Jennifer's Books

Virtual Author cancelled

2010-06-18T11:41:00.000-07:00

Sadly, our Monday book club meeting with Garth Stein was cancelled.

I am looking forward to next month's meeting with virtual visition from Will Allison who wrote What You Have Left.

I am continuing to read Three Cups of Tea by Gret Mortensen.

The Art of Racing in the Rain

2010-06-10T19:55:00.000-07:00

by Garth Stein

The story is narrated by Denny's dog Enzo. It was very creative to see what Denny's and his family's life was like through the eyes of the dog over the years. Denny has a passion to be a race car driver but is practical and has a mechanic job as well. He meets and falls in love with Eve and they have a little girl named Zoe. Denny struggles with family life and his passion for racing.

Challenges abound for Denny when Eve is diagnosed with a brain tumor and is terminally ill. Enzo brings life and humor to Denny's life, as the dog.

The book is written lightly and is easy to read. I am looking forward to our book club's virtual author visit from Garth Stein this month.

4 out of 5 rating

Conference Speaker -- Jeffrey Zaslow

2010-03-02T13:48:00.000-08:00

Randy Pausch died in 2008. He co-authored a book by journalist Jeffrey Zaslow. Jeffrey Zaslow was the keynote speaker for the 2010 Alliance Conference in San Antonio.

He shared interesting things about his writings in the Wall Street Journal about Life Transitions.

He also shared thoughts and anecdotes about this book and the other 2 books he has written.

Here are a few quotes that I gathered from his talk that will stick with me....

"Do the right thing every time because we don't know what can happen"

"Experience is what you get when you don't get what you want"

"I have never found anger to make a situation better." Randy Pausch

Jeffrey Zaslow has written 2 more books that he reviewed.

The Girls from Ames - about women friendships

Highest Duty an autobiography about Captain Sullenburger who landed the US Airways plane in the Hudson River.

A Visit with Sandra Kring

2010-02-23T08:31:00.000-08:00

Our book club, about 16 of us, at the Massillon Public Library had a Skype session and saw and spoke with author Sandra Kring.

We read her book Thank You For All Things. She gave us insight into her own life, how she started writing and how she writes. She has a new book coming out in April called "How High The Moon". She is also working on a sequel to her book "The Book of Bright Ideas".

Our next virtual author, in June, will be Garth Stein, author of The Art of Racing in the Rain which will be our book club selection.

Virtual Author visit at Massillon Public Library

2010-02-20T17:38:00.000-08:00

Monday's book club will be discussing our book Thank You For All Things by Sandra Kring.

As an added bonus, Sandra Kring will be there to talk with us, virtually on Skype, about her books.

The Leisure Seeker

2010-01-29T07:30:00.000-08:00

by Michael Zadoorian

The first thing I would like to say is I thought this book would be funnier. From the description I thought an ailing couple, travelling across the country in an old RV would be quite amusing. It has some funny parts but also was full of more sadness. It dealt with memories, illness, and alzheimers and being a care giver.

I was a little disappointed. I felt that the chapter per state was rather dull after Texas, anecdotes, places, etc on their driving trip. I thought I was reading someone's journal. The book was easy to read and follow.

That is about all I can say since I do not want to give away anything about the ending.

My book club discussion was all members over the age of 50 or so and many were widows or had taken care of ailing parents with disease or just old age. The discussion focused on caregiving and aging.

2 out of 5 rating

Happy New Year!

2010-01-01T19:55:00.001-08:00

Well... it's time to start a new with a reading goal!

Last year I barely made my goal of 1 book a month but most of that was books on CD and tape. This year I hope to make and beat that goal.

I plan to schedule more time for reading, needless to say that will be less Facebook time and less Bejeweled game time, going up to bed early, and being more conscious of free time at lunch!

I love to read but time just keeps slipping away and the books just keep piling up :-)

Happy New Year and I hope to finish my current book The Leisure Seeker by Michael Zadoorian in time for book club on January 25th.

I look forward to at least 6 virtual author visits as part of our Library book club this year.

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

Article about our virtual visit from Adriana

2009-11-05T10:21:00.000-08:00

http://www.massillonlibrary.org/node/324

I found out that they have more authors lined up for next year. Free virtual chats!

A Virtual Evening with Adriana Trigiani

2009-10-07T05:00:00.001-07:00

What a night! There were Italian pastries from The Little Italian Kitchen in Canton, a room of about 35 women (and 1 guy!), and via modern technology Adriana Trigiani on the screen!

Adriana is very down to earth, not at all what I expected from the back cover photos of her books! Webcamming from her laundry room in her New York home, she was funny, modest, and could see us!

I hope to read more of her books and post some pictures of the event soon.... we got a Group Photo with her, you know like people used to take pictures of the TV during historical events!

Virtual visit from Adriana Trigiani!

2009-10-06T04:59:00.000-07:00

Tonight I am going to "see" Adriana Trigiani at my local library via virtual video.

My Aunt and I are going to go and enjoy an evening of italian treets and Adriana Trigiani as she talks about her books and answers questions.

http://www.massillonlibrary.org/node/324

Nothing New!

2009-09-29T18:47:00.000-07:00

Still not reading :-) I need to choose a book for book club next month and I want to pick something I have already read (and remember).

I am torn between Geek Love by Katharine Dunn (which I should reread) or Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen, among many others but these are my top two that I remember.

Someday I will want to read, right now I'd rather watch old tv shows to relax than read before bed...

Reading Update

2009-08-31T09:10:00.000-07:00

So... not doing well with reading anything.

I started Double Bind for book club and got about 1/2 read by book club and now at about 3/4. Then I moved onto the next book Lucia Lucia! and read 2 chapters by book club and am now on about Chapter 4. Next book, haven't started!

I thought I could listen in the car but that is getting old I don't like to do that much anymore, I miss too much of the story and you can't really FF or REV or CDs as easily as tapes.

So much for my goal of reading books I'd already started... I now have 2 more to add to my list!

What to do what to buy?

2009-07-01T07:23:00.000-07:00

I just completed a survey at Barnes & Noble.com and got a 10% off in store coupon. I also have $50 in gift cards to use...

What do I do? I don't NEED any books but of course there's always that wishlist.

Suggestions on what I can do with coupon and $50 in gift cards?

Book Club!

2009-06-23T06:36:00.001-07:00

I found a book club!

They meet once a month on Monday night at our local library, it just started last night, the first meeting.

We discuss Dewey: The Small-Town Library Cat Who Touched the World by Vicky Myron.

They have already picked the next few month's books and I hope it is a fun group, everyone was very nice.

The next book is Double Bind by Chris Bohjalian

Broken for You

2009-06-02T05:10:00.000-07:00

by Stephanie Kallos

This book started out good, slowed down in the middle and then had quite a few twists in the end. I couldn't put it down in the last 100 pages or so. I stopped reading midway because it got kind of droll and boring but I decided I have to fnish a book! I hadn't finished one in awhile.

Margaret Hughes is a wealthy woman who decides she needs to have someone in her large home and she has a brain tumor. She gets a response to an ad and invites Wanda to live with her and they become fast friends. Wanda''s haunted past and uniqueness as a theater stage manager goes well with Margaret's odd collection of glass, porcelain and antiques. They become good friends. Well, I'd go on but really you need to read it to find out about Wanda's life, what happens to Margaret with her tumor and what happens to all of her money and collection of things.

4 of 5 rating

Dewey: The Small-Town Library Cat Who Touched the World

2009-05-28T07:08:00.000-07:00

by Vicky Myron

I listened to this book on CD. Now it is possible that reading it might have made me like it a little better. I really didn't like it much once I got past the beginning when they found the cat and the town seemed to perk up.

I thought the latter 1/2 of the book, CDs 3 and 4, was more of a personal reflection on the part of the author, Dewey's "Mom". If I wasn't listening to the book I may have not felt like these section were so out of place in the book. But I did feel that her personal reflections started to distract from Dewey and his story.

Overall, I think it is a very triumphant book about how a small town and a cat can bring people together for the better. But if the book only talked about Dewey and the town it would make a good short story or even a children's book.

2 of 5 rating

Little Altars Everywhere

2009-05-15T06:03:00.001-07:00

by Rebecca Wells

I listened to the abridged version of this book. It was read by the author, she is a great reader! Her depth of voice for each character was really good.

Having not read The Divine Secrets of the Ya Ya Sisterhood, I was not hindered at all with the plot. The mother Vivi is not the main character but her daughter Sidda is. It is a great story of childhood and family in the early 60s and then the issues that surrounded them during that time period. The book wraps up with a reflection of each character in the early 90's.

A good fast read or listen, I recommend it for a light summer book.

4 of 5 rating

Back to listening...

2009-05-12T05:21:00.000-07:00

My dear Aunt mooched some books on tape for me to listen to in the car.

I am currently listening to "Little Altars Everywhere" by Rebecca Wells. It is the sequel to the "Divine Secrets of the Ya Ya Sisterhood", which I have not read.

However, the author reads her own book. So far I have gotten through 1 side and she is a great reader!!! Right up there with Fannie Flagg so far!

Come back to see my review!

Reading?

2009-04-23T18:11:00.000-07:00

I apologize to my book friends and followers!

I haven't finished a book in over a month... I am tired of listening to books on tape/CD and I have little time to read because I am on the computer messing around... playing games and stuff on Facebook.

I hope to finish one of my started books soon.

My apologies!

Jennifer

The Mermaid Chair

2009-03-09T07:46:00.000-07:00

by Sue Monk Kidd

WOW! After reading The Secret Life of Bees this book was terribly disappointing! Did she intend to write a Harelquin Romance novel?

The story starts out well with Jessie going to help with her mother and go home to Egret Island after many years of being away having an estranged relationship with her mother. While she is there she meets a monk ready to take his final vows (here is where the romance novel starts) and falls in love with him and there are many pages, about a CD worth, of love, loving, and romance which don't really tie into the story of her mother's ordeal. Instead it is a long drawn out way of showing how Jessie needs to find herself in order to make relationships in her life work, including the one with her husband. Without giving the ending away I will leave it at that and you can decide if you read it.

I enjoy her writing but this book just was not up to her usual standard of storytelling. It would have been a great read if she would have toned down the romance sections with the monk and focused on the root of the story, Jessie's turmoil, her mother's turmoil, the island nuances and friendships.

2 of 5 rating

The Da Vinci Code

2009-02-17T18:05:00.000-08:00

by Dan Brown

I now know why I couldn't even get through this book reading... listening to it wasn't any better. Dan Brown just didn't do a good job with this book, it wasn't very riveting. I absolutely LOVED Angels and Demons and thought this would be just as good but it just lacked the intensity of his other books and was very much written like a screen play. Listening to it was like listening to an episode of 24, all of this happened in 1 day? Robert Langdon just happened to be there, all these people just happened to fall together?

The story had some great potential but I think this book lacked the mystery and intensity of Dan Brown's other books.

2 of 5 rating

The Heretics Daughter

2009-02-05T18:18:00.000-08:00

by Kathleen Kent

This book I listened to on CD and it was a good story, however it was very dark. Being about the Salem witch trials.

The book is written as a letter from Sarah Carrier to her grandaughter about her and her families experiences in the late 1600's during the witch trials. I thought the books was a little bit long and I was very sad at how Sarah's family was so uncaring towards each other until tragedy came and then I felt they were close because of guilt.

I did not care for this book.

2 of 5 rating

Tag I am it!

2009-02-05T18:12:00.000-08:00

Bella from Bella is Reading tagged me with a Happy Tag!
Here are the rules..
1. Link to the person who has tagged you.
2. Write down six things that make you happy.
3. Post the rules, tag six others and let them know you did it.
4. Then tell the person when your entry is complete.

a) Sleeping in
b) Travelling with my husband
c) Living near my family
d) Little kids
e) Getting together with my college friends
f) Nature

So the people I know to tag were already tagged so... I guess it ends here :-)

A Wolf At The Table

2009-01-14T17:58:00.000-08:00

by Augusten Burroughs

This book I listened to on CD in the car. It is a very dark book but rightfully so because Augusten's childhood with his father was pretty bad. The story starts when Augusten was about 5 years old until he is in his later 30s or early 40s. He talks about his family relationships focusing on his father. Bas*rd is the best way to describe his father. The book is read by Augusten so not only is it dark and sometimes just chilling it has the emotion of the author, who experienced this, reading it. I was just overwhelmed with sorrow and anger that someone could treat their child that way, in fact all he wanted was to be cared for and played with like everyone else's Dad's did.

4 of 5 rating

A Redbird Christmas

2009-01-13T04:15:00.000-08:00

by Fannie Flagg

What a charming story! I thought it was timely that I would finish it at this time when President elect Obama is encouraging helping others and your community.

Oswald has emphysema and lives in Chicago. After years of treatment the doctor gives him only a few months to live and encourages him to to go a little place in Alabama to get away from the winter cold. After calling a place on a brochure and finding out the place does not exist he is offered a room in a home in Lost River, Alabama. In a town of 108 people he develops new talents such as fishing and painting and makes lots of new friends including a young crippled girl named Patsy and a pesky injured Redbird named Jack.

It is a delightful story and very uplifting.

5 of 5 rating

My Reading Goal for 2009

2009-01-08T12:48:00.000-08:00

I have decided to read a minimum of 14 books this year AND at least 4 of them need to be books I have not finished due to whatever reasons.

My first non-finished read is to complete Broken For You by Stephanie Kallos.

Gotta get some books read so I can Mooch and Trade more!

2008 Books Read

2009-01-05T18:22:00.000-08:00

I made my goal, with the help of books on CD and tape, for 2008. Reading 12 books a year. I actually read 13! A Baker's Dozen!

This year I may try for 14 books in a year.

My 2008 list of books has been moved to the bottom right of the blog if you want to see what I have read.

Irish Whiskey

2009-01-03T19:57:00.000-08:00

by Andrew M. Greeley

I listened to this book on tape. It was a fun mystery. I was anxious to find out what happened to ol' Jimmy Sullivan and Dermot's family! I actually listened to it doing errands to find out what happened on the last tape!

It was a cute read and I guess there is a series of these mysteries called the Nuala Ann mysteries by Andrew Greeley.

Not something I would have picked up to read. It was given to me when I didn't have anything to listen to.

Rating 4 of 5

The Unthinkable: Who Survives When Disaster Strikes - and Why

2008-12-30T11:13:00.000-08:00

by Amanda Ripley

WOW! This was a great book! I found it truly fascinating and it has changed my awareness and especially things I do when I travel by air.

This book on CD is well read and Amanda did her research. She talks about the 3 phases of survival in crisis - DENIAL, DELIBERATION, and DECISION.

Throughout the book Amanda interviews survivors of many incidents from the 9/11 attacks on the World Trade Center to the Tsunami in Thailand to many airline wrecks. I just can't say enough about how much I enjoyed this book and how I will try to buy my own copy for reference.

You can read more on the book website at http://www.theunthinkable.com/

5 of 5 rating

Emma on tape... a new chapter

2008-12-16T05:31:00.000-08:00

Well... as you can see my What Am I Reading Now has changed rather quickly. I was listening to Emma by Jane Austen and it was like listening to the movie, the audio had multiple voices for the characters. It was actually harder to follow than someone reading the book.

AND my book on CD came in that I was waiting for which I listened to the introduction today and it is going to be really interesting. If you are a closet sociologist, then this is a good book for you!

Can't Wait To Get To Heaven

2008-12-12T19:56:00.000-08:00

by Fannie Flagg

This book I listened to. It was read by the author in her lovely southern drawl. Elnor Shimfissle lived in a small town of Elmwood Springs. When she fell out of her fig tree and died the whole town was sad. BUT 3 hours later she came back to life after having gone to heaven! Listen to this great old lady and all of her crazy family and the zany characters who knew her. It's a funny, cute, laughable, meaningful story.

This is another good family holiday read. There are lots of good moral comments and life lessons in this book.

5 of 5 rating

At Home In Mitford

2008-12-05T09:02:00.000-08:00

by Jan Karon

The book I listened to on CD, it was 16 CDs unabridged!

John McDonough reads the story and it is so delightful! You can just imagine this sleepy little town and all its citizens. The voices are different for all the characters and and he makes them all come to life.

In these times a town like Mitford sounds delightful. Father Tim is an Epsicopal priest at the church of Our Lord the Savior. He is involved in every aspect of his parishioners lives and the town. He manages to "adopt" a 12 year old boy because his grandfather can't care for him and his mother is ill. A big black dog adopts him which he grows immensely fond of him. He is privy to many deep dark secrets of those in the town. A wealthy woman contributes money to build a nursing home in town and he is charged with the project. A jewel thief finds his way to town. A drug bust happens. And just lots of love, fun and friendship in this book.

A delightful read if you want to be uplifted and a great holiday read too.

5 of 5 rating

Tagged for the Bookworm Award

2008-11-30T17:58:00.000-08:00

It's a meme too so here goes. Here's how it works: Open the book closest to you, not your favorite or most intellectual book, but the book closest to you at the moment, to page 56. Write out the fifth sentence, as well as two to five sentences following there.

The book close to me is Broken for you by Stephanie Kallos

Page 56 sentence 5

Jack fell silent and bit into his other UFO.

Margaret gave the man directions. The cemetary was not far. They would find it easily.

I don't have 5 book blogging friends as they have already been tagged by The Red Lady!

I miss my Book on CD.....

2008-11-24T17:57:00.000-08:00

I miss my little Mitford family I used to listen to everyday on the way home.

I hope I can get it on tape soon so I can try to continue the story until the 1 copy on CD comes back in 2 weeks or so.

There was a hold on my copy of At Home In Mitford by Jan Karon so I had to return it and I was only on disk 8 of 16.

I didn't think I'd like Books on CD/tape but apparently I've gotten fond of these characters, Father Tim, Dooley, Emma, Sadie, and the whole town.

Book to Review

2008-11-22T08:23:00.001-08:00

I received the book I am going to review for Red Lady's Reading Room

The Gone-Away World by Nick Harkaway

From the back:
An electrifying tale of love, friendship and the apocalypse.
This wildly entertaining debut novel introduces a bold new voice that combines antic humor with stunning futuristic vision to give us the incredible tale of the Go-Away War and the bandits, monsters and nightmares it left in its wake.

Look for my review in the next few months.... so much to read so little time!

Do you enjoy reading Holiday books?

2008-11-18T15:29:00.001-08:00

As the snow falls outside letting use know that winter has arrived, it makes me think of the upcoming holidays.

What Holiday books have you read?

Which are your favorites?

Do you read a certain book every holiday season?

Here are the books on my holiday read shelf:
A Redbird Christmas by Fannie Flagg
The Christmas Quilt by Thomas J. David
The Autobiography of Santa Claus by Jeff Guinn

Last year I read Skipping Christmas which was a cute light read during the season. The movie was good too, Christmas with the Kranks.

Distinguished Speaker Series

2008-11-17T15:53:00.000-08:00

Saturday night my husband and I went to the farmlands of Geauga County Ohio to hear C.J. Box speak as part of the Geauga County Libraries Distinguished Speaker Series.

We really braved rain and snow and the darkness... out in the country they don't have many street lights!

It was worth it! He was very funny. He talked about how and why he got started writing and his character Joe Pickett and what was to come in his writing. My husband bought the latest mystery and had it signed (he was first in line!).

He had some great comments on being a writer and how it may take awhile but sometimes it pays off. He also gave background on what the main governmental or environmental issue of his stories were.

If you haven't read his books, my husband highly recommends them!
[The Joe Pickett Mystery series]
Open Season
Savage Run
Winterkill
Trophy Hunt
Out of Range
In Plain Sight
Free Fire
Blood Trail
Below Zero (Due out in May 2009)

He now has 2 stand alone books:
Blue Heaven
Three Weeks to Say Goodbye (Due out in January)

Author Event

2008-11-13T11:32:00.000-08:00

I am very excited! My husband and I are going to see C.J. Box speak and talk about his new book this Saturday. He will be part of the Distinguished Speaker Series at the Geauga County Library.

Check out his books at http://www.cjbox.net

There's A Coyote In The House

2008-11-08T08:03:00.000-08:00

by Elmore Leonard

I listened to this book on CD at the recommendation of my sister.

It is about a coyote who befriends a famous dog actor, Buddy, and his house companion, Miss Betty. He wants to see what it's like to live with people, so Buddy and he figure out a way for him to live with his family. While Antoine (the coyote) is learning about humans and house dogs, Buddy is curious about coyote life.

Their antics are funny and humurous and the last few chapters are quite a turn from what I thought would happen.

Neal Patrick Harris (Doogie Howser) reads the story. He does a good job but I think reading as animals is probably hard. He needed a Mom and Dad human voice, Buddy the german shepherd voice, Miss Betty the poodle voice, and a variety of different coyote voices.

4 of 5 rating

Bookmooch Offline!

2008-11-06T18:09:00.000-08:00

I got a book from my list today in person!

I had to do a demonstration for the interview for my current job well one of the interviewees saw my list and brought in one of my books!

DAUGHTER OF FORTUNE by Isabel Allende

I HAVE GOT TO GO TO BED!

First time with Book on CD

2008-11-05T17:10:00.000-08:00

I just finished CD 2 of There's a Coyote in the House. So far it's working out, but then this isn't a really intense book I can flit in and out and seem to know what is going on. Plus I am using cruise control so constantly watching the odometer doesn't distract me either.

Look for a revew in the next few days as I should finish it by Friday. I can listen to a CD one way and I only listen coming home... I am hoping it keeps my mind awake.

My Fun Time has ended....

2008-11-02T17:44:00.000-08:00

I start work on my new job tomorrow, November 3rd!

I voted Saturday, after waiting about 2 hours so I don't have the added stress of making it to the polls in this very important election.

REMEMBER TO VOTE! It's your American Right!

Well.... I have an hour drive one way to my new job so as you can see on the right I have added a Book on CD to my Reading now list. I have not done this in awhile so we'll see how it works. In the past I have gotten so distracted driving and daydreaming that I missed whole sections of books but we'll see how this goes... maybe I can get some of those classics read this way :-)

I will also be carrying a paper book to read as well as I won't know many people at work so I will probably read at lunch time.

I never finished a book in October, I did not like Blaze written by Stephen King in his Richard Bachman years and I just couldn't get past page 2 of Frankenstein by Mary Shelley. Onto the next book!

It's Christmas Time again?

2008-10-26T18:34:00.000-07:00

The Red Lady is giving away a copy of THE PAPER BAG CHRISTMAS by Kevin Alan Milne

Check it and her blog out!

Can you believe it will be November is 5 days!

To Be Read

2008-10-26T14:04:00.000-07:00

Today I posted some of my To Be Read shelf for comment on my BookTalk message board.

Here is what I posted:

The Brothers K by David James Duncan
The Stand by Stephen King
Widow of the South by Robert Hicks
Case Histories by Kate Atkinson
Mary called Magdalen by Margaret George
Peter and the Starcatchers by Barry Pearson
The Tin Drum by Gunther Grass
The River Midnight by Lillian Nattel
Sophie's Choice by Willian Styrone

Giving Up!

2008-10-23T19:06:00.000-07:00

I am reading BLAZE by Richard Bachman (Stephen King) it is so terribly slllooooowwww! I thought it would be more creepy but it really isn't that creepy or scary and it keeps jumping back and forth but I am only about 1/2 way and he is just now committing the crime and doing a bad job of it!

It's about a mentally retarded guy who is going to commit the crime of the century without his side kick George. George died but he hears him in his head sometimes.

I am giving up on this book... no review.... and onto Bookmooch it goes!

Going to read Frankenstein by Mary Shelley instead for my creepfest challenge.

Book Discussion

2008-10-23T16:25:00.000-07:00

About Nisei Daughter by Monica Sone.

I attended a book discussion last night which turned out to be another person's account of her experience in the Internment camp. She lived in California and was interned at a camp in Gila River area in Arizona.

The author of the book was also there and they answered questions together. It was a very interesting dialogue and a new perspective on the experience of the Japanese Internment Camp.

I hope to attend a real book discussion in early November to talk about it with those who have read the book.

For each event we get tickets to the KIMONO exhibit in Feb 2009 at the Canton Museum of Art.

Books Received

2008-10-17T05:53:00.000-07:00

I recently got some books from bookmooch.

"Things I Overheard While Talking to Myself" by Alan Alda

"The Best Nonrequired Reading 2007" edited by David Eggers

Apparently the Alan Alda book is a sequel to a previous memoir "Never Have Your Dog Stuffed" which I will need to borrow from my Dad.

Interview with Monica Sone & Preview of KIMONO Exhibit

2008-10-16T06:34:00.001-07:00

Last night I went to the kick off event for the One Book/One Community Program in Canton, Ohio/Stark County.

The evening started with an interview of Monica Sone, author of Nisei Daughter. She talked about her experiences in her life, what she thought about the Japanese evacuation, the camps, and finally what happened to her parents and siblings after the camps were closed. She also read the letter of apology that was sent by George Bush Sr. to all of those of Japanese descent who were in the camps. She is 88 years old and still lives in Canton Ohio.

The second half of the evening was a short talk by the Executive Director of the Canton Museum of Art about the upcoming KIMONO exhibit in February 2009. He showed a short video about Kubota, the artist, and the exhibit. The exhibit is only being shown in San Diego, California (now) and Canton, Ohio. Previously it was at the Smithsonian in Washington D.C.

Among the Book activities and events there will also be a lot of events about Japanese culture such as Madame Butterfly performed by the Canton Civic Opera.

Nisei Daughter

2008-10-09T11:40:00.000-07:00

by Monica Sone

Nisei means second generation and is the term used to describe children born to Japanese immigrant parents.

Monica writes the story about her life growing up in the Seattle area where her father owned and ran a small hotel. She writes about her family, the Japanese community and the relocation of her family during World War II to an internment camp in Idaho.

What a wonderful story. She writes with such humor and fun that you sometimes forget it's a true story. Her family always made the best of things despite the racism during WW2 and being in a terrible camp with mud and dust and small quarters.

Monica will be interviewed Wednesday October 15th in Canton, Ohio as part of the kick off of the One Community/One Book program and the KIMONO exhibit at the Canton Museum of Art.

I highly recommend the book and check back for my review of her interview and the kick off event.

5 of 5 rating

Tagged again for another meme

2008-10-08T13:49:00.000-07:00

Bella tagged me....

Here are the instructions: What you are supposed to do...and please don't spoil the fun...Copy/paste, type in your answers and tag four people in your lists! Don't forget to change my answers to the questions with those of your own.

A) Four places I go over and over: to the grocery store, to my sisters, to my Aunt's, to the library

B) Four people who e-mail me regularly: my little sister, my Aunt, my sister in law, my husband

C) Four of my favourite places to eat: Bender's Tavern, BRAVO!, my kitchen, and my mom's

D) Four places you'd rather be: at the beach, in San Francisco, in wine country in CA, DisneyWorld

E) Four TV shows I could watch over and over: CSI (the original), Three's Company, Golden Girls, and I Love Lucy

F) Four people I think will respond: I don't know enough bloggers... so I can't put 4 people since 3 will be the same as Bella's.

Books Books Books!

2008-10-07T14:58:00.001-07:00

Well I got my library card and had to christen it by checking out some books.

I checked out

Frankenstein by Mary Shelley

Broken for You by Stephanie Kallos

I also got a bookmooch today! Things I Overheard While Talking To Myself by Alan Alda.

I got my library card today!

2008-10-06T17:08:00.000-07:00

I got my library card for the City Library which also has access to County Libraries.

I checked out 2 books - Frankenstein by Mary Shelley and Broken for You by Stephanie Kallos.

Halloween Books... Creepfest Challenge

2008-10-04T06:06:00.000-07:00

My friends at the WW Booktalk are having a Creepfest Challenge... read a Halloween book during the month of October.

I will be participating and here are my 2 choices:

Blaze by Richard Bachman (Stephen King) OR

The Witching Hour by Anne Rice (if I get my books unpacked in time)

Look for my review and more Creepy book list soon.

I was tagged! Six weird and Random Things about me!

2008-10-03T10:31:00.000-07:00

I was tagged by The Red Lady's Reading Room for the six quirky things about me meme. This is the first time I’ve been tagged for a meme.

The rules are:
* Link to the person who tagged you
* Post the rules on your blog
* Write six random things/unspectacular quirks about yourself
* Tag six people at the end of your post and link to them
* Let each person you have tagged know by leaving a comment on their blog
* Let the tagger know when your entry is posted

Weird things about myself, in no particular order:

1) I can not nap unless I am on a long car trip and then BAM I fall asleep.
2) I have become a bookaholic in the past year... trading, buying, collecting BOOKS BOOKS BOOKS!
3) I can barely read 1 book a month and have tons and tons of books on my TO BE READ shelves
4) I am a Talbot's shopaholic too!
5) I have a husband who not only widows me during Football season but fully immerses himself in the sport via television, radio, and internet 5-6 days a week from August to February each year
6) I treat my dog like she is a small kid, like she understands anything I am saying :-)!!!!

Now the question is who to tag next? I don't even know 6 bloggers but I'll at least tag my one follower Bella!

My Next Read

2008-09-24T05:31:00.000-07:00

After mulling over the 10 or so books I have I decided to read......

NISEI DAUGHTER by Monica Sone

So far it's interesting and a pretty fast read. The descriptions of Seattle bring back memories of our trips there and the Underground Tour we took.

Snowflower and the Secret Fan

2008-09-23T05:16:00.000-07:00

by Lisa See

This book was chosen by my book club in Utah. I had heard good things about it so I thought I would get a copy to read.

The story is told about two women who were matched at age 7 and are to be friends through their entire life. Since they are matched they do not have any other close friends, or sworn sisters. After they separate in marriage and go to different villages they communicate more using the fan with their secret language. Being a woman I found it to be so true of women friendships at any time, we all chronicle our lives through events and family.

The book is very well written and an eye opener to the classic Chinese culture of the 1600s. The story is told by an 80 year old woman named Lily about her childhood and years with her old same, Snowflower (or what I interpret as matched best friends). During her life she talks about all the traditions that women uphold to make themselves more valuable in life, the most value being from having sons and helping her husband to carry on his family line. Lily and her friend Snowflower encounter a lot during the years. Throughout time they send messages back and forth about their life on a fan using a secret language that women know called nu shu. Women are not taught to read and write except for nu shu, they mostly learn embroidery, cooking, sewing, and only what they need to be a good wife and daughter in law.

I found the book easy to read and again very enlightening about the chinese culture and how women are valued or not valued during their lives. As I am sure it is like today, in the 21st century and all cultures, most women take great solace in knowing your friends or sisters are there for you in your time of need. A great read!

5 of 5 rating

2 new books...

2008-09-21T17:58:00.001-07:00

Well I was in Walgreen's today and saw these 2 books on the Buy 2 for $10. I need these like I need a "hole in the head" but I like the authors and $5 for a hardback book I couldn't pass it up.

Blaze by Richard Bachman (aka Stephen King)
The last of the Richard Bachman novels, recently recovered and published for the first time. Stephen King's "dark half" may have saved the best for last.

Blaze is the story of Clayton Blaisdell, Jr. -- of the crimes committed against him and the crimes he commits, including his last, the kidnapping of a baby heir worth millions. Blaze has been a slow thinker since childhood, when his father threw him down the stairs -- and then threw him down again. After escaping an abusive institution for boys when he was a teenager, Blaze hooks up with George, a seasoned criminal who thinks he has all the answers. But then George is killed, and Blaze, though haunted by his partner, is on his own.
He becomes one of the most sympathetic criminals in all of literature. This is a crime story of surprising strength and sadness, with a suspenseful current sustained by the classic workings of fate and character -- as taut and riveting as Stephen King's The Girl Who Loved Tom Gordon.

Ine's of My Soul by Isabel Allende
From Isabel Allende, author of novels beloved across the globe, comes a magisterial work of historical fiction that chronicles the astonishing life of Inés Suárez, a daring Spanish conquistadora who toiled to build the nation of Chile—and whose vital role has too often been neglected by history.
Born into a poor family in Spain, Inés works hard to make ends meet. It is the sixteenth century, and when her shiftless husband disappears to the New World, Inés uses the opportunity to search for him as an excuse to flee her stifling homeland and seek adventure. After her treacherous journey takes her to Peru, she learns that her husband has died in battle. Soon, she begins a fiery love affair with a man who will change the course of her life: Pedro de Valdivia, war hero and field marshal to the famed Francisco Pizarro.
Inés of My Soul is a work of breathtaking scope: meticulously researched, it engagingly dramatizes the known events of Inés Suárez's life, crafting them into a novel full of the narrative brilliance and passion readers have come to expect from Isabel Allende.

Excited about Book Discussion at Library

2008-09-19T06:00:00.000-07:00

I am very excited! I am planning to go to a panel discussion on the One Community/One Book that was been selected.

The book is Nisei Daughter by Monica Sone. She is a second generation Japanese immigrant who grew up in the Seattle area and spent time in a Japanese internment camp in World War II.

I really liked the book When the Emperor Was Divine by Julie Otsuka which was the One County/One Book program in Salt Lake County last year. It made me do some more research on the Japanese camps in the US since I was not aware of that until I read this book. There was a camp in Utah called Topaz and I watched a PBS documentary about that too.

I hope I can get her book read beforehand and if she's there I may see if she can sign it for me!

A Challenge to Read!

2008-09-18T17:39:00.000-07:00

Try to read 1 book by the end of 2008!

Check out this challenge at My Friend Amy's blog.

Reading by flashlight

2008-09-17T13:15:00.001-07:00

Do you remember the days when you were a kid and you used to read with a flashlight under the covers in bed because you were supposed to be sleeping?

Well, here in Northeast Ohio we had the biggest wind storm, remnants of Hurrican Ike, Sunday evening which knocked out power to some 500,000 or more people. My house was one of them! So for the past few nights I have been reading by flashlight before going to bed. My eyes aren't as good as when I was young so they got tired faster but without power what else is there to do but read by candlelight or flashlight. My Dad read the paper by candlelight or he read it before work next to the window by natural light.

The power came on today, Wednesday, midday so we can read again like we do in the 21st century.

A Booktalker Book Blog

2008-09-11T13:46:00.001-07:00

Say that 10 times fast!

I wanted to mention my WW Booktalk Friend Bonnie who has started her own Book Blog and is having a giveaway!

Check out her site at Red Lady's Reading Room and enter to win a copy of The Professor's Wives Club by Joanne Rendell.

Nothing....

2008-09-07T08:00:00.001-07:00

Still reading Snowflower and the Secret Fan. It's just kind of slow and not grabbing me but I think that's my life right now too.

I have constructed in my head how my office will look in the new house. It is a bedroom so a nice square size and it has a cutout for the closet which we probably won't need to use much, so I think I am going to put in a comfy chair and lamp and make a reading corner there. Then bookshelves and desk/computer will be on the other side of the room. The other nice thing is the office will be on the second floor in this house. It was off the dining room and long and narrow in our old house so it wasn't very cozy and tended to always look full and messy no matter how clean it got.

My Utah book club picked Lazy B: Living on a ranch in the American Southwest by Sandra Day O'Connor. I requested it already on bookmooch so hopefully I'll get it soon... not sure I'll get to reading it :-) but I can see what it's about.

I haven't gotten a library card yet either since we don't have an address and stuff I figured I'd wait. I did go and check it out. I may sign up to take a Basic Geneology class in October for something fun to do! The adult section is as I remember it :-)
They have lots of things there, meetings, and book signings, etc. their One Community/One Book is Nisei Daughter by Monica Sone

What to read? That is the Question

2008-08-29T06:42:00.000-07:00

I started Snowflower and the Secret Fan by Lisa See last night, that is what my Utah book club is reading so I may try to get that finished so I can send some comments.

Not into Pillars of the Earth much anymore... dry spot all about architecture and drawings but I am sure it's all relevant.

Can't seem to read The Fig Eater I read the first page over and over, it sounds interesting but just can't seem to move forward on that one.

Got a whole box I brought from Utah and haven't cracked one yet!!!

Pillars of the Earth - Part I

2008-08-12T11:53:00.000-07:00

I just finished part 1. The beginning moved a little bit slow but the end of this section picked up quite a bit you wanted to keep reading.

Onto Part 2...

TRESPASS living on the edge of the promised land

2008-07-21T09:16:00.000-07:00

by Amy Irvine

I finally finished this book! What a great book! I enjoyed reading about the history of the San Juan area of Utah and the people who lived there. I also liked the insight she brought about the pioneers and her own Mormon family and history. It was very sad to see that even a strong willed person like her succumbed to the depression and sadness that can afflict many women in Utah. It sounds like things are going well though since she has moved to Colorado. The irony is I finished the book the same week I am also moving out of the state of Utah.

5 of 5 rating

Addendum to Loving Frank

2008-06-23T07:30:00.000-07:00

by Nancy Horan

Well, I knew what happened in the end but I am very disappointed that I kept reading to find out if there was more to the ending. Not much more, don't know why it happened or anything.

**** SPOILER! ****

Can I dislike a character more than Mamah? As much as Frank was a jerk (picked up another mistress not long after her death) and kind of odd she takes the cake! She leaves her family and kids and then pines about it not to mention her drolling on about it! And she wonders why she has no friends or confidantes later in life!

Trip Reading...

2008-06-11T07:37:00.003-07:00

I decided to take the last 3 books I haven't finished yet on my trip and then 1 full book to read.

I hope I can get them all done!

The Book Juggle!

2008-05-27T07:26:00.000-07:00

I am reading 3 books at once....

Trespass I need to get back to the library and am currently paying fines, but I may return and mark my spot to get another copy.

Thunderbolt Kid is for book club next week and figured I should start it.

Still reading the long Pillars of the Earth...

Work Book Club

2008-05-21T12:42:00.000-07:00

A New Earth by Eckhart Tolle was our book. No one read it!

The person who picked it lost her copy and everyone else are still on the HOLD lists at the library for over a month and still haven't received it.

So maybe some of us will read it for next month.

Made for a short meeting :-)

Miss Julia Throws a Wedding

2008-05-07T07:23:00.000-07:00

by Ann B. Ross

This is book 3 in a series. The first 2 books were just delightful and funny and quick reads. This book seemed to drag along a bit in different spots. I started this a few months ago and decided to pick it up between books to finish up. I love the Miss Julia character but this book seemed to take so long to get to the meat of the book, the wedding! I hope the next book Miss Julia Hits the Road is back to the fun filled fast moving Miss Julia I am used to.

3 out of 5 rating (not as good as books 1 and 2)

Loving Frank

2008-05-01T13:21:00.000-07:00

by Nancy Horan

If you like Frank Lloyd Wright I'd suggest reading this book. It is historical fiction built around Wright's love affair with Mamah Cheney in the early 1900s. It has a lot of interesting things to look up about his architecture and history. I really enjoyed the book, however some points in the middle where she is alone seem to drag a bit.

Great read for the female Wright fans at least :-)

4 out of 5 (great read!)

Luncheon of the Boating Party

2008-04-22T06:54:00.000-07:00

I got this in a trade... by Susan Vreeland (author of Girl in Hyacinth Blue)

Instantly recognizable, Auguste Renoir’s masterpiece depicts a gathering of his real friends enjoying a summer Sunday on a cafe terrace along the Seine near Paris. A wealthy painter, an art collector, an Italian journalist, a war hero, a celebrated actress, and Renoir’s future wife, among others, share this moment of la vie moderne, a time when social constraints were loosening and Paris was healing after the Franco-Prussian War. Parisians were bursting with a desire for pleasure and a yearning to create something extraordinary out of life. Renoir shared these urges and took on this most challenging project at a time of personal crises in art and love, all the while facing issues of loyalty and the diverging styles that were tearing apart the Impressionist group. Narrated by Renoir and seven of the models and using settings in Paris and on the Seine, Vreeland illuminates the gusto, hedonism, and art of the era. With a gorgeous palette of vibrant, captivating characters, she paints their lives, loves, losses, and triumphs in a brilliant portrait of her own.

Mooch

2008-04-15T09:23:00.001-07:00

I got a BookMooch from a Title 1 school in Alabama looking for books for their library and some classrooms.

How cool!

Box O' Books came!

2008-04-14T06:33:00.000-07:00

My box of books from my online friend the bookseller came this weekend!

Astonishing Splashes of Colour
by Clare Morrall
-> Shortlisted for the 2003 Man Booker Prize.
-> Taking its title from a description of Peter Pan's Neverland, Astonishing Splashes of Colour follows the life of Kitty, a woman who, in a sense, has never grown up. As her moods swing dramatically from high to low, they are illuminated by an unusual ability to interpret people and emotions through colour.

Kitty struggles to come to terms with her life, including the loss of her mother, a miscarriage, and an unconventional marriage to her husband, who lives in the apartment next door. And when her father and brothers reveal a family secret long hidden, it overwhelms Kitty's tenuous hold on reality and propels her on an impetuous journey to the brink of madness.

Midnight In Garden of Good & Evil
by J. Berendt
-> Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil: A Savannah Story is a sublime and seductive reading experience. Brilliantly conceived and masterfully written, this enormously engaging portrait of a mostbeguiling Southern city is certain to become a modern classic.

The Giver
by Lois Lowry
-> John Newberry Award Winner

Les Miserables
by Victor Hugo
-> Les Miserables is the great epic masterpiece of the mid-nineteenth century. Begun in 1845, the year Louis Philippe conferred a peerage and a lifetime seat in the Senate upon Victor Hugo, it was completed when the author was living in exile in the Channel Islands.

Rebecca
by Daphne DuMaurier
-> Hitchcock movie made from this book
-> Published in 1938 Rebecca was a spectacular novel. It later became a fabulous movie starring Joan Fontaine and Lawerence Olivier.

Duchess
by Susan Holloway Scott
-> A historical novel based on the life of the lady-in-waiting who helped bring James II to the throne of England.

Trade books arrived!

2008-04-09T13:20:00.000-07:00

I traded 2 books for 2 others.

A Million Little Pieces by James Frey - despite all the controversy I heard this was a great book.
House of Sand and Fog by Andre Dubus

I sent:
Fair and Tender Ladies by Lee Smith
and
The Joy Luck Club by Amy Tan

Book Club

2008-04-04T06:41:00.000-07:00

I had book club last night and we got a review of the book Trespass by Amy Irvine since it was so new only 1 person read it. I have it now on my wishlist it sounds like a good read.

We also discussed Into the Wild by Jon Krakhauer. Some people saw the movie and some people read the book and saw the movie and some just read the book. It was an interesting discussion on the creative license of movies... since some parts were exploded from the notes in the book to something else. Many interpreted Chris MCCandless as a young wild kid who was immortal, impregnable, and invincible! Very good discussion. Another book club member related the store of her brother killed in Iraq who was that same way at that age - nothing could stop him. Although a few said he was a careless, uncaring person and why would he disappear and do that to his family and parents. The rebuttal was that he didn't think that was wrong or that he was doing that.

We also had a brief discussion of a book called The Nine : Inside the Secret World of the Supreme Court by Jeffrey Toobin that someone was reading.

We revisited the Eat, Pray, Love book again it sounds like a love or hate read, some couldn't get past the first 50 pages while others stuck it out and said the end was fun and romantic in Bali and others were disappointed with the ending based on how she started her journey.

More books coming...

2008-04-01T08:24:00.000-07:00

I just ordered some books from a used bookseller... they should arrive later next week.

I'll post when they arrive.

I got another book mooched -- The Fatherland by Richard Harris, glad I can share it, it's a great read!

Bookmooching

2008-03-25T06:35:00.001-07:00

I got rid of 4 books this week! Someone mooched 4 from me on www.bookmooch.com

They are all part of the same series by V.C. Andrews.

Guess that makes room for the 2 more I got in the mail.... Surrender the Pink and Postcards from the Edge by Carrie Fisher

Notes on Eat, Pray, Love

2008-03-17T06:30:00.000-07:00

I am hearing that if I had read on past Italy it gets better. However, my other book club member reading it is taking quite awhile to read so it's not a grab you and pick it up kind of book. Maybe I'll skim through the next section when I get the book back.

Another note only 1-2 people actually finished the book in time for book club so I am not sure it was quite the read but almost slow going.

Into the Wild

2008-03-17T06:27:00.000-07:00

by Jon Krakauer

I just finished this book in record time, about 10 days!
I loved it! I was fascinated with how Krakauer put together a trip and Chris's life from speckled journals and talks with people he met along the way.

He really made you want to read until the very end where you find out exactly what happened to Chris.

5 out of 5 (highly recommend reading)

Reading...

2008-03-11T07:12:00.001-07:00

I started INTO THE WILD by Jon Krakhauer so I can give it to another book club member. It is quite fascinating. I guess I am just too nervous to leave society like he did and wander around like that. It is quite a fast read and getting interesting.

Back to Pillars of the Earth when this one is done.

Barnes & Noble sucked me in!

2008-03-10T06:09:00.001-07:00

Buy 2 get one free right next to the book I was getting!

Fast Food Nation

Everything is Illuminated

Walking the Bible: A Journey by Land Through the Five Books of Moses

I went in to get a gift book and found Into the Wild by Jon Krakhauer for my book club book in paperback.

More books...

2008-03-04T07:04:00.000-08:00

Yes I am just crazy!!!! But while I keep getting books I am trying to get rid of some as I go.

Peter and the Shadow Thieves by Dave Berry and Ridley Pearson (the sequel to Peter and the Starcatchers)

The Book Thief by Makus Zusak

Mary, Called Magdalene by Margaret George

Gilead by Marilynne Robinson
Winner of the 2005 Pulitzer Prize for Fiction
Winner of the 2004 National Book Critics Circle Award for Fiction

Sarah by Marek Halters
The first novel in a dazzling new trilogy about the women of the Old Testament by internationally bestselling author Marek Halter.

The Lost Madonna by Kelly Jones
Thirty years after leaving Florence with a broken heart, Suzanne Cunningham is back, determined to solve the mystery of what happened to a priceless painting from her past-and to the man who forever changed the course of her life.

I also received Scarlett which I traded for on Bookmooch. A beautiful Hardback the person sent me.

What I am reading now....

2008-02-26T07:47:00.001-08:00

Pillars of the Earth by Ken Follett

I picked up an interesting book yesterday at the bookstore called The Secret Supper by Javier Sierra

Milan, 1497: Leonardo is completing The Last Supper. Pope Alexander VI is determined to execute him after realizing that the painting contains clues to a baffling and blasphemous message that he is driven to decode. The Holy Grail and the Eucharistic Bread are missing, there is no meat on the table, and the apostles, shockingly, are portraits of well-known heretics and none of them are depicted with halos. And why has the artist painted himself into the scene with his back turned toward Jesus? The clues to Leonardo's greatest puzzle are right before your eyes....

Eat, Pray, Love

2008-02-22T10:35:00.001-08:00

by Elizabeth Gilbert

Well... I tried to read this book

I either expected more after all the hype or it just isn't my cup of tea.

I read the first section on Italy and her divorce, etc. and I just didn't care. That is how I felt, I didn't care about her personal issues. The descriptions of the places and general life in Italy were interesting and yes I want to go there. I felt I was reading someone's personal journal which I didn't want to do. I needed to move on, I have a To Be Read mountain of books.

1 out of 5

Good Dog. Stay.

2008-02-13T06:12:00.001-08:00

by Anna Quindlan

A wonderful journal of the life of a dog named Beau. If you are a dog lover this is a must read. It's short and sweet. The pictures are also wonderful. As she wrote I could picture my dog doing certain things.

Quick read, about 50 pages of text and the rest are pictures.

4 out of 5

What am I reading now...

2008-02-12T08:47:00.000-08:00

Good Dog. Stay. by Anna Quindlen

Eat, Pray, Love by Elizabeth Gilbert

on the shelf next is Pillars of the Earth by Ken Follett

DROWN by Junot Diaz

2008-02-11T12:46:00.000-08:00

I finished this on the plane yesterday. It was very enlightening. I don't know much about the Dominican Republic or what it is like to be a US immigrant or person living here illegally. It was interesting the power of the American dream with those in less developed countries and how hard they work.

I would recommend this Author, I may add his other book "The brief wondrous life of Oscar Wao" to my reading list for another time.

My rating 4 of 5

DROWN

2008-01-29T13:39:00.001-08:00

I am currently Reading DROWN by Junot Diaz for my book club.

It is a collection of 10 short stories.

Dollar Store Bargains!

2008-01-24T07:40:00.001-08:00

I stopped at Dollar Tree yesterday and got the following finds (all hardback):

The Great Fire by Shirley Hazzard
Middletown, America : One Town's Passage from Trauma to Hope by Gail Sheehy
[BOTH OF THESE WERE READ IN MY BOOK CLUB]

Without a Net : Middle Class and Homeless (with Kids) in America by Michelle Kennedy
[THIS BOOK LOOKED RATHER COMPELLING]

The Best Year of Their Lives : Kennedy, Johnson and Nixon in 1948: Learning the Secrets of Power by Lance Morrow (for my husband)

Box O' Books Arrived

2008-01-24T07:35:00.000-08:00

I received a box of books from my book friend -- $26 for 7 books!

Christ the Lord, Out of Egypt by Ann Rice
David Brinkley Biography (for my husband)
Pitching My Tent by Anita Diamant (for my neighbor)
Sister Teresa by Barbara Mujica
The Bookseller From Kabul by Asne Seierstad
The Well of Lost Plots by Jasper Fforde

I got a bonus book but the name escapes me I'll post later.

Ice Station

2008-01-24T07:30:00.000-08:00

We reviewed this in book club... I do not think I will finish it, here are a few comments.

"While it was exciting, not my cup of tea"

"Unbelievable."

"Definitely written as a screen play."

I am barely in about 36 pages and while it is a fast read and kind of interesting I just have so many other things on my list to read that I think I'll like better.

The Red Tent

2008-01-20T18:59:00.000-08:00

I just finished The Red Tent by Anita Diamant. It was a wonderful story about women. I enjoyed learning the culture of the time. It was interesting how women could have leadership and power but not have it at the same time. The last chapter Egypt took me awhile to read but after reading it all I liked how the author made the book come full circle.

I am now reading the same story in the Bible. It starts at Genesis chapter 29 when Rachel meets Jacob at the well. I was curious how much was written around these stories.

My Rating: 4 of 5

New Year New booklist

2008-01-03T07:53:00.000-08:00

I am currently reading The Red Tent by Anita Diamante which is very good and interesting. I don't know much about the Old Testament culture and find it pretty fascinating.

My next read is Ice Station by Matthew Reilly for my ACS book club.

Over the Holidays I received quite a few book gifts, trades, and bargains.

Something Rotten by Jasper Fforde - bargain bin
(4th in a series called Thursday Next novels)

The Witching Hour and Lasher by Ann Rice -- trade
See No Evil by Robert Baer -- bookmooch trade
(the movie Syriana is based on this book)

Redbird Christmas by Fannie Flagg - gift
The Other Bolyen Girl by Phillippa Gregory - gift
Butch Cassidy: A Biography by Richard Patterson - gift
Rhett Butler's People by Donald McCaig- gift

"So many books, so little time"

Update: I did not read more than about 10 pages in The Witching Hour but I do intend to, as I received it in trade to put on my To Be Read (TBR) list.
I did not finish The House of Spirits while it was a good book, it just dragged so much I felt I needed some light reading thus my plunge into The Mist and Skipping Christmas, and Memory Keepers Daughter.

2007 Books Read:
The House on Mango Street - Sandra Cisneros
The Haunting of Hill House - Shirley Jackson
Heart Shaped Box - Joe Hill
Water for Elephants - Sara Gruen
20th Century Ghosts -Joe Hill
The Mist - Stephen King
The Memory Keepers Daughter - Kim Edwards
Skipping Christmas - John Grisham

I have read quite a few lately...

2007-12-19T09:47:00.000-08:00

House of the Spirits I ended up not finishing... I got kind of bored with it.

I did listen to The House on Mango Street and it was wonderfully read by the author Sandra Cisneros.

I read The Memory Keepers Daughter by Kim Edwards but I didn't think it lived up to all the hype. I was disappointed in how the last 1/2 of the book came out and the ending seemed awkward to me.

For a fun light read I read Skipping Christmas by John Grisham, it was cute. I thought Tim Allen was cast appropriately for the movie Christmas with the Kranks.

Not sure what I'll read next.. still pondering that.

What am I reading these days....

2007-10-30T08:55:00.001-07:00

On my travels to Ohio I flew through the scary book (because it's Halloween) The Mist by Stephen King.

I am reading and hope to finish soon, The House of The Spirits by Isabel Allende.

I am also starting The Witching Hour by Ann Rice, something different and Halloweenie.

ACS Reading Group Book List

2007-05-14T07:17:00.000-07:00

May 2003 “Cry the Beloved Country”, Alan Paton
June 2003 “Portrait of a Killer”, Patricia Cornwell
July 2003 “Pastwatch”, Orson Scott Card
August 2003 “Angels & Demons”, Dan Brown
September 2003 “All The Kings Men”, Robert Penn Warren
October 2003 “Mystic River”, Dennis LeHane
Nov/Dec 2003 “Charm School”, Nelson deMille

January 2004 “Coyote Waits”, Tony Hillerman
February 2004 “Slaughterhouse 5”, Kurt Vonnegut
Mar/April 2004 “The Fountainhead”, Ayn Rand
May/June 2004 “Gone with the Wind”, Margaret Mitchell
July 2004 “The No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency”, Alexander Smith
August/Sept 2004 “Bourne Identity”, Robert Ludlum
October 2004 “A Portrait of Dorian Gray”, Oscar Wilde
November 2004 “The Cat Who Could Read Backwards”, Lilian Jackson Braun
December 2004 “Geek Love”, Katherine Dunn

January 2005 Didn’t meet
February 2005 “Double Whammy”, Carl Hiassen
March 2005 “Cry Wolf”, Tami Hoag
April 2005 “Plainsong”, Kent Haruf
May/June 2005 “The Eight”, Katherine Neville
July 2005 “The Cat’s Eyewitness”, Rita Mae Brown
August 2005 “Higher Authority”, Stephen White
September 2005 “The Madman and the Professor”, Simon Winchester
October 2005 “Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil”, John Berendt
Nov 2005 “The Catcher in the Rye”, J.D. Salinger
Dec 2005 “Kite Runner”, Khaled, Hosseini

January 2006 “Killer Angels”, Michael Shaara
Feb/March 2006 “Anna Karenina”, Leo Tolstoy
April 2006 “The Color of Water”, James McBride
May 2006 “Hoot”, Carl Hiaasen
June 2006 “One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest”, Ken Kesey
July 2006 “Night”, Elie Wiesel
August/Sep 2006 “The Historian”, Elizabeth Kostova
October 2006 “The Quiet American”, Graham Greene
November 2006 “The World is Flat”, Thomas Friedman
December 2006 "Flags of Our Fathers", James Bradley

Jan/Feb/Mar 2007 "The Man in the Iron Mask" by Alexander Dumas
April 2007 "The Last Templar" by Raymond Khoury
May/June 2007 "The Grapes of Wrath" by John Steinbeck
July 2007 "Water for Elephants" by Sara Gruen
Aug/Sep 2007 "The House of The Spirits" by Isabel Allende
Oct/Nov 2007 "The Name of the Rose" by Umberto Eco
Dec 2007 "Ice Station" by Matthew Reilly

Jan 2008 "When the Emperor was Divine", by Julie Otsuka
Feb/March 2008 "Pillars of the Earth", by Ken Follett
April 2008 "The New Earth", by Eckhart Tolle
May/June 2008 "Darwinia", Robert Charles Wilson
July 2008 "Three Cups of Tea", Greg Mortenson

Book Group List 1996-2009

2007-04-06T07:14:00.000-07:00

Date Title Type*
Oct. 96 “Stones for Ibara,” Harriet Doerr CF

Jan. 97 “Jane Eyre,” Charlotte Bronte K
Feb. 97 “Reef,” Romesh Gunesekera CF
Mar. 97 “How the Garcia Girls Lost Their Accents,” Julia Alvarez CF
May 97 “I Was Amelia Earheart,” Jane Mendelsohn CF
Jun. 97 “The Bingo Palace,” Louise Erdrich CF
Jul. 97 “Pastwatch,” Orson Scott Card SF
Aug. 97 “The Heart of a Woman,” Maya Angelou CF
Sep. 97 “The Shipping News,” E. Annie Proulx CF
Oct. 97 “The Hundred Secret Senses,” Amy Tan CF
Dec. 97 “The Count of Monte Cristo,” Alexandre Dumas K

Jan. 98 “Stones From the River,” Ursula Hegi CF
Feb. 98 “Cry, Thy Beloved Country,” Alan Paton K
Mar. 98“Mormon Country,” Wallace Stegner NF
Apr. 98 “Ishmael,” Danial Quinn SF
May 98 “One True Thing,” Anna Quindlen CF
Jun. 98 “Alias Grace,” Margaret Atwood CF
Jul. 98 “The Clinic,” Jonathan Kellerman M
Aug. 98 “The Island of the Day Before,” Umberto Eco CF
Sept. 98 “Cold Mountain,” Charles Frasier CF
Oct. 98 “A Chorus of Stones, the Private Life of War,” Susan Griffin NF
Nov. 98 “The Age of Innocence,” Edith Wharton K
Dec. 98 “Memoirs of a Geisha,” Arthur Golden CF

Jan. 99 “A Prayer for Owen Meany,” John Irving CF
Feb. 99 “The Reader,” Bernhard Schlink CF
Mar. 99 “Animal Husbandry,” Laura Zigman CF
Apr. 99 “A Cup of Tea,” Amy Ephron CF
May 99 “A Confederacy of Dunces,” John Kennedy O’Toole CF
Jun. 99 “Love Thy Neighbor, a Story of War,” Peter Maas NF
Jul. 99 “Tuesdays with Morrie,” Mitch Albom NF

“Interstellar Pig,” William Sleator JF
Aug. 99 “Death Comes for the Archbishop,” Willa Cather K
Sep. 99 “West with the Night,” Beryl Markham B
Oct. 99 “The Shelter of Each Other,” Mary Pipher, PhD. NF
Nov. 99 “The Samurai’s Garden,” Gail Tsukiyama CF
Dec. 99 “Aphrodite,” Isabelle Allende NF

Jan. 00 “Persuasion,” Jane Austen K
Feb. 00 “Memoirs: All Rivers Run to the Sea,” Elie Wiesel B
Mar. 00 “The Loop,” Nicholas Evans CF
Apr. 00 “The Hours,” Michael Cunningham CF
May 00 “Reader’s Choice,” Mark Salzman
Jun. 00 “Joe Gould’s Secret,” Joseph Mitchell CF
Jul. 00 “Waiting for Barbarians,” J. M. Coetzee CF
“An Environment for Murder,” Rod Decker M
Aug. 00 “Plainsong,” Kent Haruf CF
Sept. 00 “The River Midnight,” Lilian Nattel CF
Oct. 00 “The Hunchback of Notre Dame,” Victor Hugo K
Nov. 00 “The Brothers K,” David James Duncan CF
Dec. 00 “Siddhartha,” Hermann Hess CF

Jan. 01 “White Teeth,” Zadie Smith CF
Feb. 01 “An Anthropologist on Mars,” Oliver Sacks NF
Mar. 01 “A Gesture Life,” Change-rae Lee CF
Apr. 01 “Absolution by Murder (a Sister Fidelma Mystery),” Peter Tremanye M
May 01 “Two Old Women,” Velma Wallis NF
Jun. 01 “Tulip Fever,” Deborah Moggach CF
Jul. 01 “East of the Mountains,” David Guterson CF
Aug. 01 “Dracula,” Bram Stoker K
Sep. 01 “Let us Now Praise Famous Men,” James Agee NF
Oct. 01 “Longitude,” Dava Sobel NF
Nov. 01 “Bless Me, Ultima,” Rudolfo Anaya CF
Dec. 01 “Tales of the City,” Armistead Maupin CF

Jan. 02 “The Power of One,” Bryce Courtenay CF
Feb. 02 “The Sprit Catches You and You Fall Down,” Anne Fadiman NF
Mar. 02 Letters From Yellowstone,” Diane Smith CF
Apr. 02 “Honeymoon in Purdah,” Alison Wearing NF
May 02 “The Professor and the Madman,” Simon Winchester CF
Jun. 02 “Seabiscuit,” Laura Hillenbrand NF
Jul. 02 “Growing Up,” Russell Baker NF
Aug. 02 “Fifth Business,” Robertson Davies CF
Sep. 02 “Geek Love,” Katherine Dunn CF
Oct. 02 “Empire Falls,” Richard Russo CF
Nov. 02 “How Nancy Jackson Married Kate Wilson...,” Mark Twain K
Dec. 02 “Salem Falls,” Jodi Picoult CF

Jan. 03 “Straight on Til Morning,” Mary S. Lovell B
Feb. 03 “Small Wonder,” Barbara Kingsolver CF
Mar. 03 “The Adventures of Allegra Fullerton,” Mark Begiebing CF
Apr. 03 “Pinstripes and Pearls,” Judith Richards Hope NF
May 03 “Next,” Michael Lewis NF
Jun. 03 “Nickle and Dimed,” Barbara Ehrenreich NF
Jul. 03 “Miss Julia Speaks Her Mind,” Ann B. Ross CF
Aug. 03 “The Eyre Affair,” Jasper FForde CF
Sep. 03 “Angels and Demons,” Dan Brown CF
Oct. 03 “Middlesex,” Jeffrey Eugenides CF
Nov./Dec.03 “The Tin Drum,” Gunther Grass K

Jan. 04 “The Life of Pi,” Yann Martel CF
Feb. 04 “The Lobster Chronicles,” Linda Greenlaw NF
Mar. 04 “Angry Housewives Eating Bon Bons”, Lorna Landvik CF
Apr. 04 “Middletown America…”, Gail Sheehy NF
May 04 “Trinity,” Leon Uris CF
June 04 “The Disobedience of Water “, Sena Jeter Naslund CF
July 04 “Balzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress”, Sijie Dai CF
Aug 04 “The Secret Life of Bees“, Sue Monk Kid CF
Sep 04 “The Piano Tuner“, Daniel Mason CF
Oct 04 “Waiting for Snow in Havana…“, Carlos Eire B
Nov 04 “Being Dead”, Jim Crace CF
Dec 04 “Madame Bovary”, Gustave Flaubert K

Jan 05 “Butch Cassidy A Biography”, Richard Patterson B
Feb. 05 “The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Nighttime”, Mark Haddon CF
OR “Three Junes”, Julia Glass CF
Mar. 05 “The Color of Water”, James McBride NF
Apr. 05 “The Progress Paradox”, Gregg Easterbrook NF
May 05 “Every Second Counts”, Lance Armstrong NF
June 05 “Sight Hound”, Pam Houston CF
OR “Cloud Atlas”, David Mitchell CF
July 05 “The Screwtape Letters”, C.S. Lewis K
Aug. 05 “The Power of the Dog”, Thomas Savage CF
Sep. 05 “The Heart is a Lonely Hunter”, Carson McCullers CF
Oct. 05 “The Optimist’s Daughter”, Eudora Welty CF
Nov. 05 “The Shadow of the Wind”, Carlos Ruiz Zafon CF
Dec. 05 “Winter Dance”, Gary Paulsen NF

Jan. 06 “Running with Scissors”, Augusten Burroughs NF
Feb. 06 “Love in the Time of Cholera”, Gabriel Garcia Marquez K
Mar. 06 “Reading Lolita in Tehran”, Azar Nafisi NF
Apr. 06 “Red Water”, Judith Freeman HF
May 06 “When the Emperor was Divine”, Julie Otsaki CF
June 06 “A Girls Guide to Hunting and Fishing”, Melissa Bank CF
July 06 “The Children of Willesden Lane…”, Mona Golabek NF
Aug 06 “Don’t Let’s Go To the Dogs Tonight”, Alexandra Fuller B
Sep 06 “Atonement”, Ian McEwan F
Oct 06 “Founding Mothers, The Women Who Raised our Nation”, Cokie Roberts NF
Nov 06 "The Seduction of Water", Carol Goodman F
Dec 06 “Small Change, the Secret Life of Penny Buford”, J. Belinda Yandell F

Jan 07 “A House of Sight and Shadow”, Nicholas Griffin HF
Feb 07 continued…
Mar 07 “Moll Flanders”, Daniel Defoe K
April 07 "The Great Fire", Sarah Hazzard CF

May 07 "The Haunting of Hill House", Shirley Jackson CF

June 07 "A Fine Balance", Rohinton Mistry CF

July 07 "Water for Elephants", Sara Gruen CF
OR "A Pirate Looks at Fifty", Jimmy Buffett B

August /Sept 07 "Team of Rivals", Doris Kearns Goodwin NF

October 07 "The House on Mango Street", Sandra Cisneros CF

November 07 "The Memory Keepers Daughter", Kim Edwards CF

December 07 "The Red Tent", Anita Diamant, CF

January 08 "DROWN", Junot Diaz, CF

February 08 "Eat, Pray, Love", Elizabeth Gilbert, NF

March 08 "Into the Wild", Jon Krakhauer, NF

OR "Trespass" by Amy Irvine, NF

April 08 "Loving Frank", Nancy Horan, HF

May 08 "The Life & Times of the Thunderbolt Kid", Bill Bryson, B

June 08 "The Air We Breathe", Andrea Barrett, HF

July 08 "The Fig Eater", Jodi Shields, CF

August 08 "Snowflower and the Secret Fan", Lisa See, CF

September 08 "Lazy B: Growing up on a Cattle Ranch in the American Southwest",

----> Sandra Day O'Connor, NF
October 08 "Broken for You", Stephanie K ollos, CF

November 08 "The Heretics Daughter", Kathleen Kent, CF

December 08 "Under the Bridge/Bajo el Puente", Rosario Sanmiguel, CF

January 09 "Black Like Me", Howard Griffin, CF

February 09 READER's CHOICE (pick a book)

March 09 "Returning to Earth", Jim Harrison, CF

April 09 "Dreamers of the Day", Mary Doria Russell, HF

May 09 " Skeletons on the Zahara", Dean King, F

June 09 "A Mercy", Toni Morrison, F

July 09 "Infidel", Ayaan Hirsi Ali

August 09 "The Day I Ate Whatever I Wanted; and Other Small Acts of Liberation", Elizabeth Berg

September 09, "A Ship of Gold in Deep Blue Sea", by Gary Kinder

October 09

Type: B (biog.), CF (Contemporary Fiction), JF (Juvenile Fic.), K (Classic), M (Mystery), NF (Non-fic.), SF Science Fic.), HF (Historical Fiction)

Cathedral of the Madeleine Book Club List

2007-03-12T06:00:00.000-07:00

January '07 "My Life with the Saints", James Martin, S.J.

February '07 "The Practice of the Presence of God", Brother Lawrence

March '07 "Simple Christian, Why Christianity Makes Sense", N.T. Wright

April '07 "Four Quartets", T.S. Eliot

May '07 "Death Comes for the Archbishop", Willa Cather

June '07 "Seeking God: The Way of St. Benedict", Esther de Waal

July '07 "Orthodoxy", G. K. Chesterton

August '07 "The Death of Ivan Ilych", Leo Tolstoy

September '07 "Jesus of Nazareth : from the baptism in the Jordan to the transfiguration", Pope Benedict XVI

October '07 "Prophets, Guardians and Saints: Shapers of Modern Catholic History", Owen F. Cummings

November '07 PART 2 (after Chapter 5) "Jesus of Nazareth : from the baptism in the Jordan to the transfiguration", Pope Benedict XVI

December '07 HAPPY HOLIDAYS! No Meeting

January '08 "Morality: A Catholic View", Servais Pinckaers

February '08 "What Is the Point of Being a Christian", Timothy Radcliffe

March '08 PART 2 (Chapter 6) "What Is the Point of Being a Christian", Timothy Radcliffe

April - July '08 No Meeting, HAPPY SUMMER!

October/November '08 "Surprised by Hope: Rethinking Heaven, the Resurrection, and the Mission of the Church", N.T. Wright

January '09 "The Gospel According to St. Paul: Meditations on His Life and Letters", Carlo Cardinal Martini,

What I have finished reading....

2007-01-30T12:15:00.000-08:00

Small Change: The Secret Life of Penny Buford by Barbara Yandell

What a wonderful story! A quick short read but it has meaning and thought you will want to remember.