Welcome to Mailbox Monday, the weekly meme created by Marcia from A girl and her books (formerly The Printed Page) where book lovers share the titles they received for review, purchased, or otherwise obtained over the past week. Mailbox Monday currently is on tour, and this month’s host is Savvy Verse & Wit.
Here’s what I received:
Camp Nine by Vivienne Schiffer, from the University of Arkansas Press for an upcoming blog tour (Amazon/IndieBound)
On February 19, 1942, President Franklin D. Roosevelt signed Executive Order 9066, authorizing the military to ban anyone from certain areas of the country, with primary focus on the West Coast. Eventually the order was used to relocate 120,000 people of Japanese decent to interment camps such as the Rohwer Relocation Center in remote Desha County, Arkansas.
This time of fear and prejudice (the U.S. government formally apologized for the relocations in 1982) and the Arkansas Delta are the setting for Camp Nine. The novel’s narrator, Chess Morton, lives in tiny Rook, Arkansas. Her days are quiet and secluded until the appearance of a relocation center built for what was in effect the imprisonment of thousands of Japanese Americans.
Chess’s life becomes intertwined with those of two young internees and an American soldier mysteriously connected to her mother’s past. As Chess watches the struggles and triumphs of these strangers and sees her mother seek justice for these people who came briefly and involuntarily to call the Arkansas Delta their home, she discovers surprising and disturbing truths about her family’s painful past. (publisher’s summary)
Schoolgirl by Osamu Dazai, from One Peace Books for review (Amazon/IndieBound)
The novella that first propelled Dazai into the literary elite of post-war Japan. Essentially the start of Dazai’s career, Schoolgirl gained notoriety for its ironic and inventive use of language. Now it illuminates the prevalent social structures of a lost time, as well as the struggle of the individual against them — a theme that occupied Dazai’s life both personally and professionally. This new translation preserves the playful language of the original and offers the reader a new window into the mind of one of the greatest Japanese authors of the 20th century. (publisher’s summary)
Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children by Ransom Riggs, from Jeanne (thank you!) (Amazon/IndieBound)
A mysterious island. An abandoned orphanage. A strange collection of very peculiar photographs.
It all waits to be discovered in Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children, an unforgettable novel that mixes fiction and photography in a thrilling reading experience. As our story opens, a horrific family tragedy sets sixteen-year-old Jacob journeying to a remote island off the coast of Wales, where he discovers the crumbling ruins of Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children. As Jacob explores its abandoned bedrooms and hallways, it becomes clear that Miss Peregrine’s children were more than just peculiar. They may have been dangerous. They may have been quarantined on a deserted island for good reason. And somehow — impossible though it seems — they may still be alive.
A spine-tingling fantasy illustrated with haunting vintage photography, Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children will delight adults, teens, and anyone who relishes an adventure in the shadows. (publisher’s summary)
Lady of the English by Elizabeth Chadwick, from a co-worker (Amazon/IndieBound)
Matilda, daughter of Henry I, knows that there are those who will not accept her as England’s queen when her father dies. But the men who support her rival Stephen do not know the iron will that drives her.
Adeliza, Henry’s widowed queen and Matilda’s stepmother, is now married to a warrior who fights to keep Matilda off the throne. But Adeliza, born with a strength that can sustain her through heartrending pain, knows that the crown belongs to a woman this time. (publisher’s summary)
A Northern Light by Jennifer Donnelly, from a co-worker (Amazon/IndieBound)
Sixteen-year-old Mattie Gokey has big dreams but little hope of seeing them come true. Desperate for money, she takes a job at the Glenmore, where hotel guest Grace Brown asks her to burn a bundle of secret letters. But when Grace’s drowned body is fished from the lake, Mattie discovers the letters reveal the grim truth behind a murder.
Set in 1906 against the backdrop of the murder that inspired Theodore Dreiser’s An American Tragedy, this astonishing novel weaves romance, history, and a murder mystery into something moving, real, and wholly original. (publisher’s summary)
What books did you add to your shelves recently?
Disclosure: I am an IndieBound affiliate and an Amazon associate.
© 2011 Anna Horner of Diary of an Eccentric. All Rights Reserved. Please do not reproduce or republish content without permission.
enjoy your books. Schoolgirl looks good. I’ve got Camp Nine as you know.
LikeLike
Schoolgirl is really short, like 100 pages. You can borrow it if you want when I’m done.
LikeLike
What a great mix of books. SCHOOLGIRL caught my eye. I haven’t read much from Japanese authors, but I’m seeing more and more of them on blogs.
LikeLike
I’m curious how the issues the girl dealt with right after WWII are similar with what young girls are dealing with right now, if there are any similarities. I also haven’t read much by Japanese authors, and I plan to remedy that.
LikeLike
What a great selection of mixed reads. Enjoy them all.
LikeLike
Thanks, Mystica!
LikeLike
I love the cover for Camp Nine! Such a beautiful cover for such a non beautiful subject! And A Northern Light is wonderful!!! It turned me into a rabid Donnelly fan!
LikeLike
Glad to hear you liked A Northern Light. I’ve never read anything by that author, but it sounded like an interesting book so I was more than happy to take it off my co-worker’s hands. 😉
LikeLike
Lady of The English looks really good. Enjoy all your books.
LikeLike
Thanks! I’ve never read any historical fiction about that era, so I’m excited.
LikeLike
Great Mailbox! I loved Lady of the English and A Northern Light. All the others look great.
LikeLike
Glad to hear you liked both of those. I’m feeling better about adding them to my shelves now.
LikeLike
Great books Anna! My daughter really loved Miss Peregrine’s and I hope you do too! Lady of the English was awesome and I really need to pick up A Northern Light as I adore Jennifer Donnelly’s books.
LikeLike
I’m so intrigued by Miss Peregrine. Those photos are so creepy!
LikeLike
Nice variety of books. The cover of Camp Nine really grabbed my attention. I’ve read Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children and will be curious to see what you think of it.
Have a terrific week, Anna!
LikeLike
I hope to read it after things settle down in the new year. I can’t believe I’m already thinking about 2012!
LikeLike
Haven’t read any of these, but they look interesting. Some lovely covers too – enjoy!
LikeLike
Thanks!
LikeLike
You have an interesting collection this week. Hope you enjoy them all. I’m very curious about Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children….
Here’s MY MONDAY MEMES POST and
MY WEBSITE
LikeLike
Thanks! I can’t wait to make time for that one.
LikeLike
I really enjoyed Miss Peregrine. And Jennifer Donnelly! I don’t think you can go wrong with her.
LikeLike
Good to hear, since I haven’t read anything by her yet.
LikeLike
So many good books!! I’m not reading Camp Nine but something like it, also set around the internment camps — should be fascinating. Can’t wait to see what you think of Camp Nine.
LikeLike
I’m looking forward to your thoughts on the book you’re reading about the internment camps. So much of my WWII reading centers on Europe, so I haven’t read too much about the internment camps.
LikeLike
Miss Peregrine is awesome. Enjoy your books!
LikeLike
Thanks! I really have high hopes for that book.
LikeLike
Camp Nine is on my wish list. I can’t wait for the book tour to see what you think of it. I’m still waiting to read Miss Peregrine. My daughter still has it in her book bag. First she started taking my shoes, now my books! Good thing I like to share!
LikeLike
That’s how it is when you become a mom. You have to share, like it or not. It’s the opposite for me; The Girl took books off my shelves first, and now she takes my shoes, too!
LikeLike
The new Chadwick book looks good!
LikeLike
It does look good! My co-worker said she enjoyed it.
LikeLike
A great looking mailbox, enjoy! them all.
http://tributebooksmama.blogspot.com/2011/10/mailbox-monday_31.html
LikeLike
Thanks, Nicole!
LikeLike
Lovely books this week! Happy Halloween to you and The Girl!
LikeLike
Thanks, Suko! Same to you and your family!
LikeLike
Looks like you got a nice selection of books. Enjoy!
LikeLike
Thanks, Carol!
LikeLike
I loved Lady of the English and I hope you enjoy it! A Northern Light sounds very good. Happy reading!
LikeLike
Glad to hear you loved Lady of the English. I haven’t yet read about that period, but it intrigues me.
LikeLike
Talk about variety! I’ll be watching for your review of Schoolgirl. Enjoy!
LikeLike
I hope to get to that one soon, since it’s really short.
LikeLike
Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children sounds like a very cool read! Hope you enjoy all your books!
LikeLike
Thanks, Kim!
LikeLike
These books look really good, but I have to say that the cover of peculiar children really creeps me out!
LikeLike
If you think the cover is creepy, you should see the pictures inside!
LikeLike
Enjoy 😀
And you can never go wrong with Chadwick
LikeLike
I haven’t read any of her books, so that’s good to hear!
LikeLike
I loved Northern Light…all the rest look great and I’m sure you’ll be adding to my reading list very soon with your reviews!
LikeLike
Glad to hear you loved it. I’m looking forward to reading it!
LikeLike
Enjoy your new books! I enjoyed both Peregrine and A Northern Light when I read them. 🙂
LikeLike
Thanks! That’s good to hear!
LikeLike
I hope you enjoy Lady of the English as much as I did! I actually hope you enjoy all your books!
LikeLike
Thanks, Teddy! Glad to hear you really enjoyed Lady of the English.
LikeLike
So many of these look good to me I don’t even know where to begin!
LikeLike
I feel the same way!
LikeLike
Nice mailbox! I loved Lady of the English, and I got Camp Nine too!
LikeLike
Great! I’ll keep an eye out for your review!
LikeLike
MISS PEREGRINE’S HOME is on my wish list – love that creepy cover (and I don’t typically enjoy creepy books).
Enjoy all your new books, Anna.
LikeLike
Thanks, Dawn! The cover drew me to it immediately, but the photos inside are even creepier!
LikeLike
Interesting selection of books this week. The only one I’m familiar with is Miss Peregrine, which sounds wonderfully creepy.
LikeLike
I’ve seen mixed reviews for it, but I have high hopes for it. I’m hoping it is “wonderfully creepy.”
LikeLike
Wow, great mailbox Anna! Happy reading!
LikeLike
Thanks, Darlene!
LikeLike
Great haul. Jealous of the Donnelly book 🙂
LikeLike
Oh, that’s good to hear! Sounds like I’m in for a treat then. 😉
LikeLike
I really enjoyed Miss Peregrine, so I hope you do too! And Im really curious about Schoolgirl, I hadnt heard about it.
LikeLike
I hadn’t heard of Schoolgirl until the publisher e-mailed me about it. The author’s life sounds fascinating and tragic, so I was intrigued.
LikeLike
Just finishing Camp Nine and I’ve been pleasantly surprised by it. Hope you enjoy it as well!
LikeLike
Great to hear! Looking forward to your thoughts.
LikeLike