I was recently emailed by author Nath Jones to review her newest book Love & Darts (On Impulse)
. Unlike many book bloggers, I don't get a ton of requests, so I didn't delete it immediately (as I gather many bloggers do, or at least their Twitter streams would indicate.) The author had taken the time to read at least a couple weeks worth of posts and mentioned them in the email, including answering a question I had posed. I figure that even if she just gave it a cursory skim, and she did that to a number of book blogs, she was definitely putting in the time to get her book looked at, and I agreed.I choose to use the Overdrive app on my phone and the book loaded right up. Love & Darts is a collection of literary short stories, and I admit that the introduction itself was more literary than I usually read. (I also admit that I've fallen into a comfortable rut of reading for plot rather than style. My life can't handle style right now.) I decided to skip the intro and jump into the stories. It is clear to me that they are well written and compelling- if you're a fan of short (very short) stories and precise writing, you will likely enjoy the book. It's an Amazon kindle e-book, so just $1.99, if you're interested.
The other interesting thing that came from the exchange is that she mentioned a quote by Coolidge in her initial email and I emailed her back to ask for the quote. I find it to be incredibly motivating, and even printed it to hang above my sewing table.
"Nothing in this world can take the place of persistence. Talent will not; nothing is more common than unsuccessful people with talent. Genius will not; unrewarded genius is almost a proverb. Education will not; the world is full of educated failures. Persistence and determination alone are omnipotent."
Great, right?
