Enjoy the smell of books without books

I prefer to read physical books, not ebooks. One reason I, and many like me, prefer physical books, is the smell. Sometimes I just hold the book in front on my face and smell it. You don't get the same experience with a kindle or a nook. Until now ... Karl Lagerfeld have developed a bookperfume, and it is now possible to buy it:

Karl Lagerfeld is quoted with this:“The smell of a freshly printed book is the best smell in the world.”

In a pressrelease the following is stated:- This is an opportunity to celebrate all the glorious sensuality of books, at a time when many in the industry are turning against them. The idea is that is should relax you, like when you read a book, to a level of meditation and concentration. Paper passion has evolved into something quite beautiful and unique. To wear the smell of a book is something very chic. Books are players in the intellectual world, but also in the world of luxury.

The perfume costs 115 dollar. Maybe a great present to a booklover?

Lagerfeld's perfume is not the first time someone have tried to cash in on the smell of books. Since 2009 Kindle users, among others, have been able to buy the smell of books on a box:

Does your Kindle leave you feeling like there’s something missing from your reading experience? Have you been avoiding e-books because they just don’t smell right? If you’ve been hesitant to jump on the e-book bandwagon, you’re not alone. Book lovers everywhere have resisted digital books because they still don’t compare to the experience of reading a good old fashioned paper book.But all of that is changing thanks to Smell of Books™, a revolutionary new aerosol e-book enhancer.Now you can finally enjoy reading e-books without giving up the smell you love so much. With Smell of Books™ you can have the best of both worlds, the convenience of an e-book and the smell of your favorite paper book. Smell of Books™ is compatible with a wide range of e-reading devices and e-book formats and is 100% DRM-compatible. Whether you read your e-books on a Kindle or an iPhone using Stanza, Smell of Books™ will bring back that real book smell you miss so much.

Would you consider buying something like this? I really want the perfume, just to smell it.

Highlights from BEA

I just came home from a great week in New York, where I attended Book Expo America. I arrived in New York on Thursday May 31st, just to get some more days to do sightseeing and just experience New York. Here are some pictures from the actual event, I will do a post on books later.

Outside the Javits:

The line to get into the floor when it opened, were insane. If you wanted to get a good spot in line, you needed to be there early, like seven in the morning. Some even came at 6.30:

There was also a huge line to get into the breakfast at the BEA Bloggers Conference (BBC). I had gotten a wrong message about when the registration opened, so I was there early:

The sign at the entrance of the BBC - area:

I was not that fond of the BBC this year. Some of the speakers were, in my opinion, too eager to push their own books on us. I also did not like how the networking breakfast and lunch turned out. We were told in advance that we could sit on tables according to the genre that we reviewed and were interested in, but it turned out that the tables also were visited by authors from other genres, like non - fiction. They did not limit the tables to one genre. Also there were not enough tables to everyone intererested in a particular author or genre. If you were late, you could not choose freely where to sit.

I got to meet a lot of great authors at the show. Here are some of them:

Ruta Sepetys:

I love her book Between Shades of Grey ( if you have not read it, you need to), and she was the author I was most excited to meet at the show. I also was one of the first 100 in the line and got an ARC of her upcoming book Out of the Easy, which is due out in January 2013. One of the books from BEA I am most excited for.

Suzanne Lazear: 

Look at that gorgeous outfit. Suzanne makes her debut with Innocent Darkness in August this year, and I went to her signing and got a signed ARC. So happy for that!

Melissa Marr:

The buzz for Carnival of Souls was big, and the line to attend her signing at the HarperCollins booth were insane. I did not get a signed book, but I stood in line for the galleydrop of the same book, and managed to get a copy.


Flash mob outside the floor, before BEA opened that same day:

Michael Grant & Katherine Applegate:

Their new book, Eve & Adam,  is due out in October, and I can't wait to read it.I was happy to get a signed copy.

Marie Lu:

I waited in line for over an hour to get a signed copy of Prodigy. I also got to talk to Marie at the networking breakfast at the BBC.

Victoria Schwab:

I met Victoria Schwab in the line for the galleydrop of Falling Kingdoms, and she was so sweet. I bought a copy of The Near Witch earlier this year, and now I am even more eager to read it.


Becca Fitzpatrick:

They revealed the cover for the final installment in the Hush Hush series on Wednesday, and Becca signed paperback copies of Hush Hush.

Jo Nesbø:

One of Norway's biggest authors. It was great to see a Norwegian author at the show too. Here he is signing books at the Random House booth.

Karen Thompson Walker: 

I interviewed Karen for my Norwegian blog. Her debut the the Age of Miracles was released in Norway this week, and will be released in English later this month. The book is for adults, but may also appeal to fans of YA. The protagonist is a young girl.

Jessica Khoury: 

The debutnovel Origin by Jessica Khoury was another book that created a lot of buzz at the show. Here Jessica is signing her book.

Another buzz-book: 

Throne of Glass by Sarah J. Maas. I was first in line at one of the galleydrops of the book, and was so excited to get an ARC

Power Reader Breakfast at Random House: 

I got invited to attend a breakfast at Random House on Wednesday, and it was an adventure to visit a bit American publishing house. I have never been to one before.

There were a bunch of noteworthy books and classics in glassshelves on the wall:

From the event:

The view was amazing:

Another highlight:


I saw Jane Seymour on the showfloor, and got a little starstruck. She was so pretty in real life:

We could take a picture in the Reached - bubble, but sadly I forgot to do that:

 I also got to meet a lot of great bloggers, like Karen from For What It's Worth and Amber from the Musing of Almybnenr.

All in all I had a blast, and I loved being in New York for the Second time. I visited the Strand, Barnes & Nobles and managed to buy 10 books even before the show had started. I will tell you about those books later. Have a great day everyone!

Waiting on Wednesday: The Dark Unwinding

Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly meme hosted by Breaking the Spine, where we talk about books we are eager to read.

My pick this week is The Dark Unwinding av Sharon Cameron:

A spine-tingling tale of steampunk and spies, intrigue and heart-racing romance!When Katharine Tulman's inheritance is called into question by the rumor that her eccentric uncle is squandering away the family fortune, she is sent to his estate to have him committed to an asylum. But instead of a lunatic, Katharine discovers a genius inventor with his own set of rules, who employs a village of nine hundred people rescued from the workhouses of London.

Katharine is now torn between protecting her own inheritance and preserving the peculiar community she grows to care for deeply. And her choices are made even more complicated by a handsome apprentice, a secretive student, and fears for her own sanity.

As the mysteries of the estate begin to unravel, it is clear that not only is her uncle's world at stake, but also the state of England as Katharine knows it. With twists and turns at every corner, this heart-racing adventure will captivate readers with its intrigue, thrills, and romance.

This book sounds right up my alley.  Steampunk and London - I am so in! The book comes out September 1st from Scholastic.

Review: The Lost Wife, Alyson Richman

Publisher: Berkley Books
Pages: 344 (Paperback)
Release: 2011
Genre: Historical novel, WWII
Source: Bought
Good to know: Alyson Richman have written a few books before this one was published. She lives in New York. The Lost Wife became a bestseller fast.

In pre-war Prague, the dreams of two young lovers are shattered when they are separated by the Nazi invasion. Then, decades later, thousands of miles away in New York, there's an inescapable glance of recognition between two strangers. Providence is giving Lenka and Josef one more chance. From the glamorous ease of life in Prague before the Occupation, to the horrors of Nazi Europe, The Lost Wife explores the power of first love, the resilience of the human spirit- and the strength of memory.

 A love-story that moved me

 
The Lost Wife is a strong lovestory that went right to my heart.

The story in the book begins in New York City in 2000. A wedding is underway, and the grooms grandfather is looking forward to the event. Little does he know that the rehearsal-dinner will ble much more moving that he had thought.  He sees a woman who reminds him of someone, and it turns out that she is in fact his wife, the wife he thought died during WW2.

There are two sensations of skin you will always remember in your lifetime: the first time you fall in love - and that person holds your hand - and the first time your child grasps your finger. In each of those times, your are sealed to the other for eternity. 

After the prologue, we are transported back in time to right before WW2. We get to know Lenka, who is a member of a Jewish family living in Prague. They lead a good and comfortable life, and Lenka loves her nanny Lucie. Lenka is talented when it comes to drawing, and in 1936 she is admitted to an artschool in Prague. At that time she is 17 years old. At school she becomes friends with Veruska, and Veruska has a brother, Josef, who studies medicine. Lenka and Josef fall in love, but while their feelings are growing, dark skies are headed against Prague. Soon the Nazis will rule the town, and Lenka finds herself in the ghetto Terezin where everyone lives under terrible conditions.

That year, I started learning a new art. The art of being invisible. Mama, too, no longer dressed to be noticed. She dressed to disappear. (...)We no longer drank from colored crystal. Instead, the ruby-red wine goblets and the cobalt water glasses were all sold for far less than they were worth. 

The Lost Wife is the kind of book that totally consumed me, and a book I think it is hard not to be moved by. The auhtor have based parts of the story on actual events, and she have done a lot of research into how the Jews lived in the ghetto Terezin. I also liked reading about a part of WW2 that I did not know that much about, I am especially thinking about how the artists and painters rebelled against Hitler's brutal regime.  There are a lot of tragic events in this book, and that made it sad at times. Sometimes I felt sick to my stomach whilst reading.

The chapters alternated between Lenka and Josef' point of view. I liked that a lot. That way we get to know how each of them are feeling, and we can almost feel how they fight for their love and to get back to each other.

The author is good at describing love, and in particular the love between Lenka and Josef. But she is also good at describing the love between siblings and parents. Aside from being a lovestory, this book is also a novel about standing together. About trying to stand tall when you are in a terrible situation, not loosing who you are and the values you hold dear.

In my old age; I have come to believe that love is not a noun, but a verb. An action. Like water, it flows to its own current. If you were to corner it in a dam, true love is so bountiful it would flow over. Even i separation, even in death, it moves and changes.

The Lost Wife is a pageturner. The kind of book you dig into and not want to put down until you have read the ending. I have heard someone comparing it to Sarahs's Key. I have not read Sarah's Key, so I do not know if that is a valid comparison. I think the Lost Wife will appeal to everyone who loved gripping historical reads that touch upon your emotions. At some points it reminded me of Between Shades of Grey by Ruta Sepetys.  

Other reviews:
What Women Write
Once Upon A Romance
Melody's Reading Corner

Stacking the Shelves #1

Stacking the Shelves is a weekly meme hosted by one of my favorite bloggers, Tynga on Tynga's Reviews. This is a meme where we talk about new books, physical or virtual, that we have added to our shelves the past week. Librarybooks, other borrowed books etc are also included.

Due to wedding - preparations (yes, I am getting married in June) and work, my English blog have been seriously neglected. I am so sorry for that. But I am here again now, and these are some of the books I have gotten the past weeks and months:

Bought:
Wendy Higgins: Sweet Evil

Patrick Ness: The Knife of Never Letting Go

Jennifer Bosworth: Struck

Elizabeth Norris: Unraveling

Cat Hellisen: When the Sea is Rising Red

Jennifer A. Nielsen: The False Prince

Bethany Griffin: Masque of Red Death

Veronica Roth: Insurgent

For review:
Julie Kagawa: The Immortal Rules (24.04.2012)

Scott Tracey: Demon Eyes (08.10.2012)

Sandi Tan: The Black Isle (07.08.2012)

Kiera Cass: The Selection (24.04.2012)

Sarah J. Maas: Throne of Glass (07.08.2012)

Heather Anastasiu: Glitch (07.08.2012)

D.B. Jackson: Thieftaker (17.07.2012)

Katherine Longshore: Gilt (15.05.2012)

Douglas Nicholas: Something Red (18.09.2012)

Anna Carey: Once (03.07.2012)

Shana Abé: The Sweetest Dark (21.08.2012)

What have you been adding to your shelves lately?

Review: Insurgent, Veronica Roth

Publisher: Katherine Tegen Books (HarperTeen)
Pages: 525 (Hardback)
Release: May 2012
Genre: YA, dystopian
Source: Bought
Good to know: Summit Entertainment, the studio that made the Twilight - movies, have bought the movierights to the trilogy. Book 3 is apparently being released some time in 2013.

One choice can transform you—or it can destroy you. But every choice has consequences, and as unrest surges in the factions all around her, Tris Prior must continue trying to save those she loves—and herself—while grappling with haunting questions of grief and forgiveness, identity and loyalty, politics and love. Tris's initiation day should have been marked by celebration and victory with her chosen faction; instead, the day ended with unspeakable horrors. War now looms as conflict between the factions and their ideologies grows. And in times of war, sides must be chosen, secrets will emerge, and choices will become even more irrevocable—and even more powerful. Transformed by her own decisions but also by haunting grief and guilt, radical new discoveries, and shifting relationships, Tris must fully embrace her Divergence, even if she does not know what she may lose by doing so.

A good follow - up to Divergent 
(This review contains spoilers if you have not read Divergent yet)

I have been waiting a long time for the sequel to Divergent, one of my favorite books of 2011. I preordered the book as soon as I could, but I did not have time to wait for the book arriving in the mail, so I also bought the kindle - edition of the book. I can now state that Insurgent also is a great read.

The story in Insurgent picks up where Divergent ended. There are more things on stake for Tris, and she must fight for her own life as well for the lives of the people she believe in and love. Someone has the need to find out what secrets the Divergents hide in their brains, conflicts are brewing and people must choose sides. There are some surprising revelations, and Tris begins to question the meaning of the faction - system.

I read somewhere, once, that crying defies scientific explanation. Tears are only meant to lubricate the eyes. There is no real reason for tear glands to overproduce tears at the behest of emotion.  I think we cry to release the animal parts of us without losing our humanity. Because inside me is a beast that snarls, and growls, and strains toward freedom, toward Tobias and, above all, toward life.

Insurgent is, as Divergent was, a real pageturner. There is not a dull section in the book. I was thrown from page to page, reading about suspense and dramatic events.

I also like the fact that we get to know all the characters and the releationships between them even better in this book. I specifically like how the author spends time developing the relationship between Four and Tris. She does that very believeable, without use of cliches. Tris has a great development. There are a lot of great character-descriptions in the book, much more so than in Divergent. That is a natural thing. In bok 1 there is a need to set the story and the plot, to show the reader the characters. In bok 2, the author may dive deeper into the people on the pages and the story.

Evil depends on where you're standing

The language is also good, not one sentence appears to be in vain. Everything is so perfectly built up. There are also a lot of nice quotes.

Grief is not as heavy as guilt, but it takes more away from you.

The last part of the book is so suspenseful, and the ending just wants me to grab the third book rightaway. How will I be able to wait until 2013 to know what happens???

I still believe that this series will be the next Hunger Games. The books have everything: suspense, romance, mystery, dramatic events, great characters etc. I love Roth's worldbuilding in the books, the thought behind every faction and the way they are described.

If you have read Divergent, you can really look forward to this book. If not, you need to read Divergent right now! This is an awesome series!

Other reviews:
Empire of Books
Magical Urban Fantasy Reads
Mundie Moms