Hey Book Lovers! Welcome to our latest Top Picks Of The Week! Oops! Technical snafus (and purchasing a new laptop/nerve center for our business) resulted in a little delay this week. That just proves BookFilter isn't some corporate behemoth churning out weekly newsletters based on an algorithm with boring efficiency. We're lovable book nerds, always reading and discussing books, debating which ones should make the newsletter...and sometimes taking an extra day when technology won't cooperate. So you know you can trust us! Whether you're about to go to your favorite bookstore, library or online retailer, head first to BookFilter and you'll discover all the best new releases in every genre.
What we're reading:
- DIVIDED WE STAND by Marjorie J. Spruill (history)
- THE HORSEMAN by Tim Pears (fiction)
- YOU'RE WELCOME, CLEVELAND by Scott Raab (sports, memoir)
- A MILLION LITTLE THINGS by Susan Mallery (romance, fiction)
- CRAVINGS by Judy Collins (memoir, self-help)
- BONE BOX by Faye Kellerman (mystery & thriller)
- THE ART OF FLOWER ARRANGING by Paula Pryke (home & garden & craft)
- DAUGHTER OF THE PIRATE KING by Tricia Levenseller (young adult, fantasy)
This lively history of the modern women's rights movement is not just the story of progressives and their righteous cause. It also tells the story of the conservative women who organized in opposition to the Equal Rights Amendment and more, thus inspiring a rebirth of the political right around social issues. A fascinating story with repercussions right up to today.... Read More.
Love History? We've Got 15 New History Books Out This Week For You To Browse!Love Current Events? We've Got 12 New Titles Hot Off The Presses!
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This gentle, hushed work is about life on an estate in England circa 1911. War clouds are looming but the rhythms of nature and a world where things have always been done a certain way -- and seemingly always will -- hold sway. Our hero is the young lad Leo, who is a boy of few words. He studies nature the way other kids study books and above all the boy loves horses. Leo's reserved relationship with the other servants, with his family and even his schoolteachers are almost as interesting as Leo's relationship with the natural world around him -- the ferrets and birds and ants and sky and grass and wind and, of course, the horses. "The Horseman" is so soft a story, so lovingly intimate, so gently celebratory of everything from the slaughtering of a pig to a horse auction to the ritual of tending to the fields that you're almost bewitched. Pears doesn't wow you with incident. You must pay attention. But when you do, like Leo you will be rewarded with wisdom.... Read More.
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HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO THE TYPEWRITER On March 1, 1873, Remington and Sons began manufacturing the first commercial typewriter in the world. Sure, some writers still work with pen and paper while most are clicking away on a keyboard or -- god help us -- yapping away into a software program that converts their thoughts into text. But isn't the typewriter the sexiest, the most dramatic way of putting your thoughts on paper? The metallic clang of the keys hitting paper, the pages ripped out of the machine and then labored over again, the sheer beauty of the instrument itself? That's why a new novel about the assistant to author Henry James is dubbed "The Typewriter's Tale" and features one of those early commercial typewriters on its cover. (The book is by Michiel Heyns and enjoyed much praise in the UK.) You should read it and then write a book report...on a typewriter of course.
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YOU'RE WELCOME, CLEVELAND by Scott RaabSports fanatic (and writer at large for Esquire) Scott Raab made a name for himself by excoriating basketball star LeBron James when the man made The Decision and left Cleveland and headed to Miami. Raab dubbed James "The Whore Of Akron" in an acclaimed cry from the heart. Raab would NEVER forgive and forget...that is, until James returned to Cleveland and won them their first sports championship in half a century. Here's their (?) story.... Read More.
Love Sports & Games? We've Got Ten Of The Best Out This Week Competing For Your Attention!Love Biographies & Memoirs? We've Got 16 More Lives Worth Reading About On Display Just For You!
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If a novel is written by a woman and tells the story of women it's derisively termed "chick lit." It took Jane Austen decades to be taken seriously, George Eliot hid behind a man's name and even today female authors writing about female protagonists are often dismissed (at least by men). Which may explain why best-selling writer Susan Mallery is famous and popular and acclaimed -- but not as famous and popular and acclaimed as she should be. Her latest is about Zoe, whose best friend is obsessed (naturally) with a new baby. Zoe befriends her best friend's widowed mom while avoiding her best friend's annoying brother and freaking out over the fact that said mom is being pursued by Zoe's equally available dad! Yes, as if Mallery didn't have all those strikes against her, she's also funny and entertaining. Check it out.... Read More.
Love Romance? Twenty Possibilities For True Love (w Scottish Lairds, Cowboys, WW II aces & More) Await! Love Fiction? We've Chosen 14 More Books For You To Browse!
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Did you see the Oscars? Sara Bareilles sang the Joni Mitchell classic "Both Sides, Now" during the In Memorium section. Even decades later, any version of that song brings to mind the classic cover by Judy Collins that became a smash hit and helped bring Mitchell to worldwide attention. Collins had such a pure lovely voice you imagined a pure and lovely life. But she struggled with an addiction to food and this heartfelt memoir details Collins' battle and ultimate triumph over those cravings.... Read More.
Love Biography & Memoirs? We've Got 16 More Lives Worth Exploring!Love Self-Help? Consider Eight More Ways To Improve & Inspire Yourself!
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This is about the 24th novel in the long-running, best-selling mystery series by Faye Kellerman. Decker is an LAPD lieutenant and Lazarus is his Orthodox Jewish wife who invariably proves essential in solving the cases he faces. Kellerman and her family are all Orthodox Jews AND authors, with Faye and her husband Jonathan the only married couple to appear simultaneously on the best-seller list with separate books. (Their son Jason is also a writer.) The only mystery here is why these books haven't been turned into movies or a tv series yet..... Read More.
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HAPPY BIRTHDAY "GRAVITY'S RAINBOW!" Author Thomas Pynchon's National Book Award-winning novel "Gravity's Rainbow" was published on February 28, 1973. Ok, it's a little intimidating -- the book is almost 800 pages long and it's been dubbed the American "Ulysses" (as in James Joyce's famously challenging "Ulysses") and though a panel unanimously recommended it win the Pulitzer Prize, the Pulitzer board rejected it, calling the novel "unreadable," "turgid," "overwritten" and in parts "obscene." (Now if it had been wholly obscene...!) You can always try his early masterpiece "The Crying Of Lot 49," which is just 160 pages or his most recent novel "Bleeding Edge," which is a playful crime caper (sort of) and more gonzo Hunter S. Thompson than dauntingly Joycean. Besides, Thomas Pynchon's middle name is Ruggles, so he shouldn't be that intimidating!
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A long time ago, we worked in a gourmet deli on the Upper West Side of Manhattan. (Our sign by the register -- "Will Read For Food" -- didn't have any takers.) Sometimes we'd be given some product to display. Maybe cookies on a plate or a pile of produce or stacks of pasta. We'd shape and shift them around and struggle to show them off in a "natural" yet pleasing arrangement and fail and fail...and then our boss Linda would walk by, toss it all around in about ten seconds and the display would be perfect. This book is for people like us, not Linda. Actually, it's probably also for Linda because the good can always get better.... Read More.
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A female Jack Sparrow? Well, that's a fun pitch for this rousing adventure tale that is pitched towards the Young Adult crowd but is great for anyone who enjoys a fun tale, a strong female heroine, a dash of fantasy and/or a bit of romance to boot. Alosa, the 17 year old daughter of the Pirate King, arranges to be kidnapped by enemies so she can steal a treasure map hidden on their ship. Of course she doesn't plan on that ship's first mate being distractingly handsome and (almost) as smart as her.... Read More.
Love Young Adult? We've Got 18 More In Every Genre Worth Reading On Your Own Or Sharing With The Kid In Your Life!Love Fantasy & Sci-Fi & Horror? Today's Your Lucky Day -- We've Got 13 More Books Ready To Browse!
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Thanks for reading our latest BookFilter newsletter! Tell us what you think -- drop a line at newsletter@bookfilter.com. Do you want more picks? Fewer? Did you click on any of the links like "More Fiction!" to find even more great new picks? Will you share it with a friend? Will we keep asking questions? If you love it, share it with your friends -- forward them the newsletter or just send them this link so they can sign up for themselves.
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Thanks for reading. Michael Giltz is the founder of BookFilter, a book lover’s best friend. Looking for the next great book to read? Head to BookFilter! Subscribe to their free weekly newsletter! Need a smart and easy gift? Head to BookFilter! Wondering what new titles just hit the store in your favorite categories, like cookbooks and mystery and more? Head to BookFilter! It’s a website that lets you browse for books online the way you do in a physical bookstore, provides comprehensive info on new releases every week in every category and offers passionate personal recommendations every step of the way. It’s like a fall book preview or holiday gift guide — but every week in every category. He’s also the cohost of Showbiz Sandbox, a weekly pop culture podcast that reveals the industry take on entertainment news of the day and features top journalists and opinion makers as guests. It’s available for free on iTunes. Visit Michael Giltz at his website and his daily blog.
Note: Michael Giltz is provided with free advance and final copies of books with the understanding that he would be considering them for review. Generally, he does not guarantee to review and he receives far more titles than he can cover.