Blogging For Books Closes Doors For Good

This is a sad day indeed. I just received this email...this very minute...and had to share it with my readers. 

I've loved working with Blogging for Books over the past few years. I was able to receive, read and review many truly AWESOME books, written by some truly AWESOME authors. But all good things come to an end eventually and the Blogging for Books teams has decided to close up shop. 

Blogging for Books, you will definitely be missed by this reader/reviewer. It's been fabulous fun and I've enjoyed it immensely. Thanks for the reading memories!

Email Message...

Hi Bloggers, 

We’re writing to you today with news that after ten years, Blogging for Books is closing down. The last day to request your final title is Thursday, March 15th and the last day to submit your final review is Sunday, April 15th. 

We have loved building this community with you and we would like to take a moment to acknowledge the nearly 100,000(!) reviews that have been posted over the years. Your feedback—glowing, incisive, thoughtful, humorous, rapturous, and everything in between—has been so valuable. Along the way, we hope we’ve helped you find a new favorite book (or 10). We also have several resources available that we think you’ll love when B4B is gone: 

Netgalley: The same selection of books you’ve come to expect on Blogging for Books will still be available to request as electronic copies! You can visit us here. 

First to Read: Each month, First to Read offers digital galleys of not-yet-published books to their members. You earn points for your interaction on the site, including reading, reviewing, and sharing. Learn more about this fun program here. 

Read It Forward: A website with a healthy obsession for authors, stories, and the readers who love them. Every week they host a new literary giveaway and share book recommendations, author videos, and more. Sign up for their newsletter program here. 

We’ll be in touch several times over the coming weeks to remind you of deadlines and answer questions. In the meantime, you can check out our sunset FAQ here. 

Happy blogging,
Emma Shafer 

Community Manager
Blogging for Books

Book Review of The Book Thief by Markus Zusak

It's time for another book review! I've chosen The Book Thief by Markus Zusak. If you haven't yet read it, I'd highly recommend doing so. If you've seen the movie, I urge you to read the book. There's so much more here than was included in the movie. Well worth the read!

Eleven-year-old Liesel Meminger is a foster child who has recently arrived in a small town outside Munich, Germany during WWII. Liesel has been sent to live with Hans and Rosa Huberman, presumably for the small stipend they’ll receive. Liesel is still suffering from the loss of her little brother and the difficult and somewhat mysterious separation from her mother. She takes an immediate like to Hans, who is kind and thoughtful, but takes much longer to warm up to the abrasive Rosa.

Liesel makes friends with next-door neighbor Rudy and establishes herself as a self-proclaimed book thief. Becoming unlikely friends with the Mayor’s wife Ilsa affords Liesel the opportunity to read the books in the Mayor’s massive library. Along the way, Liesel is witness to the atrocities of war, heartbreaking events, love, loss and other life-changing events.

I saw the movie The Book Thief several years ago and loved it. When I decided it was time to read the book I was absolutely captivated. Although the book is 550 pages long, I read it in just two days – it was THAT good.

The book is different in several ways, ways in which I won’t go into in my review. Suffice it to say that I’m glad I saw the movie first and then read the book. I think I might have been disappointed with the movie version if it had happened in opposite order. This just goes to show how well the author has written this important piece of fictionalized history. The time period, location, mood, characters, etc. come to life as the story unfolds.

I was surprised at some of the other reviews, stating that the book was just plain depressing. I’m not at all sure how a book that deals with the systematic extinction of a race of people can be written about in an uplifting, happy way. Yet, the book is so much more than a story about a German girl who is living in Nazi Germany during WWII. There are many lovely, tender elements to be found in The Book Thief. The additional anniversary edition footnotes written by the author (at the end of the book) provide wonderful insight.

I think it’s extremely important that all generations read books like The Book Thief. This is part of history and, as poet and philosopher George Santayana said, "Those who do not remember the past are doomed to repeat it." This is a book that is emotionally draining, but very much worth the read!

5 of 5 Stars, Review by Susan Barton, DIY Mom Blog