Prairie Horizons

The Postmistress

2012-01-31T06:00:00.000-06:00

The Postmistress by Sarah Blake
Fiction
2010 Amy Einhorn Books
Finished 1/20/12
Rating: 4.75/5 (Terrific!)

Publisher’s Blurb:

Those who carry the truth sometimes bear a terrible weight…

It is 1940. France has fallen. Bombs are dropping on London. And President Roosevelt is promising he won’t send our boys to fight in “foreign wars.”

But American radio gal Frankie Bard, the first woman to report from the Blitz in London, wants nothing more than to bring the war home. Frankie’s radio dispatches crackle across the Atlantic Ocean, imploring listeners to pay attention—as the Nazis bomb London nightly, and Jewish refugees stream across Europe. Frankie is convinced that if she can just get the right story, it will wake Americans to action and they will join the fight.

Meanwhile, in Franklin, Massachusetts, a small town on Cape Cod, Iris James hears Frankie’s broadcasts and knows that it is only a matter of time before the war arrives on Franklin’s shores. In charge of the town’s mail, Iris believes that her job is to deliver and keep people’s secrets, passing along the news that letters carry. And one secret she keeps are her feelings for Harry Vale, the town mechanic, who inspects the ocean daily, searching in vain for German U-boats he is certain will come. Two single people in midlife, Iris and Harry long ago gave up hope of ever being in love, yet they find themselves unexpectedly drawn toward each other.

Listening to Frankie as well are Will and Emma Fitch, the town’s doctor and his new wife, both trying to escape fragile childhoods and forge a brighter future. When Will follows Frankie’s siren call into the war, Emma’s worst fears are realized. Promising to return in six months, Will goes to London to offer his help, and the lives of the three women entwine.

Alternating between an America still cocooned in its inability to grasp the danger at hand and a Europe being torn apart by war, The Postmistress gives us two women who find themselves unable to deliver the news, and a third woman desperately waiting for news yet afraid to hear it.

Sarah Blake’s The Postmistress shows how we bear the fact that war goes on around us while ordinary lives continue. Filled with stunning parallels to today, it is a remarkable novel.

It’s been a long time since I’ve been so moved by a novel. I first heard about The Postmistress from a former coworker who said it was one of the best novels about World War II that she’d ever read. I love reading books set during that time period, so I tucked the title away in the back of my mind, knowing I’d get to it sooner or later. One afternoon at work, a customer whom I’ve come to know and who shares my taste in books, gave me her copy of The Postmistress, telling me how much she loved it and that she knew I would, too. I added it to my stacks, again, knowing I’d get to it sooner or later. Well, it turned out to be much later! The book is now available in paperback and I’ve only just read the hardcover. But it was well worth the wait!

“A beautifully written, thought-provoking novel that I’m telling everyone I know to read.” ~ Kathryn Stockett, author of The Help

I couldn’t agree more! I loved Blake’s novel, savoring each page, marking passage after passage. Early on, after establishing the relationship between all the characters, I was tempted to stop where I was reading and start all over from the very beginning. I had a feeling this was going to be a great book, one with which I would fall in love and be haunted by for years to come. I knew it was a rare book, much like The Book Thief, Atonement, and The Help. I could have read it much more quickly than two full weeks—it called to me during the day and I couldn’t wait to get home to return to the story—but I wanted to draw it out and make it last.

“Some novels we savor for their lapidary prose, others for their flesh-and-blood characters, and still others for a sweeping narrative arc that leaves us lightheaded and changed; Sarah Blake’s masterful The Postmistress serves us all this and more. Compassionate, insightful, and unsentimental, this masterful novel is told in a rare and highly successful omniscient voice, one that delves deeply into the seemingly random nature of love and war and story itself. This is a superb book!” ~ Andre Dubus III, author of House of Sand and Fog

On wartime broadcasts:

“The story beneath the story,” Parkhurst agreed.

Frankie nodded. Bill Shirer wrote ten minutes of script for five minutes of airtime, and Murrow often finished every broadcast in a cold sweat, having orchestrated the news so that it went under the wire, his mind ahead of the censor’s bending and swaying to the imagined cut. Early on, she’d learned what she could say she saw—a full moon could be described as a bomber’s moon—and how to seed the story without telling the Germans, who were listening, what they heard. It was a dare—a dance up to the line. It was the performance of what is, what isn’t.

and

…We do not create mood, Murrow had lectured her when she’d first arrived, we tell what there is to tell. Our job is not to persuade. Just provide the honest news. One person to another. And when there isn’t any news, why, just say so. The news is not atmosphere (although there were shelves of disks at Broadcasting House that used to be used for just that—crickets and birdsongs, Big Ben sounding, and nearly sixty bands on one disk devoted to False Alarm: Cheerful Voices with Chink of Teacups). The war news now came live: the newsreaders’ voices, the microphone on the roof recording the progress of the bombs, and the conversation between broadcasters in the very moment of the Blitz. The world could listen to the war as though we were all pulled up to the fire.

On London’s Blitz:

By now, death had long since lost its power to shock. Everyone had a story: there were thousands piled up in London’s heart. But ever since the first of the year, Hitler had been playing with London’s nerves. There were three nights of bombing in January, then nothing for a week. Then again, and heavier. Then nothing. One day, then another in March, then nothing long enough for daffodils to appear and grass to start sprouting on the banks along the Thames. The city slid into April on a month of quiet. Then came the bombings of the Wednesday and the Saturday—bombs so bad, Ed Murrow joked, you wore your best clothes to bed in case your closet wasn’t standing in the morning. And since then, the memory of those nights had settled into everyone’s crouch, everyone’s quick steps, everyone’s fixed attention on the sky. Would they come again tonight? Or was it over? You didn’t know. You went to bed ready to run.

and

On May the tenth, one hundred bombs a minute rained down on London for five straight hours in what was the most devastating night of the Blitz. Fires exploded everywhere at once, and where there had been, even on the other nights, pockets of calm, dips of peace, that night the din in the skies could drive you mad. Hit were Parliament, Big Ben, and Westminster Abbey, and countless houses smashed to pieces.

Unimaginable.

I rarely ever make the time to reread a book, but this is one I want to return to. Rather than wait several years (which is my typical pattern for rereading), I am going to listen to the audio, as I just discovered that the reader is Orlagh Cassidy. She’s one of my favorite audio book readers! And it’s available for download from my library. Hurray!

Final Thoughts: Is it too early to declare my #1 read of 2012? Now to read Blake’s previous novel, Grange House!

Books added to my reading list:

Citizens of London: The Americans Who Stood with Britain in Its Darkest, Finest Hour by Lynne Olson

Murrow: his life and times by A.M. Sperber

No Ordinary Time by Doris Kearns Goodwin

A Stricken Field: A Novel by Martha Gellhorn

Click here to listen to Blake's excellent interview on NPR's All Things Considered.

Life Is Good

2012-01-30T17:00:00.002-06:00

It's important to recognize and remember the good things in life, so I've decided to make a point of jotting down my weekly blessings.

So what made me smile this past week?

A positive health report from Depoe Bay, Oregon!
Fresh, inexpensive flowers from Trader Joe's.
Getting carded!
Catching up with my girl friends over dinner and drinks.
A perfectly ripe avocado.
An amazing steak. Thank you, Julia Child!
Record-breaking temp (69 degrees!) on January 30th.
Wearing shorts in January!

Books Read in 2011

2012-01-28T14:49:00.000-06:00

You may click on highlighted titles to read a review:

Heart of the Matter by Emily Giffin (3.5/5)

Sing You Home by Jodi Picoult (4.5/5)

Shoot to Thrill by P.J. Tracy (4.5/5)

The Devotion of Suspect X by Keigo Higashino (2.5/5)

Joy For Beginners by Erica Bauermeister (4.5/5)

The Weird Sisters by Eleanor Brown (4.5/5)

Sarah's Key by Tatiana de Rosnay (2.5/5)

The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest by Stieg Larsson (4.5/5)

Snowflower and the Secret Fan by Lisa See (2.5/5)

The Life and Times of the Thunderbolt Kid by Bill Bryson (3.5/5)

Once Upon a Time There Was You by Elizabeth Berg (2.5/5)

Major Pettigrew's Last Stand by Helen Simonson (4/5)

The Elegance of the Hedgehog by Muriel Barbery (4.5/5)

Unbroken by Laura Hildenbrand (3.5/5)

The Pioneer Woman: From High Heels to Tractor Wheels by Ree Drummond (4.5/5)

Cutting for Stone by Abraham Verghese (4.5/5)

An Incomplete Revenge by Jacqueline Winspear (2.5/5)

Think of A Number by John Verdon (4/5)

Before I Go To Sleep by S.J. Watson (4.5/5)

Turn of Mind by Alice LaPlante (4.75/5)

Girl in Translation by Jean Kwok (4/5)

Awakening by S.J. Bolton (3.5/5)

Sea Escape by Lynne Griffin (3/5)

Body Surfing by Anita Shreve (4/5)

Beachcombing For A Shipwrecked God by Joe Coomer (4.5/5)

The Mapping of Love and Death by Jacqueline Winspear (4/5)

The Arrivals by Meg Mitchell Moore (4.75/5)

Among the Mad by Jacqueline Winspear (3.5/5)

Off Season by Anne Rivers Siddons (3/5)

Faith by Jennifer Haigh (4.5/5)

One Good Dog by Susan Wilson (3.5/5)

The 19th Wife by David Ebershoff (4/5)

Time and Again by Jack Finney (3.5/5)

Good Night, iPad by Ann Droyd (4/5)

The Tiny Book of Tiny Stories by Joseph Gordon-Levitt (4/5)

2012 Tournament of Books

2012-01-25T05:50:00.002-06:00

I love lists. Currently, I have seven separate lists on my desk. They're all book-related and I keep hoping to make time to write some posts about each of them. But first things first. Andi blogged about The Morning News 2012 Tournament of Books (presented by Field Notes) and after quickly scanning the list of titles, I knew I'd have to add the widget and link to my sidebar. This isn't really a challenge, but I ~~hope~~ plan to read at least eight of the selected books. I already own three and am actively listening to one and have started another on my iPad (with plans to resume reading in another month or so).

Here's the list, followed by the information posted on The Morning News. I've highlighted the books I own (in red) and the books I plan to read (in green). Any comments or other recommendations? Are any better on audio than the printed format?

The 16 Books That Will Compete in Our Eighth Annual Battle Royale

Nathacha Appanah, The Last Brother
Julian Barnes, The Sense of an Ending
Teju Cole, Open City
Helen DeWitt, Lightning Rods
Patrick deWitt, The Sisters Brothers
Jeffrey Eugenides, The Marriage Plot
Chad Harbach, The Art of Fielding
Alan Hollinghurst, Stranger’s Child
Jesmyn Ward, Salvage the Bones
Haruki Murakami, 1Q84
Téa Obreht, The Tiger’s Wife
Michael Ondaatje, The Cat’s Table
Ann Patchett, State of Wonder
Donald Ray Pollock, Devil All the Time
Karen Russell, Swamplandia!
Kate Zambreno, Green Girl

Details for the tournament can be found here. The official tournament begins on March 7th.

Life Is Good

2012-01-23T09:47:00.001-06:00

It's important to recognize and remember the good things in life, so I've decided to make a point of jotting down my weekly blessings.

So what made me smile last week?

Heated car seats!
Friendly customers.
Grilled Cheese Sandwiches & Campbell's Tomato Soup (Who says dinner has to be complicated?!)
Listening to my husband play his guitar(serenading our dog while she eats her breakfast) at 5:30 a.m.
Homemade turkey soup.
A full day of nothing but cooking, blog-hopping and reading. Pure bliss.
The scent of woodsmoke in the air.
Little girls giggling with their mama at the park on a sunny Sunday afternoon.
Leftover oatmeal pancakes (slightly chilled) with peanut butter.
A freshly groomed dog.

A Lesson in Secrets

2012-01-22T15:05:00.001-06:00

A Lesson in Secrets by Jacqueline Winspear
Mystery (#8 in the Maisie Dobbs’ series)
2011 Harper Audio
Reader: Orlagh Cassidy
Finished 1/16/12
Rating: 2.5/5 (Fair)

Publisher’s Blurb:

In the summer of 1932, Maisie Dobbs’s career goes in an exciting new direction when she accepts an undercover assignment directed by Scotland Yard’s Special Branch and the Secret Service. Posing as a junior lecturer, she is sent to a private college in Cambridge to monitor any activities “not in the interests of His Majesty’s Government.”

When the college’s controversial pacifist founder and principal, Greville Liddicote, is murdered, Maisie is directed to stand back as Detective Chief Superintendent Robert MacFarlane and Detective Chief Inspector Stratton spearhead the investigation. She soon discovers, however, that the circumstances of Liddicote’s death appear inextricably linked to the suspicious comings and goings of faculty and students under her surveillance.

To unravel this web, Maisie must overcome a reluctant Secret Service, discover shameful hidden truths about Britain’s conduct during the war, and face off against the rising powers of the Nationalsozialistische Deutsche Arbeiterpartei—the Nazi Party—in Britain.

A pivotal chapter in the life of Maisie Dobbs, A Lesson in Secrets marks the beginning of her intelligence work for the Crown. As the storm clouds of World War II gather on the horizon, Maisie will confront new challenges and new enemies—and will engage new readers and loyal fans of this bestselling mystery series.

As the final chapter of this most recent installment in the Maisie Dobbs’s series drew to a close, I found myself wondering why I’ve continued reading—or rather, listening to—these books. The actual mystery didn’t hold my interest nearly as well as others have in the past and I wanted to hear more about Maisie’s personal life and her relationships with some of the “regulars” in this series. Maybe I just like listening to Orlagh Cassidy read! But now as World War II draws closer, I’m hopeful that Winspear’s next book will appeal to me as her earlier works did. Fans of this series will be happy to learn that Winspear has a new book due out on March 27th.

Go here to learn more.

Until then, I plan to start in on Louise Penny's Chief Inspector Gamache series. I've read the first in the series (Still Life), but that was over five years ago. I'll give it a reread and then I'll have ~~five~~ six more to look forward to.

If you would like my ARC of A Lesson in Secrets, please leave me a comment along with your email address. I'll draw the winning name on January 31st.

2012 Audio Book Challenge

2012-01-18T18:30:00.001-06:00

Last year I listened to 14 audio books! I think that's an all-time record for me, so this challenge is pretty much a gimme. Here are the details from Teresa's blog:

Weclcome to the Original Audio Book Challenge formerly hosted by Alaine at Queen of Happy Endings. This challenge is for Audio Book lovers as well as those who are brand new to them.

Once again, there are four levels to the challenge

Flirting-Listen to 6 Audio Books
Going Steady- Listen to 12 Audio Books
Lover- Listen to 25 Audio Books
Married-Listen to +++ Audio Books

There will be a monthly link up so that we can share what we’ve listened to and make suggestions to each other. Along with that monthly link up there will be a special monthly challenge so make sure you stop by each month!

Official Challenge dates: 1/1/2012-12/31/2012

I'm aiming for the 2nd level (Going Steady) and don't anticipate any trouble achieving that goal. Unlike other challenge, I won't make a list ahead of time since my audio selections are typically based on availability through my library.

Thanks for hosting the challenge, Teresa!

The Stranger You Seek

2012-01-17T17:00:00.001-06:00

The Stranger You Seek by Amanda Kyle Williams
Mystery/Thriller
2011 Bantam
Finished 1/4/12
Rating: 4/5 (Very Good)

She is the best fictional female P.I. since Sue Grafton's Kinsey Millhone. And with its shocking triple-twist climax, this is the best private eye debut since Dennis Lehane's "A Drink Before the War." Grade: A ~ Cleveland Plain-Dealer

Publisher’s Blurb:

In the sweltering heat of an Atlanta summer, a killer is pushing the city to its breaking point, preying on the unsuspecting, writing taunting letters to the media, promising more death. Desperate to stop the Wishbone Killer before another victim meets a shattering end, A.P.D. Lieutenant Aaron Rauser turns to the one person he knows can penetrate a deranged mind: ex-FBI profiler Keye Street.

Keye was a rising young star at the Bureau until addiction derailed her career and her life. Now sober and fighting to stay so, Keye picks up jobs where she can get them: catching adulterers, serving subpoenas, chasing down bailjumpers, and dodging the occasional bullet. With multiple victims, little to go on, and an entire police force looking for direction, the last thing Keye wants is to be pulled into the firestorm of Atlanta’s worst nightmare.

And then it suddenly becomes clear that the hunter has become the hunted – and the stranger she seeks is far closer than she ever dared imagine.

An electrifying thriller debut, The Stranger You Seek introduces a brash, flawed, and unforgettable heroine in a complex, twisting novel that takes readers deep into a sultry Southern summer, a city in the grips of chaos, and a harrowing cat-and-mouse game no reader will ever forget.

Any comparison to Dennis Lehane and I’m sold. But it was Joy’s review that piqued my interest:

Woo hoo! I found myself another series to follow! It's graphic (very Karin Slaughter-like) and on occasion, a bit shocking, and like Slaughter, held together with a solid plot. There were surprising twists and turns, some wit and some interesting characters and relationships, too. (Thoughts of Joy)

Go here to read her complete review.

Williams’ debut thriller kept me up reading very late for a couple of nights and while I recognized a red herring, I was never able to figure out the identity of the killer. Williams’ syntax is a bit off in the opening chapters, and there is one scene that seemed completely irrelevant to the plot, but I enjoyed the characters and loved the ending. I’m looking forward to the next in her line-up: Stranger In The Room (Fall 2012) and Don’t Talk To Strangers (Fall 2013). It’s nice to get in on a series from the beginning!

On the South:

I embraced the South as a child, loved it passionately and love it still. You learn to forgive it for its narrow mind and growing pains because it has a huge heart. You forgive the stifling summers because spring is lush and pastel sprinkled, because November is astonishing in flame and crimson and gold, because winter is merciful and brief, because corn bread and sweet tea and fried chicken are every bit as vital to a Sunday as getting dressed up for church, and because any southerner worth their salt says please and thank you. It’s soft air and summer vines, pine woods and fat homegrown tomatoes. It’s pulling the fruit right off a peach tree and letting the juice run down your chin. It’s a closeted and profound appreciation for our neighbors in Alabama who bear the brunt of the Bubba jokes. The South gets in your blood and nose and skin bone-deep. I am less a part of the South than it is a part of me. It’s a romantic notion, being overcome by geography. But we are all a little starry-eyed down here. We’re Rhett Butler and Scarlett O’Hara and Rosa Parks all at once.

On life as a bounty hunter:

In the last couple of weeks I’d picked pieces of glass out of my neck and forearms with tweezers after being shot at by a bail jumper with a pump-action shotgun, been hit in the back of the head by a flying coffee cup, and shot at by an angry skinny woman over a crummy witness subpoena. I’d stumbled on a Wishbone murder scene, wrestled an accountant who sank his teeth into my shoulder, been hurled through the bullet-wounded windshield of my Impala, officially fired, hospitalized, released and handed over to the media, watched my ex-husband on TV dissecting our dysfunctional marriage, watched strangers on TV discussing my rehab and FBI records. And I was getting roses, white roses, from a violent serial offender. Oh joy.

While not for the faint of heart (I was reminded of the gritty nature of the P.J. Tracy, Cody McFadyen, and John Sandford’s series), fans of Janet Evanovich looking for some comic relief will not be disappointed.

Final thoughts: Unpredictable. Humorous. Intelligent. Think Clarice Starling with a hint of Sunny Randall and Stephanie Plum.

Life Is Good

2012-01-16T14:15:00.005-06:00

It's important to recognize and remember the good things in life, so I've decided to make a point of jotting down my weekly blessings.

So what made me smile last week?

Another 3-day weekend.
Beautiful winter sunsets.
A peaceful morning walk with Annie-Dog. What a gorgeous sunrise this morning!
Organized closets and pantry. What a good feeling.
4 large bags of clothing donated to the Goodwill.
Dining room wall & ceiling are finally repaired! Time to paint.
Up-to-date on book reviews and emails.
A delicious meal (flat-iron steak with shrimp risotto) and a relaxing evening with good friends.
An hour-long massage. Ahhhhhhhhh.
Books in the mail from three dear friends.
Sunshine.

The Night Circus

2012-01-14T21:35:00.001-06:00

The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern
Fiction
2011 Random House Audio (Unabridged Edition)
Reader: Jim Dale
Finished 1/4/12
Rating: 4/5 (Terrific!)

Publisher’s Blurb:

Welcome to Le Cirque des Rêves: Within these black-and-white striped tents lies an utterly unique experience, where one can get lost in a maze of clouds, meander through a lush garden made of ice, and stare in wonderment as the tattooed contortionist folds herself into a small glass box.

Beyond the smoke and mirrors, however, a fierce competition is under way—a duel between two young magicians, Celia and Marco, who have been trained since childhood expressly for this purpose by their mercurial instructors. Unbeknownst to the players, this is a game in which only one can be left standing, and the circus is but the stage for a remarkable battle of imagination.

But when Celia and Marco innocently tumble headfirst into love, their masters intervene with dangerous consequences.

I wound up with the ARC of The Night Circus last summer, but of course, it was relegated to one of the many stacks in my office. After the novel’s release, I read a few glowing reviews and knew it was something I would eventually read. I’ve been enjoying audio books so much, and as it turned out, I found the audio in my library’s online database, so I promptly added my name to the queue. I figured I’d either get to the ARC or the audio version whenever the mood struck. I was very happy when the audio became available and I was able to start listening right after Thanksgiving. What an outstanding presentation of Erin Morgenstern’s debut novel! Jim Dale (whom readers will recognize from the audio editions of the Harry Potter series) is superb! I was quickly drawn into Celia and Marco’s story, eager to get back to the book every morning, falling deeper and deeper under the spell of this remarkably imaginative tale. Morgenstern’s novel is rich with detail and filled with wonderful characters. I don’t know whose story I loved more—Celia & Marco’s or Poppet, Widget and Bailey’s.

My only complaint with the audio is that the chronology of the book is not linear, and thus I was often confused, unsure if my Nano had skipped a track. I found myself checking the ARC to make sure I hadn’t missed a chapter. I’m pretty sure I didn’t, but I do plan to read the book (eventually), now that I’ve finished the audio. It’s very rare that I listen to a book either before or after reading the printed edition, but this was such an outstanding experience, I can’t wait to return to Morgenstern’s world. The Help turned out to be amazing in both formats and I enjoyed the movie just as much. I’m hoping The Night Circus turns out to be another novel that is just as enjoyable in all three mediums. Summit Entertainment (the production company behind the Twilight film franchise) has optioned the film rights and, although I was not impressed with the film version of Twilight, I am still excited about the possibility for a fabulously magical adventure.

SuziQ says:

This was a beautiful, exciting, sad, happy and altogether elegant story. The author created a world in which I thoroughly enjoyed losing myself. I intentionally waited to read it until I had time to read it in just a few sittings. I’m glad I did. This is the kind of book that wraps its setting around you as you read. The imagery is both delicate and strong and always beautiful even in the darker parts of the story. At its heart a love story, the book is about a competition between magicians that takes place within a mysterious circus that seems to appear and disappear and is only open at night. Its storylines weave in and around each other and forward and backward in time in a way that feels almost like a dance. There is a distinct elegance to the writing and the story that takes the reader on a wonderful journey. (Whimpulsive)

Go here to read her complete review.

Andi says:

Beyond the novel's structure, the detail in the writing is just stunning. I felt as if I was experiencing the look and feel of The Night Circus. I could imagine the tents, each of the acts, the bonfire that serves as the heart of the circus, the food on sale to the patrons, the way the various acts dressed and conducted themselves. Hardly ever do I read a novel that makes me feel so thoroughly immersed in the fictional world. (Estella's Revenge)

Go here to read her complete review.

Wendy says:

The Night Circus is a feast for the senses, conjuring up beautiful scenes and luscious scents. It twists and turns and leaves the reader wondering what is real and what is illusion? Morgenstern shifts the narrative back and forth in time, a technique which adds to the unsettled feel of the novel. I will admit that this time shifting felt confusing to me at first. But eventually, I stopped paying attention to the dates, and simply allowed the story to sweep me forward…and it was when I did this that the novel captured me. (Caribousmom)

Go here to read her complete review.

So have I (and my friends) convinced you? This is definitely a winner!

And did I mention the ever-so-wonderful Jim Dale? Here is a sample of him reading from The Night Circus. Close your eyes and listen.

Final thoughts: Enchanting. Magical. Unforgettable.

Life Is Good

2012-01-09T07:57:00.000-06:00

Remember Mary-Chapin Carpenter's hit Passionate Kisses? I heard it on the radio the other day and it made me stop and think about some of the things that make me happy.

It's important to recognize and remember the good things in life, so I've decided to make a point of jotting down my weekly blessings. I was going to label this post "Passionate Kisses," but the potential for questionable Google search hits made me re-evaluate that choice.

So what made me smile last week?

A comfortable bed that won't hurt my back. We finally got a new mattress set. Our old bed was almost 14 years old. No more back aches!
Jeans that fit! I love my new jeans from Eddie Bauer. They're so soft and comfy; I splurged and bought a couple of pairs in each color (dark rinse, black, gray and regular denim blue).
4-day weekend! Exactly what I needed after the stress of a very busy holiday season.
New work schedule that gives me a 3-day weekend every week!
Catching up on book reviews.
Listening to cds on my new Bose.
Starting the year off with 3 great books.
A 68-degree-day in January in Lincoln, Nebraska. Amazing.
Tickets booked to a tropical paradise.
And, yes. Passionate kisses.

Passionate Kisses

Is it too much to ask
I want a comfortable bed that won't hurt my back
Food to fill me up
And warm clothes and all that stuff
Shouldn't I have this
Shouldn't I have this
Shouldn't I have all of this, and

Passionate kisses
Passionate kisses, whoa oh oh
Passionate kisses from you

Is it too much to demand
I want a full house and a rock and roll band
Pens that won't run out of ink
And cool quiet and time to think
Shouldn't I have this
Shouldn't I have this
Shouldn't I have all of this, and

Passionate kisses
Passionate kisses, whoa oh oh
Passionate kisses from you

Do I want too much
Am I going overboard to want that touch
I shout it out to the night
"Give me what I deserve, 'cause it's my right"
Shouldn't I have this (shouldn't I)
Shouldn't I have this (shouldn't I)
Shouldn't I have all of this, and

Passionate kisses
Passionate kisses, whoa oh oh
Passionate kisses from you
Passionate kisses
Passionate kisses, whoa oh oh
Passionate kisses from you

Go here to listen to Passionate Kisses on YouTube.

The Tiny Book of Tiny Stories

2012-01-06T06:56:00.012-06:00

The Tiny Book of Tiny Stories, Volume 1 by Joseph Gordon-Levitt
2011 HarperCollins Publishers
Finished 12/28/11
Rating: 4/5 (Very Good)

Overview (from Barnes & Noble):

From hitRECord, the immensely popular open collaborative production company, and its founder, Golden Globe-nominated actor Joseph Gordon-Levitt, comes The Tiny Book of Tiny Stories: Volume 1.

The universe is not made of atoms; it's made of tiny stories.

To create The Tiny Book of Tiny Stories: Volume 1, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, known within the hitRECord community as RegularJOE—directed thousands of collaborators to tell tiny stories through words and art. With the help of the entire creative collective, Gordon-Levitt culled, edited and curated over 8,500 contributions into this finely tuned collection of original art from 67 contributors. Reminiscent of the 6-Word Memoir series, The Tiny Book of Tiny Stories: Volume 1 brings together art and voices from around the world to unite and tell stories that defy size.

Thanks to Andi & Nancy, I discovered this fun, ironic little book. I picked it up at work and read it on one of my breaks. While it can be read in a store in less than 15 minutes, it's definitely one you'll want to own. I envision an adult storytime at my next dinner party.

Click on images to enlarge.

And, yes. You might have seen Gordon-Levitt here.

Final Thoughts: Christmas has come and gone, but Valentine's Day is just around the corner. This would make a great little gift.

Goodnight iPad

2012-01-06T06:18:00.010-06:00

Goodnight iPad: A Parody for the Next Generation by Ann Droyd*
Humor
2011 Blue Rider Press
Finished 11/30/11
Rating: 4/5 (Very Good!)

Overview (from Barnes & Noble):

In a bright buzzing room, in the glow of the moon-and iPhones and Androids and Blackberries too-it is time to say goodnight...

Modern life is abuzz. There are huge LCD WiFi HD TVs and Facebook requests and thumbs tapping texts and new viral clips of cats doing flips. Wouldn't it be nice to say goodnight to all that? Like the rest of us who cannot resist just a few more scrolls and clicks, you may find yourself ready for bed while still clinging to your electronics long after dark. This book, which is made of paper, is a reminder for the child in all of us to power down at the end of the day. This hilarious parody not only pokes loving fun at the bygone quiet of the original classic, but also at our modern plugged-in lives. It will make you laugh, and it will also help you put yourself and your machines to sleep. Don't worry, though. Your gadgets will be waiting for you, fully charged, in the morning.

Goodnight Moon was one of my daughter's favorite books when she was a little girl. I gave her a copy of this parody for Christmas, as she is planning to eventually buy an iPad. She actually thought the book was a bit sad. I found her reaction rather ironic, as she has been known to watch tv while texting and surfing the web on her phone and MacBook, respectively.

Final Thoughts: Time to unplug!

*Get it? ;)

Ann Droyd is the pseudonym for an IRA/CBC Children's Choice winner who has written and illustrated over twenty picture books for young readers. Droyd's work is known for its sense of narrative, humor, and visual playfulness. Ann Droyd, who studied graphic design at Parsons, lives in Massachusetts.

Time and Again

2012-01-06T06:14:00.000-06:00

Time and Again by Jack Finney
Science Fiction
1970 Simon & Schuster
Finished on 12/18/11
Rating: 3.5/5 (Good)

Publisher’s Blurb:

“Sleep. And when you awake everything you know of the twentieth century will be gone from your mind. Tonight is January 21, 1882. There are no such things as automobiles, no planes, computers, televisions. ‘Nuclear’ appears in no dictionary. You haven’t heard the name Richard Nixon.”

Did illustrator Si Morley really step out of his twentieth-century apartment one night—right into the winter of 1882? The U.S. Government believed it, especially when Si returned with a portfolio of brand-new sketches and tintype photos of a world that no longer existed—or did it?

Let Jack Finney make a believer of you as he takes you on an incredible tour in words and pictures of a time long gone.

When I think of Christopher Reeves, I don’t think of Superman, but rather Richard Collier, the Chicago playwright in Somewhere in Time. I’ve never read Richard Matheson’s novel, but I fell in love with the movie, longing to visit the Grand Hotel on Mackinac Island. As I read Jack Finney’s novel, Time and Again, I was reminded of the love story between Collier and Elise McKenna and made a mental note to add the film to my Netflix queue.

My exposure to time travel stories is quite limited. I’ve read The Invisible Man, but not The Time Machine. Several years ago, I read The Mirror (Marlys Millhiser) for an online book club and the story has stuck with me ever since. I really enjoyed that book and need to get a copy for a future rereading. And, then of course, there’s the popular Time Traveler’s Wife, which I did enjoy quite a lot, in spite of the confusing chronology. But it wasn’t until Nan made a reference to Time and Again, followed by a comment by another friend (who said Stephen King mentioned the novel in his afterward in 11/22/63), that I finally decided to pull this book off my shelf. I have no idea how long I’ve owned it, but it was long overdue for a read.

I wish I could say I loved it. I liked it well enough, but it’s probably not one I’d read again. I had a hard time suspending my disbelief to the point at which it seemed reasonable to assume that one could go back in time simply through self-hypnosis. There were several instances in which the descriptive detail went on far too long with very little dialogue, and I found myself flipping ahead to see how many pages remained in the current chapter. December may have been the wrong time of year to attempt reading this book (or any book, for that matter!). It took me almost six weeks to finish this book of just under 400 pages. The second half of the novel was more suspenseful than the first, so I did find myself looking forward to reading a few pages every night, but overall, the pace was a bit uneven. That said, I’m still interested in reading the sequel, From Time to Time, which was published a year after Finney’s death.

On the Future:

At the table during dinner he was almost directly across from me, and I wanted to needle him, wanted to get at him; I couldn’t help it. Maud Torrence was talking about a Professor Peirce who had just read a paper before the New York Academy of Sciences on the advantages of establishing national and international time zones. Listening, I discovered there was no standardization of times anywhere in the country or world; any little town was free to pick its own time and often did, so that the time in towns a few miles apart might vary; eleven minutes maybe, or seventeen, or thirty-one. Railroad stations had clocks showing the times in different places, and Byron remarked that railroad timetables on long east-west trips were almost impossible to write because there were some seventy-odd different times used in the places the trains went through. Professor Pierce suggested time zones to be called Atlantic Time, Mississippi Time, Rocky Mountain Time, and Pacific Time, and I considered making a prediction but I was more interested in Jake.

While the book was not terribly enthralling, I did enjoy the various historical references, such as the one above, as well as Si’s observation of Dutch immigrants, and one lengthy conversation about the origins of the Statue of Liberty.

Books added to my TBR list:

11/22/63 by Stephen King

Replay by Ken Grimwood

Slaughterhouse-Five by Kurt Vonnegut

Kindred by Octavia Butler

Outlander by Diana Gabaldon

To Say Nothing of the Dog by Connie Willis

New Look For a New Year!

2012-01-01T09:17:00.003-06:00

Don't panic! You've arrived at Lesley's Book Nook. After nearly six years, it's time for a fresh look for my blog. I've also decided to change the name from Lesley's Book Nook to Prairie Horizons. Hope you like it!

Happy New Year, friends!

New Year's Eve

2011-12-31T17:30:00.000-06:00

Happy New Year, friends!

!

The 19th Wife

2011-12-28T20:09:00.009-06:00

The 19th Wife by David Ebershoff
Fiction
2008 Random House Audio
Readers: Arthur Morey, Daniel Passer, Kimberly Farr and Rebecca Lowman
Finished on 11/29/11
Rating: 4/5 (Very Good)

Publisher's Blurb:

Faith, I tell them, is a mystery, elusive to many, and never easy to explain.

Sweeping and lyrical, spellbinding and unforgettable, David Ebershoff’s The 19th Wife combines epic historical fiction with a modern murder mystery to create a brilliant novel of literary suspense.

It is 1875, and Ann Eliza Young has recently separated from her powerful husband, Brigham Young, prophet and leader of the Mormon Church. Expelled and an outcast, Ann Eliza embarks on a crusade to end polygamy in the United States. A rich account of a family’s polygamous history is revealed, including how a young woman became a plural wife.

Soon after Ann Eliza’s story begins, a second exquisite narrative unfolds–a tale of murder involving a polygamist family in present-day Utah. Jordan Scott, a young man who was thrown out of his fundamentalist sect years earlier, must reenter the world that cast him aside in order to discover the truth behind his father’s death.

And as Ann Eliza’s narrative intertwines with that of Jordan’s search, readers are pulled deeper into the mysteries of love and faith.

This is one of those occasions in which I went into the reading of a book completely cold. I had no idea what the story was about; never even read the back cover. I had it on my shelf (I’m not even sure where or when I got it), but came upon the audio version (online) through my local library. I decided to give it a try and was spellbound; all four readers were superb and the story was captivating. Initially, I preferred the present-day narrative over that of Ann Eliza’s story, but as the novel progressed, I found myself looking forward to the shift back to her tale.

Now that I’ve enjoyed the audio version of the book, I’m looking forward to reading my printed copy sometime in the future. I learned a great deal about the Mormon Church and its history, but would like a chance to go back and read it, concentrating more on the historical details and less on the fictitious character, Jordan Scott, and the mystery of his father’s murder.

I’m also looking forward to reading the author’s earlier novel, Pasadena, which I’ve owned for close to a decade!

Go here to listen to David Ebershoff describe The 19th Wife.

Click here to visit the author’s website.

Final thoughts: A thought-provoking story that would make for a great book club selection.

Books to add to my TBR list:

Under the Banner of Heaven by Jon Krakauer

The Mormon War: Zion and the Missouri Extermination Order of 1838 by Brandon G. Kinney

Merry Christmas 2011

2011-12-24T05:00:00.000-06:00

Reposting - Christmas Memories

2011-12-23T05:00:00.001-06:00

Reposting from Christmas 2008...

Rachel Elizabeth Scher

Thanks to Cornflower, I just discovered the following from Sir Roy Strong's A Country Life: At Home in the English Countryside. As Karen states, this resonates with so many of us during this Christmas season.

“Christmas is Janus-faced. One side is joy, the other grief. It opens gates of memory firmly locked into a corner of the mind for the rest of the year. But when the festive season beckons those gates open and the past comes back to take us in its embrace. Christmas is always as much about those not there as about those present. The card no longer received because the sender is no more, the telephone which does not ring this year to remind us of a friendship around the globe, the person who is not at the table, the visit which is no longer made.

“But then the sadness fades, for that gate lets in not only tears of grief but those of joy, and thankfulness, too. Memory’s sacred role is to hold in the mind all those whom one has loved. At Christmas they come tumbling back in a season when recollection pulls strongly on the emotions. How often over these days leading into the New Year does the conversation harken back to times past, to people and events long since gone.....

“Always the twelve days of Christmas take on the character of a garland of friendship through time, for not only those of yesterday are recalled, but those of today rekindled. We are reminded of their centrality in any life. Age and bad times make them a bedrock, giving us strength to go forward into whatever the new year will bring.”

Thinking of those of you who have recently lost a loved one.

One Good Dog

2011-12-22T05:00:00.000-06:00

One Good Dog by Susan Wilson
Fiction
2010 Macmillan Audio
Readers: Fred Berman & Rick Adamson
Finished on 11/10/11
Rating: 3.5/5 (Good)

Publisher's Blurb:

“One Good Dog is a wonderful novel: a moving, tender, and brilliantly crafted story about two fighters—one a man, one a dog— hoping to leave the fight behind, who ultimately find their salvation in each other. Susan Wilson’s clear and unflinching style is perfectly suited for her story that strips away the trappings and toys we all hide behind, and exposes our essential need to give and accept love in order to thrive.” — Garth Stein, New York Times bestselling author of The Art of Racing in the Rain

Adam March is a self-made “Master of the Universe.” He has it all: the beautiful wife, the high-powered job, the glittering circle of friends. But there is a price to be paid for all these trappings, and the pressure is mounting—until the day Adam makes a fatal mistake. His assistant leaves him a message with three words: your sister called. What no one knows is that Adam’s sister has been missing for decades. That she represents the excruciatingly painful past he has left behind. And that her absence has secretly tormented him all these years. When his assistant brushes off his request for an explanation in favor of her more pressing personal call, Adam loses it. And all hell breaks loose.

Adam is escorted from the building. He loses his job. He loses his wife. He loses the life he’s worked so hard to achieve. He doesn’t believe it is possible to sink any lower when he is assigned to work in a soup kitchen as a form of community service. But unbeknownst to Adam, this is where his life will intersect with Chance.

Chance is a mixed breed Pit Bull. He’s been born and raised to fight and seldom leaves the dirty basement where he is kept between fights. But Chance is not a victim or a monster. It is Chance’s unique spirit that helps him escape and puts him in the path of Adam.

What transpires is the story of one man, one dog, and how they save each other—in ways they never could have expected.

Ok. I agree. This sounds like a pretty tired, sappy story. But I’m a sucker for dog books and this one had been recommended to me by one of my customers. When I saw that it was available through my library, I figured it was time to finally give it a try. It’s a very quick and entertaining (read: light-weight and predictable) story, which I enjoyed listening to as I shelved books at work, drove around town and cleaned up the kitchen in the evenings. I’m not sorry I listened to it, but I doubt I would’ve stuck with the written edition. Narrated from both Adam and Chance’s points-of-view, it’s definitely not of the same caliber as The Art of Racing in the Rain (be sure to click on the link if you want to see Annie-Dog pictures!) or The Story of Edgar Sawtelle, the latter of which is one of the finest books I have ever read.

However, fans of Marley and Me (click on link to see our beloved Sidney) will enjoy having their heartstrings tugged once again.

Faith

2011-12-20T19:54:00.005-06:00

Faith by Jennifer Haigh
Fiction
Audio 2011 Harper Collins
Reader: Therese Plummer
Finished on 11/3/11
Rating: 4.5/5 (Terrific!)

Publisher’s Blurb:

The critically acclaimed and bestselling author of The Condition returns with a powerful and affecting drama of faith, doubt, and redemption as one woman uncovers the truth about her family, her beliefs, and herself.

It is the spring of 2002 and a perfect storm has hit Boston. Across the city’s archdiocese, trusted priests have been accused of the worst possible betrayal of the souls in their care. In Faith, Jennifer Haigh explores the fallout for one devout family, the McGanns.

Estranged for years from her difficult and demanding relatives, Sheila McGann has remained close to her older brother, Art, the popular, dynamic pastor of a large suburban parish. When Art finds himself at the center of the maelstrom, Sheila returns to Boston, ready to fight for him and his reputation. What she discovers is more complicated than she imagined. Her strict, lace-curtain-Irish mother is living in a state of angry denial. Shelia’s younger brother Mike, to her horror, has already convicted his brother in his heart. But most disturbing of all is Art himself, who persistently dodges Sheila’s questions and refuses to defend himself.

As the scandal forces long-buried secrets to surface, Faith explores the corrosive consequences of one family’s history of silence—and the resilience of its members ultimately find in forgiveness. Throughout, Haigh demonstrates how the truth can shatter our deepest beliefs—and restore them. A gripping, suspenseful tale of one woman’s quest for the truth, Faith is a haunting meditation on loyalty and family, doubt and belief. Elegantly crafted, sharply observed, this is Jennifer Haigh’s most ambitious novel to date.

I thoroughly enjoyed listening to this audio book and thought the reader did a great job. The story is suspenseful and reads like a mystery, keeping me guessing up to the final pages. The narrative is nonlinear, flowing back and forth in time, revealing the facts slowly and delicately. The characters are well-drawn and likeable; I cared about each and found myself thinking of them long after I finished the book. My only complaint centers around the transitions between chapters. Shelia tells the story in first person and her chapters alternate with those of her brothers, which are told in third person. The transitions between chapters work fine on the printed page, but they are abrupt and confusing in the audio format. This minor quibble wasn’t terribly annoying, especially since I had the hardcover to thumb through when I hit an odd transition.

I read Mrs. Kimble (Haigh’s debut), several years ago and enjoyed this novel much better. Now I’m anxious to try Baker Towers and The Condition to see how they compare.

Final thoughts: I was swept away by this thought-provoking novel and think it would make for a great book club discussion. As mentioned, I own the hardcover edition and plan to keep it for a future reread.

The paperback edition is due out on January 17th. I prefer this new cover over the hardcover edition, don’t you?

Reposting - Fruit Cake Weather

2011-12-20T06:05:00.002-06:00

This is a super busy time of year for me and not only have I not had time to blog, I haven't had time to bake! Maybe I can get a batch of these yummy treats in the oven on Christmas Eve.

The following is an reposting of a post from December 2006.

Well, maybe not fruitcake weather. (Does anybody even eat fruitcake?) Every Christmas (for at least the past 20 years) I make a couple of batches of Shortbread cookies. The recipe is very easy and I can get anywhere between 12-13 dozen cookies from a single batch (ideal for those Christmas Cookie tins/plates I like to give to neighbors and friends).

I originally discovered these delicious little bit-size cookies in 1972. My mom had made several dozen for a holiday open house and my brother and I just happened to find them in the basement freezer. I'm not sure how many we ate on the sly, but they are quite addictive, especially when chilled. Hmmm, I hope I did a good job hiding my stash this year!

Reposting - Stuart McLean

2011-12-18T10:36:00.003-06:00

I haven't had much time this month to blog, so I thought I'd share an old post from December 2006.

Carl's G.I.F.T. Challenge Post #2

One of my dearest friends gave me a copy of Stuart McClean at the Vinyl Cafe - The Christmas Concert (cd) a few years ago. I love it for so many reasons.

1. It was a gift from a kindred spirit whom I've know for almost 10 years. We met in an on-line book forum, back in 1997, and have become the closest of pals, in spite of having never meet face-to-face.

2. The Christmas Concert (and all the Vinyl Cafe recordings) is a Canadian broadcast (and I'm half-Canadian).

3. The concert was recorded on my 35th birthday (December 13, 1996).

4. The stories make me laugh out loud, even though I've heard them several times now. Laughter is always a good thing, especially during the holidays when stress levels are high.

If you haven't had the opportunity to listen to a Vinyl Cafe broadcast, I strongly urge you to tune in for a show. Here's some listener information from their website:

Broadcast time:

Saturdays at 10:00 a.m. (10:30 NT) on CBC Radio Two
Sundays at 12:00 p.m. (12:30 NT) on CBC Radio One

United States Broadcast Information

The Vinyl Cafe is heard Saturday mornings on Radio Two and Sundays at brunch on Radio One. The show features music - both live and recorded - stories and the misadventures of Dave, the owner of the "Vinyl Cafe", the world's smallest record store, where the motto is "We may not be big, but we're small." The show also features Dave's wife, Morley, their two children, Sam and Stephanie and assorted friends and neighbours.

Or, if you can't tune in to CBC, head over to Amazon and buy a copy of the cd and start a new Christmas tradition. My favorite segments are:

Good King Wenceslas and Angels We Have Heard on High

Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy (performed with a mandolins, fiddle bass, guitar and banjo, of all things!)

Story: Dave on the Roof

Story: Dave Cooks a Turkey (this is quite long, but worth sitting and listening to, perhaps with a glass of wine or cocktail. It's hysterical!)

Silent Night

I love the music and Stuart is a joy to listen to. He's very entertaining and has a lovely sense of humor. There are several other Vinyl Cafe cds and books that I may just have to order. Thanks, Nan, for introducing me to this wonderful broadcast!

{this moment}

2011-12-16T05:45:00.002-06:00

A Friday ritual. A single photo - no words - capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor and remember. - Amanda Soule

* * * * * * * *

Half a Century!

2011-12-13T00:00:00.001-06:00

I may be 50, but I still feel like a kid!

Take Your Child...

2011-12-03T11:52:00.001-06:00

to a bookstore today!

From their website:

"Bookstores hold a place in the hearts and times of our community. They are places to discover an author, a story, a life. Nothing affords the conversation and interaction among books and book lovers that a bookstore does. In the future, whether you download your story or pluck a volume off a shelf, a bookstore will be able to accommodate. But in order for bookstores to flourish and thrive, we must expose future generations to the unique pleasures they offer. On December 3rd, 2011, take the child in your life to a bookstore. Watch his face light up as you give him free access, not just to a new book, but to tomorrow." —Jenny Milchman

Click here for more information.

Christmas Books & Music - Part I

2011-12-01T20:39:00.009-06:00

A Christmas Promise
by Lark Carrier

I'm not sure how long we've had this little book in our Christmas collection, but it's really more my daughter's than mine. I think I bought it for her because we lived out in the country and because she and the main character share the same name. It's a sweet little book, illustrated with pretty water color drawings.

I wrote about this album two years ago. For those of you who missed it, here's that post once again:

Have I really been listening to this album for 20 years? My husband would say it's been at least an eternity. But then he doesn't really care much for George Winston. He says it sounds like someone's tuning a piano for hours on end. What does he know? ;) I think it's gorgeous, meditative music and it never fails to put me in the holiday spirit.

I'd be hard pressed to choose a favorite track, but since my daughter was born in December (almost 26 years ago!), and I listened to Pachabel Canon in D major at the end of every "Mommy & Me" prenatal exercise class, I'd have to say Track # 9 is right up there. But then so is the beautiful Joy (known also as Jesus, Joy of Man's Desiring), which my brother used to play on the piano when we were kids. And then, of course, there's The Holly and The Ivy. Simply lovely. Makes me wish I knew how to play the piano.

I notice the 20th Anniversary Edition has two extra tracks (A Christmas Song and Sleep Baby Mine). Hmmm, might be time to invest in an updated album. I'm sure my husband wouldn't mind. This one's getting a bit worn out.

My good friend Nan listens to this every year on the 1st of December. I wonder if she has the new edition? I also wonder if she was listening at the same time as I. I'll bet her husband doesn't roll his eyes when he walks in the room while it's playing. ;)

Thankful for...

2011-11-23T21:10:00.006-06:00

Update... 72 and sunny on Thanksgiving Day in Lincoln, Nebraska. Very thankful!!

texts, emails and phone calls from my daughter
a polite customer
heated seats
safe bike trails
red wine
voicemail from my granddaughter
dark chocolate
snail-mail from old friends
ripe avocados without bruises
my Annie-Dog
a dream job in a bookstore
new friendships
comfortable jeans
my siblings and their families
a box of books in the mail from my mom or a good friend
Keurig coffee!!
great neighbors
Shazam
a dedicated biking partner
Netflix
a dry basement
4 wonderful, loving parents
American Express Blue Cash Back
old friends
memories...
back rubs
a good night's sleep
my blog-mates
the warmth of the sun
a day off
the opportunity to reconnect with childhood friends (thanks, FB)
laughter
my books
porches
music
the opportunity to travel to the coast and mountains

and, of course, for the love of my life--my best friend & husband, Rod.

Happy Thanksgiving, to you and yours!

"Country Music: In Performance at the White House"

2011-11-23T05:00:00.002-06:00

Click on images for larger view

From USA Today (11/22/11):

Cowboy hats and bolo ties mixed with the majestic chandeliers of the East Room for a toe-tapping series of performances by Dierks Bentley, Alison Krauss, Lyle Lovett, Kris Kristofferson, Darius Rucker, James Taylor, The Band Perry, Lauren Alaina and Micky.

"Tonight, we are turning the East Room into a bona fide country music hall," Obama said. Only days after wrapping up a nine-day trip through Hawaii, Australia and Indonesia, the president told guests that Johnny Cash "was really singing our song when he sang, 'I've been everywhere, man.'"

Obama said country music tied together many threads of the nation's immigrant heritage, from the Irish fiddle, the German dulcimer, the Italian mandolin, the Spanish guitar and the West African banjo. "At its most pure, that's what country music is all about — life in America. It's about storytelling — giving voice to the emotions of everyday life."

Obama and first lady Michelle Obama, wearing a pink silk pantsuit, watched from the front row to a set list of country music past and present.

Bentley opened the concert by telling the audience that his thoughts were with members of the military and their families and then broke into a stirring rendition of "Home," his current hit.

Taylor, wearing a tan Stetson hat with his blue suit, sang his 1970s hit "Riding on the Railroads," and performed a version of Glen Campbell's "Wichita Lineman." Krauss performed an acoustic version of "When You Say Nothing At All," her 1995 hit song. Lovett reprised his 1994 hit, "Funny How Time Slips Away."

Country star Willie Nelson's influence loomed large over the show. Kristofferson and Rucker performed "Pancho and Lefty," a 1983 hit by Nelson and Merle Haggard, while Alaina did a rendition of Elvis Presley's "You Were Always on My Mind," which Nelson turned into a Grammy winner, also in 1983.

Some of the most recognizable country standards were featured, with Alaina covering Loretta Lynn's "Coal Miner's Daughter," and The Band Perry performing Dolly Parton's "I Will Always Love You."

Rucker, the former front man for Hootie and the Blowfish, got a shout-out from Obama — "Hootie's in the house," Obama told the audience — and later performed his contemporary hit, "I Got Nothin."

By the end of the night, the entire ensemble was on stage as Kristofferson led them in an uplifting version of "Me and Bobby McGee," the song Kristofferson co-wrote with Fred Foster and was later sung memorably by Janis Joplin.

Obama said the concert was a fitting tribute to the impact of country music on American life. Since first running for president, Obama said, "I've hopped on planes to big cities. I've ridden buses through small towns. And along the way, I've gained an appreciation for just how much country music means to so many Americans."

In 2009, Mrs. Obama created a White House music series that has celebrated jazz, country, classical, Motown and Latin music. She has also arranged salutes to Broadway, the music of the civil rights movement and Judith Jamison, an Alvin Ailey dancer and artistic director.

"Country Music: In Performance at the White House" will be broadcast Wednesday at 8 p.m. EST on PBS stations and shown at a later date on the American Forces Network to military service personnel around the world.

I Quit...

2011-11-20T21:00:00.000-06:00

No, not blogging! As noted in my previous post, I no longer hesitate to give up on a book if it fails to capture my attention. Lately, I’ve given up on several books, but rather than post a separate entry for each, I thought I’d lump them all together. I know there’s no reason to bother with the DNFs, but my memory isn’t what it used to be and I need all the help I can get to remember what I’ve read or attempted to read so I don’t accidentally buy a book I’ve already tried. Please tell me you all suffer from the same problem!

So, very briefly, here’s what failed to capture my interest:

The Little Friend
by Donna Tart

I read almost 100 pages, but after the first chapter it was quite a struggle. Strange novel!

I See You Everywhere
by Julia Glass (audio)

Listened to over 100 pages before finally calling it quits. I read and enjoyed Three Junes when it first came out, but haven’t read anything else by Glass. I haven’t given up on her yet.

Doc
by Mary Doria Russell

Listened to a chapter or two and gave up. The reader was putting me to sleep! My husband, stepdad and two good friends loved this book. I’ve enjoyed everything by Russell, so I’ll have to try the printed format.

Falling Together
by Marisa de los Santos

I gave up after about a hundred pages. I couldn’t get interested in Pen’s story and thought the writing was very disjointed and the plot lacking. This is so disappointing, especially since I loved Belong to Me and Love Walked In. This new novel almost feels like it was written by a different author. I’ve read several reviews on Amazon and have to agree with those who gave it only one or two stars.

Now to go read more of Jack Finney’s Time and Again, which has captured my interest!

Off Season

2011-11-17T19:37:00.011-06:00

Off Season by Anne Rivers Siddons
Fiction
2008 Grand Central Publishing
Finished 10/24/11
Rating: 3/5 (So-So)

Publisher’s Blurb:

For as long as she can remember, they were Cam and Lilly—happily married, parents of a beautiful family, and partners in life. Then, after decades of marriage, it ended as every great love story does… in loss.

After Cam’s death, Lilly takes a solitary road trip to her and Cam’s favorite spot in Maine, the place where they fell in love, and where their ghosts still dance. There she looks hard to her past—to a first love that ended in tragedy, to meeting Cam, to a marriage filled with exuberance and safety—to try to make sense of her future. It is a journey that begins with tender memories and culminates in a revelation that will make Lilly reevaluate everything she thought was true about her husband and her marriage.

You’ve got to know when to hold ‘em, know when to fold ‘em,
Know when to walk away, know when to run...

There was a time when I finished every book I started, no matter how dull or how poorly written. It felt wrong to not keep plugging away at a book that had come highly recommended or one I’d received as a gift or one by a favorite author that I’d been longing to read. Several of my favorite books have taken well over 50 pages to draw me in, so I always felt I should give each and every book I pick up a decent chance. As the years have passed, I’ve been less inclined to follow this principle and these days I have no trouble tossing aside a book that hasn’t grabbed my attention in the first 50 pages. Life is too short, blah, blah, blah.

So why do I hesitate to give up on an author who repeatedly fails to impress me? It’s one thing to continue to follow an author who runs hot and cold (Anita Shreve, for instance), but to keep reading one whose novels never live up to the one you first fell in love with? That’s just silly, don’t you think? I wrote the following over four years ago, after reading Up Island, also by Siddons:

It's been almost six years since I discovered Anne Rivers Siddons and her remarkable saga, Colony. I loved that book and felt as though I'd found another Rosamunde Pilcher in Siddons. I went on to read Islands and Sweetwater Creek, but neither impressed me nearly as much as Colony (Islands earned a 3/5 rating; Sweetwater a 2/5). The House Next Door was quite good, but more of a horror story than Siddons' typical works.

And now I've read Up Island. It wasn't a bad read, but it certainly wasn't another Colony. I enjoyed it for the most part (although toward the end, I found myself getting impatient, wanting to be finished and on to something else). Siddons is quite a descriptive writer, but I wouldn't go so far to say she's a lyrical author (Pat Conroy and Rosamunde Pilcher are two who do excel at painting a vivid picture in my mind's eye).

And now I’ve read another that fell short and left me wishing for more. As the closing chapters drew near, I found myself flipping back and forth, trying to sort out the details, which were muddled and vague. The ending was abrupt and completely unbelievable; I wish I had someone with whom I could to discuss the paranormal aspects (reminiscent of The House Next Door). And, looking back on the entire narrative, I realize that there were many unresolved plot lines and ridiculous scenes and dialogue.

It’s definitely time to call it quits on this author. I’m not reading as often as I’d like and there are far too many talented authors I’d rather read.

Movie News

2011-11-15T05:55:00.004-06:00

I've only read the first two books in Suzanne Collins' trilogy and didn't care much for Catching Fire, but I loved The Hunger Games. I can't wait to see this film!

Read my review for The Hunger Games here.

Thank You

2011-11-11T16:43:00.001-06:00

This is a bit long, but well worth listening to. Sending out a heartfelt thank you to all the veterans today.

Among the Mad

2011-11-11T05:00:00.000-06:00

Among the Mad by Jacqueline Winspear
Mystery (#6 in the Maisie Dobbs’ series)
2009 Macmillan Audio - Unabridged
Reader: Orlagh Cassidy
Finished 10/1/11
Rating: 3.5/5 (Good)

Nominated for a Macavity Award for best historical mystery

Publisher’s Blurb:

Christmas Eve, 1931. On the way to see a client, Maisie Dobbs witnesses a man commit suicide on a busy London street. The following day, the Prime Minister's office receives a letter threatening a massive loss of life if certain demands are not met—and the writer mentions Maisie by name. Tapped by Scotland Yard's elite Special Branch to be a special adviser on the case, Maisie is soon involved in a race against time to find a man who proves he has the knowledge and will to inflict destruction on thousands of innocent people.

In Among the Mad, Jacqueline Winspear combines a heart-stopping story with a rich evocation of a fascinating period to create her most compelling and satisfying novel yet.

Among the Mad is another enjoyable installment in the Maisie Dobbs series. It’s not one of my favorites, nor is it one that I’ll remember too vividly, but I was entertained while listening.

Nan said:

Jacqueline Winspear has given us such a gift: an appealing, interesting, complex heroine, intriguing mysteries, and much information about society and life in this particular time period.

Go here to read her complete review.

Joy said:

I have enjoyed all of the Maisie Dobbs mysteries, but this one is my favorite after the first one. There is a great deal of psychology involved, especially relating to the minds of WWI veterans. I found it sad, yet interesting and educational. It makes me wonder about our veterans of today. Are their needs being met?

Go here to read her complete review.

I have only one more book remaining of Winspear’s mysteries in my stacks. I hope she continues to write about Maisie and would love to see all of these books filmed. Wouldn’t they make a lovely BBC series?

Top Book Club Books in October

2011-11-09T06:07:00.000-06:00

The following are the most popular book club books during October based on votes from readers and leaders of more than 32,000 book clubs registered at Bookmovement.com:

1. Unbroken: A World War II Story of Survival, Resilience and Redemption by Laura Hillenbrand

2. Room: A Novel by Emma Donoghue

3. The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skloot

4. Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet: A Novel by Jamie Ford

5. The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins

6. Cutting for Stone by Abraham Verghese

7. The Paris Wife: A Novel by Paula McLain

8. The Help by Kathryn Stockett

9. The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society by Mary Ann Shaffer and Annie Barrows

10. Sarah's Key by Tatiana de Rosnay

Rising Stars:

What Alice Forgot by Liane Moriarty

The Marriage Plot by Jeffrey Eugenides

These are all such wonderful books (although, I wasn't very impressed with Sarah's Key)! I've highlighted the ones I've read and hope to eventually read the other four.

Click on the titles to read my reviews.

NOOK News

2011-11-07T17:23:00.003-06:00

Did you hear the news today? Barnes & Noble has dropped its prices on its e-readers. Not only that, but a new Nook Tablet is about to hit the shelves! Take a look:

Nook Color
$199

NOOK Simple Touch
$99!!!

NOOK Tablet
$249

Go here for more details and read ad-free!

Brought to you by your favorite Barnes & Noble bookseller. ;)

Twu Wuv

2011-11-06T08:47:00.008-06:00

23 years ago I married my best friend. Thanks for all the love & laughter, Rod. I love you!

The Arrivals

2011-11-04T05:00:00.003-05:00

The Arrivals by Meg Mitchell Moore
Fiction
2011 Regan Arthur Books
Finished on 9/20/11
Rating: 4.75/5 (Terrific!)

From the author’s website:

It's early summer when Ginny and William's peaceful life in Burlington, Vermont, comes to an abrupt halt. First, their daughter Lillian arrives, two children in tow, to escape her crumbling marriage. Next, their son Stephen and his pregnant wife Jane show up for a weekend visit, which extends indefinitely. When their youngest daughter Rachel appears, fleeing her difficult life in New York, Ginny and William find themselves consumed again by the chaos of parenthood—only this time around, their children are facing adult problems. By summer's end, the family gains new ideas of loyalty and responsibility, exposing the challenges of surviving the modern family. And the old adage, once a parent, always a parent, has never rung so true.

Anyone who’s been reading this blog for a few years must know by now that one of my guilty pleasure is women’s (or domestic) fiction. I find it so satisfying to read a passage that validates my thoughts and feelings, whether it be about marriage, parenthood, or grief. Narrated from multiple points-of-view, Meg Mitchell Moore’s debut novel is a hit! It’s the kind of novel I can’t wait to return to at the end of the day, but hate to read too quickly, especially since there’s no backlist of titles on which to catch-up. My book was full of marked passages and on several occasion, I found myself nodding my head in agreement.

On empty nesting:

In the moment, you were often too tired to enjoy watching your children turn into people. It was such a busy time, so demanding. There was always somebody with a science project due the next day, always a lesson or a practice to get to, always a meal to cook or a stray mitten to find.

And then suddenly everyone had cleared out, flung themselves into the big world, two of them to New York City, Lillian to Massachusetts, calling, sure, e-mailing often, even visiting, but they were gone, truly gone, replaced by the silence—beautiful and blessed, of course, but still, sometimes, she had to admit, strange and unnatural.

On adult children:

“I’m going up to get my stuff,” said Lillian. She leaned down. William thought it was to kiss the baby but instead she kissed him, a cool, unexpected whisper on his cheek that was over so quickly he barely had time to register it. He didn’t acknowledge it—he looked steadily down at Philip’s unblinking gaze—but he felt his heart lift slightly. It was funny, the way your adult children could both delight and annoy you in the very same ways that they had when they had been actual children. He wouldn’t have predicted that particular truth of parenting, thirty years ago.

On family:

While they talked, Ginny looked out at the lake and let her thoughts float and settle, trying to put her finger on what it was she was feeling, where this sense of peace and fulfillment was coming from. And while she couldn’t articulate it exactly, she thought that probably the presence of all of the people in her house—all these different creatures, with their hungers and their desires and their moods and their love—was allowing her to feel necessary, to feel loved and embraced again, in a way that she hadn’t realized she’d stopped feeling. Hadn’t realized she’d been missing.

Now suddenly it didn’t matter much to her why Lillian and Philip and Olivia and Stephen and Jane and Rachel were there. It didn’t matter how long they were going to stay. It only mattered that they were there.

On adult daughters:

“Bye, sweetie,” Lillian said to Olivia, who had her thumb in her mouth and did not look away from the television screen. To Ginny she said, “He’ll sleep the whole time, I’m sure of it.” She leaned into Ginny and hugged her, and Ginny had to work at not holding onto her too long, because after all it was delicious to have her daughter, however briefly, in her grasp.

On motherhood:

“Why are you taking it so personally?”

She thought about that. Then she took a deep breath and touched her hair. She didn’t look directly at William when she answered, because she thought that if she did she might begin to cry.

“Because they’re my life’s work.”

He remained silent, watching her, listening.

“If they’re not happy—if they’re not capable of living on their own, and being happy—it means I’ve failed. I should take it personally.”

“Oh, Ginny.” He reached across the table and laid his hand on her cheek. She pressed it in closer.

“This is it,” she said. “I’m sixty-three years old. This is what I’ve done with my life. They’re my masterpiece, and they’re broken.”

Fans of Anna Quindlen, Marisa de los Santos, Lisa Genova, and Erica Bauermeister will not be disappointed with Moore’s perceptive and uplifting novel. I think it would make a marvelous book club read, especially one with multi-generational members.

Publishers Weekly says:

“Moore finds a crisp narrative in the morass of an overpacked household, and she keeps the proceedings moving with an assurance and outlook reminiscent of Laurie Colwin, evoking emotional universals with the simplest of observations, as in 'the peace you feel when you are awake in a house where children are sleeping.'”

Nan says:

There are so many joys in this book that I barely know where to begin. The story is such a real one for those of us with adult children.

and

There is no tragedy. There isn't a dysfunctional family. There are simply good, interesting characters who are all trying to find their ways at their own particular stages of life.

Marcia says:

Some scenes in this book tore at my heart; others made my heart sing. I've always said that you never know when the phone rings or the back door opens what your children will bring home to you. Ginny and William get the phone calls and open the back door, and how the Owen family deals with the summer of their discontent made for an excellent reading experience.

Kay says:

I truly enjoyed reading The Arrivals by Meg Mitchell Moore, and I took my time with it. Perhaps it wouldn't have meant so much to me had I not been the mother of a grown child. Perhaps it wouldn't have been so poignant and funny and satisfying if I hadn't recently returned from a vacation spot that I had visited with my late parents, that last time alone with them, just Mom and Dad and me. The Arrivals was a very good read, perfect for me.

I related to so many aspects of this novel and I have a feeling my mom would, as well. I wonder what my (non-reading) daughter would think!

I borrowed this book, but I plan to buy a copy for my permanent collection. The cover art for the hardcover is so lovely, but I’ll probably wait for the paperback. Isn’t the Australian cover art lovely, too?

And, yes. This is just a tad bit reminiscent of The Weird Sisters, although I enjoyed Moore’s quite a bit more. I like quirky characters, but only in small doses.

It looks like Meg's second novel is due out on May 29, 2012. It's called So Far Away. Here's the cover:

I like it!

What Are You Listening To Wednesday

2011-11-02T06:20:00.000-05:00

Bellezza has created a new meme. Here's what she has to say:

After the responses to my post on Norah Jones, and dear Les saying, "I love to see what you're listening to!" I thought I'd suggest What Are You Listening To Wednesday.

It doesn't have to be music. It could be conversations you overheard during coffee at Starbucks. It could be the children in your home (or classroom). It could be the things you're telling yourself with a small, still voice inside. It could be an audio book or a movie. Just tell us, what are you listening to?

I wrote about my love for Simon and Garfunkel here. Nan also wrote about them here. Did you know that Paul turned 70 on October 13 and Art will be 70 this Saturday? Amazing.

The Essential Paul Simon

There are so many wonderful, memorable songs on this album. Click here to listen to some samples. My favorites? Loves Me Like a Rock, Kodachrome, and American Tune.

At $13.19, this is a steal for a double album, don't you think?

1Q84 Cover Art

2011-11-01T06:02:00.005-05:00

We're supposed to get snow tomorrow. A part of me is dreading this change of seasons, but another part is hopeful that we get snowed in. I'd love to curl up with my current book. This is one I can't put down! Thankfully, I downloaded the chunkster to my iPad.

Sunday Salon - October 30, 2011

2011-10-30T16:42:00.013-05:00

It’s another beautiful day in Nebraska! I don’t know if it’s because I’ve been out biking so much this past month or if it’s been an unusual autumn, but I’ve definitely taken notice. The sky is so blue and the leaves on the trees are simply stunning. I’ll take these mild temps as long as the sun’s shining. We had snow in early October two years ago (and a terrible snowstorm in 1997), so I know how distressing an early snowstorm can be. I hope those of you on the East Coast didn’t suffer any terrible damage to your homes or vehicles and that if you lost power, it wasn’t for too long! Three million people without power is mind-boggling!

October 1997
Lincoln, NE

October 2009
Lincoln, NE

I’m having a great week with regards to my reading. I finished Off Season by Anne Rivers Siddons (review to come hopefully before 2012!) and dove right into three (!!) books, all of which are calling for attention. I started listening to Faith by Jennifer Haigh and find myself looking for any reason to grab my Nano and listen to another chapter or two. I didn’t think I’d ever read anything by Haigh, but I just remembered that I read Mrs. Kimble. It must’ve been sometime before 2006, though, since I can’t find a review for it on my blog. I know I have Baker Towers on my Amazon wish list and will have to look for a copy of The Condition, as well.

I decided it was time to pull something from my shelves, something I’ve been meaning to read for a few years, and my hand fell upon The Little Friend and The Secret History, both by Donna Tartt. I wasn’t sure which to choose, so I read a few paragraphs from the former. I was immediately drawn into the story, so I set The Secret History back in its place and continued to read The Little Friend. So far, so good.

The third book I started is one I had not planned to read at all. Haruki Murakami is an author who has never appealed to me. I’ve read a few Japanese novels, but nothing that has impressed me enough to venture any further. However, Bellezza has mentioned Murakami on her blog many, many times and her enthusiasm for his latest novel, 1Q84, piqued my interest. I decided to give it a glance one day at work and before the week was over, I’d read the first three chapters. Wow! I need not have worried about a complicated or confusing writing style; I’m already talking it up to my coworkers, regulars and husband. I’m so curious to see where Murakami leads me that I decided to download the 944 page tome to my iPad. I wish I could spend the entire week curled up on my couch with this intriguing tale. If I were a more patient reader, I’d set it aside for my long flights to Kauai next March… Nah.

Friday, I posted a review for another Jacqueline Winspear book and I have three more reviews to compose and post. Who knows, maybe I’ll finally get caught up for the year. If the weather turns nasty, I won’t be riding my bike quite as much. I was able to log 70 miles last week and hope to get a few more long rides in before the temps drop below freezing. I suppose walking on my treadmill will give me more opportunities to listen to my audio books, though.

I’ve been an Amazon Associate for several years and while I don’t make a lot of money, I do get a little something every month or quarter. I happened to click over to the site this afternoon and decided to take a look at my recent reports. I’m always a bit amused by the variety of items ordered via a click-thru from my blog. Usually the purchases are limited to books, and recently I’ve seen a jump in e-books, but today I noticed that someone had recently purchased a Schwinn Recumbent Exercise Bike, of all things!

I never know who buys what, but I’d like to say thank you to everyone who visits Amazon from my blog. It makes the little bit of extra effort to create links all the more worthwhile. Now to figure out how to get someone to buy a car or boat… ;)

By the way, did anyone notice the similarities in the cover art for 1Q84 and The Little Friend?

Links to the books mentioned in this post can be found by clicking on the cover art in my sidebar.

The Mapping of Love and Death

2011-10-28T05:24:00.005-05:00

The Mapping of Love and Death by Jacqueline Winspear
Mystery (#7 in the Maisie Dobbs’ series)
2010 Sound Library - Unabridged
Reader: Orlagh Cassidy
Finished 8/30/11
Rating: 4/5 (Very Good)

Winner of the 2011 Bruce Alexander Memorial Historical Mystery Award

Product Description

August 1914. As Michael Clifton is mapping land he has just purchased in California's beautiful Santa Ynez Valley, war is declared in Europe—and duty-bound to his father's native country, the young cartographer soon sets sail for England to serve in the British army. Three years later, he is listed as missing in action.

April 1932. After Michael's remains are unearthed in France, his parents retain London psychologist and investigator Maisie Dobbs, hoping she can find the unnamed nurse whose love letters were among their late son's belongings. It is a quest that leads Maisie back to her own bittersweet wartime love—and to the stunning discovery that Michael Clifton was murdered in his dugout. Suddenly an exposed web of intrigue and violence threatens to ensnare the dead soldier's family and even Maisie herself as she attempts to cope with the impending loss of her mentor and the unsettling awareness that she is once again falling in love.

This is my favorite in the series, thus far. Maisie’s personal life played a larger role than in previous installments and I’m anxious to read on (or listen) to see what comes next for this plucky sleuth. I have a feeling there are big things in store in Maisie’s future.

On solitude:

Maisie prepared a simple evening meal of soused mackerel and vegetables, with a slice of bread and jam for pudding. In general, she did not mind a solitary repast, often taken on a tray while she sat in one of the armchairs, a fork in one hand and a book in the other. And she was under no illusions regarding the significance of the book, whether a novel or some work of reference. As she turned the pages, the characters or the subject matter became her company, a distraction so that the absence of a dining companion—someone with whom to share the ups and downs of her day, from the surprising to the mundane—was not so immediate. Guests to her home were few, and after such a visit, during which a linen cloth would be laid on the dining table and cutlery and glasses set for two, the vacuum left by the departing visitor seemed to echo along the hallway and into the walls. It was at those times, when her aloneness took on a darker hue, that she almost wished there would be no more guests, for then there would be no chasm of emptiness for her to negotiate when they were gone.

Nan says:

There's something about a Jacqueline Winspear book that slows me down. I barely notice turning the pages. I am transported back to Maisie Dobbs' time and place, and I almost become part of the story.

and

I cannot praise the series highly enough. The books are categorized as mysteries, but really they are the story of Maisie Dobbs. Because of her work as an investigator, there is always a mystery going on, and as interesting and intriguing as it may be, what this reader loves is the character and her life and times, and the people around her.

I agree, wholeheartedly. And, I'm not at all surprised that Nan chose to include the same passage that I did. Go here to read her complete review.

Be sure to take some time to peruse the author's website and blog. The old photographs alone are worth the visit. Click here to view Winspear speaking on The Mapping of Love and Death at Warwick's in La Jolla, California.

Loot from Mom!

2011-10-25T19:50:00.000-05:00

As some of you are already aware, my mom loves to read as much as I do. I can remember coming home from school and finding her curled up with a book, sometimes a mystery from the library or a novel that her sister or brother (both of whom are also avid readers) had sent when they were finished reading it. For many years, she worked at the library in Lincoln City (Oregon) -- mainly, I think, for the joy of being around all those wonderful books, but also to get first dibs on the books that are donated to the Friends of the Library for resale. ;) She's no longer a volunteer at the library, nor is she active in a face-to-face book club anymore, but she does have a blog in which she shares her thoughts on the books she's read, photos of her travels with my stepdad, and various posts about life on the Oregon Coast.

Mom has always been very generous with her books, sending me boxes of those she's finished with, or packing them up to bring when she and Bill make their annual trek out to Nebraska, as they did a little over a week ago. As promised, here is the list of books she brought for me:

As Always, Julia by Joan Reardon

Two Rivers by T. Greenwood

Blood Harvest by S. J. Bolton

Borkmann's Point by Hakan Nesser

Burnt Mountain by Anne Rivers Siddons

Necessary As Blood by Deborah Crombie

Forward From Here by Reeve Lindbergh

Mind's Eye by Hakan Nesser

In the Garden of Beasts by Erik Larson

Bonhoeffer by Eric Metaxas

The last two are actually from my stepdad for my husband, but I might give the Larson book a try. I've heard excellent things about it.

So, any recommendations as to which I should read first? I just finished a book by Anne Rivers Siddons, so I may wait a bit before reading Burnt Mountain.

Sunday Salon - October 23, 2011

2011-10-23T08:42:00.004-05:00

I didn’t get much reading in this past week, but I did have a wonderful visit with my parents who were here from Oregon. I decided to work on putting together some photo albums, so we spent the afternoons sorting through stacks and stacks of old photos, laughing over some, tearing up over others. I’m all for digital photography, but there’s nothing like reminiscing over a pile of pictures. Sitting in front of a computer monitor just doesn’t cut it.

My mom is a voracious reader and kindly brought us a lovely stack of books, which I plan to share in a separate post later this week. Stay tuned!

Speaking of books, it feels like such a long time since I posted a book review, but I only have three more to write and then I’ll be all caught up. A few days ago, Nan wrote about book reviews and blogging and I found myself nodding my head in agreement. She said:

I don't always want to do a long book report. Sometimes I want to state 'just the facts,' with only a brief explanation of the book and how I felt about it. Once in a while there just isn't that much to say, but yet I want to write something because I use my blog as a book journal.

This is exactly how I feel, especially when I’m reviewing an audio book. So, things may change a little bit around here.

It looks like it’s going to be another beautiful Sunday, with temps reaching close to 80! I’m getting ready to head out for a bike ride with a friend and it’s not quite 40 degrees, but it shouldn’t be too bad since there’s no wind. I’m sure we’ll warm up after the first mile or two. I hope everyone is having a nice, relaxing weekend. Congrats to all of the Read-a-Thon participants. Maybe I’ll get a chance to participate next year. I could use a full day devoted to nothing but reading. Ten minutes before bed just isn't enough time to really get involved in a book, is it?

What Are You Listening To Wednesday

2011-10-19T05:23:00.005-05:00

Bellezza has created a new meme. Here's what she has to say:

After the responses to my post on Norah Jones, and dear Les saying, "I love to see what you're listening to!" I thought I'd suggest What Are You Listening To Wednesday.

It doesn't have to be music. It could be conversations you overheard during coffee at Starbucks. It could be the children in your home (or classroom). It could be the things you're telling yourself with a small, still voice inside. It could be an audio book or a movie. Just tell us, what are you listening to?

And so I offer you this:

I could listen to my nephew play for hours.

Sunday Salon - October 16, 2011

2011-10-16T18:20:00.005-05:00

There are fewer than three months remaining in the year.

I’ve only finished 28 books.

I can’t remember ever having such a slow reading year as this year.

In 1999 I read a total of 42 books. That was my worst year on record.

In 2003 I read 88. That was my best year.

Even in the black year of 2005, I managed to finish 57.

I’ll be lucky if I read 40 in 2011.

So what gives? My house isn’t any cleaner. My yard hasn’t won any landscaping awards. However, we took some wonderful vacations (Colorado, California, and Oregon) this summer and we’ve had lots of visitors, as well. But the main distraction has been my obsession with cycling. I used to be a fanatic about running, but after over 30 years of pounding the pavement, my knees called it quits. I bought my new bike last spring and have tried to ride as often as possible. The summer heat and aforementioned travels limited my riding time, but September and October have been fantastic. Since April, I’ve logged just over 500 miles, with my personal best of 60 miles in one day. My new goal is to ride 100 miles in a single day. Oh, and to never get bitten by another dog! Yes, I was bitten two weeks ago while riding with a friend out on the MoPAC trail. And, since the dog wasn’t current on its rabies shots, it wound up in quarantine for 10 days. The good news is it wasn’t rabid. And I’m now current on my tetanus booster.

If our fall weather continues to be as lovely as these past few weeks, I might actually hit 750 miles before winter arrives. But more than likely, I’ll be back inside, curled up on the couch with Annie-Dog and a stack of books.

Life is good.

When the spirits are low,
when the day appears dark,
when work becomes monotonous,
when hope hardly seems worth having,
just mount a bicycle and go out for a spin down the road,
without thought on anything but the ride you are taking.
-- (Sir) Arthur Conan Doyle (author of Sherlock Holmes),
in the January 18, 1896 issue of Scientific American Magazine

{this moment}

2011-10-14T05:00:00.000-05:00

A Friday ritual. A single photo - no words - capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor and remember. - Amanda Soule

* * * * * * * *

Wordless Wednesday

2011-10-12T05:00:00.002-05:00

(Be sure to click on photo to enlarge)

Beachcombing for a Shipwrecked God

2011-10-10T18:36:00.000-05:00

Beachcombing for a Shipwrecked God by Joe Coomer
Fiction
1995 Scribner Paperback Fiction
Finished 8/31/11
Rating: 4.5/5 (Terrific!)

Publisher’s Blurb:

Nine weeks after losing her husband, Charlotte escapes to a wooden motor yacht in New Hampshire, where her shipmates are an aging blue-haired widow, an emotional seventeen-year-old, and the ugliest dog in literature. A genuine bond develops among the three women, as their distinct personalities and paths cross and converge against the backdrop of emotional secrets, abuse, and the wages of old age.

Off the boat, Charlotte, an archaeologist, joins a local excavation to uncover an ancient graveyard. Here she can indulge her passion for reconstructing the past, even as she tries to bury her own recent history. She comes to realize, however, that the currents of time are as fluid and persistent as the water that drifts beneath her comforting new home.

In keeping with my beach/summer reading theme (yes, this review is long overdue!), I pulled Coomer’s novel off one of my shelves and was immediately pulled into his engaging story of three independent women, living aboard a wooden boat named Rosinante in Portsmouth Harbor, New Hampshire. I’ve never lived on a boat, but as I read, I was filled with blissful memories of two incredible weeks when my husband and I cruised the San Juan Islands aboard my dad and stepmom’s wooden boat, The Lady Mick. The nautical terminology I learned that summer all came flooding back as I read, reminding me of the unique lifestyle one enjoys while living aboard.

I laid down on my bunk, little dry silent Piscataqua on my chest, and listened instead to what my life in that room would be like. It seemed as though I were lying upon another living being who was as mindful, as tense, as I was. The boat had been alive, of course, constructed as far as I could tell entirely of wood. It reacted to the slightest change in both the wind and water with movements I could feel in the same way I could tell when Jonah moved beside me in bed. There was a floating sensation, as if I were being rearranged or adjusted. When the tide ebbed Rosinante was pushed up against the dock, tubular PVC fenders protecting the hull, and held there with, I suppose, the force of several tons of pressure. When the tide flowed, the boat went taut on the lines stretching to the dock’s galvanized cleats. I could hear these lines creaking and the slow groan of the boat’s timbers, each fastener taking its turn to moan. Some form of friction was constant. The current sliding off the hull, perhaps four inches from my head, gurgled, shushed, and occasionally popped. As I lay there a small electric motor turned on somewhere beneath me, beneath the sole, and I heard a stream of water falling into the river outside the hull. It lasted for perhaps thirty seconds and the motor shut off. The boat had peed. It was silly, but it made me smile.

Ah, the bilge pump. A boat-owner’s best friend.

I believe my heart has always found peace when near any body of water. Those two weeks aboard The Lady Mick, as well as a week on the Oregon Coast, in Little Whale Cove, were incredibly healing for both me and my husband after tragedy struck our family several years ago. Time became elusive and routines vanished as we drifted about in our thoughts and memories, lulled to sleep by the slapping of the water against the hull or to the distant echo of waves crashing against the rocky shoreline.

Joe Coomer captures this state of mind so adroitly:

I came across a love of moving water, an ebbing tide parting on the plumb bow of an old boat, and the sea passing swiftly along the waterline carried bits of seaweed, the body of a dead bird, a dark brown leaf, and a love that seemed necessary to me, to be near that abrasive current, the green swell and nascent gurgle. I thought I’d never be able to love anything again, anything other than the memory of my husband, and so I felt ashamed and queer kneeling there on the dock, my bag over one shoulder and a kitten inside my coat, looking down into the water of Portsmouth Harbor, and feeling for a moment, not sad.

and

I’d left home, quit my job. I was the only person on the planet, outside of Grace, who knew where I was. It felt safe. I’d left at least some of my grief a thousand miles away. Another delusion, another pretty thought, shimmering above my head like the reflection of light off the water that entered through the windows of my snug cabin, my constantly shifting home.

There is something cozy, almost cocoon-like, about living on a boat:

It was almost dark by the time I stepped back aboard the old cruiser. A passing boat rolled over a wake that rocked Rosinante at her berth, and I had the same queer sensation that she was alive when my foot touched her deck, that I’d stepped on something that breathed. The windows of the salon were fogged, but a dim light still shone from within. Heat and a faint smoke issued from the stack over the galley and was blown upriver. I pushed down on the brass lever with my free hand, and let myself in as quietly as possible. The mahogany table in front of the settee was set with silver, china and crystal, cloth napkins. Above the table an oil lamp that I’d thought was merely decorative was burning.

This was my first encounter with Joe Coomer and it won’t be the last. His main characters are sharply drawn, a bit quirky, and completely likeable. The plot and dialogue are both refreshing and engaging and I was sorry to see this lyrical story come to an end. What a wonderful film this would make!

If I were to ever win the lottery, the first thing I’d do is buy a house along the Oregon or Washington coast. Of course, I’d happily share the wealth with my husband, so the second thing I’d do is take him shopping for a boat. What more could we possible need?

{this moment}

2011-10-07T05:50:00.003-05:00

A Friday ritual. A single photo - no words - capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor and remember. - Amanda Soule

* * * * * * * *

Wordless Wednesday

2011-10-05T17:21:00.002-05:00

Body Surfing

2011-10-01T09:50:00.004-05:00

Body Surfing by Anita Shreve
Fiction
2007 Back Bay Books
Finished 8/19/11
Rating: 4/5 (Very Good)

Publisher’s Blurb:

At the age of twenty-nine, Sydney has already been once divorced and once widowed. Trying to regain her footing, she has signed on to tutor the teenage daughter of a well-to-do couple as they spend a sultry summer at their ocean-front New Hampshire cottage.

But when the Edwardses’ two grown sons arrive at the beach house, Sydney finds herself caught in a destructive web of old tensions and bitter rivalries. As the brothers vie for her affections, the fragile existence Sydney has rebuilt is threatened.

With the subtle wit, lyrical language, and brilliant insight into the human heart that are the hallmarks of her acclaimed fiction, Shreve weaves a novel about marriage, family, and the supreme courage it takes to love.

I’d almost given up hope for finding another novel by Shreve that would entertain me as well as Fortune's Rocks and The Pilot's Wife, especially after my recent disappointment with Sea Glass and previous disappointments with A Wedding in December, Light on Snow, and The Weight of Water. While Body Surfing was not a stellar read in comparison to Fortune’s Rocks, it was highly enjoyable with likeable (and believable) characters who continue to haunt my thoughts. I zipped through this novel in less than four days, which is saying something, since lately I’ve been choosing afternoon bike rides over reading.

Shreve pulled me in quickly with this opening scene:

Three o’clock, the dead hour. The faint irritation of sand grit between bare foot and floorboards. Wet towels hanging from bedposts and porch railings. A door, caught in a gust, slams, and someone near it emits the expected cry of surprise. A southwest wind, not the norm even in August, sends stifling air into the many rooms of the old summerhouse. The hope is for an east wind off the water, and periodically someone says it.

An east wind now would be a godsend.

And, yes, this is the same New Hampshire beach house in which Shreve sets her earlier books (The Pilot’s Wife, Fortune’s Rocks and Sea Glass).

I love Shreve’s attention to detail in this passage. I can almost smell the salty air and hear the breakers crashing against the shoreline:

On the porch, red geraniums are artfully arranged against the lime-green of the dune grass, the blue of the water. Not quite primary colors, hues seen only in nature.

Knife blades of grass pierce the wooden slats of the boardwalk. Sweet pea overtakes the thatch. Unwanted fists of thistle push upward from the sand. On the small deck at the end of the boardwalk are two white Adirondack chairs, difficult to get out of, and a faded umbrella lying behind them. Two rusted and immensely heavy iron bases for the umbrella sit in a corner, neither of which, Sydney guesses, will ever leave the deck.

Wooden steps with no railing lead to a crescent-shaped beach to the left, a rocky coastline to the right. Sydney runs across the hot sand to the edge of the water. The surf is a series of sinuous rolls, and when she closes her eyes, she can hear the spray. She prepares herself for the cold. Better than electroshock therapy, Mr. Edwards always says, for clearing the head.

I lived in San Diego for 20 years and I spent as much time at the beach as I possibly could. I loved to go for long walks along the shore, allowing the waves to tickle my feet in the cooler months and diving beneath them during the lazy days of summer. I never learned how to surf with a board, but I loved to body surf and spent many hours in the water with my friends. We’d swim out past the breakers to a buoy and dive down to see if we could spot any garibaldi or other interesting fish and then turn back toward the beach, catching wave after wave until we were exhausted. Shreve not only captures the essence of this sport, but she could have been writing about any one of my experiences in the waves:

A seizure of frigid water, a roiling of white bubbles. The sting of salt in the sinuses as she surfaces. She stands and stumbles and stands again and shakes herself like a dog. She hugs her hands to her chest and relaxes only when her feet begin to numb. She dives once more, and when she comes up for air she turns onto her back, letting the waves, stronger and taller than they appear from shore, carry her up and over the crest and down again into the trough. She is buoyant flotsam, shocked into sensibility.

She body surfs in the ocean, getting sand down the neckline of her suit. As a child, when she took off her bathing suit, she would find handfuls of sand in the crotch. She lowers herself into the ocean to wash away the mottled clumps against her stomach, but then she sees a good wave coming. She stands and turns her back to it and springs onto the crest. The trick always is to catch the crest. Hands pointed, eyes shut, she is a bullet through the white surge. She scrapes her naked hip and thigh against the bottom.

My friend, Nan, says she thinks I am meant to live by the sea and I do believe she’s right. Until I can figure out a way to do that, I’ll live vicariously through books like Body Surfing.

I love the UK cover art, don't you?

Wordless Wednesday

2011-09-28T05:00:00.002-05:00

Lincoln to Wabash and back ... 60 miles!
(click on photo to enlarge)

Banned Books Week

2011-09-24T06:51:00.006-05:00

Banned Books Week (BBW) is an annual event celebrating the freedom to read and the importance of the First Amendment. Held during the last week of September, Banned Books Week highlights the benefits of free and open access to information while drawing attention to the harms of censorship by spotlighting actual or attempted bannings of books across the United States. (Go here for more information)

Top 100 Banned/Challenged Books: 2000-2009

1. Harry Potter (series), by J.K. Rowling
2. Alice series, by Phyllis Reynolds Naylor
3. The Chocolate War, by Robert Cormier
4. And Tango Makes Three, by Justin Richardson/Peter Parnell
5. Of Mice and Men, by John Steinbeck
6. I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings, by Maya Angelou
7. Scary Stories (series), by Alvin Schwartz
8. His Dark Materials (series), by Philip Pullman
9. ttyl; ttfn; l8r g8r (series), by Myracle, Lauren
10. The Perks of Being a Wallflower, by Stephen Chbosky
11. Fallen Angels, by Walter Dean Myers
12. It’s Perfectly Normal, by Robie Harris
13. Captain Underpants (series), by Dav Pilkey
14. The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, by Mark Twain
15. The Bluest Eye, by Toni Morrison
16. Forever, by Judy Blume
17. The Color Purple, by Alice Walker
18. Go Ask Alice, by Anonymous
19. Catcher in the Rye, by J.D. Salinger
20. King and King, by Linda de Haan
21. To Kill A Mockingbird, by Harper Lee
22. Gossip Girl (series), by Cecily von Ziegesar
23. The Giver, by Lois Lowry
24. In the Night Kitchen, by Maurice Sendak
25. Killing Mr. Griffen, by Lois Duncan
26. Beloved, by Toni Morrison
27. My Brother Sam Is Dead, by James Lincoln Collier
28. Bridge To Terabithia, by Katherine Paterson
29. The Face on the Milk Carton, by Caroline B. Cooney
30. We All Fall Down, by Robert Cormier
31. What My Mother Doesn’t Know, by Sonya Sones
32. Bless Me, Ultima, by Rudolfo Anaya
33. Snow Falling on Cedars, by David Guterson
34. The Earth, My Butt, and Other Big, Round Things, by Carolyn Mackler
35. Angus, Thongs, and Full Frontal Snogging, by Louise Rennison
36. Brave New World, by Aldous Huxley
37. It’s So Amazing, by Robie Harris
38. Arming America, by Michael Bellasiles
39. Kaffir Boy, by Mark Mathabane
40. Life is Funny, by E.R. Frank
41. Whale Talk, by Chris Crutcher
42. The Fighting Ground, by Avi
43. Blubber, by Judy Blume
44. Athletic Shorts, by Chris Crutcher
45. Crazy Lady, by Jane Leslie Conly
46. Slaughterhouse-Five, by Kurt Vonnegut
47. The Adventures of Super Diaper Baby, by George Beard
48. Rainbow Boys, by Alex Sanchez
49. One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest, by Ken Kesey
50. The Kite Runner, by Khaled Hosseini
51. Daughters of Eve, by Lois Duncan
52. The Great Gilly Hopkins, by Katherine Paterson
53. You Hear Me?, by Betsy Franco
54. The Facts Speak for Themselves, by Brock Cole
55. Summer of My German Soldier, by Bette Green
56. When Dad Killed Mom, by Julius Lester
57. Blood and Chocolate, by Annette Curtis Klause
58. Fat Kid Rules the World, by K.L. Going
59. Olive’s Ocean, by Kevin Henkes
60. Speak, by Laurie Halse Anderson
61. Draw Me A Star, by Eric Carle
62. The Stupids (series), by Harry Allard
63. The Terrorist, by Caroline B. Cooney
64. Mick Harte Was Here, by Barbara Park
65. The Things They Carried, by Tim O’Brien
66. Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry, by Mildred Taylor
67. A Time to Kill, by John Grisham
68. Always Running, by Luis Rodriguez
69. Fahrenheit 451, by Ray Bradbury
70. Harris and Me, by Gary Paulsen
71. Junie B. Jones (series), by Barbara Park
72. Song of Solomon, by Toni Morrison
73. What’s Happening to My Body Book, by Lynda Madaras
74. The Lovely Bones, by Alice Sebold
75. Anastasia (series), by Lois Lowry
76. A Prayer for Owen Meany, by John Irving
77. Crazy: A Novel, by Benjamin Lebert
78. The Joy of Gay Sex, by Dr. Charles Silverstein
79. The Upstairs Room, by Johanna Reiss
80. A Day No Pigs Would Die, by Robert Newton Peck
81. Black Boy, by Richard Wright
82. Deal With It!, by Esther Drill
83. Detour for Emmy, by Marilyn Reynolds
84. So Far From the Bamboo Grove, by Yoko Watkins
85. Staying Fat for Sarah Byrnes, by Chris Crutcher
86. Cut, by Patricia McCormick
87. Tiger Eyes, by Judy Blume
88. The Handmaid’s Tale, by Margaret Atwood
89. Friday Night Lights, by H.G. Bissenger
90. A Wrinkle in Time, by Madeline L’Engle
91. Julie of the Wolves, by Jean Craighead George
92. The Boy Who Lost His Face, by Louis Sachar
93. Bumps in the Night, by Harry Allard
94. Goosebumps (series), by R.L. Stine
95. Shade’s Children, by Garth Nix
96. Grendel, by John Gardner
97. The House of the Spirits, by Isabel Allende
98. I Saw Esau, by Iona Opte
99. Are You There, God? It’s Me, Margaret, by Judy Blume
100. America: A Novel, by E.R. Frank

The books I've read are highlighted in red. So many of these wound up on my "favorites" shelf (The Color Purple; To Kill a Mockingbird; The Giver; Beloved; Bless Me, Ultima; Snow Falling on Cedars; The Kite Runner; The Things They Carried; A Time To Kill; The Lovely Bones; and A Prayer For Owen Meany). Most of these books were read in my pre-blogging days. However, I've provided links to the two that I have reviewed.

How about you? Any favorites from the list that you can recommend?

Click on the Banned Book Week tag for lists from previous years.

{this moment}

2011-09-23T05:30:00.000-05:00

A Friday ritual. A single photo* - no words - capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor and remember. - Amanda Soule

* * * * * * * *

* Today required two photos!

Awakening

2011-09-22T05:00:00.002-05:00

Awakening by S. J. Bolton
Mystery
2009 Minotaur Books
Finished on 8/1/11
Rating: 3.5/5 (Good)

Publisher’s Blurb:

Clara Benning, a veterinary surgeon, is young and intelligent, but reclusive. Disfigured by a childhood accident, she prefers animals to people. When a man dies following a supposed snake-bite, Clara’s expertise is needed. She’s chilled to learn that the victim’s postmortem shows a higher concentration of venom than could ever be found in one snake: The killer was human. Assisted by a neighbor and an eccentric reptile expert, Clara uncovers links to an ancient ritual, an abandoned house, and a fifty-year-old tragedy. But for someone the truth must remain buried in the past—even if they have to kill to keep it there.

Awakening is a disturbing tale of dark secrets that will have readers unable to stop for a breath until they reach the stunning climax of this extraordinary read from acclaimed author. S. J. Bolton.

I had never heard of S. J. Bolton until I read the following on my mom’s blog:

Blood Harvest – S. J. Bolton – This is the third of her books I’ve read, and by far the best. I had to stop reading every so often because it was so tense – but I had to go back almost immediately to see what was going to happen next!

I borrowed Mom’s copy of Awakening and started in after we returned from our visit to Oregon. I thought it was pretty good, but not outstanding. The mystery became a bit complicated and the finale was convoluted, but that seems to be my usual complaint about a lot of mysteries. It may be that I get too wrapped up in the main characters’ story and forget to pay attention to the details of the murder as they’re revealed. I liked Clara, but I lost track of some of the other characters and their relationship to one another.

With that said, this is quite an intense read and several times I commented to my husband that I was surprised that my mom actually read it. She has a great phobia of snakes, as do I. I can hardly bare to touch a magazine page if it features a snake. And the following passage had me holding my breath, as I too once had a snake (a very large snake!) in my house—when I was about 7 months pregnant!!

The snake and I were holding eye-contact, and I was beginning to wonder if there was something in the old stories about snakes having the power to mesmerize, ‘No,’ I said, ‘that isn’t a grass snake.’

‘What, then? It doesn’t look like an adder.’

‘Get the others out of here. Don’t let them touch anything else. If you can close windows and doors, that’d be good, but don’t go near any more snakes. The man who was bitten — make sure he gets to hospital straight away. He needs to be under constant observation. Then get me an empty carry-box. And a weapon of some king — hammer, axe — something like that. Be as quick as you can.’

‘But what…’

‘Just do it!’

He was gone. I heard him cross the corridor, feet pounding on the bare wooden floors, running downstairs, shouting to the other three men. I heard them questioning, even arguing, and then all of them left the house. The front door slammed shut and the house was silent.

The sudden flurry of noise had disturbed the snake. It moved, heading for the refuge of the open wardrobe. If it went inside I could trap it, wait until help and proper equipment arrived. Oh, please let it go inside.

The snake didn’t go inside the wardrobe, but instead started to glide up the door, the carvings on the old oak making it an easy task. Reaching the top, its body shimmered and disappeared over the rim.

OK, I had to stay calm. The snake on top of the wardrobe had to be caught or, failing that, killed. And I had to do that knowing there could be others in the room, or elsewhere in the house I felt sick, realizing the danger I’d put those men in. I should never have let them stay in the house.

Oxyuranus microlepidotus,
which is endemic to Australia,
has the most toxic venom
of any terrestrial snake species worldwide.
(Wikipedia)

My friend, Wendy, enjoyed this thriller a bit more than I did:

I love when a novel keeps me guessing…and even though I had thoughts about the central mystery, I found that my assumptions were often “off” just enough to keep the plot interesting. Readers who are afraid of snakes will not want to read this novel at night when they are alone – the snakes become central characters in a book which feels gothic and creepy. (Wendy, of Caribousmom)

You can find Wendy’s complete review for Awakening here.

I’m anxious to read Blood Harvest, as well as Bolton’s recent release, Now You See Me. From what I’ve read, Bolton’s mysteries get better and better with each new release. Nancy Pearl said:

Before she published Blood Harvest, S. J. Bolton wrote two mysteries. The first (Sacrifice) was terrific; the second (Awakening) was even better; and Blood Harvest is, not to put too fine a word on it, outstanding. . . . All the ingredients for a top-notch psychological mystery by a novelist who adroitly melds the natural and (possibly) supernatural into a spine-tingling gothic thriller. Fans of Barbara Vine, Mary Stewart, Daphne du Maurier, and Dorothy Eden shouldn’t miss this one. —Nancy Pearl, NPR’s Morning Edition, on Blood Harvest

Fall is here and there's a chill in the air. If you enjoy gothic thrillers, this may be just the book for you. It's certainly a page-turner and will keep you up until the wee small hours of the morning...hopefully reading and not with nightmares of snakes!

So, how many of you have heard of S. J. Bolton?

About the Author:

S. J. Bolton is a two-time Mary Higgins Clark Award winner and an ITW Thriller Award, CWA Gold Dagger, and Barry Award nominee. Her fascination with British folklore, especially the dark and haunting side of those legends, fuels her writing. She grew up in Lancashire, England, and now lives near Oxford with her family.

Wordless Wednesday

2011-09-21T05:00:00.001-05:00

Lincoln City, Oregon
July 2011

Sea Escape

2011-09-18T10:50:00.002-05:00

Sea Escape by Lynne Griffin
Fiction
2010 Simon & Schuster
Finished 8/10/11
Rating: 3/5 (Good)

Publisher’s Blurb:

Acclaimed novelist and nationally recognized family expert Lynne Griffin returns with Sea Escape—an emotional, beautifully imagined story inspired by the author’s family letters about the ties that bind mothers and daughters.

Laura Martinez is wedged in the middle place, grappling with her busy life as a nurse, wife, and devoted mom to Henry and Claire, when her estranged mother, Helen, suffers a devastating stroke. In a desperate attempt to lure her mother into choosing life, Laura goes to Sea Escape, the pristine beach home that Helen took refuge in when her carefully crafted life unraveled years ago, after the death of her beloved husband, Joseph. There, Laura hunts for the legendary love letters her husband wrote to her mother when he served as a reporter for the Associated Press during wartime Vietnam. Believing the beauty and sway of her father’s words will have the power to heal, Laura reads the letters bedside to her mother—a woman who once spoke the language of fabric; of Peony Sky in Jade and Paradise Garden Sage—but who can’t or won’t speak to her now. As Laura delves deeper into her tangled family history, each letter revealing patchwork details of her parents’ marriage, she finds a common thread—a secret, mother and daughter unknowingly share.

No marked passages to share and until just now, as I typed up the publisher’s blurb, I’d almost forgotten not only the secret, but several major plot points of this novel. While I was entertained as I read the book, something was missing and I wasn’t as drawn into the characters’ lives as I have been with similar familial stories by Anna Quindlen, Lisa Genova, Marisa de los Santos, and Erica Bauermeister. Earning a fairly high rating on Amazon (4.5/5 stars and yet, only 16 reviews in all), I thought I was in the minority, but Publishers Weekly hits the nail on the head:

Though most of the right women's fiction boxes are checked, this suffers greatly from characters who don't feel particularly real and plot complications that thud into place without adding tension.

However, Bellezza felt otherwise:

I thoroughly enjoyed this novel, which revealed layer upon layer of emotion as well as secrecy. I love how it explored mother/daughter relationships, mother/child relationships, and husband/wife relationships. I love the way that Laura came to terms with her life at the novel's conclusion. (Bellezza, of Dolce Bellezza)

Go here to read Bellezza's complete review.

Wendy’s opinion falls somewhere in between:

I mostly enjoyed this book, especially the parts told from Helen’s perspective as she grows from a young girl into a married woman during the 1960s and 1970s when America was embroiled in the Vietnam War. It is Helen’s story that anchors the book.

It took me awhile to develop empathy for both Laura and Helen – women who I didn’t understand until I was well into the story. At first I felt this to be a weakness of the writing, but later came to appreciate how Griffin reveals the danger of pre-judging someone before we know their history. It is easy to label a person cold, bitchy or uncaring based on their outward behavior, but only when we learn their life experiences can we grow to see why they might behave as they do. And it is through that process that empathy develops. (Wendy, of Caribousmom)

Wendy's review can be found here.

I haven’t read Griffin’s debut novel, Life Without Summer, but it earned a starred review from Publishers Weekly, so I won’t be hasty to dismiss this author. Everyone deserves a second chance.

{this moment}

2011-09-16T05:48:00.002-05:00

A Friday ritual. A single photo - no words - capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor and remember. - Amanda Soule

* * * * * * * *

Wordless Wednesday

2011-09-14T17:05:00.004-05:00

Blue Angels...
flying over my house
(click on photo to enlarge)

Sea Glass

2011-09-13T15:00:00.000-05:00

Sea Glass by Anita Shreve
Fiction
2002 Little, Brown and Company
Quit 8/11/11
Rating: DNF

Publisher’s Blurb:

With all the narrative power and emotional immediacy that have made her novels acclaimed international bestsellers, Anita Shreve unfolds a richly engaging tale of marriage, money, and troubled times—the story of a pair of young newlyweds who, setting out to build a life together in a derelict beach house on the Atlantic coast, soon discover how threatening the world outside their front door can be.

Sea Glass is the third volume in a series set on the coast of New Hampshire. The large coastal home featured in The Pilot’s Wife and Fortune’s Rocks is once again the focal point of this story. I thoroughly enjoyed the earlier novels in this series, so I was disappointed that this book didn’t live up to my expectations. Each chapter centers around one of six characters and is typically only a couple of pages in length. I usually don’t mind short chapters and can go back and forth between narrators, so it wasn’t the style of formatting that bothered me, but rather a general disinterest in the thin plot, coupled with a lack of affection for any of the characters.

Looking back on all the books I’ve read by Anita Shreve, it’s a wonder I keep trying to find a winner. I loved Fortune’s Rocks and The Pilot’s Wife, but was less impressed with A Wedding in December, Light on Snow, The Weight of Water, and now Sea Glass. I still have some of her backlist in my stacks, so we’ll see if any of them are as enjoyable as the first two I mentioned.

Summer People

2011-09-13T05:00:00.000-05:00

Summer People by Brian Groh
Fiction
2007 Harper Perennial
Quit on 8/4/11
Rating: DNF

Publisher’s Blurb:

Nathan Empson has just accepted the most unusual summer job of his life. In exchange for serving as a “caretaker” for Ellen Broderick, the eccentric matriarch of an exclusive coastal community, he’ll earn a generous paycheck and gain access to one of the last bastions of old New England wealth. But not everyone in town is welcoming—or even civil. And while he discovers companionship with a philosophical, ex-punk Episcopalian pastor, and more than companionship with the alluring nanny to the pastor’s children, Nathan finds it increasingly difficult to ignore his employer’s unnerving behavior. With each escalating mishap, a new aspect of Ellen’s colorful past comes to light, exposing the secret lives of her old friends, flames, and enemies, as well as the story behind a scandalous incident Nathan must prevent her from repeating. Yet to sound the alarm about her condition would mean leaving his beachside oasis and the romance that may well change him forever.

I fell in love with the cover art for this novel.

I should know better than to judge a book by its cover.

In spite of a couple of enticing paragraphs, the promise of which which lured me into the beach setting, I set this book aside after 50 pages. I didn’t care about any of the characters, especially Nathan who is self-centered and immature. The plot is flat and lifeless and the dialogue dull and boring.

Sunday Salon - September 11, 2011 (Part II)

2011-09-12T21:10:00.002-05:00

I took a break from the Sunday Salon last week since it was a holiday weekend and I was busy catching up around the house, tackling housework I’d been ignoring due to traveling and house guests, and getting outside for a bit. Priorities, ya know?

I’m also now a day late, but I wanted to leave yesterday’s remembrance post up by itself. So hard to believe it’s been ten years. Like most of you, I remember exactly where I was on September 11, 2001. I don’t think I’ll ever forget those images I saw on CNN that day and for the many days after…

Our weather has been so lovely. It’s really beginning to feel like fall is not too far off. I’ve noticed more leaves on the sidewalks and the tips of the sumac bushes along the bike trail are beginning to show off their pretty red hues. And the hummingbirds have finally discovered the feeder & hibiscus bushes in the backyard. Maybe it was too hot for them earlier this summer; I’d about given up on them! We’ve had our windows open all week and even wore sweatshirts on our evening walks with Annie-Dog. I just wish this weather would last more than a month or two. I sure hope our winter isn’t as miserable as last year’s…

With all this nice weather, I’ve gotten back in the biking groove. I rode every day last week, starting off with a long ride with a girlfriend on Labor Day. We headed south from my house and rode on the Rock Island Trail (paved) until we reached the Jamaica North Trail (crushed limestone), which quickly turns into the Homestead Trail (crushed limestone). We turned around at the county line for a grand total of 41 miles. It was an absolutely gorgeous day and we had such a good time that we decided to do it again this weekend. We rode with another friend and went took the same route, only we went to the end of the trail for a whopping 44.8 miles. I had hoped to go 50, but we ran out of trail and I wasn’t up to going further once we got back to town. I was worn out!

I haven’t been reading very much, since my afternoons are filled with outdoor activities (and a terrible new addiction known as Pinterest), but when I do settle in for the evening, I’ve been reading The Arrivals by Meg Mitchell Moore. This is a wonderful “domestic/family” novel, which I’m savoring and looking forward to reading every night.

I finished a couple of books since my last Salon post and need to start composing my reviews before too much time passes. Beachcombing for a Shipwrecked God turned out to be wonderful novel and I find I’m still thinking about the three main characters, wishing I could return to their lives (and boat!). I was also very pleased with Jacqueline Winspear’s The Mapping of Love and Death. After a few disappointing installments in her Maisie Dobbs’ series, this one won me back over! So much so, I’ve started in on Among the Mad. Yes, I realize I’m reading these two out of order, but I’m not going to worry too much about that. The books are great entertainment while I’m working in the morning and I know I’m going to miss listening to Orlagh Cassidy when I finish the series. What a marvelous reader!

Links to the books mentioned in this post can be found by clicking on the cover art in my sidebar.

Sunday Salon - September 11, 2011 (Part I)

2011-09-11T06:49:00.007-05:00

September 11, 2001
We will never forget

{this moment}

2011-09-09T12:00:00.000-05:00

A Friday ritual. A single photo - no words - capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor and remember. - Amanda Soule

* * * * * * * *

One Summer

2011-09-08T19:27:00.003-05:00

One Summer by David Baldacci
Fiction
2011 Grand Central Publishing
Quit on 7/26/11
Rating: DNF

Publisher’s Blurb:

It’s almost Christmas, but there is no joy in the house of terminally ill Jack and his family. With only a short time left to live, he spends his last days preparing to say good-bye to his devoted wife, Lizzie, and their three children. Then, unthinkably, tragedy strikes again [spoiler removed]. Just when all seems lost, Jacks begins to recover in a miraculous turn of events. He rises from what should have been his deathbed, determined to bring his fractured family back together. [Remainder of blurb removed due to spoilers]

It’s been close to a decade since I’ve read something by Baldacci. I don’t think I’ve ever read any of his thrillers, but I thoroughly enjoyed Wish You Well and had high hopes for another outstanding departure from his usual books. Unfortunately, after close to fifty pages, I decided to call it quits. Pick a word, any word: Overly sentimental. Schmaltzy. Predictable. Sappy. Contrived. Overwrought.

Blech.

Note to self: Read the back of the book before adding it to my stacks.

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