Tag: Books

Smart Women, by Judy Blume

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Smart Women by Blume Blume: Book CoverFinished 5-19-09, rating 3.5, fiction, pub. 1983

He grabbed her roughly, forcing her to face him.  “I’ve spent six years paying for what may or may not have benn my fault.  I’ll never get over it completely.  But I’ve learned to deal with it… with my guilt… with your hate… with losing Bobby… and then you, taking Sara away.  Six years is enough.”

“Enough for you,” she said.

“Enough for any of us,” he said softly.

Chapter 6

B.B. and Margot are casual friends who have a lot in common.  They both escaped to Boulder, Colorado, after their divorces and both have impressionable young daughters.  B.B. has Sara, a serious preteen who bears the brunt of her mother’s anger.  Michelle, Margot’s daughter, is a 17 year old who is full of anger at her mother and is not afraid to show it.  These four share time telling the story.

B.B. is a successful realtor with her head in the sand.  She lost her 10 year old son in car accident with her then husband, Andrew, driving.  She is incensed that Andrew now wants to move to Boulder to be closer to Sara and she asks Margot to keep an eye on him when he moves next door to her.  Margot, who has had a string of boyfriends, meets the sexy Andrew and tries not to fan the flames between them.  Andrew for his part has no problem pursuing Margot and it sends B.B. over the edge.

I found the story readable and compelling and I don’t know why.  These ‘smart women’ all had problems.  B.B. was a cold, unforgivable shrew.  Margot cared more about her next boyfriend and sex life than her two kids.  Michelle is the awful teen cliche and may have been the only one to show any real growth from beginning to end.  And poor Sara bore the brunt of her mother’s verbal abuse and was the only sympathetic character in the whole bunch.  But, maybe it was their extreme flaws that made them so recognizable  and therefore the story compelling.

At its best it is about what makes a family and the blending that takes place with divorced parents.  At its worst it is a shallow soap opera.  I’m torn as to which side it falls closer to.

Tess of the d’Urbervilles, by Thomas Hardy

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Tess of the d'Urbervilles (Barnes & Noble Classics Series) by Hardy Hardy: Book CoverFinished audio 5-18-09, rating 4/5, fiction classic, pub. 1891

Tess Derbyfield is living with her impoverished family in southwestern England in the 1800’s when her family finds out they are related to an old and noble line, the d’Urbervilles.  Her parents are eager to claim kinship to the closest d’Urberville they know and send the beautiful Tess to make an introduction as family.  Once there Tess is seduced by the cad Alec d’Urberville and becomes pregnant.  She races back home and gives birth to a son she names Sorrow.

After the death of Sorrow Tess must find work to support herself and her family and she finds work at a dairy farm.  It is at the farm that she meets Angel Clare, who comes from a respected religious family.  The sparks fly and Tess is confronted with the choice of telling Angel about the baby or letting him continue to believe that she is a virgin.  Her mother tells her to keep the secret and Tess tries, but she is at heart an honest soul.

Tess was pure of faith and heart, but she was so mistreated by everyone she came in contact with, her family included, that she lost that innocence.  She is the shining example of the hypocrisy of the day.  Women had so few options and I applauded her effort to remain virtuous of spirit.  She is a tragic figure that represents Victorian era.

This classic is a love story that runs the gamut of emotions.  I knew nothing of this book when I checked the cds out of the library (14.5 hours unabridged) and loved the language and tone of  the book.  I was also shocked by many of the things that happened.  I don’t want to spoil anything for you here, but let me say that I am happy to be living in 2009 and not in the 1800’s, especially not as a poor girl with a sad family. 

It is not perfect, but the things that bothered me most were aspects of the time period, not the writing or the story itself.  I recommend this tragedy as one that will touch your heart.

Teaser Tuesday – Smart Women

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teasertuesdays31

Teaser Tuesdaysis a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. Anyone can play along! Just do the following:

Grab your current read

  • Open to a random page
  • Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page
  • BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)
  • Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers! ;)

“You killed Bobby and now you’re trying to take Sara so that I’ll have nothing left, nothing to live for.  You won’t be satisfied until then, will you?”

Smart Women by Judy Blume, Chapter 20

Cover Image

Before anyone asks, this is an old book, 1983, 

So, what are you reading today?

Blood Bayou, by Karen Young

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Blood BayouFinished 5-14-09, rating 3.5/5, Christian fiction, pub.2009

“Don’t you feel some responsibility for letting these criminals out on the street, Ms. St. James?”

The question came from a woman carrying a sign that read “Victims Have Rights Too.”  “Mr. Pelham had no previous record when he was arrested.  I don’t see him as a threat in any way.”

Camille and Jack haven’t seen each other for seven years and were only married for three before alcoholism and a fatal accident led to their divorce.  Camille feels compelled to go back to Blood Bayou to offer her personal condolences to Jack when his sister, his only family, is brutally murdered.  Jack is a minister now, but his civility is tested by Camille’s unfailing support for his sister’s murderer.  Camille is out to prove that the man she got off death row did not get out of jail and immediately murder again.

This novel is a murder mystery, faith journey, and love story in one.  As Camille stays in Blood Bayou to prove Chester innocent, she comes in close contact with Jack and old feelings rekindle.  Jack has completely turned his life around and shares with Camille the journey his he has taken to find God and His purpose for Jack.  Camille is skeptical and finds Jack’s turnaround self-serving and she questions his motives.  Camille herself is no church-goer and she is uncomfortable with Jack’s strong faith and chosen profession.

There is a lot to like about this book.  The people of Blood Bayou are ones that you will recognize if you have ever lived in a small town and the mystery keeps the story moving along.  I found Camille’s lack of faith refreshing and honest.  And I really liked the fact that the author did not wrap up Camille’s religious journey with a shiny bow at the end.

I will say that the mystery wasn’t much of a mystery.  It did not take me too long to figure out what was going on and there were not really too many surprises.  It seemed that the mystery was just a vehicle to get Jack and Camille together and talk about faith.  This is not a bad thing – I found it very enjoyable – but I wouldn’t have minded a few twists I didn’t see coming.

I recommend it for a nice friendly read.

Book provided by Library Thing Early Reviewer

Dead Sleep by Greg Iles

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Cover ImageFinished 5-10-09. rating 4/5, fiction, pub. 2001

The paintings look modern for the most part, or what my idea of modern is, anyway.  A lot of stark color arranged in asymmetrical patterns, but it means little to me.  I’ve been called an artist-often during attacks by purist photojournalist-but that doesn’t qualify me as a judge of art.  I’m not even sure I know it when I see it.

Chapter 3

Renowned photojournalist Jordan Glass has been everywhere, with much of that time spent in the most dangerous, war-torn places on earth.  Her father, winner of two Pulitzers, died while obtaining his last award winning shot in Cambodia during the Vietnam War.  At least the world believes that, but Jordan is not convinced.  Jordan is in Hong Kong when she comes face to face with a painting of her, apparently dead.  The popular collection of ‘Sleeping Women’ at first thought to be women in repose is now rumored to be dead women.  Jordan is thrown because she knows she is not looking into the mirror, but at the face of her twin sister who has been missing for over a year.

As Jordan races back to New York and the seller of the portraits, she contacts the FBI for help.  As it becomes obvious that Jordan’s life could be in danger the FBI bring her in to help with the investigation.  The case takes Jordan home to New Orleans, where her sister’s husband and two children still live.

The action is non stop, the characters have depth, and the mystery is top notch.  The paintings and the possibility that the women may be dead haunted me just as the possibility did Jordan.  The spooky vibe and the sexual tension between Jordan and FBI Agent John Kaiser keep the book operating on  all cylinders.  This is a great thriller and I look forward to reading more from Greg Iles.

I won’t give away the ending, but I will say that I liked it, but didn’t love it for a few reasons I can’t say without saying too much.  But that is only the difference between a 4 and 4.5, so obviously I loved it!  It is wonderfully original story with a strong woman leading the way.

Educating Esme: A Diary of a Teacher’s First Year, by Esme Raji Codell

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Cover ImageFinished 5-9-09, rating 3/5, education, pub. 1999

The older teachers shook their heads and told me my room looked overstimulating, which means they are totally jealous because I have the most insanely beautiful classroom ever, of all time.  Oh, God!  I have beautiful portraits of explorers over the chalkboard, the cloakroom has a cutout panorama of an international open-air market, and there’s a learning center with flags of all nations.  I’m sorry, this room is so fun it’s sickening.  I feel sorry for any kid who is not in this room.

September 18

Esme is beginning her first year as a teacher and keeps a diary of her successes and struggles.  This is that honest and often funny journal. 

I loved the passion, committment , and take no bull attitude as she maneuvered her way through unruly students, abusive parents, and out of touch administration.  Her fifth grade class was lucky to have this unconventional teacher who went out of her way to make the classroom a safe environment for these at-risk inner city Chicago kids.  She went above and beyond, even keeping a student’s 2 year old sister with her all day while teaching.

There were many things to like a few aspects that fell short.  These were vignettes that lacked a big picture to frame the story.  This is not her fault since it was a diary, but it was lacking for the reader.  Also, as much as I liked her, her supreme self-confidence did get tiresome, although I think this confidence was great for her students.

This is a short read and is a great look inside a first year teacher’s classroom.   I do think this would be a nice graduation gift for anyone planning to study education in college.

Teaser Tuesday – Blood Bayou

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teasertuesdays31 Teaser Tuesdaysis a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. Anyone can play along! Just do the following:

 Grab your current read

  • Open to a random page
  • Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page
  • BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)
  • Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers! ;)

Cover ImageThey were divorced and with good reason.  Maybe God had forgiven him, but just because he wore a clerical collar – or whatever he wore on Sundays – didn’t mean she forgave him.  And she bet there were still a few people out there who felt the same way.

from Blood Bayou by Karen Young, Chapter 3

So what are you reading this week?

Book Problem, Year 2

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Last May I wrote a post on my book problem.  I gathered all of the books I’d collected over the years and had not gotten around to reading and took this photo

So, I thought it was time to assess the progress I’ve made in a year.  I recreated the photo exactly (excluding Max who decided not to cooperate), leaving out the books I’ve read and came up with this

book problem 09 1

Okay, you may not be able to tell because of the angle, but the piles were smaller!  49 books smaller to be exact (I read 43, donated 6 I will never read)  So, I took the smaller pile on the left and distributed it on the other piles and added the books I’ve acquired and not read this year and came up with this 

book problem 09 2

And guess what?  I only added 43 books this year!  So this is my TBR pile, 380 books in all.  I am trying to work my way through and I just need to concentrate on not adding more than I’ve read from my TBR pile.  I am participating in the RYOB Challenge and have 20 more to reach my goal, so that will help 🙂

What about you?  I know some of you have posted about this and if you want to leave a link I’ll add it here.

Other TBR piles

Golda

Diane at Bibliophile By the Sea

Fox River, by Emilie Richards

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Fox River by Richards Richards: Book CoverFinished 5-8-09, rating 4/5, fiction, pub. 2001

“It’s a fork in the road,” Maisy said, stroking her daughter’s hair.  “And you don’t even feel up to walking a straight line.  But you will.  You can.  You’ll get through this honey, and make all the right choices.  There’s no question.”

For once in her life Julia was profoundly grateful to be suffocated in her mother’s soft arms.  But as she sobbed, she wondered who was comforting Christian.  Who would tell Christian that at this critical fork in the road he would take the right path?  Who would hold him and reassure him?

 She knew, without a doubt, it should have been her.

Chapter 11

This grand sweeping romance will draw you into the world of horses and fox hunting and the privileged people who live there.  Julia, who comes from the most respected of horsemen families, is a woman who has had to deal with a lot of tragedy in her almost 30 years and it all culminates with a fall off a horse that leaves her blind.  Her father died when she was too young to remember, her best friend was murdered, her boyfriend was sent to prison for the murder, and the last of the foursome was killed in a car crash.  And this is all before she begins to think her nine year marriage may be over.

Christian was released from prison when another inmate confessed to the murder, but nine years is a long time to serve for a crime you didn’t commit.  He is welcomed back to Virginia horse country by the man who had taken him in as a teenager and had never stopped believing in his innocence.  Now he just has to face down locals who still believe he’s guilty and face up to Julia, whose trouble on the stand helped send him to prison.

Julia’s mother, Maisy, is a wonderful character who takes in her daughter and granddaughter and shares a novel she’s writing which becomes another story within Fox River.  There is no shortage of action and it all weaves together perfectly for a wonderful family saga full of life and death, lies and betrayal, love and revenge.

I adored this story.  I think if you are interested in horses or fox hunting you might appreciate it more, but it is certainly not a necessity.  This is my first Emilie Richards novel, but it won’t be my last!  Read my interview with her here.

9 in ’09 with Emilie Richards

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This Friday I invited Emilie Richards to answer 9 questions.  I am almost finished with my first Richards novel, Fox River, and have enjoyed it so much I contacted her before I even finished it.  I sent her the questions Wednesday night and she had sent me her answers by the time I checked my mail Thursday morning!  Thank you, Emilie!

Emily is a  minister’s wife, mother of four, and author of the the popular Ministry is Murder mysteries and the Shenandoah Album novels.  I’ll post my review of her novel, Fox River, on Sunday and I can assure you that I will be reading more of Emilie Richards.

Visit Emilie’s website (www.emilierichards.com) for a list of her books, quilts, and upcoming events.  And now, the questions…

1. You have written over 60 books.  What is your writing routine?  You must be very disciplined.

I am disciplined, but that’s easy enough since I love writing so much that I look forward to my time at the computer.  I usually do email or blogging over coffee, then after breakfast I launch into whatever I need to work on that day.  I try to take care of promotion, research, editing, brainstorming etc. in the morning because I actually write best between about 2 and 6.  I save that time for the most concentrated work and try to avoid interruptions.  I set aside Mondays as my day off, but I do write at least half a day each on the weekends.

2. You have been a minister’s wife for many years and write the Ministry is Murder mystery series.  How has your congregation responded to your books?  Any fun stories?

I learned some time ago that people will see themselves in my books whether I put them there or not (and you can bet I don’t).  Strangely, though, nobody seems to think I’m writing about anything that could actually happen in a real church, nobody except ministers’ families, of course.  My best mail comes from fellow clergy wives and clergy of all denominations, also lots of PKs (preacher’s kids) who recognize my characters and sympathize.  Their real life stories put mine to shame.

I do have to say that our congregation has been totally supportive, and the church I loosely base the series on (and the town of Emerald Springs) invited me for a book signing last year.  They love it.

3. I just visited your blog for the first time and fell in love (http://blog.emilierichards.com/).  You cover a range of topics from the inauguration (made me teary eyed) to swine flu (made me happy you’ve recovered – you have to read it for details, readers).  As a relatively new blogger what has surprised you the most and do you have favorite blogs that you visit?

I was dragged kicking and screaming into the blogosphere.  I’ve never kept a journal, never wanted to, and doing it online seemed pointless and excruciating.  How wrong could I be?  I adore blogging.  I’ve gone from wondering what on earth I’d talk about to how on earth can I fit everything in?  It’s a joy and a journey.  In the very near future I’ll be running my next contest there (for Happiness Key) and anybody who comments on my “happiness” blogswill be entered to win a beach bag stuffed with gifts chosen by my characters.

I am a big fan of my friend author Diane Chamberlain’s blog, and nothing beats Lee Lofland’s The Graveyard Shift for great research on police procedure.  I visit many others, but I’m trying not to become addicted.

4. What is the one thing you could not live without?

My imagination.

5. Who or what inspires you?

I love stories about the “little guy” or “gal” who have overcome adversity, or stood up for their values against impossible odds and won.  There are so many, and we see so few of them.  But I am always inspired.

6. I love quotes.  Do you have a favorite?

I fall in love with quotes and immediately forget them.  But here’s one from Milton that I saw today in the NY Times, and I really like it:  The mind is its own place, and in itself/ Can make a heav’n of hell, a hell of heav’n.”

7. What are you currently reading?

I just finished Mansfield Park by Jane Austen.  I have Outliers by Malcolm Gladwell on my bedside table and Blood Bayou by my friend Karen Young, plus I’m listening to Storm of Swords by George Martin.  There’s a new Diane Mott Davidson mystery on my list, and I’ve downloaded the new Harlan Coben and Lisa Scottoline to listen to once I finish Storm of Swords.  Is that eclectic enough do you think?  I also received a Sony reader for my last birthday (love it) and last night I downloaded three of L. Frank Baum’s Oz books, and three Sherlock Holmes to go along with other classics I’ve already downloaded.  Life is good.

8. If you were trapped in the life of one fictional character who would you choose?

Stephanie Plum, because even though she’s in constant danger, cars explode when she’s not inside them, and she has both Ranger and Joe to keep her life interesting.

Of course I’d also love to take up permanent residence in the Land of Oz, so the choice would be tough.

9. And finally, what are you working on now and are there any books we’ll see on the shelves soon?

Happiness Key, my latest Mira, will be on bookshelves June 30th, along with the new paperback of Sister’s Choice, last year’s hardcover.  Happiness Key is in trade paperback, a new venture for me, and I’ll be offering a $1.50 off coupon on my website, and in my newsletters.  It’s easy to sign up for my email newsletter on my website.  Happiness Key  is the quintessential beach book, set on the Florida Gulf Coast.  It’s a friendship novel, about four very different women and I adored writing it.  Fortunate Harbor, the sequel, is in progress now.  Once it’s finished I’ll launch into A Truthfor a Truth, the fifth book in my Ministry is Murder series.  I think I’m supremely lucky to have two different kinds of books to keep my work fresh, and I never tire of either.

Happiness Key

Thank you, Emilie!