BOOKS 4 YOU (AND 4 US)

Us play4mesters have been rugging up and hiding from the cold lately with BOOKS to keep us company. For your browsing pleasure we've recently set up a BOOK FUN 4 YOU page which shows selections of Must-Reads, Oprah's Book Club Titles, Fiction Books By Muso Authors, Prize Winning Books and much, much more. Check 'em all out here.

All of us over here are eagerly anticipating the new Sex & The City book which coincides with the release of the new Sex & The City movie. And, because we LOVE to be self indulgent, here are some of our favourite reads of recent times:


Anthea (Marketing / Newsletter & Blog writer / Hand Dancer) loved Things The Grandchildren Should Know by Mark Oliver Everett:

Mark Oliver Everett (better known as E from the band, Eels) has written an autobiography. Autobiographies are dangerous territory as they're the ultimate form of self indulgence, however E pulls it off perfectly. Admittedly, he has had a more interesting and dramatic life than you're average "rockstar". There's a lot of death, a lot of sadness and a lot of depression in his story, but its all told in such a humorous and humble way. And, it must be hard to convey such humbleness when telling your life story.
This autobiography reads much like an Eels album is heard: its depressing as hell but at the same time its oddly uplifting and kind of beautiful in an ugly sort of a way. I loved it. Absolutely loved it.

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Lauren (Marketing / Whip Cracker) loved Strangeland by Tracey Emin:

Tracey Emin, best know for her dirty bedsheets, recounts her childhood living in the sleepy British seaside town of Margate, amongst other fantasmagorical tales. This is more like a series of short stories, pieced together to give a sometimes autobiographical account of her life and times. In parts seeming more fiction than fact, it wasn't quite as gritty as I'd hoped for, but worth a page turn.

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Joanne (Books Product Manager / Knitting Extraordinaire) loved Monsters Of Templeton by Lauren Groff:

This book is centred around a small town with a vast and interesting history which surrounds mainly one family and their secrets. Willie is the latest generation of this family who comes home from University in disgrace. As she deals with with her own sorrow of a lost love affair, and potentially a new child, she discovers her family's sordid secrets from the past, fuelled by the search for her real father. Through her research she discovers much more than the family secrets in the many chapters of the town's history.

I really enjoyed the way the author tied the historical aspects of the story to the present through Willie's endeavour to find her parentage. She brings to life characters from the past that are believable and engaging. She also includes the myths and superstitions of past eras by introducing a monster in the lake, not unlike the Loch Ness Monster. This monster, though fanciful, brings the entire story together and so much of the family's lives are tied to the life of the monster. The small town setting of this story both endears me to it and makes me recoil at the same time. Like Willie I found myself cringing at the small town behaviours and attitudes and yet looking forward to the character's support and care for her when she needed it. A great read.

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Daniel C (Customer Service / Resident Movie Buff) loved Lunar Park by Bret Easton Ellis:

A good friend recommended this one to me, saying it was first time she'd been too afraid to read a book at home alone. If a character based loosely based on Easton Elis' sordid past isn't frightening enough, this genre hopping, tension building page turner, also mixes in a large dose of supernatural horror.

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