The Star Online: Lifestyle: Bookshelf
The Star Online: Lifestyle: Bookshelf |
| Posted: 19 May 2013 01:02 AM PDT The highly anticipated MPH Distributors Warehouse Sale is back with an impressive selection of titles. WANT to whip up a quick Italian recipe, boggle your mind with Sudoku, get an insight into the most powerful woman in the business world or lose yourself in a good murder mystery? Fiction, self-help, business, romance ... whatever you want next on your bookshelf, here's a chance to buy it on the cheap: head over to the MPH Distributors Warehouse Sale starting on Tuesday. Star2 readers get to enjoy further marked down prices for a selection of titles. Just present this original page (no photocopies) upon payment to enjoy the special prices. This offer is valid only during the sale, from May 21 to 26, while stocks last. It is not valid with other promotions and is not exchangeable for cash. One page is valid for a maximum of five of the titles featured on this page. Fiction A Bride By Moonlight by Liz Carlyle (warehouse sale price: RM15 / Star2 price: RM10) – Faced with murder charges, Lisette Colburne never imagined aligning herself with Scotland Yard. But when Commissioner Royden Napier proposes that in exchange for her freedom she pretend to be his wife so he can unravel a brutal mystery, she agrees. What neither counts on is their sizzling, undeniable attraction. The Illustrated Man by Ray Bradbury (WP: RM15 / SP: RM10) – This re-issue of a beloved work from one of the most celebrated 20th-century American writers shares with a new generation 18 startling tales that unfold across a canvas of tattooed skin. Set in worlds where cities take their vengence and technology awakens primal instincts, the stories examine the nature of mankind. Manuscript Found In Accra by Paulo Coelho (WP: RM29 / SP: RM25) – As Jerusalem awaits the invasion of the Crusaders, a mysterious man known only as the Copt summons the townspeople to address their fears with truth. Centuries later, the wise man's words are a record of human values that have endured the test of time. Children and teens Baby Einstein First Colours by Marcy Kelman (WP: RM20 / SP: RM16) – An introduction to colours for babies and toddlers aged nine months and above. This board book set contains five colour booklets of flashcards on everyday items. Big Nate Flips Out by Lincoln Peirce (WP: RM18 / SP: RM14) – Big Nate is back in the fifth instalment of his own super-funny series. And when Nate's sloppiness gets out of hand, his best friend Francis gets in serious trouble. Can Nate clean up his act? Or will he flip out first? Disney 3D Story And Activity: Toy Story 2 (WP:RM7 / SP: RM5) – Within the pages of this book you will find a 3D story of the greatest toy rescue mission, 3D stickers and fun 3D activities starring your kids' favourite toys. Disney Pixar Cars Race For Rewards Chart (WP: RM14 / SP: RM9) – Record your kid's achievements with these popular Disney characters in reward charts. Child and parent can work together on this project, which encourages learning, interactive play, good manners and more. Disney Winnie-The-Pooh Let's Learn! Flashcards (WP: RM10 / SP: RM8) – An introduction to numbers, colours, actions and shapes that can serve as a companion to learning for younger readers. Seven Wonders #1: The Colossus Rises by Peter Lerangis (WP: RM20 / SP: RM15) – Percy Jackson meets Indiana Jones in this epic adventure. The first book in a seven-book series, The Colossus Rises chronicles the story of Jack McKinley, an ordinary kid with an extraordinary problem: He is going to die in a few months unless he finds seven magic Loculi that have been hidden in the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World. The Usborne Picture Book Gift Set (WP: RM99 / SP: RM89) – A contemporary and humorous take on 20 famous children's stories, this is the perfect gift for any child who is hooked on reading. Each of the 20 books is filled with fun illustrations. Tony Buzan's Mind Maps For Kids 3-in-1 Bundle (WP: RM89 / SP: RM82) – These mind maps are recommended for kids who are seven to 14 years old. The books are packed with tips for improving memory and concentration, as well as jokes, cartoons and brainteasers. Non-fiction Lean In by Sheryl Sandberg (WP: RM40 / SP: RM35) – The buzz about this book put its author, Facebook COO Sheryl Sandberg, on the cover of Time magazine. In Lean In, one of Fortune magazine's "Most Powerful Women in Business" draws on her experience of working in some of the world's most successful businesses and looks at what women can do to help themselves. Mama's Italian Family Cookbook (WP: RM20 / SP: RM14) – This vintage cookbook is filled with traditional Italian-style recipes, from starters, antipasti and light lunches, through to pasta, pizzas and desserts. Mini Delights: Whoopie Pies (WP: RM12 / SP: RM8) – Contains easy to follow recipes for delicious, home-baked whoopie pies. Browse through the selection of traditional flavours and fancy finishes to indulgent twists on old favourites, including classic, gourmet and party whoopies. The Hour Between Dog And Wolf: Risk Taking, Gut Feelings, And The Biology Of Boom And Bust by John Coates (WP: RM16 / SP: RM13) – Shortlisted for the 2012 Financial Times Business Book of the Year Award and the Wellcome Trust Book Prize, this book is a resonant exploration of economic behaviour and its consequences. Times Fiendish Su Doku Book 6 (WP: RM15 / SP: RM10) – Over five million copies of The Times Su Doku series have been sold worldwide since the first Su Doku puzzle appeared in the British newspaper in November 2004. Are you a Solver type in need of a supply of ultra-difficult puzzles? This might be just the thing for you. Why 'A' Students Work For 'C' Students And Why 'B' Students Work For The Government by Robert T. Kiyosaki (WP: RM40 / SP: RM36) – Kiyosaki urges parents not to be obsessed with their kids' "letter grades" and focus instead on concepts, ideas and helping their child find their true genius. – Compiled by Rouwen Lin The MPH Distributors Warehouse Sale will be held from 8am to 6pm, Tuesday to Sunday (May 21-26), at Bangunan TH, No.5, Jalan 13/4, Petaling Jaya. For inquiries, call 03-7958 1688. 'Like' the sale at facebook.com/MPHDistributors for the latest updates. And look out for more great 'Star Buy' titles in the Reads pages on Tuesday! |
| Posted: 19 May 2013 12:53 AM PDT FOR week ending May 12, 2013: Non-fiction 1. Limitless: Devotions For A Ridiculously Good Life by Nick Vujicic 2. Reclaim Your Heart by Yasmin Mogahed 3. Quiet: The Power Of Introverts In A World That Can't Stop Talking by Susan Cain 4. Unstoppable: The Incredible Power Of Faith In Action by Nick Vujicic 5. The Art Of Thinking Clearly by Rolf Dobelli 6. Only 13: The True Story Of Lon by Julia Manzanares & Derek Kent 7. Bossypants by Tina Fey 8. Lee Kuan Yew: The Grand Master's Insight On China, The United States, And The World by Graham Allison, Robert D. Blackwill & Ali Wyne 9. Syed Mokhtar Albukhary: A Biography by Premilla Mohanlall 10. 10 Steps 10 Minutes To Motivate Yourself by Amwork Publications Fiction 1. I've Got Your Number by Sophie Kinsella 2. The Time Keeper by Mitch Albom 3. Wedding Night by Sophie Kinsella 4. The Lost Symbol by Dan Brown 5. The Great Gatsby (movie tie-in) by F. Scott Fitzgerald 6. The Perks Of Being A Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky 7. The Host (movie tie-in) by Stephenie Meyer 8. A Thousand Splendid Suns by Khaled Hosseini 9. The Witness by Nora Roberts 10. World War Z by Max Brooks Weekly list compiled by MPH Mid Valley Megamall, Kuala Lumpur; www.mphonline.com. |
| Posted: 19 May 2013 12:54 AM PDT THE world is engulfed in an Inferno, Dan Brown's latest work based loosely on Dante's Divine Comedy. My inbox too is flooded with news alerts concerning its release, and some of my Facebook buddies have flashed their copies, looking smitten, their faces enlivened. It is great to have such hype. Such excitement buoys the publishing industry. An "event" publication like this gives book lovers something to beam about in front of techno geeks or fashion watchdogs – why, a book as prettily designed as Inferno is practically an accessory! Your copy is a ticket to join in the world's literary craze. Lest you are neither a tech enthusiast nor a fashionable trendsetter, picking up a book like that makes you part of a cultural cosmology. Off I therefore went to the library last Tuesday, when the book was released worldwide, hoping to read Brown's first sentence and hoping that it will lure me in. But the few copies available were out of reach in the hands of deeply-engrossed patrons. One of them, a male, was bitting his fingernails while reading. It must be good if it is nerve-wrecking, I decided, so I waited. One at the time, they walked out with the Inferno checked out and placed contentedly under their arms, denying me the little peek I needed to decide whether I would be "in" or "out" of this latest publishing phenomenon. So I am now an outcast. Neither tech savvy nor fashion conscious, I, in my faded jeans and brown woollen sweater bought in flea market, roamed around, sifting through the bookshelves and hoping to find a book to outshine Inferno, to salvage my injured pride. A friend texted to ask if I was reading Inferno because he was. The answer was obvious, but answering his second question, as to when I had read The Da Vinci Code, was as taxing as my son's math questions. I remember reading it at about the same time when the picture of a famous Hollywood celebrity appearing in its film flashed across a newspaper's entertainment section. That must be a decade ago, and one serving of Dan Brown is enough unless Prof Robert Langdon is willing to travel to more exotic locations to solve esoteric mysteries with only one piece of crucial information, as seems to be typical in all of Brown's novels. Why not? Let the mystery be not in historic Florence, Italy, but in Mumbai, India. Langdonji (as he would be respectfully addressed in India) may be outsmarted by the locals or he may be genuinely assisted, who knows, because in Mumbai everything comes in two extremes. In fact, come to think of it, the decision to move out of a European setting into an Indian one really does make sense. The flamboyant culture could replace the solemnly Christian atmosphere, and the hot weather lighten up Europe's grey skies. Better yet, Langdon's efforts to foil the posthumous plot of a sophisticated Indian genius may not be as easy as the typical Brown cat-and-mouse race; it may now be complicated by the Indian people's will to survive on a subsistence level. As well as state of the art technology, exotic help may be deployed. Ghost seers and snake charmers, for once, can help, and heavily-bearded police officials may intervene to steal a speck of limelight. The world will be watching and reading, so who wouldn't want to be part of it? These are just my wishful musings, dear reader, to make up for not joining the hordes in being swept up by the hype. But to pass the time, since I was there in that majestic library, I thought I might as well look for a good read. It had to be something simple, pleasant, and down to earth. And it had to be set in India, a place I have gained much understanding of from reading, of late. It could be a novel, but I would much rather go for short stories because Indian novels tend to be too prolix. It had to be moving too, and written with compassion, wit and intelligence. It had to be an "inferno", but in terms of human suffering as opposed to the fiery destruction Brown likes. What book will deliver that, I wondered, as I sifted through each shelf with books sorted neatly by authors' last names. Which book could replace Inferno? Which would give me pleasure 10 times greater than that I could possibly derive from a peek into Brown's latest offering to the world? At that, I stopped at "M" and sought out Rohinton Mistry, an old and reliable pal. The book I pulled out was Swimming Lessons And Other Stories From Firozsha Baag. Set in India? Yes, and it is Mumbai. Witty and compassionate? Yes, penetratingly. A collection of short stories? Yes, and reading them guarantees delightfulness. An inferno? Yes, psychologically. A good replacement for Inferno? Without a doubt! So I walked out with Mistry's collection of stories about a handful of seemingly insignificant lives lived in an apartment building in Mumbai called Firozsha Baag. I felt like flashing it at people just as my Facebook friends had with Inferno. I didn't, but I know my face was enlivened. Abby Wong asks you to go for Swimming Lessons And Other Stories From Firozsha Baag if you are, like her, short of a chance to read Inferno. Read it too if you, like her, love to go against the herd. |
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