Guest Blogger: Getting Guys to Read

 My sister is back today with a post on getting the men in your life to pick up books.  Awhile ago, I did a post on books I'd recommend for my husband (who is most definitely NOT a reader), and this is a really great (and updated) accompaniment to that!

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After hearing me rave about Fourth Wing and Iron Flame (and armed with the knowledge that it is already being adapted for TV), my husband, James, decided to dive into the series.  He is not a big reader, usually gravitating towards technical books when he does (relating to his profession as a software engineer and his lifelong love of computers).  He did enjoy them and we have already preordered Onyx Storm, so we have that to look forward to next year.  Surprisingly, he wanted to continue his reading journey so it got me thinking – what kinds of books would we recommend to get the guys in our life reading?  

The Arc of a Scythe series and Dry by Neal Shusterman

  

      

All YA novels about dystopian futures, they are quick, engaging reads.  James has already read two of the three Scythe books and is loving them!

The Kaiju Preservation Society and Starter Villian by John Scalzi

 

James and I have listened to both of these and the audios are fantastic.  They are quirky and really, really funny.

Anything by Neil deGrasse Tyson or Randall Munroe

  

 

If you have a science nut in your life, you need these books.  You will learn something and definitely chuckle along the way.  I would also recommend these in audio – they are all fantastic and allowed us to have some great conversations about the material.

Do you have readers in your life?  What books would you recommend to reluctant or new readers?

* This post contains affiliate links; I earn a small commission on qualifying purchases, at no cost to you.

Top Ten Tuesday: My Most Recommended Books

 

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly feature hosted by Jana at That Artsy Reader Girl.  This week's topic is books we recommend to others the most.  I thought this was an interesting topic because no matter how many books I read or how old they get, I often fall back on the same recommendations.  Here are a few of my go-to recommendations:

Nonfiction

 

Science Fiction

Fantasy

Romance/Women's Fiction

Historical Fiction

 

Mystery/Thriller

  

What are some of your most recommended books?

Nonfiction November 2020: Seeking Royal Recommendations

 

It's Week 3 of Nonfiction November!  This week, hosted by Rennie at What's Nonfiction, is Be/Ask/Become the Expert.  This year, I'm asking for your royal recommendations!  I love reading about royalty in fiction, but I want to branch out and learn more about real-life royalty.  I've read pretty widely about the Tudor dynasty (Henry VIII's wives, Queen Elizabeth, and, tangentially, Mary Boleyn) and earlier this year I read two great nonfiction books about modern British royalty, from interesting perspectives:

   

 

A book I read last year, Princesses Behaving Badly, also inspired my desire to learn more about royalty:

So today, I'm asking for your favorite biographies about royalty - I'm not particular about the country or era, just something that's super interesting and informative!  Thanks in advance!

Top Ten Tuesday: Recommendations

 

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly feature hosted by Jana at That Artsy Reader Girl.  This week's topic is books we've read because someone recommended them to us.  Although not all specifically recommended to me, I've put together a list of books that I came across through other bloggers, ones that I might not have heard of otherwise that I ended up reading because of them.

Pancakes in Paris: Living the American Dream in France - recommended by Emma at Words and Peace 

 

Relish: My Life in the Kitchen - recommended by Stacked 

 

Virginia and The Vagabond - recommended by Stephanie at Bookfever

 

The Duke and I - recommended by Christina at Confessions of a Book Addict  

 

Jackie After Jack: Portrait of the Lady - recommended by Amy at A Magical World of Words

 

Southern Lady Code - recommended by Susie at Novel Visits 

 

Goodbye, Perfect - recommended by Suzanne at The Bookish Libra  

 

The Last - recommended by Jennifer - Tar Heel Reader

 

 

What's the best book recommendation you've ever gotten? 

Out Of This World Recommendations

While I personally would never want to go to space, I'm still fascinated by it and love books that are set there.  Here are my recommendations for some awesome fiction books that take place at least partially in space and two nonfiction books about space!

 

These Broken Stars // Good Morning, Midnight // The Martian

 Obscura // The Loneliest Girl in the Universe

 

  

Ask An Astronaut // Astrophysics for People in a Hurry

What are some of your favorite books set in space?

 

Top Ten Tuesday: Underrated Books I've Enjoyed

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly feature hosted by Jana at That Artsy Reader Girl.  This week's topic is books we've loved with fewer than 2,000 ratings on Goodreads.  One of my favorite parts of blogging is bringing some of those underrated, lesser-known books to readers, hoping they will enjoy them as much as I did.  Here is a list of books I've loved that, at the time I'm writing this post, actually all had less than 1,000 ratings on Goodreads!

 

Avalanche: 138 ratings

Waking the Spirit: 149 ratings

 

Four Three Two One: 210 ratings

The Sweetest Kind of Fate: 329 ratings

   

The Truth About Happily Ever After: 356 ratings

The Heart Between Us: 651 ratings

 

The Other Side of Lost: 732 ratings

Ask An Astronaut: 844 ratings

Rutherford Park: 870 ratings

How to Be Married: 999 ratings

 Have you read any of these?

5 Books To Read Before A Trip To Newport, Rhode Island

I first visited Newport, Rhode Island, as a teenager and loved touring its famous historic mansions.  Tom and I went together a couple years ago and it was just as beautiful as I'd remembered.  During the 19th and early 20th centuries, Newport was a summer haven for the wealthy, and so I wanted to put together a list of books inspired by this locale and the wealth and glamour of the Gilded Age.

  

 

Maid to Match: This novel follows a maid working at Biltmore, the North Carolina home of George Vanderbilt.  The Vanderbilts were a prominent family of the Gilded Age.

 

A Well-Behaved Woman:  Keeping with the Vanderbilt theme, this novel tells the story of Alva Vanderbilt, who was responsible for the construction of Marble House, a Newport cottage (and by "cottage" they really mean super-luxe mansion!).

 

The American Heiress: During the Gilded Age, it wasn't uncommon for young socialites to travel to Europe to look for husbands, gaining a title for themselves and helping save many English manors.  The American Heiress envisions one such marriage.

 

 

 

Crazy Rich Asians: This one might seem like an odd choice, but when I think of Newport, I think of unimaginable wealth (there was no federal income tax in America until 1913!), and the families within the pages of Crazy Rich Asians definitely compare.

 

A Hundred Summers: This book takes place in the fictional town of Seaview, Rhode Island, and follows New York socialite Lily Dane in the late 1930s.