Yes, My Darling Daughter

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Author: Margaret Leroy
Finished: January 8th, 2011
My Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

I will say that I really enjoyed this book. I never would’ve picked it up had it not have been for my book club (as my friend Erin mentions in her blog: book club = awesome.) It really does set you up with books you’d never find otherwise.

Okay, back to the book. I found this story to be really intriguing and it really captured my attention. Some of my friends felt that the beginning moved slow but I actually preferred the beginning to the last 1/4 of the story. I felt that Leroy really built up her story in the first 45 chapters only to end it abruptly in the last 10.

Things I loved: the setting, Adam, the thrill, Lavinia.
Things I didn’t love so much: Sylvie (!), Grace (!), the last ten chapters.

All in all, I would recommend this book. It was a quick read and kept my attention.

Embroideries

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Author: Marjane Satrapi
Finished: December 17th, 2011
Rating: 2 out of 5 stars

 I jumped on the Marjane Satrapi bandwagon after reading her popular graphic novel, Persepolis. I absolutely loved Persepolis and assumed I’d love anything else that Satrapi wrote.

Over Christmas break, I decided to rent another graphic novel by Satrapi - Embroideries. I hate to admit it but I wasn’t that impressed.

All in all, the novel was a quick read (maybe 45 minutes – I love this about graphic novels.) The story is centered upon a group of  Iranian woman discussing (well, more like gossiping) their sexual interactions with men.

While the book gave a realistic, firsthand perspective, I just didn’t care for the story. I didn’t like the way all the women were treating their husbands (and men in general).

I’ll continue reading work by Satrapi but wouldn’t recommend this one to fellow fans of the Persepolis author.

Book Club Meeting: December 11th (’11)

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Yesterday was a wonderful, lazy Sunday consisting of reading all afternoon and then book club in the evening. I was so excited to get back to book club after having missed the last 3-4 months due to the busy wedding planning (now that the wedding has passed and fall quarter is over, I can get back to what I LOVE doing – reading for pleasure). The book of the month was chosen by my friend Erin. She chose to read Veronica Roth’s Divergent. Oh my gosh – what a GREAT choice. I actually haven’t finished yet (about 100 pages left – hey, it has been a busy couple of months) but from what I’ve read, I really love it.

Erin did a beyond fabulous job hosting for Divergent. She had everything so creatively planned out: faction book marks, syringes of Divergent ‘serum’ aka jello, even ’tattoos’ that we each applied to begin the night. In fact, it’s really cool, Erin was able to email the author and Veronica Roth actually sent  fake tattoos for each faction in the story (if you don’t know what I’m referring to, you need to read the book to find out :)). I was part of the ‘Amity’ faction.

I had such an enjoyable evening with the wonderful women that showed up. We enjoyed burgers from the grill, a Divergent quiz (prizes included), and a great discussion of the story.

I’m so in love with the idea of book clubs and am glad that we were able to get such a fun, diverse group of ladies together to celebrate our shared joy of reading.

January’s book of the month: Yes, My Darling Daughter by Margaret Leroy.

it’s been awhile…

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Wow – I can’t believe how long it has been since I’ve posted on here. I definitely have been behind on my reading but I didn’t realize how behind. I really enjoy going to school and am honestly going to miss many aspects of college once I graduate in the Spring; however, the thing that is the WORST is not being able to read for pleasure. To put it lightly – it sucks.

By the time the end of the day rolls around and I open up a book I no longer find myself sleeping on its pages. Ugh. I’m not sure if anyone follows my ‘currently reading’ shelf on goodreads.com but The Time Traveler’s Wife has been up there since the end of September for the mere fact that every time I try to read, I fall asleep.

On the bright side, classes are out in TWO weeks. YES! I’m hoping to finish The Time Traveler’s Wife (by the way – a really great book so far), as well as reading  a few others on my ‘to read’ list.

So…

I feel that I need to set a goal of what I want to read over break…Three weeks of uninterrupted evenings, no homework, sporadic obligations.

My goal is to read four books, no wait, five – is that aiming too high? Let’s settle at four and if I happen to read five, I’ll be delighted.

Some books I’d like to read:
1) Divergent by Veronica Roth: This is our book club’s December ‘Book of the Month’. A few of my friends that have already read it are raving about it. Check out a review here.
2) Interpreter of Maladies by Jhumpa Lahiri: I’ve already read a couple of these short stories, “Sexy” and “Mrs. Sens” and really  enjoyed them. Marty owns the book and I want to dive into the rest. Great author by the way.
3) Financial Peace by Dave Ramsey: I’ve read parts of this book (I took his finance class last Fall) but want to reread and, hopefully, implement some of his techniques into my family budget.
4) Twilight by Stephanie Meyer: I read this book a few years ago but with all the hype, would like to reread. I remember really enjoying this series but after reading Breaking Dawn - my opinion shifted… I’m willing to give it a second chance…
5) Harry Potter and the Sorcerers Stone by JK Rowling: Again, another reread but I am obsessed with HP.
6) Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins: Second book in the Hunger Game series.
7) Room by Emma Donoghue: I’ve heard some really great things about this book. I’m interested to read.
8) Roman Fever and Other Stories by Edith Wharton: I love Edith Wharton. Her storytelling is magical and so well throughout. I’ve read Roman Fever and After Holbein – really looking forward to reading more…

Top Ten (Well, Seven) Tuesday: Fictional Crushes

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Diane’s “Top Ten (Well, Seven) Fictional Crushes”

In no particular order (as always). Note: I couldn’t think of ten crushes, therefore there are only seven.

1) Michael from Redeeming Love (Francine Rivers):
Reading this book was easy (and it’s a huge book – so easy wouldn’t be the first word that comes to mind). It was easy because of the character, Michael. Redeeming Love is a retelling of the Biblical story of Hosea. Michael is a strong, intentional man, driven by God. God asks him to pursue the prostitute Sarah and (although Sarah wouldn’t typically be someone Michael would pursue) he does that very thing. She is stubborn and cruel; yet his love for her grows. Michael is determined to pull Sarah from her life of prostitution and, in fact, does that very thing. Who wouldn’t fall for a man taking direct orders from God? :)

2) Mr. Darcy from Pride and Prejudice (Jane Austen):
Who wouldn’t fall for Mr. Darcy? He’s handsome and wealthy – yet stubborn and forthright. There is a charm there that is untouchable.

3) Henry from The Time Traveler’s Wife (Audrey Niffenegger):
I’m still trying to finish up this book but the main reason I love it is because of Henry. Henry is a time traveler that randomly appears at different times in (both) the future and past. My stomach cringes for his love interest, Clare Abshire, as he only stays with her for a short period of time before disappearing to another time altogether. Make sense? No worries if it doesn’t – you’ll just have to read the book. :) Anyways, Henry is described as a ruggedly handsome man with dark features and his love for Clare never ceases. He stands up for her when she is assaulted as a teenager and comforts her when she learns of her mother’s death before it happens (again, read the book if this doesn’t make sense - it’s awesome). Henry is an easy character to fall for.

4) Harry from Harry Potter & the Order of the Phoenix (JK Rowling):
I LOVE Harry Potter. No, really, I LOVE Harry Potter. I’ve had an addiction to the books, the movies, the characters – everything since seventh grade. I never really considered myself to have a crush on Harry, but the more I think about it, I think I just may (specifically in the Order of the Phoenix). It is in this particular book of the series that Harry really steps up and takes control of the Voldemort situation. He leads ‘Dumbledore’s Army’ and instructs the students on defensive spells. Gotta love a man (oops- boy) that takes the lead.

5) Ethan from Something Blue (Emily Giffins):
I’m not sure why Ethan is on this list. Maybe it’s because he lives in a charming apartment in London, England? Along with that, he is sweet and alluring. An all around good guy. I’ll take it.

6) Rhett Butler from Gone With the Wind (Maragaret Mitchell):
Who could forget about Rhett Butler? I know I couldn’t. Rhett is (as he says) not a gentleman and yet he seems to have the qualities of one. Rhett is there for Scarlett even when she desperately desires Ashley Wilkes. What’s wrong with her?? Ashley is a putz compared to Rhett. Unfortunately for Scarlett, Rhett can only put up with so much and leaves her in the end. Nevertheless, he put up with a lot and is worthy to be on this list.

7) Inman from Cold Mountain (Charles Frazier):
Though they only knew each other for a brief time before Inman departed for the war, it is largely the hope of seeing Ada again that drives Inman to desert the army and make the dangerous journey back to Cold Mountain (taken from Wikipedia). How romantic. The movie is fabulous (Jude Law-hello!) and the book, although slow, is fabulous too.