8. The Ten Best Days of My Life by Adena Halpern
My Grade: B - It was great - recommend itJanuary 2009
After some of the really (
good but) depressing stuff I had been reading I decided it was time to lighten things up.
SH and I headed to Barnes & Noble after going to the movies yesterday (
we saw Marley & Me and on a side-note I am happy to report SH showed some emotion. He wasn't crying and certainly not sobbing like half of the theater, but he showed emotion and that makes me happy.)
I had never heard of this book, or this author but the
cover premise was cute and I thought I'd give it a try.
A 29 year old finds herself in heaven, after being struck and killed by a MINI Cooper (
ha ha!) and finds that it's everything heaven is cracked up to be, and more. However, in order to stay in her "7th Heaven" instead of moving down to the 4th Heaven
(with the druggie musicians like Jimi Hendrix, Janis Joplin and Jim Morrison and without a custom walk in closet-room full of designer clothes) she needs to prove she was on the way to living a fulfilling life by writing an essay about the ten best days of her life.
The book is light-hearted (
even though death is a main topic!) and funny and a totally entertaining read. I got through the whole thing in one day (
started it at bed time and finished when I woke up). It reminds you to leave each day to the fullest and have fun, not take things so seriously. That was certainly something I needed to be reminded of. Plus the book makes you feel like you really will see your loved ones again after you die (
I know the author has no way of knowing this, it was just a good feeling I got. Don't judget me!)
I woke up refreshed and in a good mood, like a re-birth of sorts (
I'm giving the book credit, not the 12+ hours of sleep I've gotten for the past few nights in a row) - and is it a coinsidence it was 1:04 when I looked at the clock (
the time of my birth so many years ago) - maybe?! But maybe not ;o)
7. If I Am Missing Or Dead by Janine LatusMy grade: C - It was good - recommend for some people
January 2009
Once again, this book was totally not what I was expecting (that seems to happen to me quite a bit these days.) I guess that's good. I guess it means I've ventured out a little bit and am reading more than Chick-Lit (but don't you worry, I'm still reading plenty of that.)
I expected this to be a fictional mystery-type book, not a memoir and definitely not one with so much abuse and sadness. Yeah I had a feeling there was going to be a death - you know, from the title - but I just didn't expect what I got. Yup, I totally judged a book by its cover.
This story isn't so much about Janine Latus' sister, the one who left the note saying,"
If I am Missing or Dead" - it's more a story about Janine growing up, being subjected to abuse by her father and dealing with shitty relationships as a result of it. What you learn is that Janine wasn't the only child in that family who ended up in physically and or emotionally abusive relationships - unfortunately her sister did as well, and one such relationship turned fatal. What you also learn is about how courageous Janine truly was.
For anyone who has ever been subjected to any type of domestic abuse, this story is a must-read. It shows courage doesn't come easily, but that you CAN get out before it is too late. And if you don't...well what could be your cold, hard reality.
6. Change of Heart by Jodi PicoultMy Grade: B - It was great - recommend it
December 2008
I love Jodi Picoult. I own all of her books (ok, except for Songs of a Humpback Whale, but one day). She has the most amazing way of taking a controversial subject, showing "both sides" of the controversy and making an incredible story out of it. It's so hard to describe. Her books are usually heartbreaking in some shape or form and her latest is no exception.
This story is about an inmate on death row who wants to donate his heart to a little girl whose sister and father he was charged with murdering. The problem is, when he is to be executed it will be by lethal injection, which will render his heart useless.
Honestly, this book is thought provoking and has a lot of good twists. It's not my favorite Jodi Picoult book, but it is definitely towards the top of the list.
The biggest issue I had with this story, which is nit-picky on my part is that a certain relationship seemed to develop rather quickly. Yeah, that's about the worst I could come up with. I cannot wait to hear what Picoult will write next.
My grade: A - It's made my list of favorite books - definitely recommend
December 2008
I think it's the best when you go into a situation without any expectations, and you come out "wowed" on the other end. That was my experience with this book by Margaret Lazarus Dean.
SH and I were shopping at
Christmas Tree Shops (for those of you who don't know what this little slice of retail heaven is, you are truly missing out. Contrary to popular belief it is not all Christmas items) and wandered over to the book section. I found this book for $2.99. The reason I decided to get it is because it is a historical fiction book about the Challenger Disaster.
The
explosion of the Challenger is one of those events in history where I will always remember where I was. It was January 28, 1986 and I was in Mrs. Frostholm's 3rd Grade Class. A television had been wheeled into the classroom for us to watch the shuttle launch. It was of primary significance because
Christa McAuliffe (a MA native) was to become the first Teacher in Space. After the explosion I remember my teacher crying. I remember the boys laughing and making jokes (much like in the book!) - and I remember an extreme feeling of helplessness.
This book is about a fictional family whose father works for NASA and the events leading up to and following the disaster. The facts are historically accurate (wow, I had forgotten that the crew likely survived the explosion, but died when their cabin hit the water. amazing) but the family is not "real."
If you've ever had any interest in the Challenger, or the space program in general I definitely recommend reading this book.
My grade: C - It was good - recommend for some people (but definitely not me)
December 2008
This book was a great reminder for me NOT to give into blog pressure (my term for the 2008 version of school-yard peer pressure for us 'adults'). I know myself. I know no matter how many times people say how aweome the
Harry Potter Series is, I will not have any intrest in reading it (I don't want to hear how good it is and how I just need to give it a chance, I know I won't like it. Seriously peeps.)
Anyway,
like I said previously I hate Vampires. I think they're lame. Ya'll insisted this book wasn't about vampires, though! You said it was a love story and since I'm a chick I kinda dig stuff like that. So I gave it a try. And I didn't like it.
Hello...it's totally a vampire story! You can't go more than a couple pages without reading Edward is a vampire. I don't care that he doesn't suck people blood. He still sucks. He's like a million years old in love with this little high-school chick. Ew. Creep. I
I'm not even going to write anymore. I mean if you like vampires and shit like that I'm sure you'll like this creepy teen "romance" novel.
3. Here's The Story by Maureen McCormickMy Grade: D - I struggled to finish - don't recommend 
Ok, so I didn't have any high expectations going into this one. It was more of a strange curiosity that made me pick it up, hoping to get an "inner glimpse" into life as a Brady.
There were no juicy details about the Brady's, though. The book barely focused on them as a group of people, just how Marcia Brady "ruined" McCormick's life.
She also seemed to spend a lot of time bragging about how much coke she could snort in one sitting. The book was shallow, lacked depth and even though there is a good message in there - I wouldn't recommend reading it.
If you want to read a good autobiography about a child star who overcame a drug habit, read
Little Girl Lost by Drew Barrymore. Even though that was written way back in 1991, when she was just a teen, it was a much much better book.
2. The Art of Racing in the Rain by Garth Stein
My Grade: A - It's made my list of favorite books - definitely recommend
I had never heard about this book before, but the woman who runs Spike's doggy daycare said it was recommended to her by another
client friend and lent it to me to read. I let it sit on my night stand for a good week before I picked it up. To be honest, I thought it was about dog racing. And I'm still a little bitter about the way things ended up in the MA elections regarding Question 2. I had no real interest in reading it. I considered returning the book without reading it. What a mistake that would have been.
The book is written from the point of view of Enzo, a dog on the last legs of his life. He writes about his life with Denny Swift, his owner, a race car driver. Enzo has spent many years watching TV documentaries and analyzing races. Through this he learns that in Mongolia they believe when a dog dies, if he is ready, he is reincarnated into a human being. This fascinates Enzo and he makes sure to live his life so that he IS ready when the time comes. He gets frustrated at his lack of opposible thumbs and speaking voice, but always finds a way to be there to support Denny and his family.
So much of the story is actually about the struggles of Denny and really I can't remember what is disclosed on the back of the book and I'm too lazy to go upstairs and look. I don't want to spoil anything but lets just say Denny deals with a lot of adversity and through it all Enzo is always there.
Much of the book talks about race car driving and the principles needed to be a good racer, but you do not need to be a race fan to appreciate the story Enzo is trying to tell. Not at all.
I was planning on giving this book a rating of "B" until I spent half of the night laying awake and crying my eyes out (I may have woken my husband up at 3am with tears streaming down my face.) It didn't stop there, when I started writing my review I got teary eyed just thinking about the story. While I'm an emotional person - a very emotional person - I very rarely cry during movies or books. I am usually able to internalize it, but this time I wasn't. And it stuck with me. So I will be buying my own copy and placing it on my bookshelf of favorite books.
UPDATE: I bought
SH an iPod Touch for Christmas this year. In the past he'd mentioned wanting to try an audio book. I thought this would be the perfect one for him. So far, so good - he's really enjoying it. Yay!
One of the
authors of this book writes a Red Sox blog which I frequent. His posts are always informative, usually entertaining and he definitely knows a lot about the game of baseball. He wrote this book together with his mother, who was a published novelist before
Dirty Water: A Red Sox Mystery hit the stands.
The book itself is a fictional mystery based around the Boston Red Sox and uses the names of actual players from the 2007 World Series Championship team. The mystery surrounds linking a baby left in the Red Sox clubhouse to smuggling Cuban baseball players to play in the US - with breaking news posted on a (fictional) Red Sox Blog.
I love the fact the book revolves around baseball, in particular the Red Sox. I like the plot line (inspired by the case of Gus Dominguez. If you don't know about this case, I'd look into it. It's very interesting and something that has defnitely been swept under the rug by MLB). And the mystery itself is not predictable and well thought out. I don't love the writing style but that's just personal preference and doesn't reflect on the quality of the book at all.
For me, there is too much overlap between sports/mystery and religion. The religion part just didn't fit in for me - but then again the main detective in this story has been carried over from Tirone-Smith's other novels so maybe it's a big part of his character? I need to clarify - this is NOT a religious book. There are no plot lines around religion, there are just mentions of it relating to one of the main characters.
I'm also not a huge fan of mystery's so I didn't fit the best demographic to read this book. If it didn't involve the Red Sox, I likely wouldn't have read it. But I did - and it was enjoyable. You don't have to be a Sox fan to like this story, but it helps.
The best part of the book, for me, was seeing how Jere incorporated his own blog posts and real life game facts into the story.
UPDATE: Take a look at the comments section for a comment on this book from the author of
Dirty Water: A Red Sox Mystery
Goal 70. Read 75 Books Not much to explain on this one. I love to read, but don't always make the time for it. This way, I'm hoping to at least remind myself that I NEED to make time to read.
I'm also going to write short reviews of each of the books. You know, in case it's a book that interests you (fine, and so I don't forget - because, well....I often times get halfway through a book before realizing I've read it before. Ah well.)
Grades:
A - It's made my list of favorite books - definitely recommend
B - It was great - recommend it
C - It was good - recommend for some people
D - Got half way through, but couldn't finish OR I struggled to finish - don't recommend
F - Couldn't even get half way through - definitely don't recommend
I'm glad I asked - I, myself, was leaning towards submitting the candle picture (which came in second place on my poll.
