Friday Book Memes, 17-April-15

Welcome to the ‘It’s Spring!’ edition of Book Beginnings and The Friday 56 hosted by Rose City Reader and Freda on Freda’s Voice. It’s likely that I’m on a plane as you read this. Head on over there and check out the other participating blogs.

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My newest book is A Scanner Darkly by Philip K. Dick, which I’m reading for a book club. Here’s the summary from Goodreads:

Bob Arctor is a junkie and a drug dealer, both using and selling the mind-altering Substance D. Fred is a law enforcement agent, tasked with bringing Bob down. It sounds like a standard case. The only problem is that Bob and Fred are the same person. Substance D doesn’t just alter the mind, it splits it in two, and neither side knows what the other is doing or that it even exists. Now, both sides are growing increasingly paranoid as Bob tries to evade Fred while Fred tries to evade his suspicious bosses.

Book Beginnings is all about that very important opening sentence (or two) that us writers are always worrying about!

Once a guy stood all day shaking bugs from his hair. The doctor told him there were no bugs in his hair.

This is not one of my favorite book beginnings. I didn’t like the first few pages of this novel, really, but I’m getting more into it now. The book starts with the druggies the summary refers to but I didn’t know that and it made me a little hesitant to get into the book. Things are going better for me now.

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The way this meme works is pretty simple. If you want to join in, head over to Freda’s blog and add your link.

Rules:
*Grab a book, any book (I grab the one I’m currently reading)
*Turn to page 56 or 56% in your eReader
*Find any sentence, (or few, just don’t spoil it) that grab you.
*Post it.

Page 56 is a conversation between the main character and one of his coworkers.

“I’ll tell you one that’ll get you for sure. You’re aware of the three babies over at Fairfield Hospital that they have to give hits of smack to every day, that are too young to withdraw yet?”

I haven’t gotten here yet, but seeing as how the book follows a narcotics officer, this doesn’t particularly surprise me. It’s sad to think about the children of drug abuse but I’m sure there are tons of stories like this one about how children are affected by drug use and I wonder how much of this story is fiction or if Dick ripped some of it from the headlines. Kinda creepy to think about.

Until next time, write on.

You can follow me on Goodreads, Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, and Instagram. I’m available via email at SamAStevensWriter@gmail.com. And as always, feel free to leave a comment!

Friday Book Memes, 10-April-15

Welcome to the ‘I’m in Cleveland’ edition of Book Blogger Hop, Book Beginnings and The Friday 56 hosted by Coffee Addicted Writer, Rose City Reader and Freda on Freda’s Voice. It’s likely that I’m on a plane as you read this. Head on over there and check out the other participating blogs.

This is my first Book Blogger Hop and I plan to make this a recurring thing (as long as I like the questions!). This week’s question is,

Have you ever received a bound galley from a publisher for review? What did you think about it? Were you surprised at anything?

I’m more familiar with the term ARC, but yes, I’ve received a few. Some of them, I won through Goodreads and some through blog competitions and one or two directly from the authors themselves. I like the idea of having a book before it’s available, which seems so forbidden! I think of the scene in The Devil Wears Prada where the main character gets advanced copies of the next Harry Potter books for her boss’s children. Sometimes I find mistakes that I hope are caught before publication. Sometimes I’m surprised at how big the release of the book is. I received an ARC once that I hated and then saw it on the front shelves at Barnes and Noble a few months later. Ugh.

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My newest book is The White Tiger by Aravind Adiga, which I’m reading for my work book club. Here’s the summary from Goodreads:

The white tiger of this novel is Balram Halwai, a poor Indian villager whose great ambition leads him to the zenith of Indian business culture, the world of the Bangalore entrepreneur. On the occasion of the president of China’s impending trip to Bangalore, Balram writes a letter to him describing his transformation and his experience as driver and servant to a wealthy Indian family, which he thinks exemplifies the contradictions and complications of Indian society.

Book Beginnings is all about that very important opening sentence (or two) that us writers are always worrying about!

Mr. Premier,

Sir.

Neither you nor I speak English, but there are some things that can only be said in English.

Not going to sugar coat it, I love this beginning. It’s a little intimidating because it makes me wonder if the book is going to be written in broken English, but at the same time, it’s pulled me in completely. I want to know what’s so important to the speaker and who he’s writing to. I want to read more.

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The way this meme works is pretty simple. If you want to join in, head over to Freda’s blog and add your link.

Rules:
*Grab a book, any book (I grab the one I’m currently reading)
*Turn to page 56 or 56% in your eReader
*Find any sentence, (or few, just don’t spoil it) that grab you.
*Post it.

Page 56 is a scene where the main character is trying to get a job as a taxi driver and he’s speaking to the man who will give him driving lessons.

‘That’s like getting coals to make ice for you.. Mastering a car’ -he moved the stick of an invisible gearbox- ‘it’s like taming a wild stallion – only  a boy from the warrior castes can manage that. You need to have aggression in your blood. Muslims, Rajputs, Sikhs – they’re fighters, they can become drivers. You think sweet-makers can last long in fourth gear?’

Coal was taught to make ice, starting the next morning at six.

I haven’t gotten to this point in the book yet, so I’m a little lost on the plot. However, the imagery of this scene is great. I love the speaker and the snark of the protagonist. He’s determined and very happy when he gets his way. It will be fun to get into this book.

Until next time, write on.

You can follow me on Goodreads, Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, and Instagram. I’m available via email at SamAStevensWriter@gmail.com. And as always, feel free to leave a comment!

Friday Book Memes, 3-April-15

Welcome to the busiest week of my life edition of Book Blogger Hop, Book Beginnings and The Friday 56 hosted by Coffee Addicted Writer, Rose City Reader and Freda on Freda’s Voice. It’s likely that I’m on a plane as you read this. Head on over there and check out the other participating blogs.

This is my first Book Blogger Hop and I plan to make this a recurring thing (as long as I like the questions!). This week’s question is,

Is there one book you will NEVER forget?

Wow, that’s hard to answer. I guess the answer for this would have to be my favorite book, The Outsiders by S.E. Hinton. The story has stayed with me for so long and I think about it all the time. I’m ordering jewelry with a quote from the book on it. It’s a timeless story to me.

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I’ve finally started a new book! It’s for my book club and I’ve only just gotten to page 56 in Breakfast with Buddha by Roland Merullo. Here’s the summary from Goodreads:

When his sister tricks him into taking her guru on a trip to their childhood home, Otto Ringling, a confirmed skeptic, is not amused. Six days on the road with an enigmatic holy man who answers every question with a riddle is not what he’d planned. But in an effort to westernize his passenger—and amuse himself—he decides to show the monk some “American fun” along the way. From a chocolate factory in Hershey to a bowling alley in South Bend, from a Cubs game at Wrigley field to his family farm near Bismarck, Otto is given the remarkable opportunity to see his world—and more important, his life—through someone else’s eyes. Gradually, skepticism yields to amazement as he realizes that his companion might just be the real thing.

Book Beginnings is all about that very important opening sentence (or two) that us writers are always worrying about!

My name is Otto Ringling (no circus jokes, please) and I have a strange story to tell.

I like this strange turn on a cliché opening. I like that there’s a parenthetical comment from Otto because it lets us know that we’ll be in his head a lot. I also like that he’s upfront that his story is strange. On the same note, it seems a very forward way to start a book. Kind of mixed feelings on this one.

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The way this meme works is pretty simple. If you want to join in, head over to Freda’s blog and add your link.

Rules:
*Grab a book, any book (I grab the one I’m currently reading)
*Turn to page 56 or 56% in your eReader
*Find any sentence, (or few, just don’t spoil it) that grab you.
*Post it.

Page 56 is one of the first conversations between Otto and the ‘buddha’ he’s traveling with, Rinpoche.

I ask you what you do, what Rinpoches do, and you say, ‘I sit.’ That’s cryptic. That’s not what we call in this country an open conversational style.

I like this quote because it shows how much Otto is struggling to get along with his traveling companion. I’m not much further than this point in the book and I’m curious to see how this relationship will develop as I read. Otto seems very much the everyman and I think this book will try to take me on his spiritual journey with him. I’m not sure how this is going to go, but we’ll see!

Until next time, write on.

You can follow me on Goodreads, Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, and Instagram. I’m available via email at SamAStevensWriter@gmail.com. And as always, feel free to leave a comment!

Friday Book Memes, 27-March-2015

Welcome to the busiest week of my life edition of Book Blogger Hop, Book Beginnings and The Friday 56 hosted by Coffee Addicted Writer, Rose City Reader and Freda on Freda’s Voice. It’s likely that I’m on a plane as you read this. Head on over there and check out the other participating blogs.

This is my first Book Blogger Hop and I plan to make this a recurring thing (as long as I like the questions!). This week’s question is,

Which books have you read in the past month that still have you thinking back to the storyline and the characters?

Looking up what books I read this past month I had the rude realization I’ve only read two. Yikes! I guess that means I’m going with The Girls of Atomic City by Denise Kiernan. This book tells the story of the woman who worked to enrich uranium for the Manhattan Project. What I’m still thinking about is what I would do if I were in the shoes of the characters in this book. They didn’t know that what they were working on would be the most deadly weapon of the age and kill innocent civilian Japanese. The question became, do the ends justify the means? If it ends the war and saves American soldiers, is it worth the casualties? This is sticking with me because I just saw American Sniper as well and I have the same question about that story as well.

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My book turn-over is pathetic right now so I’ve yet again returned to my bookshelf to pick up a title to share. In memory of Terry Pratchett and his passing recently, I decided to pick up Good Omens which Pratchett co-wrote with Neil Gaiman.

Book Beginnings is all about that very important opening sentence (or two) that us writers are always worrying about!

It was a nice day. All the days had been nice. There had been rather more than seven of them so far, and rain hadn’t been invented yet. But clouds massing east of Eden suggested that the first thunderstorm was on its way, and it was going to be a big one.

I had to post a few sentences for this one. The first two sentences are pretty much a ‘writing no-no’ because describing the weather is very high up on the list of ‘ways not to start your novel.’ But the direction that Gaiman and Pratchett go with it is awesome. You realize very quickly that we’re talking about the beginning of time when God created the world. Bravo Gaiman and Pratchett.

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The way this meme works is pretty simple. If you want to join in, head over to Freda’s blog and add your link.

Rules:
*Grab a book, any book (I grab the one I’m currently reading)
*Turn to page 56 or 56% in your eReader
*Find any sentence, (or few, just don’t spoil it) that grab you.
*Post it.

Page 56 brings us a conversation between and angel and a demon. Their drunken conversation goes like this:

“Heaven has no taste.”
“Now–”
“And not one single sushi restaurant.”
A look of pain crossed the angel’s suddenly very serious face.

I remember this book being funny and enjoyable, but you can’t take it too seriously. It’s a comedy about the apocalypse, after all. If you like a comedy of the type this conversation shows, this is a solid read. A good laugh between more serious dramas.

Until next time, write on.

You can follow me on Goodreads, Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, and Instagram. I’m available via email at SamAStevensWriter@gmail.com. And as always, feel free to leave a comment!

Friday Book Memes, 20-March-2015

Welcome to the second Friday the 13th edition of Book Blogger Hop, Book Beginnings and The Friday 56 hosted by Coffee Addicted Writer, Rose City Reader and Freda on Freda’s Voice. Head on over there and check out the other participating blogs.

This is my first Book Blogger Hop and I plan to make this a recurring thing (as long as I like the questions!). This week’s question is,

Do you read more on a rainy day or on a gorgeous day so you can be outside?

Definitely on a rainy day. On a nice day, I’m more likely to go for a run or on a bike ride, but on a rainy day I’m stuck inside and curling up with a good book sounds like a great option. Though, if it’s the day after a bike ride or a run I love reading by the pool rather than pushing myself too far.

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Sadly, I have yet again not picked up a new book. So I will turn to my shelf and this week I’ve decided to feature The Language of Flowers by Vanessa Diffenbaugh. My work book club read this last year and we liked the story a lot even if the main character was hard to like.

Book Beginnings is all about that very important opening sentence (or two) that us writers are always worrying about!

For eight years I dreamed of fire. Trees ignited as I passed them; oceans burned. The sugary smoke settled in my hair as I slept, the scent like a cloud left on my pillow as I rose.

Knowing the ending, this is such a great way to start the book. If you don’t know the ending, it might seem strange or give you the impression this book is going to be very different than it is, but I think it’s a good way to start. I don’t want to spoil anything because this is a great read, but the fire plays a huge role in the ending when the truth about the past is finally revealed.

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The way this meme works is pretty simple. If you want to join in, head over to Freda’s blog and add your link.

Rules:
*Grab a book, any book (I grab the one I’m currently reading)
*Turn to page 56 or 56% in your eReader
*Find any sentence, (or few, just don’t spoil it) that grab you.
*Post it.

Page 56 is a bit dull in this book, but we get a really good characterization of Elizabeth.

Her touch, too, was different; the thorough way she cleaned my hands, witout the heavy, silent burden in the actions of all my other foster mothers. I didn’t trust it.

This is great because it gives us two things; a characterization of how caring Elizabeth is of her new foster daughter and how untrusting Victoria is. Victoria is used to foster mothers who have her for the money and want to spend as little time with her as possible. Elizabeth is loving and wants a child to treat with kindness. The two clash heads if you couldn’t tell from this snippet!

Until next time, write on.

You can follow me on Goodreads, Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, and Instagram. I’m available via email at SamAStevensWriter@gmail.com. And as always, feel free to leave a comment!

Friday Book Memes, 13-March-2015

Welcome to the second Friday the 13th edition of Book Blogger Hop, Book Beginnings and The Friday 56 hosted by Coffee Addicted Writer, Rose City Reader and Freda on Freda’s Voice. Head on over there and check out the other participating blogs.

This is my first Book Blogger Hop and I plan to make this a recurring thing (as long as I like the questions!). This week’s question is,

What is more important to you when you are deciding to read a book?

There are a handful of things. One is why it’s on my shelf. Is it there because of a book club? Then there’s a time in which I should read the book and I’ll plan my reading around that. Is it part of a reading challenge? That comes into consideration and I’ll skip around my pile when that becomes an issue. Is it on loan from the library or a friend? Then it skips to the top of the list. Is it an audiobook? The books I want to read that have audio versions available to me move up the list faster because I can listen to them while I’m reading a book club selection. Same with eBook formats. Is it an ARC? I try to pull these ahead when I can and if I haven’t read an ARC in a while.

If none of these apply, the biggest thing is how long I’ve been wanting to read it. Goodreads is a huge help here. If a book is on the top of my ‘to read’ list, it gets first priority. There are some on there from when I started using Goodreads that I haven’t gotten to yet. The list grew quickly and I’m afraid I’ll never see the end of it!

Also, shouldn’t it be ‘most important?’ Just grammar-nerding.

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I haven’t grabbed a new book since last week, so yet again I’ll be featuring an old favorite. I recently bought a copy of Never Let Me Go by Kazuo Ishiguro. I read this book before I started blogging and my book club read it a few months ago. But I bought it because I have tickets to go meet Ishiguro on the 26th as a part of his book tour for his first book in a decade, The Buried Giant. I’m beyond excited.

Book Beginnings is all about that very important opening sentence (or two) that us writers are always worrying about!

My name is Kathy H. I’m thirty-one years old and I’ve been a carer now for over eleven years.

As far as book beginnings go, this isn’t one of my favorites. It’s a little blase in my opinion. You don’t get a hint of what’s going on in Kathy’s world. But to be honest, Ishiguro doesn’t give you a good idea of it at all until you’re well into the book. It fits with the style, but still is a bit lacking. I guess you can start a book any way you want after you win the Man Booker!

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The way this meme works is pretty simple. If you want to join in, head over to Freda’s blog and add your link.

Rules:
*Grab a book, any book (I grab the one I’m currently reading)
*Turn to page 56 or 56% in your eReader
*Find any sentence, (or few, just don’t spoil it) that grab you.
*Post it.

Nothing overly grabbing from page 56, but this quote gives us a great characterization of Ruth.

Finally she said very deliberately: “Let’s just agree. Let’s agree I got it in the Sale.” Then she gave us all a knowing smile.

Ruth and her darned secrets! She always seemed to be keeping something just out of Kathy’s reach. This sentence refers to the pencil-case Ruth suddenly had and shows how much of an attention seeker she is. That darn Ruth.

I’m going to watch the movie of this book tonight and I’ll have a book to movie review up soon! I hope I remember it well enough to make this a good review.

Until next time, write on.

You can follow me on Goodreads, Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, and Instagram. I’m available via email at SamAStevensWriter@gmail.com. And as always, feel free to leave a comment!

Friday Book Memes, 6-March-2015

Welcome to the ‘frigid cold’ edition of Book Blogger Hop, Book Beginnings and The Friday 56 hosted by Coffee Addicted Writer, Rose City Reader and Freda on Freda’s Voice. Head on over there and check out the other participating blogs.

This is my first Book Blogger Hop and I plan to make this a recurring thing (as long as I like the questions!). This week’s question is,

Do you think a book’s title is important?

Yes! Even more so than the cover, I think a title is what gets me to pick up a book. It’s how we tell our friends about books, how we share them. When a friend tells me about a book, she doesn’t describe the plot or the cover first, she tells me the title! It’s like the importance of a name for a character; it tells us all we need to know about the book in a quick summary.

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I haven’t grabbed a new book since last week, so I’ll be featuring a book I read a long time ago, The Fault in Our Stars by John Green. I listened to this book originally on audio so when I saw a copy for $1 at the library used book sale, I snagged it!

Book Beginnings is all about that very important opening sentence (or two) that us writers are always worrying about! Green introduces us to Hazel with this,

Late in the winter of y seventeenth year, my mother decided I was depressed, presumably because I rarely left the house, spent quite a lot of time in bed, read the same book over and over, ate infrequently, and devoted quite a bit of my free time to thinking about death.

This is a great summary of Hazel. It doesn’t tell us about her illness because it doesn’t define her and Green doesn’t want us to think of her that way right off the bat. It also gives us a glimmer of a preview into An Imperial Affliction which fans know will become a pivotal plot element soon after. Bravo, Mr. Green.

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The way this meme works is pretty simple. If you want to join in, head over to Freda’s blog and add your link.

Rules:
*Grab a book, any book (I grab the one I’m currently reading)
*Turn to page 56 or 56% in your eReader
*Find any sentence, (or few, just don’t spoil it) that grab you.
*Post it.

Flipping through this book makes me want to sit down and read the whole thing! Here’s a winning quote from page 56:

Girls think they’re only allowed to wear dresses on formal occasions, but I like a woman who says, you know, I’m going over to see a boy who is having a nervous breakdown, a boy whose connection to the sense of sight itself is tenuous, and gosh dang it, I am going to wear a dress for him.

This wonderful quote comes to us from the eloquent Gus. Like many things he says, he’s complimenting Hazel in some way while also trying to cheer up Isaac. I love Green’s characters for the things they say and this is a great example. If you haven’t read this book, I highly recommend picking up a copy!

Until next time, write on.

You can follow me on Goodreads, Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, and Instagram. I’m available via email at SamAStevensWriter@gmail.com. And as always, feel free to leave a comment!