In 1982 the Commodore 64 computer was introduced, Ronald Reagan survived being shot, the Falkland War started and ended, Michael Jackson released, Thriller, Canada repatriated its Constitution, and the first compact disc was sold in Germany. And that’s not all. In 1982 I blossomed from a naive fourteen-year-old trying to fit in with the cool kids to something much more: a naive eyeliner-wearing, fifteen-year-old trying to fit in with the cool kids. So writes Jian Ghomeshi in this, his first book, 1982. It is a memoir told across intertwined stories of the songs and musical moments that changed his life. Obsessed with David Bowie ("I wanted to be Bowie,” he recalls), the adolescent Ghomeshi embarks on a Nick Hornbyesque journey to make music the centre of his life. Acceptance meant being cool, and being cool meant being Bowie. And being Bowie meant pointy black boots, eyeliner, and hair gel. Add to that the essential all-black wardrobe and you have two very confused Iranian parents, busy themselves with gaining acceptance in Canada against the backdrop of the revolution in Iran.
It is a bittersweet, heartfelt book that recalls awkward moments such as Ghomeshi’s performance as the “Ivory” in a school production of Michael Jackson and Paul McCartney’s Ebony and Ivory; a stakeout where Rush was rehearsing for its world tour; and a memorable day at the Police picnic of 1982. Music is the jumping-off place for Ghomeshi to discuss young love, young heartache, conformity, and the nature of cool. At the same time, 1982 is an entertaining cultural history of a crazy era of glam, glitter, and gender-bending fads and fashions. And it is definitely the first rock memoir by a Persian-Canadian new waver.
I started reading this book a little over a week ago, but with Christmas and this sinus cold I can't seem to shake, I haven't had much time to finish reading it, well, until today.
I'm an 80's kid. I remember the fashion, the television and the music. Some things were great, music and movies (some) but the fashion...let's forget about that please. Reading Jian Ghomeshi's memoir brought back a few memories. Although I'm a tad younger than the author, I can relate. In 1982, I was 9, my family had just moved to a different country, I was learning a different language and trying to fit in with the other kids. I felt like an outsider but the one thing that was universal was music. Duran Duran, ruled the radio waves, with some Talk Talk and let's not forget U2, Madonna and Michael Jackson. We could probably all agree that the best thing that came out of that decade was the music.
I don't like rating memoirs because how can you really give someone's memories a rate out of five, let's just say that I had a blast (of the past) reading Jian Ghomeshi's 1982.
1982 by Jian Ghomeshi () Memoir; Published: Viking (2012); New Release; New Author; Canadian Author; Library; Books 2012 (58);
Saul Indian Horse is dying. Tucked away in a hospice high above the clash and clang of a big city, he embarks on a marvellous journey of imagination back through the life he led as a northern Ojibway, with all its sorrows and joys. With compassion and insight, author Richard Wagamese traces through his fictional characters the decline of a culture and a cultural way. For Saul, taken forcibly from the land and his family when he's sent to residential school, salvation comes for a while through his incredible gifts as a hockey player. But in the harsh realities of 1960s Canada, he battles obdurate racism and the spirit-destroying effects of cultural alienation and displacement. Indian Horse unfolds against the bleak loveliness of northern Ontario, all rock, marsh, bog and cedar. Wagamese writes with a spare beauty, penetrating the heart of a remarkable Ojibway man.
I love this book! Like the blurb says it deals with the harsh realities of the 1960s Canada, the racism, cultural alienation. What we learn in school does not cover this, yes we knew they took children from their parents. Tried to take their beliefs from them, tried to take their spirit, and in many cases their innocence and our schools don't teach us this. This book gave me some insight, on how bad it really was. I know alot of people don't want to talk about this, many deem this to be still very sensitive, but it needs to be done. It was wrong, very wrong. I want to thank Mr Wagamese for letting me experience it with his beautiful words.
Indian Horse by Richard Wagamese (5/5) Fiction; Published: Douglas & McIntyre (2012); New Author; New Release; Favorite Read 2012; Canada Reads; Canada Reads 2013; Library; Books 2012 (57);
Library Loot is a weekly event co-hosted by Claire from The Captive Reader and Marg from The Adventures of an Intrepid Reader that encourages bloggers to share the books they’ve checked out from the library. If you’d like to participate, just write up your post-feel free to steal the button-and link it using the Mr. Linky any time during the week. And of course check out what other participants are getting from their libraries!
Here are my goodies:
Jian Ghomeshi's memoir 1982. I've been waiting ages for this book, really looking forward to reading it.
This year I'm planning on reading all of the Canada Reads selections before the discussion airs, so next on my list is Jane Urquhart's Away.
I'm going full Canadiana on you! Hehe... Sussex Drive is where our Prime Minister lives...Oh those walls... Anyway Sussex Drive by Linda Svendsen is novel where the focus is on the women behind the power figures. Hmmm...can't wait.
Bella Fortuna by Rosanna Chiofalo. I couldn't resist picking this one up. The cover is beautiful. I'm hoping that the book will be good.
Another book that I've been waiting for a while now...Chris Colfer's The Land of Stories The Wishing Spell.
You can join in the fun by visiting here.
Teaser Tuesday is hosted by Should Be Reading. Here's how you play:* Grab your current read.
* Let the book fall open to a random page.* Share with us two (2) “teaser” sentences from that page, somewhere between lines 7 and 12.* You also need to share the title of the book that you’re getting your “teaser” from … that way people can have some great book recommendations if they like the teaser you’ve given!
* Please avoid spoilers!
This week's teaser:
There was no lively banter on the bench. Instead, I glared at the ice until they opened the gate to release me.
~ taken from page 176, Indian Horse by Richard Wagamese
For more Teasers visit here.
Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme hosted by the lovely ladies over at The Broke and the Bookish. This week's Top Ten consists of Top Ten Favorite Reads of 2012. Hmmm, it's going to be hard for me...So far I've read about 54 books, it may be tough...Let's what I've considered my favorite read so far this year.
Top Ten Favorite Read of 2012:
10. Anna and the French Kiss by Stephanie Perkins - I loved the way how this book brought back all those teenage emotions, the confusion and the need to fit in and finally realizing what really is important. I haven't read anything else by the author but I will definitely will be on the lookout.
9. It Takes a Witch by Heather Blake - Debut author, I'm a huge fan of cosy mysteries so I had to add one to the list. And this one is it.
8. The Dark Queen by Susan Carroll - The first book of Susan Carroll's popular series. I was hooked right from the beginning.
7. Helen of Troy by Margaret George - Historical fiction at its best! Need I say more?
6. The Masque of the Black Tulip by Lauren Willig - I've been meaning to read this series for a very long time and I finally did, still not caught up but working on it. I fell in love with series right at the beginning.
5. The Beautiful Mystery by Louise Penny - This series only gets better, even with the "little twist" the author threw in this book.
4. The School of Essential Ingredients by Erica Bauermeister - Four words: Food For Your Soul.
3. A Trick of the Light by Louise Penny - Although I enjoyed The Beautiful Mystery, I liked this one more. After Bury Your Dead I didn't know where the author would go with the series, it was a very powerful book and A Trick of the Light picked up right after and it felt seamless.
2. Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close by Jonathan Safron Foer - I fell in love with Oskar, what an incredible little boy.
1. Dancing on Broken Glass by Ka Hancock - This book was a very emotional read for me. I spent most of the time with a tissue wiping tears. Beautifully written and poignant story.
What about you? What are your favorite reads of the year? To join in the fun, visit here.
Darla Pettistone may have inherited her great aunt Dee’s Brooklyn bookstore, but it’s the store’s mascot—an oversized black cat named Hamlet—who acts like he owns the place. And when someone turns up dead, Hamlet smells something rotten in Brooklyn…
As the owner of Pettistone’s Fine Books, Darla is settling nicely into her new life, even reaching an uneasy truce with Hamlet. Unfortunately, when she needs to hire a new clerk, the finicky feline decides to lend a paw to the hiring process. He chases away applicants who don’t meet his approval, finally settling on an unlikely candidate: Robert, a book-loving Goth kid who has a secret only Hamlet knows.
And Hamlet can’t seem to stay out of trouble. One of the bookstore’s regular customers, a man who is renovating a local brownstone, claims he’s seen Hamlet prowling the neighborhood. When the man’s business partner is found dead, Darla discovers that Hamlet may have been the only witness to what could be murder. With the crafty cat’s help, she wonders if they just might be able to pounce on a killer...
My favorite fictional cat is back! I'm a proud owner of a black cat, Boo. The author's description of Hamlet both physically and personality wise is like describing Boo. Well, except for pulling out books...
Like the previous book of the series, Double Booked for Death, Hamlet is on the prowl for a murderer with a little help from his human, Darla, the owner of Pettistone's Fine Books. They also had some help from the usual gang, Jake, Professor and the newest member of their "family", Robert, a teenage ex goth book lover who has a soft spot for Hamlet. I was completely surprised on who the murderer was, but the author tied up everything very well. I hate when that doesn't happen. I loved seeing Hamlet bond with both Robert and Darla, in his own stubborn cat way. Cat owners will understand.
A Novel Way to Die by Ali Brandon (3.5/5) Mystery; Published: Berkley Prime Crime (11/2012); Series: # 2, A Black Cat Bookshop Mystery; New Release; Library; Books 2012 (56);
No one thought much of the stranger who stopped by the Ashton Corners Mystery Readers meeting. But when he's killed just moments later, Lizzie Turner finds herself in the midst of a dangerous murder mystery...
Reading specialist and mystery book lover Lizzie Turner was excited for the first meeting of the Ashton Corners Mystery Readers and Cheese Straws Society hosted in Molly Mathews's old Southern mansion. But she didn't expect the gathering to become the scene of an actual murder. A stranger has been shot -- and nobody knows who the victim is, or how Molly's antique gun came to be used as the murder weapon.
As the plot becomes all too real, the police chief -- Lizzie's former high school crush -- steps in to investigate. Then Lizzie begins finding mysterious manuscripts chapters in her mailbox, and Molly surfaces as the next name on the killer's list...
I'm on a roll...another mystery and another first book of a series, Ashton Corners Book Club mystery series, by Erika Chase.
I enjoyed the premise of the story, a mystery book club investigating their own case, or least what they thought as their own. And that escalates to something more. Plus you add several interesting characters, the possibility of one or two romances, a hunky Chief of police, a puppy and two cats, I'm in heaven. Ok, not quite, but it was a good read. I'm looking forward to read the next book in the series.
A Killer Read by Erika Chase (3/5) Mystery; Published: Berkley Prime Crime (3/2012); Series: # 1, Ashton Corners Book Club; New Author; New Release; Library; Books 2012 (55);
Library Loot is a weekly event co-hosted by Claire from The Captive Reader and Marg from The Adventures of an Intrepid Reader that encourages bloggers to share the books they’ve checked out from the library. If you’d like to participate, just write up your post-feel free to steal the button-and link it using the Mr. Linky any time during the week. And of course check out what other participants are getting from their libraries!
My loot this week:
You can join in the fun by visiting here.
Top Ten Tuesday is an original feature/weekly meme created here at The Broke and the Bookish. This feature was created because we are particularly fond of lists here at The Broke and the Bookish. We'd love to share our lists with other bookish folks and would LOVE to see your top ten lists!
Each week we will post a new Top Ten list that one of our bloggers here at The Broke and the Bookish will answer. Everyone is welcome to join. All we ask is that you link back to The Broke and the Bookish on your own Top Ten Tuesday post AND add your name to the Linky widget so that everyone can check out other bloggers lists! If you don't have a blog, just post your answers as a comment. Have fun with it! It's a fun way to get to know your fellow bloggers.
This is my first time participating in this meme. So here it goes...This week's topic is Top Ten New To Me Authors I Read In 2012:
1. Ka Hancock - I read her debut book, Dancing on Broken Glass, and was amazed by it. The book was very well written, I couldn't put it down. I cannot wait for her next book.
2. Erica Baurmeister - I cannot express how much I enjoyed The School of Essential Ingredients! It was amazing!
3. Sarah Jio - This is an author that I've been meaning to read for a while, but never got around to. I'm glad that I read The Violets of March was beautifully written with wonderful and colorful characters.
4. Susan Carroll - Another author that has been on my to read list for a very long time. I read The Dark Queen recently, and now I'm hooked. Love the author style of writing and her characters was very interesting and some are very mysterious. Yep, I'm hooked.
5. Juliet Blackwell - I came upon this author and her the first book of the series by browsing the mystery shelves at my local library. Secondhand Spirits was a great book and I fell in love with Oscar the main character's pot bellied pig.
6. Heather Blake - Read her first book, It Takes a Witch, back in March and really enjoyed it. Great first book for a paranormal cosy mystery.
7. Meg Donahue - How to Eat a Cupcake was a great book. Loved the characters, and their determination to make it, both on the business front but also on recovering their friendship.
8. Stephanie Perkins - Earlier in the year I read Anna and the French Kiss. I enjoyed the story and it brought back memories of my teenage years, both good and bad.
9. Stephanie Sloan - I discover another historical romance series that I need to follow. I'm not up to date yet, but I will definitely be picking up more of the author's books. The Devil in Disguise was a great little story.
10. Jane Myers Perrine - The Welcome Committee of Butternut Creek was suggested to me by a friend. Although I enjoyed the small town feel of the book, I found that it reminded me a lot of Jan Karon's Mitford series, and it felt short in comparison.
Winter is big business in small-town Snowflake, Vermont. Tourists arrive to hit the ski slopes--and what could be more satisfying after a chilly day of carving powder than a steaming bowl of soup?
When Lucky Jamieson inherits her parents' soup shop, By the Spoonful, she realizes it's time to take stock of her life. Should she sell her parents' house or move in herself? Does she really want to run a restaurant business? And what about her grandfather Jack, who seems to be showing signs of Alzheimer's?
But her life decisions are moved to the back burner after an icy blonde tourist is found frozen to death behind the soup shop. And Lucky is bowled over when her soup chef, Sage DuBois, is led out of the kitchen by the police. As suspicion and speculations snowball, Lucky decides that the only way to save her employee and her business is to find out herself who iced the tourist--and landed her chef in the soup...
I'm on a roll... Another mystery, another first book of a cosy series and another pretty decent read. A great way to spend a weekend, I say.
Lucky comes back to her hometown to run her parents business after their sudden death. I have a soft spot for this type of character, I love the way they feel somewhat guilty that they didn't spend enough time with their loved ones while alive that they need to move back home and take over the family business. Yes, I'm a sap.... Ok, I'm not too bad. I loved the way she took care of her grandfather, she was concerned about the possibility that he has Alzheimer's. Plus taking care of a business, an old crush and her chef being accused of murder, she has a lot on her plate. But she manages to do everything including solve a murder and free Sage, said chef. I guess that's the beauty of these small cosy mysteries, fast paced and super characters, I just wished there was a little more humor. Not the slap stick type, just the humorous characters that lighten-up the story. There were a couple moments but I wanted a little bit more.
A Spoonful of Murder by Connie Archer (3/5) Mystery; Published: Berkley Prime Crime (8/2012); Series: # 1, Soup Lover's Mystery; New Author; New Release; Library; Books 2012 (54);
Rita Jewel has a dream job selling fabulous clothes and accessories to the socialites of San Francisco at Dolce's Boutique. But when a pair of heels becomes a clue in a murder, Rita finds herself engaged in a high-end crime of fashion...
Society maven MarySue Jensen has old San Francisco money and an eye for style. That's why she must have those handmade silver stilettos special ordered from Dulce's by their top fashionista, Rita Jewel. She'd die before she wore anything less at the biggest charity event of the season. That same night, MarySue Jensen's cold, lifeless body is found in Golden Gate Park...tragically barefoot.
What kind of remorseless, fashion-conscious maniac would swipe a pair of handcrafted stilettos from a corpse? With her boss a prime suspect, Rita Jewel -- and unnervingly sexy detective Jack Wall -- must track down a killer. But before Rita engages in such a dangerous game, she has one nagging question...What does one wear to solve a crime?
Another good mystery for me.
I loved that this story is set in San Francisco, one of my favorite cities. I'm not a huge fashion follower, I'm what people call comfortable. I love my jeans and tees! But I enjoyed how these characters are fashionista willing to do and get everything they think is fashion. The main character, Rita, I'm not sure about just yet, I'll have to read more of the series. The mystery itself had me guessing, one chapter was one person, next chapter was someone different and I was completely surprised on who it was.
Shoe Done It by Grace Carroll (3/5) Mystery; Published: Berkley Prime Crime (10/2011); Series: # 1, An Accessories Mystery; New Author; Library; Books 2012 (53)
