Wandering Into Borders

My best girl is having a baby shower this weekend and with its baby-library theme, I needed to grab a book for her impending bundle (who I love already and am beyond excited to meet in a few more months!). So I went into Borders - remembering that they hadn't closed the one by my house. Apparently that's all about to change - they're even selling the cafe furniture! (faux leather chair or bar stools anyone?)

So anyway, after finding a great book for her - i mean her baby - I wandered around the store hoping for other treasures. Rubbing elbows next to moms who've dragged their kids out and then refused to buy them more than one book (while they had a bundle in their arms) and quite a few snickering teens can really make for some entertainment. I ended up walking away with a book for my sister who is travelling to Ecuador (and I had to put about 7 other things back that I wanted to get her), one of the Harry Potter books I was missing from our collection (someone keeps taking them!) and a book on our new digital camera (so excited about this one!)

I guess the highlight was this 20-something girl who looked like she had passed high school at least picking up the Taming of the Shrew, reading the back of it, and asking out loud "What the hell is a shrew?" HOW has she gotten this far in life without knowing that? It seemed that the play was completely foreign to her. Anyway, here are some other things I loved (or were shocked enough to capture on my phone) when I saw them:

YES. Finally. They caught me by putting this strategically near Lovely Bones and Nicholas Sparks- but of course it was also directly across from the career section.

Eww. I don't like the original Pat the Bunny book much though - so the adult parody is okay with me.

(Yes, that's real AstroTurf!)

A little shout out to my husband with this one. We <3 Italy. Who knew there was already a book about his adventures there?

Book Report: The Hunger Games series

Let's just put it out there right up front. I'm an obsessive reader and this series played to my weaknesses - so it gets 4/5 stars. Not enough to change my life, but I absolutely tore through them (3 books, 4 days... thank you Kindle!). Post - apocalyptic North America, separated into districts where people are essentially slaves - that have to send annual "tribunes" (essentially child gladiators) to fight to the death. I loved the action. I loved the love triangle. I loved that there was a tough girl oblivious to 'the effect she could have'. I'm stoked I read them before the movie comes out next year, and am sad its over.

Good character naming and development, realistic reactions and emotion, original plots, enough descriptions of the environment to visualize being there. The only complaint I had was it was too darn short of a series!

Book Report: The Mortal Instrument Series

I picked up this trilogy at my friends house - I think she said something like "it was pretty good" - no raving reviews, but worth reading if you're looking to pass the time. And that's how I would rate it as well.

The first half of the first book was pretty bad actually. The naming conventions alone seemed to be a few letters off from Harry Potter characters - and the main character Clarissa... aka "Clary", well I think it isn't much of a coincidence that the author's last name is Cassandra Clare. The relationships and character types (werewolves, vampires, demons) are no different than in other stories. The plot was a mix between Harry Potter, Twilight and the movie "Wanted". However, once you get passed that - around 3/4 of the way through the book you get pulled in. Its strange how that can happen.

So I read through two and three quickly - and by the end of the trilogy I had a good feeling about the series. I did route for the romance, and I found myself liking the characters pretty well.

Anyway, I gave the series a 3 stars overall. I think the author could have done a lot more with the initial layout - it was just interesting enough to pull you in, but really, it could have been better. Good enough to pass the time though.

Book Report: The Outlander Series

The best way to find something good to read is by recommendations from friends. One of my friends is a school teacher, and her fellow teachers were obsessively reading the Outlander Series by Diana Gabaldon.

I'm on book 4 of the series, so needless to say I'm enjoying it. To describe it, I'd have to say it is a mixture of historical fiction (one of my favorites), romance (something completely new to me) and fantasy books (understandably junk food, but that's what makes it fun!). The plot line of the series follows a woman named Clare through one of the stone circles (think Stonehenge) back 200 years in time to the Scottish Highlands - where she meets and falls in love with a guy named Jamie. Trouble ensues quite often for Jamie... prisons, war, unseemly advances from admirers - all of which Clare and Jamie have to fight through.

I enjoy the bouts of action for the most part - I find myself turning the pages faster than I've read all of the lines in the book, and they are spaced well enough apart to be enjoyed. The characters have a built history - and the author seems to have developed their emotional sides more than their physical appearances - which I see as a good thing. The romance is quite followable - a little detailed and therefore slightly embarrassing to read - but for the most part you can relate to the love and complexity that the characters go through being together.

The strength of these characters serve as a nice strong contrast to the Twilight characters (who I also love). The man is built and strong and a leader - driven through his responsibilities and simple manliness above all else, complete with stubbornness and frustrations that expose his weaknesses. The woman is strong and determined, and I feel that her commitments to him and her decisions are empowering. She knows herself, is confident in her appearance and abilities - and isn't trying to change who she is to be with him - one of my few complaints about the Twilight series.

The part I thought I'd like the most, the historical fiction, I have a bit of trouble following. It is obviously well researched, but not something I've followed well enough to be able to repeat. The names of battles and the politics behind them are mentioned, but I'd really rather have spent some time brushing up on that particular history before reading it to make it more enjoyable and get a bit more out of the series. I don't know if that's because of the author or me though. I think the best part of the book is the research she's done on how people in the 1700's lived and their cultures. That's probably what I'm taking away from my readings so far.

Anyway, I think the series is definitely summer junk food worthy, and I expect to finish the series in the next month or so.

Book Report: My Sister's Keeper

This one has been a long time coming; After a few years of picking up Jodi Picoult's My Sister's Keeper in the book store and then putting it back down, my neighbor loaned me her copy. I dreaded reading it (although everyone said it was awesome) because I knew it would make me sad. But I needed something to read, and this one was just in an arms reach. After that, well, I couldn't put it down for long.

It took me a few nights to read through it - and I found that it also was not one of those books that helped me sleep. I had previously read her Keeping Faith which I liked, so I decided I was brave enough to read this one. Plus the movie came out a while back and I wanted to see it after having read the book.

Her stories are heart-warming, and understandable, even when you haven't gone through any similar situations like that yourself. I did guess the ending, well about 95% of it, which made it somehow less emotional for me. It was hard, though, reading a book about a sick child when I'm currently baking the mcNugget.

I think the book's strengths were in capturing perspectives from a variety of characters, particularly Anna, whose entries were well crafted and smart, then the stories for Campbell & Brian. I thought Jesse and Julia were a little forced and Sara a little expected. I could appreciate all of the situations for the characters, though I didn't like the Sara character. I understood the struggles between being moral and ethical; I understood the value of caring for someone so much you'd ask and do anything to help them.

I just spent some time reading back through my other "Book Reports" and this quote jumped out at me from The Teahouse Fire - "This seems like such a great time to make your own decisions and form your future. And no one can do it for you." It is hard making decisions for yourself, let alone involving your kids futures. I think that because Picoult setup Anna to be so smart - and a lot of 13 year olds are smart these days, especially the ones who were asked to grow up so quickly - they make the right decision in the end for her, or with her rather. Another quote from my entry? "Its such a liberating feeling to know that we have some control over our own destinies, even if I still believe God has the ultimate say." With that in mind, I think the book ended quite well.

I liked the window Picoult created to peer into this story, and I don't know if I would have made any other decisions regarding the book's plotline than Picoult had, and I would recommend it as a good read to others.

Book Report: Her Fearful Symmetry

Audrey Niffenegger's newest book, Her Fearful Symmetry, was the latest conquest in my literary journeys. I'm having a hard time figuring out this book though; two sets of twins, three married couples, a few ghosts... it was a good read and the main plot was tied up pretty well, but the side stories really left something on the table for me. Given her last book, I expected things to be left hanging out with promise for the main story, which they were. I expected the magic and the discovery of how it works, but I thought that more would be explained about controlling it and the reasons behind it.

I did like the struggle that the people went through dealing with all sorts of love. The love sisters have for each other, new love, parent-child love, mourning for deceased love ones... The challenges and craziness you leave behind when you die. I also liked the unique atmosphere she put them in: London, Highgate Cemetary, an odd apartment building. I liked the use of newcomers to London to help the readers explore if they've never been, and the character Robert's occupation as a historian and tour guide so we could learn about Highgate Cemetery.

I do think, though, that the very end (the last chapter) was bollocks and that not enough was really explained. It felt to me like she gave up on the characters and just needed to put the pen down. Maybe that's because how the end of most real stories occur- people just drift apart. They leave one day, and you don't see them again.

The last book I read of hers, The Timetraveller's Wife, is one of my all-time favorite love stories. Its up there with The Notebook by Nicholas Sparks, as well as the Anne of Green Gables series and the Twilight series.

All in all, I thought it was a good read, but I'd really like to have a sit-down with others who've read it and talk it through so I understand or can appreciate why the author wrote it. It was cleaver and a nice story, but I think she could have added some more polish for me. 3.5 Stars for this one.

Book Report: The Teahouse Fire

Ellis Avery's The Teahouse Fire offered me a true getaway mixed with a bit of learning. This was, no matter how hard I tried, not a quick read - there was too much to pay attention to in each chapter. I tried to 'gulp' it down - it was really quite good - but I couldn't because there was too much to savor. Avery's descriptions of the transition of men to women forming the responsibility for this historical ritual of tea, and the challenges of class systems and a population's hatred of those people who are "different" - who had to practice their own lives in secret was so thought provoking. One of the things I found really shocking was being an American, I never thought about how the Japanese may have once found us less than human; to them we were the savages. Avery really gets you to mold into this book and understand what it means to be an outcast trying to live in the popular culture, never understanding why you don't truly fit in until you make your own path.

What I loved most about the book was its inspiring undertones about how you make your own destiny and luck. Perhaps I've had luck on the mind lately - just getting back from Las Vegas with all its gambling and the people trying to strike it rich... watching all my friends and family make decisions to move or get married or have a family. This seems like such a great time to make your own decisions and form your future. And no one can do it for you. You can decide to stay in the city as its burning down, or hop on a carriage and take a chance on a new destination. You can decide to take the life that your parents plan for you (in this book, to marry) or fight back and make your own path. Its such a liberating feeling to know that we have some control over our own destinies, even if I still believe God has the ultimate say.

Needless to say, I quite enjoyed this book. It threw a couple more challenges at me than some of the beach books I've read recently, but I think the balance between a good story and a challenge was wonderful.

Book Report: Gods Behaving Badly

Gods Behaving Badly by Marie Phillips was an accidental discovery for me while I was throwing books into my library basket two weeks ago, and I loved it.

The book is an easy story about Greek gods (Aphrodite, Zeus, Artemis, Eros, Apollo, etc.) who live in current-day London with current day jobs. Aphrodite (goddess of beauty) is a phone sex operator, Artemis (goddess of hunting) is a dog walker, etc. When Aphrodite and Apollo get into a bit of a spat, two humans get caught up in the mix and 'all hell' ensues.

This was really an enjoyable read and I'd highly recommend for those interested in a weekend getaway. I didn't learn anything from the book, other than enjoying how creative some authors can be, but that's just the kind of vacation book I needed.

Book Report: Girls In Trucks

This was one of my summer beach books; the kind that are easy reads, but don't really add anything to your life. While the cover was cute and the book summary was enticing, I didn't really enjoy the book.

The main character- Sarah - is a girl raised in the debutant southern society, and doesn't like it. All she wants to do is run away with a boy and have fun instead of being in 'appropriate' dance class or learning how to drink her tea. Sarah goes to college up north and ends up becoming a wild child and involved in one troubled relationship after another - in complete contrast to the rules she was taught as a girl. And when she comes home, she understands that her family was only pretending to live by the rules as well.

I liked this book up until Sarah left for college. I thought the author did a great job of building scenes of the debutant society and enjoyed the character build up. It was a shame she spent the bulk of the book on cyclical relationship suffering and depressing wild-child behaviors - the book had a lot of potential. When the author returns to the south at the end, you could feel the warmth coming back to the book; but cut it short.

Perhaps its the sheltered life I grew up in and maintain for myself, but I can't imagine ever throwing myself away like she does. She seems to not care about herself or her own life, and has no goals except finding some sort of romatic 'high'. I can imagine others enjoying this book - and did until it left the south.

Questioning: The Big Book of If

I have a book called "The Big Book of If - 1,2,3". It is just a list of questions that people ask each other... i.e. 'if you won the lottery, what's the first thing you would buy?'... My neighbors and I love it. So here's the question that I've picked out for today's thought:



"If you had to give the same gift to everyone you know next Christmas, what would it be?"



My answer? A home-made re-usable tote. I love mine and use it almost everyday (yes, I realize I shouldn't be shopping that much!) I use one I've had since last year at the grocery store, at the mall, at Lowe's, at the pet store, etc. It zips into itself so its always in my giant purse... bonus? It saves all those precious wildlife creatures from eating plastic bags.

Twilight - aka my latest obsession

I'm obsessed with good stories. I'm the girl who stays up until 3 or 4 am finishing the book she started earlier that day. I can go without food or drink or even moving for hours on end if I find one that really hooks me in - seriously, I'm nuts for a good story.

So when the hubby rented Twilight from Netflix (the best thing money can by for under $5 a month btw) I made fun of him for days. Little did I know, when he finally convinced me to watch it I was instantly and obsessively hooked. I'm not talking the "oh that was really a good movie" hooked - I'm talking talking what it must feel like to be addicted to drugs -hooked. The next day I had found out when the 2nd movie was coming out and had found my way into borrowing all 4 of the books from a co-worker. I know how old all the characters are and what else they've been in. Today, I'm going to buy the blue-ray version of the movie so that I can watch it obsessively until I get my "fix".

What is it exactly that's got me so doped up? Its not the actual actors, although they play their parts well. I just adore the characters and the whole "first love" thing. I actually squeal with delight (yes, out loud) when the characters innocently realize how they feel about each other. Its the feeling I had with Anne of Green Gables when I was 13 (both the books and the TV series). It makes me wish I were 13 (or 17) again.

I also love when magic is in a story - I read each of the Harry Potters in 1 day (and am horribly sad there are no more to come). I remember loving several books from when I was younger (i.e. Matilda) and even some computer games (i.e. Myst)... that I got obsessed with. I really wish magic was real. The dangerous vampire (the ultimate bad-boy) who falls head-over heals for the otherwise ordinary and oblivious girl... seriously, why can't we live like that?!

*Sigh* I can't wait to read the rest of the Twilight books and see the next movie (November!) The only bad part is knowing how hard I'm going to fall when I'm all done and looking for my next taste of reading-heroine.

Book Report: The Glass Castle

I just finished The Glass Castle by Jeanette Walls for book club. It's a memoir about her growing up in poverty with her brother & 2 sisters and the horrible situations her parents put them through. The book starts off with Jeanette's memory of being burned while cooking hotdogs when she was 3, and her parents kidnapping her from the hospital where she was recuperating - to picking food from the trash during school while her mom bought candy bars and hid it from the kids.

The book, while beautifully written, was aweful for me to read. The hardest part is that it was all true - the 4 kids starved while the father and mother put them in dangerous situations, couldn't feed them, and yet were so disturbed that the spent the money on drinking and tchotchkes for the shack they lived in. I can't believe that child services never took the kids away. It is so hard to believe that the kids covered up for their parents so often, and that the parents chose to live like they did. Someone should have stepped in and saved those kids from a mother who didn't want to be burndened by family and a father who was too sick with alchohalism to help them. There must be thousands of families out there like this now in the US- and I wish I knew how to help even one of them.

It also reminds me of something I heard last year, but can't remember where from:

There was a man on his way home, when he felt the need to buy a gallon of milk. Once he bought the milk, he was steered over to a house in the city, rung the doorbell and handed them the milk; he had never been to the house before, nor knew of the family, and was not proned to do things like this - he just was listening to the feelings he had. They family was crying over happiness and disbelief because the baby was starving and they didnt have any money. One of the parents had just been praying for milk a few moments earlier.

I had told my aunt this story and she said in reply "if you knew what was going on behind the walls of the homes in our own city- you'd break down the doors and risk everything to save those kids." It's so true- yet we dont have the transparency or understanding of our own city and processes to help them. If I knew how to help those families more permanantly, I would. I would open my house to teenagers or a family if I knew it was safe - I would give people money if I knew they'd use it for food and not drinking / drugs. I know my hubby feels the same way- he encourages that from me.

How do we get there though? How do we give back during this recession, where people not used to having to simply survive are starting to fall below the poverty line? How do we do it safely, and still help these people? I guess I'll just have to pray to keep my eyes open a little bit more, and be thankful for my own protected upbringing.

Related: Just saw this on CNN.