Tuesday, February 06, 2007

Reading

Beautiful card made by my friend Liz!!!!!
Currently reading: The Hero's Walk by Anita Rau Badami.

Well, actually I just started the first few pages last night, but I think this is going to be a very good book! It comes highly recommended by my friend Anjali! Actually the book itself comes from Anjali who sent it to me all the way from Canada!! This is the Canadian edition too! Cool! Anjali writes the most perfect book reviews! They are very detailed and really give you a feel for the book. Her blog is totally intriguing! Check it out~

Ever since my best friend Noreen gave me Memoirs of a Geisha to read I have loved reading novels about people from different cultures. I find it fascinating to read books set in India or Africa for example. Some of my favorite out of America books are The Poisonwood Bible by Barbara Kingsolver, Interpreter of Maladies by Jhumpa Lahri (although this is really about people assimilating into American culture), The Kitchen God's Wife by Amy Tan, Sister of My Heart by Chitra Banerjee Divakurini, Caramelo by Sandra Cisneros, and my all-time favorite book in the world, A Fine Balance by Rohinton Mistry.

However, the book I just finished yesterday is a total immersion into American pop culture. It is titled Love is a Mix Tape by Rob Sheffield. Great book!!! Such heart! So readable! The most amazing thing is, I did not realize it was a memoir until I finished the book and read the acknowledgements. I thought it was a novel. Wrong! There are tons of pop culture references in the book, many of which I did not understand, but that did not stop me from identifying with the characters and becoming totally engrossed in the story. In brief, the author traces his life and loves and heartbreaks through mix tapes he has made through the years. Highly recommended!

8 comments:

Anonymous said...

My best *book* blogs come from you. I'm definitely going to have to put "The Hero's Walk" on my amazon list.

Literary Feline said...

The Hero's Walk does sound intriguing! I too have been drawn to reading about different cultures, including India and Africa. Have you read any of Amulya Malladi's novels? Thrity Umrigar also has some good books set in India that are worth reading.

Anonymous said...

You "not getting" references to pop culture? I find that hard to believe! Started my 3rd TBR book last night...I can see you beaming!

Lotus Reads said...

Hi, Laura!

I'm so glad you're getting a good feel for "The Hero's Walk" - it's the only Anita Rau Badami novel I haven't read so I'll be waiting with bated breath to hear what you think of it when you're finished!

Thank you for the "Love is a Mix Tape" recommendation, it is definitely going on my list!

Hey and last, but definitely not least, thanks so much for the mention and the link to my blog, I was thrilled to bits to see my blog mentioned here! :)

Have a wonderful day, Laura!

Lotus Reads said...

Ohhh and I also wanted to say, I LOVE that card, please tell Liz it's beautiful!

Anonymous said...

I'm honored to grace your blog. I had forgotten all about that card. Thanks, Laura. The book sounds interesting. Just finishing up "Digging To China" so will need a new one. Don't you hate to finish a good book - it's always so hard to follow it up.

kookie said...

Talk about synergy. You posted on my blog today and I come over here to check out your blog and you feature a book that I just walked in my front door with this morning ('The Hero's Walk')! I haven't started it yet, but I'm glad to have your recommendation.

Anonymous said...

I read The Hero's Walk a few years ago and loved it. This reminds me that I need to see if she has another book out now. I have Love is a Mix Tape on hold at the library. So glad to hear you enjoyed it!