Chronicle Books Haul-idays: Comment For A Chance To Win

Chronicle Books came up with a brilliant marketing idea. Ask bloggers to pick $500 in books from the Chronicle website, then post their list of titles for everyone to see. One lucky blogger will be chosen to win his/her haul plus a lucky reader who left a comment. It's all part of their "Happy Haul-idays" giveaway.

So far over 200 bloggers are participating. And I'm sure many will be buying a book or two from Chronicle after searching through their inventory. The only thing that can save me from hitting the Pay button is shipping cost. I live in Hawaii and their free shipping with $35 purchase doesn't apply to me.

What do you think of my list? If my math is correct, which can be an issue for me, the total comes to $497.49. There are so many good choices. I'd love to read, Holiday Hero: A Man's Manual to Holiday Lighting which I urgently need. Actually I'd love a chance to own them all.

If you live in the 50 States or District of Columbia, and like my list of titles, be sure to leave a comment for a chance to win these books with me (if I'm chosen the lucky winner). Deadline is December 10, 2010.

HOLIDAY THEMED
Christmas Trees (fun and festive ideas), $15.95
Great Pumpkins (crafty carvings for Halloween), $14.95
Holidays On Display (the art and industry of holiday displays), $24.95
Holiday Hero (A Man's Manual to Holiday Lighting), $9.95

FOOD RELATED
The Tea Deck (50 Ways to Prepare, Serve and Enjoy), $14.95
Tea and Crumpets (Recipes and Rituals), $19.95
New Vegetarian (75 Fresh, Contemporary Recipes), $19.95
Flour (from Boston's Flour Bakery and Cafe), $35.00

TRAVEL
City Walks Architecture: New York (25 Walking Adventures), $18.95
Manhattan Skyscrapers, $50.00
Around the World (The Grand Tour In Photo Albums), $55.00
The Lost Border (The Landscape of the Iron Curtain), $40.00
Souvenirs of Great Cities: New York (with pop-out illustrations), $6.95

CRAFTS
Paper + Craft (25 projects you can make with paper), $19.95

CHILDREN'S
Shadow (a cool looking children's book), $15.99

SPORTS
Kelly Slater: For The Love (on this surfer's wish list), $35.00

BIG TICKET ITEM
Dante's Divine Comedy (boxed set), by Sandow Birk, $100.00

A Little Fruitcake: Book Review and Giveaway

A Little Fruitcake: A Childhood in Holidays
by David Valdes Greenwood

Da Capo Press, Copyright 2007.
178 pages, ISBN 9780738211220

Rating: 4/5

Holiday Appeal: 5/5

Challenges: 2010 Holiday Reading Challenge and GLBT Challenge 2010

Quote from the book: "I liked his rich red suit, the idea of a flying sleigh, all those adorable reindeer, and the elves, who seemed so light in their pointed loafers."

Giveaway Details: This is my 100th post. In celebration I'm offering a free copy of A Little Fruitcake to a reader chosen at random. Just leave a comment no later than December 5 and include your email address (if it's not on your profile), International readers may enter too.

Do you have a holiday book that you like to re-read every year? For me it's A Little Fruitcake by David Valdes Greenwood. This is David's look back to growing up in the 1970's and his family Christmas celebrations. There are twelve stories here presented in chronological order.

In this boyhood holiday memoir the gift of choice under the tree is "sleek, white, lace-up figure skates," just like Dorothy Hamill's, instead of black hockey skates.

You see, David is a gay man although the book jacket and description makes no mention of this. And the book doesn't either because when you're a kid the labels haven't stuck yet. You just know you're different.

This is a book and a life I can relate to. When David asks for a baby doll in front of his family, it's a conversation show stopper in his Seventh Day Adventist household. I remember making the same wish much to the refusal of my dad. The most I could hope for was G.I. Joe. I wanted Ken.

A Little Fruitcake will put a smile on your face with chapter titles like, Tree Envy and Jealous of Baby Jesus. It may also put a lump in your throat too. Some years money is tight. David grows up in a single parent household with his brother and mom in Maine. It's a big transition from Miami where he lived in Little Havana.

If you're tired of reading the traditional holiday childhood memoir, slice out the fruitcake and give yourself an alternative treat.

(For more information visit David Valdes Greenwood's website).

Waiting On Wednesday: An Object of Beauty

I was excited to share my first Waiting on Wednesday post with you. Until I realized it's Thursday. As Maxwell Smart, aka Agent 86, would say, "I missed it by THAT much."

Always a rebel I'll post anyway. After reviewing Steve Martin's Born Standing Up, I'm looking forward to his newest book, An Object of Beauty, scheduled for release on November 23.

The editorial review from Publisher's Weekly piqued my interest when they wrote it, "...exposes the sound and furry of the rarefied Manhattan art world."

Looks delicious. Two of my favorite things (among others) include art and NYC. Nely at All About (n) has a giveaway for a free copy of, An Object of Beauty. Deadline to enter is December 12.

Waiting on Wednesday is hosted by Jill from Breaking the Spine.

Sunday Salon: Christmas Is Murder and Holiday Challenges

Christmas Is Murder
by C.S. Challinor

Midnight Ink, Copyright 2008
200 pages, ISBN 9780738713595

Overall Rating: 2/5

Holiday Appeal: 2/5

Christmastime in the south of England. A Victorian hotel. Snowbound guests and a murderer on the loose. For an Anglophile like me, Christmas Is Murder, sounded like my cup of tea.

The first clue something was terribly wrong, however, should have been the cover. I know, never pick a book this way, but for a holiday mystery I think it adds to the spirit and enjoyment.

My first problem is that I didn't like any of the characters. They seemed one dimensional until halfway through the book. We meet them all at one time which I disliked. The author listed a "cast of characters" at the beginning which I kept referring back to. I had a hard time remembering everyone.

The second problem I had is that the book seriously lacked a holiday feel. Every so often there was mention of Christmas. It never seemed to be important to the atmosphere of the book.

Rex Graves, a Scottish barrister, is the lead character. He solves the mystery involving three deaths among the hotel guests. The motive revealed at the end seemed far fetched. Nothing added up.

Why was Rex invited to this mess of a mystery? I would have passed and gone elsewhere. You should too.

Moving on, let's talk about the holidays for book bloggers.

I'm joining two reading challenges. The Christmas Spirit beginning November 26, and hosted by Michelle at The True Book Addict. Her page gets me in the holiday mood every time I stop by.

Next is the Holiday Reading Challenge hosted by Nely at All About (n). It starts November 15. Anyone joining me?

The books I'm considering are Comfort and Joy by Jim Grimsley, Holiday Grind by Cleo Coyle, and You Better Not Cry by Augusten Burroughs. On my wish list is Christmas at the Mysterious Bookshop.

I'm also participating in Book Blogger Holiday Swap for the first time and considering A Broke and Bookish Secret Santa (which is what I'll be), and Book Lovers Secret Santa hosted by The Nevending Shelf.

Saturday Snapshot: A Mystery Lover Celebrates 99th Birthday Today

Our Auntie is 99 years old today. We celebrated at her favorite restaurant on Kauai which serves Indian and Nepalese food.

Auntie loves dressing up, playing cards, watching old movies and most of all reading mystery novels. Robert Parker has always been a favorite writer of hers. She doesn't like cozy mysteries very well or lots of violence in her books.

Secrets to a long life: my observations about Auntie.

Auntie is a strong Jewish lady with character and drive. I think she's lived this long because of her active mind (she played bridge until last year), incredible shape from yoga, and ability to accept life's challenges. She'll often say, "that's my story and I'm stuck with it." 

Auntie raised my partner Jeff, when his mother (Auntie's sister), died of breast cancer.

It's been our pleasure taking care of Auntie. For eight months this year she lived with us under Hospice care. Auntie wasn't ready to go and got better. She's now living at a long-term care facility where she is the oldest resident.

If you'd like to leave a birthday greeting please comment.

I'll share your good wishes with her.

Saturday Snapshot is a weekly meme hosted by Alyce from At Home With Books.

Book Beginnings On Friday: Charles Jessold, Considered As A Murderer

Aloha and welcome to my first Book Beginnings On Friday post. I decided to join this weekly event hosted by Katy at A Few More Pages.

To participate I need to name the book I'm currently reading, share the first line with you, and tell you my reaction to the opening sentence.

The book on my nightstand is an Advance Uncorrected Proof that I received from BookBrowse. It's scheduled for release on February 1, 2011 (first published in Great Britain, 2010).

Title: Charles Jessold, Considered As A Murderer by Wesley Stace

First Sentence: "I met Charles Jessold, the murderer, on 21 May 1910, the day after King Edward's funeral."

My reaction: I love a time period British mystery. Especially with a cup of tea. Who is Charles Jessold and is he really a murderer? The narrator seems to think so. I'm also intrigued by the music theme (notice the musical notes on the cover and score in the right hand corner). As a flute player, and mystery lover, I think this is going to be a good fit for me.

Question: Do you like mysteries that reveal the name of the murderer at the beginning? Or do you like to be surprised and try to figure out "who-done-it?"

The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo: Book Review

The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo
by Stieg Larsson

Audio Book Read by Simon Vance

Rating: 5/5

Quote from Book: "To Sally, who showed me the benefits of the sport of golf."

The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo explores Sweden's dark side. The country's cold winter landscape provides a stark backdrop for this story that kept me up at nights. I'm probably one of the last bloggers to read Stieg Larsson's compelling drama. Now I'm hooked on the series.

There are family secrets to uncover here, a mystery to solve, corruption to expose and justice to deliver. 

What happened to Harriet when she disappeared 40 years ago?

Henrik, her uncle, wants to know. He's been receiving Harriet's signature gift on his birthday, a framed flower, every year since her disappearance. Now 82, he may not have much time left to find out Harriet's fate which has alluded the authorities all of these years.

Enter Blomkvist, a journalist convicted of libel with spare time on his hands. Henrik hires him to write the family biography and secretly delve into the mystery of Harriet's disappearance.

Helping him is "the girl with the dragon tattoo," Lisbeth Salander. Only in her 20's she proves to be a formidable and brilliant researcher. Salander has a way of leaving a mark on those who do her wrong. It's all justified.

Larsson's writing is impressive.

He expertly weaves together the investigation. I was amazed how Blomkvist could identify someone in a photograph taken over 40 years ago for example.

Not only does Blomvkist and Salander solve Harriet's disappearance, they also uncover corruption, sexual violence, and clear Blomkvist's name. The violence is intense.

I listened to the audio version on Audible narrated by Simon Vance.

It was compelling and I had a difficult time hitting the stop button. I was always looking for excuses to come back and listen. Vance did an expert job reading the novel, especially the voices of the male characters.

Possible Spoiler Alert Follows: If you read the book what do you think about this question?

I asked myself what I would do if I knew the identity of a sexual predator. Would I go to the authorities to stop the violence and save lives, or remain quiet if exposure would mean jail time for a murder I committed. This is the decision one character made in the book. I won't say who.

Other Reviews:

Rose City Reader

(FTC: I signed up for a free one-month membership on Audible and downloaded the audio on my iPhone. This was the October book selection for our Lihue Library book group).

Borders Reward Plus Doesn't Feel Fair

I feel ripped off today thanks to the new Borders Rewards Plus program. Last month I caved in and paid the $20 yearly fee. If I had waited until this month, however, they would have given me $10 back in Borders Bucks.

It all started on Monday when they sent an email announcing their gifts for me. Included was the offer below for those paying the $20 enrollment fee:

I contacted Borders "customer care" last night to ask if the offer applied to me. They wrote back this morning and had this to say (exact quote):

"Dear Valued Customer, We apologize for the inconvenience, unfortunately this promotion just started this month and those who upgraded starting this month are those who are qualified for the $10 Borders bucks and its redeemable on 12/26/10-1/1/11." 

I replied back and asked to be put in contact with management. I also pulled the books in my shopping cart today at Borders.

Do you think I woke up on the wrong side of the page today or am I right to feel ripped off?

I also have a question. Why send this offer to customers already enrolled? Do you mean to tell me that Borders has no way of segmenting offers?

Musing Monday: Reaction to Book Buying Trends

With hardcover book sales down to 33.3%, compared to 35% in 2009, today's Musing Monday asked for my reaction to the report on Trendspotting: Reader's Spending On Books.

My first thought is to put spending in perspective. We all have discretionary income. Where do you get the most value?

For example, if I go out to dinner I'm likely to spend more than the cost of a hardcover book. In a few hours the experience is over although it was enjoyable.

If I buy a hardcover book, however, it's going to last longer than a meal. And in the end I have something tangible to hang on to.

I still shop around for the best deal but like supporting independent stores too. For example, Mystery Lovers Bookshop in Pittsburgh ships free on purchases $10 or more. I also like Barnes and Noble that offers complimentary priority shipping to Hawaii, with no minimum purchase, for their members. It makes buying too easy at times.

My spending habit on books, however, is still under some control. I use my library often and maybe purchase a new hardcover once a month.

What's your spending habit on books and have you noticed a change?

Musing Monday is hosted by Should Be Reading.

The Sunday Salon: Thinking Holidays

Do you have a favorite holiday cozy to get you in the spirit of the season? I have several which I'll be writing about in the weeks ahead.

Last week I started Christmas Is Murder by C.S. Challinor. I'm halfway through and not liking it so far. Maybe if I hang on longer it will improve. The novel doesn't have a holiday feel and none of the characters are people I would want to be snowbound with. Always a bad sign.

Can murder and Christmas ever be a good fit? Of course. One excellent example is Nutty As a Fruitcake by Mary Daheim. She skillfully wove the holiday spirit into the story line with an ax murderer on the loose.

Several years ago I read Christmas Cookie Murder by Leslie Meier. I loved the cookie exchange in the book. This year I've decided to host my own. Have any of you hosted a cookie exchange before or attended one? If so I'd love to hear your ideas.

This morning during my cup of hand roasted coffee (yum), I signed up for Book Bloggers Holiday Card Exchange. It's hosted by Anastasia at Birdbrain(ed) Book Blog. Take a look.

I'm also thinking about Book Blogger Holiday Swap. Right now I can't participate because I need 8 posts in the past two months. With a week left I think I can qualify. If you've followed my blog you know I fell off the blogger wagon over the summer. Some health, job and family issues took center stage.

I'm back.

How Starbucks Saved My Life: A Book Review

How Starbucks Saved My Life
by Michael Gates Gill

Gotham Books, Copyright 2007
265 pages. ISBN 9781592402861

Rating: 3/5

Quote from book: "Work is dignity, I repeated to myself. That could be my mantra."

There were many things I liked about this riches-to-rags-to-riches story. And a few things I had a hard time swallowing. Grab a cup of joe and join me in today's discussion of, How Starbucks Saved My Life, by Michael Gates Gill.

I wasn't sure what to expect and the book left me questioning how transparent the author chose to be. On the surface it's a good story of an older worker who lost it all and found a new beginning as a barista at Starbucks. In the end he wrote a book and sold his story to Creative Artists for a possible movie. Wow! I wish I had thought of that.

The action flows between the past and present. One moment we're hearing about the time the author had a beer with Ernest Hemingway in Spain or rubbed elbows with Queen Elizabeth in his prior life. If this was to impress me it didn't work.

I found myself skimming the passages where many names were dropped and waited for the action to return to Michael mopping the floor in the bathroom at Starbucks or learning the art of coffee. Sort of a humbling experience for this guy who once earned a six figure income.

Starbucks appears to be the shining star where all good things happen. Almost too good to be true. Michael didn't find much to dislike. I was ready to apply for a job after reading the book.

Then it hit me. The author, who attended Yale, spent his career in advertising. Of course! He didn't just stumble into a $10 an hour job at Starbucks but probably saw an opportunity and ran with it. Nothing wrong with that. The story would have been more interesting to me had the author been more honest about his motives.

Otherwise I'm asked to believe that this high powered executive commuted several hours a day to a Manhattan Starbucks, for minimal pay, never thinking anything would come of it, and just walked into fame (and probably fortune).

What do you think? 



FTC Note: I saved money for several cappuccino drinks and checked this book out from the Lihue Library.