Summer is almost here, and it's the perfect time to catch up on a favorite book. Whether it's lying on a beach during vacation or snuggled up at home, who doesn't like to be immersed in a good book during the dog days of summer? To kick off the summer season, a giveaway! And the best part? Thanks to the kind folks at Snubbr.com, the winner gets to pick whatever book she wants!
Just leave a comment below, and tell us what book you want to read (a new release or a golden oldie) and why you want to read it. We'll pick our favorite comment after 1 week, and send the winner the book he chose, and announce it here.
What I'm looking forward to reading this summer:
A Taste of Honey by Jabari Asim. Short and sweet, connected stories. Seems perfect for sitting in an airport or lying in the hammock.
Till You Hear From Me. I have the audio book on my iPhone and plan on listening when I go to L.A. next month.
The Hundred Thousand Kingdoms by N.K. Jemisin. I read the opening chapters on the author's website and I'm hooked.
A few books I'm recommending this summer:
32 Candles by Ernessa T. Carter. I read an advance copy for a blurb. If Bridget Jones and Clareece Precious Jones had a love child, she would be Davie Jones, the protagonist in this book. Sound weird? It's not. Just very fresh and funny.
Substitute Me by Lori Tharps. I also gave a blurb for this one. It comes out in August (look for a giveaway then!). It's the story of a white couple in Brooklyn and the 30-year-old, college-educated black nanny they hire. Sexy, smart and will definitely have people talking!
Rebel Yell by Alice Randall. I just finished this one and really liked it. I expected a portrait of a marriage and I got that, but the former married couple were way more interesting than your average married folks, and the story far broader (including very timely subjects like the war in Iraq). This one is out in paperback this fall, if you want to wait.
For more ideas check out my Shelfari book shelf over to the right. Also check Snubbr.com. They're a recommendation site. What you do is ask a question such as "What books do you recommend for someone who likes mysteries?" and they'll send a question to an expert who will answer it for you. It's sorta like Yahoo Answers, but instead of random people answering your question, only experts are allowed to answer them.
So what do you want to read this summer?
27 comments:
I really want to read Children of the Waters. I'm currently reading War & Peace because I never got around to it before. I used to read all the time; even in college, I read for literature & writing classes. Since going back to school for design, I've let MONTHS go without reading fiction. I decided to make time to read novels no matter how busy I am! I chose Children of the Waters, because I saw the article on FB today & it looks like an interesting book. I love how novelists can use their art to deal with painful realities, such as racism, in a healing way.
I am most looking forward to reading Platinum by Aliya King. Following Aliya on FB and getting a glimpse into the world of the ladies of Platinum has me ready to sit back, relax and enjoy the world that is Platinum.
ladysilver915.at.yahoo.com
I'm after The Friends of Eddie Coyle by George V. Higgins because 1. Elmore Leonard said it is "the best crime novel, period" and 2. my library doesn't have it.
This summer I want to read War Dances by Sherman Alexie. I read his book, The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian a few months ago and loved it!
I'm looking forward to reading 32 Candles based on Dolen Perkins-Valdez's tweets & your comments about it. I've read Till You Hear From Me and loved it. I'm adding your recommendations to my TBR list.
A Woman's Revenge. Three of my favorite authors--Rhonda McKnight, Sherri Lewis, and Tiffany Warren--in one book. These are novellas. The shorter length story is perfect summer reading for enjoyment in an hour or two at the beach.
For a longer read, I'm looking forward to reading Dolen Perkins-Valdez's Wench and Katrina Covington Whitmore's Daughters of Two Nations.
I am reading the first of Blanche on the Lam and want to read all 4 books this summer, I also want to read 3 Cups of Tea and finally the second of the Detective Kubu series. There are so many more, but I never know what will happen, I am now reading Drown for the on-line book club and it is somewhat intense! Barbara Albin
I am reading The World Has Changed, by Alice Walker. Very good conversations/interviews about a variety of subjects. It prompted me to want to re-read Revolutionay Petunias and By the Light of My Father's Smile. I also want to read a few of my recent purchases: Hattie McDaniel, by Jill Watts, From Cape Town with Love, by Tananarive Due and Steven Barnes, His Own Where, by June Jordan (a young adult fiction), Jenniemae & James, by Brooke Newman and How to Escape From a Leper Colony, by Tiphanie Yanique
This summer I'm looking forward to reading so many books. 3 Books I can't wait to read: Sellout by ebony Joy Wilkins, Invisible Man by Raplh Ellison (gotta read up on the classics!) and Feminista by Ericka King (I think). I want to read Sellout because it's a story so many of us can relate to; basically being called an oreo because we have white friends, "talk white", like rock music, etc. I want to read Feminista because of the title and the book sounds like a hilarious read!
I would also LOVE to read One Hundred Thousand Kingdoms :) Thank you for this giveaway!
The one I most want to read is, Children of the Waters; however, I already ordered it, so if I win I would choose, 32 Candles. Your comments and the info about it on the link sound really great....and I was a teen when 16 Candles was made, so a bit of nostalgia also made it catch my attention.
Thanks Carleen for the props here for my novel, Substitute Me. If I hadn't written it, I'd definitely put that on my summer reading list. Ha!!
But seriously, so many books here sound so good. I'm adding 32 Candles on to my list, and I'm going to check out Sellout too.
I'm learning about some books here too! Thanks!
Jemisin's Hundred Thousand Kingdoms. I've met her once or twice and she's awesome, and everyone I know who's read it has told me I will love it to bits.
I wanted to choose something from your Shelfari list, but there were so many interesting books there it was a hard choice.
I'd really love to read Briefs by John Edgar Wideman. We both went to the University of Pennsylvania, and I've been following his life and career through stories in our alumni magazine, but I have yet to read any of his books.
Now that I'm experimenting with voice, style, and structure in writing short stories, this book of "hip-hop zen" sounds like the perfect book to jar me out of well-worn ruts and send me down new paths.
Also, it sounds like a crazy fun read.
I've heard so many great things about The Hundred Thousand Kingdoms by N.K. Jemisin that have gotten me really intrigued about it. I don't read much fantasy and I'm going to make an effort to try more.
Because I chose to write for young people, young adult fiction is what I like to read most. I have these books saved in my Amazon cart, but it sure would be nice if I didn't have to pay for one of them :) Friendship for Today by Patricia C. McKissack, Stringz by Michael Wenberg, Any book in the Divine series by Jacquelin Thomas (except Divine Matchup; I have that one) and the first book in The Reinvention of Skylar Hoyt series by Stephanie Morrill.
And Happy Birthday, Carleen :)
Substitute Me sounds amazing! Like, more than the cliche white couple saves black servant b.s. And, shallow as I am, just the cover for Platinum would get my money.
I'll only have time for a quick read or two before starting in on next semester's textbooks though, which will be my main reads this summer.
Thanks for the mention! I'm looking forward to reading CHILDREN OF THE WATERS, UMBRELLA ACADEMY: DALLAS (graphic novel), anything by Malcolm Gladwell, Russell Davies'(DR. WHO, exec. prod) book on writing, THE GIRL WHO CHASED THE MOON (Addison Allen), and TILL YOU HEAR FROM ME (Cleage). If I make it through that list, it'll be a great summer.
Thanks for including my novel in your round-up! And further, thanks for the tips! I'll definitely be digging into Lori Tharps' Substitute Me and many others on my list. That is, if I ever finish the sequel to PLATINUM.
;)
This summer I am finally going to read all - I hope - of the books I received from the Virginia Book Festival: Kinky Gazpacho, The Girl Who Fell from the Sky, Hoops, Book Rhymes: The Poetics of Hip Hop, and Children of the Waters.
If I can fit anymore books in I'll finish reading: 'said the shotgun to the head, How to Escape From a Leper Colony, Kiss the Sky, and The Brief Wonderful Life of Oscar Wao.
Phew.
I look forward to reading Holy Rollers by Reshonda Tate Billingsley. She's one of my favorite authors so I try to read all of her books.
I'd have to go with Lori Tharps' new book! I enjoyed Kinky Gazpacho (my husband's family is Spanish) and I think "Substitute Me" sounds great!
The book I am most looking forward to reading this summer is "Who Fears Death" by Nnedi Okorafor
Why? - Because it is a supernatural fanatasy novel set in post-apocalptic Africa with elements of action, fables, romance, magic and technology.
What better read for a hot humid summer day with thunderstorms looming.
beachlover20855[AT]yahoo[DOT]com
Beverly, look for a review of Who Fears Death here soon
I would love to read and review Blair Underwood's mystery.
I want to read Dope Sick by Walter Dean Myers because it is a Reading Olympic choice for my students next year and I like to read as many of the new selections as possible over the summer, then I can book talk them to our students when we hype Reading Olympics to all the 10th grade English classes.
I am looking forward to reading 32 Candles because I've heard great things about it. Also, I want to read Kinky Gaspatcho. I'm fascinated by IR and love the idea of finding love without the restrictions of racial boundaries. And Pearl Cleage is absolutely on of my favorite authors so I want to read Just wanna Testify!! I'm ready to be transported...
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