Wednesday, July 14, 2010

Eats, Shoots and Leaves by Lynne Truss

Eats, Shoots and Leaves
Lynne Truss
2003, 2004, Gotham, New York
1592400876
204p.

This is a book about punctuation. Not exactly a style guide, though it does inform the reader of the main conventions of punctuation, it's more of a educated rant from a literate stickler.

I really loved this: it's proof that I'm not the worst grammar or punctuation Nazi around. It also taught me a thing or two I didn't know about the correct use of punctuation, which is fantastic! Now I just have to remember it all and not slip back into old ways.

Link to journal at bookcrossing

Thursday, July 8, 2010

Ottoline and the Yellow Cat by Chris Riddell

Ottoline and the Yellow Cat
Chris Riddell
2007, 2008, HarperCollins, New York
9780061448812
171p.

Ottoline is a little girl living with a Norwegian swamp creature in a house full of her parent's strange collections. When a series of robberies and dog disappearances disrupt her neighbourhood, Ottoline decides to investigate.

This is such a clever, cheeky little book. The illustrations are gorgeous and I liked how they were multi-layered. It's a good story too.

Link to journal at bookcrossing

Tuesday, July 6, 2010

For Rouenna by Sigrid Nunez

For Rouenna
Sigrid Nunez
2001, Farrar, Straus and Giroux, New York
0374254303
230p.

A writer living in New York starts a friendship with a woman, Rouenna, who wrote to her after reading her novel. Rouenna was a nurse in the Vietnam conflict and tells of her experiences.

I enjoyed this. It was disjointed and odd, but I like it like that. The characters were all brought to life gradually and the stories of the conflict and of life in the Project were heartbreaking.

Link to journal at bookcrossing