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A Totally Unauthorized Reading Group Guide to ‘Behind the Beautiful Forevers’...
Behind the Beautiful Forevers: Life, Death, and Hope in a Mumbai Undercity By Katherine Boo Source: One-Minute Book Reviews http://www.oneminutebookreviews.wordpress.com This guide for reading groups...
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‘Behind the Beautiful Forevers,’ 2012 National Book Award Winner
A Mumbai slum dweller falls into a judicial Bermuda triangle after a neighbor frames him for a crime Behind the Beautiful Forevers: Life, Death, and Hope in a Mumbai Undercity. By Katherine Boo. Random...
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Laura Hillenbrand’s ‘Unbroken’ – A World War II POW’s Tale
An American bombardier spent 47 days on a raft and became a prisoner of war Unbroken: A World War II Story of Survival, Resilience, and Redemption. By Laura Hillenbrand. Random House, 473 pp., $27. By...
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Today’s Gusher Award for Literary Hype Goes to …
The latest in a series of posts that recognize out-of-control praise for books Today’s Gusher Award for Achievement in Literary Hype Goes to … “George Saunders Has Written the Best Book You’ll Read...
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Thar She Blows! A Twitter Chat About ‘Moby-Dick’ on Friday, Jan. 25
Follow #classicschat on Twitter to learn about Moby-Dick and other classics Want to learn more about classics you have — or haven’t — read? I’ll be co-hosting a Twitter chat about Moby-Dick on Friday,...
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How to Read ‘Moby-Dick’ / Quote of the Day
Moby-Dick received a chilly reception during Herman Melville’s lifetime that lasted for decades after his death. Why did Americans warm up to the novel slowly? They didn’t know how to read it, the...
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Laura Vaccaro Seeger’s 2013 Caldecott Honor Book, ‘Green’
A romanticized view of a popular color honored by the American Library Association Green. By Laura Vaccaro Seeger. Neal Porter/Roaring Brook Press, $16.99. Ages 2–5. By Janice Harayda A half century...
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Harlan Coben’s Thriller, ‘Hold Tight’ – Parents Snoop in ‘Sopranos’ Country
Mayhem results when parents install spyware on their teenager’s computer Hold Tight. By Harlan Coben. Dutton, 416 pp., $26.95. By Janice Harayda Hold Tight ought to be catnip for those of us who have...
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What I’m Reading … Frances Parkinson Keyes’ Mardi Gras Novel, ‘Crescent...
“What I’m Reading” is a series that describes books I’m reading that I may or may not review later on One-Minute Book Reviews What I’m reading: Crescent Carnival, a 1942 novel by Frances Parkinson...
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A Twitter Chat About ‘The Bell Jar’ on Friday, Feb. 22, 4 p.m.
On Friday I’ll be cohosting a Classics Chat on Twitter about Sylvia Plath’s mordantly funny novel The Bell Jar, a fictionalized account of the unraveling of her sanity after she won Mademoiselle...
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‘Being Dead Is No Excuse’: An Irreverent Guide to Southern Funerals
A witty guide to avoiding gaffes like letting people sing “Now Thank We All Our God” as your casket rolls in Being Dead Is No Excuse: The Official Southern Ladies Guide to Hosting the Perfect Funeral....
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Jon Klassen’s ‘This Is Not My Hat’ – 2013 Caldecott Medal Winner
A picture book that works as a crime story, a Robin Hood tale with a twist, and a critique of capitalism in an age of banking scandals This Is Not My Hat. By Jon Klassen. Candlewick, 40 pp., $15.99....
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A Twitter Chat About ‘The Age of Innocence’ Friday With Award-Winning...
On Friday I’ll be cohosting a Classics Chat on Twitter about Edith Wharton’s The Age of Innocence, a Pulitzer Prize-winning novel about a Polish countess whose arrival threatens to disrupt the lives of...
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‘Good Books Are All Too Rare’ – Quote of the Day / John Sledge
Few book critics for U.S. newspapers write well enough to tempt publishers to issue collections of their reviews. The exceptions include John Sledge, who spent 17 years as the books editor of the...
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Francesca Segal’s Award-Winning First Novel, ‘The Innocents’
“Any Jewish holiday can be described the same way. They tried to kill us. They failed. Let’s eat.” The Innocents. By Francesca Segal. Voice/Hyperion, 282 pp., $25.95. By Janice Harayda Francesca...
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A Theater Critic Celebrates the Best Broadway Musicals of All Time
“No gags, no girls, no chance of success.” – A producer after seeing Oklahoma! The Sound of Musicals. By Ruth Leon. Oberon Masters Series/Oberon, 128 pp., $20.95. By Janice Harayda Oh, what a beautiful...
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Louisa Hall’s ‘The Carriage House’ – A Suburban Philadelphia Story
A family tries to save a decaying carriage house in a suburb in which “the neighborhood association is the UN” The Carriage House: A Novel. By Louisa Hall. Scribner, 281 pp., $26. By Janice Harayda An...
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A Twitter Chat About ‘The Great Gatsby’ on May 10
What’s so great about The Great Gatsby? F. Scott Fitzgerald’s novel centers on a pathological liar who invents an opulent life for himself in the hope of winning an unworthy woman. Yet for all its...
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John Kenney’s Romantic Comedy, ‘Truth in Advertising’
A lovelorn copywriter confronts his father’s death as he races to create a Super Bowl spot Truth in Advertising. By John Kenney. Touchstone/Simon & Schuster, 308 pp., $24.99. By Janice Harayda Two...
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The Ethics of Book Blurbing: What’s OK and What’s Not? A Survey
George Orwell called blurbs “disgusting tripe.” What do you say? By Janice Harayda A publisher who was trying to promote a book once asked the late novelist Beryl Bainbridge for a quote about it. “Just...
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