Tuesday, July 06, 2010

Book Talk!



I like routines.  Good or bad, they're comfortable and mine.  So, one thing I try to do when visiting family in my hometown is to share what the locals are reading.  Let me give some basic details behind this.  My "hometown" is a smallish beach town and has two independent bookshops that keep and submit to one of the local paper their bestsellers and they're very different.  Here they are:

Laguna Beach Books
1.  The Lotus Eaters by Tatiana Soli
2.  The Imperfectionists by Tom Rachman
3.  The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larsson
4.  Montana 1948 by Larry Watson
5.  The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest by Stieg Larsson
6.  The Girl Who Played with Fire by Stieg Larsson
7.  The Hand that First Held Mine by Maggie o'Farrell
8.  So Much for That by Lionel Shriver
9.  The Big Short by Michael Lewis
10. The Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet by Jamie Ford

Events the shop above is hosting this July that were noted in the paper are:

July 14 - Don Winslow, author of Savages
July 23 - Jillian Lauren, author of Some Girls and Contributors to Robot Hearts
July 28 - Janelle Brown, author of This I Where We Live

Latitude 33 Bookshop
1.  The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larsson
2.  The Girl Who Played with Fire by Stieg Larsson
3.  China and the 21st Century by Jeffrey Wasserstrom
4.  The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest by Stieg Larsson
5.  Hitch-22: A Memoir by Christopher Hitchens
6.  Tinkers by Paul Harding
7.  Last Night in Twisted River by John Irving
8.  Feed a Family on $25 a Week by Gabrielle Sunheart
9.  Churchill by Paul Johnson
10. Eight Steps to Happiness: The Buddhist Way of Loving Kindness by Geshe Kelsa Gyatso

Local author, T A Long, also announced in the paper the release of her first novel, Baby's Got a Brand New Bag - a murder mystery set along coast of Orange County.

6 comments:

practimom said...

Well they both seem to like Stieg Larsson. I have never read him. But i do not recognize any of these authors. Any romance? You know i am a sucker for romance. The picture of your home town is beautiful!

Tilly Greene said...

Hiya darlin'!

Okay, interestingly enough, I was reading 'The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo' by Steig Larsson whilst there [my cutie was reading my sister's copy] and I picked it up on the way to RT. It's a very interesting read and I'd now like to go to Sweden :-) Yes, they are good, fast reads which are perfect for a holiday town.

No, there were no romances on either list, or really in either store - hence my never doing a signing in my hometown. However, I found out from my nephew that he's required to read the Churchill book over the summer for school, and he picked it up early to get through it - we had a nice chat about it one night.

Yeah, I was lucky to grow up and be able to visit a truly lovely place :-)

practimom said...

well cool! i might have to pick him up, then!

Anny Cook said...

I find "bestseller" lists in indie bookstores are usually no where near the ones in the big chains. These are certainly interesting lists you've posted!

Tilly Greene said...

You know what, practimom, I suggest you check it out from the library. There were a couple of seriously difficult subjects involved and while they aren't heavily detailed, neither are they glossed over. Good mystery, interesting characters, and a great setting have made me want more, but I was prepared for the tough times and I wouldn't want you going in cold and end up cursing me for suggesting them :-)

Hiya Anny! Knowing how the major lists are compiled, I've always steered clear of them, but often check out the personal recommendations at my local Borders. Actually, a good friend of mine works there, and I totally trust her in book suggestions. Two years ago she suggested the Larsson books to me and she was right totally enjoyed it. Her latest rec was for my mom, The Help. These two lists are interesting because they truly reflect who shops there and then there's the local high school required reading that shows up as well. The latter does a great job in supporting local authors - always one or two on the list. Very cool and fun to share. Hey, see you Saturday!

anny cook said...

Looking forward to it! Can't wait.