Monthly Archives: July 2014

Read Women? Oh, We Do!

Posted on by under The Reading Life

Once upon a time (well, last January), writer and illustrator Joanna Walsh launched the #ReadWomen2014 hashtag on Twitter. Her purpose was two-fold:

1. to encourage and celebrate reading books written by women, and
2. to draw attention to the dearth of female writers and reviewers represented in the pages of literary journals.

Walsh was inspired, in part, by the sobering numbers produced by the annual VIDA count, an analysis of the gender disparity in literary publications and book reviews. Continue reading →

From Page to Screen: 10 Book-to-Film Adaptations

Posted on by under Books Make It Better

To Kill a Mockingbird Movie PosterLet’s be clear: At Bas Bleu, when given the choice, we will always choose the book over the movie. There’s simply more space on the page than the screen for characters and storylines to develop. But just because we’re predisposed to love the source material doesn’t mean we don’t enjoy a good film adaptation when it comes around. And since hiding out in a cool movie theater is one of the best ways to beat the summer heat, we decided to share this list of some of our favorite book-based films. 

To Kill a Mockingbird
This classic film from 1962 has stood the test of time nearly as well as the Pulitzer Prize-winning novel on which it was based. Released just two years after Harper Lee’s groundbreaking book about racism and morality first landed on shelves, the film boasts a screenplay by Horton Foote, a score by Elmer Bernstein, and career-defining performances from Robert Duvall and Gregory Peck, who won an Academy Award—and America’s collective heart—for his iconic portrayal of Atticus Finch. Continue reading →

Book a Month: The Summer House

Posted on by under 2014 Book a Month

SummerHouseAs part of our 2014 Book a Month program, each month we’re offering discussion questions about the featured work—for book clubs as well as thoughtful individuals. You may use the questions to reflect back on each book once you’ve finished it or to guide you as you read. Either way, we hope these features will enrich your reading experience. (We’ll do our best to avoid plot spoilers, but you should proceed with caution!)

As the temperatures start to rise around the country, we thought The Summer House would be an appropriate choice for our July Book a Month selection. An elegant and darkly comic British novel, The Summer House drew in reviewer AG from the beginning. Part of the novel’s appeal is its unusual format: It takes the form of a trilogy of novellas, each one presenting a distinct point of view on the build up to what seems to be a doomed wedding.  Continue reading →