Month: May 2008

Jumbled Books

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Here’s how to play…Identify the title and author. Leave a comment with the # and the answer and I’ll cross it off the list. No Googling, that’s cheating and no fun! If you know them all, please don’t guess every one, maybe five max? Hint: These are all current NYT Bestsellers.

1. HTE PAPALE by HJNO MHSIRGA, Jason, THE APPEAL by John Grisham

2. TTNYEW SSHIWE by EEBIDB MMCABORE  TWENTY WISHES BY DEBBIE MACOMBER

3. LDHO ITTGH by LAARHN NECBO, Jason, HOLD TIGHT by Harlan Coben

4. ETH OWLEH HURTT by IDDVA DCACBLAI Jill, THE WHOLE TRUTH by David Baldacci

5. HGECAN FO ARTHE by IJDO CULTIPO  Jill, CHANGE OF HEART by Jodi Picoult

6. NETSA EF ADED by TARTUS DOWSO SANTE FE DEAD BY STUART WOODS

7. YASDUN TA FITSAYN’F by JESMA NAPTRTOSE Jill, SUNDAY AT TIFFANY”S by James Patterson

8. HEREW ERA UYO OWN? by RYAM GGIIHNS LACKR Sarah, WHERE ARE YOU NOW? by Mary Higgins Clark

9. REECSST by JEDU VEERAXURD Sarah, SECRETS BY JUDE DEVERAUX

10. KEELSNOTS TA ETH AFTES by RICHS JOHLAANIB  SKELETONS AT THE FEAST BY CHRIS BOHJALIAN

How To Be Invisible, by J.J. Luna

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Cover ImageFinished 5-14-08, rating 3.5/5, non-fiction, revised 2004

Full title-How To Be Invisible: The Essential Guide to Protecting Your Personal Privacy, Your Assets, and Your Life

“If, in fact, you have ever received a letter or a package at your present address and under your real name, the only way to protect your privacy is to move.”  Chapter 6

This quote is the starting point of every step in this book and if that scares you or makes you shake your head in amusement, you should take a look at this book.  In the few days it took me to read it I felt like not only was Big Brother watching, but so were Giant Daddy, Nosy Momma, and Little Sister.

First, this book is full of ways to make yourself disappear, but also full of stories from people who actually have.  There is information why it is important that no one have your name and correct address (the author has no mailbox) and how to obtain a ghost address.  A Limited Liability Company is one way to protect yourself and the author keeps spares on a shelf.  He suggests using nominees (friends, family) to help you open up bank accounts.  But, even if you do not to any of these things, just reading the book will open your eyes to ways where you might be vulnerable.

There were a couple recommendations that were new to me.  He gives instructions on how to bury ‘treasure’ (whatever that may be to you) in the desert and then how to leave directions after you die.  He also recommends that you raise your children to be self-employed, no college, so that they can always be invisible. 

I was somewhat naive about all the ways the government, companies, people could keep track of me, but not anymore.  I don’t think that the average person can do all or even most of what he suggests.  While I see the benefit, not too many people are willing to live this way unless they are forced to.  It takes a lot of time and effort to make yourself invisible.  If you feel like you need to hide then this is the book for you.  It was a very interesting read.  If you are curious, I’d recommend checking out his website, www.howtobeinvisible.com.

The Poet by Michael Connelly

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The PoetFinished 5-13-08, rating 4.5/5, fiction, pub. 1996

“It’s lucky no one else knows what our most secret thoughts are.  We’d all be seen for the cunning, self-aggrandizing fools we are.”    Chapter 15

This was a great mystery.  A killer was mutilating bodies after he killed them and then once a detective became obsessed with the case the detective was killed too.  This went undiscovered for many years because the detective’s deaths were ruled suicides.  But reporter Jack McEvoy just lost his twin brother and doesn’t want to believe it was suicide so he sets out to prove it wasn’t.

Once Jack convinces his brother’s partner he sets out to see if he can prove it had been done before.  Jack flies to Washington DC to investigate and inadvertantly opens a FBI task force before he can go public with his own story.  Jack then must force his way into the story and begins his whirlwind journey with the FBI.

This book has it all: grief, revenge, love, murder, guilt, and the chase.  If you love mysteries you cannot go wrong with this one.  This will keep you guessing til the end.  I know Connelly has a current mystery series and I bet when I find the time to read one it will be good too!

Similar Authors

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I am in the process of starting a page of Similar Authors.  “If you like___, you’ll like ___…”  I will only be recommending authors that I have read and my recommendations will only be my humble opinion, of course.  But, if you have any suggestions of your own, please leave them as a comment on the page. 

If you are interested in a comprehensive list (not just my own much shorter offering) try this website

http://www.literature-map.com/

This is a fun interactive map that can help you find authors that are similar to the ones that you like.  Type in your author and his or her name will be in the middle with other authors floating around.  The names closest to your chosen author are the most similar.  You can also click on any name on the map and it will put that author in the middle and start again.  Try it- it’s fun!

And don’t forget to check out my Similar Authors page once in awhile, right now it is still a work in progress.

Enemy Combatant by Ed Gaffney

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Cover ImageFinished 5-9-08, rating 4/5, fiction, pub. 2008

Defense Attorney Tom Carpenter is a man who believes in the law.  His father was a prosecutor and Tom has made a living of keeping the system of justice in balance by providing an excellent defense for even those who may not deserve it.  So, it is no surprise that he is suddenly defending Juan Gomez, enemy combatant.  Juan finds himself charged with the greatest act of terrorism since 9-11 and Tom is positive that he is fighting a losing battle.

Tom comes to the realization that all is not as it seems with the case against Gomez when he and his family are repeatedly threatened.  Tom is held at gunpoint, shot at, shot (all at different times by different people) and finally considered an enemy combatant himself.  His family is depending on him and time is running out for Tom and Gomez.

I could not put this book down.  I kept telling myself that I’d stop after one more chapter, but couldn’t seem to follow through.  This is an edge of your seat, timely thriller.  The themes of justice, terrorism, and government post 9-11 are scary and make for a compelling thriller.  You will be drawn in from the very first chapter.  Highly recommended.

Traveling

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“Traveling is the ruin of all happiness.  There’s no looking at a  building here, after seeing Italy.”            Fanny Burney, Cecilia

Hot Stuff by Janet Evanovich and Leanne Banks

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Cover ImageFinished 5-6-08, rating 3/5, fiction, pub. 2007

I love Janet Evanovich, but sometimes she tries to make the characters  so unique and entertaining that they just end up being ridiculous.  So, when I was introduced to Pugg in Chapter One I was prepared to ignore his antics, but a wonderful thing happened.  I really enjoyed the other characters and the story so much that by the end I sorta even liked Pugg.

Cate is from a loving family and she is going to school to become a teacher.  She is subletting a room from Marty, a cross dressing singer when bad things begin to happen.  There are weird hang-ups, annoying visitors, and Marty’s disappearance to contend with and that’s before the guard dog, Beast shows up at her door.  At the bar where she bartends she meets Kellen and is unwillingly drawn to him as he begins to charm her.  Circumstances arise that throw Cate and Kellen together and a whirlwind love affair begins.

This was a fun and fast read and I really liked it.  I loved Beast and Cate’s family.  It made for a very enjoyable few hours.

On The Run: A Mafia Childhood by Gregg & Gina Hill

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Cover ImageFinished 5-6-08, rating 4/5, non-fiction, pub. 2004

“My father is the single most irresponsible and uncaring person I’ve ever known.”  Gregg Hill, Chapter 2

When I read (and reviewed) Gangsters and Goodfellas by Henry Hill I found a man who thought very highly of himself and who liked to skip over details that he didn’t think were important.  I decided to follow up that book with this one written by his children about their lives with their father and I am so glad I did.  This is the story of two kids still in hiding from the Mob who have had their lives irrecoverably changed by their father and his choices.

Gregg and Gina spent their childhoods with parties in their house full of drugs, sex, and mobsters or when Henry was in jail, visiting him.  Gregg never really had a close relationship with his father.  He saw what was going on and wanted no part of it.  Gina idolized her father and it wouldn’t be until much later that she saw him for what he was.

When Henry decided to enter the Witness Protection Program with his family, Gregg and Gina viewed it in different ways.  Gregg thought Henry was being selfish and Gina was grateful that Henry wanted the kids with him.  Their first stop was in Nebraska, where they only made it two months before being shipped off to Kentucky for a little longer, and then on to Washington State where they would both finish school.  These moves were necessitated because Henry could not quit breaking the rules and putting them in danger.

There was violence, alcohol, drugs and more arrests to mar the way to adulthood, but it seems that Gregg and Gina have turned out okay.  The book is thoughtful, heartbreaking, and full of harsh reality.  This was a great read and a real look inside the family life of a Mobster who didn’t really want to escape from his past, but his kids did.

What Are You Reading?

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I posted the answers to last week’s quiz.  Amy, Mark and Jason knew 60%.  Not bad!

This week no quiz, but I want to know what you’re reading!  So, leave a comment and tell me (and everyone else) the title and author of the book you are reading.  If you just finished a book you can tell us that too. 

So, what are you reading?

I’m currently reading Hot Stuff by Janet Evanovich & Leanne Banks, On the Run by Greg & Gina Hill, Ishmael by Daniel Quinn.  I’m listening to Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury in the car.