TBR Spotlight: Books Set in Africa

In the past year, I have really been loving books set in Africa. This was not a setting that I read a lot of fiction about until I read Paula McLain's Circling the Sun. After reading her beautiful descriptions of the African landscape and being intrigued by the colonial Africa setting, I decided I really wanted to pick up more fiction with an African setting. Here's some of the books set in Africa that are highest on my TBR list.
Book titles link to Goodreads!

Homegoing, Yaa Gyasi

I've heard lots of praise for this one. A generational family saga set on multiple contents sounds like something I need in my life. 

Half of A Yellow Sun, Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie

I've heard that this Adichie novel is a bit more intense than her other novels, but I really love her writing and want to read all her works. I have only read one, so really all of her works are on this list. I really love all of the different editions of Adichie's novels, so it will take some searching before I decide which edition of this one I want to pick up. 

Americanah, Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie

Another novel with a setting on multiple contents, this has been labeled as Adichie's best work so far. 

Out of Africa, Isak Dinesen 

I've been wanting to read this one after reading so much about Beryl Markham last year. I have never seen the movie (which I hear is quite different) so I can see a back-to-back marathon in my future. 

Akata Witch, Nnedi Okorafor

I had to stop myself from buying this one in the book store the other day, as it sounds so cool. A magic-school series set in Africa. Yes Please! 

Stay with Me, Ayobami Adebayo

I've heard lots of great things about this one, and it sounds like it has a similar feel to Purple Hibiscus in that it's a character driven family drama. 

Leave me recommendations for your favorite fiction set in Africa so I can expand this list! 

Top Ten Tuesday: Books at the Top of My Wishlist

Books are always at the top of my wishlist so the hardest part about this week's topic was narrowing it down to just ten! Let me know which ones I should buy right this very second! You can add me on Goodreads to see the rest of the books on my wishlist. 

Hosted by: The Broke and the Bookish 

Book Titles Link to Goodreads! 

1. So Sad Today, Melissa Broder

I don't have a lot of experience with modern essays, but this collection has caught my eye! I love the Twitter account, so I would love to experience Broder's writing in full. 

2. Out of Africa, Isak Dinesen 

I have been wanting to pick this one up ever since reading McLain's newest novel Circling the Sun which features the author (Karen Blixen) and Beryl Markham (who has her own character in this novel and is the main character in McLain's novel). 

3. Jonathon Strange and Mr. Norrell, Susana Clarke
I have heard great things about this one, and almost picked it up the other day, but it's so huge I know I won't be getting to it anytime soon! I really want to read it and watch the mini-series soon though!

4. Romantic Outlaws: The Extraordinary Lives of Mary Wollstonecraft and her Daughter Mary Shelley, Charlotte Gordon 
Another chunker of a novel I've had in my hands many times in the bookstore; this one is right up my alley. I spent a lot of time with Shelley and her masterpiece Frankenstein last semester and I find her and her mother fascinating women much before their time. I will pick this one up soon!

5. Wonder Woman the New 52 Vol 1-4
I've read vol. 1-3 and really enjoyed them and picked up vol. 5 and 6 from Bookoutlet so I would like to collect the series so I can reread and continue to read them. Why must graphic novels be so expensive??

6. Cat Woman the New 52 Vol 1-2
Same story here. I have vol 3 from Bookoutlet but need 1 and 2 since I haven't started this series yet.

 

7. Their Fractured Light, Amie Kaufman and Megan Spooner
I really liked These Broken Stars and bought the second book but haven't read it yet. I need to get the third one in hardcover to match my other two because they are just too pretty. 

8. Air Awakens, Elise Kova 
This series looks like a lot of fun. I love a kick-ass female lead and I think this series will deliver. 

9. And I Darken, Kirsten White
I've heard lots of good things about this one, and I love the idea of gender-bet historical retellings. Plus see love for kick-ass female leads mentioned above.

10. Recollections of My Life as a Woman: The New York Years, Diane di Prima 
I read di Prima's fake memoir Memoirs of a Beatnik (the content was influenced by male editors as di Prima needed the money) and was so interested to hear the real story of this female Beat poet that I immediately put her real memoir on my wishlist. The Beat scene was dominated by men and masculinity so I would love to hear how di Prima forged herself a path in the scene.

Let me know which of these I should buy first! What's on your wishlist? Let me know so I can add it to my ever-growing wishlist!

My Film Wishlist

I love old movies. Every year, about twice a year Barnes and Noble puts all of their classics films on DVD 50% off, and I love to stock up on them by picking out Christmas and birthday presents from my parents. I accidentally missed the end of the year sale that I usually hit (and was devastated when I realized it) so I thought I would put together a list of some of the movies on my wishlist, my actual wishlist is much longer than this of course, but I would love to hear your thoughts on any of these you have seen, or any of your favorite movies.

I'll link you to the movies' IMDB pages because I'm fuzzy on the summaries and I don't really want to know too much about them as most of them are thrillers/mysteries.


Strangers on a Train

Directed by Alfred Hitchcock 

Released in 1951

Staring: Farley Granger, Robert Walker, and Ruth Roman

I have been loving watching Hitchcock's films and this one really caught my eye. I really love his subtle way of building tension and keeping you on the edge of your seat. 

The Maltese Falcon

Directed by John Huston

Released in 1941

Starring: Humphrey Bogart, Mary Astor

I have really been wanting to watch more black and white crime movies and this one is a classic. I loved Humphrey Bogart in The Big Sleep so I really need to see this one.
Double Indemnity 

Directed by Billy Wilder

Released in 1944

Starring: Fred MacMurray, Barbara Stanwyck

Another crime classic I really need to see.  

The Way We Were

Directed by Sydney Pollack

Released in 1973

Starring: Robert Redford, Barbra Streisand 

This movie gets mentioned in Gilmore Girls quite often and I really want to see it! I love Robert Redford, so this one should be really enjoyable. 

Graphic Novel Wishlist

Christmas break is coming up soon, and I plan on requesting a butt-load of graphic novels from my library. Here's a few I'm hoping to pick up.

A League of Extraordinary Gentlemen vol. 1

Summary from Goodreads:

London, 1898. The Victorian Era draws to a close and the twentieth century approaches. It is a time of great change and an age of stagnation, a period of chaste order and ignoble chaos. It is an era in need of champions.

In this amazingly imaginative tale, literary figures from throughout time and various bodies of work are brought together to face any and all threats to Britain. Allan Quatermain, Mina Murray, Captain Nemo, Dr. Henry Jekyll and Edward Hyde and Hawley Griffin ( the Invisible Man) form a remarkable legion of intellectual aptitude and physical prowess:The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen.




Isadora Duncan: A Graphic Novel Biography 

Summary from Goodreads:

Myth and controversy still swirl around the dramatic figure of Isadora Duncan. The pioneering modern dancer emerged from provincial nineteenth-century America to captivate the cultural capitals of Europe, reinvent dance as a fine art, and leave a trail of scandals in her wake. From her unconventional California girlhood to her tragic death on the French Riviera fifty years later, Duncan's journey was an uncompromising quest for truth, beauty, and freedom.

Here Duncan's art and ideas come vividly to life. Each page is a unique dance of words and images, reflecting Duncan's courage, passion, and idealism in a way sure to inspire another generation of admirers.


Ms. Marvel vol 4: Last Days

Summary from Goodreads:

When the world is about to end, do you still keep fighting? From the moment, Kamala put on her costume, she's been challenged, but nothing has prepared her for this: the Last Days of the Marvel Universe. Fists up, let's do this, Jersey City. Plus a VERY special guest appearance fans have been clamoring for!

This is coming out on December 1st and I'm super excited to get my hands on it! I love this series. 

Top Ten Tuesday: Ten Team-Ups I Dream About

This week's prompt was a little difficult. I hadn't spend too much time thinking about author team-ups before this prompt, but now that I made this list, I'm really thinking these books would be great, so get on it authors! 

Hosted by: The Broke and the Bookish

1. Elizabeth Wein and Cat Winters
I would love to see these two work together on a historical fiction novel! Wein's emotional storylines with Winters paranormal elements would be really interesting.

2. Oscar Wilde and Jane Austen
Both are so sassy and witty, I don't know if the world could handle a team up by these two!

3.  Jandy Nelson and Sarah Dessen 
Nelson and Dessen are both Queens of Contemporary in my book, and the two of them together would make for so much family drama and feels.

4. John Corey Whaley and David Levithan
I love the way these two write male teenagers, and I think the two of them together would be a beautiful, and perhaps terrifying thing. Reading from the male teenage prescriptive is always a little jarring for me, but when it's done right, it's a great experience,

5. Maureen Johnson and Libba Bray 
Johnson's humor with Bray's talent for the weird and supernatural would be a lot of fun!

6.  Dorthy Parker and Edna St. Vincent Millay 
Both of these women are amazing poets, sassy as all get out, and feminists. Anything they wrote together would be Earth shattering.

7. Gris Grimly and Charles Dickens 
I would love to see Grimly illustrate Dickens' novels! I think they would be a great match.

8. Rick Riordan and J.K. Rowling 
!!!!!!!!

9. Marie Rutkoski and Sarah J. Maas 
Both these ladies write kick-ass female characters and great fantasy world. I would love to see Rutkoski's political fantasy world collide with Maas' characters.

10. Marcus Sedgwick and Neil Gaiman 
Match made in heaven.

Who's your dream author team-up?

Wishlist Wednesday!

I haven't been buying books lately because I'm back at school and away from my favorite local bookstore, and I've been too busy to do much online browsing, so my wishlist is growing at a rapid rate. Here's a sampling of the books I'm really itching to purchase.

Book Titles Link to Goodreads

The Uninvited by Cat Winters

I loved The Cure for Dreaming so I'm really eager to pick up Winters latest work. This is her first adult novel, and of course it's a historical fiction paranormal read. Winters is a master at this genre, and I love the way she weaved old photography into her last novel (well her last two novels, but I still need to get my hands on her debut novel, which is also on my wishlist.) This one is about the Spanish flu in 1918, the perfect setting for creepyness!

Viper Wine by Hermonie Eyre 

This book sounds so weird and interesting! It's another historical fiction novel, but I think it involves time travel and some other magical elements. I love the cover of this book, and the premise sounds so interesting. I haven't read too many reviews for it, though I have seen it around for a while.

Bitter Greens by Kate Forsyth

This is a retelling of Rapunzel, which fairy tale retellings aren't usually my cup of tea, but this one has really caught my eye. I have seen a couple of good reviews for it, and it seems like the perfect book to curl up with while drinking a cup of tea this fall. 

Lair of Dream by Libba Bray 

This sequel has been on my wishlist for a very long time. I read the first book in this series The Diviners when it first came out two years ago and enjoyed it. I was eager to carry on with the series but the release date for this one kept getting pushed back and it finally came out last month. Now I really need a reread of the first book, which is no easy task because it is about 800 pages long, and this sequel is about 700 pages. I want to pick this one up, but the need for a reread of the first one is keeping me from ordering this one right away. 

Have you read any of these? Let me know your thoughts! And tell me what's on your wishlist. 

What's in my Amazon Cart?

Here's what is currently sitting in my Amazon cart, waiting to be purchased. What did you guys think of these reads? Should I buy them, get them from the library, or skip them altogether?

This Shattered World by Amie Kaufman and Meagan Spooner

Hamlet by William Shakespeare

The Game of Love and Death by Martha Brokenbrough 

Waiting on Wednesday (7)

Illusionarium by Heather Dixon 
Release Date: May 19, 2015 

Summary from Goodreads:

From the author of Entwined, a brilliantly conceived adventure through an alternate London. This sweeping, cinematic tale of an apprentice scientist desperate to save his family—and his world—is The Night Circus meets Pixar.

Through richly developed parallel worlds, vivid action, a healthy dose of humor, and gorgeous writing, Heather Dixon spins a story that is breathtaking and wholly original.


Why I'm Excited: This one sounds like a really fun read. Alternate London, parallel worlds, action, and humor? I'm in. I'm excited to get a little more information on this one soon.

Hosted by: Breaking the Spine  

Top Ten Tuesday: Top Ten Books on My Wishlist

I've got a lot of books on my wishlist. Like more than I could ever afford, or find room to store, in one lifetime. So here's the ten I want to buy the most, and if you could let me know which ones I should buy RIGHT NOW that would be great. I need to prioritize my massive book wish list!
Hosted by: The Broke and the Bookish

 

1. I'll Give you the Sun, Jandy Nelson-- This will be the next book I buy! I've wanted it for so long. I've heard nothing but amazing things about it!

2. Station Eleven, Emily St. John Mendel- I really want to read this one too, I'm thinking of putting it on my birthday list. Thoughts?

3. In the Shadow of Blackbirds, Cat Winters- I just read and loved The Cure For Dreaming, so I definitely want to pick up Cat Winter's other novel.

 

4. All the Light We Cannot See, Anthony Doerr- This is such a gorgeous book! I've been in the mood for historical fiction lately and this one has been getting all kinds of praise. Thoughts?

5. Dangerous Girls, Abigail Haas- Not my usual type of novel, but I've heard some great things about it, and it looks like a fun and exciting read.

6. Stray, Elissa Sussman- This looks like a great twist on the fairy tale genre. It's about fairy god mothers. Plus, that cover is beyond gorgeous.

 

7. The Edible Woman, Margaret Atwood- I need to read more Atwood after The Handmaid's Tale, and I think I will love this one.

8. Orlando, Virginia Woolf - This one has been on my wishlist forever, I just need to bite the bullet and pick up a nice copy.

9. A Mad, Wicked Folly, Sharon Waller Biggs- This is a recent addition to the wish list. It's another historical fiction novel with some feminist themes. Yay!

10. Noughts and Crosses, Malorie Blackman- I love forbidden and tragic love stories, and I've heard this one is great.

Which of these should I make top priority? Which ones did you love?

Top Ten Tuesday: Books Santa Should Bring Me (Because I've Been Good)

The books on this list are books that I have been lusting over for quite a while, but can't quite bring myself to buy yet, or haven't found the perfect edition yet. 

Hosted by: The Broke and the Bookish

1. Station Eleven, Emily St. John Mandel

2. Well Read Women, Samantha Hahn

3. Texts from Jane Eyre, Mallory Ortberg

4. Gentlemen Prefer Blondes, Anita Loos

5. I'll Give You the Sun, Jandy Nelson

6. All the Light We Cannot See, Anthony Doerr

7. We Have Always Lived in the Castle, Shirley Jackson 

8. The Big Sleep and Other Novels, Raymond Chandler

9. Burial Rites, Hannah Kent

10. 101 Dalmatians, Dodie Smith

Bonus-- Any of the Penguin Deluxe Editions, Drop Caps Series, or the Cloth bound Classics!!