Book club last week was interesting. Most people loved the book My Sister's Keeper, by Jodi Picoult. One woman even said it was the best book she'd ever read! I didn't love it, thought it was okay. One thing everyone did agree on was that the Mom had no redeeming qualities. She clearly favored her oldest daughter (and maybe she had to), ignored her son and used her youngest daughter. Nobody liked her. Next month we're reading Secret Girl, a memoir by Molly Bruce Jacobs. One of the women in the book club sold her house for her last year, so there's a local connection. I heard the book is pretty good.
I don't feel like I've been reading a whole lot lately, so I was surprised when I looked at what I had checked out. There's quite a bit on there including several books I know I'm not going to read.
My Sister's Keeper, Jodi Picoult - Last month's book club book. Better get that back in!
Saving Agnes, Rachel Cusk - I started this book but I'm having trouble getting into it. I need to decide if I'm going to commit to reading it, or put it aside for something else. So far it's okay, just hasn't grabbed my attention.
Crossing Over: One Woman's Exodus from Amish Life, Ruth Irene Garrett - I enjoyed Rumspringa so much I thought I'd try another book about Amish life. I didn't get very far in this one. It's very anecdotal and not quite what I was looking for. I need to return it.
Coupon Girl, Rebecca Motew - This is another book that I've finished and haven't returned yet because I'm lazy. It was a light read that was okay. It took me a while to finish it. At one point, Mark saw me reading it and said "Haven't you been reading that forever?" I'm usually a pretty speedy reader, so if he noticed that I was still reading it, it must've taken too long. What was interesting was that it gave a sort of behind the scenes look at those coupon mailers that you get every so often and immediately throw out. Or at least I do. Kind of interesting. I didn't get her attraction or interest in Barton though. After the first weirdo scene in her apartment, I'd be running from him.
Babylon By Bus, or, the true story of two friends who gave up their valuable franchise selling "Yankees suck" t-shirts at Fenway to find meaning and adventure in Iraq, where they became employed by the Occupation in jobs for which they lacked qualification and witnessed much that amazed and disturbed them, Jeff Neumann - I just started this book and I think the title basically says it all.
Mr. Wilson's Cabinet of Wonder, Lawrence Weschler - This is a strange little book about The Museum of Jurassic Technology in California. I haven't read much of this book, but from what I can gather, the exhibits are mostly made up but have intrigued many people, including the author of this book. I think farther along in the book they discuss the early history of museums, which I'm interested in, but I'm not sure I'm going to get that far.
What do you Do All Day?, Amy Scheibe - I haven't started this one. It's a book about a stay at home Mom and I heard it's similar to I Don't Know How She Does It by Allison Pearson.
Swapping Lives, Jane Green - I started this last night so I haven't read very much yet. There are 2 women, a career woman in London and a former lawyer, current stay at home Mom in CT that are both not quite happy with their lives, and think they each want what the other has. They switch places through a magazine contest and... I don't know what happens yet. I've read and enjoyed other books by Jane Green so I thought I'd read this one too.
I'm embarrassed to admit there are probably one or two books around the house that I own and have also started and not finished. Off the top of my head, I know I'm reading Topaz by Leon Uris. I really need to commit to finishing one or two books at a time and not have all these books going at once.
Thursday, August 31, 2006
Sunday, August 20, 2006
My Sister's Keeper
I finished the latest book club book last night, 2 whole days early! It was My Sister's Keeper by Jodi Picoult. I didn't want to read it and voted for another book. It's about a young girl who's dying of cancer. Her parents went to a geneticist and had another baby who was a genetic match to be a donor for this girl. The idea was to use the cord blood, but Anna ended up being a donor for most of her life. She finally decides she doesn't want to be a donor anymore, even though it means her sister will die. There's more to it than that, but I'm not going to ruin it for someone who wants to read it.
The part about the donor made me think a lot, but that wasn't why I didn't want to read it. Since becoming a Mother, I've found it very hard to hear or read about kids who are dying or have died. I love my little guy so much I can't imagine my life without him. Can't even imagine. Being a Mom is the best, but it's also terrifying. There are so many things that go on that are a danger to your child, and most of them you can't control. I do everything I can to make sure his world is safe and happy and it's not enough. Anything could happen - an accident, disease, whatever - and it's out of my control and that makes me sick to my stomach. This book was one big reminder of this and it was really hard for me to read.
We meet Monday night and I'm sure we'll have an interesting discussion.
Right now I'm reading two other books. One is a biography of Edith Wharton, one of my favorite writers. The other is Saving Agnes. I can't remember the author's name. I'm not very far into either of them.
The part about the donor made me think a lot, but that wasn't why I didn't want to read it. Since becoming a Mother, I've found it very hard to hear or read about kids who are dying or have died. I love my little guy so much I can't imagine my life without him. Can't even imagine. Being a Mom is the best, but it's also terrifying. There are so many things that go on that are a danger to your child, and most of them you can't control. I do everything I can to make sure his world is safe and happy and it's not enough. Anything could happen - an accident, disease, whatever - and it's out of my control and that makes me sick to my stomach. This book was one big reminder of this and it was really hard for me to read.
We meet Monday night and I'm sure we'll have an interesting discussion.
Right now I'm reading two other books. One is a biography of Edith Wharton, one of my favorite writers. The other is Saving Agnes. I can't remember the author's name. I'm not very far into either of them.
Tuesday, August 08, 2006
Dinner with Anna Karenina
Two books I've read recently are Dinner with Anna Karenina by Gloria Goldreich and Lost and Found by Carolyn Parkhurst. Dinner with Anna Karenina interested me because it's about 6 women in a book club and I wanted to find out what they read, how their book club was organized, how they interacted. I didn't really like it as much as I had hoped. The women in the book club seemed too...something. Like they were characters (which I know they are) and not like real people. The author certainly did try to explain why they are the way they are and show how they changed over the course of the year, but I didn't find them particularly likeable or believable. They didn't seem like people I'd want to be in a book club with, and it wasn't the kind of book club I'd want to be in. The author mentioned several times throughout the book that this book club was different and somehow more literary and insightful than other book clubs. This is probably true, but I'd rather have my casual fun book club than one that was more like homework. It just didn't appeal to me.
Speaking of book club, in my last post I mentioned that I must have missed where the book came back to the point that the main character was going to die if she didn't make changes in her life. Well, as it turns out I did because I'm a moron. It was where the main character's roommate says something like "if we hadn't taken that trip, you would've been in your room when the fire started and you would've died." How I missed that when it was so obvious, I have no idea. We had a really good discussion about the book and I really enjoyed our last meeting. This month we're reading My Sister's Keeper by Jodi Picoult. This is the second book we've read by Picoult. The first was Vanishing Acts.
I wanted to read Lost & Found because it was based on The Amazing Race, which is one of my favorite shows. If I ever went on a reality show (which I won't) it would be that one. The book was pretty good. It gave a behind the scenes look at how a reality show like that works, how the production staff interacts, or could interact, with the cast. I'm sure the interaction between the camera crew and a contestant in the book hasn't happened in a real show. The cast of the show was also similar to the usual cast on The Amazing Race - a mother/daughter team, a gay couple (although this one had a twist), best friends, brothers, the couple who wants to see if their relationship will work out (it didn't). All in all, an entertaining book and more serious than you might expect.
Speaking of book club, in my last post I mentioned that I must have missed where the book came back to the point that the main character was going to die if she didn't make changes in her life. Well, as it turns out I did because I'm a moron. It was where the main character's roommate says something like "if we hadn't taken that trip, you would've been in your room when the fire started and you would've died." How I missed that when it was so obvious, I have no idea. We had a really good discussion about the book and I really enjoyed our last meeting. This month we're reading My Sister's Keeper by Jodi Picoult. This is the second book we've read by Picoult. The first was Vanishing Acts.
I wanted to read Lost & Found because it was based on The Amazing Race, which is one of my favorite shows. If I ever went on a reality show (which I won't) it would be that one. The book was pretty good. It gave a behind the scenes look at how a reality show like that works, how the production staff interacts, or could interact, with the cast. I'm sure the interaction between the camera crew and a contestant in the book hasn't happened in a real show. The cast of the show was also similar to the usual cast on The Amazing Race - a mother/daughter team, a gay couple (although this one had a twist), best friends, brothers, the couple who wants to see if their relationship will work out (it didn't). All in all, an entertaining book and more serious than you might expect.
Saturday, July 15, 2006
I Did but I Wouldn't Now & The Sad Truth About Happiness
I recently finished I Did (But I Wouldn't Now), by the same author who wrote I Do (But I Don 't). I can't remember her name right now and don't feel like looking it up. I definitely liked I Do better than I Did. Or maybe I just don't remember the first book that well. Lauren (I think) was the main character from I Do and I don't remember her has being as neurotic and insecure as she seems to be in I Don't. Her sister, Lily, is the main character in I Don't. I never got around to liking her, which really impacts how I feel about a book. If other things in the book, like plot, setting, secondary characters, etc. can make up for how I feel about the main character, there's a chance I might end up liking the book. That didn't really happen in this book. I just found myself not liking her when she did horrible things to her ex-husband. And her explaining away that she was a bad person, and that's why she did them, didn't make it any easier to excuse her behavior.
The other book I read, The Sad Truth About Happiness, was this month's book club book. We meet on Monday, so I'm pretty pleased with myself that I finished the book on Saturday afternoon. I had to sit in on a Yu-Gi-Oh! event (don't ask) so it was a nice way to pass the time. The book itself was a little odd and left a few things kind of open at the end that I wish had been a little more summed up. One of the main things in the book was that she took this quiz that said she was going to die by the end of the year unless she was able to change the answer to one question: are you happy. After taking that quiz you hear about her life, but it doesn't seem like she makes any changes in her life overtly to be happier. It's kind of hard to explain, but there doesn't seem to be enough explanation about how she goes about being happier. Obviously she is b/c she doesn't die, or maybe the quiz was flawed to begin with, but those questions are never really answered. Maybe I'm supposed to be more intuitive and glean that from the events in the book, but it was all rather vague. I'll be interested to see what other people at book club thught about it.
At the moment, since I just finished my book club book, I'm not reading anything. I have a few books lying around though, so I'm sure one of them will appeal to me.
The other book I read, The Sad Truth About Happiness, was this month's book club book. We meet on Monday, so I'm pretty pleased with myself that I finished the book on Saturday afternoon. I had to sit in on a Yu-Gi-Oh! event (don't ask) so it was a nice way to pass the time. The book itself was a little odd and left a few things kind of open at the end that I wish had been a little more summed up. One of the main things in the book was that she took this quiz that said she was going to die by the end of the year unless she was able to change the answer to one question: are you happy. After taking that quiz you hear about her life, but it doesn't seem like she makes any changes in her life overtly to be happier. It's kind of hard to explain, but there doesn't seem to be enough explanation about how she goes about being happier. Obviously she is b/c she doesn't die, or maybe the quiz was flawed to begin with, but those questions are never really answered. Maybe I'm supposed to be more intuitive and glean that from the events in the book, but it was all rather vague. I'll be interested to see what other people at book club thught about it.
At the moment, since I just finished my book club book, I'm not reading anything. I have a few books lying around though, so I'm sure one of them will appeal to me.
Tuesday, June 27, 2006
Twelve Sharp
I finished three books this week. Somehow I'm finding more time to read these past few weeks. It's kind of nice. I read Twelve Sharp, the latest in the Stephanie Plum series by Janet Evanovich. I thought it was good. The books are becoming very similar. I think in a previous book she was kidnapped, taken to a remote location and chained in a bathroom. I could be wrong. I still liked it, but it wasn't as laugh out loud funny as some of the earlier books. Also, I kept waiting for her car to blow up, and it never happened! She did have to accompany her Grandma to a funeral, so that hasn't changed.
I also recently read Baby Proof by Emily Giffin. I had read her Something Borrowed and Something Blue and really enjoyed them. This one was a bit of a disappointment. I didn't like the main character at all. I wasn't crazy about the storyline either. It just didn't do much for me.
Earlier today I finished Queen of Babble by Meg Cabot. It was a bunch of fluff, but I liked it. The main character was very flaky, which I usually find annoying. I found it annoying this time too, but I liked the supporting cast of characters. Parts of the book reminded me of Sophie Kinsella's Can You Keep a Secret? The ending was kind of open-ended, so I'm wondering if there might be a sequel in the future.
I also recently read Baby Proof by Emily Giffin. I had read her Something Borrowed and Something Blue and really enjoyed them. This one was a bit of a disappointment. I didn't like the main character at all. I wasn't crazy about the storyline either. It just didn't do much for me.
Earlier today I finished Queen of Babble by Meg Cabot. It was a bunch of fluff, but I liked it. The main character was very flaky, which I usually find annoying. I found it annoying this time too, but I liked the supporting cast of characters. Parts of the book reminded me of Sophie Kinsella's Can You Keep a Secret? The ending was kind of open-ended, so I'm wondering if there might be a sequel in the future.
Thursday, June 15, 2006
Rumspringa & Welcome to the Real World
I recently finished two books - Rumspringa: To Be or Not To Be Amish by Tom Shachtman and Welcome to the Real World by Carole Matthews. The Carole Matthews book was one of the freebies I got at the Book Expo.
Rumspringa was really good. I'm fascinated by the Amish, so I thought it was really interesting. It was mainly about the period in an Amish person's life after they turn 16 until they decide to join the church. Or, in some cases, not to join the church. I think the retention rate is something really high, like 80-90 percent eventually join the church. The focus was on teenagers, but the author interviewed a lot of Amish people, so it provided a broad picture of Amish life. It really is a crazy thing to suddenly be exposed to all these new things and be able to do things you've never been allowed to do before, and never will be allowed to do again, if you join the church. As the Mom of a one-year-old I've given no thought to the upcoming teen years. Now I'm terrified! Reading this book made me realize how hard it must be for parents to let go as your kids get older. Right now, I control so much of Ryan's little life. I guess it's a gradual process, but you get to the point where you have to let your kid make the big decisions and take responsibility. I'm not looking forward to that! I guess I have a few years to prepare myself. Anyway, I really enjoyed the book.
I also enjoyed Welcome to the Real World. It was a typical chick lit kind of love story, with one twist. The basic story was aspiring singer sings in bar with her good friend who she's known forever, dated briefly a long time ago, and he's been in love with her ever since. She meets this other, older, rich man and sparks fly. Circumstances keep them apart and you're sure she'll wise up and realize she loves the friend that's been in love with her. Surprisingly, that doesn't happen and she ends up with the other man. It was entertaining.
Right now I'm reading Anybody Out There? by Marian Keyes. I haven't read that much of it. It's part of a series about the Walsh sisters that includes Rachel's Holiday, Angels and Watermelon. She's written quite a few other books that I've enjoyed.
Rumspringa was really good. I'm fascinated by the Amish, so I thought it was really interesting. It was mainly about the period in an Amish person's life after they turn 16 until they decide to join the church. Or, in some cases, not to join the church. I think the retention rate is something really high, like 80-90 percent eventually join the church. The focus was on teenagers, but the author interviewed a lot of Amish people, so it provided a broad picture of Amish life. It really is a crazy thing to suddenly be exposed to all these new things and be able to do things you've never been allowed to do before, and never will be allowed to do again, if you join the church. As the Mom of a one-year-old I've given no thought to the upcoming teen years. Now I'm terrified! Reading this book made me realize how hard it must be for parents to let go as your kids get older. Right now, I control so much of Ryan's little life. I guess it's a gradual process, but you get to the point where you have to let your kid make the big decisions and take responsibility. I'm not looking forward to that! I guess I have a few years to prepare myself. Anyway, I really enjoyed the book.
I also enjoyed Welcome to the Real World. It was a typical chick lit kind of love story, with one twist. The basic story was aspiring singer sings in bar with her good friend who she's known forever, dated briefly a long time ago, and he's been in love with her ever since. She meets this other, older, rich man and sparks fly. Circumstances keep them apart and you're sure she'll wise up and realize she loves the friend that's been in love with her. Surprisingly, that doesn't happen and she ends up with the other man. It was entertaining.
Right now I'm reading Anybody Out There? by Marian Keyes. I haven't read that much of it. It's part of a series about the Walsh sisters that includes Rachel's Holiday, Angels and Watermelon. She's written quite a few other books that I've enjoyed.
Tuesday, June 06, 2006
Queen: the Definitive Biography & Chang & Eng
I finished Queen: the Definitive Biography last week. It was really interesting. I love Queen, so I enjoyed reading about how the band formed and the path their career took. I didn't start listening to them until college, so I missed the time when they were really popular, and I really had no idea how big they were, at least how big this book made them sound. Very exciting! I have been a diligent Queen fan recently - I've seen both the Queen musical, We Will Rock You, and went to see Queen with Paul Rodgers in DC just a few months ago. Both were excellent!
For book club we read Chang & Eng by Darin Strauss. I think 4-5 people finished it, a few more read part of it and 2 people didn't start. I think that's about average. While I like reading all the books, I think it's nice that in this book club, you can go even if you don't finish the book. Or even start it! I really like this group of people and enjoy getting together with them once a month. I thought the book was ok. It was written from Eng's perspective and went back and forth through different periods in their lives. I thought that was an odd, and unnecessary way to write it. I'm probably missing some important parallels that were obvious to everyone else, but I found it distracting. The book left me with more questions about Chang and Eng than I had before I started. I guess that's a good sign since I wasn't so sick of them, I never wanted to hear their names again! We had a good discussion about the book and their miserable lives. Since the book was fiction, based on their lives, I'm not sure which parts were fiction and which were reality. Were their marriages as awful as the book made them out to be? Was Chang a drunk?
Our book for next month is The Sad Truth About Happiness, by Anne Giardini. I voted for One Thousand White Women: the Journals of May Dodd by Jim Fergus, but was outvoted. Oh well.
For book club we read Chang & Eng by Darin Strauss. I think 4-5 people finished it, a few more read part of it and 2 people didn't start. I think that's about average. While I like reading all the books, I think it's nice that in this book club, you can go even if you don't finish the book. Or even start it! I really like this group of people and enjoy getting together with them once a month. I thought the book was ok. It was written from Eng's perspective and went back and forth through different periods in their lives. I thought that was an odd, and unnecessary way to write it. I'm probably missing some important parallels that were obvious to everyone else, but I found it distracting. The book left me with more questions about Chang and Eng than I had before I started. I guess that's a good sign since I wasn't so sick of them, I never wanted to hear their names again! We had a good discussion about the book and their miserable lives. Since the book was fiction, based on their lives, I'm not sure which parts were fiction and which were reality. Were their marriages as awful as the book made them out to be? Was Chang a drunk?
Our book for next month is The Sad Truth About Happiness, by Anne Giardini. I voted for One Thousand White Women: the Journals of May Dodd by Jim Fergus, but was outvoted. Oh well.
Wednesday, May 24, 2006
Red Dress Ink Jackpot!
I went to the Book Expo in DC last weekend and stumbled upon a Red Dress Ink book signing. I was so excited! You can tell I don't get out much. There were a bunch of my favorite authors from that publisher signing their books. Some of the books I got signed were:
Girls Night Out, a short story collection I had signed by Marian Keyes (one of my favorites!), Meg Cabot and Laura Caldwell. I read this already and really enjoyed it. The stories were really good for the most part, and I wanted to read more.
Me vs. Me, by Sarah Mlynowski. I read this as well and really enjoyed it. I was happy with the "Me" that she chose in the end and (spoiler ahead) was happy that she and Cam ended up together. I was also pleased that Cam was not the same guy who refused to elope at the end of the AZ part of the story, but seemed to have changed as well.
I also had books signed by Carole Matthews, Mindy Klasky and one or two others whose names escape me right now. All in all, a great surprise for me!
I also had a book called My Father the Dog signed by the author. It's a very cute children's book I"m going to give Mark for Father's Day. He'll really like it. I had it signed for Ryan.
Otherwise, I'm still reading the Queen biography which is really interesting. Their lives at the time sound like all they did was record and tour. It's hard to imagine how they had a personal life outside of that. I need to start reading Chang & Eng, but I still have 2 weeks until book club.
Girls Night Out, a short story collection I had signed by Marian Keyes (one of my favorites!), Meg Cabot and Laura Caldwell. I read this already and really enjoyed it. The stories were really good for the most part, and I wanted to read more.
Me vs. Me, by Sarah Mlynowski. I read this as well and really enjoyed it. I was happy with the "Me" that she chose in the end and (spoiler ahead) was happy that she and Cam ended up together. I was also pleased that Cam was not the same guy who refused to elope at the end of the AZ part of the story, but seemed to have changed as well.
I also had books signed by Carole Matthews, Mindy Klasky and one or two others whose names escape me right now. All in all, a great surprise for me!
I also had a book called My Father the Dog signed by the author. It's a very cute children's book I"m going to give Mark for Father's Day. He'll really like it. I had it signed for Ryan.
Otherwise, I'm still reading the Queen biography which is really interesting. Their lives at the time sound like all they did was record and tour. It's hard to imagine how they had a personal life outside of that. I need to start reading Chang & Eng, but I still have 2 weeks until book club.
Friday, May 12, 2006
In the Company of the Courtesan, Sarah Dunant
At book club this past Monday, we discussed In the Company of the Courtesan by Sarah Dunant. It was pretty good. The story is told from the perspective of the courtesan's dwarf. I learned a lot about the profession of courtesan in the 16th century, the life of a dwarf in the 16th century and about Venice in general. We spent some time discussing how the profession of courtesan/prostitute has changed from then until now. Pretty funny. After we finished the discussion we got in the hot tub and set a new record with 7 people!
Since it was at my house I had to suggest books to read for next time. I suggested The Bingo Queens of Paradise by June Park, Big City Eyes by Delia Ephron and Chang and Eng by Darin Strauss. We chose Chang and Eng, which is a novel based on the lives of the Siamese twins. It looks really interesting.
Outside of book club I just finished Charmed Thirds by Megan McCafferty. This is the third in a young adult series. The first two are Sloppy Firsts and Second Helpings. It took me a long time to get into this third one. I didn't like it as much as the first two. It's set over her entire time at college. I did get into it more the farther I read and found myself caring what happened to her. I was happy that Marcus reappeared, since I find myself liking him better than Jessica, but thought she was quick to take him back. Jessica did seem to mature over time and come to some realizations that made her more likeable.
This morning I just started reading Queen: the Definitive Biography by Laura Jackson. I'm only a few pages in, but so far so good!
Since it was at my house I had to suggest books to read for next time. I suggested The Bingo Queens of Paradise by June Park, Big City Eyes by Delia Ephron and Chang and Eng by Darin Strauss. We chose Chang and Eng, which is a novel based on the lives of the Siamese twins. It looks really interesting.
Outside of book club I just finished Charmed Thirds by Megan McCafferty. This is the third in a young adult series. The first two are Sloppy Firsts and Second Helpings. It took me a long time to get into this third one. I didn't like it as much as the first two. It's set over her entire time at college. I did get into it more the farther I read and found myself caring what happened to her. I was happy that Marcus reappeared, since I find myself liking him better than Jessica, but thought she was quick to take him back. Jessica did seem to mature over time and come to some realizations that made her more likeable.
This morning I just started reading Queen: the Definitive Biography by Laura Jackson. I'm only a few pages in, but so far so good!
Thursday, April 20, 2006
Killing me Softly
I haven't been reading all that much lately. Too busy! My last book club book was Killing me Softly, by Nicci French. It was kind of disturbing. It's hard to imagine being caught up in that sort of dysfunctional relationship. I couldn't help wondering why her friends didn't do more to help her when it was obvious that it wasn't a healthy relationship. I guess they were in a difficult position since they were all close to her ex as well. Anyway, it was interesting, but I'm not sure I really liked it.
While I was at my parents and had two built in babysitters, I read Vince & Joy, by Lisa Jewell. Another book about people in dysfunctional relationships. And again, I don't know how they let that happen to themselves for such a long period of time. Especially Joy. I've read a few other books by Lisa Jewell, and really enjoyed them, so this one was a little disappointing.
Right now I'm reading Cold Sassy Tree, by Olive Ann Burns. Mostly I'm reading it because it's one of the few books on my shelf that I've never read. I'm not sure when I got it or why, but I'm basically reading it out of desperation! Funny, because I work in a Library and have my choice of thousands of books. Must start finding better books to read. This book actually is pretty entertaining and I'm enjoying it more than the other two I mentioned. I used to work with a woman who absolutely loved this book and that's stuck in my head all this time. There's a sequel, but I'm not sure I'm going to read it.
For book club this month we're reading In the Company of the Courtesan, by Sarah Dunant. I haven't started it yet, but it looks good. Previously for book club we read The Birth of Venus, which I really liked. Hopefully this one will be as good. Book club is at my house next month so I'll have to pick out three books to suggest. My goals are to 1) not leave book selection until the day of like I usually do and 2) not wait until two days before book club to start the book like I usually do. I have a problem with procrastination.
While I was at my parents and had two built in babysitters, I read Vince & Joy, by Lisa Jewell. Another book about people in dysfunctional relationships. And again, I don't know how they let that happen to themselves for such a long period of time. Especially Joy. I've read a few other books by Lisa Jewell, and really enjoyed them, so this one was a little disappointing.
Right now I'm reading Cold Sassy Tree, by Olive Ann Burns. Mostly I'm reading it because it's one of the few books on my shelf that I've never read. I'm not sure when I got it or why, but I'm basically reading it out of desperation! Funny, because I work in a Library and have my choice of thousands of books. Must start finding better books to read. This book actually is pretty entertaining and I'm enjoying it more than the other two I mentioned. I used to work with a woman who absolutely loved this book and that's stuck in my head all this time. There's a sequel, but I'm not sure I'm going to read it.
For book club this month we're reading In the Company of the Courtesan, by Sarah Dunant. I haven't started it yet, but it looks good. Previously for book club we read The Birth of Venus, which I really liked. Hopefully this one will be as good. Book club is at my house next month so I'll have to pick out three books to suggest. My goals are to 1) not leave book selection until the day of like I usually do and 2) not wait until two days before book club to start the book like I usually do. I have a problem with procrastination.
Monday, February 27, 2006
Father Joe by Tony Hendra
I finished this month's book club book Father Joe by Tony Hendra last night, just in time for tonight's book club. It was good, better than I expected. I found myself more interested though, in the story of Father Joe than I was in the story of Tony Hendra. I've never heard of him, either of them, actually, so I didn't really have any preconceived notions of who Tony Hendra was or what he was like. It was really interesting at the end to find out that Father Joe has had such an influence on so many people's lives. I would've liked to have heard more about that. It was also interesting to read about life at Quarr and I found myself wanting to learn more about how monks live. That's often how I find things to read - I take one aspect of a book I'm reading and want to learn as much as I can about it.
Other than Father Joe I've read a few trashy novels. Nothing I'd really like to report on! I'm betting that we'll pick something on the lighter side at book club tonight. Our last two books have been nonfiction and not exactly happy reading.
In other news, Ryan's really starting to enjoy reading, or at least rapidly flipping the pages of his books. Every morning after I feed him, he picks out a few books and brings them to me and he sits on my lap while I read to him. Some of his current favorites are: I Love you as Much, Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See?, Fuzzy, Fuzzy, Fuzzy, Binky, and Blankie. So sweet!
Other than Father Joe I've read a few trashy novels. Nothing I'd really like to report on! I'm betting that we'll pick something on the lighter side at book club tonight. Our last two books have been nonfiction and not exactly happy reading.
In other news, Ryan's really starting to enjoy reading, or at least rapidly flipping the pages of his books. Every morning after I feed him, he picks out a few books and brings them to me and he sits on my lap while I read to him. Some of his current favorites are: I Love you as Much, Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See?, Fuzzy, Fuzzy, Fuzzy, Binky, and Blankie. So sweet!
Friday, February 10, 2006
Come Again
Book club was really interesting. We discussed A Million Little Pieces in between James Frey's appearance on Larry King and his appearance on Oprah. One of the women had taped the Larry King show so we watched that. Interesting. Kind of funny that on that show Oprah's still defending him and a few days later is ripping into him on her own show. Hopefully this whole debacle doesn't send James right back to the bottle. Otherwise, he probably shouldn't have made up so much and then tried to peddle it as nonfiction. It wouldn't have been a bad fiction book, but once you know he made it up, it's hard to take seriously. The part that amuses me the most is that he exaggerated how much of a badass he was in rehab. That to me is funny, b/c that really is what he tried to convey. As someone at book club pointed out, once you hear him talk, it's hard to imagine anyone taking any of his threats seriously.
I also finished Party Season which I really liked. Hopefully Sarah Mason will write something else soon since I really enjoy her books. I've also recently reread 2 books that I own - Come Together and Come Again by Josie Lloyd and Emlyn Rees. I liked both of them, but definitely liked Come Together better than Come Again. Come Together is the story of Jack and Amy and how they got together (hence the title). It's the basic plot of boy and girl meet, fall in love, something terrible happens or there's a big misunderstanding so they break up, true love conquers all and they get back together. Cheesy, but I enjoyed it. Come Again is about 4 of Amy & Jack's friends and it's a little harder to follow and as there are 4 main characters, you don't get to know them as well. Also, Jack & Amy are planning their wedding at this point and come across as kind of lame. I didn't like the 2 of them as much in this book.
I just finished this morning a book called The Prince of Central Park about a young boy who ran away from his abusive foster mother to live in Central Park. It was good, if a little unbelievable. Shockingly, I'm not reading a single book at the moment since I finished this last one. Must find something good to read...
I also finished Party Season which I really liked. Hopefully Sarah Mason will write something else soon since I really enjoy her books. I've also recently reread 2 books that I own - Come Together and Come Again by Josie Lloyd and Emlyn Rees. I liked both of them, but definitely liked Come Together better than Come Again. Come Together is the story of Jack and Amy and how they got together (hence the title). It's the basic plot of boy and girl meet, fall in love, something terrible happens or there's a big misunderstanding so they break up, true love conquers all and they get back together. Cheesy, but I enjoyed it. Come Again is about 4 of Amy & Jack's friends and it's a little harder to follow and as there are 4 main characters, you don't get to know them as well. Also, Jack & Amy are planning their wedding at this point and come across as kind of lame. I didn't like the 2 of them as much in this book.
I just finished this morning a book called The Prince of Central Park about a young boy who ran away from his abusive foster mother to live in Central Park. It was good, if a little unbelievable. Shockingly, I'm not reading a single book at the moment since I finished this last one. Must find something good to read...
Sunday, January 22, 2006
Wedding Day by Catherine Alliott
I recently finished Wedding Day by Catherine Alliott. It was pretty good. There were a few loose ends that were tied up a little too neatly. Namely the main character conveniently getting out of her upcoming wedding by her fiance letting her off the hook and then moving to South America! Yeah, that could happen. I did like the main character, even though she was a bit of a pushover throughout most of the book. I also never got the amazing chemistry between the main character and her love interest that seemed obvious to everyone in the book, but not to me as I was reading it. Can you tell I've already forgotten the names of the characters? I did actually like it, even though I don't seem to have many nice things to say.
Right now I'm reading two books. I'm almost finished with my book club book A Million Little Pieces by James Frey. Unfortunately, as I was about a third of the way through it all the allegations of him fabricating large parts of the book surfaced. I read the entire Smoking Gun article on it, and it was a long one. Now as I'm reading parts of it, I just get irritated and think about what a big liar he is! It might just be me, but he's also very arrogant and for someone who supposedly needs as much help as he does it seems actually stupid for him not to take the advice of people who have been through it and overcome their addictions. He is quick to call bullshit on other people and other people's beliefs, but seems 100% certain that his way is the right way. Anyway, it should make for some very interesting discussion on Monday night!
The other book I'm reading is The Party Season by Sarah Mason. This is the third book by Sarah Mason that I've read recently and I really like them. I'm not too far along in this one, but I'm really enjoying it. One thing I like is that I know something is going to happen with Isabel and Simon, but I have no idea what! Most books are so easy to predict. Also, Isabel's roommate Dom is involved with someone, but I don't know who. My wild guess is Isabel's sister, but I'm not sure about that.
Right now I'm reading two books. I'm almost finished with my book club book A Million Little Pieces by James Frey. Unfortunately, as I was about a third of the way through it all the allegations of him fabricating large parts of the book surfaced. I read the entire Smoking Gun article on it, and it was a long one. Now as I'm reading parts of it, I just get irritated and think about what a big liar he is! It might just be me, but he's also very arrogant and for someone who supposedly needs as much help as he does it seems actually stupid for him not to take the advice of people who have been through it and overcome their addictions. He is quick to call bullshit on other people and other people's beliefs, but seems 100% certain that his way is the right way. Anyway, it should make for some very interesting discussion on Monday night!
The other book I'm reading is The Party Season by Sarah Mason. This is the third book by Sarah Mason that I've read recently and I really like them. I'm not too far along in this one, but I'm really enjoying it. One thing I like is that I know something is going to happen with Isabel and Simon, but I have no idea what! Most books are so easy to predict. Also, Isabel's roommate Dom is involved with someone, but I don't know who. My wild guess is Isabel's sister, but I'm not sure about that.
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