Wednesday, December 7, 2016

POWELL'S CITY OF BOOKS

My main use of this blog is for my participation in on-line challenges.  But I thought I would also share the books that I purchased during my October visit to that book-Mecca known as Powell’s Books located in Portland, Oregon because I love reading about these sorts of things on other people’s blogs.  It is like window shopping without leaving your living room.
BOOKS I BOUGHT
  1. Royal Assassin by Robin Hobb – I have since finished this book. It is the 2ond book in the Farseer Trilogy which is part of a larger fantasy series set in a world called The Realm of the Elderlings. I would like to eventually read the entire series which is something like 16 books total.
  2. Mothering Sunday by Graham Swift–  I had heard good things about this novella so I wanted to give it a try. It sounds like the sort of precisely executed novella about small moments that I often admire.
  3. Fishnet by Kirstin Innes – I heard about this title on Booktube as quite a few reviewers recommended it.  I am currently reading it. It is interesting, the story is about a woman who begins to research the world of prostitution after her sister disappears, but it also has an obvious agenda which I am not 100% sure about. We’ll see. My conventional and religious upbringing might be getting in my way.
  4. The Red and the Black by Stendhal  - My friend Greta kindly bought this for me.  I love the Penguin black-spine paperback classics. Greta and I are going to read it together sometime, possibly in 2017 and if so, I will hopefully be able to work it into Karen’s Back to the Classic Challenge 2017.  
  5. Thrice the Brinded Cat Hath Mew’d by Alan Bradley  – I know this series is a bit twee and not to everyone’s taste,  but I like the Flavia de Luce mysteries and this is the most recently published title. I am not quite caught up but I like having them on my shelves even unread because they are such pretty colors.
  6. Ellen Foster by Kaye Gibbons – I bought this on Greta’s recommendation and I have already read it. It was very good and is only 128 pages long.  An Oprah pick, so it is naturally heart-wrenching, but it didn’t totally gut me, which was a relief.
  7. Good Morning Midnight by Lucy Brooks-Dalton – I heard great things about this book from one of my goodreads friends (and podcaster extraordinaire – check out Reading Envy if you are interested). This is a speculative fiction book about the end of the world where possible the only two survivors are a man stranded in Antarctica and a woman orbiting the earth from space.
Finally, I would also like to share this picture from the last page (be careful  - SPOILERS may be ahead) of one of the used copies of The Red and The Black that I was perusing. I ended up not purchasing this Modern Library hard copy only because there was some wonky water damage that affected the print elsewhere. But I thought this hand-written comment at the bottom was hilarious. Hopefully I will not feel the same way when I reach the end!





12 comments:

  1. What a fun book-buying trip! I enjoyed reading the new Alan Bradley mystery. And Powells is one of the places I hope to visit someday soon. (Is it weird to plan an entire trip around a bookstore?) Happy reading!

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    1. Totally not weird to plan a trip around a bookstore visit! Ostensibly my trip was to hang out with my friend, but we met specifically in Portland so we could go to Powell's.

      I know from your blog that you also enjoy the Flavia de Luce series. I am looking forward to continuing it with book six soon.

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  2. I keep meaning to try Robin Hobb. Good to know you liked her enough to commit to a whole series.

    I love visiting Powells but I'm not sure I've ever actually bought something there! Too much choice overwhelms me???

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    1. Powell’s is overwhelming, it is so huge. But I had a list of titles to look for, so that helped. And I took my cue from Rob at Loose Logic http://looselogic.com/ and visited twice instead of doing it all in one go.

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    2. Hey, I didn't notice this. Thanks for the mention! The nice thing about spreading it out over multiple days is you get more visits to the bookstore...

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  3. I love Powell's!

    I'm a big fan of Robin Hobb. I hadn't read her in ages, but I picked up the first book in her latest trilogy and loved it from the first page. I have very fond memories of the Farseer Trilogy.

    I keep almost starting that Alan Bradley series but haven't jumped in yet. I think it's mainly that I really like the names of his novels.

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    1. I am really looking forward to continuing on with Robin Hobb! Everyone says that the second trilogy (Liveship Traders) is amazingly good and I have certainly enjoyed the first two Farseer books.

      Also, it is nice that unlike some fantasy authors (*cough* George R.R. Martin *cough*) Hobb has only one book left to publish and the entire series will be complete, so I won’t have to wait and wait for the final book.

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    2. Hobb is incredibly consistent, so there's no worry there!

      When I first started reading these, I didn't realise that Liveship Traders was part of the same universe, so I accidentally skipped it completely. People love it, though, so I'm planning to return to it after this latest series. Then the Rain Wild Chronicles after that, hah. Still a ways to go.

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  4. I've been to Portland a couple of times and still haven't carved out the time to visit Powells--what a great haul of books you got there. Mothering Sunday really appeals to me.

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    1. I encourage you to visit Powell's if you get the chance Jane. It really is remarkable in its variety and volume of books on offer.

      I think Mothering Sunday will be right up my alley once I find the time to read it.

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  5. Such pretty handwriting UGH!
    lol
    Did you yet read The Mothers? I can send to you? You've probably read it. I have so many TOB books on hold at the library all sitting at 1 or 2 in list and yet I still don't have the call to come pick them up! I'm frantic.

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    1. Yes, it is beautifully scripted! Ha.

      You could send me The Mothers. Neither of my libraries has a copy and I have not read it yet. I am frantic too. I have something like 30 available from the library...some on hold, some in my house...but I know I will never be able to read them all before March.

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