http://www.examiner.com/x-13693-Birmingham-Books-Examiner?cid=exrss-Birmingham-Books-Examiner en-us Mon, 23 Nov 2009 16:02:08 -0700 Wed, 04 Nov 2009 21:24:12 -0700 BlogCFC http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/tech/rss http://www.examiner.com/x-13693-Birmingham-Books-Examiner~y2009m11d4-The-best-Yiddish-detective-fiction-youll-read-this-week?cid=exrss-Birmingham-Books-Examiner The Yiddish Policeman's Union by Michael Chabon is the kind of novel that moves you along as a reader, though the past, the present, gun fights, fist fights, wild escapes in the woods wearing only underpants, flying sea planes, gangsters (from... books detective fiction jewish literature Wed, 04 Nov 2009 21:24:12 -0700 http://www.examiner.com/x-13693-Birmingham-Books-Examiner~y2009m11d4-The-best-Yiddish-detective-fiction-youll-read-this-week?cid=exrss-Birmingham-Books-Examiner http://www.examiner.com/x-13693-Birmingham-Books-Examiner~y2009m9d19-Kate-Summerscales-true-Victorian-crime-rocks-Feed-your-head-one-last-time?cid=exrss-Birmingham-Books-Examiner UK cover of The Suspicions of Mr. Whicher. The cover of The Suspicions of Mr. Whicher or The Murder at Road Hill House by Kate Summerscale drew me in. I was certain the book would be a page-turnin’ detective novel—probably historical fic... Sat, 19 Sep 2009 10:19:08 -0700 http://www.examiner.com/x-13693-Birmingham-Books-Examiner~y2009m9d19-Kate-Summerscales-true-Victorian-crime-rocks-Feed-your-head-one-last-time?cid=exrss-Birmingham-Books-Examiner http://www.examiner.com/x-13693-Birmingham-Books-Examiner~y2009m9d17-Desperate-romantic-Dickensian-coincidence-Feed-your-head-part-four?cid=exrss-Birmingham-Books-Examiner Original cover of Desperate Romantics. Sex, drugs, murder, poetry, art. Done. That’s all we really need to get our attention, isn’t it? Sensation. Years and years ago I gave two talks at a local bookstore. One was titled, “Sex, Dr... Thu, 17 Sep 2009 21:37:26 -0700 http://www.examiner.com/x-13693-Birmingham-Books-Examiner~y2009m9d17-Desperate-romantic-Dickensian-coincidence-Feed-your-head-part-four?cid=exrss-Birmingham-Books-Examiner http://www.examiner.com/x-13693-Birmingham-Books-Examiner~y2009m9d7-Heres-to-the-hedgehogs-Feed-your-head-part-three?cid=exrss-Birmingham-Books-Examiner 2008 UK paperback cover of Burbery's novel. In grand Dickens fashion, I went into a bookstore in Lincoln, England to buy a book by an American author, Chasing the Dime by Michael Connelly, only to find that temptation I must always give into: a book... Mon, 07 Sep 2009 20:17:30 -0700 http://www.examiner.com/x-13693-Birmingham-Books-Examiner~y2009m9d7-Heres-to-the-hedgehogs-Feed-your-head-part-three?cid=exrss-Birmingham-Books-Examiner http://www.examiner.com/x-13693-Birmingham-Books-Examiner~y2009m9d6-Fictional-Destiny-Feed-your-head-part-two?cid=exrss-Birmingham-Books-Examiner   UK cover of Chasing the Dime (2002). Once upon a time a Victorian Scholar walking in London stumbled upon an American dime, which he picked up. Then, he found himself waiting in line for something important and saw what he belie... Sun, 06 Sep 2009 15:56:26 -0700 http://www.examiner.com/x-13693-Birmingham-Books-Examiner~y2009m9d6-Fictional-Destiny-Feed-your-head-part-two?cid=exrss-Birmingham-Books-Examiner http://www.examiner.com/x-13693-Birmingham-Books-Examiner~y2009m9d6-Feed-Your-Head-Read-for-Two-Months-Part-1?cid=exrss-Birmingham-Books-Examiner When faced with Woodstock memorabilia everywhere I went this summer because of its 40th anniversary—tee shirts, CDs, DVDs, “best of” shows, interviews, articles—I heard the music playing over and over again on elevators, resta... Sun, 06 Sep 2009 12:27:04 -0700 http://www.examiner.com/x-13693-Birmingham-Books-Examiner~y2009m9d6-Feed-Your-Head-Read-for-Two-Months-Part-1?cid=exrss-Birmingham-Books-Examiner http://www.examiner.com/x-13693-Birmingham-Books-Examiner~y2009m7d2-Give-yourself-a-gift-July-4th-weekend-visit-an-indie-bookstore-in-Alabama?cid=exrss-Birmingham-Books-Examiner Eclipse Coffee & Books in Montevallo, AL.I write: “you want to buy books now—go to an independent bookstore near you.” You read that and off you go to an independent bookstore near you to find a book you’ve being dying to ... Thu, 02 Jul 2009 20:44:11 -0700 http://www.examiner.com/x-13693-Birmingham-Books-Examiner~y2009m7d2-Give-yourself-a-gift-July-4th-weekend-visit-an-indie-bookstore-in-Alabama?cid=exrss-Birmingham-Books-Examiner http://www.examiner.com/x-13693-Birmingham-Books-Examiner~y2009m7d1-Celebrate-Independence-Day-with-historical-fiction-remember-The-Bastard-by-John-Jakes?cid=exrss-Birmingham-Books-Examiner Nelson Doubleday, 1st edition cover, 1974.I remember The Bastard. Fondly. Do you? Years ago, I started reading this book which I found at my mother’s library that I thought must be very racy indeed because of its title, The Bastard, by John Jak... Wed, 01 Jul 2009 21:58:35 -0700 http://www.examiner.com/x-13693-Birmingham-Books-Examiner~y2009m7d1-Celebrate-Independence-Day-with-historical-fiction-remember-The-Bastard-by-John-Jakes?cid=exrss-Birmingham-Books-Examiner http://www.examiner.com/x-13693-Birmingham-Books-Examiner~y2009m6d28-Visit-an-independent-bookstore-indulge-your-need-to-read?cid=exrss-Birmingham-Books-Examiner The Alabama Booksmith in Birmingham, Alabama.Do you need a book? Who doesn’t need a book? All around Alabama, you’ll find bookstores with special events, a fine excuse to shop and buy more books, book marks, little tiny book lights, book ... Sun, 28 Jun 2009 09:24:30 -0700 http://www.examiner.com/x-13693-Birmingham-Books-Examiner~y2009m6d28-Visit-an-independent-bookstore-indulge-your-need-to-read?cid=exrss-Birmingham-Books-Examiner http://www.examiner.com/x-13693-Birmingham-Books-Examiner~y2009m6d27-Books-that-changed-lives-Part-2?cid=exrss-Birmingham-Books-Examiner Cover of Catch-22 published by Simon & Schuster.On June 25, 2009, I wrote about six books that changed the lives of six friends and one book that changed my life. Those books were vital in helping us visualize the world differently, redefine ours... Sat, 27 Jun 2009 14:34:20 -0700 http://www.examiner.com/x-13693-Birmingham-Books-Examiner~y2009m6d27-Books-that-changed-lives-Part-2?cid=exrss-Birmingham-Books-Examiner http://www.examiner.com/x-13693-Birmingham-Books-Examiner~y2009m6d25-Yearning-for-a-new-book-to-read-These-seven-books-changed-lives?cid=exrss-Birmingham-Books-Examiner Original cover of The Greek Way (1930) by Edith Hamilton. One misty, humid afternoon, too hot to even get in the pool, I began to wonder what I would read next, and stumbled into thinking about the books that had moved my friends, or caused them to ... Thu, 25 Jun 2009 14:59:03 -0700 http://www.examiner.com/x-13693-Birmingham-Books-Examiner~y2009m6d25-Yearning-for-a-new-book-to-read-These-seven-books-changed-lives?cid=exrss-Birmingham-Books-Examiner http://www.examiner.com/x-13693-Birmingham-Books-Examiner~y2009m6d22-Mary-Roach-writes-about-more-than-dead-bodies?cid=exrss-Birmingham-Books-Examiner Cover of Mary Roach's first book, Stiff, published by Norton. In 2003, I was lucky enough to find Stiff: The Curious Lives of Human Cadavers by Mary Roach on display at an airport bookstore. I picked it up though the topic struck me as a bit odd. I ... Mon, 22 Jun 2009 09:10:18 -0700 http://www.examiner.com/x-13693-Birmingham-Books-Examiner~y2009m6d22-Mary-Roach-writes-about-more-than-dead-bodies?cid=exrss-Birmingham-Books-Examiner http://www.examiner.com/x-13693-Birmingham-Books-Examiner~y2009m6d21-Joshua-Mowll-taps-into-fictional-archive-with-Guild-of-Specialists-trilogy?cid=exrss-Birmingham-Books-Examiner Cover of Mowll's third in the Operation series, published by Candlewick Press in the U.S.There are three things you need to know before reading Joshua Mowll’s triology. One: have all three books ready to go, so when you finish one, you’ll... Sun, 21 Jun 2009 16:24:08 -0700 http://www.examiner.com/x-13693-Birmingham-Books-Examiner~y2009m6d21-Joshua-Mowll-taps-into-fictional-archive-with-Guild-of-Specialists-trilogy?cid=exrss-Birmingham-Books-Examiner http://www.examiner.com/x-13693-Birmingham-Books-Examiner~y2009m6d19-10000-hours-to-spectacularity-according-to-Malcolm-Gladwell?cid=exrss-Birmingham-Books-Examiner Insert photo caption or credit here In the second chapter of the bestseller, Outliers, Malcolm Gladwell explains that great success, spectacularity (my word choice), comes from long-term commitment: in fact, at least 10,000 hours of time spent on ta... Fri, 19 Jun 2009 20:02:59 -0700 http://www.examiner.com/x-13693-Birmingham-Books-Examiner~y2009m6d19-10000-hours-to-spectacularity-according-to-Malcolm-Gladwell?cid=exrss-Birmingham-Books-Examiner http://www.examiner.com/x-13693-Birmingham-Books-Examiner~y2009m6d14-Take-a-wild-literary-ride-in-five-Jasper-Fforde-novels?cid=exrss-Birmingham-Books-Examiner Photo by Mari Roberts (2006/07).How often do you wish you could leap into a work of fiction and change a bit of the action so the ending might turn out exactly as you wanted it to—or at least different from the author’s flawed finish? Of... Sun, 14 Jun 2009 14:01:31 -0700 http://www.examiner.com/x-13693-Birmingham-Books-Examiner~y2009m6d14-Take-a-wild-literary-ride-in-five-Jasper-Fforde-novels?cid=exrss-Birmingham-Books-Examiner http://www.examiner.com/x-13693-Birmingham-Books-Examiner~y2009m6d13-Zombies-invade-British-literature-its-about-time?cid=exrss-Birmingham-Books-Examiner Cover of the 'new' novel published by Quirk Books. The revered Jane Austen’s fiction sullied by zombies? You bet. It happened earlier this year when Quirk Books published Pride and Prejudice and Zombies by Jane Austen and Seth Grahame-Smi... Sat, 13 Jun 2009 14:43:35 -0700 http://www.examiner.com/x-13693-Birmingham-Books-Examiner~y2009m6d13-Zombies-invade-British-literature-its-about-time?cid=exrss-Birmingham-Books-Examiner http://www.examiner.com/x-13693-Birmingham-Books-Examiner~y2009m6d12-Chinese-bestseller-can-an-epic-novel-be-a-comedy?cid=exrss-Birmingham-Books-Examiner Cover of Yu Hua's hit novel, published in two parts.When you decide to read 600+ pages, you make a serious commitment. In deciding to read Yu Hua's recently translated satire, Brothers, at 656 pages, you can't get away with a fleeting relationship, s... Fri, 12 Jun 2009 09:14:12 -0700 http://www.examiner.com/x-13693-Birmingham-Books-Examiner~y2009m6d12-Chinese-bestseller-can-an-epic-novel-be-a-comedy?cid=exrss-Birmingham-Books-Examiner