I'm a bad blogger. The lovely Bellezza was very kind and nominated me (almost a month ago!) for the Thinking Blogger Award and what did I do? Nothing. I commented on the post, thanking her for her thoughtfulness, and that was that. Did I post about it? Did I add the widget to my sidebar? Did I turn around and nominate five more bloggers? Nope. I have no excuse, so I simply offer up my sincere apologies to Bellezza.
Why, after all this time, do I feel motivated to participate in this meme now? Well, (says she sheepishly), I've been nominated again. I'm sure I would've been passed over by Lisa (an incredible reviewer and photographer) for a more deserving blog had she known I'd already received (and ignored) a nomination. But, no. Slacker that I am, I led her to believe I hadn't yet received such an honor. I feel like I've cheated somehow.
So why did I fail to uphold my end of this "pay-it-forward" type of award? Lazy? Too busy? To be perfectly honest, I think it's because it's a bit daunting to come up with a list of only five deserving blogs. I don't know about everyone else, but I peruse over 50 blogs on a daily basis. Relax. Of course, many of these blogs are fairly inactive; some are cooking blogs that only take a second to click on to see if the latest recipe is worth trying, and some are strictly photo blogs, again only requiring a very brief peek.So how can I possibly limit my choice to only five? I have so many favorites that are incredibly thought-provoking and beautiful in design. And, (this is a biggy) how do I do this without hurting someone's feelings? Please know that I'd love to choose each and every one of you, but rules are rules.And here they are:1. If, and only if, you get tagged, write a post with links to 5 blogs that make you think.2. Link to this post so that people can easily find the exact origin of the meme.3. Optional: Proudly display the 'Thinking Blogger Award' with a link to the post that you wrote.So, without further hesitation, my five nominations for the Thinking Blogger award are:
1. Letters from a Hill Farm - Nan and I have known each other for over 10 years now, and though we've never met face-to-face, I consider her one of my very best friends. I find her blog (and life) incredibly inspiring, from the beautiful photography of her land, home, garden and animals, to her delicious recipes, thought-provoking book reviews, beautiful quotes and the introduction to some fabulous music.
2. Cornflower - I can't remember when (or how) I first stumbled upon Karen's beautiful blog, but it's one of the first ones I look at every day. While not exclusively a photo-blog, I am truly in awe of the talent of this photographer. She has marvelous eye and is quite an inspiration to this very amateur photographer. I also enjoy her lovely book reviews and peeking into her garden and home, (particularly the kitchen with the Aga!). Her culinary posts are a foodie's delight.
3. Soule Mama - I have no idea how I came upon this blog, or for that matter, why I keep returning. I don't have small children at home and can barely thread a needle, so why the interest? Amanda is a young mother, living with her husband, three darling children, and pets near Portland, Maine. Not only is she one of the most crafty individuals I've encountered, she's also an incredibly talented photographer and writer (her book is set to be published in January 2008). Mostly, though, she's an inspiration to live a fuller, more meaningful life. I find peace and comfort in her daily words and I love the way she views the world around her. And I'm not the only one who feels this way about her blog. Her anniversary post received 512 comments! That's right. 512. The most comments I've ever received on a post was 32. Not that this is a contest or anything. Really.
4. Gluten-Free-Girl - I came across Shauna's blog (via Soule Mama's) a few months ago. We don't travel in the same blog circles and I'm fairly certain she's never visited mine, so I'm not sure what she'll think when a stranger presents her with this nomination. However, I am completely in awe of her writing, photography, zest for life (and cooking). I do not suffer from celiac and have no need to eliminate gluten from my diet, yet I'm inspired to prepare healthier meals and improve my lifestyle. Shauna is an incredible writer (she is in the process of having her cookbook published) and I've enjoyed following the romantic life she shares with "Chef" (the post about how they became engaged is one of the best "romances" I've ever read!), the setting of which takes place in one of my all-time favorite cities, Seattle.
5. Bookfoolery and Babble - Nancy's blog was one of the first to make it up on my blogroll. Again, another fabulous photographer who shares my love for nature and wildlife. I read and enjoyed each and every post on her Alaska Trip blog, and now look forward to posts on her current photo blog (Recent Developments in the Boonies). She, Bellezza and Nan are my long-lost sisters. We have so much in common, it's almost scary! While Nancy/Bookfool and I don't usually read the same sort of books, I enjoy her well-written and provocative reviews, occasionally adding a title to my TBR list.
So there you have it. Thank you, Lisa, not only for honoring me with your nomination, but for giving me a mental kick in the rear to get moving on this. And thanks again, Bellezza, for the first nomination. Better late than never, right?
It just doesn't get much better than this. 75 degrees. Blue sky. Gentle breeze. No humidity. No pollen. Birds chirping. Shrimp bisque on the stove and a flank steak ready for the grill.Here's to spring. A week early. Cheers!
Dispatches From the Edge: A Memoir of War, Disasters, and Survival
by Anderson CooperNonfiction – MemoirFinished on 3/5/07Rating: 5/5 (Outstanding!)Wow. What an emotionally draining read. I can’t begin to imagine how Anderson Cooper (or any journalist, for that matter) has dealt with all he’s witnessed, given that I had to stop reading his incredibly gripping memoir several times, as it was just too much to take in in large chunks. After reading Bookfool’s thought-provoking review last November, I picked up a copy of the book at the library for my husband (in spite of Bookfool’s superb review, I still wasn’t sure it was my cuppa tea). However, Rod has a good handle on what sort of books I like and was pretty certain I’d enjoy this one. He was right. I loved it. We both agree that Cooper’s lyrical prose (a bit reminiscent of Rick Bragg’s All Over But the Shoutin’
and Ava’s Man) was top-notch. Cooper’s tends to be a bit more crisp and succinct than Bragg’s (and not quite as humorous), but the emotions still resonate and tug at your heartstrings. Those journalists sure can write!Dispatches From the Edge is basically broken down into two halves. The first consists of three events: the Sri Lanka Tsunami (2004), the war in Iraq (just Cooper’s time there between 2004 and 2005), and the children starving in Niger (2005). Cooper juxtaposes these emotional stories with his own personal history: his father’s death (1978) and brother’s suicide (1988), trips to Bosnia (1993) and South Africa (1994), and Somalia (1992) and Rwanda (1994). Each segment flows seamlessly into the next, connected with a related thread of thought from the details of each story. The second half of the book is devoted entirely to the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina (2004) and how it pulls the author from his personal abyss of despair.I have nearly two dozen passages marked with sticky notes; had I owned the book, I suspect I would’ve wound up with more than 50% of the text highlighted. Here are just a few:I was ten when my father died, and before that moment, that slap of silence that reset the clock, I can’t remember much. [Emphasis mine]For years I tried to compartmentalize my life, distance myself from the world I was reporting on. This year, however, I realized that that is not possible. In the midst of tragedy, the memories of moments, forgotten feelings, began to feed off one another. I came to see how woven together these disparate fragments really are: past and present, personal and professional, they shift back and forth again. Everyone is connected by the same strands of DNA.Coming home meant coming down. It was easier to stay up. I’d return home to piles of bills and an empty refrigerator. Buying groceries, I’d get lost – too many aisles, too many choices; cool mist blowing over fresh fruit; paper or plastic; cash back in return? I wanted emotion but couldn’t find it here, so I settled for motion.In the four days between my brother’s death and his funeral, it seemed as if we were marooned on an ice floe broken off from a glacier. We didn’t leave the apartment. A giant chasm had opened up around us, and we were suddenly separate from the rest of the world.My mother lay in bed retelling the story of Carter’s death to each person who came to visit her, as if by repeating it she’d discover some new piece of information that would explain it all, would perhaps reveal that it hadn’t really happened, that it was all a misunderstanding, a terrible dream.Regarding Katrina:In normal times you can’t always say what’s right and what’s wrong. The truth is not always clear. Here, however, all the doubt is stripped away. This isn’t about Republicans and Democrats, theories and politics. Relief is either here or it is not. Corpses don’t lie.When you’re working, you’re focused on getting the shot, writing the story. You sometimes don’t notice how upset you are. In Waveland, I certainly don’t. Late Wednesday night, I’m talking to someone back at the office about the woman we left on the street, and I find myself crying. I can’t even speak. I have to call that person back. At first I don’t realize what’s happening to me. It’s been years since a story made me cry. Sarajevo was probably the last time. I’ve never been on this kind of story, though, in my own country. It’s something I never expected to see.I used to get back from Somalia or Sarajevo and imagine what New York would look like in a war. Which buildings would crumble? Who among my friends would survive? I always told myself if it did happen here, at least we could handle it better. At least our government would know what to do.…Katrina showed us all that’s not true.This is the only chance we get for a test run if something even more horrible happens or something as horrible happens with a nuclear device in this country. And we botched this one. We won’t get a chance to botch it again.Some twenty thousand people took refuge in the Superdome, told to come by the city’s mayor, who called it a shelter of last resort. He’d hoped that help would arrive from the state or federal government within two days. It didn’t. Hope is not a plan. [Emphasis mine]This is a heartbreakingly sad book. The images Cooper describes are burned in my mind’s eye, impossible to forget. And, I think that’s the point. We shouldn’t forget about the loss of humanity (on our soil and abroad) and the failure of our government to do what its citizens expect and deserve. But it’s not just the hopelessness of wars, and famines, and inept politicians that breaks my heart; it’s Cooper’s story, as well. He comes across as a genuinely nice guy, the type you’d enjoy hanging out with, sharing a couple of beers, listening to his travel stories or talking about who’s going to win the pennant this year. But it’s quite obvious from his writing that he’s fighting some demons, trying to come to terms with his own losses, all the while encountering nightmare after nightmare, all in the name of journalism. I suspect the purpose of his memoir was to share the atrocities he’s witnessed in his career as a correspondent, yet I wonder if he realized how cathartic (such a cliché, I know) the writing of this memoir would be, and how it’s apparently helped him begin to recognize his own grief. He strikes me as a very driven man who leads a very lonely life. I can’t help but hope he can open himself up to finding true happiness and not continue to race off to the corners of the earth, fleeing his own empty life.In spite of the sad subject matter, this is a phenomenal (and important) book that I highly recommend. I've already given a copy to my dad for his birthday and can think of several other possible recipients. Now that I’ve discovered Cooper is the reader for the audio version, I plan to get the CDs at the library in the next month or two. I have a feeling it’ll be even better listening to it narrated by the author than reading the printed words. Having said that, I plan to buy a copy of the book for my permanent collection and future re-read. Guess I'd better stock up on highlighters while I'm at it.
For more information about the book, be sure to read Anderson's blog post here and book review here.
Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone
by J.K. Rowling
Young Adult Fiction
Finished on 3/1/07
Rating: 4/5 (Very good)
I can’t imagine there’s anyone who hasn’t heard of the Harry Potter series, even if they’ve been living under a rock for the past decade. The media attention has been far too wide-spread for even those individuals wishing to escape the news to miss out on the excitement centered around Harry, Hogwarts and the magical world of wizards. So there’s really no need to summarize the story, is there?
This was my second reading of Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone, and it was just as entertaining, if not more so, than the first time around nearly eight years ago. I was a little concerned that I'd be bored with the all-too-familiar story, but enough time had passed and I'd forgotten quite a few of the details.
With the upcoming release of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows (on July 21st), I hope to re-read all the books in this series. Well, with the exception of Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix
and Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince. Those will be first-reads since I never got around to them when they were first published. I just lost interest, but now I'm excited to revisit Harry and his pals at Hogwarts. Nice to know I'm off to a good start!
MoodYou're a bit of a romantic and like to get back to basics. The expanse of the wilderness is inspiring and you like landscapes that make you feel calm. When it comes to art, you appreciate natural beauty. You take time to soak up the nature favouring the coastline and countryside to the city galleries. As for music, it's the soundtrack to your world. An open road, your favourite tracks - clichés are there to be enjoyed! Your choice of treat shows you crave relaxation. Maybe you live a pampered life - or maybe you're so busy you don't seem to get any time to yourself. When you're tense, you need a little help to unwind.FunYou love to be far away from your everyday life. You love the sun, and like to live life at a slower pace than most - you know how to take things nice and easy! For kicks you like to indulge in your greatest passions. You are probably happy spending time alone, and your drive and curiosity will take you all over the world. When it comes to holidays, you'll take experience over comfort every time, whether under canvas or under the stars. You love the chance to be in the wilderness and the freedom of being in charge of where you're heading. What grosses you out? You favour the natural look and can't stand a pumped and plumped plastic appearance.HabitsSo you're a sociable type who works to live, looking forward to all your freetime. Being a creature of the night can make some mornings a pretty rough ride. Mmmm - caffeine - you love the stability and comfort of routine. Sometimes you need an extra kick to get going. Where would you be without it? As for the home, you are traditional: you invest in quality and history. You like your home to be as stylish as you are.LoveFor you love is about long-term commitment, it means devotion and tenderness. When you think of freedom, you think of knowledge, it's obvious innit?
This meme has been in circulation for a few weeks and I'm finally getting around to posting my list. These are the original instructions:
Look at the list of books below:* Bold the ones you’ve read* Italicize the ones you want to read* Leave blank the ones that you aren’t interested in.* If you are reading this, tag, you’re it!**If there are any books on this list that I didn't italicize and you think I should read, let me know in comments! Also, what other books do you think belong on this list and why?Being the organizing fool I am, I decided to revamp the meme just a tad. I've grouped the books in each category, so it's easier to see the final results. Remember, the original list consists of these specific titles (does anyone know the background of the list??).Books I've Read (the red font indicates more than one reading; asterisk indicates a favorite):1. The Da Vinci Code (Dan Brown)*2. Pride and Prejudice (Jane Austen)3. To Kill A Mockingbird (Harper Lee)*8. Anne of Green Gables (L.M. Montgomery)*10. A Fine Balance (Rohinton Mistry)* - Fabulous book!11. Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (Rowling)12. Angels and Demons (Dan Brown)14. A Prayer for Owen Meany (John Irving)* - Superb15. Memoirs of a Geisha (Arthur Golden)16. Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone (Rowling)*18. The Stand (Stephen King)* - His absolute best!19. Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (Rowling)20. Jane Eyre (Charlotte Bronte)*21. The Hobbit (Tolkien) - want to re-read this now that I've watched the trilogy22. The Catcher in the Rye (J.D. Salinger) - ugh, didn't care for this one!23. Little Women (Louisa May Alcott)24. The Lovely Bones (Alice Sebold)*25. Life of Pi (Yann Martel)*26. The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy (Douglas Adams) - 4227. Wuthering Heights (Emily Bronte)30. Tuesdays with Morrie (Mitch Albom)32. The Notebook (Nicholas Sparks)36. The Pillars of the Earth (Ken Follett)* - Great read38. I Know This Much is True (Wally Lamb)* - Need to make time to re-read this!39. The Red Tent (Anita Diamant)41. The Clan of the Cave Bear (Jean M. Auel)*42. The Kite Runner (Khaled Hosseini)* - Superb44. The Five People You Meet In Heaven (Mitch Albom) - blech46. Anna Karenina (Tolstoy)48. Angela’s Ashes (Frank McCourt)*49. The Grapes of Wrath (John Steinbeck)*50. She’s Come Undone (Wally Lamb)51. The Poisonwood Bible (Barbara Kingsolver)*57. Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (Rowling)58. The Thorn Birds (Colleen McCullough)* - Time for a second read59. The Handmaid’s Tale (Margaret Atwood)60. The Time Traveller’s Wife (Audrew Niffenegger)*52. A Tale of Two Cities (Dickens)53. Ender’s Game (Orson Scott Card)54. Great Expectations (Dickens)55. The Great Gatsby (Fitzgerald)64. Interview With The Vampire (Anne Rice)70. The Little Prince (Antoine de Saint-Exupery)71. Bridget Jones’ Diary (Fielding)74. The English Patient (Michael Ondaatje)75. The Secret Garden (Frances Hodgson Burnett)*77. A Tree Grows in Brooklyn (Betty Smith)*80. Charlotte’s Web (E.B. White)82. Of Mice And Men (Steinbeck)87. Brave New World (Aldous Huxley)88. The Stone Diaries (Carol Shields)89. Blindness (Jose Saramago)* - Disturbing; memorable.92. Lord of the Flies (Golding)93. The Good Earth (Pearl S. Buck)*94. The Secret Life of Bees (Sue Monk Kidd)*96. The Outsiders (S.E. Hinton)97. White Oleander (Janet Fitch)98. A Woman of Substance (Barbara Taylor Bradford)99. The Celestine Prophecy (James Redfield)Books I'd Like to Read:5. The Lord of the Rings: Return of the King (Tolkien)6. The Lord of the Rings: Fellowship of the Ring (Tolkien)7. The Lord of the Rings: Two Towers (Tolkien)9. Outlander (Diana Gabaldon)13. Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (Rowling)17. Fall on Your Knees (Ann-Marie MacDonald)28. The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe (C. S. Lewis)29. East of Eden (John Steinbeck)34. 1984 (Orwell)47. The Count of Monte Cristo (Alexandre Dumas)56. The Stone Angel (Margaret Laurence)66. One Hundred Years Of Solitude (Gabriel Garcia Marquez)67. The Sisterhood of the Travelling Pants (Ann Brashares)72. Love in the Time of Cholera (Marquez)79. The Diviners (Margaret Laurence)85. Emma (Jane Austen)Books I've Started and Abandoned:40. The Alchemist (Paulo Coelho)68. Catch-22 (Joseph Heller)
Books I'm Not Interested In:
4. Gone With The Wind (Margaret Mitchell)31. Dune (Frank Herbert)33. Atlas Shrugged (Ayn Rand)35. The Mists of Avalon (Marion Zimmer Bradley)37. The Power of One (Bryce Courtenay)43. Confessions of a Shopaholic (Sophie Kinsella)45. Bible - I've read all of the New Testament and some of the Old 61. Crime and Punishment (Fyodor Dostoyevsky)62. The Fountainhead (Ayn Rand)63. War and Peace (Tolstoy)69. Les Miserables (Hugo)73. Shogun (James Clavell)78. The World According To Garp (John Irving)83. Rebecca (Daphne DuMaurier)86. Watership Down(Richard Adams)90. Kane and Abel (Jeffrey Archer)95. The Bourne Identity (Robert Ludlum)100. Ulysses (James Joyce)
Books I've Never Heard Of:
65. Fifth Business (Robertson Davis)76. The Summer Tree (Guy Gavriel Kay)81. Not Wanted On The Voyage (Timothy Findley)
84. Wizard’s First Rule (Terry Goodkind)
91. In The Skin Of A Lion (Ondaatje)
This month turned out pretty much the same as January. Not bad, but not great. Only two big winners out of the lot. The good news is I'm still on-track with my two challenges. Click on the book title to go to my review.Suite Française by Irène NémirovskyTwilight by Stephenie MeyerDeep in the Green by Anne Raver
A Stranger's House by Bret Lott
Tall Pine Polka by Lorna Landvik
Middlesex by Jeffrey EugenidesHarvesting the Heart by Jodi PicoultHow to Live in the Heartland by Twyla Hansen
Favorite of the month: Middlesex
Books Read 6DNF 2Male Authors 1Female Authors 5New-To-Me Authors 5Across the Borders 1 (Russia/France)Fiction 4Non-Fiction 2Classic 0Poetry 1Young Adult 1Sci-Fi 0Mystery/Thriller 0Series 0Re-Read 0Challenge 2Mine 5Library 1ARC 0Gift 1Keeper 3Note: Only books completed are counted in the above totals with, of course, the exception of the DNF category.
Harvesting the Heart
by Jodi Picoult
Contemporary Fiction
Finished on 2/22/07
Rating: 2.5/5 (Average)
2007 TBR Challenge #2
Book Description:
Paige has only a few vivid memories of her mother, who left when she was five. Now, having left her father behind in Chicago, she dreams of art school and marries an ambitious doctor - and soon becomes a mother herself. Overwhelmed by the demands of having a family, Paige cannot forget her mother's absence and the shameful memories of her own past, which make her doubt both her maternal abilities and her sense of self-worth. Out of Paige's struggle to find wholeness, Jodi Picoult crafts with astonishing clarity and evocative detail and absorbing novel that explores issues and emotions we can all relate to.
Hmmm, I suppose I can relate to some of Paige's issues. I, too, got married at a young age (19) and was a bit overwhelmed when our daughter was born two-and-a-half years later. I was immature and naive about marriage, emotionally dependent on my husband very much like Picoult's main character. Yet in spite of the demise of my first marriage, I had many friends and relatives I could turn to for help and advice. Paige was pretty much on her own as she tried to figure out how to be a good mother and a loving wife.
I found it difficult to sympathize with either of the main characters (quite frankly, I didn't care at all for Nicholas, who came across as too full of himself and unsympathetic to his wife's needs), and the minor characters lacked dimension. If I had to sum it up in a single word, I'd say this book was hokey. The pacing was uneven and some of the situations seemed implausible and contrived.
I've read and enjoyed several books by Jodi Picoult but this particular novel failed to impress me. It certainly wasn't as entertaining (or as thought-provoking) as Keeping Faith, The Pact, Plain Truth or My Sister's Keeper, yet something pushed me to keep on reading to the end. Maybe I was simply tired of giving up on books so readily and felt compelled to complete this one just for the sake of finishing.
Yesterday marked the end of my employment as nanny to my two nieces. I started taking care of Miss Maddie when she was just about two months old. I was just outside the delivery room door when she was born and a little over two years later, took her to the hospital to meet her new baby sister, Emily. Four and a half years of Pampers, bottles, pacifiers, sippy cups, car seats, strollers, Follow-the-Leader, sandbox play, splashing in the wading pool, blowing bubbles, walks to the park, collecting rocks, catching grasshoppers and pill bugs, story time at the library, garage sales for toys, visits to the indoor playground, Children's Museum and the Children's Zoo.Building castles with Legos and wooden blocks. Twirling and dancing together like ballerinas. Hide-n-seek in the house. Forts made with quilts. Singing along to Raffi and The Backyardigans. Watching Classical Baby, Kipper, and Charlie and Lola while snacking on pretzels and raisins. Cuddly moments on the couch, reading stacks and stacks of books. Puzzles, finger-painting with chocolate pudding, sidewalk chalk art, coloring and sticker fun.And, of course there were a few not-so-good days filled with temper tantrums (theirs and mine), teething, potting training, runny noses and "the throw ups." These two little girls have brought so much love and laughter to my days. They helped distract me in my worst days of grief. And, they melt my heart every single morning when I walk in their house and hear each of them sing out their name for me, "Auntie!!" "Gigi!!"As she left for preschool yesterday morning, Miss Maddie gave me the most wonderful hug, whispered softly, "You're the best. I love you" and bounced out the door with her daddy. Memily and I spent a lot of the day cuddling on the couch, and for the first time in many, many months, she fell asleep in my arms. Today is her first day of preschool and I know she'll have fun with all her new friends and teachers. And Miss Maddie will be right down the hall to help her little sister if she gets scared.I can't help but feel a bit melancholy about this change. I cried the whole way home yesterday. I've spent so much time with these little girls (and their parents), but as I reminded Maddie, I'm only 15 minutes away. Time to start planning some play dates. Uncle Rod has put in a request for some of Miss Maddie's famous chocolate chip cookies!
To Miss Maddie and Emily,You're the best! I love you both!Auntie/Gigi
by Michael Lee West
