My 2014 "year in reading," all two weeks of it, has primarily consisted of Donna Tartt's "The Goldfinch." And while I'm only on page 515—which sounds, in the abstract, as if I have advanced considerably, I still have over 250 pages to go—I'll have to finish the book eventually.
So what else looks good this month? These three new releases have caught my eye. Tell me what has caught your eye in the comments! Pretty please?
"The Invention of Wings" by Sue Monk Kidd. Kidd is also the author of the bestsellers "The Secret Life of Bees" and "The Mermaid Chair," and she's off to some great buzz with her latest: Oprah has chosen it for her book club. Though I have not read her other novels, I loved how Kidd and her daughter wrote about Greece in the memoir they co-wrote, "Traveling with Pomegranates," and the story of "The Invention of Wings" sounds compelling and has been described as hopeful, which always gets my vote.
The novel follows the fates of two women in 19th century Charleston, SC—Sarah and Handful. The story begins in 1803 on Sarah's 11th birthday, when she is given ownership of Handful, and tells their story over a 35-year period.
"Why I Read: The Serious Pleasure of Books" by Wendy Lesser. I'm always trying to figure out why I read and, thus, can never pass up on reading a book about someone reading books.
This one has received stellar reviews from Kirkus ("A gift of pleasure from one reader to another) and Publisher's Weekly (her "wealth of insights will speak to book lovers of all types"). Lesser, also a novelist and the founder and editor of literary magazine The Threepenny Review, includes a list of 100 books to read for pleasure, which means more books for my to-be-read list.