Review: The History of Bees

Note: Top Shelf Text received a copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own!

Readers, let me just voice what everyone is thinking.

That cover.

This could potentially go down as my favorite cover of 2017. And it's even better in person, because it's textured too. Shoutout to Kelsey, who is the digital marketing manager at Touchstone, and who was totally unfazed when I told her I couldn't stop touching the cover of this book. (Hi Kelsey, and thanks for letting me be weird at you over the internet!) 

The History of Bees just came out earlier this week, so you can expect to see it popping up on shelves at your local library and bookstore soon. I can tell you the reason that it first caught my eye -- ever since I became a fan of Sherlock Holmes (at a very young age, I can assure you), I've been fascinated by beekeeping. My fascination mostly exists by proxy, because if Sherlock deems it worthy of study, then I'm interested. If you share my interest, then I highly recommend this novel. There are a few different elements of the book that I want to hit on in this review, but the first is the structure of the novel.

I read a lot of historical fiction, and most of my favorites are ones that have dual narratives, in which there's a past perspective and a present perspective that somehow tie together. The History of Bees takes that concept and pushes it further, with a third perspective representing the future.

Here's how it's laid out: 

The first narrative takes place in England in 1835. It's told from the perspective of William, a merchant and biologist who leaves his bed after a rather drawn out depressive spell when inspiration strikes. He invents a new type of beehive, one that he's sure will bring him notoriety in the biology world.

The second narrative takes place in 2007, on a bee farm in Ohio. The perspective featured is George, a stubborn beekeeper who fights to maintain his family's beekeeping traditions as modern farming threatens both his livelihood and the lives of his bees. George has a son whom he hopes will take over the farm, but his hopes falter when his son returns home from college with a different career path in mind.

The third perspective is that of a woman named Tao, who lives in China in  2098. At that time, the bees have been absent from the earth, and human pollinators work to fill the gap left at the agricultural level. Food is scarce and life is regimented, but Tao is content to work hard to provide a better life for her beloved son. That is, until her son is the victim of a mysterious accident and is taken away by the government. Tao grows suspicious of their motives and, desperate for answers, ventures into the dangerous, unregulated lands outside the city.

As I read, I found myself most interested in the present perspective. George's struggle to maintain tradition while he battled environmental decline and industrial farming was really interesting to me, and I found the relationships in his narrative to be the most fruitful in connecting me to the characters. The characters in the other two narratives weren't as well drawn but had great potential, had they been given more space to develop. In general, I felt that I could have read three totally separate novels featuring each of these narratives and enjoyed them all for separate reasons. Had that been the case, however, I would have missed out on the unique way that the three narratives tied together in the end (but I won't spoil that for you here). The book left me with a whole host of feelings -- a little bit of despair, some glimmers of hope, and alarm that the environmental issues featured in this book are real and present to our time. Even though I didn't completely connect with all of the main characters, I would still recommend this title even just for the experience of learning more about beekeeping. I found every bit of information fascinating, and every additional fact about the decline of bees devastating.

Recommended for fans of all genres, as this unique novels wraps dystopian, contemporary, and historical fiction all into one complex, interwoven story.

Bottom-Line Rating: 4/5

Title: The History of Bees

Author: Maja Lunde

Publisher: Touchstone Books, 2017

Price: $15.89 on Amazon

ISBN: 1501161377

Format: Paperback ARC

Source: Touchstone Books

Review: Truly, Madly, Guilty

Note: Top Shelf Text received a copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own!

Fair warning to those of you who have not yet read Truly, Madly, Guilty and may want to do so in the future. This review does contain spoilers, and is speaking more to the many, many readers who reached out to me while I was in the process of reading with their own thoughts about Liane Moriarty in general and this novel in particular.

I'll start with a quick re-cap of the events that led to this uniquely-formatted review. Truly, Madly, Guilty was the first novel that I've read by Liane Moriarty. I hadn't read her work before because although I'm not a picky reader in general, I am extremely picky about contemporary fiction novels (although, there have been a few I've read this year and absolutely loved) and I always thought of Moriarty's books as belonging to the "chick lit" category.

I knew, however, that Moriarty has a huge following of readers who adore her work, so when the opportunity came to read this I went into it with an open mind.

I posted a quick update when I was 230 pages into the book, to ask readers they too had felt that the events between the introductory hint that something had gone very wrong and big reveal were a bit drawn out.

And wow, you all had a lot to say about this.

Mostly, you said that this was not your favorite of her books. Actually, I think about 99% of you had that response. Collectively, however, you do highly recommend What Alice Forgot and Big Little Lies, so when I do have space on my TBR again, I'll try picking up one of those for another shot at joining the Liane Moriarty fan club.

CHARACTERS

Vid and Oliver were really the only characters that I genuinely liked while reading. Having a character that I connect with or admire is pretty important to me when reading contemporary fiction and Vid's character especially made me smile as I read. Because so much of this genre is dysfunctional, I have a really hard time with books that are all about everyone's issues, and Vid's character provided some comic relief to combat that, while Oliver was just genuinely a nice person.

Tiffany's character didn't feel substantial at all. Sure, she may have had one of the more well-developed backstories, but her present day personality almost didn't exist. I had a similar reaction to Sam -- sure, he is in the middle of a crisis, but all we saw of that was a few incidences of him acting out. In the end, I was apathetic towards him.

Clementine was the least likable character to me. She came off as selfish -- not because she didn't want to donate her eggs, but because she constantly weighed everything in terms of how much kindness was owed. It didn't seem like she was capable of being kind for kindness' sake.

Erika was the character that I found most dynamic. Though she had a whole host of issues, I actually had empathy for her because Moriarty provided us with insight into her childhood and therefore the reasons why she has such a unique personality. Her mother was a fascinating character as well. Had this been a story instead focused on Erika, Oliver, and her mother (with the others as minor characters), I probably would have found it a lot more compelling.

PLOT

For the first three hundred pages, I wondered what we were working towards. This portion was too heavy on mentioning the "bad thing" but didn't actually do enough character building, leaving hints, etc. I just felt really annoyed with the characters (Why is everyone moping around? I wondered) and was hoping that the big reveal would be proportionate to the waiting period. (Hint, when we finally got to page 300 and found out that Ruby was, in fact, okay -- that's where I decided that it in fact was not proportionate.)

I don't think that the reaction of the characters was appropriate for one reason, and I do want to let readers know that I am not yet a parent -- so while I am quite frequently responsible for other people's children, I don't have my own. Being a parent makes feelings about these types of situations more complicated and therefore more likely to be a point that people have big feelings about in discussions. I didn't think the big event was equal to the reaction because the attention was focused on blaming the social relationship. To me, the message came across that parents shouldn't ever be social at the risk that their children will get hurt. Parents are human beings. Parents deserve to have social time, and hobbies, and their own personalities that aren't entirely wrapped up in their children. For the parents to feel disgusted with themselves for having fun was not something that I felt was appropriate.

It was in the last one hundred pages or so that this story felt somewhat redeemed for me. Most of that had to do with how the consequences played out for Erika and Oliver. I was glad to see Erika letting go of responsibility for her mother -- I thought that was the first thing she needed to let go in order to move on to a life in which she didn't constantly fear turning into her mother. And I was glad to see that Oliver and Erika compromised on the baby situation. I would have been sad for Oliver had the issue been tabled altogether. Of course, nothing really needed fixing when it came to Vid and Tiffany, but with Sam and Clementine, I just wasn't that glad for them. I wasn't invested enough (or truthfully, didn't have enough empathy) to hope that they managed to work out their marriage problems post-ending.

SETTING

Sometimes I love when the setting becomes a character in itself. With the regular jumps between the day of the party and two months later, I didn't actually realize that the constant barrage of rain was symbolic for the terrible funk that all the characters were in until after I finished. I understand that the final day, the first sunny day in two months, was perhaps meant to be aligned with a feeling of closure and a brighter future for all. I get the aim there, but I don't love it. I'm not sure it added any feeling for me, especially because I didn't even notice it at the time.

WHERE TO GO FROM HERE?

 I want to say that I didn't dislike this book. Overall, I think this is a good book to read as a palate cleanser. I read it pretty quickly (in just about two days), and after a much more heavy, emotional read. So I appreciated having something lighter (even if the subject matter wasn't actually light at all) in between more serious books. I'd give it somewhere between 2-3 stars (out of five), which means that I had the kind of reading experience where I enjoyed parts of it but in the end, didn't feel it was just the right book for me. I do, however, think that Big Little Lies looks like one that would be of more interest to me, and I found The Husband's Secret in a stack of books that I already own, so you can expect one of those to make it onto my reading list soon!

Review: Britt-Marie Was Here

{on Goodreads}

Fredrik Backman is quickly climbing the ranks of favorite authors for me. I adore Backman's characters. They're flawed, genuine, and totally out of touch with society, but their experiences in the world and the way they react to them are what makes these stories so charming to read. If you listened to my featured episode of What Should I Read Next?, then you know that characters are a big element of fiction for me and Britt-Marie Was Here did not disappoint.

Like Ove (Backman's most famous character), Britt-Marie could definitely be described as prickly. Britt-Marie has well established notions on just about every topic -- how people should style their hair, what time is most appropriate to eat dinner, and what brand of window cleaner is the best. Her story begins in the unemployment office, where she's seeking a job for the first time in many years. She's offered a short-term job as the caretaker of a run-down recreation facility in a town that's given up on itself. When she arrives, she discovers that that though the job requires little effort, there's another (more important) role for her to play in the community. This story is full of personality and encourages readers to reflect on their relationships to their own communities and the people who need them most.

Long story short, I loved this book and I hope that you will too.

Bottom-Line Rating: 5/5

Title: Britt-Marie Was Here

Author: Fredrik Backman

Publisher: Atria Books, 2016

Price: $16 on Amazon

ISBN: 1501142534

Format: Hardcover

Source: Public Library

P.S. I just ordered Backman's latest novel for summer reading and I can't wait to dive in.

The One Book You Need to Read in 2017

I was going to attempt to review This Is How It Always Is for you, but I honestly don't think I can do it justice.

I read this for the Modern Mrs. Darcy Book Club February pick, so I have Anne Bogel to thank for (figuratively) putting it into my hands. Her advice was to just pick it up -- don't read the cover, don't read any reviews. No expectations. Just read it.

I am not typically a contemporary novel reader. Nor do I seek out novels about family relationships, or the trials of parenting, or what it means to love someone unconditionally. But I devoured this and it firmly rooted itself in my Best Books I've Ever Read list.

This is one of those you-just-have-to-trust-me recommendations.

***

Read it? Feel like discussing? Email me at topshelftext@gmail.com or chat with me on Instagram @topshelftext.

Review: The Fifth Petal

{on Goodreads}

First, you must know that Brunonia Barry is a local author. She lives in Salem, Massachusetts, a city rife with historical significance, and also the city where I teach. I was first drawn to Barry's novels because of Salem's storied past, along with my love of reading fiction set in places that I know in real life. I first read The Map of True Places in college and loved both Barry's writing style and her penchant for bringing the past to life in a contemporary novel. Last year, I picked up The Lace Reader and was blown away by the surprise ending. The Fifth Petal is the sequel to The Lace Reader and will be released next week on January 24th. If you haven't yet read The Lace Reader but think you might be interested, stop reading here and go grab it off the library shelf! Be warned, spoilers ahead.

The Fifth Petal begins sometime after the ending of The Lace Reader. In it, Rafferty, our charming and flawed investigator, is married to Towner and has been promoted to chief of police. The story opens with a new look into an old cold case -- what's known locally as The Goddess Murders. Back in the late eighties, three beautiful and notoriously promiscuous friends had formed a mysterious clique, naming themselves The Goddesses and using their ancestral link to the convicted witches of Salem as part of their lure for Salem's eligible (and ineligible) men. One night, they are brutally murdered at the site of a Wiccan ceremony. There are only two survivors from the ceremony -- an old woman named Rose and a five year old child, daughter of a goddess, who is whisked away to be raised by nuns after the traumatic incident. Flash forward to modern day, and Rose has become Salem's resident crazy homeless lady, while Callie (the traumatized child), returns to Salem to find that so much of her past is not what she thought it was. Old faces from both The Lace Reader and The Map of True Places come into play as Rafferty and Callie work to find out what really happened on the night of the Goddess Murders and how it's all connected to those original Salem witches.

I have to say that the beginning of this novel was a teensy, tiny bit slow for me. I wasn't really sure what Barry was getting at and went into it thinking that more loose ends from The Lace Reader would be addressed. I'm still waiting on some of those loose ends (Barry has commented that it will happen in book 3!) but as soon both Rafferty and Callie started to discover more details about the night of the murders, the more suspenseful it got and the more I became invested in Callie's character and her backstory. Over time, I tried to make my predictions about the resolution to the mystery, but if there's one thing Barry writes well, it's an all-is-revealed, high-intensity ending. This one absolutely rivaled the ending of The Lace Reader. If you enjoyed the first I'd highly recommend this second installment. You still have almost a week to pre-order your copy before its release -- enough time to have it on your doorstep early next week!

Bottom Line Rating: 5/5

Title: The Fifth Petal

Author: Brunonia Barry

Publisher: Crown, 2017

Price: $20 to pre-order on Amazon

ISBN: 110190563

Format: E-book

Source: Net Galley

Note: Top Shelf Text was provided with a copy of this text by the publisher in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own!

Currently Coveting {December}

Oh my goodness. I'm ashamed to say that it has been months since I posted a Currently Coveting list.

Not that I haven't been coveting -- and buying -- books in that time.

My most recent purchases have been this and this for my December book club reads, and I am so excited for our book club discussion at the end of this month.

Eight Flavors: The Untold Story of American Cuisine by Sarah Lohman

I've recently started cooking almost all the meals in my family (I just headed up my very first Thanksgiving this year) and I've become really interested in how to use spices to flavor healthy, fresh food. Since I started eating mostly clean a few years ago, I have found spices to be my biggest resource in the kitchen. This exploration of the eight flavors that unite American cooking seems like a great way to learn more about the cultural history of the country, in addition to being a resource for great recipes.

The Glass Universe by Dava Sobel

I'm craving a good story about fascinating, intelligent women and this seems to be just the right fit. It just came out yesterday and tells the story of the women who worked as "human computers" for the Harvard Observatory. Those women went on to make significant contributions to astronomy. 

The Long Way Home by Louise Penny

Are you tired of hearing me talk about Louise Penny's Inspector Gamache series? I have been working my way through them since the summer. Shown above is the tenth in the series, which is on my to-read list for this weekend. I have been lucky so far in that my library was fully stocked with every volume in the series except this one, so when I went to snatch it from the shelf I was so disappointed to find that I would have to wait for a hold copy to come in. I'm telling you, this is one of the best series that I have ever (ever) read.

A Man Called Ove by Fredrik Backman

This has been recommended to me several times (most recently by my grandmother), and I've heard that it is lovely as an audiobook. It's in the same category as The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry and The Storied Life of A.J. Fikry. I'm looking forward to picking it up soon.

Penny Dreadful by Laurel Snyder

Sadly, I haven't been reading much middle grade lately. Sometimes (okay, often) being in school all day makes me want to read only adult fiction when I get home. I'm hoping to reignite my love for children's lit this month. Penny Dreadful looks like a great place to start.

Review: The Seven Sisters

{on Goodreads}

I've been in a bit of a book rut lately. I started reading more than one book at a time, and before I knew it I was skipping from book to book because nothing was keeping my interest. I read The Seven Sisters a few weeks ago, and it was the last book to completely captivate me. This was the first book that I've read by Lucinda Riley (I have another one of hers sitting on my shelf) and I'd put her in the same category with some of my other favorite historical fiction writers (such as Kate Morton and Lauren Willig).

The Seven Sisters is the first in a new series based upon the constellation Pleiades, and the frame switches between two narratives. The modern narrative belongs to Maia, one of six adopted sisters who spent her idyllic childhood on a secluded island which her father lovingly named Atlantis. While her sisters are spread across the globe pursuing their different lives, Maia is the sister that never left. Her world starts to fall apart when her father dies unexpectedly. Upon his death, each sister is given a letter and the coordinates of her birthplace. In a moment of spontaneity, Maia decides to pursue her heritage, so she follows the coordinates to Rio. While she's there, the reader is introduced to the second narrative: that of Bel, a teenager who lives in high society in 1920's Rio. She must come to terms with the constraints on her future: a fiancée chosen by her family and expectations for her future as a wife. Before she is married, Bel leaves on a tour of Europe, where she is able to meet the man sculpting the famous Christo statue. There, Bel finds that there is more to life that she sees in Rio.

I don't want to give too much away, because I loved how Riley revealed details throughout the book and I think that having those details revealed one at a time was really important to my love for the story. Throughout the book, the reader is able to follow both Maia and Bel as they navigate new cities and fight for what they want in life. I loved both narratives and felt compelled to find out the connection between the two women. There are a lot of questions left unanswered at the end of the book, so I'm eager to read the next in the series and am keeping my eye out for it at the library. If you're a fan of the dual-narrative, I'd highly recommend this series!

Bottom Line Rating: 5/5

Title: The Seven Sisters

Author: Lucinda Riley

Publisher: Atria, 2015

Price: $20 on Amazon

ISBN: 1476759901

Format: Hardcover, 704 pgs.

Source: Public Library

Review: Mrs. Sinclair's Suitcase

{on Goodreads}

Clearly I have a thing for characters who are fellow bibliophiles. In the case of Mrs. Sinclair's Suitcase, that character is Roberta, and maybe it's a shared love of books, or maybe it was just Louise Walter's outstanding writing, but I found her to be entirely endearing. I think Roberta can best be described as "bookish." She works in a bookshop, lives a quiet life, and is generally unassuming. She loves collecting the letters and notes that she finds in used books, and she uses them to daydream about the lives of the people who leave their books behind. 

One day, her father gifts her an antique suitcase that once belonged to her grandmother. In it, she finds a letter from her late grandfather. There's something strange about it though, as the letter was dated after her grandfather had died in the war. Roberta is baffled, and the mystery leads us into the second narrative in this story, that of Dorothea, Roberta's grandmother. Dorothea is unhappily married to a brutish man and forced to support herself during the war, which leads her to a fateful meeting with a charming soldier named Jan. Told through the past/present narrative frame (a style that I'm partial to), this book drew me in and kept me guessing as to the characters' secrets and keeping my fingers crossed for their happy endings. I loved the characters, I loved how easily the narrative flowed between Dorothea and Roberta, and I especially loved that the story was peppered with some of the notes and letters that Roberta stumbled across during her time in the bookshop. At times the story was heartbroken, but after finishing I felt a sense of peace. Recommended for fans of Kate Morton and Katherine Reay, and certainly a great pick for a women's book club!

Bottom-Line Rating: 5/5

Title: Mrs. Sinclair's Suitcase

Author: Louise Walter

Publisher: Hodder & Stoughton, 2014

Price: $13 from B&N

ISBN:1444777424 

Format: Hardcover

Source: Public Library

Review: The Brontë Plot

{On Goodreads}

If you're a frequent reader of Top Shelf Text you know that I'm partial to books about books. I had seen press for The Brontë Plot and even though I haven't read more than one of the infamous Brontë works, I knew instantly that it was a book that I'd want to read. 

I loved the premise: Lucy is a dealer in rare books, working for a prolific interior designer. She loves his mentorship and the life that she's built, but she's been dishonest in building his book business, a trait she thinks comes from her con-man (and perpetually absent) father. In the beginning of the story, Lucy meets James, a handsome and wealthy customer who buys one of her rare books. Their flirtation grows into a serious relationship, until the day that James confronts Lucy with her fraudulent deeds. Their relationship has fallen apart when James's grandmother, Helen, invites Lucy on an unusual sort of "business" trip. She whisks Lucy off to London as her buyer and invites Lucy to witness her last great adventure, on which she hopes to make amends for her own guilty secrets. As the two women venture through London, Lucy works to make amends for her own mistakes. 

The story is at times, frustrating -- particularly because Lucy seems to slip so easily into that corrupt frame of mind. For me, it felt like the wall that she put up for the other characters actually prevented me (the reader) from accessing her full character. It's for that reason alone that I can only give the book four stars. That being said, I think Reay created a real, flawed, human character here and I appreciated that the relationships were built slowly enough to be realistic. I also loved Helen's character -- the wise old woman who's unafraid to face the end of her time -- and I felt genuinely heartened after finishing the book. Reay's written two others, both based on Austen's works, and I look forward to reading those in 2016. I'd recommend this one for bookclubs especially, because I think it's a great book for discussions about living a full life and opening up yourself to others. 

Bottom-Line Rating: 4/5

Title: The Brontë Plot

Author: Katherine Reay

Publisher: Thomas Nelson, 2015

Price: $12 on Amazon

ISBN: 1401689752

Format: Paperback

Source: Public Library

Review: The 19th Wife

{On Goodreads}

I'm acutely aware that I buy way more books each year than I can possibly read in the same time period. I bought this book at a library sale approximately two summers ago, (having recognized it among the piles as being on my ever-growing to-read list on Goodreads), but it was left to sit on my shelf until just last week, when I finally decided that the time had come to read it. It was one of those moments where I fell into the book instantly, and then kicked myself for not having read it sooner. David Ebershoff's The 19th Wife first peaked my interest after I read (and loved) this non fiction book, which shared the subject of modern Mormon Fundamentalists and their history in relation to the mainstream Mormon church. In this novel, which is part historical fiction, part contemporary fiction, Ebershoff tells the parallel stories of Ann Eliza Young and a young man named Jordan Scott. 

Jordan grew up in a fundamentalist sect located in the desert of Utah but was ex-communicated as a teenager for the very serious crime of holding a girl's hand. Now, Jordan lives in California, working odd jobs and trying to piece his life together after having experienced a fractured youth in a polygamous household and the dual trauma of losing both his faith and his family. Jordan puts aside thoughts of the place that he's come from, until his mother is accused of murdering his father and Jordan is forced to return to his former home to defend his mother and investigate the murder himself. As he works to uncover the secrets of the elusive community, we learn about the history of the Mormon faith, the tumultuous road to polygamy, and its ultimate renouncement by church leader, all conveyed through the story of Ann Eliza Young. The 19th wife of Brigham Young, she was notable in her day for her very public divorce from her husband and her national campaign to end polygamy in the United States. Her story is told through the manuscript of her memoirs, as well as through letters written by her family members and newspaper clippings from the scandal of her divorce and her subsequent campaigns. 

Because I had a relatively good store of background knowledge about the historical events in this book, I was able to dive into the story itself rather effortlessly. Jordan's character and his fractured identity reminded me of Theo Decker from Donna Tartt's The Goldfinch. The imagery of a desolate plain with manipulative and neglectful adults brought about a lot of connections between the two books. This is one of those stories in which the characters are very....real. There's no sugar coating, there's a lot of tragedy, and it all comes together in an imperfect ending that's reflective of how complicated these situations can be. I enjoyed the mystery aspect (and was genuinely surprised by the reveal), but mostly I loved witnessing how the characters carefully reached out to each other, negotiating new relationships and mending the scars that were wrought by the corruption of their faith. This is one book that I'd recommend for those who enjoy that mix of contemporary and historical perspectives that come with novels of dual storylines. It's a story that tugs at heartstrings and encourages gratitude in equal measure.

Bottom-Line Rating: 4/5

Title: The 19th Wife

Author: David Ebershoff

Publisher: Random House, 2008

Price: Less than $6 from Better World Books!

ISBN: 1400063973

Format: Paperback

Source: Personal Library

Currently Coveting {August}

Can you believe that the summer is almost over?

At the moment, I'm knee deep in several courses that will continue throughout the month. Let's just say, my graduate program is keeping me very busy. Reading has been such a good escape from the frenzy of assignments, and I have a huge stack of books (for both children and adults) to get through in the next few months-- all of which I'm hoping will earn 5-star ratings.

In the meantime, I've come up with a few books that I'm coveting. I'm on a book-buying ban for the month of August, so I may have to join the holds list at the library for a few of these.

Rather than giving you a single sentence about each of my picks, I've decided to include the Goodreads' descriptions for each book so that you can get a better idea of what they're all about, so without further ado, here are the books I'm coveting this month:

The Little Paris Bookshop by Nina George // I love books about books (and books about people who also love books), and this one looks like it will not disappoint!

 From Goodreads: “There are books that are suitable for a million people, others for only a hundred. There are even remedies—I mean books—that were written for one person only…A book is both medic and medicine at once. It makes a diagnosis as well as offering therapy. Putting the right novels to the appropriate ailments: that’s how I sell books.”
Monsieur Perdu calls himself a literary apothecary. From his floating bookstore in a barge on the Seine, he prescribes novels for the hardships of life. Using his intuitive feel for the exact book a reader needs, Perdu mends broken hearts and souls. The only person he can't seem to heal through literature is himself; he's still haunted by heartbreak after his great love disappeared. She left him with only a letter, which he has never opened.
After Perdu is finally tempted to read the letter, he hauls anchor and departs on a mission to the south of France, hoping to make peace with his loss and discover the end of the story. Joined by a bestselling but blocked author and a lovelorn Italian chef, Perdu travels along the country’s rivers, dispensing his wisdom and his books, showing that the literary world can take the human soul on a journey to heal itself.
Internationally bestselling and filled with warmth and adventure, The Little Paris Bookshop is a love letter to books, meant for anyone who believes in the power of stories to shape people's lives.

The Rocks: A Novel by Peter Nichols // I'm not usually a contemporary reader, but this one drew me in with its comparisons to Romeo & Juliet, and with its enviable Mediterranean setting.

From Goodreads: Set against dramatic Mediterranean Sea views and lush olive groves, The Rocks opens with a confrontation and a secret: What was the mysterious, catastrophic event that drove two honeymooners apart so suddenly and absolutely in 1948 that they never spoke again despite living on the same island for sixty more years? And how did their history shape the Romeo and Juliet–like romance of their (unrelated) children decades later? 

Centered around a popular seaside resort club and its community, The Rocks is a double love story that begins with a mystery, then moves backward in time, era by era, to unravel what really happened decades earlier.
Peter Nichols writes with a pervading, soulful wisdom and self-knowing humor, and captures perfectly this world of glamorous, complicated, misbehaving types with all their sophisticated flaws and genuine longing. The result is a bittersweet, intelligent, and romantic novel about how powerful the perceived truth can be—as a bond, and as a barrier—even if it’s not really the whole story; and how one misunderstanding can echo irreparably through decades.

The Library at Mount Char by Scott Hawkins // Supernatural beings + cults + mystery, sounds gripping, right? 

From Goodreads: Carolyn's not so different from the other human beings around her. She's sure of it. She likes guacamole and cigarettes and steak. She knows how to use a phone. She even remembers what clothes are for. 

After all, she was a normal American herself, once. 
That was a long time ago, of course—before the time she calls “adoption day,” when she and a dozen other children found themselves being raised by a man they learned to call Father.
Father could do strange things. He could call light from darkness. Sometimes he raised the dead. And when he was disobeyed, the consequences were terrible.  
In the years since Father took her in, Carolyn hasn't gotten out much. Instead, she and her adopted siblings have been raised according to Father's ancient Pelapi customs. They've studied the books in his library and learned some of the secrets behind his equally ancient power. 
Sometimes, they've wondered if their cruel tutor might secretly be God.  
Now, Father is missing. And if God truly is dead, the only thing that matters is who will inherit his library—and with it, power over all of creation.  
As Carolyn gathers the tools she needs for the battle to come, fierce competitors for this prize align against her.  
But Carolyn can win. She's sure of it. What she doesn't realize is that her victory may come at an unacceptable price—because in becoming a God, she's forgotten a great deal about being human.

The Watchmaker of Filigree Street by Natasha Pulley // That cover. Can you guess how this one landed on my list?

From Goodreads: 1883. Thaniel Steepleton returns home to his tiny London apartment to find a gold pocket watch on his pillow. Six months later, the mysterious timepiece saves his life, drawing him away from a blast that destroys Scotland Yard. At last, he goes in search of its maker, Keita Mori, a kind, lonely immigrant from Japan. Although Mori seems harmless, a chain of unexplainable events soon suggests he must be hiding something. When Grace Carrow, an Oxford physicist, unwittingly interferes, Thaniel is torn between opposing loyalties.

The Watchmaker of Filigree Street is a sweeping, atmospheric narrative that takes the reader on an unexpected journey through Victorian London, Japan as its civil war crumbles long-standing traditions, and beyond. Blending historical events with dazzling flights of fancy, it opens doors to a strange and magical past.

The Abominable by Dan Simmons // I read Dan Simmons' The Terror and I designated it as a book that pulled me out of my comfort zone in 2013. The sheer size of that book had me reading it for quite a few weeks, but I loved his style. His writing really is spine-chilling.

From Goodreads: A thrilling tale of high-altitude death and survival set on the snowy summits of Mount Everest, from the bestselling author of The Terror.

It's 1924 and the race to summit the world's highest mountain has been brought to a terrified pause by the shocking disappearance of George Mallory and Sandy Irvine high on the shoulder of Mt. Everest. By the following year, three climbers -- a British poet and veteran of the Great War, a young French Chamonix guide, and an idealistic young American -- find a way to take their shot at the top. They arrange funding from the grieving Lady Bromley, whose son also disappeared on Mt. Everest in 1924. Young Bromley must be dead, but his mother refuses to believe it and pays the trio to bring him home. 
Deep in Tibet and high on Everest, the three climbers -- joined by the missing boy's female cousin -- find themselves being pursued through the night by someone . . . or something. This nightmare becomes a matter of life and death at 28,000 feet - but what is pursuing them? And what is the truth behind the 1924 disappearances on Everest? As they fight their way to the top of the world, the friends uncover a secret far more abominable than any mythical creature could ever be. A pulse-pounding story of adventure and suspense, The Abominable is Dan Simmons at his spine-chilling best.

What are you looking forward to reading this month?

Happy Reading!

-Madeleine-

P.S. Today's the day! If you were looking forward to snagging a copy of the first in the Galaxy Pirates trilogy (for middle grade readers) or the first two books in the Piper Green and the Fairy Tree series, you're in luck because all three books are being released today! You can find links to purchase them in my reviews.

My Summer Reading List {Part I}

I recently moved into a new apartment and had to face that daunting task of choosing which books to bring with me. This is one of the hardest parts about moving, if you ask me, because it forces me to predict my reading preferences for the foreseeable future. That's not to say that the books on my shelf are my only options for the next few months-- I lived a two-minute walk from the library and also rely on my Kindle when I'm in a reading rut-- but still I like being able to just grab one from my shelf as I get into bed each night. As I packed up a few boxes of books for my new place, I decided to challenge myself to create a little summer reading list. I've really been trying to spend less on books in general, so I pulled books that I haven't read (or want to re-read) from my own shelf. 

Below you'll find my picks for this summer (although this doesn't include any of the library books that I will inevitably add to the list over time).

The Swan Thieves by Elizabeth Kostova // I just finished this one a few nights ago, so keep an eye out for a review soon! This one is for fans of dual narration, historical fiction, and art fiction. 

The Paris Wife by Paula McLain // I picked this one up so long ago but still haven't read it because I felt like it was going to be perfect for a summer read.

The Master Magician by Charlie N. Holberg // You saw this one in my June Currently Coveting. I actually put off reading it because I'm so sad that it's going to be the last in the series. I just love these characters and the world that Holmberg has built. I'm about half-way through it now and already strongly recommend it to fans of the first two in the series.

The Twelve Tribes of Hattie by Ayana Mathis // You're going to see a trend here: a lot of books that were really, really popular a few years ago, and that's because I never got around to reading them. 

The Invention of Wings by Sue Monk Kidd // Another Oprah pick, because let's be honest, she has great taste in books.

Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone by J. K. Rowling // Is a summer reading list complete without at least one Harry Potter? Definitely not. I absolutely love plopping down in my comfy reading chair and diving into this series. I have that hands-down-best-books-ever feeling when I think about how much this series has impacted my life as a reader. You can read a little more about my sentimentality for this series here.

The Age of Miracles by Karen Thompson Walker // This is my newest book and it looks like a good one to bring on a vacation or pick up when you have time to fall completely into a book. Here's the line that made the difference between putting it back on the shelf or tucking it into the crook of my arm and heading to check out: "On a seemingly ordinary Saturday in a California suburb, 11-year-old Julia and her family awake to discover, along with the rest of the world, that the rotation of the earth has suddenly begun to slow. The days and nights grow longer and longer, gravity is affected, the environment is thrown into disarray." What a hook. I can't wait to read it.

That's all for now-- I don't want this post to turn into my longest ever-- so check back next week for Part II!

Happy Reading!

-Madeleine-

If You Liked That, Read This!

Happy Memorial Day to you all, and a heartfelt thank you to all those involved in our country's military. If you're feeling inspired to read more about military heroes, you can find last year's Memorial Day post here. I'm taking the day to soak up the start of the summer season and my last day at home before moving into my new apartment. Big things are happening this week, people! First, though, I have a recommendation for you-- consider it the perfect way to kick off your summer reading list!

If you liked:

Read this:

If you are a fan of Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice, pick up The Awakening of Miss Prim the next time you're in need of a good read! Miss Prim is a woman who appreciates the simple things in life, and whose outspokenness is reminiscent of the feisty and fearless Elizabeth Bennet. Though she is considered an expert in several fields (and has a collection of PhDs to prove it), Miss Prim takes a job as a personal librarian in a an enchanting village in France. She soon comes to realize that this village is unlike any other; it's comprised of people who have sought a life outside the confines of modern society. Here, the fineries of classical education and old-fashioned neighborliness are appreciated and cultivated. The whole story seems like a nod to Austen (and maybe a little to Jane Eyre as well), especially Miss Prim's employer-- a man almost as frustrating as Mr. Darcy himself-- and I absolutely loved reading it. As someone who frequently daydreams about life in a simpler time, I fell into the world of this book and did not want to reemerge when it was over. 

Happy Reading!

-Madeleine-

Recap: Books I've Read Lately

Hello, again!

It's been a long two weeks away from the blog, packed with big moments and preparation for the changes ahead. In that time, I've been reading lots of great books but haven't had even a spare moment to sit down and write about them. Let's catch up, shall we?

On May 8th, I graduated Summa Cum Laude from the University of Massachusetts, Amherst (insert tiny squeal of excitement here)! It was a million degrees and by the end of the third ceremony, I was a blistered, tired, happy mess. I'm so grateful that I was able to celebrate the occasion with my family, but even more grateful that they have been cheering me on continually over the past four years. (I'll take this opportunity to say: thanks, Mom and Dad!)

Post-celebrations, my boyfriend and I hopped on a flight to California for a weeklong getaway with my extended family. We had so much fun exploring, eating way too many of my grandmother's cookies, and soaking up the California sun. I even came back with a few freckles! (And I tried my hardest to come back with my grandmother's dog but she kept too close an eye on him.)

Next week I embark on the next chapter, which entails moving into a new apartment (yay!) and beginning graduate school. I think part of the reason why graduation hasn't sunk in yet much is because graduate school is coming up so fast; I already have homework to get done!

As all of these changes are happening in rapid succession, you might find that posts aren't quite as regular here on Top Shelf Text. I am doing my best to keep things on schedule, I promise, but bear with me as I work out my new routines.

The Storied Life of A.J. Fikry by Gabrielle Zevin // A definite winner, and a quick read too! This is the story of A.J. Fikry, a rather fickle bookseller whose life has been marred by the tragic loss of his wife. He's grumpy, very particular when it comes to books, and in need of saving. On the night that A.J. becomes a victim of burglary, he also becomes the recipient of a rather unusual package. In that moment, his life changes in infinite ways. I read this in about a day and loved every minute. If you read and liked either of these books, I'd recommend this one for you.

The Darwin Conspiracy by John Darnton // Told through the dual perspective of Darwin himself (in the 1800's) and an ambitious researcher searching for the truth two centuries later, this book has mystery, conspiracy, and all the best parts of academia. Darwin's daughter takes center stage when it's revealed in her personal papers that Darwin may not have been the upstanding hero (or genius) that we revere today. Not quite as fast-moving, but definitely a good one for a rainy day. I'd recommend for fans of Charlie Lovett.

The Female Brain by Louann Brizendine, M.D.  // Never have I flown through a nonfiction book so quickly. Brizendine explores the chemical changes that occur in the brain from conception all the way to old age, detailing what a woman's brain looks and acts like in each different hormonal stage of life. It explains different behaviors and perceptions between males and females, as well as lends insight into why a woman's perception of reality changes drastically with each stage of life. I'd recommend this for both women and men (yes, really!)-- as a resource for understanding the differences between the sexes. I do have a lot of background knowledge in neuroscience and human development, but I strongly believe that the information is accessible for those without experience in these fields. 

I read one more book in the past few weeks, but you'll have to wait until next week to hear about it, so check back in! I'm also starting to curate my summer reading list, so I'll take any and all recommendations!

Happy Reading!