This is a fascinating book about Isabella de Medici and her life as the daughter of Duke Cosimo, 1 —one of intellectual and romantic freedom as long as her father was alive. Given in marriage to Paolo Orsini, she completely ignored her husband living apart from him, refusing to leave Florence, and eventually taking a lover.
Cosimo doted on his daughter permitting her opulant, extravagant and permissive life-style. However, upon his death he was succeeded by his dour son, Francesco, who regarded his sister’s freedoms as a family disgrace. It was then that Isabella’s fortunes changed. Her husband, Paolo, who became increasingly enraged by his wife’s behavior, arranged with the help of Francesco to murder her—lots of intrigue and suspense to hold the reader captive!
The backdrop for this story is Renaissance Florence with its balls, salons, parties, and hunts. Murphy draws on a trove of newly discovered and published documents to tell this story of the Medici’s and Florence in the sixteenth century—a most enjoyable and satisfying read.

-Yvonne

Leif Enger, the author of Peace Like a River, visited Lemuria  Friday evening while touring his second novel, So Brave, Young and Handsome (the title of the novel came from an old cowboy song “The Streets of Laredo”). So Brave, Young and Handsome has had a warm reception so far from my friends and Lemuria’s readers.

The Event Friday evening was casual. We had a small crowd and Leif Enger is as down to earth as any author I’ve met. We all enjoyed his talk and of course his flattering words about what a great bookstore Lemuria is endeared him to us immediately. He could have been speaking in generalities about indie bookstores but he called Lemuria “[a] guardian of the culture.”

On that note, I have lifted my quote of the week directly from ShelfAwareness (who lifted it from BookSlut). All to say, this is a great quote about the importance of independent bookstores to our culture:

““I believe that culture making is not a luxury; it is a fundamental, sustaining function of society. And we must fall back onto remaking it ourselves. As long as there is a social need for independent minds, I believe that there will be a call for independent bookstores.”–Kristen Eide-Tollefson, owner of the Book House in Dinkytown, Minneapolis, Minn., in a Bookslut.com interview.”

He was a young cowboy in search of a homeland

He rode ‘cross the ranges in search of a bride

His strength was his glory, so brave and so handsome

His weakness was gambling, his downfall was pride.

–“The Streets of Laredo”

This summer I am going to compile a list of the books that I am reading and suggest that you read for “Summer Reading”. I think that all books are “Beach Books” so there will something on the list for everyone. These are the books that I read in May…I will update the list at least twice a month from now on.

Oh, these books are in no particular order….

A Dangerous Age––Ellen Gilchrist
“The winner of the National Book Award returns with a moving story of a family of women drawn together by the terrors and trials of the times.”

American Eve: Evelyn Nesbit, Stanford White The Birth of the “It” Girl and the Crime of the Century—Paula Uruburu
“Paula Uruburu serves up an intriguing and meticulously researched slice of American history. Evelyn Nesbit typifies the glorious excesses of the Gilded Age, and this story has everything: sex, deception, drama, and a lurid love triangle, all culminating in the crime of the century.”
–Karen Abbott, author of Sin in the Second City

The Resurrectionist—Jack O’Connell
“The Resurrectionist-a brilliantly turned, mesmerizing labyrinth of a quasi-real world as only as master artist could draw it–will jazz you, floor you, grab you, shake you, and leave you hung out to dry. A brilliant breakthrough novel.”
—James Ellroy

The Billionaire’s Vinegar: The Mystery of the World’s Most Expensive Bottle of Wine—Benjamin Wallace
“It is the fine details–the bouquet, the body, the notes, the finish–that make this book such a lasting pleasure, to be savored and remembered long after the last page is turned. Ben Wallace has told a splendid story just wonderfully, his touch light and deft, his instinct pitch perfect. Of all the marvelous legends of the wine trade, this curiously unforgettable saga most amply deserves the appellation: a classic.”–Simon Winchester

The Somnambulist—Jonathan Barnes
“A comic extravaganza, deftly plotted, fiendishly clever, and wonderfully funny. Jonathan Barnes combines a love of Victorian absurdity worth of Edward Gorey with the surrealistic invention of a London-obsessed Garcia Marquez. This parody penny dreadful is one of the classiest entertainments I’ve read in a long, long time.”–Christopher Bram, author of Exiles in America

Child 44–Tom Rob Smith
“This is a truly remarkable debut novel. Child 44 is a rare blend of great insight, excellent writing, and a refreshingly original story. Favorable comparisons to Gorky Park are inevitable, but Child 44 is in a class of its own.” –Nelson DeMille

Ok, as I was compiling my list I realized that I might have read one or two of these in April but I want you all to know about them anyway!! So come on in and see me because we have a long hot summer ahead and there are lots of good books coming out.

I’m reading as fast as I can!!!!

After reading and enjoying Steven Pressfield’s Gates of Fire on the recommendation of a friend, I was looking forward to the arrival of Pressfield’s latest novel. Killing Rommel follows the British Long Range Desert Group, which was tasked with tracking the German desert units and finding Rommel, the brilliant German tank commander. The British group had only limited support and had to act autonomously for hundreds of miles in the North African desert, trying to maintain contact with the Germans without being detected.

Pressfield tells the story of the British unit, focusing on the interaction of the men isolated in the desert, forced to rely entirely on each other for survival. The historical details of the group are impeccable, illustrating the perilous nature of operating a motor unit isolated for hundreds of miles in the desert. Less epic than some of his earlier novels, what Killing Rommel loses in grandeur it gains in immediacy. I highly recommend it to anyone who enjoys historical fiction or has an interest in WWII desert warfare.

The Wise Heart:

A Guide to the Universal Teachings of Buddhist Psychology

By Jack Kornfield

Bantam Dell (April 29, 2008)

Jack Kornfield is one of the key teachers to introduce Buddhist practice in the west. Graduation from Dartmouth in 1967, Kornfield has been institutional in bringing Buddhist psychology into western day by day mainstream living. An understanding of both mindsets that few can express as he can. He is able to make self-adaptation understandable, practical and helpful.

Wise Heart, is too much of a book to talk about in a few words. The major focal points are: Addressing who you really are; application of the good Psy-health practice of mindfulness; the understanding of self and of others; finding personal freedom and personal practice.

Just released, this is a wonderful book for the present. I have been living with Wise Heart for 2 months now, and have enjoyed it. Reading Wise Heart has increased my understanding of how to incorporate Eastern Psychology into modern life.

Fans of Jack Kornfield’s A Path with Heart and After the Ecstasy, The Laundry will not be disappointed as this story is continued.