September Reading Roundup

If I've learned one thing this month, it's that it is truly impossible to stay current with every book that comes into the house. I might have had a good shot at it but I got a little slowed down with Dissident Gardens, which I spent well over a week and a half reading.  Keeping up with new arrivals just isn't a reality so my little mini-challenge just fizzled. Oh well!

Here's what I did manage:

literature/fiction:

Dissident Gardens, by Jonathan Lethem

Burial Rites, by Hannah Kent

American Rust, by Philipp Meyer (discussion soon)

Lost Luggage, by Jordi Punti (discussion soon)

odd/weird fiction 

 The Beautiful Thing That Awaits Us All, by Laird Barron

The Best Horror of the Year,  Vol. 5, ed. Ellen Datlow

crime fiction/mystery

Ruin Value, by J. Sydney Jones

Treasure Hunt, by Andrea Camilleri 

A Crack in the Wall, by Claudia Piňeiro 

Sandrine's Case, by Thomas H. Cook 

nonfiction

Empty Mansions: The Mysterious Life of Huguette Clark and the Spending of a Great American Fortune, by Bill Dedman and Paul Clark Newell, Jr. 

still reading

The Kills, by Richard House 

The Yellow Sign and Other Stories: The Complete Weird Tales of Robert W. Chambers, ed. S.T. Joshi

 

just stuck my nose into

The Abominable, by Dan Simmons (thanks, Em!)

 

And now, the  other book-related stuff:

1) Books I'm giving away this month -- for US readers only.    -- Unlike many other things in life, for you, this deal is absolutely 100% totally free;  I'll even pay postage to get it to its new home.  All you need to do is to be the first to leave a comment here, and then email me at oakesn@gmail.com with contact info INCLUDING A HOME ADDRESS, PLEASE!! 1st come, first served. No address email, no book:

books are posted on the side, but if you can't see them, here they are:

--fiction--
1. MaddAdam, by Margaret Atwood (bought 2 by mistake, so one's up for grabs)

(Night Film has been taken!)

 2) Added to the  wishlist this month (subtitled: huh? never heard of those!):

 crime fiction:

The Good Suicides, by Antonio Hill
Murder in the Dark, by Dan Turell

 general fiction:

Black Flies, by Shannon Burke

The Dog Fighter: A Novel, by Marc Bojanowski 

Bleeding Edge, by Thomas Pynchon

the weird, the strange, supernatural etc:
At Fear's Altar, by Richard Gavin
Omens, by Richard Gavin
Lovecraft's Monsters, by Neil Gaiman
American Supernatural Tales, ed. S.T. Joshi

nonfiction

From the Tree to the Labyrinth: Historical Studies on the Sign and Interpretation, by Umberto Eco

Harlem Nocturne: Women Artists and Progressive Politics During World War II, by Farah Jasmine Griffin 
Miss Anne in Harlem: The White Women of the Black Renaissance, by Carla Kaplan
The American Way of Poverty: How the Other Half Still Lives, by Sasha Abramsky
 

 3) Books bought this month (subtitled: I read strange books)

• Disappeared, by Anthony Quinn (crime fiction) 
• The Breath of Night, by Michael Arditti (fiction/literature)
• Helium, by Jaspreet Singh  (fiction/literature)
• Dissident Gardens, by Jonathan Lethem (fiction/literature)
•  Supernatural Noir, ed. Ellen Datlow (weird/supernatural fiction)
• He Arrived at Dusk, by R.C. Ashby (weird/supernatural fiction)
• Ghosts by Gaslight: Stories of Steampunk and Supernatural Suspense, ed. Jack Dann (weird/supernatural fiction)
• Doctor Sleep, by Stephen King (horror)
• Kansas City Lightning: The Rise and Times of Charlie Parker, by Stanley Crouch (nonfiction)

4) The book group read  American Rust by Philipp Meyer, and while we had a superb discussion, most of the group felt that the novel was too bleak. I didn't.   I loved this book absolutely and can't wait to dig into Meyer's newest novel.  

That's it for September.  Happy reading!