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Powell's Staff:
Five Book Friday: In Memoriam
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Every year, the booksellers at Powell’s submit their Top Fives: their five favorite books that were released in 2023. It’s a list that, when put together, shows just how varied and interesting the book tastes of Powell’s booksellers are. I highly recommend digging into the recommendations — we would never lead you astray — but today...
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Brontez Purnell:
Powell’s Q&A: Brontez Purnell, author of ‘Ten Bridges I’ve Burnt’
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Rachael P.:
Starter Pack: Where to Begin with Ursula K. Le Guin
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Customer Comments
Erin ORiordan has commented on (9) products
Atrocities
by
Jeremy Shipp
Erin ORiordan
, November 11, 2020
Our protagonist Danna Valdez has taken a new job at the home of Mr. and Mrs. Evers. She's set to teach the Evers' daughter Isabella. Isabella has recently had an accident. This Gothic novella eerily drifts back and forth between the waking world and dreams. It walks a fine line between the worlds of the living and the dead, between real monsters and works of art that are merely disturbing. I purchased this book from Powell's as a spooky read for Halloween season, but there really is no bad time of year to read a chilling Gothic story. If you're looking for something weird and different, you will not be disappointed. I bought this book with my own funds and was not obligated in any way to review it.
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James Clyde and the Diamonds of Orchestra
by
Colm McElwain
Erin ORiordan
, February 14, 2014
James Clyde and the Diamonds of Orchestra (2012) is the first novel by Colm McElwain. With an 11-year-old protagonist, this fantasy will appeal to readers aged 8-12. The titular hero is a foster child who's recently come to live with a vaguely neglectful woman named Anne Brown. Brown, as James calls her, has also adopted slightly-younger Ben and Mary. When the reader first encounters James, he's in the midst of a petty crime, stealing warm hats and gloves for himself and his brother and sister from a store in the mall. Hiding from the mall security guard, he runs into a psychic who warns him of grave dangers. Her prophecy is fulfilled when Brown packs the trio off to James's (presumably) biological grandfather's mansion for the winter holidays. McElwain lists C.S. Lewis and J.K. Rowling among his influences, and it's easy to spot the influence in his work. Like Lewis's Professor Digory Kirke in The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe (1950), James's grandfather, Wilmore Clyde, knows a lot more about a mysterious hidden world -and its connection to his own labyrinthine mansion - then he first lets on. That hidden world is the Orchestra of the title. Orchestra is divided into two kingdoms: fair Zara and foul Darken. The wicked Queen Abigail of Darken, who would get along well with Narnia's white witch Jadis, intends to rule both once she obtains Orchestra's fabled diamonds. The trio of James, Ben, and Mary may remind some of Harry Potter, Ron Weasley, and Hermione Granger. Ben, more down-to-earth than idealistic James, serves as the hero's foil. Mary, the youngest at only eight, is often the damsel in distress, although she's capable of delivering wisdom when needed. It rests solidly on the firm foundation of British fantasy novels for young readers, but James Clyde and the Diamonds of Orchestra is original enough to delight. Its short chapters, fast pace, and brisk action make it an ideal read for the middle grade age group. Readers who enjoy this novel will have to wait and hope for another installment. Although McElwain has mentioned an idea for a second novel in interviews, he had no definite plans to continue James's story.
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Walking on Electric Air
by
Stephen Cubine
Erin ORiordan
, September 21, 2010
I found Stephen Cubine looking for reviewers for his book on Writer Gazette. The description made it sound absolutely fascinating. I was a little skeptical, since the book was published by a very small press, 19 West Publishing, Inc. My skepticism was misplaced. It may not have been picked up by a big publisher (yet), but Walking on Electric Air is pure reading joy. This is the kind of book that makes you say "Yeah!" when you read the last page. The principle characters are Dottie, Shelby and Lynda. Each of them has issues. Dottie is a housewife so desperate, she's tried to kill herself again and again. The "perfect" life somehow doesn't make her happy. Shelby, a mechanic, has been an alcoholic mess since a terrible crash at the Indy 500. Lynda works at a dead-end job in a tiny Arkansas town...and, despite her Nashville aspirations, may have the worst singing voice known to humanity. They may be a ragtag band, a sort of Thelma and Louise Plus One, but Dottie, Shelby and Lynda are all totally lovable. Dottie initiates their wild road trip through the South when she suggests Shelby find his long-lost daughter. They never lose sight of that goal, even when confronted with an angry boyfriend, a mother with deeply-buried secrets, unhappy cowboys, slaughtered hogs, and a duffel bag full of adult toys. Walking on Electric Air is riotously funny, and it also has heart and soul--my favorite combination. I give it five stars because this is the kind of book you hate to put down.
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Memoirs From The Asylum
by
Kenneth Weene
Erin ORiordan
, August 12, 2010
Chances are, you have a family member or an acquaintance who's been affected by a major mental illness. For many people, mental illnesses are very treatable. They will either recover or learn to manage their episodes of illness. For others, a mental illness does not respond to treatment and living in a therapeutic setting becomes an option. Of those whose illness leads to hospitalization, some are lucky enough to be able to afford private care. For others, there's the state hospital. As Alice famously said to the Cheshire Cat, "I don't want to go among mad people," and any examination of the lives and thoughts of those living in the state hospital will not be a walk in the garden. Although 'Memoirs From the Asylum' by Kenneth Weene is fictional, those of us who have mentally ill friends and relatives or who have worked in mental health care settings will find it unsettlingly real. Readers will no doubt find this book fascinating. It's like what medieval Christians used to call "the abominable fancy:" the saved glimpsing the suffering of those in Hell. The trouble is, as Weene's book makes clear, the line between the "sane" and the "insane" is a fine one. The "insane" are institutionalized by their own volition, but can declare "the vacation's over" and walk out to rejoin society at any moment. The staff are just as capable of abnormal thoughts and irrational behavior as the patients. It reminds me of a joke from an early season of 'The Simpsons,' when Homer found himself committed and asked the doctors how they could tell who was sane and who was insane. Simple, they tell him: everyone who's insane has his/her hand stamped "INSANE." 'Memoirs From the Asylum' is, at times, funny, sometimes unsettling, but largely tragic. It's a powerful book, but one worth reading. It's a plea for compassion and a disorganized rant as careening as the Jimi Hendrix solos that a patient named Jamul endlessly plays on his invisible guitar. Funny thing about that: thanks to the Freedom of Information Act, the Navy record of the real Jimi Hendrix is now public, and it reveals he was once thought to have a mental illness. The real Hendrix seemed to be unable to concentrate on any work other than writing songs and playing his guitar! Perhaps Jamul was a misunderstood genius. Within the pages of 'Memoirs of the Asylum,' anything is possible.
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The Mystery of Fate
by
Brenda Warneka and Arlene Uslander
Erin ORiordan
, July 26, 2010
Did you ever see the movie 'Signs?' (Forget for a moment that its star, Mel Gibson, has drawn a lot of bad publicity to himself lately.) In that film, seemingly random acts and objects take on monumental significance. Fate arranges them so at just the right time, a family in crisis gets the exact help it needs exactly when they need it. The result is an amazing film, a testament to the creative mind of writer/director M. Night Shyamalan. Sometimes, though, truth is as artfully arranged as fiction. In 'The Mystery of Fate: Common Coincidence or Divine Intervention?,,' edited by Arlene Uslander and Brenda Warnecka (2010, R. J. Buckley Publishing), a variety of authors tell stories that seem made up for a Hollywood movie screen...and yet they're all true. "Fate" is one name given to the mysterious force that seems to arrange events, for better or for worse. Depending on his or her personal beliefs, the reader may chalk these fascinating true stories up to coincidence, or to the intervention of guardian angels or a Higher Power. In these stories, the dead speak, soul mates are found in the most unlikely places, men and women defy death and long-lost family members are reunited. The result is an unforgettable reading experience.
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Graphic Classics Volume 18: Louisa May Alcott
by
Louisa May Alcott and Trina Robbins and Antonella Caputo
Erin ORiordan
, July 24, 2010
I saw this at the library, and having recently read 'Little Vampire Women' by Louisa May Alcott and Lynn Messina, I couldn't resist reading the graphic novel version of 'Little Women.' It was wonderful, even though Anne Timmons drew Laurie blond and we know from the book he has black, curly hair. But wait, there's more! 'The Rival Prima Donnas' is a rather predictable tale of jealousy and revenge, but it definitely illustrates the dark side of Alcott, and it was beautifully drawn by Molly Crabapple. 'Lost in a Pyramid,' drawn by Pedro Lopez, is a good dose of ancient Egyptian magic. After 'Little Women,' the best story is the last one, 'A Whisper in the Dark.' It's a Gothic melodrama about a young heiress who desires to marry her "cousin" (they're not actually blood relatives) but, through her uncle's scheming, ends up under a malevalent doctor's care. If it hadn't been for this graphic novel version, I might never have been exposed to these lesser-known stories from a truly very talented 19th century writer. Graphic Classics is an awesome series.
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Little Vampire Women
by
Louisa May Alcott
Erin ORiordan
, July 11, 2010
This book is a duet of pleasures. It contains all the fun of reading Louisa May Alcott's novel 'Little Women,' one of my favorite books as a teen. I still love it. I'll still stop to watch either the classic black and white movie or the 1993 version with Winona Ryder and Susan Sarandon when they're on TV. Then there's the added pleasure of knowing the March sisters--and Marmee and Father--are immortal vampires.(Well, maybe not so immortal in Beth's case.) They're "humanitarian" vampires who only feast on animal blood. Human boy next door Laurie would do anything to become a vampire, too. But his tutor, Mr. Brooke: is he really in love with Meg, or is it merely a cover for his secretive vampire-slayer activities? Either way, this little volume is two distinct flavors of 18th-century New England fun that taste great together. As long as you don't mind the coppery aftertaste.
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Fairy Tale Lust Erotic Fantasies For Women
by
Kristina Wright
Erin ORiordan
, July 11, 2010
We see the words "fairy tale," and we automatically think of a frivolous, fluffy piece of fantasy. Scratch the surface, however, and we learn the fairy tale contains all the stuff our dreams and nightmares are made of, all the stuff of life: birth, death, love, lust, starvation, humiliation, triumph, victory and defeat. Like our cherished religious mythologies, fairy tales tell us who we are at our very centers and what we might need...or secretly desire. It's only appropriate, then, that fairy tales grow up with us, and make the transition to our adult bedtime stories. Cleis Press seems to be particularly talented in this field. First Cleis brought us Mitzi Szereto's 'In Sleeping Beauty's Bed,' a fun collection of naughty fairy tales set in a faraway land of a long time ago. 'Fairy Tale Lust' is something different. Yes, some of the tales are set in a faraway land of long, long ago, but there are also contemporary tales so realistically told they might be happening next door, right now. It's nearly impossible to pick a favorite from among this seductive collection of folkloric fantasies. "How the Little Mermaid Got Her Tail Back" is as beguiling as a siren. "Three Times" is breathtaking. "The Return" is a special kind of verbal enchantment, as is editor Kristina Wright's "In the Dark Woods," a modern-day morality play that plays out on a mattress. Cute comes into this fairy tale collection: see, for example, Jeremy Edwards' twist on Goldilocks and the Three Bears. More often than not, though, cute is merely an enticing cover for the hidden well of deep, dark human fantasy.
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Celebrity Secrets: Official Government Files on the Rich and Famous
by
Nick Redfern
Erin ORiordan
, July 11, 2010
Pop trash? A guilty pleasure? Maybe, but it's worth a look, especially since it's a quick read. Sure, some of it's old news: Frank Sinatra's mob connections, Billie Holiday's drug use, Marilyn Monroe's suspicious death. Other tidbits were new to me. I never realized the military inadvertently killed John Wayne by testing atomic weapons near one of his film shoots. The most interesting parts are the government files on writers. Ernest Hemingway, living in Cuba at the time of the Communist revolution, still managed to have fun pranking the CIA. Jack Kerouac's overactive imagination rendered him wildly unfit for service in the Navy. The same can be said for Jimi Hendrix's stint in the army, although Kerouac didn't go so far as to incur Hendrix's outrageous unpaid laundry bill. Musicians are the second-most interesting class of folks in this book: could it really be true that John Lennon was funneling money to the I.R.A.?
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