Crossed by Ally Condie is the second book in a trilogy, and follows where Matched left off. I finished Matched late one evening and read the first chapter of Crossed (a tease in the last pages of Matched) which lead me to purchase Crossed the following day after work. I was so excited to read what would happen next!
With the assistance of her parents and Match Xander, Cassia manages to leave the Society and is sent to the Outer Provinces (to work) in the hopes of finding Ky, who was sent there by the Society to fight against the the Enemy.
For the majority of the book I was on the edge of my seat waiting to see if Cassia and Ky finally find one another. The book bounces from Cassia's journey and moves to Ky's journey. The journey toward each other, and their personal journey as they literally move forward in the Outer Provinces. You got a little more insight on Ky in this book. His thoughts, fears, struggles... his fight. You learn about his parents and how they died. You got to see Cassia in an element she wasn't certain of at first, but grew to like and adapt in. I can't say more without giving a lot away. You do get to meet a couple of new characters and Xander does make an appearance as well.
I couldn't put down the book! The book ends on somewhat of an ambiguous note. Although I'm not as excited to read the final book in the trilogy, I do want to see how the series will wrap up. I'll have to wait a year... it's not published yet!
Showing posts with label book review. Show all posts
Showing posts with label book review. Show all posts
Wednesday, November 23, 2011
Friday, November 18, 2011
Book review: Matched
I was browsing books online and came across Matched by Ally Condie. I was intrigued with the futuristic view of the world. The main character Cassia has always trusted the Society to make the right choices for her: what to eat, read, watch, what to believe, where she's going to work, what to do in her "free" time, and who to marry. Therefore, when her best friend Xander's face appears on-screen at her Matching Ceremony, Cassia knows with complete certainty that he is her ideal mate... until she sees Ky Markham's face flash for an instant before the screen fades to black. The Society NEVER makes mistakes. What does this mean?
The Society tells her it's a glitch and that she should focus on the happy life she's destined to lead with Xander. Unfortunately, Cassia can't stop thinking about Ky, and as they get to know each other better they slowly fall in love.
She began to doubt the dependability of the Society. A series of events also shakes her dedication to Xander and puts her future in jeopardy. All of this leads to a tough decision for her; will she choose Xander or Ky; will she choose the life she's always known in the safe world of the Society, or will she choose a path that no one else has dared to follow?
In addition to following Cassia and her decisions, the idea of the Society and how it was formed is very interesting. The control the Society has over every aspect of every person's life is...crazy, but at the same time, it's explained in such a way that one might believe the world could become this way. Personal choice no longer exists. Or does it...?
I couldn't put this book down! Can you...?
The Society tells her it's a glitch and that she should focus on the happy life she's destined to lead with Xander. Unfortunately, Cassia can't stop thinking about Ky, and as they get to know each other better they slowly fall in love.
She began to doubt the dependability of the Society. A series of events also shakes her dedication to Xander and puts her future in jeopardy. All of this leads to a tough decision for her; will she choose Xander or Ky; will she choose the life she's always known in the safe world of the Society, or will she choose a path that no one else has dared to follow?
In addition to following Cassia and her decisions, the idea of the Society and how it was formed is very interesting. The control the Society has over every aspect of every person's life is...crazy, but at the same time, it's explained in such a way that one might believe the world could become this way. Personal choice no longer exists. Or does it...?
I couldn't put this book down! Can you...?
Saturday, August 20, 2011
Book review: Before I go to Sleep
I read the description for S.J. Watson's "Before I go to Sleep" on the New York Times Bestseller List one evening and knew I had to recommend it to book club members.
I bought the book on Tuesday, started reading before I went to bed on Wednesday night, and finished this evening, Friday. I could not put the book down!
Imagine waking up and not knowing where you are. It's happened to all of us at one time or another. Perhaps in college when you thought you were still living at home; or perhaps when you moved into your first apartment or bought your first house... Thankfully for us, we soon realize where we are and continue on with our day, forgetting the awkwardness and disorientation we had upon waking.
Unfortunately this doesn't happen with Christine, the main character in "Before I go to Sleep." Christine wakes up every day not knowing where she is, who the man is next to her in bed, or who she is. She has no memory of the past; not even the prior day.
"... At first I can't work out what it is, but then I see it. The hand gripping the soap does not look like mine. Its skin is wrinkled, the nails unpolished and bitten to the quick and, like that of the man in the bed I have just left, the third finger wears a plain gold wedding finger. / I stare for a moment, then wriggle my fingers. The fingers of the hand holding the soap move also. I gasp, and the soap thuds into the sink. I look up at the mirror. / The face I see looking back at me is not my own. The hair has no volume and is cut much shorter than I wear it; the skin on the cheeks and under the chin sags; the lips are thin; the mouth turned down. I cry out, a wordless gasp that would turn into a shriek were I to let it, and then notice the eyes. The skin around them is lined, yes, but despite everything else, I can see that they are mine. The person in the mirror is me, but I am twenty years too old. Twenty-five. More." (pgs 4-5)
Every day Christine wakes up not knowing who or where she is. Her memories disappear every time she falls asleep. Her husband, Ben, is a stranger to her, and he explains their life together on a daily basis. As a result of a mysterious accident Christine is an amnesiac; a special case where not even new memories are stored in her mind. With the encouragement of her doctor, Christine starts a journal to help jog her memory every day. Of course, without a daily morning call from her doctor, she wouldn't know she had a journal.
One morning Christine opens the journal and sees that she's written three words: "Don't trust Ben."
As she writes in and reads her journal every day, she slowly pieces together her past, starts remembering more details, and begins to see inconsistencies in her memories and the things Ben tells her that happened. She doesn't know who she can trust. She doesn't even know if she can trust herself! The story will keep many readers guessing until the very end.
There aren't many books where time simply disappears for me, but this was definitely one of them! I highly recommend this book.
I bought the book on Tuesday, started reading before I went to bed on Wednesday night, and finished this evening, Friday. I could not put the book down!
Imagine waking up and not knowing where you are. It's happened to all of us at one time or another. Perhaps in college when you thought you were still living at home; or perhaps when you moved into your first apartment or bought your first house... Thankfully for us, we soon realize where we are and continue on with our day, forgetting the awkwardness and disorientation we had upon waking.
Unfortunately this doesn't happen with Christine, the main character in "Before I go to Sleep." Christine wakes up every day not knowing where she is, who the man is next to her in bed, or who she is. She has no memory of the past; not even the prior day.
"... At first I can't work out what it is, but then I see it. The hand gripping the soap does not look like mine. Its skin is wrinkled, the nails unpolished and bitten to the quick and, like that of the man in the bed I have just left, the third finger wears a plain gold wedding finger. / I stare for a moment, then wriggle my fingers. The fingers of the hand holding the soap move also. I gasp, and the soap thuds into the sink. I look up at the mirror. / The face I see looking back at me is not my own. The hair has no volume and is cut much shorter than I wear it; the skin on the cheeks and under the chin sags; the lips are thin; the mouth turned down. I cry out, a wordless gasp that would turn into a shriek were I to let it, and then notice the eyes. The skin around them is lined, yes, but despite everything else, I can see that they are mine. The person in the mirror is me, but I am twenty years too old. Twenty-five. More." (pgs 4-5)
Every day Christine wakes up not knowing who or where she is. Her memories disappear every time she falls asleep. Her husband, Ben, is a stranger to her, and he explains their life together on a daily basis. As a result of a mysterious accident Christine is an amnesiac; a special case where not even new memories are stored in her mind. With the encouragement of her doctor, Christine starts a journal to help jog her memory every day. Of course, without a daily morning call from her doctor, she wouldn't know she had a journal.
One morning Christine opens the journal and sees that she's written three words: "Don't trust Ben."
As she writes in and reads her journal every day, she slowly pieces together her past, starts remembering more details, and begins to see inconsistencies in her memories and the things Ben tells her that happened. She doesn't know who she can trust. She doesn't even know if she can trust herself! The story will keep many readers guessing until the very end.
There aren't many books where time simply disappears for me, but this was definitely one of them! I highly recommend this book.
Sunday, August 7, 2011
Book review: Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children
Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children by Ransom Riggs caught my eye when I was browsing through the top 110 books on the NY Times list.
As a child, Jacob formed a close bond with his grandfather over his bizarre tales and photos of levitating girls and invisible boys. His grandfather grew up on a small Welsh island in an "orphanage" that his parents sent him to in order to save him from Hitler's plans during WWII.
Under suspicious circumstances, Jacob, age 16, found his grandfather lying and dying in the woods behind his (grandfather's) ransacked home. Before his grandfather took his last breath, he told Jacob that he was sorry he didn't tell him a long time ago, but added, "There's no time [now]." He breathed into Jacob's ear: "Find the bird. In the loop. On the other side of the old man's grave. September third, 1940." With his last bit of strength, he added, "Emerson--the letter. Tell them what happened..." (pg 33). Jacob then saw a face in the woods--a face that was in his childhood nightmares. It was the last thing he saw before he blacked out.
His parents sent him to therapy because he wasn't sleeping due to nightmares and trying to decode his grandfather's last words. Upon cleaning our his grandfather's house, Jacob is given a mysterious letter, found inside a book of poems by Ralph Waldo Emerson, that brings him to the island where his grandfather grew up.
He soon finds the children from the photographs, alive and well, despite the islanders’ insistence that all were killed when the German's bombed the island in 1940.
I could not put the book down! Once Jacob gets to the island, things his grandfather said to him start to make sense. As he pieces the puzzle together, he realizes that he's in danger. It's definitely an exciting page-turner, and the photographs make the book that much better. A must read.
As a child, Jacob formed a close bond with his grandfather over his bizarre tales and photos of levitating girls and invisible boys. His grandfather grew up on a small Welsh island in an "orphanage" that his parents sent him to in order to save him from Hitler's plans during WWII.
Under suspicious circumstances, Jacob, age 16, found his grandfather lying and dying in the woods behind his (grandfather's) ransacked home. Before his grandfather took his last breath, he told Jacob that he was sorry he didn't tell him a long time ago, but added, "There's no time [now]." He breathed into Jacob's ear: "Find the bird. In the loop. On the other side of the old man's grave. September third, 1940." With his last bit of strength, he added, "Emerson--the letter. Tell them what happened..." (pg 33). Jacob then saw a face in the woods--a face that was in his childhood nightmares. It was the last thing he saw before he blacked out.
His parents sent him to therapy because he wasn't sleeping due to nightmares and trying to decode his grandfather's last words. Upon cleaning our his grandfather's house, Jacob is given a mysterious letter, found inside a book of poems by Ralph Waldo Emerson, that brings him to the island where his grandfather grew up.
He soon finds the children from the photographs, alive and well, despite the islanders’ insistence that all were killed when the German's bombed the island in 1940.
I could not put the book down! Once Jacob gets to the island, things his grandfather said to him start to make sense. As he pieces the puzzle together, he realizes that he's in danger. It's definitely an exciting page-turner, and the photographs make the book that much better. A must read.
Friday, July 29, 2011
Book review: Buried Prey
Buried Prey by John Sandford
I have been a big John Sandford fan since I read his first “Prey” book long ago. He’s an author of which I repeatedly purchase without hesitation, ESPECIALLY if it’s a “Prey” book. And finding Buried Prey at Half Priced Books was a deal I most definitely could not pass up! A bonus for those who don’t know, the Prey series all take place in the Twin Cities!
In Buried Prey, Sandford reintroduces the young and ambitious Lucas Davenport when he started on the police force. It was cool to see Davenport as a “rookie” and see how he worked his way up through the ranks to his current role as an investigator in the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension.
This book featured one of his first cases—the abduction and assumed murder of two young girls. He wasn’t comfortable with the “resolution” of the case when it happened, but he was just breaking out of patrol work and accepted his supervisor’s decision on the case. Now, twenty-five years later, the bodies of the Jones sisters are discovered in a plastic bag beneath the concrete-floor basement of a house being torn down in Minneapolis, and Davenport is re-examining the case. He reviews his case notes from 1985 and realizes that because of his lack of experience, the notes weren’t incredibly helpful, however, from them he was able to reinterview a couple of witnesses who still remembered the missing girls.
You’ll be missing out if you don’t read Sandford’s latest Prey book.
Check out The Prey Series:
Rules of Prey
Shadow Prey
Eyes of Prey
Silent Prey
Winter Prey
Night Prey
Mind Prey
Sudden Prey
Secret Prey
Certain Prey
Easy Prey
Chosen Prey
Mortal Prey
Naked Prey
Hidden Prey
Broken Prey
Invisible Prey
Phantom Prey
Wicked Prey
Storm Prey
Buried Prey
I have been a big John Sandford fan since I read his first “Prey” book long ago. He’s an author of which I repeatedly purchase without hesitation, ESPECIALLY if it’s a “Prey” book. And finding Buried Prey at Half Priced Books was a deal I most definitely could not pass up! A bonus for those who don’t know, the Prey series all take place in the Twin Cities!
In Buried Prey, Sandford reintroduces the young and ambitious Lucas Davenport when he started on the police force. It was cool to see Davenport as a “rookie” and see how he worked his way up through the ranks to his current role as an investigator in the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension.
This book featured one of his first cases—the abduction and assumed murder of two young girls. He wasn’t comfortable with the “resolution” of the case when it happened, but he was just breaking out of patrol work and accepted his supervisor’s decision on the case. Now, twenty-five years later, the bodies of the Jones sisters are discovered in a plastic bag beneath the concrete-floor basement of a house being torn down in Minneapolis, and Davenport is re-examining the case. He reviews his case notes from 1985 and realizes that because of his lack of experience, the notes weren’t incredibly helpful, however, from them he was able to reinterview a couple of witnesses who still remembered the missing girls.
You’ll be missing out if you don’t read Sandford’s latest Prey book.
Check out The Prey Series:
Rules of Prey
Shadow Prey
Eyes of Prey
Silent Prey
Winter Prey
Night Prey
Mind Prey
Sudden Prey
Secret Prey
Certain Prey
Easy Prey
Chosen Prey
Mortal Prey
Naked Prey
Hidden Prey
Broken Prey
Invisible Prey
Phantom Prey
Wicked Prey
Storm Prey
Buried Prey
Saturday, July 23, 2011
Book review: Think Twice
“Think Twice” by Lisa Scottoline
I read Think Twice on my own and now it's July's book club selection. I really liked the book; it held my interest and kept me on the edge of my seat. I admit that the plot-line is more like an exaggerated Hollywood movie than a real life happening, but books are for escaping reality, right? So go along for the ride!
Bennie Rosato looks exactly like her identical twin, Alice Connolly. They were separated shortly after birth because their mother couldn't care for both children. Alice was adopted. The twins meet later in life when Bennie, an attorney, represents her sister Alice in a murder trial. Alice was aquitted.
Alice pops up in Bennie's life again, but this time with a plan to take over her sister's identity, or rather, her sister's extensive bank accounts. Early in the novel Bennie finds herself drugged and buried alive at the hands of Alice.
I could not put the book down!
It's easy to see how the twin fooled Bennie's coworkers, as Bennie is the type who stays to herself and doesn't share much about her own life, or show feelings to others. Alice easily "replaces" her sister at work, and with a boyfriend who resurfaces!
The other characters in the book are full of life, especially the crazy Italian family of Mary DiNunzio, who could have a novel themselves! A true Italian "witch" named Valentina is a friend of the DiNunzio family and she sees that "Bennie" is evil but no one believes her.
The book explores whether evil is born or bred. If pushed to the limit, are we all capable of evil...?
Check out Think Twice and see for yourself.
I read Think Twice on my own and now it's July's book club selection. I really liked the book; it held my interest and kept me on the edge of my seat. I admit that the plot-line is more like an exaggerated Hollywood movie than a real life happening, but books are for escaping reality, right? So go along for the ride!
Bennie Rosato looks exactly like her identical twin, Alice Connolly. They were separated shortly after birth because their mother couldn't care for both children. Alice was adopted. The twins meet later in life when Bennie, an attorney, represents her sister Alice in a murder trial. Alice was aquitted.
Alice pops up in Bennie's life again, but this time with a plan to take over her sister's identity, or rather, her sister's extensive bank accounts. Early in the novel Bennie finds herself drugged and buried alive at the hands of Alice.
I could not put the book down!
It's easy to see how the twin fooled Bennie's coworkers, as Bennie is the type who stays to herself and doesn't share much about her own life, or show feelings to others. Alice easily "replaces" her sister at work, and with a boyfriend who resurfaces!
The other characters in the book are full of life, especially the crazy Italian family of Mary DiNunzio, who could have a novel themselves! A true Italian "witch" named Valentina is a friend of the DiNunzio family and she sees that "Bennie" is evil but no one believes her.
The book explores whether evil is born or bred. If pushed to the limit, are we all capable of evil...?
Check out Think Twice and see for yourself.
Sunday, July 10, 2011
Book review: The Shack
The Shack by William Paul Young was the book club selection for May.
I knew nothing about the book when I bought it; I didn't read reviews or summaries, and had no preconceived notions.
I was really into the book in the first several chapters. Mackenzie (Mack) took his children camping, and while he was saving two of his children in a canoe accident, his other daughter Missy was abducted. They searched the camp grounds and the surrounding area. When they returned to the camp site, they discovered a ladybug lapel pin stuck into Missy's coloring book. Upon further investigation, it's revealed that the FBI has been tracking the "Little Ladykiller" for four years, through nine states without any luck of catching him or finding the bodies of the girls he's abducted. During an intensive search, they discovered evidence that indicated Missy was brutally killed in an abandoned shack deep in the wilderness.
Mack goes into what he calls, "The Great Sadness." Four years later, still in the midst of his "great sadness" he receives a letter in the mailbox from "Papa" inviting to meet at the shack. Is the note from the killer? Or is the note from God?
Mack drives to the shack in the dead of winter, walks toward it, and enters. And this my friends, is where the book loses me... Mack meets God, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit and spends the weekend with them. And God is a big black woman. And that is relevant to the story as well.
I found the book interesting in that the God he met with is the God I know. I'm not a church goer anymore, but I am spiritual and I believe in God. However, I do not believe in Hell, brimstone and fire. My God is a loving God who wants us to experience things, to learn from experiences, to grow... my God, and the God in the book wants us to be the best we can possibly be and live a good and loving life. God doesn't punish people. God isn't a vengeful God. God is an all-loving all encompassing God.
I completed the book. It was insightful. Although I am not in AA (Alcoholics Anonymous) myself, I noticed many AA moments throughout Mack's weekend with the Trinity with regards to going through some of The Steps to better himself. Mack learned a lot about himself, forgave, and was able to "let go and let God."
The books asks, is it possible to let go of control and certainty in life? Is it possible to live only in the present?
Will this book change your life?
I knew nothing about the book when I bought it; I didn't read reviews or summaries, and had no preconceived notions.
I was really into the book in the first several chapters. Mackenzie (Mack) took his children camping, and while he was saving two of his children in a canoe accident, his other daughter Missy was abducted. They searched the camp grounds and the surrounding area. When they returned to the camp site, they discovered a ladybug lapel pin stuck into Missy's coloring book. Upon further investigation, it's revealed that the FBI has been tracking the "Little Ladykiller" for four years, through nine states without any luck of catching him or finding the bodies of the girls he's abducted. During an intensive search, they discovered evidence that indicated Missy was brutally killed in an abandoned shack deep in the wilderness.
Mack goes into what he calls, "The Great Sadness." Four years later, still in the midst of his "great sadness" he receives a letter in the mailbox from "Papa" inviting to meet at the shack. Is the note from the killer? Or is the note from God?
Mack drives to the shack in the dead of winter, walks toward it, and enters. And this my friends, is where the book loses me... Mack meets God, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit and spends the weekend with them. And God is a big black woman. And that is relevant to the story as well.
I found the book interesting in that the God he met with is the God I know. I'm not a church goer anymore, but I am spiritual and I believe in God. However, I do not believe in Hell, brimstone and fire. My God is a loving God who wants us to experience things, to learn from experiences, to grow... my God, and the God in the book wants us to be the best we can possibly be and live a good and loving life. God doesn't punish people. God isn't a vengeful God. God is an all-loving all encompassing God.
I completed the book. It was insightful. Although I am not in AA (Alcoholics Anonymous) myself, I noticed many AA moments throughout Mack's weekend with the Trinity with regards to going through some of The Steps to better himself. Mack learned a lot about himself, forgave, and was able to "let go and let God."
The books asks, is it possible to let go of control and certainty in life? Is it possible to live only in the present?
Will this book change your life?
Sunday, July 3, 2011
Book review: Water for Elephants
I am so far behind on my book reviews, it’s rather embarrassing. I will do my best to recall each book I’ve read since January 2011. I will begin with…
Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen
Water for Elephants is told as a series of memories by Jacob Jankowski, a “ninety or ninety-three year-old” man who lives in a nursing home. Jacob longs to eat food with flavor and of substance, like corn-on-the-cob or steak, but because he’s “the only one who still has teeth” he’s forced to eat tasteless “mush” at the nursing home. He’s a witty character that will make the reader laugh aloud at times.
The book goes between Jacob’s present non-exciting and lonely life in a nursing home to memories of his past working for The Benzini Brothers Most Spectacular Show on Earth. As a young man, Jacob was about to take his final exam to become a vet at Cornell when he was informed that his parents died in a car accident… and that his father mortgaged the family home (and vet business) to send him to school, so he no longer had a home or a vet business. Devastated, he literally ran away; he hopped on a train in the middle of the night only to find out later that it was a circus train.
Thankfully he was able to get a job with the circus because of his veterinary skills. He’s forced to share a boxcar with a dwarf named Walter and his dog Queenie, neither of which are happy about the new living arrangements. Jacob also meets Camel, an alcoholic who later befalls the effects of drinking Jamaican ginger extract for years and loses the use of his arms and legs. Walter, Camel and Jacob eventually get along and become good friends.
The head trainer August is married to the star of the circus, Marlena, with whom Jacob falls in love. August is a violent man who abuses the animals and people, Marlena in particular. This can be seen more vividly after Rosie the elephant is purchased “to save the circus.” August, although sometimes charming, is not a likable character. Jacob develops a guarded relationship with August and Marlena.
August becomes suspicious of Jacob and Marlena’s “relationship” and beats each of them. Marlena runs away to a hotel while she’s not performing. The reader, and August, can clearly see that Jacob and Marlena are falling in love with one another, although neither have acted upon it physically.
Meanwhile, circus sales are down, workers aren’t being paid (sometimes for months) and circus hands are being “red-lighted” (throwing circus workers off a moving train as either punishment or to avoid paying wages).
As Jacob sees the results of August’s beatings of Marlena and Rosie the elephant, he becomes enraged and wants revenge. One night Jacob climbs up and jumps each car, while the train is moving, to August’s room, carrying a knife between his teeth intending to kill August. He sees Marlena in bed with August and instead quietly lays the knife on August’s pillow as a type of warning. When Jacob returns to his boxcar, he only finds Queenie. He realizes that Walter and Camel were red-lighted and Jacob himself was supposed to be too. The train stops in the next town and the tents go up. Some are shocked to see Jacob there…
As the story climaxes, several circus workers who were red-lighted off the train come back and release the animals causing a stampede during the performance.
Panic arises. August is killed by Rosie the elephant, who plunges the stake which had “secured” her to the ground, into his head. Jacob is the only one who sees this happen. Rosie then returns the stake into the ground. As a result of the stampede, the circus is shut down. Marlena and Jacob leave, along with Rosie the elephant, Queenie, and a few other animals, to begin their life together.
We discover that Marlena and Jacob married, had 5 children, and spent the first seven years at another circus before Jacob secured a job as a vet at a zoo, who also took Rosie the elephant. Evidently Marlena died a few years before Jacob was put into the nursing home.
In the present, ninety-three year old Jacob is waiting for his family to take him to the circus. Alas, they forgot. He is deeply saddened, but then decides to walk across the street to the circus by himself. He arrives as they are loading up to go to another city. Jacob meets the manager and finds that he is “home” again. He secures a job as a ticket salesman.
Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen
Water for Elephants is told as a series of memories by Jacob Jankowski, a “ninety or ninety-three year-old” man who lives in a nursing home. Jacob longs to eat food with flavor and of substance, like corn-on-the-cob or steak, but because he’s “the only one who still has teeth” he’s forced to eat tasteless “mush” at the nursing home. He’s a witty character that will make the reader laugh aloud at times.
The book goes between Jacob’s present non-exciting and lonely life in a nursing home to memories of his past working for The Benzini Brothers Most Spectacular Show on Earth. As a young man, Jacob was about to take his final exam to become a vet at Cornell when he was informed that his parents died in a car accident… and that his father mortgaged the family home (and vet business) to send him to school, so he no longer had a home or a vet business. Devastated, he literally ran away; he hopped on a train in the middle of the night only to find out later that it was a circus train.
Thankfully he was able to get a job with the circus because of his veterinary skills. He’s forced to share a boxcar with a dwarf named Walter and his dog Queenie, neither of which are happy about the new living arrangements. Jacob also meets Camel, an alcoholic who later befalls the effects of drinking Jamaican ginger extract for years and loses the use of his arms and legs. Walter, Camel and Jacob eventually get along and become good friends.
The head trainer August is married to the star of the circus, Marlena, with whom Jacob falls in love. August is a violent man who abuses the animals and people, Marlena in particular. This can be seen more vividly after Rosie the elephant is purchased “to save the circus.” August, although sometimes charming, is not a likable character. Jacob develops a guarded relationship with August and Marlena.
August becomes suspicious of Jacob and Marlena’s “relationship” and beats each of them. Marlena runs away to a hotel while she’s not performing. The reader, and August, can clearly see that Jacob and Marlena are falling in love with one another, although neither have acted upon it physically.
Meanwhile, circus sales are down, workers aren’t being paid (sometimes for months) and circus hands are being “red-lighted” (throwing circus workers off a moving train as either punishment or to avoid paying wages).
As Jacob sees the results of August’s beatings of Marlena and Rosie the elephant, he becomes enraged and wants revenge. One night Jacob climbs up and jumps each car, while the train is moving, to August’s room, carrying a knife between his teeth intending to kill August. He sees Marlena in bed with August and instead quietly lays the knife on August’s pillow as a type of warning. When Jacob returns to his boxcar, he only finds Queenie. He realizes that Walter and Camel were red-lighted and Jacob himself was supposed to be too. The train stops in the next town and the tents go up. Some are shocked to see Jacob there…
As the story climaxes, several circus workers who were red-lighted off the train come back and release the animals causing a stampede during the performance.
Panic arises. August is killed by Rosie the elephant, who plunges the stake which had “secured” her to the ground, into his head. Jacob is the only one who sees this happen. Rosie then returns the stake into the ground. As a result of the stampede, the circus is shut down. Marlena and Jacob leave, along with Rosie the elephant, Queenie, and a few other animals, to begin their life together.
We discover that Marlena and Jacob married, had 5 children, and spent the first seven years at another circus before Jacob secured a job as a vet at a zoo, who also took Rosie the elephant. Evidently Marlena died a few years before Jacob was put into the nursing home.
In the present, ninety-three year old Jacob is waiting for his family to take him to the circus. Alas, they forgot. He is deeply saddened, but then decides to walk across the street to the circus by himself. He arrives as they are loading up to go to another city. Jacob meets the manager and finds that he is “home” again. He secures a job as a ticket salesman.
Monday, January 17, 2011
Book review: The Postcard Killers
December's book club choice was "individual choice" with the option of participating in a book exchange (gift wrapped) at the January meeting. I chose The Postcard Killers by James Patteron and Liza Marklund. There's no hiding that I love the work of James Patterson, although I cannot keep up with his novels! I think he publishes one each month... sometimes more!
The Postcard Killers opens at the Louvre in Paris, France as the killers admire the portrait of Mona Lisa. They meet a nice couple on their honeymoon and invited them to dinner, and afterwards, to share champagne with them in their hotel room. It's no surprise that the newly married couple are killed.
Meanwhile New York police department detective Jacob Kanon is visiting Europe's most famous cities, trying to catch the killers before they murder anyone else... AND to get justice for his daughter. Kanon's daughter Kimmy and her boyfriend were murdered while vacationing in Rome. Since then, young couples throughout Europe have been murdered. The only thing connecting the murders is a postcard mailed to a local newspaper that precedes each new victim.
Kanon teams up with Swedish reporter Dessie Larsson to find the killers before the next couple meets the same fate as those in other cities. Of course an obligatory love story is weaved into the story...
Will they find the killers? Will justice be served? You won't know unless you pick up the book and start reading. Enjoy!
The Postcard Killers opens at the Louvre in Paris, France as the killers admire the portrait of Mona Lisa. They meet a nice couple on their honeymoon and invited them to dinner, and afterwards, to share champagne with them in their hotel room. It's no surprise that the newly married couple are killed.
Meanwhile New York police department detective Jacob Kanon is visiting Europe's most famous cities, trying to catch the killers before they murder anyone else... AND to get justice for his daughter. Kanon's daughter Kimmy and her boyfriend were murdered while vacationing in Rome. Since then, young couples throughout Europe have been murdered. The only thing connecting the murders is a postcard mailed to a local newspaper that precedes each new victim.
Kanon teams up with Swedish reporter Dessie Larsson to find the killers before the next couple meets the same fate as those in other cities. Of course an obligatory love story is weaved into the story...
Will they find the killers? Will justice be served? You won't know unless you pick up the book and start reading. Enjoy!
Sunday, January 16, 2011
Book review: Room
November's book club choice was Room by Emma Donoghue. I LOVED this novel and I think it took me record time to complete the book; I could NOT put it down! At once point I literally could not read fast enough to find out what would happen! It was similar to sitting at the edge of your seat during an intense part of a movie!
Writing this review is difficult because I don't want to give anything away. Suffice it to say that the book is AMAZING!
The novel is unique because it's written by five-year-old Jack's perspective, and Room is his world. Jack was born in Room; it's where he eats, sleeps, and plays. He's a highly intelligent five-year-old with a great imagination, which is credit to his mother, known only as Ma, since Room has been her prison for seven years.
It's not Jack's mother's choice to live in the windowless 11-by-11-foot space; she was kidnapped and imprisoned in the room when she was nineteen years old. Her captor, Old Nick, brings the pair food and necessary items on Sundays, and occasionally "visits" Ma late at night while Jack sleeps in Wardrobe.
Ma tries to give Jack as normal of a life as she can. She teaches him songs, how to read, and makes up exercises to keep his muscles toned and healthy. They do have a television, but she limits their time watching it. Because Jack was born in Room, Ma tells him that things like trees, birds, animals, and cars exist "outside" which he believes to be another planet, or "outer space".
But soon after Jack’s fifth birthday, Ma realizes she can’t raise him in confinement forever and forms an awful, desperate plan for escape.
I can't say any more. You will not be disappointed in this novel. Enjoy!
Writing this review is difficult because I don't want to give anything away. Suffice it to say that the book is AMAZING!
The novel is unique because it's written by five-year-old Jack's perspective, and Room is his world. Jack was born in Room; it's where he eats, sleeps, and plays. He's a highly intelligent five-year-old with a great imagination, which is credit to his mother, known only as Ma, since Room has been her prison for seven years.
It's not Jack's mother's choice to live in the windowless 11-by-11-foot space; she was kidnapped and imprisoned in the room when she was nineteen years old. Her captor, Old Nick, brings the pair food and necessary items on Sundays, and occasionally "visits" Ma late at night while Jack sleeps in Wardrobe.
Ma tries to give Jack as normal of a life as she can. She teaches him songs, how to read, and makes up exercises to keep his muscles toned and healthy. They do have a television, but she limits their time watching it. Because Jack was born in Room, Ma tells him that things like trees, birds, animals, and cars exist "outside" which he believes to be another planet, or "outer space".
But soon after Jack’s fifth birthday, Ma realizes she can’t raise him in confinement forever and forms an awful, desperate plan for escape.
I can't say any more. You will not be disappointed in this novel. Enjoy!
Saturday, January 15, 2011
Book review: The Physick Book of Deliverance Dane
I'm behind in my book club book reviews. My apologies! Where does the time go?
October's book selection was The Physick Book of Deliverance Dane by Katherine Howe. I "discovered" the book from a friend who posted its book trailer on Facebook (http://www.physickbook.com/trailer.html). The trailer made me want to IMMEDIATELY buy the book! I could not wait to sit down and read! I'm fascinated by the Salem Witch Trials and that period of time.
The book was interesting, and although the story line was realistic with regards to researching and writing a dissertation, I found myself bored at times. However, there were moments in the book when I could not put it down! The author also threw in an obligatory romance to spice things up, but it was very predictable...even for someone who doesn't read romance novels.
Similar in format to Sarah's Key, the novel moves back and forth between time periods. The Physick Book of Deliverance Dane moves from the summer of 1991 in Salem, Massachusetts, to the 17th-century witch trial era. It is in the 17th century era that the reader discovers that Connie has ties to the witch trials, and that's what kept me reading.
Harvard graduate Connie Goodwin planned to spend her summer doing research for her doctoral dissertation, but her mother asked her to handle the sale of Connie's grandmother's abandoned home near Salem. Reluctantly she agreed. The house is falling apart, has no electricity, and no phone; quite a change for Connie.
As she cleans up the house one room at a time, she discovers an ancient key hidden inside a seventeenth-century Bible. The key contains an obviously old piece of parchment paper with "Deliverance Dane" written on it. This discovery intrigues Connie and makes her want to find out who this woman was, AND find the physick book and its secret recipes.
I found the ending of the book predictable on two levels, but won't spoil it for you. All and all, I'd give the book a 5 out of 10.
October's book selection was The Physick Book of Deliverance Dane by Katherine Howe. I "discovered" the book from a friend who posted its book trailer on Facebook (http://www.physickbook.com/trailer.html). The trailer made me want to IMMEDIATELY buy the book! I could not wait to sit down and read! I'm fascinated by the Salem Witch Trials and that period of time.
The book was interesting, and although the story line was realistic with regards to researching and writing a dissertation, I found myself bored at times. However, there were moments in the book when I could not put it down! The author also threw in an obligatory romance to spice things up, but it was very predictable...even for someone who doesn't read romance novels.
Similar in format to Sarah's Key, the novel moves back and forth between time periods. The Physick Book of Deliverance Dane moves from the summer of 1991 in Salem, Massachusetts, to the 17th-century witch trial era. It is in the 17th century era that the reader discovers that Connie has ties to the witch trials, and that's what kept me reading.
Harvard graduate Connie Goodwin planned to spend her summer doing research for her doctoral dissertation, but her mother asked her to handle the sale of Connie's grandmother's abandoned home near Salem. Reluctantly she agreed. The house is falling apart, has no electricity, and no phone; quite a change for Connie.
As she cleans up the house one room at a time, she discovers an ancient key hidden inside a seventeenth-century Bible. The key contains an obviously old piece of parchment paper with "Deliverance Dane" written on it. This discovery intrigues Connie and makes her want to find out who this woman was, AND find the physick book and its secret recipes.
I found the ending of the book predictable on two levels, but won't spoil it for you. All and all, I'd give the book a 5 out of 10.
Friday, November 5, 2010
Book review: The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo
September's book club selection was The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larsson. I've heard nothing but good things about the trilogy novels so I was naturally excited to read the first book.
I was immediately drawn into the mystery of who was sending a framed dried flower annually...for decades to the rich Henrik Vanger. But then I got bored.
Without giving anything away, I figured out early on that the mystery wasn't what it appeared. One of the main characters, Mikael Blomkvist, was a financial journalist who stepped down from his magazine because he was sued for libel (and would go to jail). In another part of the city, a loner and goth-like Lisbeth Salander works as a kind of private investigator with an amazing ability to hack in to any computer without notice, regardless of security walls. She is hired to dig up information on said journalist.
Meanwhile Henrik Vanger contacts Mikael and offers him a one-year "job" to write the Vanger family history (HOOK), but there's a secret twist: Mikael will really be trying to discover what happened to his great-niece before he dies (LINE). Mikael only agrees to take the job because after the one year, Vanger promised to give him tangible information on the person with whom he libeled -- which will prove that the man really is a criminal (SINKER).
Mikael ends up working with Lisbeth and the two gradually uncover clues and piece things together to discover corruption in the Vanger family. Throughout the book, the reader learns more about the mysterious Lisbeth and gives us a glimpse into why she is the way she is.
Before I go on, I should say that I am not into drawn-out detailed novels unless the details have meaning. I was bored fairly quickly because nothing really happened in the first 100+ pages of the 590 page book. I almost went insane. Seriously, nothing happened. Blah blah blah. As a result, it took me forever to get into the book--and at page 460 or so the story started to get really good.
As far as I'm concerened, the book could have ended 100 pages before it did. The author describes every detail about everything. It's almost like he wrote a screen play instead of a novel. However, all and all, it was a good book, minus the details. *wink*
I swore I wouldn't read the rest of the trilogy, but I read the prologue of The Girl who Played with Fire and was sucked into the story, so we'll see. *wink*
I was immediately drawn into the mystery of who was sending a framed dried flower annually...for decades to the rich Henrik Vanger. But then I got bored.
Without giving anything away, I figured out early on that the mystery wasn't what it appeared. One of the main characters, Mikael Blomkvist, was a financial journalist who stepped down from his magazine because he was sued for libel (and would go to jail). In another part of the city, a loner and goth-like Lisbeth Salander works as a kind of private investigator with an amazing ability to hack in to any computer without notice, regardless of security walls. She is hired to dig up information on said journalist.
Meanwhile Henrik Vanger contacts Mikael and offers him a one-year "job" to write the Vanger family history (HOOK), but there's a secret twist: Mikael will really be trying to discover what happened to his great-niece before he dies (LINE). Mikael only agrees to take the job because after the one year, Vanger promised to give him tangible information on the person with whom he libeled -- which will prove that the man really is a criminal (SINKER).
Mikael ends up working with Lisbeth and the two gradually uncover clues and piece things together to discover corruption in the Vanger family. Throughout the book, the reader learns more about the mysterious Lisbeth and gives us a glimpse into why she is the way she is.
Before I go on, I should say that I am not into drawn-out detailed novels unless the details have meaning. I was bored fairly quickly because nothing really happened in the first 100+ pages of the 590 page book. I almost went insane. Seriously, nothing happened. Blah blah blah. As a result, it took me forever to get into the book--and at page 460 or so the story started to get really good.
As far as I'm concerened, the book could have ended 100 pages before it did. The author describes every detail about everything. It's almost like he wrote a screen play instead of a novel. However, all and all, it was a good book, minus the details. *wink*
I swore I wouldn't read the rest of the trilogy, but I read the prologue of The Girl who Played with Fire and was sucked into the story, so we'll see. *wink*
Thursday, August 5, 2010
Book review: Patty Jane's House of Curl by Lorna Landvik
Patty Jane's House of Curl by Lorna Landvik was not what I expected. When some people from the book club said they "loved" the book because "it was fabulous!", we thought, "Great!" After the previous book (the Bonesetter's Daughter) we needed an easy & fun read.
I'll give it "easy" but "fun" I'm not so sure. The book did have some humorous parts, but it was depressing, sometimes dark, and I have to say incredibly predictable. Don't worry, I won't give anything away. The book takes place in Minnesota so it was neat to "see" the streets and sites back in the 1960's. However, I don't think that non-Minnesotans would truly get the feel for the places the characters visited.
Patty Jane and her sister Harriet grew up in an alcoholic household and pretty much relied on one another to get through life. Patty Jane married a hottie and got pregnant on their wedding night. Thor, her hottie husband disappears days before the baby is born. I must confess that I was thisclose to not reading further until Thor ran head-on into a tree one icy winter evening. I read to find out what happened to him.
After Thor's disappearance and her depressive episode, Patty Jane opens a neighborhood beauty parlor to financially support her family. She soon decides that classes would be a great addition for the ladies who come to the shop, so she offers a variety of classes, ranging from art to Hollywood gossip. Her mother-in-law, now living with Patty Jane, bakes delicious Norwegian treats for the women to enjoy with theior coffee and tea, and Harriet, an incredibly gifted and multi-talented artist, sometimes plays harp. Of course the women in the beauty parlor gossip as well.
I must confess that I did get misty-eyed near the end of the novel, which means that Lorna Landcik did a great job in developing a few characters. I'll give her props for that. However, of all of the book club picks, this is at the bottom of the list for me. Sorry Patty Jane. You're just not my cup of tea (pun intended).
I'll give it "easy" but "fun" I'm not so sure. The book did have some humorous parts, but it was depressing, sometimes dark, and I have to say incredibly predictable. Don't worry, I won't give anything away. The book takes place in Minnesota so it was neat to "see" the streets and sites back in the 1960's. However, I don't think that non-Minnesotans would truly get the feel for the places the characters visited.
Patty Jane and her sister Harriet grew up in an alcoholic household and pretty much relied on one another to get through life. Patty Jane married a hottie and got pregnant on their wedding night. Thor, her hottie husband disappears days before the baby is born. I must confess that I was thisclose to not reading further until Thor ran head-on into a tree one icy winter evening. I read to find out what happened to him.
After Thor's disappearance and her depressive episode, Patty Jane opens a neighborhood beauty parlor to financially support her family. She soon decides that classes would be a great addition for the ladies who come to the shop, so she offers a variety of classes, ranging from art to Hollywood gossip. Her mother-in-law, now living with Patty Jane, bakes delicious Norwegian treats for the women to enjoy with theior coffee and tea, and Harriet, an incredibly gifted and multi-talented artist, sometimes plays harp. Of course the women in the beauty parlor gossip as well.
I must confess that I did get misty-eyed near the end of the novel, which means that Lorna Landcik did a great job in developing a few characters. I'll give her props for that. However, of all of the book club picks, this is at the bottom of the list for me. Sorry Patty Jane. You're just not my cup of tea (pun intended).
Sunday, July 11, 2010
Book review: Silent Killer by Beverly Barton
I have to admit that I love suspense, psychological horror, and murder mystery novels. My first favorite "adult" author was John Saul, whom I discovered when I was 12 years old. I say "adult" author because my readings prior to his novels were youngadult or children's novels, including VC Andrews Flowers in the Attic series. I loved novels that would pull me in on the first page. As an adult, I still enjoy John Saul novels. My favorite authors are John Sandford (of Minnesota!), James Patterson (whose movies can't even touch his novels!), Patricia Cornwell, Sandra Brown, and a sampling of others.
Last year a friend turned me on to Beverly Barton. I was leary at first because my friend loves romance novels; I do not. I was pleasantly surprised. The romance wasn't over-done; it wasn't mushy and filled with hyperbole. It was realistic albeit predictable, but the romance wasn't the focus of the storyline, which is what got me hooked into a great suspense novel.
Beverly Barton's novel Silent Killer didn't disappoint. Someone, believe to be chosen by God to enact His will, is violently murdering men of God because they have committed sins. There are many churches of different faiths in this small Alabama town, and everyone knows everyone, typical of small towns. Also typical of small towns, people have secrets... and secrets have a way of getting out. Murder, rape, "bastard" children, and evil deeds are woven throughout the novel with deep friendships, kindred spirits, and great loves. There were a couple of unexpected twists, although to a seasoned suspense reader, I was correct in my guess of the murderer, but the reason behind it was a twist.
What I did not like were the unanswered questions and loose ends left at the end of the book. The author, aware of this, write a letter to the reader stating that the loose ends will be answered in her next novel, Dead by Midnight. Ummm, thanks...?
Last year a friend turned me on to Beverly Barton. I was leary at first because my friend loves romance novels; I do not. I was pleasantly surprised. The romance wasn't over-done; it wasn't mushy and filled with hyperbole. It was realistic albeit predictable, but the romance wasn't the focus of the storyline, which is what got me hooked into a great suspense novel.
Beverly Barton's novel Silent Killer didn't disappoint. Someone, believe to be chosen by God to enact His will, is violently murdering men of God because they have committed sins. There are many churches of different faiths in this small Alabama town, and everyone knows everyone, typical of small towns. Also typical of small towns, people have secrets... and secrets have a way of getting out. Murder, rape, "bastard" children, and evil deeds are woven throughout the novel with deep friendships, kindred spirits, and great loves. There were a couple of unexpected twists, although to a seasoned suspense reader, I was correct in my guess of the murderer, but the reason behind it was a twist.
What I did not like were the unanswered questions and loose ends left at the end of the book. The author, aware of this, write a letter to the reader stating that the loose ends will be answered in her next novel, Dead by Midnight. Ummm, thanks...?
Wednesday, July 7, 2010
book review: The Bonesetter's Daughter by Amy Tan
The book club selection for June was The Bonesetter's Daughter by Amy Tan. I wasn't familiar with Amy Tan's work (she authored The Joy Luck Club), so I didn't have preconceived thoughts about this book.
The book is about a mother/daughter relationship and takes place in the past (mother's childhood and young adulthood in China) and the present (in the US). I have to be honest. I had the hardest time getting through "part one" of this book. The relationship between the mother LuLing and daughter Ruth is not a warm one. Ruth also doesn't have a good realtionship with her live-in boyfriend and his two daughters. The first part of the book is quite depressing, which only means that Amy's talent lies in character development.
LuLing refuses to learn English, although she knows a little, which means that Ruth has been translating for her mother since Ruth was able to speak. This mirrors LuLing's relationship with her own mother, which we learn about in "part two." LuLing was afraid of forgetting the past so she wrote it down for her daughter... all in Chinese. The stack of pages were forgotten for years, lying in the bottom of Ruth's desk drawer.
"Part two" was a much quicker read for me because it was the translation of LuLing's writings. It was about LuLing's childhood in China, her youth and young adulthood in an orphanage, and her life in Peking before coming to the United States. During "part two" both the reader and Ruther gained insight into LuLing. And that's where the real beauty lies. Once you get through the rough stuff of part one, you are rewarded with the remainder of the book.
The book is about a mother/daughter relationship and takes place in the past (mother's childhood and young adulthood in China) and the present (in the US). I have to be honest. I had the hardest time getting through "part one" of this book. The relationship between the mother LuLing and daughter Ruth is not a warm one. Ruth also doesn't have a good realtionship with her live-in boyfriend and his two daughters. The first part of the book is quite depressing, which only means that Amy's talent lies in character development.
LuLing refuses to learn English, although she knows a little, which means that Ruth has been translating for her mother since Ruth was able to speak. This mirrors LuLing's relationship with her own mother, which we learn about in "part two." LuLing was afraid of forgetting the past so she wrote it down for her daughter... all in Chinese. The stack of pages were forgotten for years, lying in the bottom of Ruth's desk drawer.
"Part two" was a much quicker read for me because it was the translation of LuLing's writings. It was about LuLing's childhood in China, her youth and young adulthood in an orphanage, and her life in Peking before coming to the United States. During "part two" both the reader and Ruther gained insight into LuLing. And that's where the real beauty lies. Once you get through the rough stuff of part one, you are rewarded with the remainder of the book.
Sunday, June 6, 2010
Book review: The Art of Racing in the Rain by Garth Stein
I have to admit that when I heard that the fourth book selection for book club was The Art of Racing in the Rain by Garth Stein, I was less than thrilled. The book was written from a dog's viewpoint, and the dog's owner was a race car driver. I am not a fan of dogs and I have little to no interest in race cars. Plus, it was known before-hand that the dog would die.
We decided on another book selection for the month. Unfortunately (or fortunately!) that book was difficult to obtain online or in libraries because it was an older publication, therefore, The Art of Racing in the Rain by Garth Stein was selected.
I was able to grab a copy at Target and start reading right away. I was pleasantly surprised. I felt sorry for the dog. I empathized with him. I AGREED with him.
I. Liked. The. Dog.
I liked Enzo the dog. And I related to the owner. Viewing the world through the eyes of a dog kind of makes one appreciate being human. Enzo believed that when a GOOD dog dies, he becomes human in his next life. That was his goal. To become human. To have a tongue made for articulating his words, thumbs to grasp things...
His insight into the world was dead-on; it was amazing. And the art of racing TOTALLY correlates to "the art of" life. Who knew?! For example, "The visble becomes inevitable." How true is that? Set a goal, focus on the "prize", and it will happen. Or, "No race has ever been won in the first corner; many races have been lost there."
Perhaps I think the book is wonderful because I went into the book thinking I wouldn't like it... or perhaps it really is a good book. I laughed, I cried, I got angry, I felt anxious at times, I cheered, laughed some more, and cried again. Enzo's owner goes through difficult times, and Enzo is there with him every step of the way.
I highly recommend The Art of Racing in the Rain by Garth Stein.
We decided on another book selection for the month. Unfortunately (or fortunately!) that book was difficult to obtain online or in libraries because it was an older publication, therefore, The Art of Racing in the Rain by Garth Stein was selected.
I was able to grab a copy at Target and start reading right away. I was pleasantly surprised. I felt sorry for the dog. I empathized with him. I AGREED with him.
I. Liked. The. Dog.
I liked Enzo the dog. And I related to the owner. Viewing the world through the eyes of a dog kind of makes one appreciate being human. Enzo believed that when a GOOD dog dies, he becomes human in his next life. That was his goal. To become human. To have a tongue made for articulating his words, thumbs to grasp things...
His insight into the world was dead-on; it was amazing. And the art of racing TOTALLY correlates to "the art of" life. Who knew?! For example, "The visble becomes inevitable." How true is that? Set a goal, focus on the "prize", and it will happen. Or, "No race has ever been won in the first corner; many races have been lost there."
Perhaps I think the book is wonderful because I went into the book thinking I wouldn't like it... or perhaps it really is a good book. I laughed, I cried, I got angry, I felt anxious at times, I cheered, laughed some more, and cried again. Enzo's owner goes through difficult times, and Enzo is there with him every step of the way.
I highly recommend The Art of Racing in the Rain by Garth Stein.
Book review: Await Your Reply by Dan Chaon
Await Your Reply by Dan Chaon
Wow. This book was wild. When I was about 3/4 of the way through, I called a friend/book club member and asked, "Is this book like Pulp Fiction [the movie]?!" Yes, yes it is. Describing this book is like describing Pulp Fiction. It's something that can't really be done. The book starts at the end, but not... There's a "twist" in the book that some people didn't see coming, while others did.
The book is essentially three separate stories that link up in the final pages, but not in the way that you *think* they will... I was again immediately hooked because the book opens with a college dropout named Ryan, one of three main characters, in the passenger seat of a car with his severed hand sitting next to him in a cooler.
The other main character is Miles, a lonely man in his 30's working for a magic shop, who, in his "spare time", travels around the United States, and the world in search of his paranoid schizophrenic identical twin brother, Hayden, who vanished 10 years ago.
Lucy, the final main character, just finished high school and runs away with her history teacher, George, in pursuit of a new life, with the promises of millions of dollars he claims to have access to.
None of the main characters know one another, but at the end of the book, you find out that they are all connected. The book is like reading three separate stories, all beginning at different spots, and in the end, Pulp-Fiction-style, they all come together, and you think, "oooohhhhh!" and say, "I have to read this again!!"
The characters in the book are unhappy. Unhappy with life, themselves, the world... I don't know what else to say about the book without giving away anything. If you like Pulp Fiction, you'll like this book!
Wow. This book was wild. When I was about 3/4 of the way through, I called a friend/book club member and asked, "Is this book like Pulp Fiction [the movie]?!" Yes, yes it is. Describing this book is like describing Pulp Fiction. It's something that can't really be done. The book starts at the end, but not... There's a "twist" in the book that some people didn't see coming, while others did.
The book is essentially three separate stories that link up in the final pages, but not in the way that you *think* they will... I was again immediately hooked because the book opens with a college dropout named Ryan, one of three main characters, in the passenger seat of a car with his severed hand sitting next to him in a cooler.
The other main character is Miles, a lonely man in his 30's working for a magic shop, who, in his "spare time", travels around the United States, and the world in search of his paranoid schizophrenic identical twin brother, Hayden, who vanished 10 years ago.
Lucy, the final main character, just finished high school and runs away with her history teacher, George, in pursuit of a new life, with the promises of millions of dollars he claims to have access to.
None of the main characters know one another, but at the end of the book, you find out that they are all connected. The book is like reading three separate stories, all beginning at different spots, and in the end, Pulp-Fiction-style, they all come together, and you think, "oooohhhhh!" and say, "I have to read this again!!"
The characters in the book are unhappy. Unhappy with life, themselves, the world... I don't know what else to say about the book without giving away anything. If you like Pulp Fiction, you'll like this book!
Book review: The Help by Kathryn Stockett
I haven't done a "book report" since 4th or 5th grade. And I haven't written about a book since my college days, but one has to start again some time, right? ;) However, my book report will be unconventional in nature in that it's more about what I thought about the book as opposed to a summary of the book itself.
I recently joined a book club. OK, by "recently" I really mean four months ago. We just chose book number five: The Bonesetter's Daughter by Amy Tan. I searched through Borders book store in a variety of sections, but eventually had to go to the information desk to ask where I might find her novels. They were in literature. Interesting. I also found it interesting that the first book we read in book club, The Help by Kathryn Stockett was also in literature.
The Help by Kathryn Stockett (2009)
I started reading the book online in a "preview" and was immediately hooked. I went to my library and asked about the book and was informed I would be number 333 on the list to receive it, should I want to add my name to the waiting list. Wow! No thanks. We ordered it online for $10.
I realized only a few years ago that I thoroughly enjoy historical fiction. I discovered it by accident, but I won't go into that now. The Help is set in Mississippi in the early 1960's when discrimination and segregation was in its height; "coloreds" had to use different bathrooms, different drinking fountains, different grocery stores, different libraries; and women (maids) had to dress in polyester maid uniforms. Martin Luther King, Jr. gave his first speech within the storyline.
I'd like to think that one of the main characters, Skeeter, a 22 year old college-educated white woman, would have been me... had I lived in Mississippi in the early 1960's, but I think although I would have felt the same way about things, I wouldn't have been as bold about it as she was. She was born ahead of her time. Women didn't get college degrees and start careers -- they met a fine man, married, and had babies. Not Skeeter. She wanted to be a writer. And because she was close to her maid when she grew up (from a child through college), she appreciated "colored" people and what they had to offer. She was disgusted with the way others treated their maids.
I think because of her close friendship with her maid, she was more open, broad-minded and unbiased. She saw black people as people. And *that* was a rare quality to have in the early '60's. She wanted to expose the world to what life was really like for the black women. She wanted the world to see the women who cared for and raised white people's children, cooked their meals, cleaned their homes, all while being verbally and sometimes physically abused by their employers, or, at the very least, being talked about as if they aren't in the room, knowing they can do anything about it.
The Help raises questions:
How much of a person's character is shaped by the times in which they live?
Is racism inherent or taught?
The Help painted a picture of what it was like to be black in the early '60's in Mississippi. And also what it was like to be female in the early '60's. It's a definite page-turner, and you find yourself cheering for the maids and Skeeter until the very end. I laughed. I cried. I didn't want the book to end. And that's what a great book is all about...
Have you read The Help? Tell me what you thought.
I recently joined a book club. OK, by "recently" I really mean four months ago. We just chose book number five: The Bonesetter's Daughter by Amy Tan. I searched through Borders book store in a variety of sections, but eventually had to go to the information desk to ask where I might find her novels. They were in literature. Interesting. I also found it interesting that the first book we read in book club, The Help by Kathryn Stockett was also in literature.
The Help by Kathryn Stockett (2009)
I started reading the book online in a "preview" and was immediately hooked. I went to my library and asked about the book and was informed I would be number 333 on the list to receive it, should I want to add my name to the waiting list. Wow! No thanks. We ordered it online for $10.
I realized only a few years ago that I thoroughly enjoy historical fiction. I discovered it by accident, but I won't go into that now. The Help is set in Mississippi in the early 1960's when discrimination and segregation was in its height; "coloreds" had to use different bathrooms, different drinking fountains, different grocery stores, different libraries; and women (maids) had to dress in polyester maid uniforms. Martin Luther King, Jr. gave his first speech within the storyline.
I'd like to think that one of the main characters, Skeeter, a 22 year old college-educated white woman, would have been me... had I lived in Mississippi in the early 1960's, but I think although I would have felt the same way about things, I wouldn't have been as bold about it as she was. She was born ahead of her time. Women didn't get college degrees and start careers -- they met a fine man, married, and had babies. Not Skeeter. She wanted to be a writer. And because she was close to her maid when she grew up (from a child through college), she appreciated "colored" people and what they had to offer. She was disgusted with the way others treated their maids.
I think because of her close friendship with her maid, she was more open, broad-minded and unbiased. She saw black people as people. And *that* was a rare quality to have in the early '60's. She wanted to expose the world to what life was really like for the black women. She wanted the world to see the women who cared for and raised white people's children, cooked their meals, cleaned their homes, all while being verbally and sometimes physically abused by their employers, or, at the very least, being talked about as if they aren't in the room, knowing they can do anything about it.
The Help raises questions:
How much of a person's character is shaped by the times in which they live?
Is racism inherent or taught?
The Help painted a picture of what it was like to be black in the early '60's in Mississippi. And also what it was like to be female in the early '60's. It's a definite page-turner, and you find yourself cheering for the maids and Skeeter until the very end. I laughed. I cried. I didn't want the book to end. And that's what a great book is all about...
Have you read The Help? Tell me what you thought.
Book review: Sarah's Key by Tatiana de Rosnay
Sarah's Key by Tatiana de Rosnay
I have to admit that the cover of the book caught my eye, and not because of the two young children running in the foreground, but because it looked like Italy or France.
I opened the book at the rack and couldn't put it down. It opened in Paris, July 1942. "The girl was the first to hear the loud pounding on the door. Her room was closest to the entrance of the apartment. At first, dazed with sleep, she thought it was her father, coming up rom his hiding place in the cellar. He'd forgotten his keys, and was impatient because nopbody had heard his first, timid knock. But then came the voices, strong and brutal in the silence of the night. Nothing to do with her father. "Police! Open up! Now!"
From that moment on, I was hooked. Sarah and her parents were taken from their home in the middle of the night by the French police during the Vel' d' Hiv' round-up in WWII. Desperate to protect her younger brother, Sarah locks him in a bedroom cupboard (their secret hiding place) and promises to come back for him as soon as they are released.
The book bounces from Sarah's story to that of present-day Julia, an American journalist living in Paris, who is investigating the round-up. During her research, she realizes her husband's family has a link to Sarah...
It's amazing how the two stories intertwine! I could NOT put down this book! Because of my interest in WWII, I found myself looking forward to Sarah's story more than that of Julia's. However, in Julia's story, one found out more about Sarah as well. Toward the middle of the book I wanted more of BOTH stories.
Before this book, I'd never heard of Vel' d' Hiv'. The French didn't speak of it until 1995 when newly appointed "President Jacques Chirac officially acknowledged France's complicity in the murder and deportation of the Jews of Europe." (2001 Kamis, Toni L., The Complete Jewish Guide to France)
Sarah's Key is historical fiction at its best. Plausible. Realistic. I laughed. I cried. This book is incredible!!
I have to admit that the cover of the book caught my eye, and not because of the two young children running in the foreground, but because it looked like Italy or France.
I opened the book at the rack and couldn't put it down. It opened in Paris, July 1942. "The girl was the first to hear the loud pounding on the door. Her room was closest to the entrance of the apartment. At first, dazed with sleep, she thought it was her father, coming up rom his hiding place in the cellar. He'd forgotten his keys, and was impatient because nopbody had heard his first, timid knock. But then came the voices, strong and brutal in the silence of the night. Nothing to do with her father. "Police! Open up! Now!"
From that moment on, I was hooked. Sarah and her parents were taken from their home in the middle of the night by the French police during the Vel' d' Hiv' round-up in WWII. Desperate to protect her younger brother, Sarah locks him in a bedroom cupboard (their secret hiding place) and promises to come back for him as soon as they are released.
The book bounces from Sarah's story to that of present-day Julia, an American journalist living in Paris, who is investigating the round-up. During her research, she realizes her husband's family has a link to Sarah...
It's amazing how the two stories intertwine! I could NOT put down this book! Because of my interest in WWII, I found myself looking forward to Sarah's story more than that of Julia's. However, in Julia's story, one found out more about Sarah as well. Toward the middle of the book I wanted more of BOTH stories.
Before this book, I'd never heard of Vel' d' Hiv'. The French didn't speak of it until 1995 when newly appointed "President Jacques Chirac officially acknowledged France's complicity in the murder and deportation of the Jews of Europe." (2001 Kamis, Toni L., The Complete Jewish Guide to France)
Sarah's Key is historical fiction at its best. Plausible. Realistic. I laughed. I cried. This book is incredible!!
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