equality and justice in America. At once a naturalistic epic, captivity narrative, road novel, and transcendental gospel, Steinbeck’s powerful landmark novel is perhaps the most American of American Classics.]]> 496 John Steinbeck 067001690X Britt 0 to-read 4.06 1939 The Grapes of Wrath
author: John Steinbeck
name: Britt
average rating: 4.06
book published: 1939
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2014/09/08
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> One Hundred Years of Solitude 320 417 Gabriel García Márquez Britt 0 to-read 4.10 1967 One Hundred Years of Solitude
author: Gabriel García Márquez
name: Britt
average rating: 4.10
book published: 1967
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2014/09/05
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> Breakfast of Champions 4980 Alternate cover for this ISBN can be found here

In Breakfast of Champions, one of Kurt Vonnegut’s most beloved characters, the aging writer Kilgore Trout, finds to his horror that a Midwest car dealer is taking his fiction as truth. What follows is murderously funny satire, as Vonnegut looks at war, sex, racism, success, politics, and pollution in America and reminds us how to see the truth.]]> 303 Kurt Vonnegut Jr. 0385334206 Britt 0 to-read 4.08 1973 Breakfast of Champions
author: Kurt Vonnegut Jr.
name: Britt
average rating: 4.08
book published: 1973
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2014/09/05
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> Stone Mattress: Nine Tales 20171009 A recently widowed fantasy writer is guided through a stormy winter evening by the voice of her late husband. An elderly lady with Charles Bonnet syndrome comes to terms with the little people she keeps seeing, while a newly formed populist group gathers to burn down her retirement residence. A woman born with a genetic abnormality is mistaken for a vampire, and a crime committed long ago is revenged in the Arctic via a 1.9 billion-year-old stromatolite.

In these nine tales, Margaret Atwood ventures into the shadowland earlier explored by fabulists and concoctors of dark yarns such as Robert Louis Stevenson, Daphne du Maurier and Arthur Conan Doyle - and also by herself, in her award-winning novel Alias Grace. In Stone Mattress, Margaret Atwood is at the top of her darkly humorous and seriously playful game.]]> 288 Margaret Atwood 0385539134 Britt 0 to-read 3.87 2014 Stone Mattress: Nine Tales
author: Margaret Atwood
name: Britt
average rating: 3.87
book published: 2014
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2014/09/05
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> <![CDATA[How to Win Friends & Influence People]]> 4865
Since its release in 1936, How to Win Friends and Influence People has sold more than 30 million copies. Dale Carnegie's first book is a timeless bestseller, packed with rock-solid advice that has carried thousands of now famous people up the ladder of success in their business and personal lives.

As relevant as ever before, Dale Carnegie's principles endure, and will help you achieve your maximum potential in the complex and competitive modern age.

Learn the six ways to make people like you, the twelve ways to win people to your way of thinking, and the nine ways to change people without arousing resentment.]]> 288 Dale Carnegie Britt 0 to-read 4.22 1936 How to Win Friends & Influence People
author: Dale Carnegie
name: Britt
average rating: 4.22
book published: 1936
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2014/09/02
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> Catch-22 168668
Set in Italy during World War II, this is the story of the incomparable, malingering bombardier, Yossarian, a hero who is furious because thousands of people he has never met are trying to kill him. But his real problem is not the enemy—it is his own army, which keeps increasing the number of missions the men must fly to complete their service. Yet if Yossarian makes any attempt to excuse himself from the perilous missions he’s assigned, he’ll be in violation of Catch-22, a hilariously sinister bureaucratic rule: a man is considered insane if he willingly continues to fly dangerous combat missions, but if he makes a formal request to be removed from duty, he is proven sane and therefore ineligible to be relieved.

This fiftieth-anniversary edition commemorates Joseph Heller’s masterpiece with a new introduction by Christopher Buckley; a wealth of critical essays and reviews by Norman Mailer, Alfred Kazin, Anthony Burgess, and others; rare papers and photos from Joseph Heller’s personal archive; and much more. Here, at last, is the definitive edition of a classic of world literature.]]> 453 Joseph Heller 0684833395 Britt 0 to-read, have-to-read 3.99 1961 Catch-22
author: Joseph Heller
name: Britt
average rating: 3.99
book published: 1961
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2014/08/08
shelves: to-read, have-to-read
review:

]]> The Glass Menagerie 92517
The Glass Menagerie (in the reading text the author preferred) is now available only in its New Directions Paperbook edition. A new introduction by the editor of The Tennessee Williams Annual Review, Robert Bray, reappraises the play more than half a century after it won the New York Drama Critics Circle Award. This edition of The Glass Menagerie also includes Williams's essay on the impact of sudden fame on a struggling writer, "The Catastrophe of Success," as well as a short section of Williams's own "Production Notes."
(back cover)]]> 104 Tennessee Williams 0811214044 Britt 0 to-read 3.73 1945 The Glass Menagerie
author: Tennessee Williams
name: Britt
average rating: 3.73
book published: 1945
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2014/04/10
shelves: to-read
review:

]]>