Talking Books at 37000 ft

I’m eight and a half hours into my eleven and a half hour flight from Tokyo to D.C.  I have every form of entertainment, minus a computer and the blessed Internet, with me to help pass the time but I’m having trouble focusing on one activity at a time.  My carry-on contains an iPod loaded [...]

Through The Worm Hole

Well, I’m here in Northern Virginia, and I can’t believe that I live in Japan.  It’s so hard to grasp that sometimes.  Having a life on two continents; friends, things to do, places to be and even doctors appointments.  (I’m getting my knee checked out this Friday to see what is going on in there.)
I [...]

Book Review ~ Lulu In Marrakech by Diane Johnson

Summary ~ Lulu In Marrakech:   Lulu Sawyer, the heroine of Diane Johnson’s captivating new novel, arrives in Marrakech, Morocco, hoping to rekindle her romance with a worldly Englishman, Ian Drumm. It’s the perfect cover for her assignment with the American CIA: tracing the flow of money from well-heeled donors to radical Islamic groups. While spending [...]

It’s A Busy Life This Week!

I am getting ready to head stateside next week for a friend’s wedding and have been busy with preparations.  On top of that, I am co-hosting a baby shower for a friend here on island on Sunday which I have to make Martha Stewart’s favorite Coconut Cupcakes for, getting a door replaced in the master bedroom closet, [...]

And The Winner Is…

… BEBE!!  Congratulations!
Congratulations Bebe!  You have won a signed copy of Natahsa Bauman’s THE DISORDER OF LONGING.  (I used Random.org to get the winning name.) 
To everyone else who entered, and there were a lot of you, thank you so much for your readership here at Planet Books and for entering my contests.  I wish I had [...]

Sunday Salon ~ October 19th, 2008

Well, I had written a pretty good post for this Sunday Salon but something happened and I lost the post.  I am pretty bummed out and now don’t feel the same creative juices flowing as I had earlier.  I’ve been working on making more Christmas cards this weekend so I haven’t really been reading much.  [...]

BTT ~ What’s Sitting On Your Shelf?

Okay–here was an interesting article by Christopher Schoppa in the Washington Post.
Avid readers know all too well how easy it is to acquire books — it’s the letting go that’s the difficult part. … During the past 20 years, in which books have played a significant role in both my personal and professional lives, I’ve [...]

Book Review ~ Home Girl by Judith Matloff

Summary ~ Home Girl: Building a Dream House on a Lawless Block
After twenty years as a foreign correspondent in tumultuous locales including Rwanda, Chechnya, and Sudan, Judith Matloff is ready to put down roots and start a family. She leaves Moscow and returns to her native New York City to house-hunt for the perfect spot [...]

Sunday Salon ~ October 12th, 2008

This weekend was a good one for reading and stampin’.  My knee has been killing me over the last few days so I’ve been laying low lately.  I injured my knee in college while holding the position of goal keeper on the Shenandoah University Women’s Lacrosse Team for one season, and have been bothered by it ever since.  [...]

Book Giveaway ~ The Disorder of Longing by Natasha Bauman

This Contest Has Concluded.  A Winner Will Be Announced Soon.

Summary ~ From Publishers Weekly
In Bauman’s overwrought debut, 1890s Bostonian Ada Pryce longs to escape the restrictions of a sexually frustrating, socially constricting marriage with tyrannical Edward, a gentleman hobbyist. Though he is an advocate of Karezza (spiritual purity through sexual deprivation), Edward can’t suppress Ada’s [...]