Showing posts with label Sarah-Jane Stratford. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Sarah-Jane Stratford. Show all posts

Thursday, June 9, 2016

Thirsty Thursday and Hungry Hearts - 6.9.16

Thirsty Thursday and Hungry Hearts
hosted by (un)Conventional Bookviews (details)

A meme to share some food and/or drink quotes found in current reads.

Radio Girls
by Sarah-Jane Stratford
-Historical
Amazon | Goodreads | my review

The Great War is over, and change is in the air, in this novel that brings to life the exciting days of early British radio…and one woman who finds her voice while working alongside the brilliant women and men of the BBC.

London, 1926. American-raised Maisie Musgrave is thrilled to land a job as a secretary at the upstart British Broadcasting Corporation, whose use of radio—still new, strange, and electrifying—is captivating the nation. But the hectic pace, smart young staff, and intimidating bosses only add to Maisie’s insecurity.

Soon, she is seduced by the work—gaining confidence as she arranges broadcasts by the most famous writers, scientists, and politicians in Britain. She is also caught up in a growing conflict between her two bosses, John Reith, the formidable Director-General of the BBC, and Hilda Matheson, the extraordinary director of the hugely popular Talks programming, who each have very different visions of what radio should be. Under Hilda’s tutelage, Maisie discovers her talent, passion, and ambition. But when she unearths a shocking conspiracy, she and Hilda join forces to make their voices heard both on and off the air…and then face the dangerous consequences of telling the truth for a living.



QUOTE:
A steaming plate of fried glory was soon laid before her. The mingled smells of fish in batter and plump chips with crisp skins infused with oil worked on her like barbiturates. It may not have been the elegant meal of her dreams, but she nonetheless ate with gusto.
-chapter 5, location 1077, kindle, ARC


=====> After reading this passage, getting a plate of fish and chips was a given.



Wednesday, June 8, 2016

Radio Girls by Sarah-Jane Stratford

Radio Girls
by Sarah-Jane Stratford

Find out more about this book and author:
Amazon
Goodreads
Website
Facebook
Twitter @stratfordsj

Release date: June 14, 2016
Publisher: NAL
Genre: Historical, Feminism, Women's Fiction
Paperback: 384 pages
Rating: 4

First sentence(s):
She ran, weaving in handout of the startled pedestrians, but her pursuer was still close on her heels.

The Great War is over, and change is in the air, in this novel that brings to life the exciting days of early British radio…and one woman who finds her voice while working alongside the brilliant women and men of the BBC.

London, 1926. American-raised Maisie Musgrave is thrilled to land a job as a secretary at the upstart British Broadcasting Corporation, whose use of radio—still new, strange, and electrifying—is captivating the nation. But the hectic pace, smart young staff, and intimidating bosses only add to Maisie’s insecurity.

Soon, she is seduced by the work—gaining confidence as she arranges broadcasts by the most famous writers, scientists, and politicians in Britain. She is also caught up in a growing conflict between her two bosses, John Reith, the formidable Director-General of the BBC, and Hilda Matheson, the extraordinary director of the hugely popular Talks programming, who each have very different visions of what radio should be. Under Hilda’s tutelage, Maisie discovers her talent, passion, and ambition. But when she unearths a shocking conspiracy, she and Hilda join forces to make their voices heard both on and off the air…and then face the dangerous consequences of telling the truth for a living.


My two-bits:

I enjoyed this coming of age story with a female perspective during the time between the world wars.

A snapshot of the time period was captured well and it was fascinating to learn about the world and how it was portrayed via radio.

Loved the focus on women and their struggles with traditional and career life choices and challenges.

The behind the scenes drama and workings at the BBC was also interesting to learn about.

Also, treated to mention of Selfridges department store.

About the author:
Sarah-Jane Stratford grew up in Los Angeles with a deep love of theatre and literature. After earning a bachelor's degree in history at UC Santa Cruz, she then obtained a master's degree in medieval history at the University of York in England, where she wrote a thesis about women in the manorial court system which gave her a new appreciation for the modern era.

On moving to New York, she wrote her first two novels, The Midnight Guardian and The Moonlight Brigade (St Martins Press). She has also written articles and essays for a range of publications, including The Guardian, The Boston Globe, The Los Angeles Review of Books, Marie-Claire, Bitch, Slate, Salon, Guernica, and BOMB.

In addition to theatre and activism, Sarah-Jane enjoys knitting (when the project is submitting to her will) and wandering around interesting places.

~*~

* review copy courtesy of book tour sponsored by Penguin Random House


Saturday, April 30, 2016

Stacking the Shelves - 4.30.16

Stacking the Shelves
hosted by Tynga's Reviews (details)

Stacking The Shelves is all about sharing the books you are adding to your shelves, may it be physical or virtual. This means you can include books you buy in physical store or online, books you borrow from friends or the library, review books, gifts and of course ebooks!

~*~

Bought:

Shelter
by Jung Yun
-Contemporary Fiction
Amazon | Goodreads


=====> Book Passage, Corte Madera, hosted a visit from author, Jung Yun. She mentioned that inspiration sources for the book include a home invasion incident in Cheshire, CT in 2007, her aging parents and the subprime mortgage crisis.

For Review:

Gridley Girls
by Meredith First
-LGBTQ, Women's Fiction
courtesy of blog tour sponsored by BookSparks -Thanks!
Amazon | Goodreads

The Tumbling Turner Sisters
by Juliette Fay
-Historical
courtesy of wunderkind -Thanks!
Amazon | Goodreads

Radio Girls
by Sarah-Jane Stratford
-Historical
courtesy of publisher, NAL -Thanks!
Amazon | Goodreads

Watchmaker's Heart
by Juli D. Revezzo
-Romance, Steampunk
courtesy of author -Thanks!
Amazon | Goodreads


OTHER things on my shelf: kinda book-related


Once Upon a Zombie
Book One: The Color of Fear
by Billy Phillips
-Zombies, YA
Amazon | Goodreads

=====> JOIN me for some zombies in MAY, Zombies Awareness month.

UNBOXING:

From Uppercase package (details & signup):
A hand-selected young adult book & fun bookish item, delivered monthly #UppercaseBox


APRIL Box includes:
- Scarlett Epstein Hates It Here by Anna Breslaw -signed
- Scarlett Epstein Hates It Here stickers, bookmark for interactive
- Magic Notebook from Literary Emporium
- Hagrid & Buckbeak bookmarks from BeedooTO (exclusive)
- Harry Potter Quote poster from Risa Rodil (exclusive)
- Pin for This Is Teen's #IReadYA Week (May 19-23)

Scarlett Epstein Hates It Here
by Anna Brewlaw
-YA
Amazon | Goodreads

Meet Scarlett Epstein, BNF (Big Name Fan) in her online community of fanfiction writers, world-class nobody at Melville High. Her best (read: only) IRL friends are Avery, a painfully shy and annoyingly attractive bookworm, and Ruth, her weed-smoking, possibly insane seventy-three-year-old neighbor.

When Scarlett’s beloved TV show is canceled and her longtime crush, Gideon, is sucked out of her orbit and into the dark and distant world of Populars, Scarlett turns to the fanfic message boards for comfort. This time, though, her subjects aren’t the swoon-worthy stars of her fave series—they’re the real-life kids from her high school. And if they ever find out what Scarlett truly thinks about them, she’ll be thrust into a situation far more dramatic than anything she’s ever seen on TV…


=====> Thrilled to get this book and box - always a fun treat to receive.

AND binge watching: on Netflix

Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt
tv series, season two
Creators: Robert Carlock, Tina Fey
Starring: Ellie Kemper, Jane Krakowski, Tituss Burgess
-Comedy | imdb | my rating: 5

A woman is rescued from a doomsday cult and starts life over again in New York City.

=====> Love this show! Makes me smile everytime. I also love that Kimmy's love interest is, Dong Nguyen, played by Ki Hong Lee (aka Minho from Maze Runner film).

AND watched: in theatre

Elvis & Nixon
Director: Liza Johnson
Screenplay: Joey Sagal, Hanala Sagal, Cary Elwes
Starring: Michael Shannon, Kevin Spacey, Alex Pettyfer
-Comedy, History | imdb | my rating: 4

The untold true story behind the meeting between the King of Rock 'n Roll and President Nixon, resulting in this revealing, yet humorous moment immortalized in the most requested photograph in the National Archives.

=====> This was a spur of the moment movie pick which turned out pretty good. It was a piece of history new to me. Loved seeing Colin Hanks (as Krogh) in it.


Rio, I Love You
Rio, Eu Te Amo (original title)
Directors:
Vicente Amorim (transitions)
Guillermo Arriaga (segment "Texas")
Stephan Elliott (segment "Acho que Estou Apaixonado")
Sang-soo Im (segment "O Vampiro do Rio")
Nadine Labaki (segment "O Milagre")
Fernando Meirelles (segment "A Musa")
José Padilha (segment "Inútil Paisagem")
Carlos Saldanha (segment "Pas de Deux")
Paolo Sorrentino (segment "La Fortuna")
John Turturro (segment "Quando não há Mais Amor")
Andrucha Waddington (segment "Dona Fulana")
César Charlone (segment "A Musa")
Writers:
Andrucha Waddington, Mauricio Zacharias (segment "Dona Fulana")
Paolo Sorrentino (segment "La Fortuna")
Antonio Prata, Chico Mattoso (written by) (segment "A Musa")
Stephan Elliott (segment "Acho que Estou Apaixonado")
John Turturro (segment "Quando não há Mais Amor")
Guillermo Arriaga (segment "Texas")
Sang-soo Im (segment "O Vampiro do Rio")
Elena Soarez (segment "Pas de Deux")
Otavio Leonidio (segment "Inútil Paisagem")
Nadine Labaki (segment "O Milagre") and
Rodney El Haddad, Khaled Mouzannar (segment "O Milagre") (as K. Mouzanar)
Fellipe Barbosa (transitions)
Starring: Basil Hoffman, Emily Mortimer, Rodrigo Santoro
-Comedy, Drama, Fantasy | imdb | my rating: 4

A series of short films set in the Brazilian city of Rio de Janeiro.

=====> Lovely set of films to showcase the sights and sounds (loved the bossa nova tunes in the soundtrack). Got a paranormal segment with vampires ;-) Being a bit of a foodie, I would have loved to see more of the local foods as well.

Currently flipping through: from the library

Dream Home:
The Property Brothers’ Ultimate Guide to Finding & Fixing Your Perfect House
by Jonathan Scott, Drew Scott
-Reference, How-to
Amazon | Goodreads

=====> Love shelves! I am not planning on selling or buying a home. Just felt like looking at interiors and was hoping to get ideas and inspiration for current and future living quarters. This book is perfect for that planning mode and home dreaming.

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* Happy Indie Book Day! visit your local independent book store and BUY a book ;-)

* comment and TELL me what you have acquired for your shelves recently

* per usual, check out the sidebar for my current giveaways offers

 
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