Gage was sick yesterday so I didn’t have time to make one! See you next week 🙂
M is for McNaught Meets Martin’s Miracle
Judith McNaught
from my personal library 🙂
I’ve read all thirteen novels and reread quite a few of them more than once. Her historicals are my all-time favorites. The two I’ve reread the most over the years are Almost Heaven and Paradise, but there are others that I should take the time to read more often because they are such comfort reads to me. Her last two books were romantic suspense and were good, but it’s the romances that make me a real fan.
Meet the Parents
I find Ben Stiller funny and he has never been better than in this comedy. Robert De Niro as the scary future father-in-law is perfection as well. I watch this every time it comes on tv – and that’s a lot!
Miracle of Mindfulness:An Introduction to the Practice of Meditation by Thich Nhat Hanh
I first read this in the late 90’s and it still holds a place in my everyday life. There are things about being totally present and awake in the moment that speak to me. It’s 160 pages of spiritual self-help written by a Buddhist monk and I can’t recommend it enough. Doing this list this month I have been reminded of so many books I want to reread and this is at the top of the list.
Steve Martin
Like Stiller, Martin is another actor that I find funny pretty much every time I see him. I did like him in his older movies (The Jerk, The Man with Two Brains) but my two favorites are Planes, Trains and Automobiles and Father of the Bride. I read his first book, Shopgirl, and didn’t love it, but I like that he’s talented writer and musician too!
L is for Lord Lion Lindbergh on Lolly Lane
Gift from the Sea by Anne Morrow Lindbergh. Rating 5/5, memoir?, 142 pages, pub. 1955
I cannot possibly do this book of poetic beauty justice. The views of Lindbergh can be considered old-fashioned and antiquated, and they are, but that should not diminish the truth behind her words. As women, we all still struggle with finding time alone, relationships, midlife, aging. This slim memoir is to be savored one small chapter at a time and by those who can appreciate that it was written in a different, but no less significant period. Lindbergh lived a privileged (and in some ways tragic) life, but her words can be appreciated by every woman. I set aside time to fully appreciate each chapter with no outside noise or time constraints (a difficult task), and felt that I had visited and been restored by the sea.
From my personal library and I loved it.
The Lord of the Rings trilogy, 2001, 2002, 2003
This trilogy, based on the fantasy books by JRR Tolkien, is based in Middle Earth during a dangerous time. The dark lord Sauron wants to rule over Middle Earth and he must find the One Ring that can make that possible. The wizard Gandalf, four hobbits, two men, an elf, and a dwarf form a fellowship to destroy the ring, but there are many evil forces at work and they don’t all make it to the end.
Loved every minute of this series, in no small part due to this man
(swoon)
Diane Lane
I fell in love with her when I saw A Walk on the Moon (who also happens to feature that swoon-worthy man above), then I saw Under the Tuscan Sun and it cemented her place as one of my favorite actresses.
The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe by CS Lewis
Who didn’t want to find a secret door in their house to step through for adventure after reading this? One of children’s books that I think has aged well.
Lolly Winston
Only two books and I loved them both. Good Grief and Happiness Sold Separately. She hasn’t written a book in ages, but I’ll be first in line when she does!
K is for Koonz Kid Kills Keaton Knight
Saturday Snapshot is hosted by West Metro Mommy Reads.
Looks like my kid is ready for summer!
A Knight in Shining Armor by Jude Deveraux
I remember reading this soon after it was first published in 1989 and falling in love with the historical time travel romance. The time travel aspect seems so passe these days, but 20+ years ago I was hooked. I went on to read and enjoy more of Deveraux’s historicals but this probably still my favorite. A 16th century knight meets a modern day young woman and sparks fly. I’ve read it a few times over the years and have loved it every time.
Dean Koontz
I have always preferred Koontz to Stephen King, although King has impressed me over the last several years. Koontz, to his credit, never needs an editor 🙂 He wrote one of my favorite trilogy-ish books ever, the Moonlight Bay books. He hasn’t had the splashy career of King, maybe because of King’s great success with the movies of his books, but I think he is a more skilled and solid writer.
Kill Bill, Volumes 1&2 (2003,2004)
By far my favorite Quentin Tarantino movie(s). Maybe it’s because all the women kick butt: Uma Thurman, Lucy Liu, Darryl Hannah, Vivica Fox. This was out of my comfort zone a bit but I really liked it. Do you have favorite Tarantino movie? I’ve seen a few but haven’t really loved any of them.
Diane Keaton
As I looked over Diane’s list of movies, I realize that I like her more than I do the movies she’s in. I like watching her nervous energy onscreen. She’s been in some classics (Godfather, Annie Hall) but I prefer some of her other, more standard fare. I loved Baby Boom, Father of the Bride, Something’s Gotta Give. As I look at that list I see that they are roles of her as a mother in different phases of her life. I’ve seen them all more than once and loved them every time. What about you? Do you have a favorite Diane movie?
J is for Joaquin Judgement of Jennifer, Joyce & Jane
Maybe This Time by Jennifer Crusie. Finished 4-10-14, rating 4.5/5, haunted romantic comedy, 342 pages, pub. 2010
Andie Miller wants to marry her fiancé and leave behind everything in her past, especially her ex-husband. A very distant cousin of his has died and left him as the guardian of two orphans who have driven out three nannies already. He needs a very special person to take care of the situation and he knows Andie can handle anything.
When Andie meets the two children she quickly realizes things are much worse than she feared. The place is a mess, the children aren’t your average delinquents, and the creepy old house is being run by the worst housekeeper since Mrs. Danvers. What’s worse, Andie’s fiancé thinks this is all a plan by North to get Andie back.
What follows is a hilarious adventure in exorcism, including a self-doubting parapsychologist, an annoyed medium, her Tarot-card reading mother, an avenging ex-mother-in-law, and, of course, her jealous fiancé. And just when she thinks things couldn’t get more complicated, North shows up on the doorstep making her wonder if maybe this time things could be different between them.
from Goodreads
Fun, fun, fun! I loved this romp in a haunted Ohio castle. Crusie will have you chuckling out loud and leave you with a smile on your face. Andie is a great heroine, easy to like, and the kids are damaged enough to make her show her grit. And that’s before the ghosts show up. Lots of great characters, a moody castle, ghosts to sort out, a murder, and sex. What more could you want?
I love Crusie’s writing. Her books are always lighthearted and the canvas of characters is always colorful.
Brenda Joyce
I consider Joyce my go-to historical romance author. I loved her Deadly series and consider it one of my all-time favorites (I reviewed the 9 romanctic suspense series here). When I checked with Goodreads, I have 23 of her 50+ books marked as read. This makes me very happy because it means I can turn to her for years to come. A must try for historical romance readers!
Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte
This was the first work of literature that I read on my own. I think I was trying to impress my freshman English teacher during our free reading time in class. I did reread it sometime after college and I watched a bunch of the movie adaptations (most are pretty good). I also saw the musical during its short stay on Broadway. It was excellent and I was sad to see that it closed early. Anyway, this is all to say that this classic gothic romance has it all: love, death, abuse, madness, money, power, a family made not born into, and finally, peace.
Judgement at Nuremberg, 1961
In 1948, four Nazis are tried for war crimes. You can’t go wrong with this all-star cast-Spencer Tracy, Burt Lancaster, Montgomery Clift, Maxmilian Schell, Marlene Dietrich, Judy Garland. See the very dramati courtroom scene….
Joaquin Phoenix
This was a hard one. I could have just as easily chosen Hugh Jackman (more easily actually), but if I am honest I find Joaquin so much more interesting. Maybe it’s his bohemian childhood and the tragedy of witnessing the death of his brother, Phoenix, but he brings such heft to each of the characters he portrays. I liked him in Walk the Line, and he was my favorite actor in Gladiator, but his latest, Her, I haven’t seen yet because the premise freaks me out a little. Have you seen it?
I is for It’s Ian Into Isabel
It Happened One Night, 1934
Clark Gable and Claudette Colbert were flawless in this slapstick romantic comedy. She, a spoiled heiress, and he, a reporter on the story, match wits and sparks fly. It won 5 Oscars (Best Picture, Best Actress, Best Actor, Best Director, Best Writing) and is well worth checking out. One of my all time faves.
Into the Wilderness by Sara Donati
This is a must read for fans of Diana Gabaldon, or for those who love epic tales of adventure and romance. Elizabeth Cameron sails to New York in the late 1700’s to join her father; judge of a small mountain village called Paradise. It chronicles her journey from genteel England, to the rough laws and harsh prejudice of the New World. Paradise is full of unique characters, rife with hostility toward the Mohawk living on Lake in the Clouds. Elizabeth comes to be a teacher, but her father has other plans for her. To secure his own wealth, Elizabeth’s father intends for her to marry Richard Todd, the wealthiest man in Paradise. Instead, Elizabeth falls in love with Nathaniel from Lake in the Clouds.
Ian McKellen
His recurring roles of Magneto in the X-Men films and Gandalf in the Lord of the Rings and Hobbit trilogies have cemented him as the go-to guy for complex characters. He is fun to watch, even if he’s being bad. Do you have a favorite of his outside of these roles? I admit I’m not as familiar with his other movies as I should be.
Isabel Allende
I read her first book, The House of Spirits, and loved it. This 1982 novel, with strong women and magical realism, put this Chilean on the map. I’ve only read one of her other novels, Daughter of Fortune, and loved it too. I want to read more. Do you have a favorite Allende book?
H is for Harry Hoffman’s Hunger Hepburn
He Did This Just For You. Finished 4-9-14, Christian, 64 pages, pub. 2000
My cousin gave me this slim book(let) a few years ago and I just got around to taking the 20 minutes or so to read it. This is a great book to give a person to explain the Christian faith in the simplest of terms. There’s nothing new here, but it might be a good thing to have to pass along to someone who needs reassurance. The very cool art on the cover was left for Lucado by an anonymous churchgoer.
Katharine Hepburn
Katharine Hepburn was a woman before her time. Now she would be considered a rebel, or trend setter, but back in the 1930’s her independent and feisty nature turned audiences off and after successes she became known as box office poison. Until a turn on Broadway in The Philadelphia Story gave her an opportunity to turn her reputation around. She bought the rights to the story and in 1940 made one of my favorite movies ever. Her outspoken personality, unconventional life, and a 25 year affair with actor Spencer Tracy make her one of the more interesting (and talented) actresses of the 20th century. I think I’ve seen about 10 of her movies and consider some of them my favorites – Desk Set (1957), State of the Union (1948), Summertime (1955). Do you have a favorite movie of hers?
The Hunger Games, 2012
I have a confession to make. I have not read The Hunger Games trilogy (gasp!). I was impressed by how well done the movie was and I fell in love with Katniss. She was a bad ass and I loved her bravery and smarts in the face of opposition. The games themselves were cool and I was on the edge of my seat to see what would happen next. I liked the next movie too and am so looking forward to watching the rest. Maybe because I love the movie(s) so much I have no desire to read the books. That may be a first for me.
Harry Potter series by JK Rowling
I admit that I didn’t fall in love with the series until book 3, Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, but after that I couldn’t get enough. For those of you who have read the whole series you understand when I say that I remember where I was when THAT BAD THING happened in book 6. I was visiting a friend in Chicago and I was trying to sneak in some reading time before dinner and then, bam!, tears. I had to pull myself together enough to look like a normal adult who wasn’t all wrapped up in Harry Potter and I think it worked. I am looking forward to reading these with Gage someday, but they may be a little too magical for him. Time will tell.
Beth Hoffman
Beth’s first book Saving Cee Cee Honeycutt was the first book I read in 2010, then I was able to interview her through an exchange of emails before finally meeting her for the first time all in the same month! I was able to meet her again last year when she was on her book tour with Looking for Me and consider her one of warmest and most genuinely appreciative authors I’ve met. She also makes the time to stop by here and leave comments, isn’t she cool? Listen to her speak if you can and for sure read her two books, both are excellent!
G Quiz – guessing closed
How many of these titles and/or authors can you name?
Take your best guesses, be entered to win a prize. No cheating (using the web to help find answers) or copying. You have til Sunday to enter. All extra details can be found here.
Leave your guesses in the comment section.
You only need to guess one to be eligible for a prize.
1. The Lacemakers of Glenmara by Hether Barbieri 2. Silent in the Grave by Deanna Raybourn 3. The Girl You Left Behind by Jo Jo Moyes 4. The Galssblower if Murano by Marina Fiorato 5. Girl with a Pearl Earring by Tracy Chevalier 6. The Girl with Glass Feet by Ali Shaw 7. Children of God by Mary Doria Russell 8. The Angel’s Game by Carlos Ruiz Zafon 9. Big Stone Gap by Adriana Trigiani 10. Hello Goodbye by Emily Chenoweth
G is for Gabaldon Grants Gilbert Glass Grapes
The Tuesday quiz will be the next post!
Cary Grant
A few fun facts about the suave Archibald Leach…He was born in England in 1904. When we was 12 his mother suffered a severe nervous breakdown so he ran away at 13 and joined Bob Pender’s Troupe, but his father found him and brought him home. A year and half later he rejoined the troupe (with his father’s blessing) and travelled around England before the troupe headed to New York City in 1920. He worked as a stilt walker at Coney Island and as an audience plant with a mind-reading act before working on Broadway. He became a US citizen in 1942. Married five times, divorced four and the father of one child. He died in 1986 at the age of 82 of a stroke.
My favorite Cary movie if The Philadelphia Story. Do you have a favorite?
The Glass Castle by Jeanette Walls
Jeannette writes about her childhood traveling from state to state with her parents and three siblings. She starts by telling her first memory, when she was boiling hotdogs and caught herself on fire – at the age of three. She spends six weeks in the hospital before her father breaks her out. So begins the adventure that is her life. The children grow up in extreme poverty.
It is the even-handed way that Walls tells her story that makes this book so wonderful. She is not bitter or pointing fingers. During her childhood years she and her siblings accepted their life and their parents and it was only later after a move to West Virginia when things became unbearable that she became frustrated. I am in such awe of her ability to come out of her situation intact and successful. I don’t really want to spoil too many details because I think once you start reading it you won’t be able to put it down and at 288 pages it won’t take you long to finish. Cannot recommend it highly enough.
Diana Gabaldon
I read the first four books in her Outlander series back to back and this was no small feet since they were all 600+ pages. I also read them at a time when I was still working for Barnes & Noble and hand sold these to many customers, even quite a few men! It has romance and adventure, history, war and time travel. I met her at a book signing and she was smart and beautiful, add that to talented and she’s an easy pick!
What’s Eating Gilbert Grape, 1993
Usually I fall in love with the performances or the story, but in this case I can’t choose one because I loved them both. Obviously, Johnny Depp is going to give you a good performance and this is one of his most normal roles. He plays a long-suffering man of the house struggling to keep it all together with little thought to his needs. But DiCaprio’s Arnie equally shines and he was more than deserving of the Academy Award nomination. This was Leonardo before Titanic and showing his acting chops. I was amazed at what he pulled off. Those two performances alone make this movie a must see.
F is for Four Freeman Foresters Fellowship
Four Weddings and a Funeral, 1994
This British comedy has an outstanding cast, not all of whom I was familiar with, and the humor is sometimes more subtle than in-your-face. You really have to pay attention to appreciate all of the details. Hugh Grant is the core of the movie but it is really the supporing cast who makes it so much fun – Kristin Scott Thomas, John Hannah, Andie McDowell, Simon Callow, James Fleet.
Watch it and get ready for wedding season 🙂
Fellowship of the Ring by J.R.R Tolkien
I read this for a college class and loved it, this was way before the movies came out and I fell in love with them. I didn’t have much experience with science fiction or fantasy and I was immediately drawn into Tolkien’s Middle Earth and the many adventures that awaited me there. I should note that I’ve only read this first one. I’ve tried to read The Two Towers several times over the years and have never made it past halfway before setting it aside.
Is there anything he can’t do onscreen? He elevates every movie that he’s in, even when it’s a smaller part. My five favorite Freeman roles would be 1.’Red” (Shawshank Redemption) 2.Somerset (Se7en) 3.John Rawlings (Glory) 4.Joe Clark (Lean on Me) 5. Fox (Batman trilogy) What’s yours?
I’ve only read two books by Forster. I read A Room with a View in 2011 and this is what I wrote.
I loved this short gem of a romance. It addresses a young woman’s coming of age during the early 1900′s, a time that demanded little from her. Lucy knew she wanted more, but she didn’t know what more meant. Because she was scared of her feelings for a man who did not follow society’s rules she fled home to the security of a place that told her what her place was in the world.
I loved Lucy’s transformation and the humor Forster used to make this book fun and still important. I loved the whole thing and was especially charmed by the end.
Until I went back and read that I had forgotten I liked it that much. I read Howard’s End in 2005, pre-blogging, and parts of that story have stayed with me over the years. Given these two books I feel good about my F choice. I need to read his most well know work, A Passage to India. Have you read it?
Stacy's Books 