It's July 22, friend. Can you believe this?

So, what does this mean? Well, for starters, it means that Booklikes-opoly only has another 19 days of gameplay left!

And, even more importantly, it means that I need to start thinking about that other hallowed autumnal tradition (see what I did there) here on BL. You know what I'm talking about . . .

Halloween Bingo . . . 

You will all be happy to hear that I have been working away on the quilt for the winner of last year's Halloween Bingo game and it is almost done - and it will be finished in time to mail out in the first few weeks of August, for arrival before we begin to play. You may also remember that I lamed out and never held the drawing for the prizes that you were promised. I had a bit of a slump in there, and then it got later and later and I ignored it and now here we are!

Well, I am here to rectify this oversight. Fortunately for me, Obsidian Blue kept amazing records (you can find the post here), so all I have to do is conduct the drawing. And what better time would there be to award presents for last year's bingo game than RIGHT BEFORE THIS YEAR'S BINGO GAME?

No better time. Right?

So, here's what we are going to do:

On August 1, I am going to draw for the following prizes:

Grand Prize: One handmade, Halloween-themed quilt to snuggle under while playing Halloween bingo.

Second Prize: there will be one winner of a handmade, Halloween themed book bag with some bookish supplies which might include such things as sticky notes, pens/pencils, Halloween shaped erasers, mini-notebooks, chocolate, bookmarks and other swag inside, so you can carry your Halloween bingo books around in style.

Third Prize: there will be one winners of handmade, Halloween themed zipper pouch with some bookish supplies inside.

I am also going to ask OB to weigh in here and remind me of anything that I am forgetting, because there may have been additional swag that we identified!

Ok, full disclosure: I love Jamie Ford's writing. I think that Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet was the first book I read on a kindle, which was a difficult transition for me, because I have always been a book buyer. Despite the number of books I read on "devices", I still love the weight and feel of one in my hands. At some point, though, I understood the financial downside to needing to own every book I read, not to mention the rapidly decreasing amount of space to store them in my home. So, reading that first book was truly bittersweet, but thankfully, the quality of the story far outweighed my reluctance to read it on a kindle.

And though I read this book on my kindle too, I do have a couple Jamie Ford novels (and even a comic book) which he autographed when he was our guest speaker at our annual author lunch. All of that is to say again, I'm a fan, and Love and Other Consolation Prizes  did nothing to change that.

Ford demonstrates his ability to create a rich, quirky, entirely engaging cast of characters, as well as his knack for finding a "truth is stranger than fiction" topic. His story begins at the 1909 Seattle World's Fair, where a 12-year-old boy is being raffled off. Seriously. If that doesn't capture your imagination, I really don't know what will.

For twelve-year-old Ernest Young, a charity student at a boarding school, the chance to go to the World's Fair feels like a gift. But only once he's there, amid the exotic exhibits, fireworks, and Ferris wheels, does he discover that he is the one who is actually the prize. The half-Chinese orphan is astounded to learn he will be raffled off--a healthy boy -to a good home.-
The winning ticket belongs to the flamboyant madam of a high-class brothel, famous for educating her girls. There, Ernest becomes the new houseboy and befriends Maisie, the madam's precocious daughter, and a bold scullery maid named Fahn. Their friendship and affection form the first real family Ernest has ever known--and against all odds, this new sporting life gives him the sense of home he's always desired.
But as the grande dame succumbs to an occupational hazard and their world of finery begins to crumble, all three must grapple with hope, ambition, and first love.
Fifty years later, in the shadow of Seattle's second World's Fair, Ernest struggles to help his ailing wife reconcile who she once was with who she wanted to be, while trying to keep family secrets hidden from their grown-up daughters.
Against a rich backdrop of post-Victorian vice, suffrage, and celebration, Love and Other Consolations is an enchanting tale about innocence and devotion--in a world where everything, and everyone, is for sale.

I was quite enchanted by the setting of this book and the amount of historical knowledge I gained reading about the World's Fair.

Especially as Ernest is an immigrant coming from nothing, Seattle is mystical to read about and I very much enjoyed all of the details of the politics of the time and the influence that various people from different backgrounds had, especially when hypocrisies were exposed and future implications highlighted.

The timeline worked quite well. The book is in a manner a mystery, as our view of Ernest's wife flipflops and evolves. One of Ernest's daughters is a journalist which adds a fascinating aspect also. While the meat of the story is in the 1910s, the elements from the present day that are included serve to give the book a little more momentum.

I felt like most of the characters had their own motives and desires which made the story all the more intriguing to read. I loved how characters that I thought I would never read about popped up again and grew up in their own manners.

At points this was a slow read, but it was solid nonetheless. This book was worth reading simply for the historical aspects and for the way that the World's Fairs were brought to life, and that an intriguing exploration of characters and growing up was included made it even better.

To know this was based on a true story makes it all the more charming and romantic.

I received a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Leaving your mother at age five, going with a stranger, and living in the bowels of a boat to America was not something anyone would wish for a child but what was done back in 1909.

Yung had to leave his mother because they both were starving, and her hope was for a better life for her son.

When Yung got to America, his name was changed to Ernest, and he spent his first few years at a school where he was always the underling even though a rich woman, Mrs. Irvine, was paying for his room and board.

One day Mrs. Irvine told Ernest she was taking him to the World's Fair.  She didn't take him to enjoy it, but to be auctioned off in a raffle as a strong, healthy boy.

Ernest ended up being won by the owner of a brothel as a houseboy, and the place he met his wife.

Now his childhood and his life before children and marriage were coming to light.  His daughter is a reporter and is investigating the World's Fair and stories she heard about those who attended.  She knew her father had been there and wants to know everything.

Ernest didn't want to tell his daughter his story because then she would find out about her mother's life at that time.  It was a life that wasn't anything to be proud of.  Gracie was now suffering from dementia, and Ernest was hoping she wouldn't accidentally remember the life she led when she was young and tell her daughter.

We follow Ernest from his childhood to present day and learn what life was like for him in both times.  We get a well-researched glimpse into everyday living during the early 1900’s as well as the life in a brothel.

LOVE AND OTHER CONSOLATION PRIZES is another marvelous, stunning, beautifully told story by Jamie Ford with  characters that will steal your heart.

Mr. Ford knows how to tell a story and keep your interest with his meticulous historical research, his history lesson, and his superb writing style.   

I thoroughly enjoyed this book - I hope you are able to also read it.  5/5

This book was given to me free of charge and without compensation by the publisher and Net Galley in return for an honest review.