Celebrate the end of summer with a Hardcover Holiday!

Summer is slowly but surely about to end and for many people, Labor Day weekend is their last hurrah for the season. As for me, I tend to take a stay-cation and as I did earlier this summer, I'll be taking a Hardcover Holiday.

The idea is simple; make a stack of hardcover books from your TBR to read during this long weekend, putting all other books aside for the moment. Even if you finish just one book, consider that a win.

You don't have to get new hardcovers(yes, rereading is allowed) and by all means, use your local library as well! My pile is made up of three titles that I'm eager to get to, so let's get started:

A GENTLEMAN IN MOSCOW:  I was lucky enough to get an advance review copy of Amor Towles' new novel, which will be releases early next week. The leading man of the title is Count Alexander Ilyich Rostov, who is serving a lengthy sentence at the Metropol hotel,beginning in 1922.

As the years pass, Rostov meets a number of interesting folk, such as glamorous actress Anna Urbanova, ambitious chef Emile and Nina, a young girl who grows up before his very eyes. While he struggles to be of use to his new friends, Rostov also has to adjust to the rapid changes in society that eventually effect even the limited space that is granted to him.

I've never read Towles before but I have heard good things already about this book as well as his previous one,Rules of Civility, and what better way to end the summer than by reading a promising new fall book?:

LIFE OF THE PARTY: The subtitle of Bob Keeling's nonfiction story is "The remarkable story of Brownie Wise" and she was remarkable indeed. A single mother in the 1950s, she was doing well enough as a saleswoman that the Tupperware company insisted on hiring her to boost their sagging sales.

Brownie did more that just rack up some extra numbers, she created the concept of the Tupperware party for women to help them earn some much needed money without making too many adjustments to their regular home life.

Her hard work landed her on the cover of Business Week in 1954, the first woman to do so, but it wasn't long after that Brownie was fired under mysterious circumstances and given a few financial crumbs on her way out of the door. Sandra Bullock has bought the movie rights to this book and while that film should be great, I'd like to read the book first. Thanks to Blogging for Books, I can get the inside scoop on the Tupperware party and it's true planner:

 THE MINIATURIST: Jessie Burton's debut novel takes place in 17th century Amsterdam, where eighteen year old Nella has arrived to begin her arranged marriage with Johannes, a well to do trader.

While her sister-in-law Marin makes her new home a chilly place to be, Johannes does give his new bride a warm welcome with the gift of a miniature version of their illustrious house. Nella finds amusement in buying specially made pieces to display in her tiny mansion but a few unexpected items arrive that point the way towards a deep, dark family secret.

This is one of those books that I've meant to read when it first came out but didn't get around to it. Last week, I came across the hardcover edition in my local thrift shop and was thrilled to have a second chance , particularly with such a beautifully designed cover as a bonus:

Well, I hope some of you out there try to have a Hardcover Holiday this Labor Day weekend. Feel free to use the hashtag #hardcoverholiday on Twitter and share a picture or two of the books you'll be reading. I plan to post a couple of pics online and will be happy to see yours!

Regardless of what your reading plans are, I wish everyone a fun end of summer time. The good thing about such a bookish vacation is that you don't have to choose between sight seeing and relaxing with a great read-in fact, page turning is the only active thing you have to do in this heat!: