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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
Bricoleur has commented on (6) products
Babbitt
by
Sinclair Lewis
Bricoleur
, December 10, 2009
Sinclair Lewis is one of my favorite writers, and of his many wonderful works (MAIN STREET, ELMER GANTRY, IT CAN'T HAPPEN HERE) BABBITT is the one I love the best. It is an absolutely brilliant character study of a man who is not particularly likeable, but who is extremely sympathetic. As a reader, you may not like the choices Babbitt makes, or the compromises, or the attitudes ... but Lewis clearly shows how Babbitt is driven to those choices, compromises and attitudes by the society in which he lives. Is it the "Great American Novel?" No, it's too narrow in scope for that. But I think it can safely be considered one of the most skillful explorations of an archetypally "American" life ever written.
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Main Street
by
Sinclair Lewis
Bricoleur
, December 10, 2009
Sinclair Lewis is one of my favorite writers, and MAIN STREET is one of his masterworks. Lewis cut his teeth as a journalist, and has the lovely clear declarative voice that such a background fosters. He also has a subtle, bitter sense of humor that makes his prose a joy to read. Like BABBITT, MAIN STREET sharply examines (and skewers) the vanity and pretention of characters who strive to achieve their own skewed, ignoble understanding of the American dream. Though Lewis' heyday was in the '20s and '30s, his books still have a lot to offer readers today.
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Up in the Old Hotel & Other Stories
by
Joseph Mitchell
Bricoleur
, December 10, 2009
Quite simply, one of my favorite books ever. I have given away a half-dozen copies of this book to friends, demanding that they read it. Diamond-brilliant essays about everyday life in a New York that has long since vanished. Probably the best-known piece from this collection is "Joe Gould's Secret" (Stanley Tucci made a movie of it in 2000) but there are many lesser-known bits of genius here. I think this book belongs in every collection. Get your hands on it!
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Other
by
Thomas Tryon
Bricoleur
, December 10, 2009
A simply amazing book. It is touted as one of the underappreciated, yet seminal, works of horror fiction, and I'd say that's a fair assessment. It's written absolutely beautifully. Tryon is the master of the art of foreshadowing without really giving anything away; so many works of horror or dark fantasy, you see the twists and turns coming a mile off. With Tryon, the twist happens and it's so perfectly natural, so obvious, so right, you wonder how he managed to do it and still retain the element of surprise. I'd say this is a must-read for anyone who likes horror, dark fantasy, or just plain good writing.
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Soulless Parasol Protectorate 01
by
Gail Carriger
Bricoleur
, December 10, 2009
“SOULLESS“ is a delightful and addictive confection! I have never understood the appeal of werewolves, but this book single-handedly put werewolf-as-romantic-hero on the map for me. Throw in over-the-top vampires, a smart and funny heroine, and some extremely clever historical ret-conning, and you’ve got a book that steamed all my gears in just the right way. I’ll definitely have an eye peeled for the next book in the series (CHANGELESS), which comes out in March. Go parasols!
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Indigo Springs
by
A. M. Dellamonica
Bricoleur
, December 10, 2009
In Indigo Springs, a small town in Oregon, a magical apocalypse is brewing, and three young people are right smack-dab in the middle of it. Astrid, the book’s protagonist, has inherited a lovely old blue house from her ne’er-do-well father. She doesn’t even have all the moving boxes unpacked when her manipulative friend Sierra, fleeing a broken relationship, shows on her doorstep, cat in hand (because hey, nothing says “hey, let’s catch up on old times!” like “hey, let me move in rent free!”) Astrid, however, seems thrilled to see Sierra (because she had a huge crush on her in high school) and is all like, “Hella to the yeah! Mi casa, su casa! Take the nicest bedroom! Can I rub your feet? How about a muffin? Can I get you a muffin?” The house is also home to sweet and sexy Jacks, son of the local fire chief and Astrid’s step-brother. Jacks doesn’t like Sierra (which made me like him immediately) but he *does* like Astrid (who kinda likes him back, because he’s totally hot in that scruffy Oregon backpacking whitewater rafting guy who lets his chocolate lab ride in the back of his 1990 Toyota pickup with the peeling-off Phish stickers kind of way) … so you can see where the sparks are going to start to fly. Me, I was rooting for Jacks all the way, not because I’m a flaming hetero partisan, but because I just did NOT like Sierra. I’ve known people like Sierra. They make my teeth ache. But for much of the book, Astrid carries a Lady-Liberty size torch for the girl. I hate it when a character I like goes all silly over a character I don’t like. It makes me want to shake my little fists in rage. Which is probably *exactly* what author A.M. Dellamonica intended. ;-) It shows just what an expert Dellamonica is at managing reader emotions. Even though I didn’t *like* Astrid’s feelings for Sierra, I *understood* them. I happily stayed to watch the train wreck, even though I felt so powerfully for the characters that I wished it could be avoided. While I’d say INDIGO SPRINGS is really a character-driven book, it’s also tightly plotted, and kept me reading with its fascinating intersection of the magical with the mundane. In the book, mysteries pile on mysteries, and finding the answer to anything just leads to more questions. By the end of the book, Dellamonica ties everything up quite neatly, but also takes the lid off several bigger mysteries which (one guesses) will be tackled in later books in the trilogy. While this book has been called an “eco-fantasy,” don’t let that put you off (if, like me, you are completely unable to separate the term “eco-fantasy” from the 1980s movie “Ferngully”). It does, indeed, make subtle connections between the magical apocalypse facing the town of Indigo Springs with the ones we face on a global scale, but not in a preachy or pedantic way. Overall, I thought INDIGO SPRINGS was a really powerful debut from an author who’s talent I greatly respect and admire. I’m looking forward to the next book in the series, BLUE MAGIC! P.S. TEAM JACKS!
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