Author Archives: Melissa Beck

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About Melissa Beck

My reading choices are rather eclectic. I enjoy reading a wide range of books especially classics, literature in translation, history, philosophy, travel writing and poetry. I especially like to support small, literary presses.
July 23, 2014 · 12:08 pm

Review: The Curse of Van Gogh by Paul Hoppe

The Curse of Van GoghWhen I saw this book on NetGalley the title stood out to me.  I will admit that, yes I do oftentimes judge a book by its cover.  Although I usually don’t read very many thrillers, the chance to read about a high stakes art heist that involved Van Gogh’s paintings made me hit the “request” button and I am glad I did.

Tyler Sears had other plans for his life, but one thing led to another and now he is an art thief.  Not only does it pay the bills, but it gives him an adrenaline rush and allows him to meet some “interesting” people.  But when a heist goes bad in Madrid, he finds himself on the wrong side of a jail cell and he vows to get out of the thieving business once he is released.

As Tyler is trying to keep a low profile and get his life back on track after his 18 month stint in prison, he is approached by a wealthy Japanese business man who wants him to pull off the greatest art heist of all time, which of course, involves stealing the self-portrait of Van Gogh which famously has a curse attached to it.  Although Tyler has sworn off the art heist business, Mr. Imasu will not take no for an answer and is threatening not just Tyler’s life, but also those of his family and friends.  Imasu’s thugs are an entertaining part of the book and are your typical gun toting, trigger happy gangsters.

And in the midst of all of this we need an interesting love story, so Tyler meets and falls head-over-heals for Lucy, who is a marketing director for the Guggenheim.  I liked her involvement in the plot and as the story evolves we are left wondering if she will embrace Tyler’s lifestyle or if their relationship is doomed from the start.

THE CURSE OF VAN GOGH is a fast-paced, high-octane read that is perfect when you want something entertaining to read on the beach.   As we follow Tyler through shootouts, car chases, and encounters with Interpol agents we are left wondering if he will end up doing 20 to life or dead.  Will he also become a victim of Van Gogh’s famous curse?

 

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The Mad and The Bad

The Mad and The Bad

2 Comments

Filed under Mystery/Thriller, Summer Reading

July 21, 2014 · 10:33 am

Christmas in July Blog Hop Giveaway

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Welcome to the Christmas in July Blog Hop! A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens has always been my favorite Christmas book. I am giving away a $15 Amazon Gift Card so that you can buy your own Christmas book. In order to enter the giveaway, there are two simple steps:

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1. Please follow The Book Binder’s Daughter in ONE of the following ways:              

  • Like My Facebook Page               FollowMe-Logo-lrg
  • Follow Me On Twitter 
  • Subscribe to The Book Binder’s Daughter blog via e-mail (to the right)
  • Follow my reviews or be my friend on Goodreads
  • Follow me on Bloglovin (button to the right)

2.  Fill out the Google Docs Form with some basic information:

             

         The winners will be chosen on July 31st by Random.org.  You will have 3 days to respond via email or I will pick a new winner.  You must be able to accept an Amazon Gift Code via email.

Don’t forget to enter the other giveaways on the blog hop.  There are OVER 100 blogs doing giveaways.  Good Luck!

Click here to see the full list of participating blogs…

The Winner is Sue A.

Thanks so much to everyone who participated and welcome to all of my new followers.  Your support means so much to me!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

7 Comments

Filed under Giveaways

July 18, 2014 · 8:53 pm

Review: Short Story Masterpieces by American Women Writers edited by Clarence Strowbridge

I received a copy of this book from Dover Publications through NetGalley

49994-4 Cover ][.inddThe editors of this book have aptly named this collection of short stories “Masterpieces.”  I enjoyed each and every one of the stories in this anthology.  The stories are penned by American female authors that date from the 19th through the early 20th century.  Edith Wharon, Willa Cather, and Kate Chopin are just some of the fantastic female writers that are represented in this book.  The theme that runs throughout this collection is that women are resilient and are much stronger than others often give them credit for.

 

One of my favorites in the collection is “The Revolt of Mother” by Mary E Wilkins Freeman (1852-1930).  A woman is married to a farmer for over 40 years and in that time she is a faithful and hardworking wife and never complains about the shabby conditions of their house.  One day the farmer decides to build a fancy new barn and the wife makes it known that she is not pleased with this.  She has been living in a rundown house and the farmer promised to build her a new place to live but never delivered on his promise.  One weekend when the farmer is away, the wife takes matters into her own hands and shocks not only the farmer, but also the local preacher and the rest of the town with her daring actions.  The moral of this story, like many of the others in this collection, is not to underestimate the power of a woman when she really wants something.

 

One of the most common remarks that I get from people when find out that I review books and have a blog is that they don’t have time to read.  If you truly want to work more reading into your schedule and lack the time, then I highly recommend giving short stories a try.  Even if you read for only 5 minutes a day, you will be exposed to some fantastic writing, especially in this collection of SHORT STORY MASTERPIECES BY AMERICAN WOMEN WRITERS.

 

Goodreads is currently giving away copies of this book.  To add the book to your Goodreads profile and/or enter the giveaway click here:

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2 Comments

Filed under Short Stories

July 16, 2014 · 1:37 pm

Review: A Man Called Ove by Fredrik Backman

I feel particularly lucky that Atria books has provided me with a copy of this book through NetGalley.

A Man Called OveI absolutely adored this book for so many reasons. I know that I cannot possibly do the brilliance of this novel justice in this brief review.  But do read it, you will not regret it.

Ove is a man who tells us that he sees the world in black and white.   He drives a Saab, he pays his taxes and his mortgage and never calls in sick to work.  Sonja, his wife, is the color, the only color in his world.  So when she dies and he is forced into an early retirement, he decides that he no longer wants to live.

Each time Ove tries to commit suicide, his well-meaning but annoying neighbors foil his plans. This book does have its sad moments but it also gave me a hearty laugh at many points.  As much as Ove wants to just be left alone and keep the outside world at a distance, that world keeps encroaching on his peace.  He even ends up living with a mangy alley cat even though he doesn’t like cats.

On the surface, Ove seems like a crabby old man who is mad at the world.  But through a series of flashbacks to earlier times in his life we learn that fate has not been very kind to Ove.  One of the themes of this book that will resonate with a wide range of readers is the fact that we should not judge a person’s exterior because behind every human face is a story.

This is one of those rare books in which I savored every word and will be thinking about it long after I finished the last page and wipe the tears from my eyes. Fredrik Backman is a master at character development.  It is not easy to write an engaging novel with a single character as the focus.  If you choose to read one book this summer, then it should be A Man Called Ove.

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Journey By Moonlight

Journey By Moonlight

 

 

 

 

 

2 Comments

Filed under Literature/Fiction, Summer Reading

July 14, 2014 · 4:17 pm

Review: The Mad and The Bad by Jean-Patrick Manchette

The Mad and The BadI received an advanced copy of The Mad and The Bad from the publisher through Edelweiss.  This book was originally published in 1972 in French.  It is translated for the New York Review of Books Classics series by David Nicholson-Smith.

Wild and Crazy!  Wow. Those are the first thoughts that came to my mind after reading the first page of The Mad and The Bad.  But as dramatically as the book starts, I realized that fun was only just beginning.  This book is the literary equivalent of an action packed, high speed car chase, shoot out type of movie.

A patient from an insane asylum, Julie, is suddenly sprung from her padded cell and given a job as a nanny to an eccentric millionaire’s nephew.  Julie pops some tranquilizers and tries to adjust to the outside world and to get acquainted with Peter, the bratty seven year old that she is charged with looking after.

As if the psychiatric patient-turned-Nanny isn’t exciting enough, the reader is also introduced to Thompson, a contracted killer who is hired to carry out a hit on Julie and Peter.   Thompson is a fascinating and chilling character who has psychosomatic stomach pains that only ease when he is murdering someone.  He and his band of cronies have really met their match when they try to bump off Julie, the newly released psychiatric patient.  Who hired Thompson to kill Julie and Peter?  Who could be so crazy as to plan the murder of a child?

I really enjoyed the succinct prose of this book as no word is wasted to describe the intense action.  I highly recommend The Mad and The Bad as an entertaining, fast-paced read. The New York Review of Books has provided us with a translation of yet another great classic.

 

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5 Comments

Filed under Classics