Submitted by bookshelf on Wed, 01/30/2013 - 1:45pm
I take birthdays very seriously, and my own is no exception to the rule. I'll be turning 27 this Saturday, so I've compiled my very own Bookshelf wish list. Yes, it's a list of my current store favorites, but it's also a guide to finding the perfect way to say "happy birthday" to those you love.
(And in case you've got your own celebrating to do this weekend, we're offering 10% off your entire purchase on Saturday in Midtown... if you remember to say "happy birthday" to yours truly.)
1 - Branch + Cotton ampersand notepad. Perfect for jotting down notes with my favorite Le Pen.
2 -Where'd You Go, Bernadette. This has been on my to-read list for a while; I think it's time to finally take the plunge.
3 - Branch + Cotton gift box. These new-to-the-store gift boxes can be sent in the mail (and they're the perfect size for a Bookshelf gift card!).
4 - My Ideal Bookshelf. This collection of art and essays is perfect for the friend who judges people based on the books they buy, read, and display.
5 - Smart Folks Read tee. Who wouldn't want one of these?
6 - Kate Spade's Things We Love. Filled to the brim with bright colors and eye-catching photographs, this coffee table book cam brighten the most blustery of days.
7 - Wild. Cheryl Strayed is coming to Tallahassee for Seven Days of Opening Nights, so her memoir is a must read.
Submitted by bookshelf on Wed, 01/23/2013 - 2:36pm
London attorney ML Stedman’s debut novel is a book club must-read.
So here’s the dilemma: Lighthouse keeper marries a young bride and brings her to a secluded island where he keeps the light. Wife longs for family. After wife loses baby, a boat washes ashore with a dead man and a healthy baby. Wife, still with milk from her latest stillborn birth, takes the baby to her breast and raises it as her own. Husband, a rule follower, feels inclined to tell somebody but can’t break his wife’s heart.
Does the baby need to be turned into the proper authorities?
The Light Between Oceans has been one of our favorite book club recommendations because the moral dilemmas provide such fodder for discussion. As the story progresses and you see the bigger picture, the right decision becomes more and more elusive. Like the characters in the novel, your sympathies will be swayed by human experience and black and white becomes grayish.
I’m tempted to crash all the book club discussions of this book so I can hear all the interesting conversation about the role of rules, the strength of maternal bonds, the effects of seclusion, and the existence of moral absolutes. Let us know what gets washed ashore in your book club discussion!
