Book Blogger Appreciation Week: Forgotten Treasure!

Ooh! Late night post! :)

For Book Blogger Appreciation Week, today we were invited to share a book we wish would get more attention by book bloggers. This was a hard one because all of the book bloggers I've come across? You guys are rock stars. I learn more about my favorite authors through you and it's always much appreciated. So, in light of this, I decided to go with:

"Rozelle Quinn is so fair-skinned that she can pass for white. Her ten children are mostly light, too. Everyone in the small Georgia town in which she lives knows that they have different fathers. She favors her light children, but it is Tangy Mae, the darkest of them all, who is the brightest and the only one desperate to get an education. Even in rural Pakersfield they have heard of the Supreme Court's recent ruling in the case of Brown v. Board of Education, though they are in no hurry to comply with it." "Rozelle wants thirteen-year-old Tangy Mae to take over her jobs: days, doing house cleaning for whites; nights, servicing men, white and black, at the "Farmhouse." And Rozelle is not a woman whose commands can lightly be ignored. She is a creature of moods, possessive of all her children, desperate for their love, demanding of utter loyalty and obedience, harshly repressive of any signs of independence. They are the only thing in her life that she can control." The Darkest Child shows us a world misshapen by years of oppression in which family is powerful yet offers little kindness or comfort. It shows us a world in which attitudes of prejudice have been adopted by its victim, and the resulting struggle of those who are darker complected is a struggle not only against outsiders, but against the closest of kin.--Goodreads

I read this book two times, back to back. It's a moving story; one that deals with not only race but a dysfunctional family led by an emotionally unstable mother. I cried while reading this book, sympathizing for children who would never know what family life is like. Add in the time period and race issues and I was DONE. It's not an easy read but it's definitely a thought-provoking one. 

Book Blogger Appreciation Week — Unexpected Treasure

Today for Book Blogger Appreciation Week we were invited to share a book or genre we tried due to the influence of another blogger. 

Erin's Unexpected Treasure:

There are a lot of books that I try based on others reviews.  I originally loathed the title to If Andy Warhol Had a Girlfriend, but Emily's love of the book got me to give it a try and I adored it.  Similarly, Daniela recently reviewed Rachel Caine's Glass Houses, the first in the Morganville Vampire series, a book I had tried and didn't like from the first few pages, but ended up devouring it and the second in the series in one weekend.

One review that sticks out in my mind is Jody's (of With a Good Book) review of The Sky is Everywhere by Jandy Nelson, a book that you may know from my interview at Laura's site, I'm Booking It, is one of my favorites this year.  It was just a beautiful book of loss and finding first love and discovering who you are.  I had the ARC on my shelf for weeks not thinking much about it because I wasn't too inspired by the cover, but after reading Jody's review I decided to give it a try and the rest, as they say, is history.  I simply can't say enough good things about this book and practically forced it on Janelle and Daniela. 

Daniela's Unexpected Treasure: 

My category is Nonfiction. I actually enjoy reading nonfiction books quite a bit, but I have been shying away from reading any because I think they are so hard to review. Nonfiction is just very tricky, and I often find that I have more questions than reactions or conclusions when reading within that genre. Because of this, I’m full of admiration for book bloggers who are undaunted by the prospect of reading and reviewing nonfiction works. One of my favorites would have to be Jenny, who blogs over at Jenny’s Books. Her reads are quite eclectic and she dabbles with nonfiction from time to time. All her reviews (in any genre) are very interesting and well written, but I’m especially appreciative of the great job she does with nonfiction.

Book Blogger Appreciation Week — Interview Swap

As part of Book Blogger Appreciation Week I had the privilege of interviewing a fellow book blogger about books, blogging, and everything in between.  Laura has an amazing blog, I'm Booking It, that you should all check out immediately.  While she and I differ on fundamental things like Ranger vs. Morelli and Eric vs. Bill (I mean, the answer is obviously Morelli and Eric every time), she's a fabulous reviewer and has turned me on to some great books.

Check out what Laura has to say here and go to her blog to see my interview!

1.  Tell me about yourself—Where you live, what you do, what hobbies you have (besides reading), basically what keeps you from reading and blogging. 

I'm a 41 year old stay at home mom living in Silicon Valley, trying to decide what I want to do when I grow up.  My main time commitments are related to my daughter-- volunteering at her school (Even in middle school, they want parents in the classroom.  I help with science and language arts each week.  I may do a book blogging unit with some of the kids!), driving her to and from rhythmic gymnastics practice (3-4 times a week) and dance class.

I also run two book clubs.  Outside of that, I have a lot of time to spend reading and blogging, and it shows in my monthly wrap-up posts.  (Well, I also spend too much time playing Farmville, and have been known to watch quite a bit of TV-- we'll see what happens when the new season starts up.  I spend much less time than I should on housework and such.).

2.  And of course tell me about your blog—what made you decide to start a blog?  Where'd you come up with the name?  What are your favorite aspects of having a book blog?

I started the blog as part of that "trying to figure out what I want to do when I grow up".   I used to be in high tech, but since I've been out of my field for over 12 years, my experience isn't particularly relevant anymore.

I'd taken some classes, and wanted to get some hands on web experience, so I thought I'd start a blog-- the problem was coming up with something that people might actually be interested in reading.  I figured my experience with the two book clubs might count for something, and I decided on books.  I didn't go looking for other book blogs until after I started.

My blog name came out of my Twitter name (another experiment with the world of current technology).  I started out using my real name, but decided I wanted something shorter and more fun.  I decided on BookingIt because I'm always running off somewhere (book in hand).  That was taken when it came time to start my blog, but I'm Booking It seemed a natural extension.

My favorite aspects of having a book blog are mostly social-- I like the people I've met on-line (and it's particularly fun when we then meet off-line), and it gives me something to talk about when I meet people face to face.  The books themselves (the ones I get for review and the ones I find out about and buy myself) are a nice part of it as well.

3.  You have a daughter—does she know about your blog?  Do you do any reading together?  Does she influence what you read and blog about?

My daughter (who is 12) does know about my blog, and reads it at times.  We were going to do some reading and blogging together this past summer, but only got one post written.  We're starting to enjoy more of the same books and I'll sometimes talk in my reviews about whether or not I'll suggest a book to her, or what she thought if she's already read it.

4.  A hard question (for me at least): what's your favorite book?  Favorite genre?

I think my favorite book is probably The Beekeeper's Apprentice by Laurie R. King.  It's at least high enough on the list that I don't feel bad about singling it out.  I'm an eclectic reader, and prefer not to spend TOO much time in any one genre, but I probably lean most towards mysteries.

5. Do you have an e-reader?  Do you have any opinions on the digital direction publishing is moving in?

I have a Nook.  I enjoy it, and would probably use it more if it wasn't for the books I get for review.  With the huge piles of backlog I have, I tend to look at physical books when picking what to read next, even though I have great choices from NetGalley on my Nook!

I really don't know where digital publishing is going to go.   When talking to friends that read but don't have e-readers, the lack of being able to lend books is a big issue.  Even on my Nook, which has the capability to lend to other Nooks, less than c 1/2 the books I've bought have that option enabled.

6.  Who's your dream author interview?  Blogger interview (I mean, besides me :) )?

I'm scared of interviews!  This swap is my second interview ever, with the first being BBAW last year.

So far, I've passed up all opportunities to do author interviews on my blog.  If the chance to interview Laurie R. King, Charles de Lint, Terry Pratchett, Neil Gaiman or Janet Evanovich came up, I'd take a deep breath and jump in, hoping I could find something interesting to ask about.  All five of them seem to be interesting and possibly approachable people.

If I wanted to interview another blogger, I think I'd be willing to just ask.  So far, the urge hasn't struck!

7.  What literary universe would you love to live in?

Maybe Thursday Next's, where she can jump in and out of books?

8.  Do you have any goals or plans for the future of your blog?  What one post or feature are you most proud of so far?

I want to move to a self hosted wordpress blog, so I can start playing more with the technical side of blogging.  I want to get more regular readers of my blog, and improve my Search Engine Optimization so that more people find me.

I can't come up with one post I'm most proud of, so I'll call out my Book Shots min-feature.  I occasionally post bookish photos, often featuring my cat or my daughter.


9.  What are the top five books you've read this year?

Only 5?

The Disappearing Spoon by Sam Kean
Unaccustomed Earth by Jhumpa Lahiri
Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins
The God of the Hive by Laurie R. King
If I Stay by Gayle Forman

Just missing the cutoff were
Last Night I Sang to the Monster by Benjamin Alire Sáenz
Thirteen Reasons Why by Jay Asher
The Language of Trees by Ilie Ruby
The Mystery of Grace by Charles de Lint

10.  I see you've read the Sookie Stackhouse books:  Eric or Bill?

Ummm, neither?  I'd take Eric over Bill, but (as in many romance novels) I don't see the appeal of either of them.  Sookie does, and that's enough (and I did like amnesiac Eric).  I did like the were-tiger, but I understand why that relationship went down the path it did.

Book Blogger Appreciation Week — First Treasure

It's a busy day here at Lit Snit.  Between our Jane Giveaway, our weekend at the Brooklyn Book Festival, and Book Blogger Appreciation Week, it seems like there's so much going on (though it all revolves around books so we can't complain)!

This is our first year participating in Book Blogger Appreciation Week and we're really excited about it.  Our first BBAW post asks us to share a great new book blog you’ve discovered since BBAW last year or share the very first book blog you discovered.

I can't pin point the very first book blog I discovered.  It seemed like I had one, two, and then the list quickly grew exponentially!  I can say that the first one I remember reading with any kind of regularity was Adele's Persnickity Snark.  Adele always has something smart and thought-provoking to say and creates interesting dialogue with her non-review posts about the industry or YA genre itself.

Two other blogs I can't overlook are Emily and Her Little Pink Notes and Forever Young Adult.

On my other blog I called Emily my chick lit soul mate after seeing she loved the vastly underrated Family Fortune.  Plus, she recommended If Andy Warhol Had a Girlfriend which was probably one of the best chick lit books I've read this year (PS. she's having a giveaway on both book that you should totally check out).  Her reviews are always fun and thoughtful, but more than that her blog really lets you get to know her and feel like she's not just a fellow blogger, but a friend.


The ladies at Forever Young Adult constantly make me giggle.  Between their Hunger Games drinking games, hilarious reviews, and recaps of shows like Pretty Little Liars and Vampire Diaries, they've created an inventive, fun blog that gives us (ahem) older young adults a place to gush and squee without shame. 


So those are my first treasures.  I can't wait to see what other new blogs I find for next year!!