Cart
|
|
my account
|
wish list
|
help
|
800-878-7323
Hello, |
Login
MENU
Browse
New Arrivals
Bestsellers
Featured Preorders
Award Winners
Audio Books
See All Subjects
Used
Staff Picks
Staff Picks
Picks of the Month
Bookseller Displays
50 Books for 50 Years
25 Best 21st Century Sci-Fi & Fantasy
25 PNW Books to Read Before You Die
25 Books From the 21st Century
25 Memoirs to Read Before You Die
25 Global Books to Read Before You Die
25 Women to Read Before You Die
25 Books to Read Before You Die
Gifts
Gift Cards & eGift Cards
Powell's Souvenirs
Journals and Notebooks
socks
Games
Sell Books
Blog
Events
Find A Store
Don't Miss
Creatives on Creating Sale
Spotlight Sale
Picture Book Sale
Powell's Author Events
Oregon Battle of the Books
Audio Books
Get the Powell's newsletter
Visit Our Stores
Powell's Staff:
Five Book Friday: In Memoriam
(0 comment)
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...
Read More
»
Brontez Purnell:
Powell’s Q&A: Brontez Purnell, author of ‘Ten Bridges I’ve Burnt’
(0 comment)
Rachael P.:
Starter Pack: Where to Begin with Ursula K. Le Guin
(0 comment)
{1}
##LOC[OK]##
{1}
##LOC[OK]##
##LOC[Cancel]##
{1}
##LOC[OK]##
##LOC[Cancel]##
Customer Comments
prufrock31 has commented on (8) products
Tender at the Bone
by
Ruth Reichl
prufrock31
, August 10, 2012
I loved Ruth Reichl's work as editor of Gourmet, so it was inevitable that I would eventually read her books as well. But this one, at least, is about so much more than food: Reichl's friendly, unassuming prose leads us through her coming of age by way of college, global travel, life in a California commune, and painful family turmoil. Naturally the chapters are punctuated by recipes that represent her various travels, traditions, and phases of life. I look forward to seeing where her other memoirs lead her!
Was this comment helpful? |
Yes
|
No
(2 of 3 readers found this comment helpful)
report this comment
Miles The Autobiography
by
Miles Davis
prufrock31
, August 10, 2012
Told in Miles Davis' own voice - alternately angry, ecstatic, or philosophical - this book was full of surprises for me. I hadn't realized to what extent so many of the jazz greats were (and are) interconnected, as bandmates, rivals, and friends, and I was even more surprised to learn how educated Miles was about things like art and classical music; he was fascinated by the work of Stravinsky and Stockhausen, and knew Sartre personally. All in all, this book is both gripping and highly informative, a great introduction to jazz history.
Was this comment helpful? |
Yes
|
No
report this comment
Wit A Play
by
Margaret Edson
prufrock31
, December 17, 2011
A deeply moving exploration of what happens when a brilliant, prickly woman is faced with the one thing she can't outsmart: cancer. Vivian's diagnosis and subsequent fight force her to reconsider what she thought she knew about a person's individual worth and dignity, as distinguished from that person's intelligence or abilities. The juxtaposition of Vivian's vocabulary - that of a scholar and professor of metaphysical poetry - with that of experimental medicine helps convey how jarring this experience is for her.
Was this comment helpful? |
Yes
|
No
report this comment
Reasons to Be Pretty A Play
by
Neil Labute
prufrock31
, December 17, 2011
Very smart, sharp dialogue, and some interesting reflections on the perils of being too attractive or not attractive enough. Not quite as devastating as, say, The Shape of Things, but very realistic in the characters' mixed feelings towards one another and the way in which they grow and move on, but also don't.
Was this comment helpful? |
Yes
|
No
report this comment
Censoring An Iranian Love Story
by
Shahriar Mandanipour
prufrock31
, October 06, 2010
On the surface, this is a love story about Sara and Dara, two young students in Tehran who struggle against strict cultural standards in order to see one another. It's also about the author, who exists as a character trying to write this story so that it will pass government censors without sacrificing its essential quality. Beyond that, though, it's a story about writing - the things we choose to say and not to say, and why, and the times when silence can be even more eloquent than words. All these layers can make the book a bit dense to read, but it offers valuable insights into life in the Middle East, as well as making shrewd observations about the powers of language to obscure as well as to communicate.
Was this comment helpful? |
Yes
|
No
report this comment
Writing Down the Bones
by
Natalie Goldberg
prufrock31
, March 17, 2010
Reading this book is a lot like having a very patient, very practical best friend who knows exactly what keeps you from writing your best or maybe even writing at all, and exactly why it's so important that you stop making excuses and do it anyway. Goldberg offers a few exercises to get you going, but more valuable is her portrayal of the writing life, the unglorified, day-to-day discipline of sitting down and putting pen to paper.
Was this comment helpful? |
Yes
|
No
(9 of 15 readers found this comment helpful)
report this comment
Wild Iris
by
Louise Gluck
prufrock31
, March 17, 2010
This book knocked my socks off, plain and simple. Gluck moves easily through different voices, speaking at times as a flower, a human, a god, to create a complete and moving portrait of what it means to be alive.
Was this comment helpful? |
Yes
|
No
(7 of 10 readers found this comment helpful)
report this comment
The Penderwicks: A Summer Tale of Four Sisters, Two Rabbits, and a Very Interesting Boy (Penderwicks #1)
by
Jeanne Birdsall
prufrock31
, March 17, 2010
This book didn't grab me right away, though I enjoyed the characters, from feisty Skye and her sisters to carefully drawn minor characters like Harry the Tomato Man. But before I knew it, I was gradually, quietly drawn in to this story of two vastly different families and their effects on one another. A few characters never transcend the realm of caricature, unfortunately - I would have liked to know more about Mrs. Tifton than her mysterious past and her present chilly exterior. But the undercurrent of mostly-unspoken sadness shared by the Penderwicks and the Tiftons flavors the book with a realism that elevates it to more than the sweet, old-timey story it seems at first glance.
Was this comment helpful? |
Yes
|
No
report this comment