“Cruising Attitude”

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Books, crazy passengers, crew drama, Cruising Attitude, flight attendant, Heather Poole, insider look

Cruising Attitude (William Morrow Paperbacks, 2012)

Real-life flight attendant Heather Poole has written a charming and funny insider’s account of life and work in the not-always-friendly skies. Cruising Attitude is a Coffee, Tea, or Me? for the 21st century, as the author parlays her fifteen years of flight experience into a delightful account of crazy airline passengers and crew drama, of overcrowded crashpads in “Crew Gardens” Queens and finding love at 35,000 feet. The popular author of Galley Gossip, a weekly column for AOL’s award-winning travel website http://Gadling.com, Poole not only shares great stories, but also explains the ins and outs of flying, as seen from the flight attendant’s jump seat.

“Oryx And Crake”

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Books, genetic engineering, journey, last human, love story, Margaret Atwood, Oryx and Crake, plague

Oryx And Crake (Anchor Books, 2004)

Oryx and Crake is at once an unforgettable love story and a compelling vision of the future. Snowman, known as Jimmy before mankind was overwhelmed by a plague, is struggling to survive in a world where he may be the last human, and mourning the loss of his best friend, Crake, and the beautiful and elusive Oryx whom they both loved. In search of answers, Snowman embarks on a journey-–with the help of the green-eyed Children of Crake-–through the lush wilderness that was so recently a great city, until powerful corporations took mankind on an uncontrolled genetic engineering ride.

Oryx and Crake was written by Canadian author Margaret Atwood.

“In the House Upon the Dirt Between the Lake and the Woods”

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2010s, Books, chip away, failed pregnancies, In the House Upon the Dirt Between the Lake and the Woods, Matt Bell, Newlyweds

In The House Upon The Dirt Between The Lake And The Woods (Soho Press, 2013)

A newlywed couple move to the land between the lake and the woods to start their own life, across the lake from the city where they were raised. There they build their home and wish to build a family, but multiple failed pregnancies chips away at their hope, their marriage, and their sanity.

In The House Upon The Dirt Between The Lake And The Woods was American writer Matt Bell’s debut. Bell currently teaches in the Creative Writing program at Arizona State University.

“The Rainbow Fish”

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1990s, best seller, Books, children's, classic, foil stamping, illustrated, J. Alison James, make friends, Marcus Pfister, picture book, share, Switzerland, The Rainbow Fish, translated

The Rainbow Fish (North-South Books, 1992)

The Rainbow Fish is an international bestseller and a modern classic. Eye-catching foil stamping, glittering on every page, offers instant child-appeal, but it is the universal message at the heart of this simple story about a beautiful fish, who learns to make friends by sharing his most prized possessions, that gives the book its lasting value.The Rainbow Fish is a children’s picture book drawn and written by author and illustrator, Marcus Pfister originally published in Switzerland. It was translated into English by J. Alison James.

“Owl Moon”

Tags

1980s, Books, Caldecott Medal, children, family story, girl and father, illustrated, Jane Yolen, John Schoenherr, Owl Moon, picture book

Owl Moon (Philomel Books, 1987)

Late one winter night a little girl and her father go owling. The trees stand still as statues and the world is silent as a dream. Whoo-whoo-whoo, the father calls to the mysterious nighttime bird. But there is no answer. Wordlessly the two companions walk along, for when you go owling you don’t need words. You don’t need anything but hope. Sometimes there isn’t an owl, but sometimes there is.

Owl Moon is a 1987 children’s picture book by Jane Yolen, illustrated by John Schoenherr. It won many awards, most notably the Caldecott Medal for its illustrations. It has been translated into more than a dozen foreign languages, including French, German, Chinese, and Korean. Yolen described the book as “a positive family story. It’s about a girl and her father. Usually stories of a little girl are with her mother. It is gentle yet adventurous, quiet yet full of sound.”

“A Confederacy of Dunces”

Tags

1980s, A Confederacy of Dunces, Books, Depression, failure to publish, find work, Ignatius Reilly, John Kennedy Toole, lives with mother, New Orleans, paranoia, Pulitzer Prize winner, suicide

A Confederacy of Dunces (Louisiana State University Press, 1980)

Posthumous winner of the 1981 Pulitzer Prize, American author John Kennedy Toole’s masterpiece A Confederacy of Dunces has awed and entertained scholars, skeptics, and general scalawags for decades. This peerless and eternally hilarious novel relays the misadventures of the misanthropic Ignatius Reilly -— a thirtysomething who lives with his mother in 1960s New Orleans and struggles to find work while battling an affliction of the pyloric valve =— as well as the various trials of the colorful characters of the Quarter.

A Confederacy of Dunces was published 11 years after Toole’s 1969 suicide due to the efforts of writer Walker Percy and Toole’s mother. Toole was a novelist from New Orleans, Louisiana, whose novels were rejected during his lifetime, despite that the literary world felt his writing skills were praiseworthy. Paranoia and depression due in part to his failures to publish any of his works contributed to his suicide at the age of 31.

“Cold Comfort Farm”

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1930s, Books, Cold Comfort Farm, English, Flora Poste, radio adaptation, relatives, remote farm, satire, serial adaptation, Starkadder, Stella Gibbons, television film

Cold Comfort Farm (Longman, 1932)

Published in 1932 in satirical response to romantic rural literature popular at the time, English author Stella Gibbons’ Cold Comfort Farm is a rollicking read about Flora Poste, a broke 19-year-old metropolitan orphan who decides to impose herself upon her remote farming relatives, the Starkadders. Full of aptly (and hilariously) named characters such as the Jersey cows, Graceless, Pointless, Aimless, and Feckless; and cousins Urk, Ezra, Harkaway, and Caraway, this laugh-out-loud novel details what happens when a bossy city girl tries to meddle in pastoral affairs.

Cold Comfort Farm was adapted into a three-part BBC serial in 1968; a four-part BBC radio adaptation in 1981 and a 1995 BBC television film.

Sophie Katz Mystery Book Series

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American, Books, Chaos Desire and a Kick Ass Cupcake, Kyra Davis, Lust Loathing and a Little Lip Gloss, mystery, Obsession Deceit and Really Dark Chocolate, Passion Betrayal and Killer Highlights, Sex Murder and a Double Latte, Sophie Katz, Vanity Vengeance and a Weekend in Vegas, Vows Vendettas and a Little Black Dress

Sophie Katz Mystery Series

The Sophie Katz mystery series is written by American author Kyra Davis. She met (and married) her first husband while she was attending the Fashion Institute of Design & Merchandising and Fashion Institute of Technology. She later transferred to the Golden Gate University where she graduated with a bachelor’s degree in business and humanities. In 2001, Davis filed for divorce. She began writing the Sophie Katz series due to the stress resulting from the divorce. Currently Davis lives in Los Angeles with her son and her husband, director and screenwriter Rod Lurie. The Sophie Katz mystery series began in 2005 and has seven novels, the final one, Chaos, Desire and a Kick-Ass Cupcake, was published in 2017.

“Amy & Roger’s Epic Detour”

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actually made the trek, Amy & Roger's Epic Detour, Books, cross country move, drive car, family friend, Morgan Matson, photos, receipts, YA, young adult

Amy & Roger’s Epic Detour (Simon Schuster Books for Young Readers, 2010)

Amy Curry is having a terrible year. Her mother has decided to move across the country and needs Amy to get their car from California to Connecticut. There’s just one small problem: Since her father died this past spring, Amy hasn’t been able to get behind the wheel. Enter Roger, the nineteen-year-old son of an old family friend, who turns out to be unexpectedly cute — and dealing with some baggage of his own.

The book contains photos and receipts taken by author Morgan Matson who actually made the trek outlined in this young adult novel.

“Blueberries For Sal”

Tags

1940s, bear, Blueberries For Sal, blueberry hunt with parents, Books, Caldecott Medal, Robert McCloskey, short film adaptation

Blueberries For Sal (Viking, 1948)

The block-printed illustrations show just how similar families of different species can be, as child Sal and a baby bear covet Maine blueberries on a berry hunt with their respective mothers. It’s an instructive read for any kid who’s ever felt a bit like a wild animal, or parents who’ve ever felt like they’re raising one.

Blueberries for Sal was written by Robert McCloskey and was awarded a Caldecott Medal in 1949. In 1967, the book was adapted into a short film.