Harper Lee's 2nd Novel debuts Today!

To Kill a Mockingbird was first published by Harper Lee in 1960, on the cusp of a changing America. 

There was tension everywhere to be found - racial, sexual, political, and social. Some describe the era as a bubble that was ready to burst after years of hostility on so-called freedoms. So it was only fitting for the time to introduce a book that would challenge the notions of race in America.

To Kill a Mockingbird addresses many socially challenging situations, both directly and indirectly, all through the innocent eyes of a six-year-old girl. Very thought provoking. 

Controversial or not, the book and the movie, which was produced 2 years after the novel's debut, are both still taught in many classrooms to this day. The author, native Alabamian (Nelle) Harper Lee, has received many honors for her only published novel, including the Presidential Medal of Freedom.

Earlier this year, it was announced that Harper Lee would be releasing her second novel, some fifty-five years after her first, one, and only, publication to date. Obviously, due to the popularity of To Kill a Mockingbird, and the fact that Harper Lee was once closely tied to the famous author Truman Capote, which sparked its own controversy of the book itself, this book release is and has been highly anticipated.

So, without further ado, Go Set a Watchman will be released to the public on Tuesday, July 14th. Buy the audible edition and Reese Witherspoon will be reading the story to you, what a treat!

But for those of you that just can't wait any longer, after all fifty-five years has already been a long time, The Wall Street Journal is releasing a sneak peek at the first chapter today! Oh, and if you haven't seen To Kill a Mockingbird yet, go out and get! Book or movie, I won't judge...

Garden & Gun Hard Copies

What's better than Garden & Gun magazine? Compilations by Garden & Guns editors, but of course. And conveniently enough, these seem to be released just in time for the holidays...

Last year for Christmas I received The Southerner's Handbook:

This year for Christmas I asked Santa to put Good Dog in my stocking.

I mean, come on, how good do these look on the bookshelf...

True Prep (The Official Preppy Handbook v2)

'Nuf said... Highly Recommended.

The Outermost House

The Cape Cod area - Martha's Vineyard and Nantucket - is surely known for its summer, but The Outermost House is an interesting take on the hot spot off season. Highly recommended.

The Paris Wife

Having been to Paris for the first time in my life two years ago, I suddenly became obsessed.  I couldn't help but put my hands on all things Paris.  So, it was only fitting that when a friend recommended that I read The Paris Wife, I was drooling at the mouth to get my hands on a copy - for the record, I have both the hard copy and ebook versions. 

The book tells a lovely, yet very unique story from the perspective of Ernest Hemmingway's first wife.  It begins in their courtship and then follows their journey to Paris, until the ultimate, one cannot say ending, but rather transformation of their relationship. And no, it's not a spoiler that they don't end up together - that's history already known, people.

Now, it can occasionally be a tough story to take in because of their tumultuous lives, but a story from which you learn an appreciation. Hemmingway's first wife has no problem admitting that the life of the famous isn't always easy, a well-told truth.

And hear me now when I say this, the book will make you want a drink. Seriously. You will want to drink not because of their ups and downs or highs and lows, but actually because there is no getting around the presence of booze throughout the book.  Most of their time is spent in cafes drinking - whether morning, noon, or night.  Party all day and party all night.  So readers, have your liquor cabinet well stocked.

Rules for my Unborn Son

This book makes for a great gift for any father-to-be. 

My husband acquired this book somewhere along the way, and these days we find it even more entertaining to flip through.

Some of our favorites:

Obsessed: America's Food Addiction---And My Own

This Tuesday Mika Brzezinski came out with her newest book Obsessed: America's Food Addiction---and My Own.  Cover to cover in just a couple of days - definitely a recommended read.

Obsessed takes us on the journey of food obsessions from two different points of view - a skinny Mika Brzezinski and an overweight Diane Smith, two TV journalists that may have night and day differences in physical appearances, yet very similar internal obsessions with food.

But it's not about being thin, or overweight, it's about being healthy.  Whether you need to lose weight or gain it, Obsessed is about learning a healthy food relationship.  Something we all need, and can relate to.

Everyone has to find his or her own healthy balance. Some diets work well for some while it might not work the same for others.  It's a whole mentality shift. You can't diet, you must change your approach entirely.  It's about looking at food in a different light.  Food is fuel.

Fat or thin - We need to support one another. The primary message of the book is that we need to have a conversation, although that is easier said than done.  The conversation seems to start and stop.  As you may recall, we started talking when the 2004 documentary Supersize Me aired with eye-opening results.  Then in 2008 came Food, Inc. - speaking of, remember Kevin's law?  Last I looked the proposal still has not been passed and it appears the talk has been tabled.

Supersize Me and Food, Inc. were educational tools for an uninformed public about what is in the food that we eat.  Obsessed tells the story of the body's natural instinct to want these foods.  By now we know they're bad for us, and so we must overcome our natural desire in order to curb the addiction to making bad food choices.  Food is about knowing, and making a conscious effort.  

The book addresses many issues that I can personally relate to:

Avatar, 3D, and Life of Pi

There was a lot of hype when Avatar was coming out. People thought that James Cameron was going to forever change the movies. There were some skeptics, some believers, the movie came and went. While I did find it to be a great movie, I don't really think things are forever changed, but I have noticed a welcomed transition.

The 3D experience is not new to the theatre. It had its first major boom in the 1980s, accompanied by the iMax experience, and has actually been around since the early 1900s (but at a high cost to produce). Now, 3D is back, and better than ever.

There was a period where we were finding ourselves, big movies buffs mind you, refraining from the trip to the theatre thanks to the comfort of our home entertainment system. Not only have HD TVs and OnDemand kicked everything up a notch, but with the latest technology, the home viewing experience now comes close to the big screen, without having to rush for a bathroom trip in between scenes (pause, thank you!).

So, with the emergence of 3D, and even iMax is back in some theatres, there is a new reason to go. Sure, you can even get 3D TVs at home now too - technology really has boomed! But, somehow the novelty of wearing 3D glasses amongst a room full of strangers feels better than by yourself at home on the couch.

Most recently, we went to see Life of Pi in 3D.  It's a great movie, highly recommended.  What's amazing, that I learned from the book, is it is actually based on a true story. While the story is enough in itself, the 3D visual effects really brought the movie to life and justified the theatre going experience.

So, did James Cameron change it all? Who knows. The 3D era may come and go as it did before, but for now, I do enjoy the extra effort that Hollywood puts in. Noted and appreciated.

The Time Keeper

Being, as we say in DC, "originally" from Michigan, just outside Detroit nonetheless, I have a soft spot in my heart for Mitch Albom. He has not let me down before with his amazing Tuesdays with Morrie or The Five People You Meet in Heaven. Have you read either one of these yet? If not, you should.

Recently, my buddy Mitch, released a new treat, The Time Keeper. We check the time, we follow time, we keep time, or does time keep us? 

The story is told in his typical writing style - clean, simple, and easy to read. If you haven't already, I'd recommend grabbing a copy soon, because I have a feeling that Hollywood is going to try to get this one up on the big screen.

As a side note, I highly recommend this book to my spin instructor, who is constantly telling me to stop keeping time by counting down the clock and to try to live in the moment.  During spinning, really?

Drop Dead Healthy

A.J. Jacobs has attracted (and kept) my attention before with The Know-It-All, a book about his journey reading through the entire Encyclopedia Britannica.  Sounds boring, right?  But it's not. A logical initial reaction to the concept would be, oh great, this guy takes the information and begrudgingly regurgitates it word for word, one boring statistic after another. Actually, that couldn't be farther from the truth.  In his books, A.J. tells a story, mostly the story of his life, while on the side, providing new interesting facts on the specific subject at hand. Genius. But after all, he's Mensa.

Well, this spring, A.J. brought us a new treat - Drop Dead Healthy. Again, part of the joy in reading his books is his certain style, and that he tends to go to extremes. So here, he declares that he is going to be the healthiest man in the world. Quite the quest, huh? It's hilarious.

The book is full of interesting tidbits like eye exercises, hand exercises, and those that obsess over them. He tries the caveman diet and the cleanse diet.  He provides us with reasoning as to why we shouldn't make our beds in the morning (although I can't help but still do it).

My husband has already made his way through A.J.'s The Year of Living Biblically, which I'm sure is pretty self-explanatory. It is on my ever-expanding list of "must reads" that seems to continue to grow no matter how many cover to cover sessions I attempt. Still, I find that any A.J. Jacobs book is one worth finding the time and "dropping" into.

Mastering the Art of French Cooking

Seeing as how today, August 15th, 2012, would have marked the 100th birthday of Julia Child, it seems only appropriate to sing praises to one of her most notable legacies: Mastering the Art of French Cooking.

Yes, when you first see a hard copy of Julia Child's famous cookbook, it looks overwhelming. And yes, there is a small section devoted to carving your own duck, a section that I am not yet prepared to jump into, but as overwhelming as the book may initially seem, that couldn't be more opposite of what the book is.  Instead, Julia Child takes the art that is French cooking and has turned it into an easy-to-follow step by step process, or rather a well disguised beginner's "how to" guide.

Some of my favorite recipes are the beef stews, inclusive of course of the Boeuf Bourguignon, becoming famous amongst foodies after the adorable Julie & Julia movie, after which this cookbook was immediately sent for reprint with sales that surely skyrocketed.  The Boeuf Bourguignon was the first recipe we attempted and we were convinced that it would turn into a bust (back-up pizza on speed dial just in case).  But again, the amazing bit of this book is that the recipes are pretty fool proof, assuming you follow what she says. Julia walks us non-French non-trained like-to-cook-at-home chefs through every moment and every detail at each given point in the process. You learn things like when you saute mushrooms in a frying pan, they shouldn't be overcrowded or touching, because they steam instead of browning.

Keep Calm and Carry On

I noticed a lady reading a book with one of my favorite mottos written on her bookmark.

"Keep Calm and Carry On" came to birth during World War II and was plastered on posters all over the U.K.  It was intended to serve as direction to the people should there be an attack or bombing of the city during that time. 

I do find it quite interesting that when this saying is used today, it brings peace to one's self, when actually it's initial intention came about during a time of war, but hey, life can sometimes be ironic that way.

Needless to say, after I finished up with my appointment, I ran over to Barnes & Noble to get my hands on one of these bookmarks.  PaperSource also carries this and other "Keep Calm and Carry On" products.  I will be buying more...

Bossypants

I just finished reading Bossypants and let me tell you, it is classic Tina Fey.  If you like Tina Fey, and Amy Poehler, and the Saturday Night Live crew, both present and old, then you will enjoy this hilarious book rightly named Bossypants.  Tina Fey is her usual self, poking fun at everything and anything, including of course Tina Fey most of the time (as to be expected for those that watch 30 Rock).

The book itself is a journey with Tina from her theatric high school beginnings in eastern Pennsylvania, on to life in Chicago at Second City, and then landing at SNL in the Big Apple.  Finally, the book provides a look into a current day in the life of Tina Fey, inclusive of her own show, in which she writes, stars, and produces, and all the while with a little one in tow.  Phew, it's exhausting just typing that, but like many females in the 21st century, she's a wonder woman that seems to do it all.

The Hunger Games Trilogoy

OMG! I know it is a little silly, maybe too cliche, to start this post with such an acronym, but considering The Hunger Games is written for the middle and high school aged population, it just seems fitting. Besides, the book really are just that fun and exciting.

So yes, you first hear hunger games and immediately think of food, or rather lack thereof, but actually the series is more robust than a story of starvation. I like to compare it to the old Roman times of the Colosseum. It's intense. I can't go any further because I do not want to give anything away, but let me tell you, there is a reason everyone is reading the books and an even greater argument attributing to the story since Hollywood has picked up on the buzz. And this is definitely one of those times where I actually would recommend reading the book before going to see the movie. It doesn't ruin a thing, but is rather the perfect complement to knowing the big picture on the big screen.

Encyclopedia Britannica

Did you hear these guys are no longer being printed?  Words to the wise - get your hands on a copy sooner than later because pretty soon these will be Antiques.

Recently my husband had the brilliant idea of adding a copy of the Encyclopedia Britannica to his birthday wish list.  Not only does the newly acquired edition look really great on our book shelf, but the edition is the year of his birth.  How cool is that, right?!

Encyclopedia Britannica was first published in 1768 in Scotland.  In 1901 publishing moved over to the United States.  And sadly, in March of this year, Encyclopedia Britannica announced that it would no longer produce print versions, with 2010 being the last edition published.

The Help

Rarely do you come across a book so unique in its own way of how the book is presented, what information it contains, and how well it can keep your attention.  The Help really does master the intrinsic value of itself. 

My mother gave me The Help after she read it in a day.  Many of my friends had been recommending the read, saying how they just couldn't put it down.  I don't know why, but for some reason I resisted.  It may be the same reason I have never gotten around to reading Eat Pray Love; you don't want to do it, because everybody is doing it.  But one day, I finally gave in...

The book is told from the different point of view of some of the key characters.  Some of the chapters are intentionally a little bit more difficult to read because of the different dialect.  But it really does make for the right feel for the person telling the story. 

I tend to be a person that doesn't like to see a movie after reading the book because the movie never seems to cut it even remotely close to how good the story really is (i.e The Notebook).  Books contain so much information to help a creative mind paint its own individual picture, so it is hard to then turn to a movie and see the story from a completely (or rather mostly incomplete, since movies can never contain all of the information that is in the book) different point of view.  But, bravo!  That is not the case here.  The movie is just as fabulous as the read.  Kudos on this one, Hollywood.