Year of Wonders by Alice Hoffmann

Fantastic is the word for Year of Wonders.  Our book group has been accused of picking books about strong women and we seem to have done it again.  If you think you are about to read a book about the plague you aren't even close.  This book is about two very strong women.
When you start to read you will be drawn in by the very historically correct tale of one town's hardships during the great London plague of 1665.  The extent of their hardships not only because of the times but the disease that spreads through their town will astound you.  How could the do so much with so little.  It will really make you appreciate your life.

Welcome to Temptation by Jennifer Crusie

Welcome to Temptation can only be described as hot and funny.  Even though it starts out slow and I did feel a little lost with so many characters being added so soon in the story, the fast pace of the story itself keeps you from noticing that little flaw.  The small town characters are hysterical and very typical of most small towns.  I did find it light and relaxing after so many heavy books I have read lately.

Cloaked by Alex Flinn

This Young Adult fairy tale was fun but something about the relationship between the two main characters just didn't come off as the author might have intended.  I loved the mixture of the fairy tales, and there were a lot of them.  Some of them I had to stop and look up.  All in all it was fun if not a bit cheesy but arn't all fariy tales a bit cheesy....the prince gets the princess in the end all all the kingdom was happy.

Empire Falls is not about Romans

  Empire Falls by Richard Russo

One of the Best books I have read this year, and they made it into a movie.  How have I missed this book?  I have read a book by Russo before, Bridge of sighs  , but it was no where near the story in Empire Falls. 
The story itself takes place in the span of a few weeks (8ish).  A small town, dependent on the factories that have built up around them are in danger of disappearing because of the closing of these factories.  The families that have stayed on and are trying to make a go of it are all somehow connected and feel some responsibility to the community.  The book tells the story of the poorest and the wealthiest in the town, and how the actions of one person lead to the events that change the lives of all. 
I have to say the story of Timmy the cat is one of the best in the book.  I also loved the character of Max, the father of the main character.  Max has some great lines but the best is "so what", which he will repeat through out the book. 
In the end the world rights itself and you are left with the feeling that somehow the outcome that should be and the one that is are the same. 

A Discovery of Witches

Reading A discovery of witches by Deborah Harkness is the most fun I have had in ages.  You know how you read for relaxation or because everyone is reading a book or just out of habit? Well this book will take you past that.  Even though it is large it flys by before you know it. 

A young reasearcher,  Diana Bishop puts in a slip to call up an  alchemical manuscript in the course of her researchand findes it bewitched. Descended from a distinguished line of witches, Diana wants nothing to do with wictch, but isn't sure why she feels this way. She returns the book to the stacks. But her discovery sets world of beings ( daemons, witches, and vampires ) into an uproar., and a horde of these creatures descends upon the library in Oxford England. 

It is a faire tale and a romance together.  Each character has his/her own back story and are all well developed.  By page 400 or so you are sure this can't end which sends you to the authors web site in search of the sequel 

Sure enough this is the first in the All Souls Trilogy. The second book will be Shadow of Night and is expected in the Summer of 2012.



Outer Banks House - Part II

To me, the second of half of the book fell a bit flat. I can't quite put my finger on why exactly. The beauty of the writing in the first half seemed to just disappear. The introduction of the Klan at the end was not really part of the story and was just tacked on  almost as an afterthought.  I think the author was looking for a reason for Abby to be angry with Ben and this was convenient but not well thought out. 
I still think the book is worth reading, especially to fans of Civil War history.

City of Ember - Juvenile Fiction

The City of Ember by Jeanne DuPrau is the first book in this juvenile series.  It's no Harry Potter though.  Defiantly a 6th or maybe 7th grade reading level.  The dialog is what is holding this book back not the story line.  I don't think I will read the others in the series because of that. 
If you have a Young reader in your family who is not a big reader, this story is interesting enough to hold their attention and with a series of three books, you could have reading material for a few months. 

The Executor by Jesse Kellerman

Joseph Geist is a self-deluding waste of space, a perpetual graduate student who has done nothing with his life so far.  He has recently been kicked out of a shared apartment by his girlfriend (who pays all the bills),  and leaves with little more than what he can carry in one bag and a half bust of Nietzsche’s head, his only possession which  The philosopher is seduced by wealth, when he answers an ad for a position as a conversationalist.  Joseph eventually gives in to some less than noble emotions that are unfamiliar to him.  Paranoia,  jealousy, panic, and hysteria. There’s a growing inevitability to the story as the "crime" unfolds.  This just can't end well for our man Joseph.

I am not sure if I liked this book. I can say for sure it is unforgettable.

Book Group Picks

I started a new book last night, Outer Banks House by Diann Ducharme.  The story (so far) is being told by a 17 year old girl just after the Civil War.  The writing is beautiful and the story grabs your attention.  I love historical fiction.  Can't wait to get further into this one. Our book group picks this 6 month session have been disappointing so far. I have some hope for this one to pull us out of our slump.

Can you tell....I LOVE THIS POEM

"Never Let Me Go" is a Star Read

When I heard this title I had visions of Sandra Brown or Mary Higgins Clark. That is not what you get.  This book kept me on the edge of my seat for days.  The concept is very thought provoking...is this where we are heading?  I didn't understand what was going on through most of the book, even though there were tons of hints. I was completely wrapped up in the story and totally oblivious of the underlying story. 

I am not going to give away anything about the book because I want everyone to read it.  In my opinion this is one of the best books of the year. 

Is The Help a One Book Wonder?

This was a book group read that we had to really scramble to get enough copies of because of the popularity of it.  It is her first (and only so far) book, but what a doozieSet in Jackson, Mississippi in the early 1960s around the time of Medgar Evers’ assassination, it alternates among three voices: Skeeter, a young white woman raised on a comfortable farm outside Jackson mostly by her family’s maid, Constantine; Aibileen, an older (maybe late 50s?) African-American maid working for an empty-headed white woman–a close friend pf Skeeter’s–whose idea of having children is to see them as little as possible; and Minny, a somewhat younger African-American maid whose inability to be sufficiently subservient constantly causes her to lose jobs as a maid.  Aibileen’s and Minny’s chapters are rendered in their dialect (e.g., “I’m on go there” instead of “I’m going to go there”), as Skeeter’s are rendered in hers, but as a college-educated white woman, Skeeter writes more or less standard English.

I liked all three characters. Some of the other characters in the book, such as Skeeter’s friend and Aibileen’s employer Elizabeth and the book’s villain Hilly Holbrook, another friend of theirs and president of the women’s League in Jackson, are portrayed as pure bigots. Can people really have been so cruel?
     Skeeter, an aspiring journalist, persuades Aibileen, and eventually Minny, to share with her their true feelings about their white employers.  In so doing, Skeeter is transformed from a kind person who does not question the rules of the society in which she was raised to one who really “gets it” and becomes willing to break those rules.  But at the end, Skeeter, like the author, leaves the South entirely, while Aibileen, Minny, and the other maids in the novel have to remain behind and deal with living in a racially bigoted society.
In the end I did love this book and have recommended it to several people. You can check out the HELP web page if your group is reading it. 

And now the question is "Is the author a one book wonder?"

Good YA Read

I saw this book in the Baker & Taylor catalog and thought it looked Interesting. 

I Am Number Four by Pittacus Lore. It rhymes in case you didn't notice.  The sub title is what caught my attention Three Are Dead seemed to point to a thriller.  It was more of a Scifi  though

The characters are a little short on personality but the story line is very imaginative.  I am sure there will be others that follow this band of aliens and earthlings on their journey to find the others ( five through nine minus six).  I sure hope so since it left us hanging. 
Pittacus Lore is the pseudonym for James Frey (author of "A Million Little Pieces") but don't hold that against him. He has actually proven he can write fiction, it is the nonfiction he has had a little trouble with. 

Room by Emma Donoghue is a Book Club Darling but....

Our book group discussed Room last night. Some of the words batted around were disturbing, off putting, slow going and unsettling.  The fact that it is being told by a 5 year old boy makes it slow going in the beginning.  No spoilers here. We all agreed we kept reading hoping the voice would change to an adult. It didn't.
The author does a believeable job of protraying a 5 year old's concept of the world and the new things he experiences.  To be fair none of us (only 1) really disliked the book. We just didn't like it much either.
There was a lot of buzz for this book and we were all excited about this pick I think that is why we were so disappointed.  Over all, there is a lot to discuss but for an enjoyable read, this isn't it.

BOOKS TO THE CEILING

"Books to the ceiling,
Books to the sky,
My pile of books is a mile high.
How I love them! How I need them!
I'll have a long beard by the time I read them."
— Arnold Lobel