Soon to be a Major Motion Picture

I was recently at the local cinema seeing a great art house piece, Ghostbusters. Perhaps you've heard of it? The movie was fantastic. Obviously. But the previews were pretty great too. And three of them are books!

For a book lover, I'm unusually unfazed by movie adaptations. I'm not the type to say, "the book is always better," because they really are two separate entities. But that doesn't mean an upcoming movie release won't compel me to read the book. Sometimes movie release schedules fairly dictate my to-read pile. Like right now.

Billy Lynn's Long Half-Time Walk  by Ben Fountain

Three minutes and forty-three seconds of intense warfare with Iraqi insurgents has transformed the eight surviving men of Bravo Squad into America's most sought-after heroes. Now they're on a media-intensive nationwide tour to reinvigorate support for the war. On this rainy Thanksgiving, the Bravos are guests of the Dallas Cowboys, slated to be part of the halftime show alongside Destiny's Child.

Among the Bravos is Specialist Billy Lynn. Surrounded by patriots sporting flag pins on their lapels and Support Our Troops bumper stickers, he is thrust into the company of the Cowboys' owner and his coterie of wealthy colleagues; a born-again Cowboys cheerleader; a veteran Hollywood producer; and supersized players eager for a vicarious taste of war. Over the course of this day, Billy will drink and brawl, yearn for home and mourn those missing, face a heart-wrenching decision, and discover pure love and a bitter wisdom far beyond his years.

A Monster Calls by Patrick Ness

At seven minutes past midnight, thirteen-year-old Conor wakes to find a monster outside his bedroom window. But it isn't the monster Conor's been expecting-- he's been expecting the one from his nightmare, the nightmare he's had nearly every night since his mother started her treatments. The monster in his backyard is different. It's ancient. And wild. And it wants something from Conor. Something terrible and dangerous. It wants the truth. From the final idea of award-winning author Siobhan Dowd-- whose premature death from cancer prevented her from writing it herself-- Patrick Ness has spun a haunting and darkly funny novel of mischief, loss, and monsters both real and imagined.

Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children by Ransom Riggs

A mysterious island.

An abandoned orphanage.

A strange collection of very curious photographs.

It all waits to be discovered in "Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children," an unforgettable novel that mixes fiction and photography in a thrilling reading experience. As our story opens, a horrific family tragedy sets sixteen-year-old Jacob journeying to a remote island off the coast of Wales, where he discovers the crumbling ruins of Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children. As Jacob explores its abandoned bedrooms and hallways, it becomes clear that the children were more than just peculiar. They may have been dangerous. They may have been quarantined on a deserted island for good reason. And somehow impossible though it seems they may still be alive. A spine-tingling fantasy illustrated with haunting vintage photography, "Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children" will delight adults, teens, and anyone who relishes an adventure in the shadows.

-Erin

Book News and Other Miscellany

Volume 3, Issue 1

Various links to cool videos, websites, articles, and news about books.

***

No. Way. A new Harry Potter book is coming! The book will be released on Sunday, July 31st (Harry's birthday, obvi). It will be the eighth book, and it's actually a "special rehearsal edition" script of a new play, based on an original story by J.K. Rowling. Sounds confusing, but who really cares? Harry Potter and the Cursed Child is about the harried(ha) life of an overworked Ministry of Magic employee, father of three little wizards, and former savior of the wizarding world. So you know, normal everyday stuff. I wonder if Harry and Ginny have a minivan.

***

And speaking of Harry Potter, here's the trailer to Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them.  In case you're like me and completly missed it.

***

We think our Instagram account is pretty spectacular. Find us @thirdplacebooks, if you aren't a current follower. But there are tons of other great book related Instagram accounts.

Bustle.com put together a list of 10 Accounts Every Book-Lover Should Be Following Right Now. It's a pretty good list. They seem to cover the gamut of what the book Instagram world consists of; that being, cats, coffee, young adult readers, and bookstores. 

***

Check out this Seattle Times feature on our 

new, soon to be open, Seward Park Store!

Managing Partner, Robert Sindelar, overseeing construction

 ***

Here's a random new staff pick from one of our lovely employees. Christina at Ravenna thinks you should read...

Our Spoons Came from Woolworths by Barbara Comyns

This beautiful book, the story of an impoverished, naive young artist in 1930s London, totally took me by surprise. At first the mishaps of newly-married Sophia and her husband Charles are funny and awkward--everything Sophia cooks tastes like soap; they paint all of their furniture sea-green; they live in terror of Charles' forbidding relatives; and they're always hard up for money. But through a masterful technique of Comyns, Sophia's wondering attitude slowly reveals as much about her (and her unconscious attempts to deflect the emotional impact of constant disappointments) as it does those around her, who benefit from exploiting her optimism and self-doubt. Some moments of the book approach psychological horror, and the happy ones (they exist!) come as a great relief. 

***

In honor of Valentine's Day, find out what literary couple you and your significant other are. Take the quiz here.

***

And ... a book and a cat.

Book News and Other Miscellany

Volume 2, Issue 2

Various links to cool videos, websites, articles, and news about books.

***

The Man Booker long list, also known as the "Man Booker (Baker's) Dozen" was announced late last month.

This is the second year that the prize has been open to writers of any nationality. Nomineess must also be originally written in English, and published in the UK. The shortlist will be announced on September 15th with the award itself announced on October 13th.

***

The Martian comes to movie theaters this fall. The trailer looks amazing! Several of us have read and loved the book and can't wait for the movie!

***

People who read actual, physical books fall asleep faster and sleep better than those who read e-readers. There's a super-long, fancy, academic study that proves it. Or you can read NPR's summary.

***

What's your personality? Take this quiz!

***

 50 Romantic Books for People 

Who Hate Romance Novels

I love Flavorwire's lists. They are consistently interesting topics and always full of  books you wouldn't normally consider belonging to whatever particular list it is. I found Dancer from the Dance (one of my all-time faves) by Andrew Holleran on their list of Best New York Novels. It's also in their 50 Essential Works of LGBT Fiction.

I had been sampling pretty heavily from the LGBT list and that's how I came to read, Call Me By Your Name by Andre Aciman, currently my favorite book this year. Call Me By Your Name is also on the 50 Romantic Books list, which is how I ended up reading John Wyndham's The Chrysalids. And why I'm moving on to The Sea, The Sea by Iris Murdoch. You must check out these lists, they will inevitably throw you down a rabbit hole of binge-reading. Not a bad rabbit hole to be in.

***

And, a book and a cat.

-Erin

Old News

I'm always so behind the times, but did you watch Death Comes to Pemberly? BBC made the P.D. James' novel of the same name into a miniseries back in 2013, though it didn't air in the US until last year. You should really watch it if you missed it too. The acting is wonderful, the story engaging, and it's gorgeous. The costumes, the castles, the scenery.

Swoon.

And how could you ever get enough of Elizabeth and Darcy? You can't.

Book News and Other Miscellany

Volume 2, Issue 1

Bringing this back. Various links to cool videos, websites, articles, and blogs about books. Enjoy!

***

You may recall the "squee heard round the world". Here's the trailer that accompanies said squee.

Do. Not. Tell. Me. Anything. The first episode was last night and I haven't seen it yet.  

***

I was trying to find a literary holiday for you to celebrate this week, but I found something better instead. Melville House's commentary on literary holidays, Major Literary Holidays Other than Read an e Book Day. International Lie About Having Read Proust Day is my new favorite holiday. It's "actually everyday, though it's officially recognized on August 13." I'll be exchanging gifts if anyone wants to join me. It was a serious toss-up between that and January 13th, Give Up Trying to Read 2666 Day.

***

The Man Booker International Prize was announced last week. If you think that's the ordinary Man Booker Prize, you're wrong. Don't worry, we didn't know what it was either. Everyday's a school day! The Man Booker International Prize is awarded to ...

one writer for his or her achievement in fiction. Worth £60,000, the prize is awarded every two years to a living author who has published fiction either originally in English or whose work is generally available in translation in the English language. The winner is chosen solely at the discretion of the judging panel and there are no submissions from publishers.

Where the regular old Booker Prize is given to one book, yearly, the Man Booker International Prize is awarded for a body of work every two years. Kind of like the Olympics. Actually, not at all like the Olympics.

Your new Man Booker International Prize winner...

László Krasznahorkai!!!!

Some of his more recently translated work includes Santantango and Seiobo There Below.

***

And now, a brand new section of Book News:
Cool books I really want to read, but haven't had a chance to yet.
Admittedly, not really news, just my sneaky way of pointing out cool and worthwhile books you might be interestded in.

The Ice Palace by Tarjei Vesaas

A new edition of what is commonly seen as the legendary Norwegian writer's masterpiece, this story tells the tale of Siss and Unn, two friends who have only spent one evening in each other's company. But so profound is this evening between them that when Unn inexplicably disappears, Siss's world is shattered. Siss's struggle with her fidelity to the memory of her friend and Unn's fatal exploration of the strange, terrifyingly beautiful frozen waterfall that is the Ice Palace are described in prose of a lyrical economy that ranks among the most memorable achievements of modern literature.

***

And a book and a cat.

SQUEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!

OK. Just calmly sit down and brace yourself. Are you sitting down? It's your fault if you're not...

BBC America is making Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell into a mini series!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Are you okay? Do you need a paper bag? Here, you can use mine. I've finally got my breathing under control.

This. Is. Huge.

I'm talking as-big-as-the-book-huge. JS&MN (I just abbreviated it for you...trademark) is one of my ALL TIME FAVORITE BOOKS. I will admit to having a huge crush on Jonathan Strange and I'm not even a little embarrassed by that.

I know a lot of people dread when their favorite books are made into movies. But ever since the Harry Potter era, I have reached a certain inner calmness with movies based on favorite books. It's easy for me to separate each version as it's own piece of art/entertainment. I never compare them and so one does not diminish the other. And anyway, it's BBC. They make Sherlock. Enough said.

Here's more info on the miniseries.

Now, does anyone get BBC America and want to invite me over to watch it?

Books Into Movies

Now that the Oscars are behind us, what in the movie world do we have to look forward to? Well, fear not, there are a ton of  books that are being turned in to movies this year. Here's a sampling:

Serena by Ron Rash
The year is 1929, and newlyweds George and Serena Pemberton travel from Boston to the North Carolina mountains where they plan to create a timber empire. Although George has already lived in the camp long enough to father an illegitimate child, Serena is new to the mountains—but she soon shows herself to be the equal of any man, overseeing crews, hunting rattle-snakes, even saving her husband's life in the wilderness. Together this lord and lady of the woodlands ruthlessly kill or vanquish all who fall out of favor. Yet when Serena learns that she will never bear a child, she sets out to murder the son George fathered without her. Mother and child begin a struggle for their lives, and when Serena suspects George is protecting his illegitimate family, the Pembertons' intense, passionate marriage starts to unravel as the story moves toward its shocking reckoning.

Child 44 by Tom Rob Smith
Stalin's Soviet Union is an official paradise, where citizens live free from crime and fear only one thing: the all-powerful state. Defending this system is idealistic security officer Leo Demidov, a war hero who believes in the iron fist of the law. But when a murderer starts to kill at will and Leo dares to investigate, the State's obedient servant finds himself demoted and exiled. Now, with only his wife at his side, Leo must fight to uncover shocking truths about a killer-and a country where "crime" doesn't exist.

Me Before You by Jojo Moyes
Louisa Clark is an ordinary girl living an exceedingly ordinary life—steady boyfriend, close family—who has barely been farther afield than their tiny village. She takes a badly needed job working for ex–Master of the Universe Will Traynor, who is wheelchair bound after an accident. Will has always lived a huge life—big deals, extreme sports, worldwide travel—and now he’s pretty sure he cannot live the way he is. Will is acerbic, moody, bossy—but Lou refuses to treat him with kid gloves, and soon his happiness means more to her than she expected. When she learns that Will has shocking plans of his own, she sets out to show him that life is still worth living.

Madame Bovary by Gustav Flaubert
Emma Bovary is the original desperate housewife. Beautiful but bored, she spends lavishly on clothes and on her home and embarks on two disappointing affairs in an effort to make her life everything she believes it should be. Soon heartbroken and crippled by debts, she takes drastic action, with tragic consequences for her husband and daughter. In this landmark new translation of Gustave Flaubert's masterwork, award-winning writer and translator Lydia Davis honors the nuances and particulars of Flaubert's legendary prose style, giving new life in English to the book that redefined the novel as an art form.

For more books into movies, here's a nice list.
And make sure you read before you watch! 

Book News and Other Miscellany

Volume 1, Issue 2

***

Brickjest is absolutely, hands down, the coolest thing on the internet. It's a Lego translation of David Foster Wallace's epic Infinte Jest as interpreted by a father son duo. It's unbelievable!

***

Jon Stewart took a long break from his Daily Show hosting duties to adapt and film a movie version of the book Then They Came For Me: A Family's Story of Love, Captivity, and Survival by Maziar Bahari and Aimee Molloy. The movie is called Rosewater, and here's the trailer:

***

Here is Flavorwire's list of the 25 Must-Read Books for Fall. Starring, among others, Diane Ackerman! Incidentally, we'll be welcoming Diane and her new book The Human Age: The World Shaped by Us as a part of the Ravenna Luncheon Series on Tuesday, September 16th at 1PM. This is a ticketed event, $40 includes a copy of the book and a delicious lunch from Vios. Seats are sure to go quickly so call the Ravenna Store (206)-525-2347.

Ackerman is justly celebrated for her unique insight into the natural world and our place in it. In this landmark book, she confronts the unprecedented reality that one prodigiously intelligent and meddlesome creature, Homo sapiens, is now the dominant force shaping the future of planet Earth.

Humans have "subdued 75 percent of the land surface, concocted a wizardry of industrial and medical marvels, strung lights all across the darkness." We tinker with nature at every opportunity; we garden the planet with our preferred species of plants and animals, many of them invasive; and we have even altered the climate, threatening our own extinction. Yet we reckon with our own destructive capabilities in extraordinary acts of hope-filled creativity: we collect the DNA of vanishing species in a "frozen ark," equip orangutans with iPads, and create wearable technologies and synthetic species that might one day outsmart us. With her distinctive gift for making scientific discovery intelligible to the layperson, Ackerman takes us on an exhilarating journey through our new reality, introducing us to many of the people and ideas now creating perhaps saving our future and that of our fellow creatures.

***

Find out which character from American Literature you are!

Take this quiz.

***

The Amazon war has headed overseas. In an attempt to support and protect independent bookstores, the French Government has passed a new law making it illegal for large online retailers, namely Amazon, to ship books free of charge. And in Japan, publishers have condemned Amazon's latest ranking system. Read more here.

***

NEW MOCKINGJAY PICTURES!!!!!

***

Annnnnnd a cat with some books.

Book News and Other Miscellany

Here are a few random book related articles, blogs, pictures, and what not from all the corners of the internet.  Okay, maybe not all the corners, but a fair few.

***

Are you in love with Cormoran Strike and J.K. Row...I mean Robert Galbraith? Well, you are in luck. Rowling says she loves writing under her pseudonym and is already half done with the third novel.  She  even claims that this series could be longer than that other series she wrote. She'll keep giving her private eye cases (and novels) as long as she keeps him alive. Ha! Keeps him alive! Easier said than done, Rowling...have you actually read Harry Potter? Read more here.

***

Here is a lovely little piece from Esquire.
How to Quit Amazon and Shop in an Actual Bookstore by Stephen Marche

A good seller in a bookstore is infinitely superior in every way to a personalization algorithm. Even by entering a bookstore, you're faced with literally a thousand choices that you've never been faced with before. Somewhere in there is something that's entirely fresh to you, and will reward your soul by exposure. That's what good books do, and good bookstores, too. They let you step out of your algorithm.

*** 

Our new favorite website: Today in Literature ... never miss an important day again.


On July 23rd, 1846, Henry David Thoreau is jailed for not paying his poll tax. I guess he should have stayed in the woods.

***

It's probably time for you to take this book quiz.

What Children's Book Character Are You?

***

Awesome trailer for the movie version of Unbroken out later this year. Go ahead, try not rushing out and buying this book after you watch the trailer. You won't be able to stop yourself.

***

Cool Blog Alert! You may already know about this great book blog, but I just stumbled upon it this week. Musing is the official blog for Ann Patchett's bookstore, Parnassus Books in Nashville. It's got great articles, lists, and staff picks. Particularly awesome are the Authors In Real Life segments, and of course the Shop Dog Diaries.

***

And this super important picture of a cat and some books from The Literary Cat. Because, you know...cats.

You are welcome.

Heading to the Picture Show!

I put up a new display at our Ravenna location this weekend.  It was time to say goodbye to Valentine's Day and hello to The Oscars.

In a way at least.

We're celebrating all the great books that have been turned into movies recently, or will be soon.  Sure, we all know about Monuments Men and nobody can wait for Divergent, but in the course of putting up the display, I came across a ton of books that I had no idea were bound for the movie house.

Did you know Wild is going to be given the Hollywood treatment?  Starring Reese Witherspoon.

And Lois Lowry's The Giver...with Jeff Bridges, Meryl Streep, and *gasp* Taylor Swift?!?

And Gillian Flynn has not one but two books being turned into movies.  Gone Girl AND Dark Places!

Unbroken is going to be a movie before it's even released into paperback!

And of course, The Fault in Our Stars.

There's loads more.  Here's a really great list.  You better get started, you've got a lot of reading to do!

Which Austen Man is the Man for You?

 It was Jane Austen's birthday last Monday.  To celebrate, Huffington Post shared a piece arguing that Mr. Knightly is the better man than Mr. Darcy.  Here's the article.

It's got some pretty good points, but I contend that the best Austen hero completely depends on who you are and where you are on your own romantic trajectory.

When I was reading Jane Eyre for the first time (yes, I know it's not by Jane Austen), I couldn't get over how much I loved Mr. Rochester.  He's so dark and mysterious and brooding.  But then, rereading it years later, I realized that Rochester is a secretive, explosive, manipulative coward.  Not quite as appealing to my more worldly self.  Maybe Rochester was "perfect" for me then, but certainly not now.  And just like Rochester, there is no perfect Austen hero.  There's only the perfect Austen hero for you, at this moment.

If, as the article poses, Darcy is the bad boy then maybe he's what you're looking for (a point I totally disagree with; Darcy is way too stiff to be any good at being bad).  Perhaps "rebel" Darcy is what you need on the rebound after a bad break up, or in your early twenties (thirties, forties, fifties, whenevers) and sewing your wild oats.  But honestly, if you're looking for a legitimate Austen bad boy, it's obviously, Sense and Sensibility's Willoughby or Mansfield Park's Henry Crawford.

Maybe we look to the more mature Knightley after our hearts have been smashed by all those Darcys and Willoughbys.  Though Knightley comes off being a bit too chastening and judgy for my taste.  I want a hero, not a schoolmarm.  Northanger's Henry Tilney could be another option here.

Then again there's always the steadfast, tortured, and unbelievably romantic Colonel Brandon.  He's one of my favorites (but maybe only because of Alan Rickman's version).  Not so overbearing as Knightley, but still a bit too much of a kicked puppy for my taste.

For me, the sweet spot is Captain Wentworth.  He's the once spurned (often overlooked) but reluctantly faithful hero of Persuasion.  He's
been heartbroken and he's a little vengeful, but in the end he just can't help loving who he loves.  And he seems like the most real and honest of the Austen men.  At least to me, at this moment.  But who knows, ask me again in a year and I may be convinced that Mr. Bingley is the perfect man (doubtful).

Who's your favorite Austen man?  If it's anyone other than Captain Wentworth (more like Captain Perfect!), it's probably because you haven't read Persuasion.  Just kidding!  I'm sure your favorite Austen man is perfect for you.

Seriously though, read Persuasion.  It's Captain Wentworth.  Hands down.

Books into Movies

It's that time of year again!  Books are being turned into movies all over the place.  And it's not just Catching Fire and The Hobbit.  Though those two are pretty hot right now.  Here are a few other movies based on books coming out soon.  And as always, read the book first...it's always better anyway.

Philomena by Martin Sixsmith

When she became pregnant as a teenager in Ireland in 1952, Philomena Lee was sent to a convent to be looked after as a “fallen woman.” Then the nuns took her baby from her and sold him, like thousands of others, to America for adoption. Fifty years later, Philomena decided to find him. 

Meanwhile, on the other side of the Atlantic, Philomena’s son was trying to find her. Renamed Michael Hess, he had become a leading lawyer in the first Bush administration, and he struggled to hide secrets that would jeopardize his career in the Republican Party and endanger his quest to find his mother.

 A gripping exposé told with novelistic intrigue, Philomena pulls back the curtain on the role of the Catholic Church in forced adoptions and on the love between a mother and son who endured a lifelong separation.



The Wolf of Wall Street by Jordan Belfort

By day he made thousands of dollars a minute. By night he spent it as fast as he could. From the binge that sank a 170-foot motor yacht and ran up a $700,000 hotel tab, to the wife and kids waiting at home and the fast-talking, hard-partying young stockbrokers who called him king, here, in Jordan Belfort’s own words, is the story of the ill-fated genius they called the Wolf of Wall Street.

In the 1990s, Belfort became one of the most infamous kingpins in American finance: a brilliant, conniving stock-chopper who led his merry mob on a wild ride out of Wall Street and into a massive office on Long Island. It’s an extraordinary story of greed, power, and excess that no one could invent: the tale of an ordinary guy who went from hustling Italian ices to making hundreds of millions—until it all came crashing down.
 

The Monuments Men: Allied Heroes, Nazi Thieves, and the Greatest Treasure Hunt in History by
Robert M. Edsel and Bret Witter

At the same time Adolf Hitler was attempting to take over the western world, his armies were methodically seeking and hoarding the finest art treasures in Europe. The Fuehrer had begun cataloguing the art he planned to collect as well as the art he would destroy: "degenerate" works he despised.

In a race against time, behind enemy lines, often unarmed, a special force of American and British museum directors, curators, art historians, and others, called the Monuments Men, risked their lives scouring Europe to prevent the destruction of thousands of years of culture. 

Focusing on the eleven-month period between D-Day and V-E Day, this fascinating account follows six Monuments Men and their impossible mission to save the world's great art from the Nazis.