Monday, August 28, 2017

Enter to Win a Signed Copy of Life Among the Ashes via Goodreads

Hi everyone! Happy Monday to you.

We're closing up the house and preparing for a heatwave. Yuck. The worst part of it is that we're enrolled in a program that allows the power company to shut off our AC for up to six hours at a time to save energy, and I know they're going to shut it off from 4-8 today.

I can deal with it, even though it's hot, but having to put my girls down for bed in a really hot bedroom is the worst. I'm dreading it already.

In better news, I thought it would be fun to do a giveaway of Life Among the Ashes. Head over to Goodreads to enter a signed copy. It'll be fun!



Goodreads Book Giveaway

Life Among the Ashes by Emily Kazmierski

Life Among the Ashes

by Emily Kazmierski

Giveaway ends September 04, 2017.
See the giveaway details at Goodreads.
Enter Giveaway

Monday, August 21, 2017

Classic Books Everyone Loves, But I Hate

I've read a lot of classics. Up until a couple of years ago, a vast majority of the books I read were at least 50 years old. What can I say? I like old books. :)

But there are some classics that I can't stand. I know they've endured for many reasons, but these books make me angry.

Jane Eyre



I know--it's a shocker. I can't stand Rochester. He is so repellent. Read it again, you say. You'll appreciate him more. Alas, dear reader, I've read Jane Eyre three times (thanks to high school and college professors who assigned it), and the subsequent readings aren't changing my mind. Oh well.

Wuthering Heights



I'm not exactly sure why anyone loves this book, although I know many do. Heathcliff is an absolute monster. He's physically and emotionally abusive, manipulative, dishonest, greedy, and altogether hateful. No fictional character has made me as stabby as he did.

The Jungle



No book has made my stomach turn like this one. It's yucky. 

A cool aside: my mother in law recently moved to a darling little community, and she lives right down the street from where Upton Sinclair lived. I may have gotten a little excited about it. It's a gorgeous house too.

So, what about you? Are there any classics that leave you scratching your head or wishing to throw the book across the room? Do tell.

Thursday, August 17, 2017

Books at the Top of My TBR Pile

In between reading the classics I haven't read, but should, there are tons of books I want to read. I'll never be able to read them all.

I also feel that way about my list of recipes to try: so much food, so little time.

Anyway, here are some that are at the very top of my virtual stack.

Ready Player One by Ernest Cline



Hag-seed by Margaret Atwood



Scar Island by Dan Gemeinhart


Fifteen Dogs by Andre Alexis


The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas


Commonwealth by Ann Patchett




Write This Down by Claudia Mills



My Life With Bob by Pamela Paul



The One Memory of Flora Banks by Emily Barr



The Complete Persepolis by Marjane Satrapi




Tell me, what books are at the top of your list?

Monday, August 14, 2017

How Do You Organize Your Books?

We organize ours by color because it looks amazing. See?


I'll admit that it's a bit tricky when I'm trying to find a book and I don't remember what color it is, but I think it's worth it.

Do you notice the clock on the second shelf? It was my grandma's. It's an Ansonia clock and it's about 110 years old. It's one of the few things I inherited from her and I'll keep it always.

How do you organize your books? Alphabetically? By category? Do you stack them wherever there's room? A curious mind wants to know. 

Thursday, August 10, 2017

Classics I Haven't Read, But Probably Should

There are hundreds of books that people consider to be "classics," and not everyone agrees on which ones qualify. There are even lists you can check off to see how well read you are. I've played those games, and they're fun because I've read more of them than a lot of people. I like old books. :)

But there are some classics that I haven't read, for one reason or another, and I probably should. Have you read these? Are there any you have been meaning to read, but haven't yet?

1984 By George Orwell


Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger


The Hound of the Baskervilles by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle


The Color Purple by Alice Walker


Invisible Man by Ralph Ellison



Honorable Mentions

The Pearl by John Steinbeck
The Sun Also Rises by Ernest Hemingway
A Tree Grows in Brooklyn by Betty Smith
One Hundred Years of Solitude by Gabriel Garcia Marquez
The Yearling by Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings
The Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath
Slaughterhouse-Five by Kurt Vonnegut

Let's connect on Goodreads

Friday, August 4, 2017

Get Malignant for Free from Now 'Til August 8

I'm so excited about the launch of Life Among the Ashes that I'm giving Malignant away for free.


Happy reading,

- Emily

Thursday, August 3, 2017

Tuesday, August 1, 2017

Today is Release Day - Life Among the Ashes is Available on Amazon

You guys, it's finally here. Life Among the Ashes is available on Amazon. And guess what? Because I'm so excited about it, I'm making it $0.99 for the first three days. So get over there and grab it.