Welcome back, my fellow creatives! Winter is the perfect time to curl up in a blanket with a pile of books, and I can think of no better place to find those books than at the local library.
It’s all too easy to just meander over to my favorite sections, though, and 2022 is the year to try new things! So, for this series on Story Cuppings, I am only going to pick books from my library’s New Release shelf by the entrance. Those books could be of any genre, fiction or nonfiction. If it’s on that shelf, it’s game for a podcast!
Today I plucked from the New Release shelf:
What does a reader experience in those opening pages, and what lessons can a writer take away in studying but a few paragraphs? Let’s find out!
If you do not see the audio player above, you can access the podcast here.
I’m debating if I’ll continue this theme into spring, or if I’ll check out books aligned to the reading-themed months. Blondie also wants to come back onto the podcast sometime, too, so maybe she’ll be a monthly co-conspirator. We’ll keep on trying new things, right? 🙂
And say, what’s on the New Release shelf at your own local library? I’d love to know!
Read on, share on, and write on, my friends!
Jean Lee's World 
A good inclusion of your library xxxxxx
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I’m thinking so as well! This one surprised me.
Still not happy about the dust jacket blurb, though. ;-P
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Ah…I was thinking, theis blog and cast was a great way to bring in your actually library. But yeah the same applies to the book. Often blurbs are something else.
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Great approach to choose from your New Release shelf.
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Thank you! Considering the tightness of budgets after holiday spending, this method feels waaaaay more feasible. AND it forces me to read new stuff. I bug Blondie about it enough–time to follow my own directions! 🙂
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Beautifully presented, Jean. You’ve intrigued me. I love Selkie legends, and this one certainly does have a strong opening. I’ve checked our library, and this one is not on the shelf, but I might now look at something else by Melanie Golding.
I gave up reading dust jackets some time ago, as I’ve rarely found them to the point. Actually, mostly quite the opposite, and that’s including the illustrations. So, I’m assuming there’s still plenty of story to follow, even if they have presented a massive spoiler.
I’m very much looking forward to sharing more of your and Blondie’s discoveries. I love having my reading-range extended.
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Thank you, Cath! So happy to see you and hope you get to blog every now and again in 2022. 🙂 I see lots of positive words spoken of Golding’s other work, so perhaps that will whet your appetite until HIDDEN is available. Hmmm, maybe I should do a series on dust jackets sometime…
Anyway, I do hope you enjoy some of Blondie’s books! She had so much fun sharing them, and only one got a “meh” out of me. (You’ll know because I’m not that enthused during the podcast, lol.)
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Love these kinds of finds!
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I know, right? Librarians are the bestest. xxxxx
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💃🏻👍
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🏃🏼♀️🏃🏼♀️🏃🏼♀️this is me running to the library wracked with guilt for staying away so long (my excuse: browsing time curtailed because of covid). I’m drawn to the fantasy-folklore element to that book so I’m jotting that title down to take with. I’ll let you know what they have on their ‘new arrival’ shelves next time. Yes. We must support our local library – use it or lose it. Thanks for the shaming, Jean! x
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I share the head-hanging, Chris. 🙂 My excuse, seem to read more books for work than pleasure, these days.
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That’s a shame, Cath. I hope you get some enjoyment from your enforced reading though. Missing you from the blogiverse.
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Oh, I get the feeling, Cath. It feels like I read student papers more than anything else, and those do not necessarily inspire much story-writing. Sigh.
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Yes, exactly, Chris! I LOOOOOVE libraries and will use them whenever I can. We should never underestimate what they share with us!
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I’d love to be a librarian in a future life… or own my own bookstore 😉
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Oh, me too. When I was scrambling for more work because teaching had so little, I had hoped to work in our local library. Nope, no hires. Then a few months after I started working full time, they hire a ton of people, the Goobers. Ah well!
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