Booklist Online: More than 130,000 book reviews for librarians, book groups, and book lovers - from the trusted experts at the American Library Association

If there’s still room on your 2012 reading group lists, give some consideration to these outstanding titles on audio. Started Early, Took My Dog by Kate Atkinson and narrated by Graeme Malcolm. A layered literary mystery full of dark charm and dry wit. Malcolm’s voicing of an aging actress on the verge of dementia is [...]

As plans for next year’s book groups begin to gel, perhaps now is a good time to look at the titles selected and match them up with one of the 20 trends listed here. The folks over at Online Courses have gathered some ideas that may sound familiar, but we can always use reminding, refreshing, [...]

The majority of my reading during a year is for book groups. I manage three regularly scheduled groups and guest facilitate for community groups, local businesses and area libraries whenever asked. As Mary K. Chelton likes to say, “Have mouth, will speak.” I’ll add this addendum, “Have eyes, will read.” At the end of each [...]

OK, I know, you’re all playing with those new digital readers that you found under the Christmas tree, but put them aside for a minute. It’s time to enjoy something retro: Penguin has released a box of postcards that feature classic covers from its British paperbacks. You can sample a few more pictures here. Why [...]

2011 was a good year for reading. It felt as though many good books were published, but personally I just felt as though I enjoyed more books this year than in years past. On occasion, when assembling a “best” list I am struck with how few books I unequivocably loved. But this year was different and [...]

I read for theme.  Every once in awhile, I stumble upon a book that sings for me and I loose myself in the text.  For me, Damascus by Joshua Mohr was such a book. Ironically, it has a Christmas theme.  One of the main characters in this novel is Owen, the owner of a bar [...]

When Yeine Darr is summoned from the far north to the city of Sky, she learns she is heir to the throne of The Hundred Thousand Kingdoms. Every young girl’s dream, yes? Well, not so much… Yeine quickly learns that only the truly ruthless survive the political infighting in Sky, and to win the battle [...]

Last week, I spent several hundred words bemoaning the failure of many book groups to take on longer books, and outlining the reasons why I find that problematic. This week, I’d like to take a more positive approach, looking at some of the ways your group can bring longer books back into its meetings. The [...]

I’ve posted the link to the first edition of my 2011 All the Best Books Compilation (ABBC). This is my fourth year of compiling all of those different best books lists and awards into one convenient sortable spreadsheet where you can see how many different mentions each book received from over 150 authoritative sources. The [...]

I’ve been wading for months through The Story of Britain. Rebecca Fraser’s history from the Romans to contemporary times is–despite its billing in some quarters as a lighter narrative–rather dense. I like it, but I prefer not to knock out more than ten or twenty pages a day. For a book of nearly eight hundred [...]

The Seattle Reads 2012 selection was recently announced–Amy Waldman’s debut novel, The Submission. The Submission has garnered much praise in the past year and was named as Esquire’s Book of the Year. Here is what Esquire had to say: I have no idea how Amy Waldman came to write her first novel, The Submission (Farrar, [...]

I’m lousy at science, but fascinated by the minds of those who are good at it. My friend and book club inspiration Margaret Cubberly introduced me to one of the most intriguing–Richard Feynman–a few years back, and I’ve been fascinated ever since. Feynman is interesting because although his scientific work is important, his oddball character [...]

The practice of a Christmas book swap between participants at a December meeting has really caught on this year. I know this because I’ve repeatedly overheard book group members at my library discussing the practice. In fact, I’ve been privy to this conversation so many times that I’m starting to think that I’m in my own version of [...]

One of the nice things about a book discussion is that you can use it as an opportunity to vent if you have issues with a book.  I might need that opportunity. I need to vent about Finding Everett Ruess: The Life and Unsolved Disappearance of a Legendary Wilderness Explorer. My first issue is fame. [...]

The recently revived Kansas City Star FYI book club met to discuss Destiny of the Republic by Candice Millard. This fascinating slice of little known American presidential history will enthrall any book club. Put it on the list for next year’s potential reads. At the recent discussion readers were impressed with Millard’s ability to weave [...]

It’s my favorite time of year! Year-end best of lists! Books, movies, television, music, websites, fashion faux pas and anything else folks care to list. While they’re probably not the first to post their best list, the Kansas City Star posted their Best Books of 2011 list over the weekend. What I liked about this [...]

I love Ian Rankin’s John Rebus mystery series. Rebus is a  curmudgeonly soul, and sometimes bends the rules of policing or conventional morality to get to the villains he’s chasing. He’s terrible at maintaining his own personal relationships, mostly because he’s married to his job. But deep down, he maintains a strong ethical code and is capable of [...]

I doubt that many book groups have tried a volume like the Eric Lane and Nina Shengold edited Shorter, Faster, Funnier: Comic Plays and Monologues. After all, the authors collected within are not terribly well known outside certain circles (with perhaps the exceptions of Christopher Durang, Warren Leight, and Mary Louise Wilson). The works within [...]