About Books & Literature: Summertime and the Reading is Easy

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Books & Literature From Erik Wander, your About Books & Literature Editor So it's summer, right? Memorial Day is, after all, widely considered the season's "unofficial" start. And while summer may still officially be nearly another month away, it's not too early to start putting together some tentative reading lists for your kids and for yourself ... at least unofficial ones. Nothing needs to be set in stone at this point, but can book lovers ever truly be prepared for summer without at least some idea of what they're going to be reading for the next few months? How to Make a Summer Reading List It's easy, at least according to our Classic Literature Guide: start with what you might have to read (say, for school in the fall?), think about what you'll be doing during the summer or where you might (or might not) be going, consider how much time you're likely to have on your hands and take it from there. Classics you've always wanted to read but have never gotten around to? Authors you've only recently discovered and now want to go back and read some of their "old stuff?" Put 'em on the list! Summer Poetry, Classic and New 'Summer' by Edith Wharton Search Related Topics:  how to plan  how to  reading lists This Year's Top Reading Lists for Children, Teens Do you want to keep your elementary, middle or even high schoolers reading all summer? Our Children's Books Guide thinks you can. She runs down her picks for the top 10 summer reading lists of 2013. The lists, compiled by librarians, school districts and organizations dedicated to children's reading, include books for young children through young adults and are mostly organized by grade level. Here you'll find recommended fiction and nonfiction, classics and new releases. Check out these summer reading resources for kids. Summer Reading for Teenage Girls Summer Titles for Teen Boys Search Related Topics:  recommended reading lists  summer reading  libraries Top 10 Reads from High School Summer Lists "These books are so entertaining they will make you wonder why you ever dreaded summer reading assignments," writes our Bestsellers Guide of this list that includes such essentials as The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck, 1984 by George Orwell, Their Eyes Were Watching God by Zora Neale Hurston, A Prayer for Owen Meany by John Irving and more. Catch up on the reading you may have "missed" during the summers of your youth. 'To Kill a Mockingbird' by Harper Lee 'Brave New World' by Adlous Huxley Search Related Topics:  summer reading  classic literature  to kill a mockingbird 'Farm City' Among Oprah's Past Summer Picks In a July 2009 blog post, our Contemporary Literature Guide mentioned Oprah's annual summer reading list, for many, an indispensible resource in planning what they'll read from June through Labor Day weekend. At the time, our Guide said he would "likely" try three from Oprah's list that year. Well, we know he read at least one, Farm City by Novella Carpenter, because he referred to it in a subsequent post about summer reading, which for him also included the "dense" but seemingly rewarding Infinite Jest. Find out what he thought about one of Oprah's recommendations for the summer of 2009. Erik Larson Makes Oprah's List in 2011 'Where'd You Go Bernadette' a 2012 Pick Search Related Topics:  memoir  urban farming  Related Searches Literature Kids Books Free Books Top Books Picture Books Featured Articles Best Beach Books Sand, Surf and Classic Lit Ray Bradbury's Summer Rituals These Books are Tops for Teens Summer Reading for Dads and Tweens Save Some Shakespeare for Midsummer   More from About.com Run Your First 5K Even couch potatoes can be ready for a 5K with just a couple months of training. Read more...> Help! I'm Too Busy Time and stress management tips to help you feel as though you have more time. Read more...>   Sign up for more free newsletters on your favorite topics You are receiving this newsletter because you subscribed to the About.com Books & Literature newsletter. If you wish to change your email address or unsubscribe, please click here. About.com respects your privacy: Our Privacy Policy Contact Information: 1500 Broadway, 6th Floor New York, NY, 10036 © 2012 About.com   Advertisement

About Books & Literature: Of War and Remembrance

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Books & Literature From Erik Wander, your About Books & Literature Editor Americans have observed Memorial Day or some version thereof since the end of the Civil War. From stories about understanding a soldier's sacrifice and paying tribute to the brave men and women who gave their lives for our country to remembering all those who suffered or died as a result of war, consider these books among your reading this week. Hemingway on WWI in 'A Farewell to Arms' This novel, published in 1929, is based on Ernest Hemingway's experiences in Northern Italy during the First World War and centers on a romance involving American Frederic Henry, a volunteer in the Italian army, set against the backdrop of the war. "God knows I didn't mean to fall in love with her," Fred says, among other memorable quotes in this novel by an American literary giant. Erich Maria Remarque's 'All Quiet on the Western Front' Classic Poetry of War and Remembrance Search Related Topics:  farewell to arms  novel quotes  quotes Stephen Crane on Civil War in 'The Red Badge of Courage' "Henry Fleming begins as a naive young man, eager to experience the glory of war," writes our Homework / Study Tips Guide about this classic about Henry Fleming, an American private with the Union Army during the Civil War, who initially flees the enemy, only to redeem himself in a subsequent standoff. "He soon faces the truth about war and his own self-identity on the battlefield, however." Among these quotes from Crane's masterpiece you'll find this: "He had been to touch the great death, and found that, after all, it was but the great death. He was a man." Margaret Mitchell's Controversial 'Gone With the Wind' Movie Version of Charles Frazier's 'Cold Mountain' Search Related Topics:  the red badge of courage  stephen crane  american literature Vonnegut on WWII in 'Slaughterhouse-Five' Published in 1969, Slaughterhouse-Five, or The Children's Crusade: A Duty-Dance with Death is Kurt Vonnegut's satirical, semi-autobiographical take on war using the firebombing of Dresden, which Vonnegut survived as a prisoner of war near the end of WWII, as its basis. Here is a look at some of the more memorable quotes from this influential American classic. Listen: Billy Pilgrim has come unstuck in time. The Tragic Comedy of Joseph Heller's 'Catch-22' 'Band of Brothers' Author on WWII Reporters Search Related Topics:  slaughterhouse-five  kurt vonnegut  quotes 'The Wall' Makes War Accessible for Young Children A boy travels with his father to the Vietnam Veterans Memorial to find his grandfather's name on the wall, "my grandfather's wall," as he calls it, in this picture book featuring watercolor illustrations by Richard Himler. In the process of searching for the name of his father's father, the two meet other people who have made the journey themselves for their own reasons. Find out what's written on the wall. A Soldier's View of Vietnam in 'Fallen Angels' Other Memorial Day Books for Kids Search Related Topics:  us / american history  children's picture books  vietnam war memorial Related Searches Free Books Literature Kids Books Picture Books Writing a Books Featured Articles The American Military 'Fiasco' in Iraq 'The Yellow Birds,' a Novel by Iraq War Veteran Author of 'Jarhead' on Film Version Books about Women in the Military Inside 1950s Korea in 'The Surrendered' Author of 'The English Patient'   More from About.com Run Your First 5K Even couch potatoes can be ready for a 5K with just a couple months of training. Read more...> Help! I'm Too Busy Time and stress management tips to help you feel as though you have more time. Read more...>   Sign up for more free newsletters on your favorite topics You are receiving this newsletter because you subscribed to the About.com Books & Literature newsletter. If you wish to change your email address or unsubscribe, please click here. About.com respects your privacy: Our Privacy Policy Contact Information: 1500 Broadway, 6th Floor New York, NY, 10036 © 2012 About.com   Advertisement

About Books & Literature: Recommended Reading, New Titles

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Books & Literature From Erik Wander, your About Books & Literature Editor "It is what you read when you don't have to that determines what you will be when you can't help it," Oscar Wilde once said. This week About Books & Literature is showcasing some of our literary guides' latest offerings, including reviews, recommendations and suggestions about what you might (or might not) want to include on your list of books you don't have to read but may just want to. Manhattan Central to 'The Interestings' This novel by Meg Wolitzer spans several decades, from the 1970s into the 2000s, and centers on a group of friends who met when they were in their teens. "Manhattan is also a character in the novel, and we see how life in New York evolved" during that time period, according to our Bestsellers guide. But, she also says you don't have to have lived in NYC to enjoy this novel in part about how dreams affect relationships. Interesting! Routing for the Deeply Flawed in 'The Burgess Boys' Math Genius, Avid Reader Turns Secret Agent in 'Sweet Tooth' Search Related Topics:  the interestings  meg wolitzer  A Tale for the Time Being Ruth Ozeki's latest novel tells the stories of Ruth, a novelist, and Nao, a 16-year-old girl whose diary Ruth happens to find washed up on the beach near her home in British Columbia. The reader never gets to meet Nao in person, but instead gets to know her, as does Ruth, only through her diary. Nao is lucky it's someone like Ruth whom her words reach, while Ruth, who's struggling with her next project, is equally fortunate to be the one to find it. Meet the "time being." Jared Diamond on Traditional Societies Stuart Nadler's Debut Novel, 'Wise Men' Search Related Topics:  ruth ozeki  magical realism  'Cat Talk' for Kids Each of the 13 poems for children ages 4 to 8 in this book by mother-daughter duo Patricia and Emily MacLachlan features a different feline's description of its own appearance, life and favorite things to do. Each cat or kitten in the collection has its own distinct personality and "voice," and illustrator Barry Moser brings them to life with his handmade watercolors on paper. Share what these cats have to say with your children. Award-Winning 'Moonbird' by Phillip Hoose Freedom Protests, Protecting Egypt's Treasured Books Search Related Topics:  poetry books for children  children's picture books  An 'Eternity Cure' for Young Adult Readers "Even though both vampires and dystopias have been 'done to death,' in the hands of a good writer, they can still be fresh and new," says our Young Adult Books guide. Julie Kagawa is that writer, it would seem; she managed to work both quite adeptly into the second book of her Blood of Eden series, The Eternity Cure. Vampires and dystopias and (even some) zombies, oh my! High Fantasy and 'William and the Lost Spirit' 'Spellbinding' Promising but Brief Search Related Topics:  ya vampire books  ya dystopian books  ya paranormal books Related Searches Free Books Kids Books Picture Books Children Books Reading Books Featured Articles Gatsby Fan? You'll Love These Books Too Classic Poetry Inspired by the Garden Comic Book Anti-Heroes All about Alexander (Pushkin) Love, Mistaken Identity in Shakespeare's Midsummer David Ives, Plays in One Act   More from About.com 10 Easy Ways to Look Thinner Don't wait until you've lost those first pounds to make these simple, slimming changes. Read more...> Create a Shared Photo Stream Sharing your photo stream with friends and family is a great way to keep in touch. Read more...>   Sign up for more free newsletters on your favorite topics You are receiving this newsletter because you subscribed to the About.com Books & Literature newsletter. If you wish to change your email address or unsubscribe, please click here. About.com respects your privacy: Our Privacy Policy Contact Information: 1500 Broadway, 6th Floor New York, NY, 10036 © 2012 About.com   Advertisement

About Books & Literature: All About Moms

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Books & Literature From Erik Wander, your About Books & Literature Editor Have you hugged your mother this week? Called her? Thought about her fondly at the very least? Missed her perhaps? If you didn't answer "yes" to any of these questions, there's still time; you've got until Sunday. For everybody else, you might want to take a look at a calendar. In the meantime, here's a look at some mother-themed reading. Happy Mother's Day! Of Woman Born Motherhood and feminist theory combine to make this title by Adrienne Rich "a classic feminist text," according to our Women's History guide, who adds, "and motherhood has become an essential issue of feminism." Whether you consider yourself a feminist or not, this is a book you might not want to miss as Mother's Day nears. Sue Monk Kidd on Motherhood What Writers Say About Mothers Search Related Topics:  adrienne rich  motherhood  american women poets Books about Mothers, Daughters While the relationship between father and son has been a major theme of literary work throughout the ages (we'll save that for next month), countless stories--though fewer, it seems--have also been told about that special bond shared by mothers and their daughters. The Joy Luck Club Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother Search Related Topics:  daughters  mothers  relationships Mothers in Poetry William Butler Yeats, Walt Whitman, Edgar Allan Poe and Emily Dickinson are just a few of the poets who have mentioned mothers and motherhood. Find out who else has has chimed in, poetically, on the subject. To Her 'First Love,' Her Mother Emily Dickinson's Mother Search Related Topics:  mother's day  william blake  edgar allan poe Mothers and their 'Beloved' Children William Styron's Sophie's Choice and Anna Karenina by Tolstoy both included mothers who had to make difficult choices about their children. In Sophie's case, it really wasn't a choice at all, while Anna chose her lover. In Toni Morison's Beloved, Margaret, who temporarily escaped slavery with her children, had to make a choice when they were ultimately caught that no mother should ever have to make. A Mother's Struggles in 'Angela's Ashes' The Memory Keeper's Daughter Search Related Topics:  beloved  toni morrison  novels Related Searches Free Books Mothers Day Poems Books in a Bible Children Books Children Literature Featured Articles Notable, Quotable Women on Motherhood 'One More Day' with Mom Love, Life and Motherhood Some Assembly Required Mothers in the Bible The Blessingway   More from About.com 10 Easy Ways to Look Thinner Don't wait until you've lost those first pounds to make these simple, slimming changes. Read more...> Create a Shared Photo Stream Sharing your photo stream with friends and family is a great way to keep in touch. Read more...>   Sign up for more free newsletters on your favorite topics You are receiving this newsletter because you subscribed to the About.com Books & Literature newsletter. If you wish to change your email address or unsubscribe, please click here. About.com respects your privacy: Our Privacy Policy Contact Information: 1500 Broadway, 6th Floor New York, NY, 10036 © 2012 About.com   Advertisement