Ultimate Popsugar Reading Challenge discussion
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Ask a librarian for a FICTION recommendation
Hi librarians! So I love Mr. Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore. I would love to find something that has that same feeling, but whenever I try to find similar books, I just get lists of books about bookstores (which is a pretty shallow definition of "similar").
Any recommendations? Please no YA or romance. Thanks!
Thegirlintheafternoon wrote: "Kat wrote: "Thank you so much for volunteering to help, Librarians! I would really value your advice. The books I typically read are fiction novels. I've never really described my taste in books ..."
I'll check it out! Thanks!
Jackie wrote: "Hi librarians! So I love Mr. Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore. I would love to find something that has that same feeling, but whenever I try to find similar books, I just get lists of..."
Hi Jackie! These recommendations are about books, but I see more similarities to Mr. Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore than just that - The Invisible Library and The Eyre Affair are fast-paced, inventive adventure/spy novels with a literary setting.
Erin wrote: "Hello librarians! I just joined this challenge and I'd love a recommendation :) I love everything I've read by Lorrie Moore, Roxane Gay, Suzanne Scanlon, and Chloe Caldwell, The Mothers by Brit Ben..."Erin, I'm not a librarian, but I think that given the books you listed, you might really like A Tale for the Time Being, if you haven't already read it.
Thegirlintheafternoon wrote: "Jackie wrote: "Hi librarians! So I love Mr. Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore. I would love to find something that has that same feeling, but whenever I try to find similar books, I ju..."
Thanks for the help, I've put myself in the library's hold line for both. When (if?) it ever gets to be my turn, I'll let you know what I think of them!
Thegirlintheafternoon wrote: "Hi Laurie! A few suggestions: Another Brooklyn and Nutshell are both literary fiction with gorgeous writing, and they're both great on audiobook if you like to listen!"Thank you so much! I am going to start Nutshell tonight, and I think I'll use your recommendation of His Majesty's Dragon for the "genre I don't usually read" prompt. Again, thank you!
Laurie wrote: "Thegirlintheafternoon wrote: "Hi Laurie! A few suggestions: Another Brooklyn and Nutshell are both literary fiction with gorgeous writing, and they're both great on audiobook if you like to listen!..."You're welcome! Hope you enjoy!
Jackie wrote: "Thegirlintheafternoon wrote: "Jackie wrote: "Hi librarians! So I love Mr. Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore. I would love to find something that has that same feeling, but whenever I t..."
The hold list pain is so real - hope they end up being worth the wait!
Thegirlintheafternoon wrote: "Amanda wrote: "Hello librarians!Can you recommend some books for me? I read a lot of horror novels. My favorite authors are Stephen King, Blake Crouch, Blake..."</i>
Thank you! I have read [book:Dark Matter. But I will try Feed.
Amanda wrote: "Thegirlintheafternoon wrote: "Amanda wrote: "Hello librarians!Can you recommend some books for me? I read a lot of horror novels. My favorite authors are Stephen King, Blake..."</i>
Have you read any of [author:Clive Barker's books? My personal fave - though I haven't read too many of his books - is The Thief of Always.
Well, I got The Eyre Affair from the library...and I can't stand it. I feel bad because you recommended it, but I have to be honest. That book is just...not good. I can't get past the third chapter. It's so poorly written, with dialogue out of a third-tier crime drama. I just can't. And I think I'm going to cancel my hold on the Invisible Library too...I just don't think it's going to be my cup of tea either. Sorry.
Jackie wrote: "Well, I got The Eyre Affair from the library...and I can't stand it. I feel bad because you recommended it, but I have to be honest. That book is just...not good. I can't get past the ..."@ Jackie: maybe try
...? I haven't read Mr. Penumbra's 24 hour bookstore myself, but honestly when I read its book jacket blurb, Alif came to mind immediately. FWIW my library shelves Alif in the adult section, and Mr. Penumbra in the YA area, so I suppose they both have cross-generational appeal. Best,
Minna - Librarian, with bun, no glasses
Jackie wrote: "Hi librarians! So I love Mr. Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore. I would love to find something that has that same feeling, but whenever I try to find similar books, I just get lists of..."
Have you tried The Storied Life of A.J. Fikry by Gabrielle Zevin
or The Little Paris Bookshop by Nina George?
I would love a recommendation! I'll pretty much read anything, aside from romance, as long as it's a good story.
Nina wrote: "Jackie wrote: "Hi librarians! So I love Mr. Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore. I would love to find something that has that same feeling, but whenever I try to find similar books, I ju..."
I read the Little Paris Bookshop...painfully. It was readable, but it was so unrealistic. I wrote a pretty scathing review of that one and put Nina George on my never again list.
Thanks for trying, but I think I'm on my own with this one.
Jackie wrote: "Well, I got The Eyre Affair from the library...and I can't stand it. I feel bad because you recommended it, but I have to be honest. That book is just...not good. I can't get past the ..."No need to feel bad! Honestly, I didn't like The Eyre Affair, either - I DNF'd it at around 75 pages in. But I've given it to some people who loved it, so as always, different tastes rule the day! I'm sorry it was a bad match for you. Good luck finding something that you'll love!
Thegirlintheafternoon wrote: "Emma wrote: "Hello librarians! Thank you so much for helping out in this way. Hard to describe my tastes really, beyond just listing some of my favourite books of all time:
Cold Comfort F..."</i>
Just to say thank you to *Thegirlintheafternoon* - I raced through [book:The Girls at the Kingfisher Club: A Novel yesterday and absolutely loved it!
Jackie wrote: "Nina wrote: "Jackie wrote: "Hi librarians! So I love Mr. Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore. I would love to find something that has that same feeling, but whenever I try to find simila..."
I also felt the The Paris Bookshop left something (serious) to be desired. Have you tried The Readers of Broken Wheel Recommend?
Keep in mind that librarians are intrepid folks generally. Sometimes it takes us a little time to truly understand what it is you as a reader find most appealing - or not.
Nina wrote: Ok, then let's try this, oh Intrepid Librarian. Let's start by avoiding books about books, because they are generally sappy and self-indulgent, not to mention pedantically unoriginal (exhibit A: the inexplicably long list of books about bookstores in which the owner has a special gift for giving just the right book to just the right person so as to change their life). Let's avoid anything that gets described as "touching". Let's avoid books where romance is the only thing on the main character's mind. And for the love of all that's holy, please can the gods of the publishing world put a moratorium on teenage main characters.
What I love about Mr. Penumbra's is it's realism. The characters and the setting are real, not some jumbled mess of an attempt at a new sci-fi/fantasy hybrid world. While yes most of the characters are in their early twenties it's not their youth that makes them relatable. Mr. Penumbra could just as easily have been a seller of used pocket watches and it would still be a great book. The adventure is fun and the plot is good but the reason I've read this book probably 6 times since I bought it is that the characters are realistic and multidimensional.
There's your mission, should you choose to accept it. Find a book like Mr. Penumbra's.
PS: Do you know the cover glows in the dark? That's the kind of author Robin Sloan is; that had to cost extra and he probably had to insist on it. His book glows in the dark.
I'm not a librarian (anymore) but I can say that I also read and loved Penumbra's ... I found it after I read (and loved) Ready Player One by Ernest Cline. I went on the search for something similar after devouring Ready Player One and came across Mr. Penumbra's. Maybe you would enjoy it too? :)
Oh and, bonus!, it's not a book about a book. Lol!
Emma wrote: "Thegirlintheafternoon wrote: "Emma wrote: "Hello librarians! Thank you so much for helping out in this way. Hard to describe my tastes really, beyond just listing some of my favourite books of al..."
Glad you enjoyed it, Emma!
Hi, Librarians, can you please help me pick a book. I love fiction, something like The Nest, Wonder or suspense like Big Little Lies...
My dead librarians please recommend a book for me.I read just about anything and everything. Not a fan of fantasy or science fiction.
most read genre is mystery (Jonathon Kellerman) I also love Nordic mystery authors.
Some favorite authors( where I have read almost everything they have published) are Jonathon Kellerman, Liane Moriarty, Alice Hoffman, Kate Atkinson, Jodi Piccolt. Camilla Läckberg Just to name a few.
Hi all,I just read a great book and had to share! NoViolet Bulawayo's We Need New Names. Bonus it fulfills the "book by/about an immigrant/refugee" task.
Liz, Academic Librarian, MI
Hi! I am looking for some book suggestions. I will read most anything. I love historical fiction, stories that have humor in them and books with beautiful writing. The type where you go back and read single sentences over and over again because they are so beautifully worded you can hardly stand it.Some of the books I,have read recently and loved:
The Hundred-Year-Old Man Who Climbed Out of the Window and Disappeared
Everyone Brave is Forgiven
A Fall of Marigolds
Small Great Things
Homegoing
Thanks in advance!
Jill wrote: "Hi! I am looking for some book suggestions. I will read most anything. I love historical fiction, stories that have humor in them and books with beautiful writing. The type where you go back and re..."Hi Jill,
I cannot recommend these two books highly enough: We Need New Names by NoViolet Bulawayo and In the Shadow of the Banyan by Vaddey Ratner. Bulawayo has some humor in it, but Ratner is very serious.
Hello Librarians!I am trying to find a book that overlaps more than one reading challenge, so have a rather specific request. I am looking for a "space pirates" book by an author of color.
I quite like science fiction/ urban fantasy books and I'm happy to read YA. I love the October Daye series by Seanan McGuire & the Glamourist series by Mary Robinette Kowal. Other recent favorites include:
- Sorcerer to the Crown
- The Ghost Bride
- Heroine Complex
- The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet
- Bad Feminist
Side note: I love graphic novels & read a lot of them, but I need a non-comic suggestion for this prompt. (Favorites include, but are not limited to Saga, Bitch Planet, & Nimona.)
Eujean2 wrote: "Hello Librarians!I am trying to find a book that overlaps more than one reading challenge, so have a rather specific request. I am looking for a "space pirates" book by an author of color.
I qu..."
If you haven't read them yet, Binti and Home by Nnedi Okorafor are great! Gorgeous Afro-Futurist scifi that I think could definitely be considered space pirates - I particularly liked Binti on audiobook. Also great, though more of a stretch for space pirates, is Nalo Hopkinson's Midnight Robber.
Hope one of these appeals to you!
Hey, are there librarians here? If yes, please please please suggest me a few YA or fantasy novels!!
Jessica wrote: "Milaarquen wrote: "Hello Librarians,I really need your help!
I love science fiction and would be grateful if you could suggest something for me.
Thank you in advance.
XD"
[book:The Martian|180075..."
Jessica could you please suggest me too, a few books? I mostly read YA and Fantasy but you could suggest any good fiction (I'm not into non-fiction) ?
Minna wrote: "Anna wrote: "Hi,I was wondering if someone could please recommend a book for me? I love ..."
Minna, i too need your suggestion
Erin wrote: "Milaarquen wrote: "Hello Librarians,I really need your ..."
Erin, please suggest me some YA/fantasy
Thegirlintheafternoon wrote: "If you haven't read them yet, Binti and Home by Nnedi Okorafor are great! Gorgeous Afro-Futurist scifi that I think could definitely be considered space pirates - I particularly liked Binti on audiobook. Also great, though more of a stretch for space pirates, is Nalo Hopkinson's Midnight Robber."Thank you, Thegirlintheafternoon!
Binti is on my TBR list, but I hadn't thought of it for this prompt. I'm reading Who Fears Death for another prompt, so it can be a Nnedi Okorafor two-fer.
And I've added Midnight Robber to my TBR list. I suppose I could read it for the book set at a holiday prompt, if I don't read A Long Way Down.
I love having choices.
Liz wrote: "Jill wrote: "Hi! I am looking for some book suggestions. I will read most anything. I love historical fiction, stories that have humor in them and books with beautiful writing. The type where you g..."Thanks, Liz! In the Shadow of the Banyan is already on my TBR. I can't wait to read it. We Need New Names also sounds like something I would like.
Greetings Librarians!!!I'm in need of a recommendation! I love fiction adventure and my all time faves in that category are The Odyssey, The Three Musketeers, The Princess Bride and The Secret Garden.
I've been wanting to try a go at one of the female classics... but I read Pride and Prejudice a long time ago and kinda hated it, but is there anything else along the lines of a grown up version of The Secret Garden out there? I love lightheartedness even if the reading is sort of dense. :)
Thank you for your time!!
Hello, I was wondering if anyone could tell me if The Island of Dr. Moreau by H.G. Wells would count for the prompt of a book set in the wilderness? Also, I have never read anything by Wells. Is he a tough read?
Thank you!!
Jessica wrote: "Hi Laura! I like a lot of the same books that you have on your list! I recently read My Grandmother Asked Me to Tell You She's Sorry by Fredrik Backman and really enjoyed. It's al..."
Hi Jessica. I just bought that book so I will take that as a recommendation for that category as well.
Thanks :-)
Hello librarians! I'd love a recommendation.Here are some books I rated with 5 stars last year:
A Man Called Ove
A Court of Mist and Fury
The Wise Man's Fear
No Time for Goodbye
Pretty Girls
Roses
Thanks in advance!!
Lusie
Hello Librarians!I am reading "chapter books" to my girls ( ages 7,4,3). We have recently enjoyed My Father's Dragon, The Secret Garden, and Anne of Green Gables. My Father's Dragon was the two littles favorite since it was easy enough for them to understand. I am looking for a recommendation for our next read.
Thanks!
Priya wrote: "Erin wrote: "Milaarquen wrote: "Hello Librarians,I really need your ..."
Erin, please suggest me some YA/fantasy"
Hi Priya - sorry for the super-late reply - have you read Of Fire and Stars or The Dark Days Club? Both are YA fantasy that I've seen very highly recommended, though I've not read either.
Alix wrote: "Greetings Librarians!!!I'm in need of a recommendation! I love fiction adventure and my all time faves in that category are The Odyssey, The Three Musketeers, The Princess Bride and The Secret Ga..."
Hi Alix - sorry for the late response - have you read The Scarlet Pimpernel? I've not read it myself, but it's definitely an adventure classic by a woman! I would also put Jane Eyre in a similar category as The Secret Garden - though I'd never thought of the latter as an adventure before, so YMMV.
Sara wrote: "Hello Librarians!I am reading "chapter books" to my girls ( ages 7,4,3). We have recently enjoyed My Father's Dragon, The Secret Garden, and Anne of Green Gables. My Father's Dragon was the two l..."
Hi Sara! I read Tuesdays at the Castle a couple of months ago and found it super-charming. Plus, if you and your kiddos enjoy it, there are several more in the series!
Sara wrote: "Hello Librarians!I am reading "chapter books" to my girls ( ages 7,4,3). We have recently enjoyed My Father's Dragon, The Secret Garden, and Anne of Green Gables. My Father's Dragon was the two l..."
OK, Sara, so I'm not a librarian but I have two girls ages 5 and 7 and they just LOVED Beezus and Ramona
What a cute idea. Thanks for the recommendation!Thegirlintheafternoon wrote: "Sara wrote: "Hello Librarians!
I am reading "chapter books" to my girls ( ages 7,4,3). We have recently enjoyed My Father's Dragon, The Secret Garden, and Anne of Green Gables. My Father's Dragon ..."
Lusie wrote: "Hello librarians! I'd love a recommendation.Here are some books I rated with 5 stars last year:
A Man Called Ove
A Court of Mist and Fury
The Wise Man's Fear..."</i>
Hi Lusie! Sorry for the late reply - because you loved [book:A Man Called Ove, I'd recommend My Mrs. Brown and Major Pettigrew's Last Stand, and because you loved Roses, try The Shell Seekers.
Thank you so much, Thegirlintheafternoon!I see that The Shell Seekers is already on my tbr, but I hadn't heard of the other books. I have added them all to my tbr. Thank you!
Dear Librarians -My sis gave me almost all of John Grisham's books and I would like some recommendations as to which ones I should read first - or, suggestions for some good contemporary mysteries. I also have been collecting some classics that have been staring at me from my shelves - A Tree Grows in Brooklyn, Green Dolphin Street, Anna and the King of Siam, The Black Rose, and David Copperfield
Which one would you recommend?
Patricia wrote: "Dear Librarians -My sis gave me almost all of John Grisham's books and I would like some recommendations as to which ones I should read first - or, suggestions for some good contemporary mysterie..."
I would start with A Time to Kill.
For mysteries I love Louise Penny's series. Start with Still Life and remember the series gets better as you go :-)
Ultimate Popsugar Reading Challenge
Books mentioned in this topic
Ready Player One (other topics)The Book of Lost Things (other topics)
Homegoing (other topics)
Ellen Foster (other topics)
Hello, Sunshine (other topics)
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Authors mentioned in this topic
Neal Shusterman (other topics)Nnedi Okorafor (other topics)
NoViolet Bulawayo (other topics)
Camilla Läckberg (other topics)
Liane Moriarty (other topics)
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I would really appreciate a book recommendation! I mostly read literary fiction and classics. I like to stretch my horizons, and I am open to genre fiction as long as the writing is..."
Hi Laurie! A few suggestions: Another Brooklyn and Nutshell are both literary fiction with gorgeous writing, and they're both great on audiobook if you like to listen! I recently read and enjoyed Barbara Pym's classic Excellent Women, and if you're in the mood for a big stretch, I highly recommend His Majesty's Dragon, the first book in the Temeraire series, which reads like Austen actually following the soldiers into the Napoleonic Wars - only the soldiers fight with talking dragons. I avoided this book for a long time, but I absolutely loved it!