The Book Thief by Markus Zusak. I enjoyed this one, although did not experience the total all-consuming awesomeness that many experienced while reading it. Some parts of it dragged for me, but I thought the POV idea was amazing and creative. It was one of those books in which I finished and felt like nothing really happened in the book. I think Zusak was moderately successful in pulling that off. Liesel was likeable and endearing, but I thought Max was the highlight of the book for me. It's a shame he didn't stick around for the entire time.
Pack up the Moon by Anna McPartlin. I picked this up for a couple of dollars at my parents' library's used book sale. The book takes place in either Dublin or the area right outside of it. Emma's boyfriend dies in a vehicular crash, and she is 'forced' to continue living her life with the help of her close friends. It's a cute story, but nothing I would read again. I also found the Irish component rather flat. Although obviously not a travel book, I despise it when I read books taking place in other parts of the world and it doesn't make me want to go there. Having been to Dublin, I couldn't even conjure up enough memories to make me feel like I was there, or gain inspiration to make me want to go back. Until she mentioned Dublin, I never would have known where the book was set.
The Husband's Secret by Liane Moriarty. This was my favorite of the three. Multiple story lines all take place simultaneously, all interwoven together. The concept reminds me of six degrees of separation, in which everyone is somehow connected to others, even in different geographic locales. My favorite part was actually the end, in which the reader is told how certain events impacted the life of the characters and took them on a different path. For instance, a young girl hit by a car would have been a tennis star had she not lost her arm, and that split second mistake irrevocably changed her life course. It's a throw to the idea of wondering where life would lead had you chosen option B, or had 'that' not happened, and a slap to the concept of everything happens for a reason. I may not believe that, but I appreciated and enjoyed the author's attempt.
Currently reading:
Brave New World. I keep picking this up and putting it down. I just need to finish it already.
Anna Karenina. I put this down awhile ago after reading about half of it and I'm really enjoying it now that I've picked it back up again.
Water for Elephants. I'm reading a book with Robert Pattinson on the cover. It's shameful, but I got tired of hearing the rave reviews about this book even though I didn't particular care about it when it was released. I found it for $2 somewhere and finally bought it. It's interesting, although I'm only 1/3 of the way through it and I don't see what all the hype is about.
Thursday, July 31, 2014
Friday, June 13, 2014
books lately.
In the past couple of weeks, I've knocked out a few books that I want to hold close and maybe slip under my pillow each night.
The Fault in our Stars by John Green.
Running with the Kenyans by Adharanand Finn
Stoker's Manuscript by Royce Prouty
Currently reading
Brave New World by Aldophus Huxley
The Book Thief by Marcus Zusak
I started reading Unbroken but couldn't get into it, so I'm going to place it back on the shelf and attempt it another time.
The Fault in our Stars by John Green.
Running with the Kenyans by Adharanand Finn
Stoker's Manuscript by Royce Prouty
Currently reading
Brave New World by Aldophus Huxley
The Book Thief by Marcus Zusak
I started reading Unbroken but couldn't get into it, so I'm going to place it back on the shelf and attempt it another time.
Sunday, May 11, 2014
Born to Run by Chris McDougall
This book speaks to me as a runner and sparks my interest in things previously unknown as a person. This book has been collecting dust on my shelf for at least a year, and as I progress farther and farther as a runner, I finally felt intrigued enough to pick it up.
It did not disappoint.
The book follows the linear paths of the runners called the Tarahumara in Mexico, running injuries in the US, a mysterious man called Caballo who is a gringo who somehow incorporated himself in the Tarahumara part of the world, and and ultramarathoners everywhere, culminating in the crescendo that everyone is, in, fact, biologically and evolutionarily born to run.
It starts pretty slow, so much so that at one point, I was going to just put it down. Luckily I kept going and fell in love with it a little before the halfway point. Since I do not know much about the Tarahumara, the initial chapters of the book were a bit dull to me. As the book transitioned from Mexico to Coloroado, I was instantly hooked. I know people who have done the Leadville 100, which made it very relatable. Ultramarathoners are crazy, but in the best way possible!
As a runner with constant knee problems from running , the controversial statements that running shoes are in general crap and the professional aspect of running now as a money making machine as changed the running world not necessarily for the better really stirred something in me. Is everything a die-hard fact? No. But some comments like heel striking isn't a natural running behavior made me smack my forehead in an 'oh duh' moment.
I do believe everyone can run, and believed it long before I had even heard of this book. Is running barefoot for everyone? No. Is it something that should be considered by every runner? Maybe. I have gotten caught up in the swirl of running shoes, running magazines, and running advice, some of which I knew was utter crap because of the lack of logic behind it. Everyone knows their body well, we have just been conditioned to listen to "experts" over our own instincts.
It's a shame that running has come down to the bottom line, instead of focusing on the joy of the sport. Born to Run really brought some of that joy back to me, especially after a really frustrating 10 mile race I ran yesterday.
It did not disappoint.
The book follows the linear paths of the runners called the Tarahumara in Mexico, running injuries in the US, a mysterious man called Caballo who is a gringo who somehow incorporated himself in the Tarahumara part of the world, and and ultramarathoners everywhere, culminating in the crescendo that everyone is, in, fact, biologically and evolutionarily born to run.
It starts pretty slow, so much so that at one point, I was going to just put it down. Luckily I kept going and fell in love with it a little before the halfway point. Since I do not know much about the Tarahumara, the initial chapters of the book were a bit dull to me. As the book transitioned from Mexico to Coloroado, I was instantly hooked. I know people who have done the Leadville 100, which made it very relatable. Ultramarathoners are crazy, but in the best way possible!
As a runner with constant knee problems from running , the controversial statements that running shoes are in general crap and the professional aspect of running now as a money making machine as changed the running world not necessarily for the better really stirred something in me. Is everything a die-hard fact? No. But some comments like heel striking isn't a natural running behavior made me smack my forehead in an 'oh duh' moment.
I do believe everyone can run, and believed it long before I had even heard of this book. Is running barefoot for everyone? No. Is it something that should be considered by every runner? Maybe. I have gotten caught up in the swirl of running shoes, running magazines, and running advice, some of which I knew was utter crap because of the lack of logic behind it. Everyone knows their body well, we have just been conditioned to listen to "experts" over our own instincts.
It's a shame that running has come down to the bottom line, instead of focusing on the joy of the sport. Born to Run really brought some of that joy back to me, especially after a really frustrating 10 mile race I ran yesterday.
Wednesday, March 19, 2014
Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn
Gone Girl was amazing, it is as simple as that. I found it on a list of 'books to read before the movies come out,' and liked the plot synopsis so much that I ordered it from amazon aling with two other books. It was so engrossing I carried the book with me everywhere for two days until I finished it.
Amy and Nick are New York newlyweds, living a perfect, fun existence. They both get fired from their jobs and leave their NY home to move to Missouri to care for Nick's ill parents. Amy hates Missouri, and Nick is frustrated his mother passed away first, leaving him and his twin sister to care for their emotionally abusive, angry father.
When I am reading a book and I come to a part that surprises me, shocks me, or freaks me out, I slam the book shut and keep it closed until I'm ready to deal with what is happening in the book. It keeps those crazy plots and emotionally charged words trapped inside! I shut this book a lot during the 48 hours I read it.
Lessons learned: siblings are awesome, people are crazy, and never commit adultery.
My one gripe was the ending. I do think people are crazy enough that it is plausible, but raising a child with a sociopath to erase daddy issues is probably not the way to go.
Amy and Nick are New York newlyweds, living a perfect, fun existence. They both get fired from their jobs and leave their NY home to move to Missouri to care for Nick's ill parents. Amy hates Missouri, and Nick is frustrated his mother passed away first, leaving him and his twin sister to care for their emotionally abusive, angry father.
When I am reading a book and I come to a part that surprises me, shocks me, or freaks me out, I slam the book shut and keep it closed until I'm ready to deal with what is happening in the book. It keeps those crazy plots and emotionally charged words trapped inside! I shut this book a lot during the 48 hours I read it.
Lessons learned: siblings are awesome, people are crazy, and never commit adultery.
My one gripe was the ending. I do think people are crazy enough that it is plausible, but raising a child with a sociopath to erase daddy issues is probably not the way to go.
Saturday, February 8, 2014
Flowers in the Attic by V.C. Andrews
While perusing the Interwebs one day, I stumbled upon a list of books categorized by arbitrary levels of disturbing-ness. I was surprised to find this was a fan favorite. I remember V.C. Andrews having a big following in my high school, but I think I read maybe one of her books and I don't even remember the title. I had never even heard of Flowers in the Attic. Since I like to keep tabs on popular books so I'm not (too far) out of the loop, I downloaded this onto my Kindle Fire.
Flowers in the Attic starts with a typical suburban family; loving parents and four beautiful children the neighbors call Dresden Dolls. Their parents doted on their children and each other. Christopher and Cathy are the two oldest, followed by a long gap by twins Cody and Carrie. The Dollangangers reside in Pennsylvania, three females, three males, a hardworking father and seemingly devoted mother. Tragically, their father dies in a car accident on his birthday, leaving behind a devastated family with no means to pay the bills. Out of options, the remaining 5 Dollangangers head to their grandparent's estate in Virginia. The one caveat is that the four children must remain locked away in the attic while Mrs. Dollanganger returns to the good graces of her father and becomes the sole benefactress of his will.
The short stay in the attic turns very lengthy. The children are brought food each day by their very stern grandmother who establishes an odd set of very strict rules. Eventually, the children learn that their parents were actually related and her father disinherited her after the Dollangangers were married. Her father is unaware that four children were born from that union, much less that they are living in the attic.
3 years go by. Their mother becomes a stranger to them, eventually seldom coming to visit them, and finally remarries a man who is also living in the house and has no idea she has four kids living above them. Her father eventually dies, but she never rescues the children, and continues to mislead her children. Meanwhile, upstairs Cathy and Christopher begin an incestuous brother/sister relationship and one of the twins dies. Finally, finally, finally, they hatch a rescue plan and leave the estate.
I know this book was written for the young adult genre, but it had a lot of frustrating flaws.
1. The house they are living in seems so large it cannot be real unless it is some of kind of palace.
2. There's nothing really to indicate the mother would turn so drastically on her children.
3. Despite being locked up with each other for a long period of time, even as teenagers, I really doubt that two siblings would begin an incestuous relationship even with blossoming hormones.
4. Cathy and Christopher are really smart, disciplined people and it took them 3 years to finally realize their mother didn't care about them and they finally escaped? Leaving didn't necessarily mean they wouldn't see their mother again anyway.
The book was dark and disturbing, but also boring in parts. Being locked up in the attic is only so interesting. The most disturbing part of the book for me wasn't even the incest, it was the incident in which the grandmother thought Cathy was being a slut by flashing around her hair and tarred in her hair in her sleep after drugging her. That is a sadistic grandmother.
Flowers in the Attic starts with a typical suburban family; loving parents and four beautiful children the neighbors call Dresden Dolls. Their parents doted on their children and each other. Christopher and Cathy are the two oldest, followed by a long gap by twins Cody and Carrie. The Dollangangers reside in Pennsylvania, three females, three males, a hardworking father and seemingly devoted mother. Tragically, their father dies in a car accident on his birthday, leaving behind a devastated family with no means to pay the bills. Out of options, the remaining 5 Dollangangers head to their grandparent's estate in Virginia. The one caveat is that the four children must remain locked away in the attic while Mrs. Dollanganger returns to the good graces of her father and becomes the sole benefactress of his will.
The short stay in the attic turns very lengthy. The children are brought food each day by their very stern grandmother who establishes an odd set of very strict rules. Eventually, the children learn that their parents were actually related and her father disinherited her after the Dollangangers were married. Her father is unaware that four children were born from that union, much less that they are living in the attic.
3 years go by. Their mother becomes a stranger to them, eventually seldom coming to visit them, and finally remarries a man who is also living in the house and has no idea she has four kids living above them. Her father eventually dies, but she never rescues the children, and continues to mislead her children. Meanwhile, upstairs Cathy and Christopher begin an incestuous brother/sister relationship and one of the twins dies. Finally, finally, finally, they hatch a rescue plan and leave the estate.
I know this book was written for the young adult genre, but it had a lot of frustrating flaws.
1. The house they are living in seems so large it cannot be real unless it is some of kind of palace.
2. There's nothing really to indicate the mother would turn so drastically on her children.
3. Despite being locked up with each other for a long period of time, even as teenagers, I really doubt that two siblings would begin an incestuous relationship even with blossoming hormones.
4. Cathy and Christopher are really smart, disciplined people and it took them 3 years to finally realize their mother didn't care about them and they finally escaped? Leaving didn't necessarily mean they wouldn't see their mother again anyway.
The book was dark and disturbing, but also boring in parts. Being locked up in the attic is only so interesting. The most disturbing part of the book for me wasn't even the incest, it was the incident in which the grandmother thought Cathy was being a slut by flashing around her hair and tarred in her hair in her sleep after drugging her. That is a sadistic grandmother.
Wednesday, January 15, 2014
Books I received for Christmas
As usual, I had a pretty lengthy book list on my Christmas list this year.
Lone Traveller by Anne Mustoe
Nine hills to Nambonkaha by Sarah Erdman
A Half Forgotten Song by Katherine Webb
Stoker's Manuscript by Royce Prouty
Paris Enigma by Pablo de Santis
Blythewood by Carol Goodman
And then the vulture eats you by John L. Parker
Running with the Kenyans by Adharanand Finn
George Washington's Secret Six by Brian Kilmeade & Don Yaeger (I've started this already!)
That is it! I'm really excited for all these, as they all look amazing. I'm trying to sneak in chapters in between work, school, and packing for vacation. :)
Lone Traveller by Anne Mustoe
Nine hills to Nambonkaha by Sarah Erdman
A Half Forgotten Song by Katherine Webb
Stoker's Manuscript by Royce Prouty
Paris Enigma by Pablo de Santis
Blythewood by Carol Goodman
And then the vulture eats you by John L. Parker
Running with the Kenyans by Adharanand Finn
George Washington's Secret Six by Brian Kilmeade & Don Yaeger (I've started this already!)
That is it! I'm really excited for all these, as they all look amazing. I'm trying to sneak in chapters in between work, school, and packing for vacation. :)
Monday, January 13, 2014
Blind Assassin by Margaret Atwood
Blind Assassin is on The List, and I've been meaning to read it for awhile after my sister fell in love with it. I have read Atwood's A Handmaid's Tale, which I sort of liked. I wasn't nearly as interested in distopian societies when I read it probably 5 years ago, so it did not hold my attention well.
Blind Assassin held my attention very well. The book cover is full of hype, which frustrates me to read since books really hold up to their stellar, one line reviews. Iris is the older sister of Laura, a beautiful, pragmatic child who Iris helps raise, along with their housekeeper Reenie, after the early death of their mother. Iris and Laura are the heiresses of a large button factory located near Toronto that reaches its pinnacle of glory post WW1. In the intervening years, the sisters are schooled at home by tutors, mostly oblivious to the social changes happening in Canada, and all over the world, post WW1.
Iris marries young after the factory burns down and leaves the family with little options. She has little feelings for her husband, or his controlling sister who takes over Iris' life, but she dutifully does her wifely duties, including having one daughter. After their father dies, Laura moves in with Iris and her husband and is not so silent about her observances of her sister's marriage.
The book is interwoven by another story, The Blind Assassin, which is told by two unknown lovers who meet in secret. The female forces the male to tell her a story, which becomes The Blind Assassin, a book published after the death of Laura.
I love the writing in this book. It's so intelligent, thought provoking, and engaging. The ending was beautiful; simple, and somewhat unexpected. I know little of Canada, especially the history of social life in the time period between the two world wars. That was interesting for me. The book fluctuates between Iris telling the story as an old woman to Laura and Iris as children in the mansion. Changes in time and perspective can get confusing and boring if not done well, but Atwood does it beautifully.
One of my favorite books I read in 2013.
Blind Assassin held my attention very well. The book cover is full of hype, which frustrates me to read since books really hold up to their stellar, one line reviews. Iris is the older sister of Laura, a beautiful, pragmatic child who Iris helps raise, along with their housekeeper Reenie, after the early death of their mother. Iris and Laura are the heiresses of a large button factory located near Toronto that reaches its pinnacle of glory post WW1. In the intervening years, the sisters are schooled at home by tutors, mostly oblivious to the social changes happening in Canada, and all over the world, post WW1.
Iris marries young after the factory burns down and leaves the family with little options. She has little feelings for her husband, or his controlling sister who takes over Iris' life, but she dutifully does her wifely duties, including having one daughter. After their father dies, Laura moves in with Iris and her husband and is not so silent about her observances of her sister's marriage.
The book is interwoven by another story, The Blind Assassin, which is told by two unknown lovers who meet in secret. The female forces the male to tell her a story, which becomes The Blind Assassin, a book published after the death of Laura.
I love the writing in this book. It's so intelligent, thought provoking, and engaging. The ending was beautiful; simple, and somewhat unexpected. I know little of Canada, especially the history of social life in the time period between the two world wars. That was interesting for me. The book fluctuates between Iris telling the story as an old woman to Laura and Iris as children in the mansion. Changes in time and perspective can get confusing and boring if not done well, but Atwood does it beautifully.
One of my favorite books I read in 2013.
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