Margarita Engle: The Poet Slave of Cuba: A Biography of Juan Francisco Manzano
Margarita Engle: The Firefly Letters: A Suffragette's Journey to Cuba
David Liss: The Twelfth Enchantment: A Novel
A fantastic romp through Regency England. Lucy Derrick is a wonderful heroine -- whether confronting dark magic, Lord Byron, William Blake or the mythical General Ludd, leader of the Luddites.
Erin Morgenstern: The Night Circus
Tea Obreht: The Tiger's Wife: A Novel
A stunning first novel combining myth, folklore, and the Balkan War. Read my full review here >>>.
John M. Marzluff: Dog Days, Raven Nights
Drawn from Marzluff's extensive field notes, this is a fascinating account of his research on the Common Raven in Western Maine. Beautiful illustrations as well.
Guy Consolmagno, S.J.: God's Mechanics
Noted Jesuit Vatican Astronomer and self proclaimed geek (big fan of SF and Fantasy Lit too!) discusses the relationship between science and faith. Funny and insightful.
The Heavens Proclaim: Astronomy and the Vatican
A series of terrific and inspiring essays on Astronomy and Physics from the Jesuit Vatican Astronomers.
Gil Adamson: The Outlander
Gorgeous novel about a young widow fleeing her murderous kin at the turn of the 1900s. Taut, elegant prose, a relentless pace -- and a remarkable heroine.
Guy Gavriel Kay: Under Heaven
A terrific historical novel set in an imagine T'ang China. Read the full review here.
Karen Russell: St. Lucy's Home for Girls Raised by Wolves
A collection of magic realist short stories set in strange backwater towns. In the title story packs of wild girls are gathered into dormitories where they must shed their raucous and gleeful wolfish natures to become domesticated young women with very mixed results.
Robert Olmstead: Coal Black Horse
Haunting and powerful novel of the Civil War: A hill boy's mythic search to find his father on a battlefield while the war and its devastation threaten to destroy him. Olmstead's prose is exquisite, the dialogue pitch perfect. One of those short but brilliant books that echoes classics like Crane's Red Badge of Courage and Steinbeck's Red Pony.
Nathaniel Rich: The Mayor's Tongue
A quirky first novel about the search for a missing author who may or may not exist. The writing is beautiful and very evocative.
Salman Rushdie: The Enchantress of Florence: A Novel
Another sumptuous novel from Rushdie.
Padma Viswanathan: The Toss of a Lemon
A wonderful novel of the private history of a prominent Brahmin family.
Carlos Ruiz Zafón: The Shadow of the Wind
A haunting, magical realist novel about the passion for secret books.
Luis Alberto Urrea: Into the Beautiful North: A Novel
Inspired watching the movie The Magnificent Seven, a young woman leaves her village in Sinaloa, Mexico and travels north looking for her father and seven Mexican warriors to bring home to small town and save it from the drug lords. A fast and funny novel with a rich cast of characters. Read the longer review here.
Geraldine Brooks: March
A haunting Civil War novel -- told between the lines of a well-known American Classic, Little Women. March, the absent father of the "little women," recounts his experiences in battle, in the bloody hospitals, and in the decaying, corrupt mansions of the post-war South. An extraordinary and moving novel.
Arturo Perez-Reverte: The King's Gold
A terrific new novel of the continuing adventures of 17th c Spain's Captain Alatriste. A veteran of the thirty years war, the Captain is offered a dangerous mission to "liberate" the King's Gold from a secret trading ship. His search for a team of men will include some of Spain's most distinquished veterans as well as some of her most infamous ruffians. One of the best chapters occurs in Seville's notrious prison. Fast paced, witty, and sanguinary. Longer review found here
Flannery O'Connor: Mystery and Manners: Occasional Prose
A collection of terrific essays on writing from one of America's most compelling short story authors.
Italo Calvino: Cosmicomics
Calvino's imaginary depiction of the origins of the universe combining mathematics, atoms, dark matter, the moon and planets with sexual awakening, cooking, art, and longing. Gorgeous.
Rabih Alameddine: The Hakawati
This sumptuous novel (whose title roughly translates as "story teller") by Lebanese author Alameddine combines a richly imagined family history juxtaposed with the great mythic tales of the middle east. It is a celebration of the region's cultural bounty and the powerful bonds of love in one amazing family. Read the full reivew here.
Juan Rulfo: Pedro Paramo
Short and brilliant magic realist novel of Mexico. A man returns home to find his father and finds a town full of ghosts. Eerie and beautiful. Read the full review here.
Angela Villalba: Mexican Calendar Girls: Chicas de calendarios Mexicanos
A gorgeous collection of prints from Mexican calendar art. The text is informative and the art inspiring.
Midori, congrats on the new blog digs. I, too, am extremely fond of Baba Yaga (and all her various incarnations). One of my daughters' favorite stories from a collection we own (Usborne Books, I believe) is the Baba Yaga piece from Russia, which I have read dramatically to them since they were just a couple of years old. Of course, now they can practically recite the drama themselves, with all of my original antics and voices recreated in their own style.
Tamara
Posted by: Tamara K Sellman | October 12, 2007 at 03:35 PM
Much the same in our household. My daughter has longed for a house on chicken legs since she was five. And thanks for stopping by!
Posted by: Midori | October 12, 2007 at 03:59 PM
What a beautiful pair of poems! Baba Yaga is lucky after her ill treatment to have her victim return with a better dinner!
Posted by: Simon | April 22, 2010 at 04:24 AM
Loved the drawing, I'll check some more about him, thanks.
Posted by: Daniel | July 16, 2010 at 01:47 PM
Hi Daniel -- I do hope you do check out Forest Rogers -- although her name doesn't make it evident, she is a woman artist and incredibly talented.
Posted by: Midori | July 16, 2010 at 03:04 PM