Looking back at the year

2011 was a good year for reading.  I joined a book club and read a ton of books for that and on my own.  It also helps that I have a bit of a commute every day and am able to "read" a lot of books by their audio versions. 

I have described on this blog many of the books I've read this year, but as it turns into 2012 I want to emphasize the favorite books I read in 2011:

(In no particular order.)

1.  Madame Bovary
There is something so thrilling and scandalous about this book that it was like one of those guilty pleasure harlequin romance novels you can't stop reading, but way better.

2.  The Hunger Games Trilogy
By far, this is my favorite series of books EVER.  As in, they beat all decades worth of favorite books.  I'm going to read them again in 2012 and probably every year following.

3.  Water for Elephants
I love period pieces and this depression-era circus tale delivered.

4.  The Help
The four women who read this audio version made the story come alive.  I was truly touched by this book, and many times it made me cry.  I love love love this book.  It's up there in the all time favorite books EVER category.

5.  The Harry Potter Series
I mean, what can I say about Harry Potter?  After more than a decade of his popularity I finally partook in the mania.  Once I started with the first one, all thoughts of reading other books went away.

6.  Gone with the Wind
Okay, I know I said Hunger Games is the favorite book EVER, EVER.  But here's another one for that category.  I made it a mission to read this gigantic novel in 35 days or less, and it wasn't difficult to accomplish that.  Loved this book.

7.  Honolulu
I'm fascinated with historical novels about different cultures.  This was a great book.

8.  Racing in the Rain
I am not a dog person.  In fact, I strongly dislike dogs.  That being said, I really liked this book even though it was narrated by a dog and was all about this dogs relationship with his owner!  It was very creative and well-told.

9.  The Paris Wife
I loved reading about one of my favorite 20th century American authors, Hemingway, and the beginning of his writing career.

10.  Mini Shopaholic
Okay, this one is not part of some great literary fame, but the Shopaholic series has definitely been one of my guilty pleasures for the past ten years and I will always love Becky Bloomwood and her antics. 

I'm looking forward to what 2012 brings for my reading library.  I have a stack of books on my bedside table just itching to be devoured, and I can't wait! 

The Gone With the Wind Project: Part 3

Done!  In exactly thirty days. 

I was so carried away with this book, I just couldn't find time to write about my progress as I was reading.  Every spare moment I've had over the last month I've read this book.  The story of Scarlett and the fall of Atlanta during the Civil War captured me like no other book has done.  I really don't know how to describe this book other than a blissful sigh and a "wow."   Gone With the Wind is a beautiful masterpiece of American literature.  After all Scarlett goes through, you know in the end she will somehow always get what she wants, and therefore hope is not lost.

Here are some of my notes and underlined quotes from my reading:

Day 9:
The war is ravaging Georgia now and getting closer to Atlanta where Scarlett lives with her sister-in-law and Aunt.  I actually sympathize with her when she runs away from the hospital during her lunch break.  As self-centered as she may be, she does seem to see through the lies and stories about how great this war is.  This is giving me a new perspective on the Civil War.  I never really studied up on anything about the Southerner's perspective of the war.  I didn't realize how proud they were and how much they hated "the Yankees."

Day 16:
I have such torn feelings about Scarlett.  I don't know whether to hate her her because she's so selfish and self-centered or commend her for being so strong and brave while trying to save and rebuild her family plantation.  I wish she would just see how perfectly matched she is with Rhett Butler, who is also self-centered and arrogant, and stop getting mad and yelling at him.  It's an interesting twist that she rushed into another marriage of convenience to Frank Kennedy and I can't wait to see how that is most certainly going to fall apart. 

Page 200: 
"It has been hard on Scarlett, not going anywhere.  She's just a baby....There, Scarlett, don't you fret.  People won't talk when they understand.  We know you loved Charlie."
 This is when I first realize how loving, and kind, and unselfish Melanie is.  Even when Scarlett is being horrible and wanting to go out to parties instead of mourning her dead husband for the appropriate amount of time, Melanie defends her.  I don't understand where Melanie's strength and undying love for Scarlett came from.  Throughout the whole book, Scarlett was so awful to Melanie!  Yet, Melanie stuck by her side even through Scarlett's many scandals.

Page 380:
"Was Tara still standing?  OR was Tara also gone with the wind which had swept through Georgia?"

Page 959:
"I'll think of it all tomorrow, at Tara.  I can stand it then.  Tomorrow, I'll think of some way to get him back.  After all, tomorrow is another day."

I think that's all I can say right now.  I love this book and I don't know why I waited so long to read to it.  I practically want to start right from the beginnging and read it all over again!

The Gone With the Wind Project: Part 2

Important!:  I have never read this book or watched the movie.  I don't know anything about what happens in this story, so please don't spill the beans! 

Day 1:  32 pages
Day 2:  37 pages

Wow, I am really right on track with this project!

Day 3:  18 pages
I have to admit I'm not really in the mood for reading right now, but I'll try to get through a few pages before The Husband gets home and I start dinner.  I do really like this book so far.  Starting chapter 5!

(Page 77)  The lingo of Mammy and the other slaves slows up my reading.  I can hardly figure out what they're saying that I have to actually mouth it out loud to myself.

(Page 83)  Scarlett is a poor deluded girl with her crazy ideas about eloping with Ashley tonight!  I can't believe it.

Day 4:  19 pages

Day 5:  36 pages
I'm already way behind in my reading, but it's hard to get even thirty pages in on a weekend.  I know that might sound backwards, but I actually have more time to read during the week.  Anyway, so far I love this book.  The characters are easily relatable and the descriptions are beautiful.  I love this time period and love reading about thel lives of people who lived during that time.  Scarlett is quite humorous in the way that she lets her imagination about Ashley Vilkes carry her away.  It seems that teenagers have not changed since 1861.

Day 6:  7 pages  (EEKS!)

Day 7:  3 pages!
 I ordered my own copy of Gone With the Wind from Amazon and it arrived today!  Yay!  The page numbering is all off, so I have to re-do my personal reading chart.  According to the this new book, I should be up to page 241.  I'm only at page 166.  Yikes; way behind.   This is truly sad.  I know I shouldn't, but I'm counting on my many hours on a plane tomorrow to catch up.

I can't believe Scarlett was so stupid to rush into marrying Charles just to get back at Ashley and all the gossiping girls.  I mean, didn't she think things through for one second?  Now she's moping around and hates her life because she's not only married to a man she despises but is a sixteen year old WIDOW?  Sorry, but it's kinda her fault so I have no sympathy for her.  It seriously sounds like a miserable, hopeless situation.

Day 8:  91 pages
So I was able to catch up, but I'm still not where I should be.  Sigh.  I could have probably read a lot more on the plane, but my eyes get so dry on planes and it's hard to read for long periods of time without having to take time to rest and doze off once in awhile.  I should be at page 272 and I'm still only at page 258.

Things are starting to get very interesting with our dear Scarlett O'Hara.  She is causing quite the scandal in Atlanta by breaking the rules of mourning and starting to flirt with boys again.  I don't really agree with her actions since the custom at that time was to mourn the loss of your husband for several years, but I'm also glad that Rhett convinced her to not care what everyone else thinks and to start thinking for herself.  Is she ahead of her time?  A feminist in her own right?  I'm not sure about that because she still is very selfish, spoiled and immature.  Melanie is far too kind to Scarlett.  I actually want to cry because Melanie is so loving and unselfish and giving towards others.  Even when the rest of the town refuses to receive Rhett Butler, Melanie continues to take him and show him kindness and respect!  She is the complete opposite of Scarlett O'Hara and I love her.  Scarlett just needs to give up her ridiculous ideas of Ashley Wilkes and move on with her life already.

The Gone With the Wind Project: Part 1

I was early for an appointment, so I ordered a tea at Starbucks and sat down with a very heavy, thick book.  With trepidation, I embarked on a journey with Gone With the Wind by Margaret Mitchell.

(30 seconds later...)

...I am quite nervous about how to accomplish a reading of this book.  The hardcover version I checked out from the library is 1037 pages long!  I have never read a book this long and I'm hesitant now because I have so many other recently purchased books already on my list.

I'm very torn.  As much as I love to read, I'm only a medium-speed reader.  And if I'm not 100% completely invested in a book, it will drag on FOREVER.  For example, I've read the first paragraph of Gone With the Wind so far and all of a sudden I need to check my calendar for appointments, call my doctor, check my bank account, send a text to my husband, and of course write about trying to read Gone With the Wind.  This could be viewed as not a good sign for 100% investment in this book.  Should I even start reading it?  I'm not even quite sure why I even decided to request this book from the library.  Someone suggested it for our book club, and my husband and I had started to watch the movie, but I had never really ever been inclined to read it.  Hmmm.   I don't know...  I will try a few more paragraphs.

(approximately 5-10 minutes later)

I read to page seven and ended with this sentence:  "...she felt that a lick now and then didn't do the boys any harm."

Okay, so I kind of like it.  I'll keep reading for now.  Besides, I figured out that if I read only thirty pages a day, it will take me around thirty-five days to read it.  That doesn't sound so scary at all!  I have some long flights coming up too that will help me get even ahead of my thirty pages a day goal!  That does it.  I'm going for it.  Gone With the Wind, I shall conquer you in thirty-five days or less.

Books that I need to review...

Chasing Harry Winston -- Lauren Weisberger  (3 stars just for pure entertainment value)
Push -- Sapphire  (4 stars)
Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets -- J.K. Rowling (5 stars!)

The Forgotten Garden

This was a beautiful, wonderful book once I finally got into it.  The story jumps back and forth between characters and time periods, so the first two hundred pages were confusing as I tried to figure out what was happening and when it was happening.

However, I loved it in the end.

In the year 1913, a four-year old girl is mysteriously left alone on a ship bound for Australia from England.  A married man finds her on the wharf in Australia and takes her home until he and his wife can figure out where she came from.  The little girl doesn't remember anything, not even her name.  No one ever turns up to claim the child, and the couple never hears anything of a missing girl.  They decide to name her Nell and keep her until someone shows up to claim her.  The years go by and it is Nell's 16th birthday.  Her father tells her the truth about her past and Nell's life is changed forever.

Kate Morton takes the reader on a wonderful journey through the century and between two continents as the mystery unravels of how Nell came to be all alone on that wharf in Australia.

I can't say much more about the story without giving away any of the secrets, but I will include one sentence I especially enjoyed.  This author has a lovely way of writing description and her imagery is vivid and beautiful:  "This was the London of Eliza Makepeace, the London Cassandra had read about in Nell's notebook, of mist-filled streets and looming horses, glowing lamps that materialized, then vanished again into the fog-laden haze (132)."

I will have to say that a certain character's story line in the early 1900's London was my favorite.  It reminded me faintly of a Dicken's novel with the poor struggling orphans and all.  I also appreciated and related to this same character as she became older and transformed her wild imagination and gift of story-telling into fairytales (which are included in the book.)

This is one of those books that makes you just want to sit for hours and read without stopping.  I always appreciate a book like that because they don't come along often.

Five Stars! 

Matched

Have I ever mentioned how much I love stories about dystopian societies?  Yes, I'm sure I have.  It is why The Hunger Games and The Handmaid's Tale are some of my top favorite books ever.  It's also why I love movies like I am Legend or Surrogates.  In these stories, some governing force has completely taken over the country and inhabitants of what formerly used to be The United States of America are now just mindless pawns in a game where they have no choices.

Or something along those lines...

In Ally Condie's Matched, we find young Cassia (pronounced Cash-ya, according to the person reading the audio book) about to embark on her journey to the capital for her match ceremony.  This is where she will find out the boy to whom she is matched for the rest of her life.  They are both seventeen years old and will court for the next four year before getting married when they are 21. 

In this society, everything about life is determined for you by the Officials.  It is a perfect society where no one questions the rules or authority.  Everything is based on patters and predictions, therefore your entire life has been already programmed for you.  Each meal is delivered to your three times a day and it is created especially for you based on your bodily needs and requirements.  In school you learn only the "100 Best" of everything from before the transformation of society.  For example, you would learn about only the 100 best authors, poems, classical musicians, movies, books, artists, etc.  It has also been determined that the quality of life deteriorates greatly after the age of 80.  Therefore, you are given a poison pill on your 80th birthday in order to die at the perfect age of life maturation and not have to suffer the terrible quality of life that is surely to come after.   


My problem with this book is that the characters and plot just weren't compelling enough.  The story didn't capture me like The Hunger Games or The Handmaids Tale.  There was no shock value, and let's admit, that's what really draws people (or just me?) to stories like this.  Cassia's rebellious attitude against her society was just a little too predictable and the love triangle between Cassia, Ky and Xander was just a little too familiar.  I didn't feel the emotion; everthing was too forced and in-your-face. 

I did, however, appreciate the references to forbidden literature such as Dylan Thomas, Henry David Thoreau, and Alfred Lord Tennyson.  It is obvious that the author has her degree in English from a reputable University (Brigham Young.) 

Condie seems to be commenting on current society and our excessive need for new technology constant at our fingertips.  In her book, she alludes to the reason for the societal transformation by mentioning that everyone had too much technology, too many choices, too many freedoms.  The results were disastrous.  "We don't need to understand everything...society reminds us there's a difference between knowledge and technology --  knowledge doesn't fail us..." (page number unknown).  It's true.  How reliant on my silly iPhone have I become?  If I leave the house without it I feel lost.  Heaven forbid I can't look at google maps to see how far away I am from my destination or look at the yelp reviews of the restaurant I'm going to, or occupy my every free moment with a spontaneous game of solitaire or frogger.  I love the iPhone but I hate it too.  It's technology and it's wonderful...but is it really?  It is exactly this type of constant battle between tech and actual real life that Ally Condie touches on in her new society of Matched.  Despite the tiresome predictability and sometimes gag-factor of the love story, this book is well written and I'll probably read the rest of the trilogy when those books come out.   You know, just to find out what happens...

The 19th Wife

The topic that kept me interested enough to finish this 15-disc audio book was the history of Mormonism and their belief in polygamy.  In this book, the autobiography of Anne-Eliza Young was intertwined with the present day story of Jordan Scott.  Anne-Eliza was officially deemed the title of The 19th Wife of Brigham Young, when in reality she was probably number 27.  Although there is no record of the exact number of wives he had, it is widely speculated that Brigham Young had 57.  Meanwhile, in 2001, Jordan Scott was exiled from a polygamist colony in Southern Utah at age fourteen, when he is involved in a scandal.  Six years later, he returns to Mesa Dale to visit his mother who is in prison for allegedly murdering her husband.  She was also wife number nineteen.   In between these two story-lines are excerpts from historical documents from the BYU library and the diaries of Joseph Smith, Brigham Young, and Chauncey Webb; not to mention several newspaper articles from both time periods (late 1800's and 2006-2007.)

Before I go on, I must make it clear that modern Mormons do not believe in or practice polygamy.  In this book, Anne-Eliza describes her apostasy from the Mormon religion in an effort to eradicate plural marriage.  In 1890, President of the Latter-Day Saints, Wilfred Woodruff, put an end to polygamy.  Those that insisted on keeping the faith of Joseph Smith and Brigham Young -- which included the belief that Celestial Marriage as the only way to enter into the eternal kingdom -- broke off from the Mormon church and became known as the "Firsts," or The First Latter-Day Saints.  Aaron Webb became their first profit and they moved their colony to Red Creek, Utah, which is now known as Mesa Dale.

I just gave away the ending of the book, but if you read any history of the Mormon church, that is what you will find.  As a fan of historical fiction, I found the book to be fascinating and informative.  It is actually a fictional story of Jordan Scott intertwined with the non-fiction accounts of early Latter-Day Saints.  After living in Utah for a year during my early twenties and visiting the Tabernacle in Salt Lake City numerous times, I still knew practically nothing about the Mormon religion.  I'm ashamed of my ignorance.

The 19th Wife describes Joseph Smith's visions and how the very beginning of the religion was formed.  They were responsible for a large part of the western migration and for bringing thousands of immigrants to our country to worship with them in Zion.  It also describes why they believed in plural marriage.  I was extremely impressed with the layout of this book and the knowledge it gave me.  In order to understand the fictional story of Jordan Scott, it was important to have the historical background described to the reader throughout the majority of the book.  Some parts were shocking; I found myself absolutely appalled.  I was grateful to be reading the account of Anne-Eliza and how she escaped from under Brigham Young's power to spread the word about the evils of polygamy.  However, the story was told in such a way that I was torn between loathing and feeling empathy for the faithful followers of Young and their unbending belief in plural marriage.  For this exact reason, I can understand why so many women did not follow Anne-Eliza's path and instead stayed with the church and in their homes with their multiple sister-wives. 

As with any story involving cultural and religious history, I was left satisfied and enriched.  While some might find this book insulting or "hoaky," I found it very insightful.  I would recommend it to anyone interested in the topic. 

Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone

Obviously I don't need to write a review about this, since everyone in the world had read this book except for me.  Until now.  Almost fifteen years after it was first published and became a global phenomenon, I finally read the first Harry Potter book.  This is just a month after the final movie came out too!  Wow, I am way behind the times on this one.

You may ask why I never read the series when it was in its hay-day (which I suppose it still is.)  Here is the only reason I can come up with.  In 1997 when the first Harry Potter book came out, I was a timid little high school sophomore and junior at a very conservative Christian boarding school.  All books containing anything about witches, wizards, goblins, and magic were strictly forbidden at school, not to mention strongly discouraged by my parents at home.  (My father was with me when I bought this book a couple weeks ago, and when he saw my purchase he simply exclaimed, "Why?!")  Also, in my teens and early twenties I turned my nose up at such juvenile literature that was meant for annoying prepubescents.  Those kind of books were so below me!  If I was going to rebel with my reading, it was going to be with Danielle Steele or other such frivolous romances.  Harry Potter?  Pishaw!  I would not be caught dead with a CHILDREN'S book oh, no. 

It took me many years and a Master's Degree in English Literature to truly appreciate Children's literature.  I have much catching up to do, believe me, and Harry Potter is only the beginning.

Right away, I loved this book.  The writing is very clever and entertaining.  Should I dare say it was spell-binding?  Just as a youngster might be, I was quickly drawn into the story of Harry and his adventures with Ron and Hermione at the Hogwarts Castle.  I couldn't wait to find out how they were going to solve the mystery of the trap door, Fluffy the three-headed dog, and Professor Snape's suspicious behavior.  It is very creative and imaginative -- just the kind of reading I especially love right now.  I do have to admit that at first I had a hard time accepting all the magic and hocus-pocus when they first arrived at Hogwarts.  It seemed unfair that anyone or anything can just magically transform at any time.  For example, Harry describes how it was confusing to find his way around the castle during his first few days at Hogwarts because the passageways and doors kept changing directions or never seemed to be in the same place from day to day.  For some reason that really bothered me!  How is a person supposed to live in that kind of environment?  Also, it seemed that anyone could just cast a spell on anyone to get them to stop doing whatever they were doing.   I just wasn't buying it.

Needless to say, I quickly got over my issues with the magic and soon fell in love with the characters and the powerful story telling.  I have never seen any of the movies, but while I was reading, I could picture exactly how it might play out in the movie of my mind. 

This was a very fun book to read, and I finally feel like I'm a part of history now!  I've heard so much about Harry Potter for the past fourteen years, I can finally understand what everyone is talking about.

The Art of Racing in the Rain

What if the government was behind the creation of dogs?  What if dogs were meant to be humans, with thumbs and all, but the government stopped dogs from evolving that far?

These are some of the thoughts of Enzo the Dog.  He believes he is a human trapped inside a dog's body and once he dies he will finally reincarnate into the man he is supposed to be.

The Art of Racing in the Rain is an endearing story of Denny and his dog, Enzo.  However, it is not the human Denny that narrates the story;  it is Enzo's voice we hear instead, loud and clear.  He describes his point of view as the dog in Denny's life and the difficulty he has communicating with Denny since he has too long a tongue to form words and his paws lack thumbs in which to gesture.

I was skeptical about this book at first, since I am not a dog person at all.  I don't own any pets, in fact and probably never will.  They're just not my thing.  Contrarily, I loved this book!  This was the perfect audio book.  I couldn't wait to get into my car every day to listen to more of the story.  It was funny, heartwarming, and actually believable!  Every time I see a dog now, all I can think about is that they are just a human trapped inside a dog's body.  They have real human thoughts, and their actions act as their words.

Enzo turned out to be a very loyal and lovable dog, and even though I am not a dog person, I can understand why people love their dogs so much.  This book gets a grade A.  Go read it!

Mennonite in a Little Black Dress

This book was not what I was expecting it to be.  After reading the description on the back, I envisioned a memoir about a rebellious ex-Mennonite returning to her conservative, Amish-like community.  Not so.  It actually described a 40-something woman who had married an Atheist, stopped practicing her Mennonite beliefs, became a professor, and survived two terrible accidents followed by a nasty divorce from the aforementioned Atheist husband.  That's just in the first chapter.  The rest of the book is a kind of disjointed story about how her year-long sabbatical visiting her Mennonite parents and brothers and ex-mennonite sister in order to obtain material for this book.

I was very confused by this story.  I think most people, including me, believe that Mennonites are very similar to the Amish -- living non-wordly lives on farms with no electricity or automobiles, etc.  The author of this memoir, Rhoda Janzen does not explain the facts until her "History Primer" at the very end of the book.  Apparently, modern Mennonites are exactly that -- modern.  As in, they live among everyone else, drive cars, have televisions in their house and attend public schools.  Rhoda does briefly comment on some Mennonites that are still very conservative, but she doesn't really mention the differences between liberal and conservative Mennonites.  I'm actually still confused by the religion.

To be honest, I have mixed feelings about this book.  I started it months ago and stopped after barely a few pages.  Boring!  However, it came up as the August book in my book club, so I found it on Paperbackswap.com and managed to read the whole thing.  There were some enjoyable passages and she has a humorous edge to her writing, but for the most part it was jumbled and hard to read.

Despite my general dislike for the story, there were parts to which I could relate very well, coming from a conservative religious background myself.  For example, in one chapter she writes about the church-instilled fear of worldly things.  "Did the degree to which we were sheltered occasion the fear that...I felt with the onset of adolescence?  Ah, those were the days when we saw a predator in every man who approached...Scared of school events, horrified byt what would happen if I let my guard down to have a beer, terrified whenever a boy asked me out, I was as skittery as one of those squirrels that freeze as your vehicle approaches (53)."

In the following passage, I was also reminded of watching movies in my childhood with my dad frantically searching for the fast-forward button on the VCR remote to quickly move past inappropriate scenes:

"On the few occasions when we kids were allowed to watch TV, a parent had to be present.  My father monitored the proceedings like a stern prison guard.  If any character on any television show, married or single, made a move toward an on-screen kiss, there was Dad, wielding the remote like a Taser.  Quick to change the channel, he'd sometimes mutter in dark disapproval, 'Smut!' (55)."

I guess it was interesting enough, and I might recommend it to someone just to see what their reaction to the book might be.  Let me know if you read it and what you think!

The Paris Wife

Ever since I read “Hills Like White Elephants,” Ernest Hemingway has been one of my favorite authors of all time.  I’m fascinated by the power in his simple writing structure.  His sentences are succinct and clear.  He gets the point across without a lot of flowery language, which is sometimes a relief after reading earlier American or British authors.  (Not to mention current novels where the author describes for the zillionth time the “sweet breath” of a certain vampire stud.)

Continuing with my love for Hemingway, I went on to write many literary essays in grad school in which I compared everything I possibly could to The Old Man and the Sea.  In just a few declarative phrases, Hemingway can tell an entire story.  I’ve even tried to emulate his writing style into my own narratives, but there’s just something about the way he does it that is classic, eloquent, and timeless.  I could never be Hemingway. 

It has been a few years since I’ve actually read anything by Hemingway, but I have fallen in love with him all over again after reading The Paris Wife.   This book is narrated by Hadley Richardson, who was Hemingway’s first (of four) wives.  When she meets Ernest, he is only 21 years old.  He is what we might call a “party boy.”  He drinks all night and lives in a house full of other young men that come and go as they please any time of the day.  Hadley is 29 years old, and in the year 1920, is considered to be practically a spinster.  She and Ernest fall madly and passionately in love, but it seems almost doomed from the beginning.  Hadley describes herself to be simple and not modern like all the other young women on the 20's.  For example, when she finally cuts her old-fashioned long hair into the modern bob, she hates it.  Her conventionalism and desire to start a family seem to be a constant battle with Ernest and the book describes their short but passionate marriage.  Even as they are facing the end of their relationship, their love and emotion for each other is strong.   

During their five years together, Hemingway creates one of his most famous novels, The Sun Also Rises, and is just becoming famous with the help of Ezra Pound, Gertrude Stein, F. Scott Fitzgerald and many other familiar 20th century American authors.  This is what I loved about the book -- seeing Hemingway and the others in their every day life, facing struggles and excitement as they become famous.

Very early in Hemingway's career, one of his mentors affirms him of his unique writing style:  "...strong declarative sentences, that's what you do best (83)."  And continues to advise him: "...[strip] language all the way down...cut everything superfluous.  Let the action speak for itself (89)."

This is why I love Ernest Hemingway.  What you see is what you get.  As his first wife Hadley described, he visualized "...new stories and saw so clearly the books they could be, it was almost as if they already fully existed (127)."  Heminway possessed the talent for creating American classic literature based on his life and the life he viewed around him.  His writing is something to which anyone can relate, and that is why he is great. 

Sarah's Key

I have always been fascinated and appalled by stories of World War II and the Holocaust.  After I read The Book Thief back in May, I researched some other books I could read about that time period.  I promptly requested Sarah's Key from the library.  It finally arrived a month later in Audio Book form, which I never mind since it gives me something to listen to on my commute, so I was excited to start reading!

The story is set in Paris, France, and jumps back and forth between 1942 and 2002.  In 1942, a young Jewish girl and her family are taken from their home in the Vel'd' Hiv Roundup and are eventually sent to Auswitch.  In 2002, Julia Jarmond is an American writer working in Paris.  She is covering the 60th Anniversary of the Vel'd'Hiv Roundup and comes across the story of the young girl from 1942.

I wasn't quite expecting the two different story lines, and I enjoyed the young girls point of view from 1942 much better than forty-five year old Julia's voice in 2002.  The young girl's story is told in only the first half of the book, but her voice rings clear and true.  Her story is compelling and tragic, and at times I felt sick with horror reading about the awful treatment of Jews in France at that time.  I just can't believe this happened.  Back in present day, Julia Jarmond is battling her own personal demons, which in comparison to what happened in 1942, seem silly and insignificant.  However, everything is tied together neatly and the author tries her best to turn the whole story into a happy ending, despite all the awfulness that happened back in 1942.

While I did tune out at times during Julia's storyline, I enjoyed the book as a whole and I would recommend it to anyone who likes stories of Paris or the Holocaust.  It feels wrong to actually "like" stories about that topic though, right?

Beautiful Creatures

I actually really like this book.  One of my favorite classes in grad school was my Gothic Literature class, and this book is reminiscent of something I might have read for that class.  I love it's gothic imagery:  old Southern plantations, dark stormy nights, an old town shut-in, a mysterious orphaned girl that just moved to town.  It's a classic Gothic tale.

Ethan has been having some very strange dreams that seem almost too real.  The dreams are always about a girl he can't seem to recognize and the two of them are always in a dangerous situation where she is falling into a dark abyss.  He tries to reach for her, but she always slips from his grasp and disappears.  Talk about teenage angst!  Suddenly, a new girl comes to school and Ethan realizes that it's the girl in his dreams.  What?  How could this be?  He's never met that girl before!

Thus, begins the adventure of Ethan and Lena and their quest to find the reason behind his strange dreams.

I had to return it to the library today because it was on hold for someone else and I couldn't renew it!  Therefore, I am only half-way through this book and I'll be anxious to finish when I can check it out again.  I need to find out what happens to these two kids and their strange, mysterious families.  Full review will come later.

The Swan Thieves Failure

I always feel guilty for quitting a book, but why waste time on a book that I hate when there are so many other books on my list? 

I gave myself nine chapters (two whole discs worth) of The Swan Thieves before I would have rather swerved off the road and into oncoming traffic before forcing myself to listen to any more of this book.  I was really sad because this author wrote one of my favorite books of all time, The Historian.  I  also "read" that book by audio version and absolutely loved it!  The audio book company used a full cast to read the book and every character had their own voice and everything!  I was mesmerized throughout the entire reading.  The Swan Thieves audio book promised a full cast again, with Anne Heche supposedly reading a part.   I don't know, I never got that far.  The nine chapters I listened to were only read by one guy, and it was insanely boring.  Boring books do not make good audio books for people that listen while commuting.  I seriously wanted to fall asleep at the wheel that's how dull it was. 

The Swan Thieves is about a psychiatrist, Andrew Marlowe, and his patient who had tried to attack a famous painting in the National Gallery.  There's a lot of talk about French Impression and at certain times in the story a woman with a French accent reads some old letters from the 1890's. 

I know there's a lot of people that might like this book, and that's fine with me!  Perhaps I would receive a different experience if I actually read it with my eyes, but it was not so good a listening experience.  Also, as much as I hate to admit it, I might be conditioned to those crazy, silly vampire stories with lots of supernatural occurances and fighting with werewolves, and therefore found a book about real, normal human beings to be boring.  I really need to try some other books.  That's what I was doing with The Swan Thieves and it just didn't work out! 

It's kinda like when I was a kid and my parents had to limit my obsessive reading of The Babysitter Club books. That's all I was reading, and Mom and Dad were a little concerned, as they should have been. (Those books are ridiculous!)  The rule was that for every Baby Sitter Club book I read, I had to read four books of another child appropriate genre such as anything from the Christian Book Store, or any of those yellow Apple Classics books like Five Little Peppers and How They Grew.  Believe me, I read those four other books like crazy just so I could get my BSC fix.

Anyway, my point is that even though I've been reading too many vampire stories, The Swan Thieves was still a fail for me.  If anyone else has a different opinion, I'd be happy to hear.  Maybe if I'm convinced, I'll pick it back up and finish it someday. 

The End of an Era!

Well, I can officially say that I've read all four of the Twilight books, if that even means anything.  I guess I'm now just hip with it and can pat myself on the back for keeping up with pop culture.  Yes! 

Technically, I listened to all four books, but what's the difference, right?  I tried to actually read this fourth installment, but I missed too much the storytelling of Ilyana Kadushin - who had read the other three books - so I went back to listening. 

After the snooze fest of Eclipse, I was somewhat reluctant to get back into this series.  However, I knew I would eventually get to Breaking Dawn, and after a saw a preview for the movie, I thought I might as well read it now so that any future previews wouldn't give anything away. 

It was a pleasant relief from Eclipse; a lot more interesting and in some instances even riveting!  Although I still had the gag reflex every time Bella clamored on about how sweet Edwards breath was in her face, I didn't mind this book and I actually enjoyed it.  Obviously it's a Young Adult novel, but I appreciate the characterization and the emphasis on family values and morality.  Despite the fact that the author has created a world of supernatural creatures, she has also masterfully implied the importance of innocence, loyalty, and love throughout all four of these books.  I would not hesitate to allow my child (if I had one) to read these books.  As much as I constantly rolled my eyes at Bella's infatuation with Edward, I couldn't argue against his utmost love and respect for her.  He always treated her with gentle kindness and never allowed himself to give in to her subtle persuasions. 

The first part of Breaking Dawn was a sweet love story of Bella and Edwards marriage and honeymoon.  But I do have to admit, I'm a sucker for wedding stories, since my own wedding was less than a year ago.  I was still torn about the idea of Edward turning Bella into a vampire, and at one point I was relieved when Bella started having second thoughts and even suggesting they wait a couple more years in order for her to attend Dartmouth after all.  See?  It was all just working out perfectly!  Bella and Edward could truly live happily ever after as human and vampire...

Well, that was just the beginning.  I'll just say that the rest of the book became quite exciting with all sorts of vampire, human, and werewolf action.  The ending wasn't quite was I was expecting, but I am okay with that.  If nothing else, it was all wrapped up appropriately and efficiently.  Enough said.  I'm excited to see how they will create this book into a movie, and I am not ashamed to admit I will probably be sitting among teeny-bopper mania during opening weekend.

Club Dead (Sookie Stackhouse Novel #3)

I've already talked about the first two books I've read in this series and how the writing is kinda choppy, and the storyline is kinda corny... but yet I continue to read them.  If nothing else, the Sookie Stackhouse series has become a familiar, comfortable read for me.  I actually do like the characters, and I'm interested enough to want to keep finding out what happens next! 

The sexual tension between Sookie and apparently every man that comes in contact with her is hilarious and intriguing.  The situation is almost like a soap opera.  Is she going to stay true to her first boyfriend Bill, who is a vampire, or is she going to give in to the strong advances of Eric (also a vampire)?  Not to mention, Alcide, the dark and handsome Werewolf with whom she spent this entire third book!  So many men, so little time for our Southern Darling Sookie Stackhouse.  I have to say, I'm leaning more towards team Eric at this point.  He is not as moody and dramatic as Bill, and much more attractive in my eyes.  Alcide is just the new guy, so he has some catching up to do.  I know I'm way behind the times with this series, so if you've read all of them, no spoilers please!   

These are the kind of books that are just fun, easy reads.  The kind you can take to the beach or pool and not have to concentrate too hard on deciphering their meaning.  Besides all the love triangles, there is always some kind of murder mystery in which Sookie is involved.  Romance and murder always make for a thrilling combination!  It's also fun to see how they translate the books into the TV show, True blood.  Although, the show has definitely taken on a storyline of it's own.  For now, I say read these if you want a light and breezy summer series to get into.  You will get hooked!

Delirium

I really wanted to love this book.  It had all the makings of a great dystopian novel:  disease, fenced-in cities, rebels, forbidden romance, and unthinkable societal restrictions.  However, I only kinda liked it.  Ever since I couldn't put down the Hunger Games books and read all three of them in one weekend, I've been longing for another tale of dreadful new world order.  I don't know why, but this topic fascinates me.  Another favorite dystopian novel is Margaret Atwood's A Handmaid's Tale.  There's something horrifying and thrilling about the idea of people in our country of The United States being restricted and patrolled and ordered to believe in a society that shouldn't exist based on the freedoms instilled in us by our fore fathers.

In Delirium, the United States government has determined that love is a disease.  It is called "Amor Deliria Nervosa" and it's symptoms include (but are not limited to) stress, anxiety, depression, insomnia and hypertension.  There has also been discovered a cure for the disease.  This involves a surgical treatment which removes the part of your brain that feels love.  (I'm a little fuzzy on this detail, since the procedure is never really explained in full.)  Each resident of the United States is required to receive this treatment on or soon after their 18th birthday.  At that point they are matched with a mate and systematically married and forced to procreate.  They then live the rest of their lives in an emotionless daze.

The main character is Lena, a shy "nobody" as she calls herself.  She isn't beautiful like her best friend Hana, and neither does she share Hana's bold personality.  She ridicules Hana for attending secret music parties and abhors the idea of even talking to someone of the opposite sex.  Besides, it's technically illegal to associate yourself with a boy if both of you aren't "cured."  Basically, Lena is just afraid of everything.  One of those skittish types.  She can't wait until her 18th birthday in three months and when she will undergo her treatment to be cured from the possibility of ever catching the love disease.

See, this sounds like an awesome story right?  I mean, if you like this kind of thing, which I do.  I was super excited about this book!  Unfortunately, it just didn't follow through for me.  The book was extremely tedious and cluttered with flowery language and unnecessary pastoral descriptions.  Seriously?  This isn't an 18th century Gothic novel.  Come on!  Let's get to the action already!

I did manage to get through the whole book despite it's dullness because I still kinda wanted to see what would happen in the end.  The storyline was just intriguing enough to hold a thread of my interest.  But to be truthfully honest, if I didn't have a seven-hour train ride on which to read it, I probably wouldn't have finished.  Sorry,  it just wasn't the suspenseful, page-turner I was wishing it would be.  I miss The Hunger Games....

The Help

I loved this book.

It takes place in the early 1960's Mississippi, and is told from the perspective of three different characters.  Two of the voices are those of black maids.  From their perspective we learn something of what it's like to be living in the highly segregated and prejudiced deep South.  Aibileen is the tender-hearted maid for the Leefolt family, and Minny is a hot-tempered maid that can't keep a job because of her sassy mouth.  The third voice is of Eugenia "Skeeter" Phelan.  She is a 22 year old white girl that just graduated from college.  She longs to be a hard-hitting journalist, but is resigned to live at home and write a housekeeping column for the local newspaper.  These three women form an unlikely relationship and tell the personalized story of civil rights in Jackson, Mississippi at that time.

For all the seriousness of the theme of the this book, Kathryn Stockett managed to incorporate humor and love-ability in the characters.  We feel horror at how African Americans are treated in this book, but can appreciate the honesty and authenticity of each of the characters.  I'm a sucker for historical fiction, because it tells a side of the story I wouldn't necessarily have ever heard from a history book.  In this book, I discovered just that -- a behind the scenes glimpse of a tumultuous time in our history. I saw familiar scenes such as Martin Luther King, Jr's "I have a dream speech" being told through perspective of Aibileen and Minny.  And I related to Skeeter as she desired to write and make a difference.  I felt so connected to the characters that I found myself crying and laughing and rooting them on throughout the entire novel.

Something Borrowed

If it wasn't for my book club and this one being the May book, I would never in a million years have bought this book to read. And here is the reason why:


Direct quote from back of book...

"Rachel White is the consummate good girl. A hard-working attorney at a large Manhattan law firm and a diligent maid of honor to her charmed best friend Darcy, Rachel has always played by all the rules. Since grade school, she has watched Darcy shine, quietly accepting the sidekick role in their lopsided friendship. But that suddenly changes the night of her thirtieth birthday when Rachel finally confesses her feelings to Darcy's fiance, and is both horrified and thrilled to discover that he feels the same way. As the wedding date draws near, events spiral out of control, and Rachel knows she must make a choice between her heart and conscience. In so doing, she discovers that the lines between right and wrong can be blurry, endings aren't always neat, and sometimes you have to risk everything to be true to yourself."

You see, if I had just picked up this book in the bookstore, I would have immediately put it down after reading that description on the back cover. Actually, come to think of it, I think I did that exact thing a year ago when I saw this book and thought it might be fun to read since I was engaged at that tim and it looked like a wedding story. Um, no. Not at all.

In the first chapter, you meet the main character Rachel and her supposed best friend Darcy and Darcy's fiance Dex. It is Rachel's 30th birthday and she's still single, hates her job, resents Darcy, and apparently has a secret crush on Dex. Major gag-fest from the start. I mean, are these people in high school or in their 30's? In that same chapter, Rachel and Dex get drunk and sleep together after Darcy leaves the party. Okay, what? Slut and Man-Slut!

Thus, the rest of this book is about Rachel and Dex hiding their affair (yes, they continue to have sex behind Darcy's back while Dex and Darcy are still engaged!) and Rachel complaining and whining about how Darcy has just used her their entire lives. Rachel resents Darcy for always being the more popular, more pretty girl, and always getting everything she wants. Rachel, on the other hand has always been in Darcy's shadow and allowed Darcy to walk all over her. Therefore, at the present time, Rachel feels no guilt for sleeping with Darcy's fiance.

I couldn't relate to the book at all. First of all, if Rachel hated Darcy so much, why was she even friends with her? I couldn't understand how Rachel even put up with Darcy's bitchiness for so long. Not to mention, what did Darcy see in Rachel -- a whiny, annoying stick-in-the-mud? I don't even know how they were still friends friends after all these years. They had absolutely nothing in common once they passed the age of nine.

Second of all, the fact that Rachel had no qualms about sleeping with her best-friends fiance, kinda made me hate her and have absolutely no sympathy or respect for her. I know we are supposed to be on Rachel's side because Darcy is such a mean, horrible person, but I hated both of them and thought the entire story was ridiculous.

I know this book is supposed to just be a fun, chick-lit, easy read; so if that's what you're looking for, then by all means take a chance with this book. I personally don't "fun," frivolous tales about people cheating on their fiances. But that's just me.

Honolulu

I finished this book (on CD) last week, and I wish I could still be following the life of Jin. I have to be careful when listening to audio books like this, because they often cause emotional responses, like crying, from me while I'm driving! There was also a part which caused me to feel quite queasy and I had to turn it off while I finished my drive to work that day.

My point is, that this is a very good book and, as I have just mentioned, I can prove it by how much it affected me so emotionally. I laughed, I cried, I felt her pain so much that it made me squeamish!

The book starts in the late 1800's in a small village of Korea. The Japanese empire has taken over, and Jin's family struggles to keep strong in their Korean traditions. This means that girls have almost no worth in society. Their role is to feed the men and maintain the household. They are not permitted to attend school or even to learn to read.

Jin feels trapped and oppressed. She sneaks away to learn how to read from a family friend. Soon she finds out about Picture Brides and how this could be a way for her to escape to America and perhaps attend school. She is 15 years old when she signs a document sealing her to be the wife of Mr. No, a Korean man in Hawaii.

I won't spoil the rest of the story, but it was extremely captivating. There were several times I stayed in the car a few minutes after I had arrived at my destination, so I could listen to a little bit more of the story.

I have read Molokai, by the same author, and I loved that one as well. Alan Brennert is very thorough in his historical facts and provides beautiful descriptions of Hawaii and what life was like on the Islands during the turn of century. In the case of this book - Honolulu - he focuses on the turbulent lives of Asian immigrants and their struggles in Hawaii at this time. It's fascinating and informative. I can't believe what Jin had to overcome and her story is amazing and profound. It is a fictional novel, but I can't help but wonder that this story surely happened to some young Korean woman somewhere in Hawaii at this time.

Grade A. Five Stars!

Year of the Vampire

A few weeks ago, I finally finished the audio-book version of Eclipse. Thank God! That one was a struggle to get through. I decided that I had had enough of the Bella/Edward/Jacob love triangle drama, and that while I will eventually return to read the fourth book just to find out what happens, I need a break from THAT vampire story for now.

So I moved on to the Sookie Stackhouse vampire novels. Seriously, I am obsessed with vampires this year. It's kinda going out of style for the rest of the world, but I am in it full-fledged right now.

The first Sookie Stackhouse book is "Dead Until Dark."

Honestly, I had a really hard time getting into this one just because the writing is so cheesy and choppy, and it didn't get interesting till half-way through. It did manage to hold my attention enough to want to keep reading and to actually want to find out what happens in the rest of the books! I just have to ignore the writing style and chopped off sentence. And book two, "Living Dead in Dallas" was definitely better. I still find it hard to believe that all of a sudden, this innocent Southern girl, Sookie, is involved in all this crazy vampire and supernatural drama. It's a little far-fetched, but also incredibly entertaining to read. In conclusion, the first novel was hard to get through, but now I'm hooked and am going to have to continue on Sookie's journey with her.

The HBO series, True Blood, is supposed to be based on the Sookie Stackhouse novels, but that is a very loosed "based on."

Only some of the story line actually translates to the TV show, and Sookie is much more annoying on the show than in the book. However, it is also very captivating and it is satisfying my vampire lust at the moment. I started to watch this show when it first came out, but I must have only watched a few episodes because half of the stuff I DO NOT remember. Like how when the vampires die they turn into a disgusting pile of stringy goo and globby blood. I think that's actually why I stopped watching it, because it was so gory. What's changed now? I don't know, because it's still pretty gross. Maybe it's because I'm just actually more into the whole vampire thing right now.

I think I'm going to have to be a vampire for Halloween this year.

My Favorite Shopaholic

I have been reading the Shopaholic series since college. I love everything about them. They are hilarious and a really light and easy read -- which is perfect for airplane travel. On all my flights this week, I read the newest Shopaholic book, Mini Shopaholic.

Yes, the antics of Becky Bloomwood (now Becky Brandon), are totally unrealistic and far-fetched, but that's what makes it so entertaining. It's like watching a sitcom. You know that kind of stuff never, ever happens in real life, but it's still freakin' hilarious. Take, for example, the show Friends. My favorite TV show of all time. I've watched the entire series about a million times, and I die laughing every single time I watch an episode. It doesn't matter that six people would never really spend THAT MUCH time together in real life, let alone experience all those crazy things that they do, but it's just so awesome that they're acting it out on TV for me.

Anyway, back to Shopaholic. It's just simple pleasure to read one of these books. Becky is now a mother of two year old Minnie (how clever a name). She has made a promise to her husband to not buy any new clothes, or shoes or accessories, until she has worn everything in her wardrobe at least three times. Of course, this is extremely difficult for our favorite shopaholic and at one point she almost gets around the promise by nearly purchasing a woman-sized dress for her daughter as a 21st birthday present. Because it was "okay" to buy necessities for their daughter. I mean, who would think of these things! I'm not allowed to go shopping for myself, but I'll buy a dress for my two year-old daughter to wear in 20 years, but in the meantime, I'll just try it out for her! Ah, comedy.

Poor Becky gets in over her head again trying to plan a surprise party for her husband, and of course the lies she makes up to cover everything are so unbelievably ridiculous, you just can't help laughing.

I'm a Sophie Kinsella fan, I've read all her books, and will read any more and all others that come out, so I definitely recommend this one and all of them. Granted, you can't expect Classic English Literature here (even though the heroines are always lovely young British lassies) but you CAN expect a highly entertaining and lovable read. Trust me. Now go read Shopaholic.

The Book Thief

I just finished The Book Thief and I didn't want it to end! I was on the airplane when it ended and was embarrassed that I was sobbing like a baby. The flight attendant was like, "Would you like something to drink, Oh My! Are you okay?"

It was a very good book.

At first, I had a very hard time getting into it, and I actually had to put it down for two weeks, try to start another 6 books without any luck because I felt guilty for putting down this supposedly amazing, award winning book, and I finally picked it back up and fell in love with the story.

It's a ravaged world war 2 Germany, and Death narrates the story of young Leisel and her foster family as they try to survive under Hitler's Regime.

The back of the book says it should be compared to The Diary of Anne Frank, and I agree. I'll add some favorite quotes, but I already let a coworker borrow it, so I'll add those later.

fangs and blood and supernatural occurences

I've become like those infatuated teenage girls and their vampire lovers selling their souls and crossing over to the other side... or transitioning.

I am now obsessed with Vampire Culture. Books, movies, TV shows, the whole gamut.

I know, I know; I'm about four years too late and 15 years too old. And I'll admit, when this whole vampire craze started, I refused to participate in the trend. I had read the original vampire story --DRACULA-- and was not going to enter into this frivolous modern-day vampire romance nonsense. (Also, I'm not a 13 year old girl.)

So how did this new obsession come to be?

Well, to make a long story short, I was deeply grieving after my LOST marathon on Netlix ended, so I had to find a new "thing." (Again, I was late with the whole Lost thing, but that's another story. Needless to say, a year after the show officially ended, I finally finished the series and was suffering from withdrawal. So onto Vampires!)

I have already watched the first three Twilight movies, but hadn't actually read the books, so I requested the audio versions of them from my library, and now my commute completely flies by because I am entranced in this ridiculous story! Also ridiculous is the CW show, The Vampire Diaries...but I do admit I'm kinda hooked on it. And as you can see from the previous post, I just got two Vampire Diary books from the library. What is going on?

When that True Blood show started on HBO, I was actually watching it in real time. That was the only vampire thing I was following. But then HBO was cancelled and I've missed everything after season 1. Then! A year ago, JT told me about the books! Finally, I got the first book of the series and will somehow start to read that along with The Vampire Diaries and all those other books I got from the library.

Maybe I'm overdoing it a little bit?

vampire books

I am currently listening to the entire Twilight series on audio books while I commute. Disclaimer: I know these are teeny-bopper, silly vampire romance books and that's why I've refused to read them until now.

The first one was good. I was captivated. The second one was okay too. The real love triangle has started. Corny? Yes, but it was fine. An easy story to listen to while I drive and don't have to concentrate to hard on what they're saying.

Now I'm on chapter 10 (disc five) of the third one, Eclipse. Can I just say it is a yawn-fest! I mean, what is going on? There is absolutely no point to this story so far. Edward and Jacob hate each other, and of course Bella is torn between the two because Jacob is her "best friend" and Edward is her lover; she is desperate to turn into a vampire but then Jacob and his pack will kill her because the treaty is off... blah, blah, blah. BOR-ing.

The Vampire Diaries book is a completely different, horrific, situation. First of all, I couldn't even get past chapter one. Don't get me wrong, I'm a huge fan of children's and YA literature, but this is just terrible, juvenile writing. Maybe if I was a 9 year old girl, I'd appreciate it a bit more. To the books defense, I'm sure that was the exact audience it is aimed for. However, I am not wasting my time on any more sentences that include the main character talking about how the outfit she picked for the first day of school makes her look like a raspberry sundae, or how important boys are to her life and that's basically the only reason she lives -- to impress boys.

Um, hello? This is what pre-teen girls are reading? When I was 9, I was reading The Baby Sitter's Club books or Pollyanna.

The Vampire Diaries books will be promptly returned to the library without further ado.

With the Twilight books, I'll keep going. At least with those, they are written a little better and I kinda have to find out with happens with this vampire baby I keep hearing rumors about.

the library

I was super excited when I went to the library today and saw that I had twelve of my requested books on hold! Also, I'm a little overwhelmed. How in the world am I going to read twelve books in three weeks, when I'm only half-way through the book I'm reading for my book club right now?!

Oh the giddy conundrum.

I seriously felt like it was Christmas morning or something when I left the library juggling my gigantic pile of books. So two of them are audio books which is helpful because I can listen to those during my commute while actually reading others at the same time. Oh and one of them is a vegan cook book, so that doesn't really count either. The problem right now is that I've started four books in the past month and I haven't finished any of them. And now add nine. What was I thinking? Can I just not work for the next month so I can read? That would be great, thanks.

Luckily (or unluckily depending on how you look at it) I have a trip coming up. This means a lot of sitting in airports and airplanes and hotel rooms. I always get a lot of reading done on trips because there are no distractions of the husband, doing the laundry, vegan cooking, bowling league, socializing, etc. Just hours and hours of reading time. Yes!

No spoilers please! I'll review upon completion of reading.