For a long time I have been collecting Superman “stuff”. At first it was little things, but later on became high-end collectibles (statues, movie props, cells, original comic art, etc). That was, of course BK (Before Kids), but now they at least have a well decorated play room in the basement. As well all know, the new Superman movie, aptly named Man of Steel is due to hit theaters June 14 so the local library promptly agreed to display a small part of my collection. Here is the display in all its glory. Yes, that is Christopher Reeve’s cape

Pepper: A History of the World’s Most Influential Spice by Marjorie Shaffer is a non-fiction book tracing history through the trade of black pepper

Elizabeth Coatsworth (31 May, 1893 – 31 August, 1986) was an American author known for her children’s stories and poetry for both kids and adults. Born in Buffalo, New York, Elizabeth was the daughter of a prosperous grain merchant. As a young girl, Coatsworth went to a private girls’ school. Her parents took her traveling with them, my age 5 she already visited the Alps and Egypt. Coatsworth as a Master of Arts from Columbia University. The author’s first published works appeared in poetry magazines and her first book, Fox Footprints, was published in 1923 and was a collection of poetry for adults. Coatsworth friend, Louise Seaman, founded the first children’s book publishing dept. at Macmillan. Louise is the one that convinced Elizabeth to write her first children’s book. The Cat Who Went to Heaven was published in 1930. The book tells the story of an artist who is painting a picture of Buddha for a group of monks. The Cat Who Went to Heaven earned Coatsworth a Newberry Medal for “the most distinguished contribution to American literature for children”. Coatsworth won praises for her adult fiction as well, especially The Incredible Tales. Over the span of an incredible career, Coatsworth…

Armchair BEA – Day 3 – Literary Fiction Hmm… literary fiction – how do you even define that? What’s literary fiction for me could be utter crap to you and vice versa. Heck, I bet half of us (myself included) can’t even define literary fiction – which is why I Goggled it to find a good definition so I could at least write a post without looking like a complete idiot (part idiot is fine, I do it on a daily base). I’ve visited several sites, all by established authors, publishers and editors (and Wikipedia) and no-one seems to agree on what literary fiction actually is. However, the one common theme to all is that literary fiction is character driven rather than plot driven and is “elegantly written, lyrical, and … layered” – something so abstract and general that you’d be hard pressed to find two people who agree on what that means. So here is the problem, if someone asked me to read a character driven, lyrical book I’d probably pass on it. That being said, I read these types of books before and some I actually loved. So the questions still remain: what is my favorite literary fiction…

Today’s topic on Armchair BEA is out of my league, the question is about favorite fantasy/sci fi / horror etc. My brain is not wired for these type of stories, once in a while I can read a magic book like Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell but that’s just about it. I tried to read Lord of the Rings several times, including listening to the audio book, because people told me how great it was and I kept thinking I was missing something. But I couldn’t get 100 pages in. Same with Game of Thrones. Same with Harry Potter. There are two genre fiction I like to read, those taking place in or around World War II – a subject which I’m fascinated about and novels about espionage (which are usually set around that time as well). But let’s face it, a good book is a good book regardless of genre. Sure we’re able to narrow down what we want to read based on a myriad of factors (author, cover, blurb) including genre.

About: The Geneva Option by Adam LeBor is a novel which introduces the reader to Yael Azoulay, a high-level UN staffer. The book is marketed as being the first in a trilogy by Mr. LeBor who is, by trade, an author and journalist. The pub­lisher is giv­ing away one copy of this book –to enter fill out the Raf­fle­copt­ter form at the end of the post. 368 pages Publisher: Harper Paperbacks Language: English ISBN-10: 0062208551 My rat­ing for The Geneva Option — 4 Buy this book in paper or elec­tronic format* More Books by Adam LeBor Thoughts: The Geneva Option by Adam LeBor is a gripping thriller which introduces the world to a strong heroine. The world created by the author is raw and brutal, a world most of us would like to think does not exist. Yael Azoulay, the protagonist, is truly an international woman with no roots and no place she can call home. This is a fast paced book is entertaining on the surface but has a lot going for it in between the lines. The lose-lose deals Yael has to strike leave the reader feeling almost dirty but with the clear understanding that they must be made…

1. Who are you? I’m Zohar, been blogging for about 3.5 years but I feel as if I’m getting worst at it instead of better. I got into blogging because I wanted to write my thoughts about the books I read and have some feedback. Simple. 2. Where in the world are you blogging from? Tell a random fact or something special about your current location. Feel free to share pictures. I’m blogging from Delaware, we just moved here (we’re on the DE, NJ, PA border) from NJ due to my work. I have a hell of a commute but the kids are in a good school and my wife loves the area. There is a horse park right around the corner which my daughter loves. 3. Have you previously participated in Armchair BEA? What brought you back for another year? If you have not previously participated, what drew you to the event? I’m back for another year, I’ve done this event two years in a row (this is my third) and I always seem to miss the initial post. It’s a fun event and I was really thinking I’d go to the BEA this year in NYC, but it…

Adirondack Mendel’s Aufruf: Welcome to Chelm’s Pond by Sandor Schuman is a fictional book, taking place in upstate New York which reprises some of the old Jewish tales of the fools of Chelm.

When shopping for some brew I noticed this beer on the shelf, from the same people who brought you The Raven Beer. I love the graphics, the taste and of course the tag line “The Taste is so Poetic”. This beer, to me, seems to go well with foods which are spicy, especially meats. This beer reminded me of the beers I had in Zurich.

Kevin J. Anderson’s Darksaber is the second novel in the unofficially named Callista Trilogy. Introduced in Barbara Hambly’s Children of the Jedi, Callista