Welcome to the Hyunam-Dong Bookshop by Hwang Bo-reum

 

From the blurb:  "Yeongju is burned out. She did everything she was supposed to: go to school, marry a decent man, get a respectable job. Then it all fell apart. In a leap of faith, Yeongju abandons her old life, quits her high-flying career, and follows her dream. She opens a bookshop." 

"In a quaint neighborhood in Seoul, surrounded by books, Yeongju and her customers take refuge. From the lonely barista to the unhappily married coffee roaster--and the writer who sees something special in Yeongju--they all have disappointments in their past. The Hyunam-dong Bookshop becomes the place where they all learn how to truly live."

My thoughts:  My nephew recommended this book to me; he loves Korea, bookshops and reading, so this novel was right up his alley. I liked it, too. It's an introspective character-driven novel set in a bookshop. What's not to love? All the characters are struggling to find happiness in a society where achievement and career success take precedence over personal fulfillment. Hwang Bo-reum describes it this way:  "Everyone in the novel is taking small steps forward, whether it's learning something new, or making a change to their lives. What they're doing might be far from achieving what society deems as success, but ...how others judge where they stand doesn't matter to them. The fact that they've progressed, and are happy where they are, is sufficient." This book is an interesting look at Korean culture and societal pressures. I thought some of the chapters dragged a bit, but I liked all the characters, and enjoyed the story overall. ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Favorite quote from the book:  "...happiness is never beyond reach. It's not in the distant past, nor on the horizon of the future. It's right in front of me. Like that day's beer, and today's quince tea. ... I think life becomes easier knowing that happiness is not that far out of reach."

Happy Reading! 

What You Are Looking For Is In The Library by Michiko Aoyama

 

What it's about:

Five lost souls, each with a yearning inside them to be or do something more. And a wise community librarian who guides them to the book that will help them see a path forward to seizing opportunities and fulfilling their dreams. Each book is different. But then so are the five characters. There's Tomoka, who is a young sales assistant in a department store; Ryo, who wants to open his own antique store; and Natsumi, a former magazine editor who is struggling to balance motherhood and her career. I really liked those three, but I think the last two were my favorite:  Hiroya, an unemployed artist who feels like a failure; and Masao, who just retired from his job of forty-two years and now doesn't know what to do with his life. Every chapter introduces another character, another book, another dream. I enjoyed their individual journeys and their moments of intersection. 

My thoughts:  

This was a bittersweet read for me. Don't get me wrong, I loved this quiet literary novel, but it's the book I was supposed to read this month with Melody. We planned it back in February. And I kept wanting to talk to her about it, ask her which character she liked best, compare notes, hear her thoughts and insights. I know she would have loved the Japanese setting and how books played a role in each character's journey. I really wish I could have read this book with her. I bet she would have given it 5 stars. I did. 

Happy Reading!

The Nightmare Man by J.H. Markert

 

Ben Bookman writes horror novels inspired from the nightmares of his childhood. Now those nightmares are coming to life as several recent murders in Crooked Tree, the town where Ben and his wife and daughter live, uncannily mirror the murders in his book. When the police come to question him he doesn't have many answers for them. Because Ben has secrets. And sometimes he sleepwalks. And something happened when Ben was writing the end of his novel out at his grandfather's secluded Blackwood Mansion that he can't quite remember. But he knows it wasn't good, and it's made his own wife suspect the worst.

The two main detectives on the case are Detective Winchester Mills and his daughter, rookie detective Samantha Blue. Mills has a reputation for solving some pretty bizarre cases over the years, but this latest murder investigation is the most gruesome. And if Bookman's novel is anything to go by, the murderer isn't done. Mills also has the ability to see the nightmares of others. But the nightmares he's seeing now seem to lead to Ben and his family.

My thoughts:  This thriller is atmospheric, unexpected, and riveting, with a supernatural element that I loved. Markert's take on nightmares is deliciously creepy, and I really liked the way he weaves together Ben's dark childhood memories and his family's long-buried secrets with the present investigation. Detective Mills, with all his flaws and his strange ability, is a fascinating character. I enjoyed his interactions with his daughter, Sam, as well as Ben's interactions with his young daughter, Bri. Their family dynamics added a nice layer of normality to this compelling thriller. And while the murders that take place in this one are disturbing, the author never gets graphic or too gory when he describes them, which I appreciated. This book hooked me right from the beginning and kept me engaged all the way to the end.  ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ 

Happy Reading!

The Reading List by Sara Nisha Adams

 

This is a thoughtful and poignant novel about how books and reading can provide help, healing and hope, bring people together, and create lasting friendships. And I loved it.

It begins with Mukesh Patel, a lonely and grieving widower, whose wife loved books; Mukesh wants to connect with his granddaughter, Priya, but doesn't know how. An overdue library book of his wife's leads him to the local library where he meets Aleisha, a lonely teen working at the library for the summer who doesn't actually read much, and who has no idea what book to recommend to Mukesh. 

But then she's given a list of eight books with the heading: "Just in case you need it," and she starts to read them...and recommend them to Mukesh. And these books help Mukesh connect with his granddaughter, and with Aleisha, and pushes him to socialize more; they also help Aleisha connect with her mentally ill mother, and with a boy she meets on the train. Many other lives are touched in this book because of this one reading list. 

The Reading List is a captivating novel that touched my heart and kept me reading all day long. I loved the characters. And the ending totally made me cry. It's a good one...and another book that's perfect for Susan's Bookish Books Reading Challenge.

Happy Reading!

The Cat Who Saved Books by Sosuke Natsukawa

 

"Natsuki Books was a tiny secondhand bookshop on the edge of town. The shop didn't lose enough money to be considered a liability, nor did it make enough to be considered a fortune. It wasn't much of an inheritance." 

But the bookshop is all Rintaro Natsuki has left after his beloved grandfather dies. Rintaro is an awkward and reclusive high school student who spends most of his days skipping school and hiding out among the books he loves. Not even Rintaro's pretty classmate, Sayo Yuzuki, can lure him outside. Then one day a talking tabby cat shows up in the bookshop and talks Rintaro into going on several strange and fantastical quests to rescue books. Though, in the end, maybe it was Rintaro himself that needed rescuing.  

My thoughts:  It was the title and cover of this Japanese novel that first made me want to read it. Then finding out it had a talking cat, too? I couldn't resist checking it out right then and there. And I'm glad I did. This is a quirky and enchanting little book. Rintaro's struggle to articulate his love for books and reading made him such an endearing character. The tabby cat was blunt and often rude, but he made Rintaro step outside his shell and that was good. And Rintaro's interactions with outspoken and spunky Sayo made me smile. I liked their friendship a lot. But what's at the heart of this bookish novel is the idea that books truly are more than mere words on paper and are therefore very much worth saving. And I completely agree. 

Happy Reading!

This book counts as one of my reads for Susan's Bookish Books Reading Challenge.

The Book Charmer by Karen Hawkins...

 

First line:  On the Saturday after her seventh birthday, a book spoke to Sarah May Dove. 

Plot summary:  The small town of Dove Pond is in financial trouble. Businesses are closing, people are leaving. But Sarah Dove, Dove Pond's librarian, has hopes that things are about to change. Because Grace Wheeler has just moved to Dove Pond with her eight-year-old niece, Daisy, and her former foster mother, Mama G, who's struggling with Alzheimer's. For Grace it's a temporary move, but the books are whispering to Sarah that Grace is just what Dove Pond needs. She might be just what Sarah's gruff neighbor and best friend, Travis, needs, too.

My thoughts:  Like its title suggests, this book is a charming and heartwarming read. The town of Dove Pond is full of quirky, fun characters--I mean, who could resist a character that can speak to books, or a library full of books that know just who needs to read them but won't always say why? Grace is another easy-to-like character. I had a lot of sympathy for her as she struggled to deal with her grief over her sister's death, and be a good mom to her niece. And I loved her relationship with Mama G! And I loved how the entire town of Dove Pond turned out to help them when they needed it. Her reluctant friendship with Travis also made me smile.  There's a bit of magical realism in this one, too, which just added to the enchantment. Family and friendship, humor and heart...this book has it all. 

Happy Reading!

The Lost and Found Bookshop by Susan Wiggs

 

Short summary of the plot: 

Natalie Harper has a safe job she doesn't really like, and a safer boyfriend she just doesn't love. But everything in her life changes when her mother unexpectedly dies. Now Natalie is in charge of her mother's beloved bookstore, The Lost and Found Bookshop, and she's also responsible for her aging grandfather who's been experiencing memory issues. To make matters worse, the bookstore is drowning in debt and unpaid bills. The logical answer is to sell it. Only the historic San Francisco building that houses the bookshop belongs to her grandfather, and he refuses to sell because he's convinced there's a treasure hidden somewhere inside. But the old building is practically falling down around them and in need of some serious repairs, none of which Natalie can afford. So, to keep her grandfather happy, Natalie has to figure out some way to save her mother's bookshop. 

My thoughts:

The thing I loved most about this book is Natalie's sweet relationship with her grandfather, and how she tries so hard to honor and take care of him. I also loved the bookstore and its interesting history. Bookstores have always been a favorite setting of mine. Then there's Peach Gallagher, the ex-marine Natalie hires to do some repairs on the bookstore, and his cute daughter Dorothy. They're both such great characters; I loved them, too. Books, family, friendship, loss, hope, and love. All of these things make this novel a joy to read. And it's got a happy ending, too! And right now, don't we all need one of those?

Happy Reading!

A bookish gem...

"Because it's complicated explaining why you love a book. And I can't always do it. There are books that when I've read them I feel ... well ... something stirs inside me."

The Girl Who Reads on the Metro by Christine Feret-Fleury is one of those unexpectedly and delightfully charming books that don't sound like much at first, but are actually quite enchanting. The story centers around Juliette, a young woman who loves books but who is disenchanted with her job and the dull routine of her life. Though she does like making up stories about the people she sees riding on the Metro every morning. Then, one day, she stumbles upon a cramped and dusty bookshop in an out-of-the-way Paris street and everything changes for Juliette. The owner asks her to pass along some of his books to strangers that she meets. And unexpected things happen...in their lives, and in hers. That's the magic of books. They can change lives. And that's what I liked about this gem of a novel. The Girl Who Reads on the Metro is a bookish fairy tale with it's own quirky, happy ending.

"If she had learned one thing, it was this:  with books, there were always surprises."

Another favorite quote:

"...Juliette was sitting cross-legged, the books arranged in a fan around her. Seventeen books. She'd counted them. Held them, sized them up, flicked through them. She'd inhaled the smell of their folds, peeked at the odd sentence, words as appetizing as sweets, or sharp as blades.... So many words. So many stories, characters, landscapes, laughter, tears, sudden decisions, hopes, and fears. But for whom?"

Happy Reading!

A bookish gem...

Title & Author:  The Lost For Words Bookshop by Stephanie Butland
Setting: York, England

First paragraph: A book is a match in the smoking second between strike and flame. Archie says books are our best lovers and our most provoking friends. He's right, but I'm right, too. Books can really hurt you.

Main Character:  Loveday Cardew--an introvert who "isn't very social" but who loves books and has the first lines from several of her favorite novels tattooed on her body. She's also a poet who's guarded, fiercely independent ...and a bit fragile, too, especially when it comes to opening up and trusting others.

My thoughts:  I love Butland's writing and how she weaves together the pieces of Loveday's past and present into one magical, unputdownable story. Nathan, the magician/poet Loveday meets at the bookshop is one of my favorite characters; I love how he interacts with Loveday, and how their relationship slowly grows over time. There's a bit of an intriguing mystery, too, regarding Loveday and how books from her past keep showing up at the Lost For Words Bookshop. It was unexpected and added to the fun. All in all, I really loved this book. It's one I could happily read again....and again.

Happy Reading!

Geeking out...

"The right answer is seldom as important as the right question."

--Kip Thorne

Kip Thorne came to Logan, Utah, last week to speak.  Kip Thorne! The man who won the Albert Einstein Medal in 2009, and the Novel Prize in physics in 2017, and who acted as science consultant on the film Interstellar.  I read his book, Black Holes & Time Warps, years ago and it blew my mind. So, last Thursday, I made the hour and a half drive north to Logan High School, from where Thorne graduated 60 years ago, to hear him give a lecture on "My Journey Through Space and Time:  The Big Bang, Black Holes and Gravitational Waves."  And it was awesome! He's funny, and good at explaining things, and so smart. He talked about his childhood and wanting to be a snow plow driver when he was seven, his college experiences at Cal Tech and Princeton, and his subsequent work on the LIGO detector, which detected the very first gravitational waves emitted from two colliding black holes on Sept. 14, 2015. Which led to him winning the Nobel Prize in 2017 along with Rainer Weiss and Barry Barish.

Best of all, not only did I get to meet him, I also got him to sign my copy of his book! It was so cool! It was my geek moment of the week.  But really, how often do you get to meet an actual Nobel Prize winner?  

So, if you're looking for a stellar read on black holes, check out Thorne's masterpiece. You might feel dumb at the start, but by the time you finish it, you'll feel really smart! 

Here's a couple of other out-of-this-world books that I highly recommend:

Happy Reading!

A Bookish dream...

Happy Reading!!

 P.S. I also love this inviting reading nook.

Oh, the happy hours I could spend here:

A bookish game...

Creating your own magical library by collecting and shelving a variety of rare books is the object of Ex Libris. Each round opens with several new shops being randomly chosen and laid out that you can then visit on your turn to trade, donate, and acquire more books for your library--from Monster Manuals and Fantastical Fiction to Corrupted Codices. All you have to do is shelve the most books, earn the most points, and you win the title of Grand Librarian!

This game isn't difficult, though there is a bit of a learning curve the first time you play as you try to figure out the best way to shelve your books in order to earn the most points, as well as how to utilize the special skills of your particular library (which changes each time you play). This game is for 1-5 players and it plays in just 30-60 minutes. I thought it was a lot of fun! I especially loved reading all the clever book titles on each of the cards from Nancy Druid and The Hardly Boys to Dungeon Decorating for Dummies. Each new title made me smile. And I had a lot of fun collecting all these crazy books for my own gnomish library. (I even came in second!) So if you're looking for an imaginative and entertaining bookish game that's got fantastic illustrations, check this one out!

Can you tell I liked this one?

Happy playing!

Celebrating the Year of the Dog!

Stalking Ground: A Timber Creek K-9 Mystery by Margaret Mizushima

Robo is back, along with his handler, Deputy Mattie Cobb. Together they find a missing woman, weather a mountain snowstorm, take on a mountain lion, and help solve a murder mystery. They're a good team. I like Mattie, but Robo is my favorite. (He's such a smart dog!) In Killing Trail, the first book in this series, I felt the characters were a bit stilted, but in this one they felt much more natural and well-developed. And the mystery itself had a few added layers I did not anticipate. (Although I did guess right about who did it.) All in all, this was a fun read.

The Patron Saint of Lost Dogs by Nick Trout

This is a mildly entertaining book about Dr. Cyrus Mills, a 40-year-old veterinary pathologist who inherits his estranged father's veterinary practice. There's just a few problems:  the practice is in Vermont, it's deeply in debt, and Cyrus hasn't practiced on live animals since veterinary school. Which leads to some humorous situations. There's also the obligatory small-town quirkiness. But this book felt a little too predictable to me. (And a little long, too!) It's also written in present tense, which isn't my favorite thing. So while it's not a bad read, I didn't love it. Or even like it much. But you might!

Hotel For Dogs by Lois Duncan

Feeling nostalgic, I couldn't resist rereading one of my favorite children's books about dogs. I love this one! It's a charming and funny adventure involving two siblings, the mean boy next door, nine dogs, and an abandoned house at the end of the street. There's even a ghost dog! I'd forgotten how much I like this book; it made me smile all the way through it. I think it's the best read of the three...and a great way to start off the new lunar year.

What dog books would you recommend this year?

Happy Reading! 

One from my TBR shelf...

Title:  The Prisoner of Heaven
Author:  Carlos Ruiz Zafon
First line:  This year at Christmas time, every morning dawned laced with frost under leaden skies ... Very few stopped to gaze at the shop windows of Sempere & Sons; fewer still ventured inside to ask for that lost book that had been waiting for them all their lives...
Setting:  Barcelona in the 1940s and 1950s.

Why I purchased this book in the first place:  Because I loved The Shadow of the Wind and The Angel's Game, Zafon's two previous novels.

Why I've put off reading it for four long years:  I think part of me was afraid it wouldn't live up to expectations, but mostly I didn't read it because I really wanted to reread his other books in this "trilogy" first. Only I never managed to, even though I do own both. But, thanks to Lark at The Bookwyrm's Hoard and her awesome Backlist Reader Challenge, I finally managed to read The Prisoner of Heaven and check it off my TBR list.

Thoughts:  Zafon's writing is amazing. He always manages to craft memorable and unique characters that you can't help but care about as he takes you on a journey back in time to a more dangerous and uncertain Barcelona under Franco's dictatorship. I wish I could give you a succinct and thoughtful summary of this novel, but I tried...and failed. Nothing I wrote did it justice. So all I'm going to say is that The Prisoner of Heaven did not disappoint and I'm very glad I finally read it. Though I do kind of wish I'd reread his other two books first. But maybe I'll reread them next. Because all of Zafon's books are worth revisiting. This one included...even though of the three I think it's the weakest.

Happy Reading!

A bookish gem...

"All towns need a bookshop."

But what Broken Wheel, Iowa, really needs is Sara Lindqvist. She's a bookish, quiet girl who prefers books to people, but who has come all the way from Sweden to meet her pen pal, Amy Harris, only to arrive on the day of Amy's funeral. Luckily for her, the residents of this shrinking town are determined to make her feel welcome and wanted. They get Poor George to chauffeur her around town, they treat her to lunch, let her stay in Amy's house, and even try to set her up with Amy's handsome nephew, Tom. In an attempt to repay their many kindnesses, and to honor Amy's memory, Sara opens up a bookshop on Main Street, filling it with all of Amy's books. Now if only she can convince the residents of Broken Wheel to read them.

This story has everything I love:  pen pals and letters, good books, humor, charm, friendship and romance, heart, and a town full of quirky, fun characters. I loved it! Seeing the town pull together on Sara's behalf was very entertaining, and her effect on each of them, especially on Tom, made me smile. This bookish gem is a novel I would happily buy and read again and again; it's that good!

Happy Reading!

Similarly delightful reads:

The Bookshop on the Corner by Jenny Colgan

Three Things You Need to Know About Rockets by Jessica A. Fox

The Little Bookshop of Big Stone Gap by Wendy Welch

A bookish treat...

Title:  The Bookshop on the Corner
Author:  Jenny Colgan
First line:  The problem with good things that happen is that very often they disguise themselves as awful things.
The protagonist:  Nina Redmond, a shy 29-year-old single librarian who describes herself as "the quiet one, on the sidelines, observing things through the medium of the novels she loved to read." Her world consists of books, and more books. But then they close her library and Nina has no idea what she's going to do next. Unless she opens up her own small bookshop in an old converted van...

My thoughts:  This is a novel about books and reading, and daring to follow your dreams, AND it's set in Scotland where the men are 'boys' and the women are 'lasses'. What's not to love? I've never read Jenny Colgan before, but I'd definitely read her again. This book is a delight, from Nina's early mishaps driving the van, to the slightly motley yet oddly engaging assortment of characters she meets along the way, to her own unexpected romance. There's even a dog named Parsley. The whole thing is a lot of fun. In fact, I think I'd happily live in this book if I could. I didn't even mind the predictable bits. I just lost myself in the Scottish landscape and enjoyed each and every page. So, if you like bookshops and happy endings, give this one a try.

Happy Reading!

Similar read:

Three Things You Need to Know About Rockets by Jessica A. Fox

Got books?

Wendy Welch and her husband, Jack, purchase an old Edwardian house in Big Stone Gap--a tiny Appalachian coal town in southwest Virginia--and almost on a whim, decide to turn the downstairs into a used bookstore. Opening a bookstore had always been one of their dreams, but they weren't exactly prepared for their dream to arrive so soon.

"We bought the house in July and planned to open shop in October; a quick turn-around meant the place could start paying us back for its purchase. Since we didn't have any investment capital, without remorse or pity, we culled our personal library for inventory...The books from our personal cull barely filled half of one room's shelves, yet three rooms waited. It didn't feel cozy or full of promise, more barren and tomblike...The book morgue that wanted to be a shop was our problem, waiting for our solution. But hook, crook, or sheer force of will, we would find more books--without going into debt for them."

5 things I loved about The Little Bookstore of Big Stone Gap: a memoir of friendship, community, and the uncommon pleasure of a good book by Wendy Welch:

• It's a book about books...and a one-of-a-kind bookstore! Two of my favorite things. 
• Welch's writing is humorous, honest and heartfelt. making this memoir a delightfully funny read.
• Big Stone Gap itself and the sometimes quirky, always interesting, book-loving characters who live there.
• Every chapter is headed by an awesome bookish quote. (And I love bookish quotes!)
• At its heart, this story is about making your 'someday dreams' come true. Because...

"What if someday is today?"

Happy Reading!

Similar read: 

Three Things You Need to Know About Rockets by Jessica A. Fox (Which is about a girl and a dream, a bookstore in Scotland, and a fairy tale romance.)

Feeling Lost?

Title: The Book of Lost Things by John Connolly
First Line: Once upon a time--for that is how all stories should begin--there was a boy who lost his mother.
Summary: That boy is twelve-year-old David. Grieving for his mother, David turns to his books for comfort. But the stories whispering through their pages want something from him in return. As his mother once told him, "Stories wanted to be read. They needed it. It was the reason they forced themselves from their world into ours." Only this time, they manage to lure David into their world instead--a world full of strange creatures, twisted fairy tales and dark magic. Now David must somehow find his way back home.
My Thoughts: David is a great character--still only a boy, lost and alone and having to battle his own fears, anger, and jealousy, all while struggling to grow up; I liked him a lot. I also liked the characters he meets on his journey, especially The Woodsman. In many ways, this book reminded me of the second half of the musical Into The Woods. Parts made me laugh, other parts made me sad; but altogether, this book has an ending worth reaching. Despite its premise and fairy-tale aspects, it is shelved in adult fiction. Go figure. So, if you want to lose yourself in a good read, check this one out.

Happy Reading!

What if...

What if someone gave you $250,000? What would you do with it? Start your own business? Buy that bed-and-breakfast? Quit your job and finally write that novel? Brooke, Caitlin, Jamie, and Anna, friends since college and all former English majors, have just been given the chance to find out. That's the premise of Beth Kendrick's Second Time Around, and the main reason I checked it out of the library.

This book is a fun, if somewhat predictable, read. But I think what I liked best about it is how it got me wondering what I would do if someone gave me $250,000 out of the blue. The practical, responsible side of me would probably invest the money, or put it towards retirement, maybe use it to replace my old car with a newer model or invest it in a condo, something sensible like that. But the dreamer in me would have a much more impractical plan. With $250,000 I could reinvent my life and finally do all those things I've always dreamed of doing "if I only had the money". I could rent a beach house for a year, take time off from work and learn to fly, learn French, travel the world, paint, write, move to Hawaii. The possibilities are endless; and it's those possibilities that make dreaming (and life!) worthwhile.

Henry David Thoreau wrote," If one advances confidently in the direction of his dreams, and endeavors to live the life which he has imagined, he will meet with a success unexpected in common hours. If you have built castles in the air, your work need not be lost; that is where they should be. Now put the foundations under them."  I couldn't agree more.

Happy Dreaming!

A Bookish fantasy...

Do you know what first got me hooked on the Harry Potter books? Harry's very first trip to Diagon Alley. Rowling's writing is so vivid...  In Diagon Alley, "there were shops selling robes, shops selling telescopes and strange silver instruments Harry had never seen before, windows stacked with barrels of bat spleens and eels' eyes, tottering piles of spell books, quills, and rolls of parchment, potion bottles, globes of the moon..."

I wanted to go there, too. I mean, who wouldn't want to choose your very own owl at Eeylops Owl Emporium, or buy some magical books at Flourish and Blotts where "the shelves were stacked to the ceiling with books as large as paving stones bound in leather; books the size of postage stamps in covers of silk; books full of peculiar symbols and a few books with nothing in them at all"? Talk about a bookworm's fantasy vacation!

And don't get me started on Hogwarts, or Honeydukes and Hogsmeade. Just thinking about it makes me wish Rowling's fictional world were real. I'd happily spend the summer visiting all of Harry's haunts. Wouldn't that be cool? Good thing I've got all seven books sitting on my shelf any time I feel like 'visiting'. Here's to revisiting your favorite fictional world this summer!

Happy Birthday, Harry Potter!

(P.S. Have you planned your Harry Potter party yet?)