Publication date: September 1, 2016 My rating: 4 out of 5 stars Read this if you like: Historical CanLit, Edmonton and Calgary settings, funny family stories, non-traditional structure Check out Paper Teeth on Goodreads Thanks to: NeWest Press for the review copy and Lauralyn Chow for answering my questions
I’ve written reviews here on Reading in Bed for many years. Writing for print publications is new to me, and there are many differences:
Getting paid
Actual deadline
No links or gifs
No writing about yourself and your feelings
You also have to limit the word count. That’s not something I do here on the blog. I love a long review. I had to keep my review of Paper Teeth under 800 words, and I had about 1,500 in my first draft.
So, if you didn’t get enough of my ramblings in Vue, here’s a longer version, along with the full text of my Q&A with Lauralyn Chow. I loved this book, and if you’re into historical CanLit, especially Edmonton and Calgary settings, you’ll want to check this out.
Fair travelers, journey to the master post if thou art lost.
First, some housekeeping. Let’s drain the moat, and polish the chaise, and powder the wigs, etc.
And uh, iron the hankies
My schedule as posted here has been thrown to the wind, and I just realized I made a mistake: The schedule has me posting a wrap-up on September 19, while the image I’ve used everywhere says the readalong ends on September 9. I’m a little disappointed you guys didn’t notice!
I want to finish sooner than later, because #ReadingRhys week starts on the 12th and I clearly can’t handle one blog event, let alone two (please follow along, I’m planning to show how Jean Rhys invented chick lit.) So to hurry things along, today I’m going to post on Books 7 and 8, and (fingers crossed) Book 9 & 10 over the weekend.
Oh yeah, I finished the book. Going camping in the rain means a lot of reading time! I must save my conclusions for the next post, but it feels good to be done.
The above image (used with permission) is pretty optimistic. Does anyone read all five books before voting? Don’t people just vote for the author they know, or the book that looks to be up their alley?
I love the Alberta Readers’ Choice Award in spite of my belief that it’s basically a popularity contest. Some great books have won (The Shore Girl by Fran Kimmel in particular).
Fair travelers, journey to the master post if thou art lost.
Another week interrupted by travel – and my reading progress was thwarted by *talkers* for two out of three flights. Only conceive how provoking!
Despite these set backs, I am still reading, if not writing as much. I’m at that point in the readalong where you just want to barrel through and finish the thing. I know a couple of participants who were stalled are finding their stride as well – check in, how are you doing?
In Book VI we finally get a semi-romantic scene between our heroine and Morty, while he’s saving her from a sudden storm. I love me some romance in the rain, even if it is a huge cliche (big Wuthering Heights fan here. Okay, and The Notebook.) Thank god the storm came and forced Morty’s hand (metaphorically!) because I was beginning to think we’d never see the day!
Disclaimer: Cecilia and Morty DO NOT ACTUALLY KISS
Fair travelers, journey to the master post if thou art lost.
This past week, two readers-along have finished the bookand at least one has run into a roadblock (or lack thereof – see Read the North’s thought provoking post). I know that most of you are trucking along, like me, but between work, travel, and being an unfit person at a fitness conference, I’m phoning it in on this update. Please, talk amongst yourselves, or read on for my super short recap.
Fair travelers, journey to the master post if thou art lost.
Over on Twitter, the fantasy casting continues. After determining that most of us are too old to know of any actresses young enough to play Cecilia, I reached out to one of our younger readers-along (early 30s! If you’re younger, please weigh in) who is pushing hard for Juno Temple, but I’m all about Saoirse Ronan. Both potential Cecilias have something to say to young Delvile (I’m not a fan right now):
Juno Temple
Saoirse
Book III ended with everyone hiding the truth, so of course, some truth comes out in Book IV. Read on for the revelations, and more than a few blackguards.
Fair travelers, journey to the master post if thou art lost.
Predictions about Cecilia’s suitors are running rampant in last week’s post, but this week, it’s all about money. Cecilia seems to the be only person with enough of it, but until she turns 21, she must rely on her guardians to access it – and none of them are making that easy. I am uneasy about her money being in the hands of these three peculiar, and in at least one case, horrid men. That usually doesn’t turn out well. Just ask RiRi:
A few readers are off the wagon, while a few are just climbing on. I’m reading ahead in Book V and believe me, you wanna stick around. Book III is short but can be confusing, so let’s break it down with gifs o’ plenty:
Fair travelers, journey to the master post if thou art lost.
It’s all happening for Cecilia this week! Our Frances vs. Fanny discussion is still going strong in last week’s post. Rick of Read the North pulled some of Burney’s sickest burns in his Book I wrap up. Much discussion about who should be cast in the roles of Mortimer Delvile took place on Facebook and Twitter. I’ll get you caught up with all that in a minute. But first, this happened:
I’m still not sure why, after years of blogging about live Canadian authors, I got called by the CBC for blogging about a dead British one, but, I’ll take it. Have a listen here. Welcome CBC listeners: if you’re reading with us, please say hello in the comments!
I was so inspired by compiling my favourite Booktube channels that I made another contribution to my own. This is my very first “tag” video, which is kind of like Top Ten Tuesday except people do them for months or even years after they’re created. I like that. This one was created three months ago by Marie Berg and has spread like wildfire through the literary-inclined Booktube community.
Here are the tag questions:
1. What book is on your nightstand now?
2. What was the last truly great book that you read?
3. If you could meet any writer – dead or alive – who would it be? And what would you want to know?
4. What books might we be surprised to find on your shelves?
5. How do you organize your personal library?
6. What book have you always meant to read and haven’t gotten around to yet? Anything you feel embarrassed never to have read?
7. Disappointing, overrated, just not good: what book did you feel you were supposed to like but didn’t? Do you remember the last book you put down without finishing?
8. What kinds of stories are you drawn to? Any you stay clear of?
9. If you could require the president to read one book, what would it be?
10. What do you plan to read next?
A new feature in which I tell you about my book-related media consumption in a conspicuous manner.
I can’t imagine a scarier scenario than being forced to sit down and watch, listen to, or read every single thing I subscribe to: every video on my YouTube feed, every new podcast on PocketCasts, every blog post on WordPress.
Okay, scary is a but much. Excruciating? Exhausting? Can’t-even-ing?
My feeds are way out of control. While there’s plenty of incentive to “curate” media that forces you to consume everything – think scrolling through Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook- it’s all too easy to stay subscribed to stuff you don’t care about when you can just stop clicking. Eventually, though, it gets to be too much and steps must be taken.
Let’s stay positive. While I curate my feeds (i.e. unsubscribe like whoa) here’s what’s made the cut, starting with Booktube.
The must watches
Steve Donoghue: Daily videos, reads everything, fastest Booktube-drama outrage-to-redemption cycle I’ve ever witnessed (#fakereadergirls, what?) and most of all, he has so much fun with this. He’s always on the verge of a laugh. Happy one thousand subscribers!
The Poptimist: High production values, hilarious, great taste, and (extremely important to me) a soothing manner and voice. His videos are the only ones I watch twice in a row, because they are that entertaining; and so packed with goodness, I miss things the first time around.
WhatKamilReads: Great taste (in books and style) and seems so warm and humble. His book recommendations are genuine and heartfelt. His video always make me smile.
exlibris: Makes classics seem just as vital and relevant as the new releases everyone else is reading.
Virginia Woof: As the kids say, I am “here for” everything she does: book hauls, book unhauls, condom hauls… yep. CanLit and LGBTQ focused and her makeup is always “on point.” (you watch too much Booktube and you just start talking like this, sorry.)
Jason Purcell: Guess who’s back? Take everything I said above and combine it in one Booktuber and you’ve got Jason.
Honourable mentions
Amanda Centre: Delightfully off kilter. Become one of her fellow cyborgs, you won’t regret it.
Emma Tobias: The only #fakereadergirls response I deigned to watch and it was a gooder.
Brixton: A brand new channel, endorsed by Jason Purcell.
Books Beauty Ameriie: It’s just one thing that’s got me subbing… if you get that reference, you should get why I died when I realized who this Booktuber is.
If you’re reading this, you’re probably a blogger, so tell me, is Booktube a big part of your book-related media consumption? Who are your must watches?
Reading in Bed 