Freedom Hunger Sarah

Really need to start keeping track of the books I read...I think I will cover them all, but I've got that nagging feeling like I am forgetting one. I guess if I did forget one, then it must not have been a very memorable book! Anyway...

Since I had veered away from Oprah's list for a while, I decided to venture back in by choosing Freedom by Jonathan Franzen. It had gotten amazing reviews and I love longbooks. Unfortunately, I couldn't have possible found it more boring. I kept on trekking through it because I figured maybe it started a little slow and picked up in the middle. Well, I got close to 300 pages in and still nothing more fascinating than a brief affair. I figured I gave it as much attention as it deserved and dropped it off at the library. I absolutely hate not finishing a book, but I also hate wasting my time. I know it's a bestseller but I personally do not recommend it.

While I was reading Freedom, my husband was reading The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins. I had every intention of reading it after I finished Freedom, but then he bought me a Kindle! Now, I had mentioned in an earlier post that I was worried that technology was going to ruin the sanctity of the written word. I did read all three of the Hunger Games books on the Kindle (in less than I week I might add-those books were addicting!) But I find that while the Kindle is pretty cool, I will always love holding a book.

So I did pause my reading of Freedom (I was not sad about it) to read The Hunger Games, Chasing Fire, and Mockingjay. What an amazing journey! It was such an interesting concept and I enjoyed every minute of this trilogy. And while I do think it could have ended a little better, I would still highly recommend this trilogy to EVERYBODY. And make sure to read it before the movie comes out!!

After I finished that series, I went back to Freedom. And after dropping it off at the library a couple days later, I went back to the trunk of my car to see if I still had Sarah's Key by Tatiana de Rosnay back there. I did not, and instead found a novel that my aunt (well, she's basically my aunt) gave to me. It seemed like it would be more of a beach book, but I had nothing else to read at that moment, so I started reading it. And I was pretty much right. It was called The Rest of Her Life by Laura Moriarty. It was about this teenage girl who accidentally hits a girl with her car and kills her. It's told from the point of view of her mother and it is all about the mother-daughter relationship. It was a cute read, but I thought it ended rather abruptly. I wish there were another couple of chapters to really tie up all the ends, but I would definitely recommend it for a beach read.

After finishing that book, I searched the bookshelf at home to see if maybe I had brought Sarah's Key into the house, like a normal person. I really didn't want to go searching in my car again. And alas! There it was. So I tucked it in my purse and prepared to read it at lunch the next day. So far, I am really enjoying it! I like the way the chapters alternate from present day to the roundup in France. I am looking forward to seeing how they interconnect, although, I think I may need to put that on hold for a bit...

The worst thing happened. I had put 2 books on hold at the library: The Best of Me by Nicholas Sparks and The Next Always by Nora Roberts, two of my favorite authors. As I was on long waiting lists for both, I assumed they would come in at different times. Unfortunately, they did not! When I went to the library to today to pick up The Next Always, I saw, with dismay, that The Best of Me had also come in. What are the odds? So I stood there at the self-checkout counter...one book in my left hand, one book in my right. The worst. I knew I couldn't have both, since they were 2 week books and I would never be able to read them both in that time. So sadly, I returned The Best of Me to the bin and walked out with Nora. Because I just love her more. So back on the waiting list for Nicholas I go. So I will start reading The Next Always and return to Sarah's Key when I finish.

Happy Holidays!

One month of many books

Wow, I havebeen SLACKING on my blogging. Since my last post, I have actually read a handful of books, althoughmost of them were notOprah's Book Club picks. After Tara Road and Gap Creek, I decided I really needed a break from her list and instead, I caught up with some of my favorite authors.

I gobbled up Sing You Home by Jodi Picoult in less than a week. If you want to read a book that centers around all the main social debate topics, then this is your gem. I

thought it was a very interesting read and I had a hard time putting the book down. The book actually comes with an audio cd attached to it that supposedly goes along with the chapters. The lyrics were written by the author and another woman, who also provides the vocals. I never actually listened to the cd myself, but I thought that was a very cool and unique way to bring a story to life.

The next book I read was Chasing Fire by Nora Roberts. As a

lot of you know, I absolutely adore this autho

r, and NOT because she is a romance novelist!! In my 11 years reading her books, I have found that her larger novels actually contain a lot less "romance" writing and more character development and story line. She writes about topics that are so unique and worth learning about, such as fire jumping. Chasing Fire revolves around a base in Montana that houses and trains people to literally jump into forest fires during the dry months in order to put them out and save the surrounding towns and wildlife. I had never really heard about that profession before and found it amazing to learn about. Sure there is romance, but there is a lot of mystery and intrigue as well, so don't count her out so fast! I believe after I finished Chasing Fire (a little past my library due date-yikes!) I read Night Road by Kristin Hannah. I have read almost

all of her books, and I have enjoyed them all (except True Colors--I didn't really care for that one) and I really loved reading Night Road. It is about teenagers, friendship, love, and heartbreak. And maybe a lit

tle more love. It was a great read and I read this one so fast that when I finished it, my fiance was confused because he thought I was still reading Chasing Fire!

After Night Road, I decided to peruse through the trunk of my car. I still had a bag in there that contained books that I had bought from that book fair a few months back, and I thought I would give Oprah another chance. I chose to read Where

The Heart Is by Billie Letts next, because I knew I couldn't go wrong with that one. I have never seen the movie because I always said I had wanted to read the book first. And after reading the book, I am definitely looking forward to seeing the movie. It was just a very nice story about the kindness of strangers, something that isn't as prevalent in the world as it used to be.

After finishing Where The Heart Is, I went back to my trunk and picked out Barefoot by Elin Hilderbrand. While also not an Oprah pick, I have been wanting to read something by this author for a while now, so I don't feel guilty!! I am about halfway through it, and it would definitely be a great beach read. Or, since it IS October, and slightly past beach season, I would recommend reading it curled up on a couch with a cozy blanket and a hot beverage of your choice :)

Since it is October, I can't help but mention that I am getting married this month! Not only this month, but in 12 days! I can almost count the days on 2 hands! I am very excited and I am begging you all to think warm, nice-day thoughts, because I would love to have the ceremony outside by the lake. In kee

ping with the theme, I recommend that everyone read the Bride Quartet by Nora Roberts. 4 books of all the wedding talk you can possibly handle!
See you all on the married side!

Gap Creek by Robert Morgan

Another snoozer. This was such a one-note book...when I read the dialogue in my head, it was all in monotone. This girl gets married young, leaves home, goes to live with her new husband who got fired from work but somehow, miraculously, they manage to survive a year without spending any money and living off the food that they found around their rented house. She gives birth alone, the baby ends up dying, the creek floods and they have to leave their house and find somewhere new to live. Oh, and he resents her and stifles her because she happens to be a lot smarter than him, in addition to being a harder worker. It's boring, pointless, and not worth reading. These last two picks of Oprah have been real doozies.

On another subject, the book club ended up not working out. I was so excited about it and I was excited about the interest that I had gotten. So I was quite disappointed when no one showed up to the second meeting. It was just me and the lovely woman who had offered to host it. What bothers me isn't that nobody showed up...people lead busy lives and I would never expect everyone to show up at every meeting. What made me sad is that no one said that they weren't coming. The minutes just ticked away and I never got a message, a call, or an email from any of the women letting me know they wouldn't be able to make it, and I just felt kind of duped. I love books and I was so looking forward to reading books that I may not have read otherwise and discussing thoughts and feelings. Oh well.

What I did read after Gap Creek was Sing You Home, by Jodi Picoult. I absolutely love her books and I read through it in less than a week. It was another amazing story, though it did include almost every big ticket controversial issue in the book, which I found kind of funny. It did make for a lot of drama and an interesting story. So I recommend that one, at least!

I hope you all are reading something worthwhile :)

Tara Road by Maeve Binchy

Yes it took me about 3 months to finally finish Tara Road, but I finally did finish it 2 nights ago. I anxiously sped through the last 50 pages, sure that everything that needed to be resolved finally would. Well, when I got to the last page, I didn't even want to read it because I knew that that wasn't going to happen. In fact, I had to keep myself from throwing it out the window becuase it was just so awful! There was not one likeable character in that entire book. None. Most of the characters were weak and spineless and never lived up to the potential that the author should have given them. Friends betrayed other friends and no one ever found out about it, no one ever told anyone off that needed to be put in their place...it's like everyone was just happy in their ignorance and the author let them! I wanted to go into the story and yell at EVERY SINGLE CHARACTER.

In summary, I don't recommend this book to anyone and I may never read another book by this author. I don't think I've ever read a book that has made me so mad. I don't know what Oprah was thinking!!

In the meantime, while trying to get through that book, I did manage to finish Cutting for Stone...which I liked very much, although I was a little upset by the ending. It was a very interesting story, it just ended rather quickly and pointlessly. I am now reading The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society by Mary Ann Shaffer and Annie Barrows for the next book club meeting. I am rather enjoing it! It is told from the point of view of letters, and I find that I am always interested in what the next letter has to say. It's very cute so far, and definitely worlds away from Cutting for Stone. At the first book club meeting, only 2 other girls came and we never even got to talking about the book until the very end! Such is the world of a group of women. Our next meeting is in a couple weeks and I hope more girls show up! And if not, I'm looking forward to another small chatting session :)

Update

I have no excuses for why it is taking me so long to finish my next book! I’ve had to renew it twice already and I’m only a little more than halfway through Tara Road by Maeve Binchy. While it is a thicker book, its length is not the reason it’s taking me so long to get through it. While it is an interesting story…honestly, I’m a little bored. It’s getting to the point where I really don’t care what happens to these characters, and I very much want to care. It’s just a story I’ve read before: Woman falls in love, than woman and man fall in love with big beautiful house, they move in, have kids, man tells woman he had an affair with another (much younger) girl and now she’s pregnant. It’s still an interesting story line, I just don’t think it’s being told very well.

BUT, if I had just finished it in a timely manner like the other books, than I wouldn’t be in the situation that I’m in now! For a long time, I’ve always wanted to join a book club. And the Borders near my apartment has a book club, but I kept hesitating to check it out because I wasn’t going to know anyone there. Since I’m a part of the squadron newsletter, I brought up the idea about starting a book club. No one has started one, so we put a little blurb in the newsletter, asking people to contact me if they were interested, and I got a couple emails! We picked a book, Cutting for Stone by Abraham Verghese and we will be meeting at my place to discuss it on July 20. So now, I have to finish this book club book first, because I need to make sure I can discuss it for the meeting. I’m hoping to finish it early so that I can spend a couple days catching up on Tara Road. Plus, I’m in the process of knitting a cardigan-vest, a scarf from left-over material, and I also started another cross-stitching project. And with these crafting activities, I can also watch various shows I’ve DVR’d. The only real reading I’ve been doing lately has been before I go to sleep and during my lunch break at work. I just have too many hobbies now!!

I am going to see if I can integrate some of Oprah’s book pics into the book club repertoire. She has so many amazing choices, I’m sure the girls are bound to want to read some of them!

Book Fair!!

I love book fairs!!

I'm in Connecticut for the week to do some wedding stuff, and my dad informed me a couple days ago that he saw signs for a book sale that the public library was putting on. It started today, so I got some cash and headed on over to the library that I used to work at back in high school. There were three adjoining tents set up with tons and tons of used books, from children's to old classics and self-help to science fiction. I browsed aisle to aisle, constantly bumping into and getting in the way of other browsing patrons, as they did the same to me, all of us lost in our book tunnel vision. I realized it would be a great place to buy some of Oprah's Book Club books on the cheap! There were many different books on the list there, and I ended up choosing three books from the book club (Where The Heart Is by Billie Letts, The Pilot's Wife by Anita Shreve, and Gap Creek by Robert Morgan) and two more books that I just wanted to read (Sarah's Key by Tatiana de Rosnay and Barefoot by Elin Hilderbrand).

And I bought all 5 books for just $7!

I just love book fairs :)

Fall On Your Knees by Ann-Marie MacDonald

This book had me feeling depressed and joyful, horrified and excited, and also grossed out and amazed at the distances that these characters were ready and willing to go to not only for their families, but for their own selfish desires. This novel was dark, intense, and thoroughly gloomy. Don’t get me wrong though, Fall On Your Knees is written beautifully and is cleverly haunting.

In case you want some literary proof about what you would be getting into, should you decide to read the book, the first line is: “They’re all dead now.”

An interesting thing about the he preface is that it’s told from the point of view of someone describing a three dimensional photograph. You see the different rooms described inside the house and what the members of the family were doing at one particular pivotal moment. There are other parts of the book that are described the same way as well, as though life in the story freezes for a couple of moments so the story teller can make sure the reader can truly visualize. This is a subtler passage of the phenomenon:

“The closet beneath the stairs is full of soft dark things. When its door stands open a crack it is possible to discern a thin white stripe interrupting the silver of gloom. That’s Frances peeking out.”

I also wanted to share this passage, which is not only a clear example of the literary portrait, but also a beautiful passage:

“Everything in New York is a photograph. All the things that are supposed to be dirty or rough or unrefined are the most beautiful things. Garbage cans at the ends of alleyways look like they’ve been up all night talking with each other. Doorways with peeling paint look like the wise lines around an old feller’s eyes. I stop and stare but can’t stay because men always think I’m selling something. Or worse, giving something away. I wish I could be invisible. Or at least I wish I didn’t look like something they want to look at. They stop being a part of the picture, they get up from their chess game and come out of the frame at me, blocking my view. What do they see when they look at me?”

I found the story to be divided into three different components, as far as the character development goes. The beginning tells the story of the growing family, and the daughters as little girls, figuring out their own meanings of life. The second part is sort of a plateau, in that it’s all just story telling. No one really gets older, the plot doesn’t really continue, the reader just gets sucked into a regular day-to-day life for a while. Then everyone sort of separates from each other, each sister finding their own paths, venturing in very different directions as they grow older. The sisters can’t understand the other’s directions, and knows they can’t follow anyone else’s path but their own.

As beautiful and interesting this book was, I think I need the next book I read to be a little more uplifting. Maybe even a “happily ever after” thrown in there.

Interlude 1

Are books becoming obsolete?

I mean...why bother reading when there are so many technological gadgets and games around to keep our minds from actually thinking and experiencing the real world. In a way, what I am saying is a bit hypocritical, since I am writing this internet blog, but I am mostly referring to things like the iPhone and iPad. For me, it is still freeing to travel places and not have immediate access to my email or Facebook, and also exciting, as I look forward to seeing what I've missed. Before my fiance had his iPhone, we used to send each other cute little Facebook messages and I knew he would wake up to a message from me wishing him a great day. I can't do those things anymore because his phone is always on him, and I can't send him anything without it being received on the spot.

I'm afraid of all of this advancing technology, and not just because I've seen the Terminator movies. I'm afraid for my books! There is something so special about holding a book in my hands. I love the excitement that comes with opening a book for the first time, and the accomplishment that I feel when I turn the last page. I could (and have) spend hours at a bookstore or library, just looking at all the books, deciding on what story to get lost in. I have never paid for a book that I couldn't hold in my hands. Paying money to read a book on an iPad just boggles me, and makes me sad. And I have absolutely no desire to read a book on a phone.

Now, I'm not against technology. I love my laptop, and staying connected with people on Facebook. And I have definitely played addicting games on my fiance's iPhone. But I like being able to leave those things at home. And instead of burning brain cells for hours on end looking at a tiny phone screen and flinging birds at things...I pick up a book. And I can only hope that that will always be my first choice.

East of Eden by John Steinbeck

East of Eden is an amazing story about life in similar forms, starting with one patriarch and ended two patriarchs later. This novel is said to be a modern retelling of the Book of Genesis. The stories of Adam & Eve and Cain & Abel are beautifully intertwined to the point where the men in the family seem to trade off being a “Cain” or an “Abel,” and with that comes the trading off of good and evil, showing that everyone has a little bit of both inside of them.

The Adam and Eve stories are definitely described in a modern way…in fact, the main women in the book are either evil themselves, or harsh, or too beautiful for their own good. Through the majority of the novel, the men were either marrying or giving birth to women who would end up living lives that were quite unfulfilled and unsatisfied, which I found pretty sad. Is this back to the concept that the sins of the world can be traced back to women, and then back to Eve? There are many people in the world today, over 50 years after this novel was written, that live in that same mindset.

The book really isn’t about women though, it is really about Adam and his life being a son, a brother, and then a father to two sons who seem to struggle with the same problems that Adam and his brother had. It was fascinating to read about how he didn’t like the way his father raised him and his brother, but he ended up turning into his father in many ways, and I’m not sure he ever fully realized that.

Anyway, my very favorite part of the book was the naming of Adam’s sons. Adam and two friends sat together for hours, discussing the philosophy and theology behind names. Worrying about what was going to be passed down through blood, how much of it was up to how they were brought up…the basic Nature vs. Nurture debate. An interesting quote from that discussion:

“I don’t very much believe in blood,” said Samuel. “I think when a man finds good or bad in his children he is seeing only what he planted in them after they cleared the womb.”

“You can’t make a race horse of a pig.”

“No,” said Samuel, “but you can make a very fast pig.”

It is hard to really get into depth about the characters because I don’t want to spoil this book for anyone else that would want to read it. I will say that I highly recommend it, as it is very thought provoking and had me going back into the Book of Genesis and seeing it in a new light.

Midwives by Chris Bohjalian

I found this book to be quite the nail biter. It was amazingly written, in the sense that the author would make me think the trial would go one way, then in the next paragraph, have me CONVINCED the trial would take a different turn. Generally speaking, I tend not to prefer books with trials for that reason, because I get consumed with having to know what the verdict is, and I speed through the description of the trial itself, basically not even reading the opening or closing statements. And even though I desperately wanted to know how the trial turned out, the way it was written had me not having the desire to speed read through it.

I really responded to the writing style. Originally, from the way the summary on the back of the book is written, I had assumed the book would start at the scene in question, the home birth gone horribly wrong, and have the whole story just be about the trial, but it wasn’t like that at all. In fact, it was told from the midwife’s daughter’s point of view many years after the trial. So not only was it told from an outsider’s perspective, it also had flashbacks and flash-forwards that really keep you in a close relationship with the characters. By the time the trial rolled around, I had very clear pictures of the characters, their homes, and Vermont in general. I felt like I was in the courtroom with everyone…I could see where everyone was sitting, I could picture the supporting midwives in the back rows of the courtroom, breastfeeding their little ones.

This book also had me thinking about motherhood…as well as the terrifying business of going through labor. There was one quote that really resonated with me, especially in the last year or so. I know a handful of women who are pregnant right now and, along with the birth of my nephew, have really had me thinking about being a mom. Not for at least a few years, but nonetheless. The quote: “Some girls got the nurture bug back when they began puberty, and used baby-sitting as a substitute. Others didn’t discover the desire to mother until they were adults themselves.” I hated babysitting. And I felt very uncomfortable around kids. Which is unfortunate because I worked in a day camp, interned at an elementary school and a preschool, and did babysit. But I’m dying to be around kids and babies now. Yes, it still scares me…kids are so…truthful. It’s amazing how things change, though. No, I have no desire to have my babies at my house…it is all hospital and epidurals for me. But I learned a lot from this book, including the reasons mothers do choose to have their babies without any medical intervention. Power to them, that is the definition of strength.

The next book on my list is East of Eden by John Steinbeck, recommended by my friend Sharon. I have read a book by him before, Of Mice and Men, back in my freshman year of high school. Choosing this novel was also a way to prepare for the book after that, which will be one of the books I was forced to read in high school. I hope this novel will remind me to keep an open mind and not judge a book by a previous grudge.

Open House by Elizabeth Berg

I decided that my first book pick would be Open House by Elizabeth Berg. I had originally made this choice for two main reasons, the first being that I had already read books from her before, so I figured I would enjoy reading another one. When I went to figure out what books I had previously read, I realized that I actually hadn’t read anything by Elizabeth Berg. At all. Why do I think I had read this previous work from this author when I clearly have not? I have no idea. Anyway, my second reason for choosing to read this novel first was because the main character’s name was Samantha. Obviously the most legitimate and respected reason for choosing a book is by the main character’s first name.

This book turned out to be exactly how I expected it would be. A story about a woman who is going through a divorce and during a couple of sad and depressing months after, manages to meet some new people, learn some new skills, have some new feelings, and find herself again. A good story, although I wish it would have been a little longer.

It’s funny, though, how sometimes certain characters speak to you in a certain way, even if you have never gone through what the character is going through. I have never had a divorce, but there were a few thoughts in the book that I had previously thought about. For example, this one:

“Oh, what I want to do is hand over my life to someone else. That’s all. And they could rearrange it into something that would make sense.”

I’ve had this thought many times in the past, particularly when I’m sad, believing that someone else could live my life better than me. That I am, somehow, doing it wrong, that there is a guidebook to my life somewhere and I am just not following it correctly, having never been told it existed. And somewhere, someone has this book, has read it, and is laughing at how much I am screwing it up. A depressing idea, no matter how untrue it happens to be. Which brings me to this quote from the book:

“”Oh, God, King. You always make me feel so…Like I’m fine.”

“That’s because you are, Sam. How come you don’t know that?”

I realize this isn’t spoken to me directly, but the fact that it is being said to a character with my name, does help it pack more of a punch. Sometimes, these kinds of reminders are helpful, no matter where they come from.

In honor of the birth of my little nephew this past week, I have chosen my next selection to be Midwives by Chris Bohjalian. The title is, of course, the part of the book I am referring to, as I believe the story itself is dark, sad, and haunting. None of which relate to this adorable little peanut.

The Beginning

I am really excited about starting this reading journey. I am thrilled to be introduced to new authors, genres, and styles of writing. The challenging part about this list will be rereading the books I have already read. Like most readers, I have known about Oprah’s Book Club for many years, and I have read a handful of them over the years.There are also a number of books on this list that I was forced to read in high school, which I am both looking forward to and not looking forward to rereading.

The list of books I have read by choice are:

She’s Come Undone-Wally Lamb

I Know This Much is True-Wally Lamb

Icy Sparks-Gwyn Hyman Rubio

Night-Elie Wiesel

The list of books I was forced to read are:

A Lesson Before Dying-Ernest J. Gaines

The Good Earth-Pearl S. Buck

Great Expectations-Charles Dickens

The list of books I couldn’t get through the first time are :

The Pilot’s Wife-Anita Shreve

We Were the Mulvaneys-Joyce Carol Oats

Middlesex-Jeffrey Eugenides

I am currently reading the newest book in the J.D. Robb series, Treachery in Death (the only futuristic mystery books I have read and probably will read). During the reading of this book, I will be debating which Oprah book I will read first. Any suggestions are welcome!