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Jan 16, 2008

Faith-Anne rated it:

I can't begin to tell you how many wonderful books that I've gotten from "Book Lust". It's a perfect manual for deciding just what to read. It's also a great conversation starter. While carrying it around I've had people ask me about it. So besides being a wonderful book of books, it also has gained me some literary friends.

0 comments like (5 people liked it)

Mar 07, 2011

Amanda rated it:

I have great respect for Nancy Pearl. Anyone who has turned reading into a "profession" deserves some serious props. That combined with a title as awesome as Book Lust (I tried to read this in public as often as possible, holding the cover up where everyone could see my wanton bibliophilia on public display) was an irresistible siren song to which I had to give in.

After an inspiring introduction on the pleasures of reading, the book basically consists of recommended rea More...

6 comments like (7 people liked it)

Nov 16, 2007

Katie rated it:

I'm a huge fan of booklists, and this was a good example of one. Most of the books chosen by Pearl aren't bestsellers or award winners, but are more obscure options that you probably haven't read yet. She arranges the collection into 175 useful, creative, and humorous lists. The lists are named specifically, presented in alphabetical order, and posted in the Table of Contents. Some examples are: Adventure by the Book, Bird Brains (books about birds), Fathers and Daughters, First Novels, Shrinks More...

1 comment like (2 people liked it)

Jun 24, 2008

Janelle rated it:

It's not like I honestly need any more book recommendations, my to-read list is already more than I'm likely to get through in a lifetime. But Nancy Pearl grew up near my hometown, I enjoy her reviews when I hear her on NPR and when it comes to lusting after books I think I've found a kindred spirit. So I thought I'd take a look.

The recs are divided into all kinds of lists - such as books about zero, Elvis, New Orleans, sex and natural disasters.
It's sure to expose me to som More...

1 comment like (1 person liked it)

Dec 02, 2011

jenn rated it:

A good read for thinking about next year's reading list. Also very quick - about 65% of the book are titles and descriptions organized into categories of interest, and the rest is a handy title/author index.

A couple of small issues:
1. The categories could get a little cutesy with names. For example, I already forget the name of the baseball category - something like "Star Sluggers," even though it wasn't just about batting - but it came right after the "sports" More...

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Oct 21, 2011

Amber rated it:

If I remember correctly, Paul Weimer was the one who recommended this to me. And I haven't regretted it since. This is actually the second time I've read through it, and this time, I have a notebook to write down the books that interest me and I want to read.

The book is incredibly easy to read, with lots of different categories for the reader to immediately go to some of their favorites. While there are some books that I am disappointed to see missing (most particularly Neil Gaiman' More...

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Mar 20, 2011

Martin rated it:

I have to say I was disappointed by this book and would not have bought it if I had opened it up and read some pages in a bookstore. Sure this book covers many books for different moods, and there it does well in its choices. I won't even argue with the choices. However, I expected more then two or three sentence descriptions of the titles mentioned, and at least some plot info. For instance it referenced The Godfather in the Italian American writer section. This is the sentence on it,"Of C More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Oct 10, 2010

Kate rated it:

I don't generally like books that are marked up, and avoid them when I see them in the used book stores, but Nancy Pearl's Book Lust cries out to be marked up with underlines, checkmarks, notes in the margins, and highlighted with every possible color. Unfortunately, I was reading a copy lent to me by a friend, and I had to resist the temptations. Time to buy my own copy, re-read it, and mark it up to my heart's content. (And all the other Book Lust books!)

Nancy Pearl is a READER, a More...

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Apr 26, 2010

Sarah rated it:

Book Lust. Nancy Pearl. 2003. Sasquatch Books. 287 pages. ISBN 1570613818.

Nancy Pearl is a long-time librarian and writes book reviews for both local and national publications. Her book expertise and recommendations are gathered in Book Lust, a compilation of books of all genres for every mood, moment, and reason as is her catch-phrase.

Thumbing through Book Lust, you'll find the most intriguing categories and descriptions of books and novels you most likely would never ha More...

3 comments like (1 person liked it)

Apr 21, 2009

Nicholas rated it:

Just a collection of her favorites throughout varied genres. Here are some of her recommendations I took to heart for whatever reason.

Biographical Novels (pg 37)
1. Cloudsplitter - Russel Bank
2. Raising Holy Hell - Bruce Old

Black Humor (pg 40)
1. Kill your Darlings - Terence Blacker

Epistolary Novels (pg 79)
1. Griffin and Sabine - Nick Bantock
2. A Woman of Independant Means - Elizabeth Forsythe Hailey

Fathers and Daughters More...

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Nov 06, 2011

Angel rated it:

Of her two books, this first one is the better one. One has to give Ms. Pearl credit for being such a voracious reader and for parlaying it into a career. She also deserves credit for encouraging people to read for pleasure and to find what works for them. The book does have some misses, some which I have jotted down in my updates here such as lumping scifi, fantasy, and horror in one section. Maybe it irked me because I am a reader in those genres, and I think they deserve their own treatment, More...

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Jun 15, 2007

Lisa rated it:

Not at all comprehensive and it can be downright frustrating when “perfect” books are left out of the various sections. But it’s a way to find new books, and new authors also, in lists with many diverse catagories. Also can bring up good memories of books already read. And these Book Lust books are an enjoyable read - I read them cover to cover. Would recommend making a detailed list of books to read as read about them, which is something I didn’t do.

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

May 09, 2010

Laura rated it:

Recommended reading lists are predicated on the recommender's personal likes and dislikes, quirks and foibles...as it should be. After all, a computer program can recommend books based on your buying/browsing trends, but it can't give you an emotional argument as to why you should bother giving a certain book a chance. Which is why I love reading recommended-reading books, not because I don't already have a 3-ring binder full of lists, book review pages, and book club catalogs, all with starre More...

1 comment like

Aug 29, 2010

Rebecca rated it:

This is a comprehensive and entertaining collection of lists, detailing Nancy Pearl's recommendations for good books in every possible category imaginable -- including many she made up herself. Pearl is a rock star in the librarian world, and she's undoubtedly the most well-read person I've encountered. My one complaint is that Pearl's taste in reading is so promiscuous and seemingly undiscerning that you wonder at times if she isn't recommending any and every book she encounters. I tend to b More...

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May 10, 2009

Rebecca rated it:

Nancy Pearl, librarian, describes herself as being a “professional reader” for over thirty years, and taking one look at this book was enough to convince me of that.

Book Lust boasts ‘recommended reading for every mood, moment and reason’, with books gathered around both general and random topics such as

• Africa: Today and Tomorrow
• Armchair Travel
• Bicycling
• The Classical World
• Mothers and Daughters
• Three-Hanky Reads

For the mos More...

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Jan 28, 2009

Jz rated it:

Get our of your rut! Get this book!

My daughter works at a used book store, and gave me this to keep me from constantly asking her to recommend books for me, since our preferences have diverged more in recent years. (I'm just not into graphic novels and microbiology.)

That said, everyone should have a copy of this book and its companion (More). Of course, it's not the list of the thousand books you must read before you die. Someone else did that, so don't whine that it doe More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Aug 24, 2010

Mary rated it:

I'm gonna hit the average of 3 stars for this one, for a few reasons. First, I love most of the category format she uses. I can't tell you how many times I've finished a book or a movie and wished I knew of more of that same 'style' of writing.

Although the book seems to have tons of great recommendations (I haven't tried them yet, but I put some on hold in the library), there is SO much information that I feel like I'm wading knee-deep in a flooded rain gutter, looking for the best More...

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Jun 04, 2010

Ruth rated it:

227 pages. Donated 2010-01.

All the books you wanted to read in 2003. Not exactly a prize winner.

What to read next is every book lover's greatest dilemma. Nancy Pearl comes to the rescue with this wide-ranging and fun guide to the best reading new and old. Pearl, who inspired legions of litterateurs with "What If All (name the city) Read the Same Book," has devised 170 thematic reading lists that cater to every mood, occasion, and personality. These annotated lis More...

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Jun 14, 2009

Sarah rated it:

While Pearl doesn't seem on my level of reading tastes, it was refreshing to hear of some unknown books (and I'm a prowler of so called 'cult' and under-the-radar novels) and authors that I could check out. I particularly enjoyed her preface, where she stated that she knew of no nobler profession than that of the librarian. While it may be an idealistic statement...I do believe that librarians are the true anarchists of the world, so anyone who professes such is on my good side. In any case I More...

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Jan 12, 2012

Courtney rated it:

I'm not really sure what to rate this book. It definitely doesn't read like a book, it's more like a list. An extremely extensive list of books to read. And I'm sure that they are all really great (except Deep End of the Ocean, which I didn't enjoy and can't figure out why it's popular) BUT other than giving a general category that they fall under (WWI non-fiction, Baseball novels, Books about Fathers & Sons, etc) it doesn't really give enough of a hook on any of these books to make me want to g More...

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Mar 12, 2010

Marisa rated it:

I am such a huge Nancy Pearl fan.

The reason I'm always in the middle of seventeen different books and can't consistently finish one book at a time in an organized fashion is because I have reading moods: I want something scholarly and thought-provoking, or I need something trashy, or I want something set in Paris or during the 1960s, etc. Nancy Pearl completely gets this, and recommends her favorites accordingly. Culled from a lifelong career working as a librarian, Nancy makes sens More...

2 comments like

Jul 18, 2011

Cheryl in CC NV rated it:

Y'know, Pearl means well. But her annotations are so simplistic, if you're not willing to fly blindfolded, she won't be much help. I glanced at every page and used this website to look up a few of her recommendations, but found nothing to add to my to-read list. And I didn't *read* much at all, so I won't take credit but rather call it DNF.

Two main problems - 1) if your taste doesn't match hers, you'll often be disappointed. 2) GoodReads community reviews and Listopias and groups More...

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Jan 03, 2011

Sarah rated it:

Checked out from the St. Louis Public Library - Carondelet branch.

This book is equal parts inspiring and exhausting - it left me calculating the approximate years I might live and the approximate number of books I might be able to read before I die. And now I find myself in an outright panic that I will never finish all the books I would ever want to read.

While this book might seem like a one-time reference, I am seriously considering adding it to my personal library. Why More...

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Jan 02, 2012

Erin rated it:

This book was not what I imagined. I suppose I expected a book of essays, with each essay an analysis of a particular book and why it was significant for the author. For the Love of Books is something of a model for that. But no, Book Lust is basically a thickened-out list of librarian-approved "you might also like"s. There's nothing wrong with that. The books are spread apart into different chapters which represent categories and genres, so you can find recommendations for exactly wha More...

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Dec 25, 2011

L rated it:

I got this for Christmas (I am a big girl and don't have to wait till the 25th <grin>) WONDERFUL book that is grouped by Sections/Topics such as: Bomb Makers, Latin America Fiction, Pawns of History, Russian Heavies, World War II Fiction etc., with each section listing a few books and a short description. Most of the sections take up <1 page so, this little gem is packed with recommendations. I love the authors advise in regards to her favorites may not be your favorites - take 100 mi More...

2 comments like

Apr 08, 2011

Patricia rated it:

I love lists.

While some of Pearl's recommendations are predictable and mainstream, her lists are quite varied and interesting. There are a number of books listed here that I've never heard of before and many that sound wonderful. My to-read list is in danger of overflowing beyond what is attainable in my lifetime.

I borrowed this copy from the library and read through it quickly, but this is one of those references that I'd like to have available on my shelf for those times wh More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Jun 28, 2008

Tempe rated it:

This book was great, if you like books about books. She has lots of great book descriptions, categories and suggestions for books that go well together.

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Mar 17, 2010

Lisa rated it:

The author is The Librarian who even has an action figure based on her - it shushes, bringing her arm up, finger to lips - PRECIOUS!! This is an excellent reference for your home library. She lists books by topics, mainly, with detailed descriptions. She includes some great advise, for instance - she likes to give a book 50 pages before deciding if it's good enough to keep reading. She says to not feel bad if you don't like the book, just lay it down and maybe go back to it another time. Sometim More...

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Jun 18, 2011

Danica rated it:

Plus for introducing me to Connie Willis, who then went on to blow my puny brains with Passage. Altogether remarkable, Passage.

Minus for forgetting to include Dorothy Dunnett in the historical fiction section (a mistake she then goes on to specifically address -- "Sometimes I wake up at night and think: How could I?" -- and remedy in the sequel title).

Minus for conflating fantasy, science fiction, and horror into one section, and not even a very long one at that. E More...

4 comments like

Dec 16, 2009

Scott rated it:

What an unfortunate title. I expected some bibliothecal titillation, Viagra for the bookworm, tales of mad pursuit, extreme in their quest to hunt, have, and swallow whole the objects of our literary passions. But like all lusts, this joy proposed proved a very woe. Instead of a biblio-buzz, I wasted an hour or so skimming over some of the most limp and dispassionate recommendations of modern writing imaginable. To my shame, I didn't finish the book. In fact, Pearl recommends that you abandon a More...

2 comments like