Suggest a Book

Have you read a good book lately and want to share it with Pulse readers? This week, various people from the Peninsula Players sent over their book suggestions. If you would like to share a good book suggestion, send over your recommendation along with your name to [email protected].

I would suggest Lamb: The Gospel According to Biff, Christ’s Childhood Pal by Christopher Moore; very funny, very clever, and yet also very touching. It was great prep for Peninsula Player’s Over The Tavern! And in prep for my role as an aging courtesan in Little Night Music, I just finished reading Courtesans: Money, Sex and Fame in the Nineteenth Century by Katie Hickman; really interesting and informative. – Peggy Roeder, Actress

At the beginning of the summer I re-read one of my favorite books, Thornton Wilder’s The Bridge of San Luis Rey. My father had just passed away and I especially wanted to read, and share with my siblings, the profoundly moving (to me, anyway) final passage of the book. Those words have stayed with me, almost verbatim, since my first reading of them years ago. But it was a treat to rediscover the many other treasures this novella has to offer. I continue to be astounded by Wilder’s insight, compassion and humanity. And, he’s playful and highly imaginative as well. Wilder was barely 30 at the time that the book won the Pulitzer Prize, in 1928, yet he writes with a wisdom that few people achieve, at any age. – James Rank, Actor

Into Thin Air by Jon Krakauer. – Eric Vigo, Production Intern

My favorite book I’ve read so far is The Hobbit by J.R.R Tolkein, and I’m looking forward to reading the rest of the Dresden File Series by Jim Butcher. – Katie Clark, Administrative Intern

I’m currently reading Pictures at a Revolution by Mark Harris, an exhaustively researched examination of the five Oscar-nominated pictures of 1967, a year that marked a seismic shift in movie-making; The Graduate, Bonnie and Clyde, In the Heat of the Night, Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner and Dr Dolittle. It is a truly fascinating insider look at film-making in the 1960s. I’m looking forward to reading The Gentleman Press Agent by Robert Simonson, the story of New York theatre’s top publicist for 50 years, Merle Debuskey. – Alan Kopischke, Development Director

Mere Christianity by C.S. Lewis. A former Atheist, the beloved author of The Chronicles of Narnia, compiles and adds to his radio broadcast series, which recounts his coming to Christianity. This is one of the few publications I’ve found to logically and intellectually explain the universal Christian faith without favoring any particular religious denomination. – Ian Toohill, Actor

Saving Fish From Drowning by Amy Tan. – Lori Van Laanen, Head Chef

The Elegance of the Hedgehog by Muriel Barbery and The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman. – Greg Vinkler, Artistic Director

Life of Pi by Yann Martel, the first three Ender’s Game books by Orson Scott Card, and Wee Free Men by Terry Pratchett. – Tom Mula, Actor

I’d suggest the Tuesday Next series by Jasper Fforde. The first book of the series is The Eyre Affair. They’re brilliantly witty, literate, and mind-bendingly fun. I couldn’t put them down last year. – Tom Burch, Set Designer

John Irving’s, A Widow For One Year is excellent for afternoon reading sitting by the bay. The best book I’ve read recently was Colum McCann’s, Let The Great World Spin. It was breathtaking. One of those books you wish would last forever. I just started reading Sloane Crosley’s book of essays, I Was Told There’d Be Cake, and it’s laugh out loud funny so far. – Cassie Wooley, Actress

Check out Jasper Fforde’s Nursery Crimes series which include the books The Big Over-Easy, in which Detective Jack Sprat investigates who pushed Humpty Dumpty off the wall, and The Fourth Bear, where Detective Sprat discovers a possible bear uprising because of porridge rationing. Like the Tuesday Next series, these are very fun and full of inside jokes and observations for those who are very familiar with these fairy tales. – Scott Boyle, Technical Director

I just finished reading the book, Good Omens: The Nice and Accurate Prophecies of Agnes Nutter, Witch, a World Fantasy Award nominated novel written in collaboration between the English authors Terry Pratchett and Neil Gaiman. This was a very smart, funny read, which essentially compiled and satirized all the theories on how the world might end. I’m currently reading, Rachel’s Holiday, by Marian Keyes, a good, easy beach book that keeps you laughing. – Brittany Jordt, Administrative Intern