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Showing posts with the label What's Nonfiction

Blogging Anniversary - 10 years

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A while ago I checked when I did my first blog post, in order to celebrate with an anniversary post. Well, that day came and went without any reaction from me. Better late than never, so here a reminder of my very first blog post from 24 October 2012.  The book was New Finnish Grammar  by Diego Marani. Marani is an Italian novelist, translator and newspaper columnist. While working as a translator for the European Union he invented a language ‘Europanto’ which is a mixture of languages and based on the common practice of word-borrowing usage of many EU languages. It was a suitable book to start with, being a book about letters, languages and memories. With a beautiful prose, the novel went directly to my heart.  "One night at Trieste in September 1943 a seriously wounded soldier is found on the quay. The doctor, of a newly arrived German hospital ship, Pietri Friari gives the unconscious soldier medical assistance. His new patient has no documents or anything that can ide...

Nonfiction November, week 2 - Book Pairing

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  Week 2 of Nonfiction November has started. This week it is time to pair up a nonfiction book with a fiction title, or, if you prefer, another nonfiction. Being in the modern time and age you could also pair it with a podcast, film or documentary. The choice is yours. This week is hosted by Rennie @ What’s Nonfiction I always find this theme rather difficult, but this year I found my perfect match right away. It has to do with history, what else? One of my absolute favourite books are A Gentleman in Moscow  by Amor Towles. It covers the years from 1922 when communism was new until 1954, the year after Stalin died. You might see my pairing here. Simon Sebag Montefiore has written an excellent account of Stalin's life and his deeds. It is mostly scary reading. In The Court of the Red Tsar  you get a detailed, well researched account on his life and times. It seems I did not write a review at the time, maybe because it is difficult to summaries everything that was happening...

Nonfiction November

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I can't believe it is this time of the year again. It hit me as I read Rennie's latest post @ What's Nonfiction. It is time for one of my favourite challenges, or memes, of the year, Nonfiction November. Exciting as ever and Rennie has teamed up with Katie, Christopher, Rebekah and Jamie to make this a wonderful month, guiding us with different themes each week. Head over to their blogs for full information.  Nonfiction November themes Week 1: (Oct 31-Nov 4) – Your Year in Nonfiction: Take a look back at your year of nonfiction and reflect on the following questions – What was your favourite nonfiction read of the year? Do you have a particular topic you’ve been attracted to more this year? What nonfiction book have you recommended the most? What are you hoping to get out of participating in Nonfiction November? (Katie @ Doing Dewey ) Week 2: (November 7-11) – Book Pairing: This week, pair up a nonfiction book with a fiction title (or another nonfiction!). It can be a “If...

Nonfiction November - second week

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We are now starting week 2 for Nonfiction November. This week is hosted by Katie at Doing Dewey and the theme is Book Pairing .   Week 2: (November 8-12)  This week, pair up a nonfiction book with a fiction title. It can be a “If you loved this book, read this!” or just two titles that you think would go well together. Maybe it’s a historical novel and you’d like to get the real history by reading a nonfiction version of the story.  I don't exactly know if this will be called pairing, but I hope it can do. I choose a biography I read this year. Jag vill sätta världen i rörelse  (I want to put the world in motion (my translation) by Anna-Karin Palm. It is about Selma Lagerlöf, one of our most famous authors. She was the first female member of the Swedish Academy and the first woman to receive the Nobel Prize in Literature.  The biography is very well written and researched. A detailed account of Lagerlöf's life, as well as her work. She is a person most people k...

Nonfiction November

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Nonfiction November is here. The first week is hosted by Rennie at What's Nonfiction . Since I am away from home, I don't have access to all my nonfiction. However, I did bring some along for this trip. I still have eight nonfiction waiting to be read.  - Imperiernas tid 1815-1919  (Europa's koloniale eeuw. De koloniale rijken in de negentiende eeuw, 1815-1919) by Henk Weaselling  - Fifty Plants That Changed the Course of History by Bill Laws - The Fall of Carthage by Adrian Goldsworthy - Jihad! The Secret War in Afghanistan by Tom Carew - Prisoners of Geography by Tim Marshall - Story Genius by Lisa Cron - The Time Traveller's Guide to Medieval England by Ian MortimerWomen Travellers (ed.) by Mary Morris with Larry O'Connor - A Fortune-Teller Told Me by Tiziano Terzani As usual there are mostly books on history, but there are a couple of other themes as well (plants, travelling and writing. Week 1: (November 1-5)   My year in fiction so far consists of six biograph...

Nonfiction November 2021

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Time for one of my favourite reading challenges, Nonfiction November, hosted by Rennie at  What's Nonfiction?  Head over to the web-site for more details about the co-hosts. There is a theme for each week:  Week 1: (November 1-5) – Your Year in Nonfiction with Rennie at What’s Nonfiction : Take a look back at your year of nonfiction and reflect on the following questions – What was your favorite nonfiction read of the year? Do you have a particular topic you’ve been attracted to more this year? What nonfiction book have you recommended the most? What are you hoping to get out of participating in Nonfiction November?   Week 2: (November 8-12) – Book Pairing with Katie at Doing Dewey : This week, pair up a nonfiction book with a fiction title. It can be a “If you loved this book, read this!” or just two titles that you think would go well together. Maybe it’s a historical novel and you’d like to get the real history by reading a nonfiction version of the story. ...

Non-fiction November 2020

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  Another favourite challenge is coming up, namely Nonfiction November. Hosted by Katie@Doing Dewey , Rennie@What's Nonfiction , Julie@Julz Read and Leann@Shelf Aware . As you see below, they will host one week each. As usual, each week is filled with a challenge as regards Nonfiction. It will be exciting to exchange views on our different interests when it comes to Nonfiction.  Week 1: (November 2-6) – Leann will be kicking things off with Your Year in Nonfiction: Take a look back at your year of nonfiction and reflect on the following questions – What was your favourite nonfiction read of the year? Do you have a particular topic you’ve been attracted to more this year? What nonfiction book have you recommended the most? What are you hoping to get out of participating in Nonfiction November?   Week 2: (November 9-13) – I’ll be rocking Book Pairing: This week, pair up a nonfiction book with a fiction title. It can be an “If you loved this book, read this!” or just...

Nonfiction November - week 5

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We have reached the last week of Nonfiction November. It has been a great month, with many discussions on nonfiction, various subjects and inspiration from people with other interests than my own. This week is hosted by Rennie @ What's Nonfiction  and the task is to go through recommendations through the month, and see what ended up on your TBR. In my case, they entered into my list of Wish to Read  I am not entirely sure I will be able to track all of my recommendations, so sorry about that. If you recognise it, please let me know, and I will add your link. The Brontë sisters are a big interest of mine. I love their books, but also enjoy reading about them. I have already read quite a few books, but I am happy to have received tips on some books, of which I was not aware. Lisa of Hopewell  recommended three interesting books, and they all seem different from the ones I have read before. It is always good when an author/expert manages to near the subject from a dif...