tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-85344077695367128632024-03-18T22:57:54.005-05:001 House, 3 Catsmy adventures with a cozy little house, 5 cats, a husband, and a growing libraryCindyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11099616980445350155noreply@blogger.comBlogger33125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8534407769536712863.post-42982356557697363452014-02-12T09:35:00.002-06:002014-02-12T09:38:19.147-06:00Life Drawing for Beginners<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<b> </b>Finally, I'm back! I have such a back log of books to write about that I have forgotten things I wanted to write about. I really hated trying to type on the iPad and so just left things slide. I bought a bunch of new books but really should work on my TBR list. What can I say? I love buying cheap books. <br />
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<a href="https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1344270010l/13140588.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1344270010l/13140588.jpg" width="207" /></a><b> Title:</b> Life Drawing for Beginners<br />
<b>Author:</b> <a href="http://roisinmeaney.com/" target="_blank">Roisin Meaney</a><br />
<b>Published:</b> Hachette Book Group,Inc; August 2012<br />
<b>Genre:</b> Fiction, Chick-Lit<br />
<b>Source:</b> Library<br />
<b>From <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13140588-life-drawing-for-beginners?ac=1" target="_blank">Goodreads</a>:</b><br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<b> </b><i>"<span id="freeText4159179596928927157"><i>From the author of</i> Semi-Sweet<i> comes a delightful new novel </i><i>about the art of friendship, love, and (still) life.</i>
When Audrey Matthews offers an evening class in life drawing, all she's
looking for is a little extra pocket money and something to fill her
Tuesday nights. So she hires a model and recruits five students - each
of whom have their own reason for being there. For Zarek, a Polish
immigrant, the class is a welcome distraction and a place to escape his
dull cafe job and noisy roommate. Then there's the handsome, mysterious
James who has moved to the small town of Carrickbawn looking for a new
start for himself and his daughter. He's vowed to keep to himself, but
then his interest in Jackie, the class model and single mom, takes a
more personal turn. While Audrey has just fallen in love -- with the
adorable puppy in the window of the local pet shop. Will she be put off
by the store's brusque owner or does she find out that his bark is worse
than his bite? As the weeks pass, it becomes clear to the members of
the drawing class that their fellow students aren't exactly who they
seem..."</span></i></blockquote>
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I put this book on my TBR list because I saw a goodreads giveaway for it who knows when. I was really attracted by the title and cover. I thought this would be a fun romantic comedy and a quick and easy light read. I really expected some girl-meets-boy and they fall in love with a good sprinkling of quirky side characters. Jacket blurbs are obviously not a criteria in picking out a book. I'm shallow and judge books by their covers. This was more of a general relationship novel.<br />
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The story telling shifts from Audrey to each of her class members and a few others. Even though the characters are strangers to each other, they have connections outside of class through family and friends. Kind of like the story lines in <i>Love, Actually</i> are all connected. Some of these connections were apparent right away and others didn't reveal themselves until almost the end of the book.<br />
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I enjoyed this book. Sometimes I had to remind myself that things weren't happening as quickly as the timeline my brain had. The story stretched out over six weeks. I liked seeing the relationships develop and characters find their footing in the world. I even questioned the tough decisions one character made about his son and wondered what I would do in the same situation.<br />
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Sometimes the story lagged but I mostly enjoyed the book. I wanted to find out what secrets certain characters were keeping and that kept me reading to the end. Meaney was able to bring a human side to the more despicable characters and make them likeable. As for my final verdict, I was charmed by the characters. I would probably only recommend this to bookworms and not the casual reader. But who knows, my husband never picks up a book and really enjoyed <i>The Count of Monte Cristo. </i>So tell everyone to read it. They just may like it.<br />
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<br />Cindyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11099616980445350155noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8534407769536712863.post-33885972956292962382014-02-04T09:14:00.000-06:002014-02-04T09:14:05.421-06:00Sorry for the complete lack of content. My computer has been having problems and I need to get it fixed. I've been reading lots and have a lot of reviews I need to catch up on. For now, I'm trying to work on my iPad but I hate typing things and the functionality kind of sucks for writing long blog posts with pictures and links. I'll be back soon.<br />
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Cindyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11099616980445350155noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8534407769536712863.post-88148990885209582822014-01-25T10:30:00.000-06:002014-01-25T10:30:00.837-06:00The Bride Wore Size 12<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<b>Title: </b>The Bride Wore Size 12<br />
<b>Author: </b><a href="http://www.megcabot.com/" target="_blank">Meg Cabot</a><br />
<b>Published: </b>William Morrow; September 2013<br />
<b>Genre: </b>Fiction, Mystery, Romance<br />
<b>Source: </b>Library digital loan<br />
<b>From <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17349002-the-bride-wore-size-12?from_search=true" target="_blank">Goodreads</a>:</b> <br />
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<i><span id="freeText16311570695172921653">"Heather Wells is used
to having her cake and eating it too, but this time her cake just might
be cooked. Her wedding cake, that is.<br /><br />With her upcoming nuptials
to PI Cooper Cartwright only weeks away, Heather's already stressed. And
when a pretty junior turns up dead, Heather's sure things can't get
worse—until every student in the dorm where she works is a possible
suspect, and Heather's long-lost mother shows up.<br /><br />Heather has no
time for a tearful mother and bride reunion. She has a wedding to pull
off and a murder to solve. Instead of wedding bells, she might be
hearing wedding bullets, but she's determined to bring the bad guys to
justice if it's the last thing she does . . . and this time, it just
might be."</span></i></blockquote>
I was turned on to Meg Cabot after watching <i>The Princess Diaries</i>. I loved her Boy series (<i>The Boy Next Door</i>, <i>Boy Meets Girl, </i>and <i>Every Boy's Got One</i>) and Queen of Babble series. They are fun, easy, quick reads and the characters are very likeable. I read about half of the Princess Diaries series about ten years or so ago. Meg Cabot's books are the sweet, fluffy cupcakes of the literary world. I've also read the first two books in the Heather Wells series and liked them a lot.<br />
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This book begins about a month before Heather's wedding. So of course, I expected Heather to be up to her ears in wedding prep. I remember what the month before my wedding was like. I was finishing up last minute details and double checking that everything was in place. It was pretty much all I thought about. There were really only a few mentions of the wedding until the end of the book, when she and Cooper finally tied the knot.<br />
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Granted, she is the assistant hall director of a <strike>dorm</strike> residence hall (nicknamed Death Dorm) at a fictional New York City college. She's busy with making sure all the incoming freshman are settling in and keeping said freshmen's parents happy with roommate assignments. Oh, and one of her students is a prince of a fake Middle Eastern nation. When a RA is found dead in her room, it adds that much more to Heather's already full agenda. <br />
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I wanted to love this book. Since I really liked a many of Cabot's other works, I was certain that this would be along the same lines. The first few books of this series were engaging and really fun. I liked the idea of an adult spending the majority of her time around college students. This book just seemed to fall flat. I kind of feel like Cabot just wanted to finish the series up because she was tired of it.<br />
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I can't really say why this book wasn't as good as the first few in the series. Maybe I'm the one who changed, although I still love fluffy chick-lit and a good murder mystery. I just wasn't feeling it. The murder mystery didn't have me reading well into the night to find out who committed the crime. I only finished this book a few days ago and I can barely remember the details. <br />
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Underwhelmed. That is the best word to describe how I feel about this book. If you are a fan of the Heather Wells series, I would recommend this just to have some closure for the series. Otherwise, pass it by for some of Cabot's better series.<br />
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Buy at <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Bride-Wore-Size-12-ebook/dp/B00BATIJ12/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1390444817&sr=8-1&keywords=the+bride+wore+size+12" target="_blank">Amazon</a>/<a href="http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-bride-wore-size-12-meg-cabot/1115175363?ean=9780061734793" target="_blank">Barnes & Noble</a> <br />
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<br />Cindyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11099616980445350155noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8534407769536712863.post-41596898109712177182014-01-21T09:30:00.000-06:002014-01-21T09:30:00.271-06:00The Rosie Project<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<b>Title: </b>The Rosie Project<br />
<b>Author:<a href="http://graemesimsion.com/" target="_blank"> </a></b><a href="http://graemesimsion.com/" target="_blank">Graeme Simsion</a><br />
<b>Published: </b>Simon & Schuster; 2013<br />
<b>Genre: </b>Fiction, Romance, Humor<br />
<b>Source: </b>Amazon Kindle store<br />
<b>From<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/16181775-the-rosie-project?ac=1" target="_blank"> Goodreads</a>:</b><br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<i><span id="freeText18242751598443203095">"An international
sensation, this hilarious, feel-good novel is narrated by an oddly
charming and socially challenged genetics professor on an unusual quest:
to find out if he is capable of true love.<br /><br />Don Tillman,
professor of genetics, has never been on a second date. He is a man who
can count all his friends on the fingers of one hand, whose lifelong
difficulty with social rituals has convinced him that he is simply not
wired for romance. So when an acquaintance informs him that he would
make a “wonderful” husband, his first reaction is shock. Yet he must
concede to the statistical probability that there is someone for
everyone, and he embarks upon The Wife Project. In the orderly,
evidence-based manner with which he approaches all things, Don sets out
to find the perfect partner. She will be punctual and logical—most
definitely not a barmaid, a smoker, a drinker, or a late-arriver.<br /><br />Yet
Rosie Jarman is all these things. She is also beguiling, fiery,
intelligent—and on a quest of her own. She is looking for her biological
father, a search that a certain DNA expert might be able to help her
with. Don's Wife Project takes a back burner to the Father Project and
an unlikely relationship blooms, forcing the scientifically minded
geneticist to confront the spontaneous whirlwind that is Rosie—and the
realization that love is not always what looks good on paper.<br /><br /><i>The Rosie Project</i>
is a moving and hilarious novel for anyone who has ever tenaciously
gone after life or love in the face of overwhelming challenges.</span>"</i></blockquote>
<br />
Sheldon (from <i>Big Bang Theory</i>, for those of you who don't watch) searches for a wife.<br />
<br />
That is how I would describe this book. Don Tillman is socially inept, due to not being diagnosed as being on the autism spectrum. I can't write much more about the story that the goodreads blurb doesn't say. At least not without giving away the entire story.<br />
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I fell in love with the characters and the storyline. It was charming and sweet. I loved seeing the evolution of Don's feelings towards Rosie. His goofy mistakes due to his lack of interpersonal skills were funny.<br />
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The book is written from Don's point of view. This was really the only way to write a book about a character like him. How else would the reader know why he was doing the things he did without knowing his thought processes? I especially loved his attempts at using logic to explain Rosie's very obvious emotional responses to him.<br />
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This book is great. I breezed through it in less than a day. It's fun and light-hearted without making fun of autism spectrum disorders by taking low blows. This book makes you smile and think. It would make a great book club selection, especially after reading a more literary novel. Buy this book because you will want to reread it.<br />
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<br />Cindyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11099616980445350155noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8534407769536712863.post-62870022601224873502014-01-18T09:30:00.000-06:002014-01-18T09:30:00.746-06:00Divergent<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<b>Title:</b> Divergent<br />
<b>Author: </b><a href="http://veronicaroth.com/" target="_blank">Veronica Roth</a><br />
<b>Published:</b>Katherine Tegen Books; 2011<br />
<b>Genre:</b>Young Adult, Dystopian, Science Fiction<br />
<b>Source:</b> Amazon Kindle store<br />
<b>From <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13335037-divergent?ac=1" target="_blank">Goodreads</a>:</b><br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<i><span id="freeText15272749365189515012">"In Beatrice Prior's
dystopian Chicago world, society is divided into five factions, each
dedicated to the cultivation of a particular virtue--Candor (the
honest), Abnegation (the selfless), Dauntless (the brave), Amity (the
peaceful), and Erudite (the intelligent). On an appointed day of every
year, all sixteen-year-olds must select the faction to which they will
devote the rest of their lives. For Beatrice, the decision is between
staying with her family and being who she really is--she can't have
both. So she makes a choice that surprises everyone, including herself.<br /><br />During
the highly competitive initiation that follows, Beatrice renames
herself Tris and struggles alongside her fellow initiates to live out
the choice they have made. Together they must undergo extreme physical
tests of endurance and intense psychological simulations, some with
devastating consequences. As initiation transforms them all, Tris must
determine who her friends really are--and where, exactly, a romance with
a sometimes fascinating, sometimes exasperating boy fits into the life
she's chosen. But Tris also has a secret, one she's kept hidden from
everyone because she's been warned it can mean death. And as she
discovers unrest and growing conflict that threaten to unravel her
seemingly perfect society, Tris also learns that her secret might help
her save the ones she loves . . . or it might destroy her.</span></i><b>"</b></blockquote>
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When I went to see <i>Catching Fire</i> back in November, the preview for <i>Divergent</i> looked pretty good. My friend and I agreed to go see it together in March. I knew I would have to read the books first. I got a new Kindle Paperwhite for Christmas so this was one of the first books I bought.<br />
<br />
Honestly, I was a little dissappointed in the first installment of this trilogy. I wish that there was more back story. What events lead up to this point? Why did the citizens decide that people should be divided into factions? I also didn't understand why people would have to choose one particular virtue.<br />
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I don't want to give away what faction Tris decides to join, but I had a hard time understanding what her faction did. I get that they had certain jobs but I didn't think that the size of their faction could find employment for that many people. Her faction seemed much more reckless than actually embodying the spirit of their virtue.<br />
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This was Roth's first book that she wrote rather quickly. You can tell. The plot of the book just seems to meander along until the sixty pages or so. However, once I reached those last pages, I was hooked and am definitely going to read <i>Insurgent. </i>The meat of that last part of this story was very exciting. I needed to find out how Tris' and company are going to deal with the very major complications.<br />
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Roth's writing did have some good points. I found her depiction of Albert to be incredibly touching and a realistic portrayal of an adolescent placed in that situation. She wrote very descriptive scenes that weren't overly wordy. Her training scenes were exciting and I couldn't put the book down in the middle of them.<br />
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If you loved <i>The Hunger Games</i> trilogy and want to read this thinking it will be like them, it's not. It's nowhere near as good as <i>The Hunger Games</i>. It is an entertaining read and I have higher hopes that <i>Insurgent </i>and <i>Allegiant </i>will fill in the gaps that annoyed me and will meander less now that the antagonist has been identified.<br />
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Cindyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11099616980445350155noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8534407769536712863.post-83769513646675505942014-01-14T09:30:00.000-06:002014-01-14T09:30:00.629-06:00Where'd You Go, Bernadette<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<b>Title: </b>Where'd You Go, Bernadette<br />
<b>Author: </b><a href="http://www.mariasemple.com/" target="_blank">Maria Semple</a><br />
<b>Published: </b>Little, Brown, & Company; August 2012<b> </b><br />
<b>Genre: </b>Fiction, Chick-Lit<br />
<b>Source:</b> Amazon Kindle store (on sale for $3.99)<br />
<b>From <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13526165-where-d-you-go-bernadette?ac=1" target="_blank">Goodreads</a>:</b><br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<i>"<b> </b><span id="freeText14010030167237137763">Bernadette Fox is
notorious. To her Microsoft-guru husband, she's a fearlessly opinionated
partner; to fellow private-school mothers in Seattle, she's a disgrace;
to design mavens, she's a revolutionary architect, and to 15-year-old
Bee, she is a best friend and, simply, Mom.<br /><br />Then Bernadette
disappears. It began when Bee aced her report card and claimed her
promised reward: a family trip to Antarctica. But Bernadette's
intensifying allergy to Seattle—and people in general—has made her so
agoraphobic that a virtual assistant in India now runs her most basic
errands. A trip to the end of the earth is problematic.<br /><br />To find
her mother, Bee compiles email messages, official documents, secret
correspondence—creating a compulsively readable and touching novel about
misplaced genius and a mother and daughter's role in an absurd world."</span></i></blockquote>
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I ended up giving five stars to this book not because it is great literature. I gave it five stars because it is a fun, quick read. When I found out that Semple wrote for one of my favorite TV show, <i>Arrested Development</i>, I could see the similarities. She is great at doing funny satires of people. I also recommend checking out her <a href="http://www.mariasemple.com/" target="_blank">website</a> just for the absolute cuteness.<br />
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The first half of this book is a mash-up of emails, letters, FBI reports, and other correspondence which even includes one emergency bill. All of these are written in the month or so leading up to a trip to Antartica for Bernadette, her husband Elgie, and her daughter Bee. In between these articles is a commentary from Bee, kind of like behind the scenes tidbits. The second half is Bee's search for her mother.<br />
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This book was full of stereotypes from the green computer geek to the pushy, wealthy stay at home mom. It makes fun of this social section of the Seattle area without seeming mean-spirited. I read this within a day and would love to read it again later when I want something light and easygoing.<br />
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<br />Cindyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11099616980445350155noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8534407769536712863.post-54538739355607146282014-01-11T08:24:00.001-06:002014-01-11T12:52:39.260-06:00Brave New World<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<b>Title: </b>Brave New World<br />
<b>Author: </b>Aldous Huxley<br />
<b>Published: </b>Harper Perennial Modern Classics, 2006 (first published in 1932)<br />
<b>Genre:</b> Science Fiction, Fantasy<br />
<b>Source:</b> Library Used Book Sale<br />
<b>From <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/5485.Brave_New_World" target="_blank">Goodreads</a>:</b><br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<b> </b><span id="freeText4728247098410033647">"Aldous Huxley's tour de
force, Brave New World is a darkly satiric version of a "utopian" future
- where humans are genetically bred and pharmaceutically anesthetized
to passively serve a ruling order. A powerful work of speculative
fiction that has enthralled and terrified readers for generations, it
remains remarkably relevant to this day as both a warning to be heeded
as we head into tomorrow and as thought-provoking, satisfying
entertainment."</span></blockquote>
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I picked this book up solely based on the cover. I knew absolutely nothing about this book. It has been wallowing on my bookshelf for the last year or so. I finally decided to pick it up because I have a whole bunch of books that I promised myself I would read last year. I wish I would have read this sooner.<br />
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I was very surprised to find out that this book was first published in 1932. It is way ahead of it's time. If I hadn't looked at the original publish year, I would have thought it was written in the last twenty years. In this society, people are genetically manipulated to be a member of a caste system (Alphas, Betas, Gammas, Epsilons). They're created in a lab and gestate in bottles, where things are added to physically create the differences that caste members have. That's just the beginning of lifelong conditioning for each person.<br />
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The story focuses on Bernard, an Alpha who is not as tall as the other Alphas. He understands why society runs the way it does but questions certain things. A lot is explained about how society runs. Bernard is attracted to Lenina, another Alpha. He takes her on a trip to see the Savages, Native Americans in New Mexico, who live rather "primitively". There reactions to the people there are worth reading about.<br />
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Buy this book. Seriously. <i>Brave New World</i> should be a must-read for everyone. I would even have this as required reading if I was a high school English teacher. That is how much I recommend this book. Just read it.<br />
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Cindyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11099616980445350155noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8534407769536712863.post-11837037248282597542014-01-05T07:30:00.001-06:002014-01-11T12:52:10.440-06:00Big Fat Disaster<br />
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<b>Title: </b>Big Fat Disaster<br />
<b>Author:</b>Beth Fehlbaum<br />
<b>Published: </b>Merit Press, 18 April 2014<br />
<b>Genre:</b>Young Adult<br />
<b>Source: </b><a href="https://www.netgalley.com/" target="_blank">NetGalley*</a><br />
<b>From <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/18442147-big-fat-disaster?ac=1" target="_blank">Goodreads</a>:</b><br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<br />
<span id="freeText14353190583326309263">"Insecure, shy, and way
overweight, Colby hates the limelight as much as her pageant-pretty mom
and sisters love it. It's her life: Dad's a superstar, running for
office on a family values platform. Then suddenly, he ditches his
marriage for a younger woman and gets caught stealing money from the
campaign. Everyone hates Colby for finding out and blowing the whistle
on him. From a mansion, they end up in a poor relative's trailer, where
her mom's contempt swells right along with Colby's supersized jeans.
Then, a cruel video of Colby half-dressed, made by her cousin Ryan,
finds its way onto the internet. Colby plans her own death. A tragic
family accident intervenes, and Colby's role in it seems to paint her as
a hero, but she's only a fraud. Finally, threatened with exposure,
Colby must face facts about her selfish mother and her own shame.
Harrowing and hopeful, proof that the truth that saves us can come with a
fierce and terrible price, Big Fat Disaster is that rare thing, a story
that is authentically new."</span></blockquote>
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<b>WARNING</b>; This book has triggers regarding suicide, abuse, eating disorders, and rape.<br />
<br />
I didn't know what to expect from this book. I must not have read the description very well because I thought it would be a a bit more light-hearted. Okay, I admit that I went into this book thinking she would have something bad happen to the family and she would love herself and lose weight and the story would have a happy ending. I probably would not have read it if I would have read it if I had read it if I had paid attention to the blurb.<br />
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This book doesn't pussyfoot around the issues covered.. Rape, bullying, fat-shaming, depression, suicide, disordered eating. I had some triggers and admit that I was up at three in the morning crying because of the raw emotion regarding the main character Colby's depression and suicide attempt. It frightened me how easily I could identify with Colby and her feelings.<br />
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I was hooked from the get go. Even with the difficult content, I was rooting for Colby and hoping she would find a happy ending. Her dad basically abandons her and her mother and sisters after his affair and embezzlement come to light. Her mother constantly fat-shames her and very obviously favors Colby's thinner sisters. She's bullied at her new school. Her cousin shows open disdain for her. It's a lot to put on one person's shoulders. In the end, there wasn't the happy ending I expected but there was plenty of hope for Colby to have a good life.<br />
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*I received this book from NetGalley in exchange for a review. Any opinions are my own. <br />
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<br />Cindyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11099616980445350155noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8534407769536712863.post-4500123139644611382013-12-31T09:17:00.003-06:002013-12-31T09:19:26.856-06:00My 2014 TBR List<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://photo.elsoar.com/wp-content/images/Happy-New-Year-Wishes-2014-B.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://photo.elsoar.com/wp-content/images/Happy-New-Year-Wishes-2014-B.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://photo.elsoar.com/wp-content/images/Happy-New-Year-Wishes-2014-B.jpg" target="_blank">source</a></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<h2>
Happy New Year!</h2>
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I'm a little disappointed in myself. I had set a goal of reading 60 new-to-me books. At the beginning of the year, I set a goal of sixty books for the Goodreads <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/challenges/940-2013-reading-challenge" target="_blank">2013 Reading Challenge</a>. I only hit 33 books. In addition, I probably reread about fifteen to twenty other books. Definitely a respectable amount of books but I am not happy with myself for not making reading a priority this year. In comparison, I set a goal of fifty books in 2012 and read 58 new-to-me books.<br />
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For 2014, I am going to stick with a more modest goal. I think fifty books is doable. I am also considering rereading all the books I was assigned in high school English class. So I will probably be reading about one and a half books a week. I really hope I can do this.<br />
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I have a lot of books that I really wanted to read this last year. A lot. I'm going to attempt to read all these and then some. Here's a peek at my list in no particular order.<br />
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The Divergent Series by Veronica Roth<br />
<a href="https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1328559506l/13335037.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a><a href="https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1325667729l/11735983.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"></a><a href="https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1368111284l/17383918.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1368111284l/17383918.jpg" width="132" /></a><img border="0" height="200" src="https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1325667729l/11735983.jpg" width="131" /><img border="0" height="200" src="https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1328559506l/13335037.jpg" width="132" /><br />
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Even though just about everyone was raving about these books, I really didn't want to read them until I saw the movie preview for Divergent. Now I need to read all three before the movie comes out in March.<br />
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13538867-murder-most-austen" target="_blank">Murder Most Austen</a> by Tracy Kiely<br />
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I love me a good Jane Austen fanfic. Hopefully this one doesn't fall flat.<br />
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13140588-life-drawing-for-beginners" target="_blank">Life Drawing for Beginners</a> by Roisin Meaney<br />
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13056159-the-chaperone" target="_blank">The Chaperone</a> by Laura Moriarty<br />
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<a href="https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1355042055l/13056159.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1355042055l/13056159.jpg" width="133" /></a></div>
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I didn't realize that Louise Brooks was a real person when I first heard of this book. I love books that speculate on real lives.<br />
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/290723.How_Wide_the_Divide_" target="_blank">How Wide the Divide?: A Mormon & an Evangelical in Conversation</a> by Stephen E. Robinson and<br />
Craig L . Blomberg<br />
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As a Mormon, I find Evangelicalism a bit fascinating. I'm very interested to see what these two authors have to say about the similarities and differences.<br />
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13587130-consider-the-fork" target="_blank">Consider the Fork: How Technology Transforms the Way We Cook and Eat</a> by Bee Wilson<br />
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I love to eat. I love food. I find the history of mundane objects interesting.<br />
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/227711.I_Know_This_Much_Is_True" target="_blank">I Know This Much Is True</a> by Wally Lamb<br />
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I picked this up at last summer's used book sale at a local public library. I've picked it up once and read the first few pages but misplaced it and didn't read any more of it. Now that it's found again, I need to put this back on my to-do list.<br />
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/15823480-anna-karenina" target="_blank">Anna Karenina</a> by Leo Tolstoy<br />
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I have a silly reason for wanting to read this. It all has to do with the Audrey Hepburn movie, <i>Funny Face.</i> She plays a frumpy bookstore worker who is picked as the new fresh face of modeling and is whisked off to Paris where she does loads of photo shoots. One of them is inspired by the <i>Anna Karenina</i> scene at a train station. I have no idea what the book or even that scene is about. But hey, it's a classic and I need to read a few more of those.<br />
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/2807199-american-wife" target="_blank">American Wife</a> by Curtis Sittenfeld<br />
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<a href="https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1320446676l/2807199.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1320446676l/2807199.jpg" width="131" /></a></div>
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I read Sittenfeld's Prep ages ago and really enjoyed it. Being from a politically divided marriage, I am really curious as to how this novel handles a wife who holds her own private views while putting on the image of a good Republican wife.<br />
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/32145.Stiff" target="_blank">Stiff: The Curious Lives of Human Cadavers</a> by Mary Roach<br />
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I have a weird confession. I am fascinated by death. My favorite field trip in school was to the cadaver lab at the University of Wisconsin. After hearing about Roach's <i>Gulp</i> on NPR, I knew I had to read it. When I heard she wrote a book about dead bodies, I was chomping at the bit to read it.<br />
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/310612.A_Confederacy_of_Dunces" target="_blank">A Confederacy of Dunces</a> by John Kennedy Toole<br />
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I bought this book about ten years ago because of the cover. I have picked it up a few times over the years and gotten about a quarter to halfway through it before neglecting to finish. This will be the year to finish it. Plus, it really appeals to the part of me that has the sense of humor of a twelve year old boy.<br />
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/9418327-bossypants" target="_blank">Bossypants</a> by Tina Fey<br />
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Yet another book where I am late to the ball. It's Tina Fey. I don't think I need to say more.<br />
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13526165-where-d-you-go-bernadette" target="_blank">Where'd You Go Bernadette</a> by Maria Semple<br />
<a href="https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1338822317l/13526165.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1338822317l/13526165.jpg" width="128" /></a><br />
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Let's face it. Sometimes I'd like to disappear too.<br />
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13641105-parasite?ac=1" target="_blank">Parasite</a> by Mira Grant<br />
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Sometimes I wish I had a tapeworm just to make me skinny. The idea of having one that would rebel is kind of scary. I really look forward to reading this.<br />
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/11870085-the-fault-in-our-stars" target="_blank">The Fault in Our Stars </a>by John Green<br />
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Terminal cancer and romance. Sounds like a movie to me.<br />
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/19063.The_Book_Thief" target="_blank">The Book Thief </a>by Markus Zusak<br />
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I love me a book set in Nazi Germany.<br />
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<a href="https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1376835322l/16045049.jpg" target="_blank">The Good Luck Girls of Shipwreck Lane</a> by Kelly Harms<br />
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Two women with the same name are told they win a dream home in Maine. This is another book that I heard about on NPR and the author interview really made me want to read this.<br />
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/2728527-the-guernsey-literary-and-potato-peel-pie-society" target="_blank">The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society </a>by Mary Ann Schaffer<br />
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I had to stop going to my library's book club because of my work schedule. This was the last book that I remember them picking to read. They always have good taste.<br />
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/16068905-fangirl" target="_blank">Fangirl</a>,<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/8909152-attachments" target="_blank"> Attachments</a>, and <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/18081809-landline" target="_blank">Landlines</a> by Rainbow Rowell<br />
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After reading <i>Eleanor & Park</i>, I have found myself wanting to binge read everything Rainbow Rowell has written. <i>Landlines</i> is expected to come out in July.<br />
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/16101121-the-world-s-strongest-librarian" target="_blank">The World's Strongest Librarian: A Memoir of Tourette's, Faith, Strength, and the Power of Family</a><br />
by Josh Hanagarne<br />
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A memoir about a weight-lifting, Mormon librarian with Tourette's Syndrome.<br />
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Yes, please.<br />
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/16071764-lean-in" target="_blank">Lean In: Women, Work, and the Will to Lead</a> by Sheryl Sandberg<br />
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Sometimes I choose to read things just because they've received a lot of buzz. I don't think <i>Lean In</i> will be like my experience with the Twilight series.<br />
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17571007-hyperbole-and-a-half" target="_blank">Hyperbole and a Half: Unfortunate Situations, Flawed Coping Mechanisms, Mayhem and Other Things</a><br />
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17571007-hyperbole-and-a-half" target="_blank"> That Happened</a> by Allie Brosh<br />
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I don't know if I can express how much I love Allie Brosh. I found her website by way of her posts on depression. They expressed so much how I was feeling that I bawled while reading them.<br />
She's also just downright funny. I still don't start to clean at home without raising my broom and yelling "CLEAN ALL THE THINGS!"<br />
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17333223-the-goldfinch" target="_blank">The Goldfinch</a> by Donna Tartt<br />
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I've been hearing good things. Like that this is one of the novels from 2013. Can't pass that up.<br />
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/15790842-life-after-life" target="_blank">Life After Life</a> by Kate Atkinson<br />
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The main character is born, dies, and is reborn as another person, over and over. I'm really curious to find out the character's purpose in the world.<br />
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/15818107-orphan-train" target="_blank">Orphan Train</a> by Christina Baker Kline<br />
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I have only heard of orphan trains in passing but want to learn more. Not that I read a novel to educate me.<br />
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/15781725-the-house-girl" target="_blank">The House Girl</a> by Tara Conklin<br />
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You know what? I've been writing little commentaries about why I want to read every book on this list. I'm tired of typing out in 50 different ways "I just want to read this." No more commentary unless I find it worthwhile.<br />
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17572903-the-girl-you-left-behind" target="_blank">The Girl You Left Behind</a> by Jojo Moyes<br />
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/16002030-z" target="_blank">Z: A Novel of Zelda Fitzgerald</a> by Therese Anne Fowler<br />
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13642950-the-aviator-s-wife" target="_blank">The Aviator's Wife</a> by Melanie Benjamin<br />
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17333319-burial-rites" target="_blank">Burial Rites</a> by Hannah Kent<br />
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/16248311-the-perfume-collector" target="_blank">The Perfume Collector</a> by Kathleen Tessaro<br />
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/16158565-the-thinking-woman-s-guide-to-real-magic" target="_blank">The Thinking Woman's Guide to Real Magic</a> by Emily Croy Barker<br />
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17287028-my-story" target="_blank">My Story</a> by Elizabeth Smart<br />
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Elizabeth seems so poised and grateful for life in the interviews she has given lately. Her book is a must read.<br />
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/16131193-the-astronaut-wives-club" target="_blank">The Astronaut's Wives Club: A True Story</a> by Lily Koppel<br />
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Another NPR find.<br />
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/16131193-the-astronaut-wives-club" target="_blank">A Red Herring without Mustard</a>,<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/11277218-i-am-half-sick-of-shadows" target="_blank"> I Am Half-Sick of Shadows</a>,<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13642963-speaking-from-among-the-bones" target="_blank"> Speaking from Among the Bones</a>, and<br />
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/7292842-the-dead-in-their-vaulted-arches" target="_blank"> The Dead in Their Vaulted Arches</a> by Alan Bradley<br />
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These are books number 3 through 6 from the Flavia de Luce series. I fell in love with the chemistry loving, nerdy little heroine and can't wait to read these. Book #6 comes out in January.<br />
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I know this is an incredibly long list and I've probably bitten off more than I can chew. I am perfectly willing to admit that I probably won't be able to read all of these, just because I will probably reread some books (especially the Hunger Games Series right before Mockingjay comes out) and I will find other books that just need to be read.<br />
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What's on your TBR list for 2014?<br />
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(<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/" target="_blank">photo source for all book jackets</a>)<br />
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<br />Cindyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11099616980445350155noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8534407769536712863.post-50180000779857106702013-12-28T09:35:00.002-06:002013-12-28T09:51:16.131-06:00Eleanor & Park<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<b>Title: </b>Eleanor & Park<br />
<b>Author: <a href="http://rainbowrowell.com/blog/" target="_blank"> </a></b><a href="http://rainbowrowell.com/blog/" target="_blank">Rainbow Rowell</a><br />
<b>Published: </b>February 26, 2013; Listening Library (audio), St. Martin's Press (print)<br />
<b>Genre: </b>Young Adult, Romance<br />
<b>Source: </b>Overdrive audiobook through my library system<br />
<b>From<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/18463614-eleanor-park" target="_blank"> Goodreads</a>:</b><br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<i><b> </b><span id="freeTextContainer1993809000257731596">Set over the course of
one school year in 1986, ELEANOR AND PARK is the story of two
star-crossed misfits – smart enough to know that first love almost never
lasts, but brave and desperate enough to try. When Eleanor meets Park,
you’ll remember your own first love – and just how hard it pulled you
under.</span></i></blockquote>
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I admit that I only <strike>picked up this</strike> listened to this book because I had read so many <strike>positive</strike> rave reviews of this book. The cover also appealed to me. I love a graphically simple cover. It makes me think that whatever is inside has got to be good to make up for the lack of busyness. My library only had the audiobook option available for digital checkout which worked out well for me. I had a three week deadline to crochet a baby blanket and I listened while I made that. </div>
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By the way, if you have an Kindle, tablet, smartphone, etc., you should really check out <a href="http://www.overdrive.com/" target="_blank">Overdrive</a>.* Working with your library network, you have access to a ton of e-books and audiobooks. I like that I can check out books without changing out of my pajamas or leaving my bed. The only bummer is that, like your local library, you will probably have to put a hold on the newer, more popular titles. </div>
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I loved this book so much. So much that I can't wait to read <i>Fangirl </i>and <i>Landlines </i>when it comes out. I believe that Rainbow Rowell is my second favorite author discovery this year. (First would be Neil Gaiman and sadly I am very late to discover his awesomeness.) Finding a new-to-me author makes me want to binge read everything they have ever written. Like the fact that I've worked through five seasons of <i>The Office</i> on Netflix in two weeks. I need to get out more.</div>
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Being a teenager sucks, especially if you are not part of the popular crowd. Park has been part of his little part of Omaha since childhood but sits on the fringes of everyone's clique because, I assume, he's part Korean. He's part of a seemingly normal, happy family even though his father is unnecessarily hard on him because he's not the manly son his dad wants. Eleanor is new to Park's school, and has a few strikes against her. She's overweight and obviously poor, based on the way she dresses. She has an abusive stepfather who once kicked her out of her house. This makes her a target for the bullying of the more popular girls.</div>
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When Park and Eleanor first meet on the school bus, Park found her presence annoying. Over some time, they developed a friendship thanks to comic books and a shared Walkman. Eventually, they fall in love and stumble over the milestones of a first teenage relationship. </div>
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This book, while seeming like a easy-peasy first love novel, does cover some serious topics like bullying, body image, emerging sexuality and abuse. Rowell brushes along these topics without mucking the story down. I am surprised that she shied away from how racism would affect the characters. After all, the hero is half Asian and the heroine's two friends are black. They live in the Midwest. I have a hard time believing that in 1986 Omaha, all these high school students are completely color blind. I'm thinking maybe Rowell didn't want to write about a topic that she is wholly uncomfortable with.</div>
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I would definitely recommended this book to teenage girls. In fact, I may just buy a copy of this for my seventeen year old niece. Any adult women who enjoys romance would like this because it is a honest depiction of the feelings that first love brings around. </div>
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Buy it: <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Eleanor-Park-Rainbow-Rowell-ebook/dp/B008SAZHLQ/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1388244825&sr=8-1&keywords=eleanor+and+park" target="_blank">Amazon</a> <a href="http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/eleanor-park-rainbow-rowell/1110274728?ean=9781250012579" target="_blank">Barnes & Noble</a></div>
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Cindyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11099616980445350155noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8534407769536712863.post-34180579212088908172013-12-25T10:37:00.000-06:002013-12-25T10:37:05.636-06:00The Real Joy of Christmas<br />
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Merry Christmas to one and all. I hope today brings you peace and joy.<br />
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<a href="https://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/wCA-6gRa-OSPyt5uXBLsEfETWKGzEOfSSfehFTRlOBI?feat=embedwebsite"><img height="159" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgiR3LTw90E2pTxEasP72DBeItIkbPOa24kYJ77YkZJrnlkY4_no7lV1KthJJ25y7np9ouj9BbcrB1cuDZgEPMIL23efBlnRLGzNzuUtOcR9_lt3UzNCBxkXphlAxbf0qNCCt2SZiG2d3k/s800/Signature.PNG" width="266" /></a>Cindyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11099616980445350155noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8534407769536712863.post-78589605939382354222013-12-23T13:09:00.003-06:002013-12-23T13:09:53.712-06:00Being AttractiveI once asked Ken why he found me attractive.<br />
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He said it was because I'm so smart.<br />
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I replied that it was because I read all the time.<br />
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Today I came across this video that made me think of that conversation.<br />
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Never underestimate how attractive reading makes you.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgiR3LTw90E2pTxEasP72DBeItIkbPOa24kYJ77YkZJrnlkY4_no7lV1KthJJ25y7np9ouj9BbcrB1cuDZgEPMIL23efBlnRLGzNzuUtOcR9_lt3UzNCBxkXphlAxbf0qNCCt2SZiG2d3k/s1600/Signature.PNG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgiR3LTw90E2pTxEasP72DBeItIkbPOa24kYJ77YkZJrnlkY4_no7lV1KthJJ25y7np9ouj9BbcrB1cuDZgEPMIL23efBlnRLGzNzuUtOcR9_lt3UzNCBxkXphlAxbf0qNCCt2SZiG2d3k/s1600/Signature.PNG" /></a></div>
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Cindyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11099616980445350155noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8534407769536712863.post-82502712307959323062013-12-09T21:17:00.002-06:002013-12-09T21:17:42.446-06:00Movies and Christmas and Cats, Oh My!I had intended to write on here regularly but life has gotten in my way. I know I promised a review of <i>Plain</i> <i>Truth</i> by Jodi Piccoult but I finished that so long ago that I no longer remember any of the things I wanted to say about it. <br />
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This is what I have been up to.<br />
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I reread <i>Catching Fire </i>by Suzanne Collins (for the sixth or seventh time) after seeing the film with my friend Abby. We had such a good time and will be each other's dates for the next two movies. The movie was brilliantly made. Even though I knew what was going to happen, I was on the edge of my seat during the tense moments. I admit that I had tears come to my eyes when Katniss gave her speech in District 11. It was much better than the first movie. I cannot wait to see what they do with Mockingjay especially since it deals with the dark underside of war.<br />
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As an aside, I love Effie Trinket. Her character just makes me smile. I loved the butterfly costume she wore in this movie. I couldn't find a picture that made it look as spectacular as it looked on film.<br />
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We have decorated our house for Christmas. We usually get our tree on the first Saturday of December but this year we got it a week earlier. I am so glad we did because it was windy and in the single digits this last weekend. I found more penguin ornaments and we finally got rid of the string of old fashioned large bulbs. My penguins are up around the house. I decorate with penguins because I absolutely love them and out of sheer laziness. If I don't feel like taking down my Christmas decorations until February, it doesn't look so bad. Penguins are more wintery than Christmasy. <br />
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If you look closely at the right side of the Christmas tree picture, you'll notice something new. We added to our family! That's right. We got two kittens. I only intended to get one but I was having such a hard time choosing between the feisty one or the calm one. Ken decided we should get both of them since they would be happier together. He now claims that it was because I "would still be standing there trying to pick one." They have been a great addition and have brought a lively element to our house. Not to mention that kittens are absolutely adorable and clumsy and hilarious.<br />
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We named them Ferris Mewler and Cameron Frye. I had the name Ferris picked out (thanks <a href="http://thebloggess.com/" target="_blank">Bloggess</a> for such an <a href="http://thebloggess.com/2010/12/im-looking-for-a-cat-named-bob-barker/" target="_blank">awesome cat name</a>) and Cameron just seemed right for his shy, timid brother. <br />
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They are little hellions. So much for having a quiet one. Ferris has bonded with Ken and Cameron has decided to be mine. So yeah, we now have five cats. I'm still not changing the blog name. Maybe a subtitle would be fitting. I still maintain that I'm not a crazy cat lady because one cat lays under our bed and snores all the time and my husband decided to keep two of the four cats. So technically, I only have two cats; my husband has two and his son has the sleepy old one.<br />
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I tried to take a cute picture of them in Ken's hunting boots but cats are not very cooperative. I also apparently really need a pedicure. I still may crop this picture and use it on the Christmas card.<br />
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As for reading, I haven't had a lot of time. I know. I have to make time. Finding time to read is difficult when you work from ten in the morning to ten at night and still need to spend time with your family and friends. Not to mention that cleaning is necessary so my house doesn't look like an episode of <i>Extreme Hoarders</i>. I also crocheted a baby blanket for my little sister's baby that should arrive next month.<br />
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My schedule has settled down and I have picked up a book again. I'm reading a little bit every day. I had no idea how much I <b>need</b> to read until I didn't have time. I could actually feel my brain cells shriveling up and dying. <br />
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Oh, and I seem to be coming out of my depressive episode. I can't describe how that feels. I almost feel like I'm physically lighter. There is light at the end of the tunnel. <br />
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Cindyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11099616980445350155noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8534407769536712863.post-48231540120874293662013-10-24T22:03:00.003-05:002013-10-24T22:03:36.106-05:00The Mean Reds<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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October is a month that is awash with the color pink and we know what those ribbons mean.<br />
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With all that saturation, you probably don't know what the green ribbon represents.<br />
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October is Depression Awareness Month.<br />
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I would love to share a bit of my story. Please forgive the page jump. I hate them when other bloggers use them but I'm only doing this because this post has a few curse words. I don't use them in writing unless I'm quoting and like to warn people before hand.<br />
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I like to peek at my husband's facebook account because his friends are more interesting online than mine are. (Seriously, stop with the constant baby pictures!) I recently read a status from his former classmate that asked if there were really that many people who truly had anxiety and depression. She must do some sort of coding or billing and noticed that diagnosis coming up a lot. That didn't really bother me.<br />
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What she said in the comments irked me so much. <br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
"<span data-reactid=".r[5vsvr].[1][4][1]{comment10151897621913950_28316591}.[0].{right}.[0].{left}.[0].[0].[0][2]"> </span><span data-ft="{"tn":"K"}" data-reactid=".r[5vsvr].[1][4][1]{comment10151897621913950_28316591}.[0].{right}.[0].{left}.[0].[0].[0][3]"><span data-reactid=".r[5vsvr].[1][4][1]{comment10151897621913950_28316591}.[0].{right}.[0].{left}.[0].[0].[0][3].[0]"><span data-reactid=".r[5vsvr].[1][4][1]{comment10151897621913950_28316591}.[0].{right}.[0].{left}.[0].[0].[0][3].[0].[0]">It's
unbelievable to me. At some point Americans turned into a bunch of
pussies who think they're never going to have financial trouble, marital
problems, a broken finger nail or bad hair day and now they run to
their doctor for meds. I am going to bring back and old but poignant
statement: Life's a bitch and then you die". No one said life is easy!
Gotta man up and roll with the punches"</span></span></span></blockquote>
I lead a very charmed life. I have a great husband and kids. I like my job. We have some troubles but nothing that keeps me up at night. I also suffer from severe depression and anxiety. Usually it only hinders me from going to social events, which includes going to church or out with friends, and has me thinking a little too critically of myself. Sometimes it gets so bad that I can't get out of bed and I listen to audio books to keep the terrible, awful thoughts from constantly flooding my mind. At my worst, I was suicidal. <br />
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I go to a doctor. I take an antidepressant. I need to see a therapist but I haven't found one I like that I can afford. I use resources available from church. I am not cured but these help a lot. I still have thoughts that I am worthless. When my husband gets irritated with me, my mind automatically tells me that he would be better off without me. When I am at my best, I can immediately tell myself that <a href="http://thebloggess.com/2012/04/depression-lies/" target="_blank">depression lies</a>. When it's bad, these thoughts snowball and all I can think about is the fact that I am the biggest pile of manure on earth and everyone would be better off without me. <br />
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When I was at my worst, I only got out of bed to go to the bathroom, get small snacks, and to go to work. I listened to audiobooks and my Scriptures nonstop because concentrating on the words forced those thoughts to the background. Seriously, I listened to the entire Harry Potter series in eight days. I cried. My cat spent every day in bed with me, laying at the opposite corner from me, a constant presence. When I cried, she came over and nuzzled my head. The only time she left me was when my husband was home.<br />
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One day, I was laying in bed, feeling terrible. I remembered that I had an old prescription bottle of sleeping pills with only a few pills gone. I had figured out how to just stop existing. I got up to look for these pills with no tears or histrionics, just as if I was going to the bathroom. My cat, who usually stayed put whenever I moved, got up and headbutted my leg and started meowing like crazy. She followed me out of the room and continued to vie for my attention. I realized what I was doing and dropped to the floor and just hugged her while I cried.<br />
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This was still not a turning point for me. A few days later, I had the same idea. Again, my cat did the same thing. Again, I changed my mind and went to back to bed. It still took a few weeks to get to the point where I could muster the energy and motivation to get up and do things. Sometimes recovering from a bad episode is occurs quickly and sometimes it takes a long time.<br />
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I've told a few people that my cat has a special bond with me and that she saved my life. I don't know if they believe me. I don't care. I know it is true.<br />
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Right now, I am doing okay. I have a husband who is incredibly supportive. He makes sure I take my medicine and helps stop my destructive line of thinking. I have a great nurse practitioner who looks at treating the whole picture and not just tossing a prescription at me. I have a supportive network of friends who I can call on anytime I need them. <br />
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I just want depression and mental illness to not have this stigma surrounding it. I want people to know that they are worth a lot even if they do not feel that way. I want people to know that you can't just snap out of it. <br />
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If you think you have depression, talk to someone. Anyone. A family member, a friend, doctor. Get help. If you think someone you care about has depression, help them get the assistance they need. <br />
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If you would like more information on depression, visit the <a href="http://www.nimh.nih.gov/health/topics/depression/index.shtml" target="_blank">National Institute of Mental Health.</a> <br />
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If you are curious about the title of this post, it comes from the movie <i>Breakfast at Tiffany's</i>. <br />
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Thank you for reading this story. It is really just a small part of my journey with depression but it is an important one. It is not eloquent and sometimes I'm not even sure if it is coherent but it took a lot for me to put this on such a public forum. Thanks.<br />
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Cindyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11099616980445350155noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8534407769536712863.post-88817926506823882852013-10-16T18:14:00.001-05:002013-10-16T18:14:36.360-05:00Getting Ready for HalloweenI picked up a bunch of extra days at work so it has been pretty quiet around my house lately. I did do a little decorating for the upcoming holiday.<br />
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Have I told you how much I love Halloween? <br />
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It's just fun. No gift buying. No big dinner. No family drama. And it's a major bonus seeing the kids in their costumes. I<br />
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I came across a few pins that showed window silhouettes like <a href="http://www.pinterest.com/pin/52002570670701997/" target="_blank">this one</a>. <br />
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I figured I could do one on my own. <br />
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So I headed off to the local Walmart and picked up black posterboard, Scotch tape, an X-acto knife, and a cheap plastic tablecloth. <br />
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I drew my designs (which I copied from a few Google images) on the poster board and cut them out. I taped them to the window and then covered the window with the orange tablecloth. <br />
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Here's my final product. <br />
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I may add to the witch window and haunted house window. It just seems to need a bit more. I love how the tree turned out. It took an entire evening but was worth it in the end.<br />
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I'll be back next week with my review of <i>Plain Truth.</i><br />
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Cindyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11099616980445350155noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8534407769536712863.post-58692496573578680552013-10-08T21:35:00.000-05:002013-10-08T21:35:09.146-05:00A Little of This and a Little of That<br />
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I haven't been reading much lately. I have been working a lot and had things going on on my days off. I picked up a few books in my downtime but put them down a chapter or two in. Finally, I grabbed Jodi Piccoult's <i>Plain Truth</i>, which has been sitting on my bookshelf for over a year. I loved <i>My Sister's Keeper</i> and <i>Salem Falls</i> so I figured I should go with a book that's a sure thing. I'm hooked but am reading it slowly. I'm hoping to have a review of it up next week.<br />
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The reason this book is turning into a slow read is because I have a few other projects going at the same time. I've painted my living room walls and ceiling. I still have the trim to paint and then I want to install crown molding. Then new light fixtures. And then I need to switch out all the cream colored light switches and outlets to white ones. Then either find or sew new curtains and hang blinds. It's a huge project for someone who can only work on it two days out of every two weeks. My goal is to have it finished by Christmas. I would like to have a New Year's Eve get together. <br />
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I've also been busy working on a few knitting projects. I go to a knitting club at the public library one town over and have learned a little bit. I made lots of granny dishcloths just to get used to it. I tried making a Dalek dishcloth from a pattern online. It turned out pretty good if you ignore a few mistakes. Not bad for following my first pattern. Now I am attempting to knit socks. The best thing about knitting club is that there are all different levels of skill. Some women are very good and some still only feel comfortable with the dishcloths. We encourage each other and learn new skills and ooh and ah over others' projects. It's a great group of ladies.<br />
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I wanted to put pictures up of the progress in the living room and of my knitting projects. First it didn't happen because my camera was dead and I couldn't find the charger. Now I found the charger but I can't find the camera. Just my luck because I was really excited to put up a post of the Dalek dishcloth. <br />
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<br />Cindyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11099616980445350155noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8534407769536712863.post-37385145066988796042013-09-23T06:30:00.000-05:002013-09-23T06:30:00.938-05:00Another Piece of My Heart<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<b>Title: </b>Another Piece of My Heart<br />
<b>Author: </b>Jane Green<br />
<b>Published: </b>2012, St. Martin's Press<br />
<b>Genre: </b>Fiction, Chick-Lit<br />
<b>Source: </b>Library<br />
<b>From Goodreads:</b><br />
<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<i>"<span id="freeText14012222730203215057">Andi has spent much of
her adult life looking for the perfect man, and at thirty-seven, she's
finally found him. Ethan--divorced with two daughters, Emily and
Sophia--is a devoted father and even better husband. Always hoping one
day she would be a mother, Andi embraces the girls like they were her
own. But in Emily’s eyes, Andi is an obstacle to her father’s love, and
Emily will do whatever it takes to break her down. When the dynamics
between the two escalate, they threaten everything Andi believes about
love, family, and motherhood—leaving both women standing at a crossroad
in their lives…and in their hearts.<br /><br />ANOTHER PIECE OF MY HEART is a
novel that illuminates the nuances and truths about relationships and
is Jane Green at her absolute best."</span></i></blockquote>
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I've had the discussion with friends and family before about how hard it is to be a stepmother (or father, no gender discrimination here). Most people just think that you sit there and get to take it easy while the "real" parent does all the hard work. You are either slotted into one of two roles, the wicked stepmother or the cool stepmom. The children either love you or hate you and you don't have to worry about them after they are out of the house.<br />
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When I met my husband, his kids were nine and twelve. They are now sixteen and nineteen. I love them with all my heart and am completely vested in their journey to becoming fine, young men. It is not easy being a stepmom. I have to be a parent with all the responsibilities that entails but I get none of the recognition that I am a real, honest-to-goodness parent. I'm not saying I want kudos for what I do. I just want to be acknowledged that what I do is exactly the same as what my kids biological mom and dad do.<br />
<br />Like Andi, I also wanted to have another child. My husband was a bit more enthusiastic about having another than Ethan from the book is. I understood exactily why Andi reacted to certain plot points. Infertility really changes your thought processes. I get that Andi wants a baby so horribly that things most people wouldn't think of seem the natural course of action.<br />
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I wish I could say more about how I felt reading this book but it would give away a major storyline. The relationship dynamic amongst the entire family read very true. I really enjoyed that Green showed how Andi could feel immense love and resentment towards Emily. I think any parent, biological and step, can feel that way to a particularly difficult child.<br />
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This book is definitely not fluffy chick lit. It has grit. It's a story that centers around one family that could be anyone's family. Green tells the story about the evolving relationships between parents and children and between spouses. I really enjoyed reading it since I found it partially mirrored my own experience. I would definitely reccoment this to stepmothers, stepdaughters, mothers of teenage daughters and anyone who like chick-lit but wants a change from the romantic end of that genre.<br />
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<br />Cindyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11099616980445350155noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8534407769536712863.post-75905791076994298622013-09-20T21:33:00.000-05:002013-09-20T21:33:00.929-05:00A Necklace I Would Actually WearI hate having things around my neck. Collars, jewelry, scarves, anything that makes me feel choked. Actually, I don't like anything around my neck because it makes my head feel hot. I have no idea why this happens but I'm weird like that. <br />
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However, I was browsing on Pinterest today and found this little lovely that just may make me think feeling overheated would be worth it.<br />
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I just may order it for myself. You can buy it <a href="http://www.etsy.com/listing/114459805/i-still-believe-in-3982-fairy-tale" target="_blank">here</a>.<br />
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Happy weekend everyone.<br />
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Cindyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11099616980445350155noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8534407769536712863.post-49151942523536761252013-09-16T21:05:00.003-05:002013-09-16T21:05:48.836-05:00Gulp<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<b>Title: </b>Gulp: Adventures on the Alimentary Canal<br />
<b>Author: <a href="http://www.maryroach.net/" target="_blank">Mary Roach</a></b><br />
<b>Published: </b>2013, W.W. Norton & Company<br />
<b>Genre: </b>Nonfiction, Medical, Science, Humor<br />
<b>Source: </b>Library<br />
<b>From Goodreads:</b><br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<i>"<span id="freeText2338495761033690059">America’s funniest science writer” (<i>Washington Post</i>)
takes us down the hatch on an unforgettable tour of our insides. The
alimentary canal is classic Mary Roach terrain: the questions inspired
by our insides are as taboo, in their way, as the cadavers in Stiff and
every bit as surreal as the universe of zero gravity explored in <i>Packing for Mars</i>.
Why is crunchy food so appealing? Why is it so hard to find names for
flavors and smells? Why doesn’t the stomach digest itself? How much can
you eat before your stomach bursts? Can constipation kill you? Did it
kill Elvis? We meet scientists who tackle the questions no one else
thinks—or has the courage—to ask. And we go on location to a pet-food
taste-test lab, a bacteria transplant, and into a live stomach to
observe the fate of a meal.<br /><br />Like all of Roach’s books, <i>Gulp</i> is as much about human beings as it is about human bodies."</span></i></blockquote>
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I love the human body. I find it completely fascinating. I've never told anyone this but my favorite field trip in school was to go to UW-Madison to watch a surgery and visit their cadaver lab for my anatomy/physiology class. When I heard Mary Roach talking about <i>Gulp</i> on an NPR program, I knew I had to get this book.<br />
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My husband has two teenage boys. I grew up with five brothers. I am very aware of the nasty parts of digestion. In fact, a favorite action my brothers took was walking up to someone, farting, then running away. My son always seems to let one rip about one block before our house when driving home. I have heard the question "Do you like seafood?" and looked upon nasty masticated "see food" way too many times to count. I love to listen to my gut sounds and wish I had a stethoscope so I could hear them better.<br />
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<i>Gulp</i> was interesting. I enjoyed the chapters that talked about professional smellers, the difference between competitive eaters and the average person, and why pet food flavors don't appeal to humans. I skipped over Chapter Four completely because it failed to interest me. It was about a man with a hole in his stomach. Despite the somewhat disgusting subject matter, Roach manages to write about food's bodily journey in a way that seems like she's chatting about it over coffee.<br />
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The last third of the book does focus on the lower end of the alimentary canal. I learned how successful drug smugglers get their payload into the country. Elvis really did die on the toilet and one chapter explains how that can happen. The noxious gases our body produces cover a whole chapter. Have you ever wondered if you could light your farts on fire? And of course, she covers fecal transplants in the last chapter. I had read about this before but it was in a clinical journal but Roach brought it down to the layman's level and surprisingly didn't make it seem that weird.<br />
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I really enjoyed this book despite the one or two chapters that failed to spark an interest. I don't think I would buy it but <i>Gulp </i>is definitely worth a trip to the library. I enjoyed it so much that I definitely need to check out <i>Stiff: The Curious Lives of Human Cadavers</i>. Mostly because I am completely morbid and am fascinated with death. <br />
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<br />Cindyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11099616980445350155noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8534407769536712863.post-44702098711791227022013-08-30T13:57:00.001-05:002013-08-30T14:46:10.042-05:00When To Give UpI've been a little quiet in the last week. I finished up two books and am working on their reviews. They should be up next week. I have been working ten hour days and the last thing I want to do during work days is sit in front of my computer when I could be outside or spending time with family and friends. I'm also trying to declutter my home. We have way too much stuff for our <del>tiny</del> cozy house. If I want to get everything done, I'm not going to be stepping over piles of stuff. Not that my house looks like Extreme Hoarders. It just has no pieces of furniture with a flat surface that don't have piles of stuff on it. Our dining room table functions as a gigantic shelf. At least there aren't pathways going from room to room. <br /><br />I'm reading. I have been attempting to read more literary fiction. You know, so I can look like I'm smart. Actually, I just want to broaden my horizons bit. I usually read fun, quick reads. I picked up <a target="_blank" href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/10964693-the-marriage-plot?from_search=true">The Marriage Plot</a> by Jeffrey Eugenides as my first choice because I loved <a target="_blank" href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/46181.The_Virgin_Suicides">The Virgin Suicides</a>.<br /><br />I've been trying to read it for six days now and am only forty-three pages in. The author is very talented; I won't deny that. I just cannot get into this book. It is just too wordy. It wears me out so much that I'm falling asleep within a few pages. This makes me ask: Should I continue to read it or should I put it down?<br /><br />I used to be the kind of girl who had to finish every book I picked up. Sometimes this meant taking months to read something a little at a time while simultaneously reading books I actually liked. And then a thought smacked me across the face.<br /><br />Life is too short to spend it reading books you don't like.<br /><br />I gave myself permission to give up on a book when it wasn't holding my interest. As I have figured out where my interests lie, I have done a much better job at picking books I like and some that I love. (That's why you probably won't see too many bad reviews here.). I quit reading fewer books. Best of all, I don't feel like finishing a book is a burden that I have to slog through.<br /><br />Which brings me back to <i>The Marriage Plot</i>. I really want to finish all the novels on the Pulitzer List. I know I'm not going to continue reading it. Should I just leave it for good? Should I come back to it sometime later and hope it doesn't bore me to sleep next time? I will probably revisit it but probably not until I get further into this list. <br /><br />Next up will probably be <a target="_blank" href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/310612.A_Confederacy_of_Dunces?from_search=true">A Confederacy of Dunces</a> by John Kennedy Toole. I own this book and have put it aside for one reason or another and haven't finished it. I find the main character disgusting and fascinating and really look forward to seeing how he develops.<br /><br /><br /><br /><a href='https://picasaweb.google.com/111834968102895106543/GirlInTheNorthwoods?authkey=Gv1sRgCOyXgdfylrG_rgE#5918000942202158706'><img src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAISOWMoCwwCz3-tLUpdlsQAbEL-LCW7x_4s_PVsxNmttKfcMnQxYZBG6rSjZCbgK7K0wjnnjS4ldWUFoXbXTS0-FW_1ln5bedRliKDI-lGa-xHIoP_izvhlvyy_0Vs1QAI6j6-77uQaS_/s288/1377891911.586980.jpg' border='0' width='266' height='159' align='left' style='margin:5px'></a><br /><br />Cindyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11099616980445350155noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8534407769536712863.post-13850168567845356922013-08-23T11:45:00.000-05:002013-08-23T11:45:00.552-05:00Here I Go Again<br />
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<b>Title: </b>Here I Go Again<br />
<b>Author: </b><a href="http://www.jennsylvania.com/" target="_blank">Jen Lancaster</a><br />
<b>Published: </b>2013, New American Library<br />
<b>Genre: </b>Fiction, Chick-Lit, Humor<br />
<b>Source: </b>Library<br />
<b>From Goodreads:</b><br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<i><span id="freeText13895289424669706132">Twenty years after
ruling the halls of her suburban Chicago high school, Lissy Ryder
doesn't understand why her glory days ended. Back then, she was
worshipped...beloved...feared. Present day, not so much. She's been
pink-slipped from her high-paying job, dumped by her husband, and kicked
out of her condo. Now, at thirty-seven, she's struggling to start a
business out of her parents' garage and sleeping under the hair-band
posters in her old bedroom.<br /><br />Lissy finally realizes karma is the
only bitch bigger than she was. Her present is miserable because of her
past. But it's not like she can go back in time and change who she
was...or can she?</span></i><b> </b></blockquote>
I love the movies <i>Mean Girls</i> and <i>Peggy Sue Got Married </i>so the concept of combining the two stories into one really appealed to me. That is the general concept behind Lancaster's novel, <i>Here I Go Again.</i><br />
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This book basically boils down to the fact that Lissy Ryder is another version of Regina George. She was the popular, pretty head cheerleader in high school who ruled the school through terror and manipulation. She grows up and finds her life isn't as great as she thought it would be. She loses her job. Her husband (former quarterback of their high school) gives her the heave ho. She ends up back under her parents' roof and to top it off, gains some extra weight from her mother's cooking. <br />
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Just when things can't get any worse, the invitation arrives for her twentieth class reunion. Lissy, however, sees this as an opportunity to pick up a few clients for herself. Her plan backfires when she discovers her former, now super successful classmates won't have anything to do with her because she was such a biotch to them in high school. When she gets the chance to change things, Lissy discovers that some things are not fixed by a simple friendly attitude.<br />
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The thought of going back in time to fix mistakes seems like a great idea. There are plenty of things I wish I could take back. This book references the butterfly effect and that is a good premise for the book. I hope I didn't already give too much away. It's also filled with so many cliches that I rolled my eyes quite a bit. I also saw how Lissy's story would end pretty much early on in the book. <br />
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If you judge this book based on Pulitzer Prize winners, this book will fall short. If you judge this based on the sheer fact that this is chick-lit and meant to be fun and easy on the brain, it is a great read. While the story does have a romantic story line, the meat of the story is how Lissy learns to treat and appreciate her friends and family. It is a mean girl story with heart. <br />
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I picked this book up because I wanted something a little more light-hearted. I read it in a twenty-four hour period and maybe cried just a bit. I started to care about whether or not Lissy would learn a lesson. I found myself reading this at the dinner table just to find out if I was right about the ending. I ended up giving it four stars because it is engaging and fun as long as you remember that it's not supposed to be serious.<br />
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This book is a fun, quick read. It's great for those boring moments like waiting at the doctor's office. I would recommend this to women who want the literary equivalent of rocky road ice cream. <br />
<br />Cindyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11099616980445350155noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8534407769536712863.post-80864347646947381702013-08-20T14:04:00.000-05:002013-08-20T14:04:00.165-05:00The Kings and Queens of Roam<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<b>Title: </b>The Kings and Queens of Roam</div>
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<b>Author: </b>Daniel Wallace</div>
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<b>Published: </b>2013, Touchstone</div>
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<b>Genre: </b>Fiction, Magical Realism</div>
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<b>Source: </b>Library</div>
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<b>From Goodreads:</b></div>
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<i><span id="freeText3634812082453846493">Helen and Rachel
McCallister, who live in a town called Roam, are as different as sisters
can be: Helen older, bitter, and conniving; Rachel beautiful, naïve –
and blind. When their parents die an untimely death, Rachel has to rely
on Helen for everything, but Helen embraces her role in all the wrong
ways, convincing Rachel that the world is a dark and dangerous place she
couldn't possibly survive on her own … or so Helen believes, until
Rachel makes a surprising choice that turns both their worlds upside
down.</span> </i> </div>
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I picked up this book because it's cover caught my eye even though it was at the back of the new books display at my local library. I don't know if you ever get a book because of the cover but I do it a lot. I've been exposed to and liked many different books that I would never have picked up just by reading the cover blurb.</div>
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This is a story of two different times. It shifts from the time when Roam was being built up into a great town known for silk and the days when Roam is quickly becoming a ghost town. Each chapter switches narration between the sisters, the two founders of Roam, and a few other characters. </div>
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As the description states, Helen is the older, ugly sister and Rachel is the young, beautiful sister. As children, Helen tells Rachel a lie that snowballs as their life passes, continuing even after their parents die young. The story centers around the relationship of these two sisters and their perceived need of one another. Their story is not a healthy one, but as it progresses the sisters learn so much about their places in the world. </div>
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While the story focuses mainly on the sisters, the secondary characters flesh out the story wonderfully. The sisters' great-grandfather who allows his ambitions to affect the greatest relationship he's ever had. The great-father's reluctant traveling companion who only wants to be with his family. The quiet lumberjack who loves his dog more than anything. The lonely bartender who keeps company with ghosts. They all have their unique storylines that add a depth to the town of Roam.</div>
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I did enjoy this book, however I lost interest towards the end of the story and was disappointed with the ending. Even though the story started to fall flat towards the end, Wallace's writing was still descriptive and filled with magic. I wouldn't buy this book but it was a fun, fanciful read that I would recommend.</div>
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Cindyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11099616980445350155noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8534407769536712863.post-89154243209001583402013-08-16T07:00:00.000-05:002013-08-16T07:00:00.555-05:00The Ocean at the End of the Lane<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<b>Title: </b>The Ocean at the End of the Lane<br />
<b>Author: </b>Neil Gaiman<br />
<b>Published: </b>2013, Harper Collins<br />
<b>Genre: </b>Fiction, Fantasy<br />
<b>Source: </b>Library<br />
<b>From Goodreads:</b><br />
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<span id="freeText5910585435474561679"><i> A middle-aged man
returns to his childhood home to attend a funeral. Although the house he
lived in is long gone, he is drawn to the farm at the end of the road,
where, when he was seven, he encountered a most remarkable girl, Lettie
Hempstock, and her mother and grandmother. He hasn't thought of Lettie
in decades, and yet as he sits by the pond (a pond that she'd claimed
was an ocean) behind the ramshackle old farmhouse, the unremembered past
comes flooding back. And it is a past too strange, too frightening, too
dangerous to have happened to anyone, let alone a small boy.<br /><br />Forty
years earlier, a man committed suicide in a stolen car at this farm at
the end of the road. Like a fuse on a firework, his death lit a
touchpaper and resonated in unimaginable ways. The darkness was
unleashed, something scary and thoroughly incomprehensible to a little
boy. And Lettie—magical, comforting, wise beyond her years—promised to
protect him, no matter what.</i></span></blockquote>
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If you are unfamiliar with <a href="http://www.neilgaiman.com/" target="_blank">Neil Gaiman</a>, you are really missing out. I have read <i>American Gods, </i>it's sequel(ish) <i>Anansi Boys, The Graveyard Book</i>, and <i>Coraline.</i> His writing style is a kind of fantastical realism that is completely twisted, but in a good way. He writes fiction for both adults and children. So when I found out he was releasing a new book in June, I waited impatiently for it to be available at my local library.<br />
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I was not disappointed. Gaiman has a way of writing that makes the events in this book seem like it could actually happen. I ate up this story in two evenings of reading. It's pretty short at only about 180 pages (or if you read the large-print edition like I did, 246 pages). Even though I was exhausted after working ten hour days, the story was engrossing enough that I had trouble putting it down so I could get enough sleep.<br />
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Without giving away too much, when this boy and his father head down to see about their stolen car, Lettie Hempstock offers to keep him busy at her family's farm. He meets Lettie's mother and grandmother and shows the boy the pond out back, which she claims is the ocean. Two days later, the boy has a strange dream with a very real result and decides to ask Lettie what is happening. After eating breakfast with the Hempstocks, the boy tags along with Lettie as she sets off into the woods to do a task. One small movement during this task sets off a chain of events that throw the boys life for a strange and magical loop.<br />
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This book is dark and weird. It reads like a fairy tale for adults. I loved the way Gaiman was able to make the reader feel like you are getting a true glimpse into how a child's mind works. These are some of my favorite quotes from the book.<br />
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<span class="readable">"Grown-ups don't look like grown-ups on the inside
either. Outside, they're big and thoughtless and they always know what
they're doing. Inside, they look just like they always have. Like they
did when they were your age. Truth is, there aren't any grown-ups. Not
one, in the whole wide world."</span></blockquote>
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"Small children believe themselves to be gods, or some of them do, and can only be satisfied when the rest of the world goes along with their way of seeing things."</blockquote>
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"Adults follow paths. Children explore. Adults are content to walk the same way, hundreds of times, or thousands; perhaps it never occurs to adults to step off the paths, to creep beneath rhododendrons, to find the spaces between fences."</blockquote>
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<span class="readable">"I lived in books more than I lived anywhere else.</span>"</blockquote>
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I loved this book more than <i>American Gods </i>or <i>Anansi Boys</i>. Probably because I prefer that innocent point of view that could only come from a child. It is a refreshing change from my own pessimistic, jaded viewpoint. It would also make a good introduction to Neil Gaiman's writing style to someone who is not familiar with magical realism in fiction.<br />
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I am going to buy my own copy of this book. I definitely think it will be a good addition to my overflowing bookshelves.<br />
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Cindyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11099616980445350155noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8534407769536712863.post-34392641705755049922013-08-12T11:56:00.000-05:002013-08-12T11:56:00.082-05:00The Weed That Strings The Hangman's Bag<br />
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<b>Title: </b>The Weed That Strings the Hangman's Bag</div>
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<b>Author: </b>Alan Bradley</div>
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<b>Genre: </b>Fiction, Mystery</div>
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<b>Year Published: </b>2010<br />
<b>Source: </b>Library </div>
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<b>From Goodreads:</b><i><span id="freeText464932035537852050"><br /></span></i><br />
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<i><span id="freeText464932035537852050">Flavia thinks that her days of
crime-solving in the bucolic English hamlet of Bishop’s Lacy are
over—and then Rupert Porson has an unfortunate rendezvous with
electricity. The beloved puppeteer has had his own strings sizzled, but
who’d do such a thing and why? For Flavia, the questions are intriguing
enough to make her put aside her chemistry experiments and schemes of
vengeance against her insufferable big sisters. Astride Gladys, her
trusty bicycle, Flavia sets out from the de Luces’ crumbling family
mansion in search of Bishop’s Lacey’s deadliest secrets.</span></i><br /><br /><i><span id="freeText464932035537852050">Does the
madwoman who lives in Gibbet Wood know more than she’s letting on? What
of the vicar’s odd ministrations to the catatonic woman in the
dovecote? Then there’s a German pilot obsessed with the Brontë sisters, a
reproachful spinster aunt, and even a box of poisoned chocolates. Most
troubling of all is Porson’s assistant, the charming but erratic Nialla.
All clues point toward a suspicious death years earlier and a case the
local constables can’t solve—without Flavia’s help. But in getting so
close to who’s secretly pulling the strings of this dance of death, has
our precocious heroine finally gotten in way over her head?</span></i></blockquote>
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I loved the first book in this series, <i><a href="http://1house3cats.blogspot.com/2013/07/i-got-it-at-library-sweetness-at-bottom.html" target="_blank">The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie</a></i>. Flavia de Luce is the daughter I wish I had. She's smart, observant, and incredibly morbid. I knew from that book I would have to read the whole series.<br />
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This book wasn't quite as exciting as the first. The story didn't pull me in like the last one. Once again, Flavia the suspicious death of a travelling puppeteer and is determined to solve it. As she finds clues and attempts to solve another mystery, she learns new things about the death of a young boy that happened about five years earlier. As with the last book, there are connections between the two deaths. <br />
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While reading this book, I was not as engaged as I was with the first. The mystery part just seemed a bit cluttered and confusing to me, which may explain why I had trouble speeding through this book. However, Flavia is still herself and completely charming. Even though I wasn't absolutely in love with the storyline, everything tied together in the end and resolved the story without seeming to end like that because Bradley just wanted to end the book.<br />
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Even though I was slightly underwhelmed by the second book in this series, I still recommend reading this. Bradley creates memorable, likable characters that make his books a joy to read. This book can be read alone with no worries of following the story line. It is definitely a must read if you loved the first book.<br />
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Cindyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11099616980445350155noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8534407769536712863.post-12659582581197929532013-08-08T11:59:00.004-05:002013-08-08T11:59:33.619-05:00I have been trying to make sure I have regular content here but sometimes life gets in the way.<br />
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I started a new job and have been training and getting used to my new hours. When you haven't worked more than four hours in a day for over two years, it's quite a change to go to ten hour days. Luckily I only work seven days out of fourteen. I think I'll like this job but I'm not used to it yet. So on my days off I have done absolutely nothing because I'm wore slap out. It will get better and I'll have more time to get to the things I want to get done.<br />
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I have a few book reviews coming up next week. In the mean time, do something that makes you happy.<br />
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Cindyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11099616980445350155noreply@blogger.com0