Today is the birthday of Argentine author Manuel Puig who was born in a small village in 1932 (d: 22 July, 1990) Books by Manuel Puig 1 ) Puig loved American pop-culture. 2 ) After graduating from the University of Buenos Aires, Puig wanted to become a screenwriter 3 ) Puig became a novelist once he re-wrote his failed screenplay into a novel. 4 ) That same book, Betrayed by Rita Hayworth, shocked the argentine establishment and was burned in Puig’s hometown of General Villegas. 5 ) Puig took on the popular Argentine serial novels with his next book Heartbreak Tango. 6 ) Puig, a gay man, was sent to prison for soliciting an undercover police officer. After his release, Puig went into a self-imposed exile. 7) Today Argentinean literature students learn that Puig belongs to the belongs to the Postboom and Post-modernist schools. 8 ) His book Kiss of the Spider Woman (El beso de la mujer araña) was made into a movie by the Argentine-Brazilian director, Héctor Babenco starring William Hurt and Raul Julia. The book was a Broadway musical as well. 9 ) In the movie Verde Tropical Puig is played by Fabio Aste. 10)…

The story of how Pegasus Falling came to be published is possibly as tragic as the story within its pages. William Thomas, my grandfather, was born in 1925. He started work as a messenger at theBBC at the age of 14. When war broke out, he went to work with his father at a factory in Harrow. While still a teenager, William joined the army and was soon recruited in to the Parachute Regiment. By May 1945, he had been “dropped” in to a number of key battles and become a much decorated soldier. He was still only 19 years old. Following the war, he served in Palestine until 1948. William has six children. As they were growing up, he was working and studying in shifts as a merchant seaman and an engineer. He was one of the first students to enrol at The Open University and in his mid fifties, he decided to work there full time as a lab technician, remaining there until his retirement in 1990. Having become quickly bored of the life of a pensioner, he looked around for something to keep him occupied. A lover of the arts, in particular music and literature, he bought…

Another Tuesday and another post of Tightwad. I’m reading a pretty good mystery right now called The Risk Agent by Ridley Pearson so I thought I’d look up some free and/or affordable eBooks Please note: The prices for the post are current at the time of the post, please pay attention to make sure they haven’t changed before purchase. Authors: If you’d like your book to be fea­tured on Tight­wad Tues­days please email me. For the Kindle: Daily Deal Carbs & Cadavers (The Supper Club Mysteries) by J.B. Stanley Divorced, overweight, and shy, former English Professor James Henry moves back home to help his recently-widowed father. After arriving, James joins a supper club for dieters. When a mysterious death strikes fear in their small community, the club members dodge delectable temptations by working together to find the killer. Yesterday’s Price: $8.58 Today’s Discount: $6.59 Kindle Daily Deal Price: $1.99 (77% off) THE ACCIDENTAL HERO by Joshua Graham (A Digital Short) A ruthless hitman confronts his destiny in a startling tale of redemption. The Murderous Fire (Unnatural Death Investigations, Book #4) by Ryan Clover Death is never as simple as it seems. The Unnatural Death Investigations is a mystery thriller series…

Article first published as Book Review: No One is Here Except All of Us by Ramona Ausubel on Blogcritics. About: No One is Here Except All of Us by Ramona Ausubel is a fictional book taking place during World War II. The book follows a small group of Jewish villagers who lives in a town on a river bank. The pub­lisher is giv­ing away one advanced readers copy (ARC) of this book— enter at the end of the post. 336 pages Publisher: Riverhead Hardcover ISBN: 1594487944 My rating for No one is Here Except All of Us – 4 Great price on this book in paper or elec­tronic for­mat through the Man of la Book Affil­i­ate Account Check out this & more World War II books on Man of la BookStore Thoughts: No One is Here Except All of Us by Ramona Ausubel (website) is a very lyrical and poetic book. The story flows, is unique and fascinating. Most of the time I read the book I felt as if I, or the protagonist, were dreaming, however, upon reading the author’s note it turned out that many of the events are based on what Ms.Ausubel’s great grandmother experienced during World War II. The premise of the book is interesting, something I haven’t read yet….

Here are the books I enjoyed the most this year. This list is of books I read, not only published in 2011. First and foremost – this is THE best book I’ve read this year. From some reason it didn’t get much attention in the US. We, The Drowned by Carsten Jensen “We, The Drowned” (Web­site) by Carsten Jensen is a spell­bind­ing, award win­ning (Danske Banks Lit­ter­atur­pris) fic­tional book which spans 100 years in the lives of the inhab­i­tants of the small Dan­ish coastal town Marstal. Jensen’s debut novel is already hailed as an instant clas­sic and right­fully so. Non-Fiction: Auschwitz by Dr. Miklós Nyiszli Auschwitz: A Doctor’s Eye­wit­ness Account by Dr. Mik­lós Nyis­zli is a non-fiction mem­oir of a Jew­ish Hun­gar­ian med­ical doc­tor who per­formed “research” on other Jews with the evil Dr. Josef Men­gele aka “Angel of Death”. This is not an easy book to read, but an impor­tant one. Elizabeth and Hazel by David Margolick Eliz­a­beth and Hazel: Two Women of Lit­tle Rock by David Mar­golick is a non fic­tion book about two ladies who were made famous by the press. The book looks his­tory square in the eye and doesn’t flinch. Gated Grief by Leila Levinson “Gated Grief: The Daugh­ter of a GI Con­cen­tra­tion Camp Lib­er­a­tor Dis­cov­ers a Legacy of Trauma” by Leila Levin­son who started the…

Sally Ketchum came from a poor family of farmers, her mundane life were changed forever once she enrolled in the Women Airforce Service Pilot (WASP) program.

McMurtry can sure write cowboys, but the women lacked depth, each one was promiscuous on some level and wanted to lay one of the three cowboys

A beautiful book, a lyrical and relatable story of the author who was born in Russia but spent his summers with his grandmother Charlotte Lemonnier

Rebecca from Book Nerd reviews A Daughter of Two Mothers by Miriam Cohen “A Daughter of Two Mothers is definitely a Jewish book but the message of faith and the meaning of life and hardships are there all the way through the book“. Mysteries in Paradise reviews Evil Under the Sun by Agatha Christie “EVIL UNDER THE SUN is an enjoyable read, well constructed, fairly complex plot, but I think quite a way from Christie’s best“. Read Aloud Dad reviews Fancy Nancy: Phenomenal Picture Books by Jane O’Connor “Even the most plainly dressed reader among us, will be searching the back of his or her wardrobe for a couple of accessories to glam up – after reading this little gem! “. Read Aloud Dad reviews Jenny And The Cat Club: A Collection of Favorite Stories about Jenny Linsky “Jenny Linsky – let me whisper in your ear. My twins adore you. Come, come closer dear. My girl and boy love you. You touched their young hearts“. I’ll Never Forget the Day I Read a Book! reviews Obama’s Wars by Bob Woodward “Bob Woodward, the dean of Washington journalists, goes inside the situation room with President Obama as the plan for…