historical fiction Archives - Page 3 of 3

Happy National Coffee Day!

September 29, 2011

If you’re looking to justify your second or sixth cup of coffee this morning, then my friend, you’re in luck. Today from Philly to Phoenix and St. Paul to San Antone java junkies are hoisting their ceramic mugs high in celebration of National Coffee Day. For the next twenty-four glorious hours, you can feel free to throw caution to the wind and make that extra coffee run, upsize to the venti, and drink in all the holiday cheer. Chances are good, however, that after sipping Americanos all afternoon you’ll need some way to occupy your time as you lie awake into the wee hours humming with caffeine. So as our holiday gift to you, allow us to present the following coffee-related books and movies in honor of today and your future sleepless night. Without question, these histories, mysteries, travelogues, and thrillers are sure to become part of your Coffee Day traditions for years to come.

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Geraldine Brooks’ Latest Novel Debuts

May 5, 2011

Geraldine Brooks’ new novel is out and it sounds, like her other works, different and highly original. Caleb’s Crossing centers around the first American Indian to attend Harvard. The Pulitzer winner set this book in Martha’s Vineyard during the 17th century. (EPL has ordered it.)

Shira S.

An Interview with Tim W. Brown

April 26, 2011

Tim W. Brown is not an author to limit himself to a single genre. In Second Acts – Brown’s latest novel following Deconstruction Acres (1997), Left of the Loop (2001), and Walking Man (2008) – the long-time Chicagoan and current New Yorker effortlessly blends sci-fi and western elements into the comic historical tale of Dan Connor, a 21st-century slacker who time travels to 1830s America in search of his adulterous wife. Winner of the 2010 London Book Festival Award for General Fiction, Second Acts is a sly, satirical page-turner in the vein of Mark Twain that is guaranteed to leave readers laughing and thinking. On Thursday, May 5th, you can hear Mr. Brown read from Second Acts when he visits EPL’s 1st Floor Community Meeting Room at 7 p.m. along with local author Paul McComas. In anticipation of his visit, we recently spoke with him via email about his extensive research for Second Acts, Potawatomi berdaches, second chances in American life, and what he’s working on next.

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PS to Haggadah Post …

March 29, 2011

People of the Book by Geraldine Brooks (who won a Pulitzer for her 2006 work March) is a work of fiction based on the Sarajevo Hagadah. This is the only significant novel about hagadot I was able to find. One of the earliest illuminated Jewish manuscripts, the priceless antique haggadah serves as the vehicle for a 500-year worldwide journey tracing its ownership in an exciting adventure that takes Hanna Heath, an Australian rare book expert, to Europe in 1996. For more details, click on the author’s name above. Click here for the NY Times review in 2008.

Shira S.

Marcia, Marcia, Marcia and Alice, Alice, Alice

March 3, 2010

What do you do when the whole world wants you to stay a child forever? When your juvenile self is more real and lovable to everyone you meet than the adult you?

Such was the real life plight of two very different women: Alice Liddell Hargreaves and Maureen McCormick, better known respectively as “Alice in Wonderland” and “Marcia Brady”. Both were cemented in the public consciousness at a very young age: Hargreaves was 10 when Alice in Wonderland was written, McCormick 13 when The Brady Bunch became a hit. Both spent their adult years trying to distance themselves from their fictional alter egos, with varying degrees of success. Continue reading “Marcia, Marcia, Marcia and Alice, Alice, Alice” →