Mailbox Monday

Only one ARC this week so I'm less discouraged about catching up. After weeks of health complications I'm still waiting to turn a corner so to speak. So...from the man with the biscuits in his pocket I got:

Now The Drum of War by Robert Roper ARC hardcopy from Walker Publishing

I don't know what possessed me to ask for non-fiction and I generally dislike books about war. I mean books that glorify it of course, not personal war stories per se which I actually enjoy. But I love Walt Whitman and this book is based on the correspondence between him, his mother and his brothers. I'd like to know what kind of person his mother was that he turned out so well. It has to be fascinating.

• The Pearl Diver by Sujata Massey via Bookmooch

Because I like stories about pearls and pearl divers, which are hard to find. I suspect they don't figure prominently in this story but it's better than a slap on the belly with a wet fish.

• The Sudden Weight of Snow by Laisha Rosnau via Bookmooch

Just because I'm a sucker for any book with snow in the title, or lyrical titles in general and they usually serve me well. I'll let you know how good my instincts were.

• A Word Child by Iris Murdoch via Bookmooch, a 1975 hardcover with a bright red jacket by Viking Press (I love old books, and this one is in very good condition for its age).

All of Murdoch's novels are on Nancy Pearl's Book Lust reading list and I really liked the three I've read, so I'm collecting them to have a Murdoch marathon one day.

• Monique and the Mango Rains by Kris Holloway, subtitled Two Years with a Midwife in Mali.

I won this from Melissa at http://shhhimreading.blogspot.com/. Thank you Melissa. I can't wait to read it but it will probably have to wait until February. I know it's not African American, but it's African so I'm sneaking it in there for Black History Month.



Comments or questions? What did you get that has you excited?