Tag Archives: Top Ten Tuesday

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This post contains mild spoilers for a few books that were published years ago.

I’ve also decided that being deceased is no reason for an author not to answer a friendly question or two, but that is the extent of my necromancy abilities.

Author: Jean M. Auel

My Questions: What happened to Ayla’s first son after she was permanently separated from him in the Clan of the Cave Bear series? Will you ever write a sequel about his life?

 

Author: Steven King

My Questions: What percentage of your family mealtimes are taken up by you asking your loved ones how they’d respond to increasingly bizarre scenarios you’re dreaming up for future novels? Does Mrs. King enjoy these conversations? Do you ever censor yourself around any grandchildren you might have now?

 

Author: Octavia E. Butler

My Questions: How was the Parable series supposed to end? Did you ever consider hiring a ghostwriter to finish it?

 

Author: Angie Thomas

My Question: Can I be one of your beta readers if I promise not to breathe a word about it to anyone?

 

Author: Kevin Kwan

My Questions: Should I read Crazy Rich Asians before or after watching the film? What are your thoughts on the film version of your story in general?

 

Author: Malala Yousafzai

My Questions: Will you be writing more books for adult readers in the near future? What are your longterm plans for your life?

 

Author: Sarah Waters

My Question: What is your research process like? There are so many years between your books that I can only imagine how much time you spend researching every detail of the eras you write about!

 

Author: Paul Stamets

My Question: How many new readers did you gain after Mycelium Running was used for a Star Trek: Discovery plot?

 

Author: Neil Gaiman

My Questions: How would you describe your friendship with Tori Amos? Do you two let each other know in advance when you write about your friendship, or is it a pleasant surprise?

 

Author: Langston Hughes

My Question:  Would you write a poem about 2020 for us?

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This is one of those topics I could write dozens of blog posts about and still come up with more answers to it. I only write reviews of a portion of the books I read.

Due to this, I decided to share the reasons why I don’t write reviews of certain books I loved.

1. The series had an unexpected ending

Example: Jean M. Auel’s Clan of the Cave Bear series

I loved the first few books in this prehistoric world. The last few instalments didn’t tie things up the ways I thought they would based on the early foreshadowing.

While I understood some of the changes the author made, I don’t think I’m the right person to review this series because of how different my interpretation of those early scenes was from the author’s interpretation of them.

2. It’s a classic novel

Example: Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein 

Frankenstein is one of my all-time favourite classics! If we ever get another Frankenstein film, I will be shouting that news from the rooftops and blogging a (hopefully glowing) review of it.

With that being said, this story is 202 years old. Most people who want to read it have already read it, so I’d rather save space for newer books that aren’t so well known.

3. Mainstream audiences have embraced it 

Example: Andy Weir’s The Martian 

Now don’t get me wrong! I love it when people who don’t normally read science fiction discover something in this genre that appeals to them. It has made me extraordinarily happy to see this interest of mine become much more mainstream since I was a kid, and I welcome every new fan.

But I also feel compelled to focus on lesser-known science fiction stories, especially when they’re indie and/or written by writers from underrepresented groups.

4. I don’t know what to say about it 

Example: Emily Tesh’s Silver in the Wood 

This doesn’t happen very often, but sometimes I have trouble specifying why I love a book so much.  It could be that it reminds me of very specific childhood memories or that it makes me feel all warm and fuzzy inside.

Those reactions are a great deal of fun, but I need to have a firm list of reasons for enjoying a story before I decide to write a full review of it. I always want to be the sort of reviewer whose readers receive plenty of concrete examples of why I liked it so much so they can decide for themselves if it’s the right read for them.

Reviewing is serious business in my opinion!

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I chose Canadian literary events for this week’s prompt because most of the bookish event and festival lists out there are heavily slanted towards the United States.

I think there’s something to be said for shining the spotlight on other parts of the world, too.

Word on the Street, the first entry on this list, is something I’ve attended on numerous occasions in the past. It’s a great deal of fun, and I can’t recommend it highly enough to all of you no matter which genres you enjoy.

Everything else is still on my bucket list!

See the map at the beginning of this post if you need a refresher on Canadian geography as you read about all of these wonderful festivals. The provinces will be highlighted in red in the photos below for the festivals that always occur in the same provinces.

1. Word on the Street

Location: Toronto,Ontario

Target Audience: Everyone

Why I Love It: It includes such a wonderful variety of books and authors for every age, genre, style, and demographic group you can imagine and maybe even a few you’ve never encountered before. The food there is incredible, too!

 

2. The Festival of Literary Diversity 

Location: Brampton, Ontario

Target Audience: Diverse authors and storytellers (and anyone who wants to read diverse books!)

Why I Want to Visit It: What’s not to love about celebrating diversity in the bookish community? I really need to rent a car or hop on a train and take a road trip to this festival after we have a vaccine for Covid-19.

 

3. Atwater Poetry Project

Location: Montreal, Quebec

Target Audience: Poets and anyone who loves poetry

Why I Want to Visit It: A well-written poem makes my heart sing.

 

4. Bloody Words

Location: Various Canadian cities (the location changes every year)

Target Audience: Mystery writers and readers

Why I Want to Visit It: I occasionally read mysteries and think it would be cool to learn more about this genre.

 

 

5. NorthWords Writers Festival Society

Location: Yellowknife, Northwest Territories

Target Audience: Aboriginal writers and anyone who is interested in reading their work

Why I Want to Visit It: Canada has an amazing literary community in general, and it includes many talented Aboriginal and First Nations authors. I’d be thrilled to attend a whole festival dedicated to their work.

 

 

6. Yukon Writers’ Festival

Location: The Yukon Territory

Target Audience: Anyone who is part of Canadian literary scene in the Yukon or who wants to learn more about it.

Why I Want to Visit It: I must confess to not knowing a lot about the culture of the Yukon or what the literary scene is like up there. That’s something I’d love to change someday.

 

 

7. Read by the Sea

Location: River John, Nova Scotia

Target Audience: Everyone who wants to read Canadian works

Why I Want to Visit It: It sounds like an all-Canadian version of Word on the Street. If that’s true, this festival must be amazing!

 

 

8. Writers at Woody Point

Location: Newfoundland

Target Audience: Anyone who writes or reads stories set in this province

Why I Want to Visit It: I only know a little bit about the culture of or literary scene in Newfoundland and would like to change that.

 

 

9. Vancouver Writers Fest

Location: Vancouver, British Columbia

Target Audience: Anyone who writes or reads stories set in Vancouver

Why I Want to Visit It: I used to live in Vancouver. It’s a beautiful, bookish city, and reading about it makes me feel like I’m back there.

 

 

10. Saskatchewan Festival Of Words

Location: Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan

Target Audience: Everyone who enjoys Canadian literature

Why I Want to Visit It: This festival lasts for four whole days! That alone is enough to make me eager to check it out.

Do any of you have other Canadian literary festivals to add to this list? I’d sure like to hear about them.

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I’m stretching the definition of the term book a bit for today’s prompt. You see, it’s impossible for me to narrow this list down to fictional stories.

Which tales make me smile has evolved throughout the course of my life. My answer at age 5 would be completely different than what I’d answer at age 20 or today. And who knows what will entice me when I’m 80!

What has never and will never change is my love of words, the meanings of words, and knowledge in general, so that’s what I’m tweaking this post to focus on.

The New Oxford American Dictionary by Oxford University Press

Roget’s International Thesaurus  by Peter Mark Roget, Robert L. Chapman

Urban Dictionary

The Complete Rhyming Dictionary by Clement Wood, Ronald J. Bogus

Encyclopedia

Wikipedia 

Most people probably wouldn’t sit down and read these sources like like they were novels, but I’ve been doing that since I first learned how to read.

Yes, the encyclopedias at my grandparents’ home were decades out of date by the time I discovered them, but I still adored reading about what the world was like in the early 1960s when they bought them!

Knowledge is power. I see everything from the Internet to antique books tucked away in the corner of someone else’s house as marvellous opportunities to learn about things you might have never otherwise discovered.

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I’m the sort of reader who regularly jumps around between authors and among genres.

When I discover an author I really love, I might read everything from their back catalogue I can find only to go years before picking up anything else from them depending on if they’re still alive and how often they publish new novels.

That is to say, I’ve read many books from the following authors, but I can also go long stretches of time before returning to them again.

Almost everyone on my list is a science fiction or fantasy author because those are my favourite genres. I’m particular about which types of SFF I like to read, so when I find an author who has the same tastes I dive into everything I can find from them.

Do any of you follow similar patterns?

My list:

Stephen King

L.M. Montgomery

Margaret Atwood

Ursula K. Le Guin

Douglas Adams

Neil Gaiman

Octavia E. Butler

Robert J. Sawyer

Sheri S. Tepper

Jean M. Auel

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If only you all knew how hard it was to narrow this down to only ten books!

Did anyone else have that same trouble?

There are so many amazing titles coming in the second half of 2020.

 

 

 

 

To Sleep in a Sea of Stars by Christopher Paolini

Release Date: September 15

Why I’m Excited for It: One word – xenobiologist. I dream of the day humans discover life on other planets.

Vampires Never Get Old: Tales with Fresh Bite by Zoraida Córdova, Natalie C. Parker, Samira Ahmed, Dhonielle Clayton, Tessa Gratton, Heidi Heilig, Julie Murphy, Mark Oshiro, and more. (september 22)

Release Date: September 22

Why I’m Excited for It: Vampires are wonderfully frightening.

Vampires of Portlandia by Jason Tanamor  

Release Date: September 29

Why I’m Excited for It: The only thing scarier than living with vampires is doing so in an area that often doesn’t have much sunlight with which to chase them away!

Gathering Blossoms Under Fire: The Journals of Alice Walker by Alice Walker

Release Date: October 1

Why I’m Excited for It: I’ve been a fan of Ms. Walker’s writing for years and am quite curious to learn more about her personal life.

Cinders and Sparrows by Stefan Bachmann

Release Date: October 13

Why I’m Excited for It: What’s not to love about inheriting a castle and all of the magical things inside of it?

Instant Karma by Marissa Meyer

Release Date: November 3

Why I’m Excited for It: I, too, have daydreamed of what it would be like to have the ability to give people their karma right away. (Lest I frighten anyone, it’s mostly in the sense of rewarding strangers for their acts of kindness both big and small).

Dearly: New Poems by Margaret Atwood  

Release Date: November 10

Why I’m Excited for It: It’s always cool to see what Ms. Atwood comes up with next.

Nimiety by A.A. Spears

Release Date: November 20 (tentatively)

Why I’m Excited for It: I don’t know if I’m excited for it yet since the blurb hasn’t even been released, but I am quite intrigued by the broken ferris wheel on the cover as well as the dictionary definition of nimiety (“the state of being too much,” if you’re curious).

Link by Link: A Spirited Holiday Anthology by M. Dalto, Pam Dunn, Myra Fiacco, Marlena Frank, Kristin Jacques, C. Vonzale Lewis, Jess Moore, and Candace Robinson.

Release Date: December 1

Why I’m Excited for It: Three words – Christmas ghost stories.

True Names: Four Generations of My Afro Appalachian Family by Malaika Adero

Release Date: December 1

Why I’m Excited for It: I had no idea there were African-American families who lived in Appalachia. I look forward to learning more about what that experience was like for this family.