Kara's 75 in 2011 #4

SOME DAYS I JUST FEEL LIKE THIS



CALVIN AND HOBBES a syndicated daily comic strip that was written and illustrated by American cartoonist Bill Watterson, and syndicated from November 18, 1985, to December 31, 1995. It follows the humorous antics of Calvin, a precocious and adventurous six-year-old boy, and Hobbes, his sardonic stuffed tiger.(Wikipedia)

I love Calvin and Hobbes and this picture of the duo made me laugh, because right now I just feel like making silly faces at life.

1. Edward Sawtelle by David Wroblewski 3 stars my thoughts here
2. The Stolen Child by Keith Donohue 4 starsreview here
3. Horns by Joe Hill 3 1/2 stars review here
4. Up High In The Trees by Kiara Brinkman 3 1/2 stars review here
5. The Winter Ghosts by Kate Mosse 2 stars review here
6. Briar Rose by Jane Yolen 3.75 stars my thoughts here
7. Graceling by Kristin Cashore 3.75 stars review here
8. Shiver by Maggie Stiefvater 2.75 stars my thoughts here
9. Linger by Maggie Stiefvater 2.75 stars my thoughts here
10. Fire by Kristin Cashore 4 stars review here
11. The Monstrumologist by Rick Yancey 4 stars review here
12.The Curse of the Wendigo by Rick Yancey 3.75 starsmy thoughts here
13.The Knife Of Never Letting Go by Patrick Ness 3.5 starsmy thoughts here
14.The Ask and the Answer by Patrick Ness 3.75 starsreview here
15.Monsters of Men by Patrick Ness 4.25 starsmy thoughts here
16.The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins 4.75 stars
17.Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins 4.5 stars
18.Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins 4 stars
19.Full Dark, No Stars by Stephen King 4 stars review here
20.Wrecker by Summer Wood 5 stars review here

21.Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen 3 stars review here
22.The Wasp Factory by Iain Banks 4 stars my thoughts here
23.In The Woods by Tana French 3.75 stars my thoughts here
24. CE for Florida Nurses: Medical Errors
25. CE for Florida Nurses: Asthma
26. CE for Florida Nurses: Patient Transport (Including Case Studies)
27. CE for Florida Nurses: HIV/AIDS
28. The Likeness by Tana French 3.75 stars
29. Crow Lake by Mary Lawson 4 stars review here
30. Marley and Me by John Grogan 3 stars my thoughts here
31. The Circle Cast by Alex Epstein 4 stars review here
32. Touching Spirit Bear by Ben Mikaelsen 3.75 stars review here
33. Mama Day by Gloria Naylor 5 stars my thoughts here
34. Girl With A Pearl Earring by Tracy Chevalier 3.5 starsreview here
35. Speak by Laurie Anderson 3.5 stars my thoughts here
36. After by Francine Prose 2.5 stars my thoughts here
37. We Have Always Lived in the Castle by Shirley Jackson 5 stars review here
38. Un Lun Dun by China Mieville 4.75 stars review here

Kara- Got you starred! Hope you have a good weekend!

Hi Kara! Keep dancing and grinning! Got ya starred! :D

I'm here, too, and love your top image. I'm a big C&H fan :)

Have a great weekend!

I love Calvin and Hobbes! Great opening picture, Kara!

Hope you have a great weekend, love the picture:)

That was quick .. well at least for me..
I have had a distracting day.

Downtime for you I hope?

Hiya everyone!!

what was quick? kath

just chillaxin today :)

complete downtime....

Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen 3 stars



Water for Elephants is a story based on a young man's life with the circus in the 1930s. Also, it's about an older man reflecting back on his life. I am ninety. Or ninety-three. One or the other.
Jacob Jankowski, a veterinary student at Cornell, discovers that his parents have been killed in a car accident. Directionless and distraught, he climbs aboard a train that is carrying the Benzini Brothers Most Spectacular Show on Earth. Sara Gruen spares no detail in chronicling the squalid, filthy, brutish circumstances in which Jacob finds himself. The animals are mangy, abused, underfed, or fed rotten food. Once it becomes known that Jacob has veterinary skills, he is put in charge of the “menagerie” and all its ills. His responsibilities draw him into the unpredictable life of August Rosenbluth, the circus's temperamental menagerie director, and his beautiful wife, Marlena, whose equestrian act attracts enthusiastic crowds.

Rest of the review here

In The Woods by Tana French 3.75 stars



Adam Ryan has fulfilled his lifelong ambition to become a detective in the Irish police force. But because of a tragic event in his childhood, in which two of his friends vanished, never to be found, he calls himself "Rob" Ryan and does not reveal his past. He's best friends with fellow-detective Cassie Maddox, and near the start of the book the partners take on a case of a young girl who has been found murdered at an archaeological site – in the very same woods where Rob's friends had disappeared more than 20 years ago. Rob feels compelled to investigate the case as he's convinced it must have something to do with the earlier tragedy: so he persuades Cassie, who knows his secret, not to confide in their superiors.

Most of the rest of the book describes the details of the police investigation. Events are filtered through Rob's vision, so the reader experiences his panic and paranoia about the case, and his increasing sense of unease. You become aware that the” event” in Rob’s past seems to inhibit him from being able to relate not only to girlfriends but also to his parents and his police colleagues. I didn’t like Rob, for reasons I am still not sure why, but the phrase "screwed up" seems designed to apply to him.

French creates a vivid and slightly surreal Ireland, almost gothic like to me. Rob Ryan and Cassie Maddox are vivid characters and Ryan's not-quite-trustworthy narration keeps the reader thinking. The biggest complaint people seem to have with this novel is a lack of resolution to one of the two "central" mysteries. I had no problem with this "unsatisfying" ending and I liked the atmosphere of mystery created by not just the latest crimes, but built on layers of local mythology and archaeology.

Curious to see if French will resolve Rob's storyline. Nice solid debut.

ok so there are lots of reviews of ITW so I will only be doing thoughts :)

Wrecker and WFE I will review...

working on them now...later all!

Have a nice Sunday, Kara!

Good reviews on bother Water for Elephants and In the Woods, Kara! I was not a big fan of Rob in ITW, either....

Good reviews.. thank you ! I have never come across a review that gives me second thoughts
about not reading Elephants

Did you post the French review?

Thanks Stasia! have a nice sunday to you too :)

Hi katie, and thanks! Rob just rubbed me the wrong way :/ maybe it is because I just don't trust him......

Hiya Kath :) no I didn't post the French review...with 200 and some already on LT, most better them mine IMO I chose not to. Katie did a really good one :)

Have to do some housework then maybe I will be able to come back and do the review for Wrecker :)

Hi Kara!
Love to see all the smiles in your messages :)

Keep on "chillaxin" - though now that I take it out of context, it sounds like cold-blooded murder! LOL

Hi, Kara! I have you starred again!

One of these days, I'll get to In the Woods. Our library has it now.

LOL cee...it does doesn't it...sounds like something you would do with an ax :)

Hiya Terri...ITW is a little slow in the middle but it is a worth while read!

I'm reading now The Likeness and it is reminding me of the book The Secret History. I don't think I'm going to read A Faithful Place right after The Likeness, I need a break from French :)

I'm thinking Geek Love or something really strange to dive into next :)

Finished my CE for Florida Nurses today...

courses I had to read and test on were:

Medical Errors- was a review and got 100%

Asthma- new material for me, was informative and included diagnosis, management and long-term outcomes for those with asthma....got 100%

Patient Transport (Included Case Studies)- new material for me, really liked this one because it included various transport methods, regulations, stabilization of patient, and care during transport of the critically ill patient...got 90%

HIV/AIDS- was a review.... not a Florida requirement for me at this time but it is a requirement for my employment...got 100%

there are no touchtones for these things so I will just list them above

done for another 2 years! :)

#22 - Way to go, Kara!

Thanks Katie!

that's one thing off my "to do" list ;)

You are amazing! You must have 2 extra days tucked into your weeks somewhere!

Thanks Kath!

now I just have to go online and renew my license :)

2 extra days....break glass for emergencies ;)

LOL... ouch!

that kinda looks like it belongs on ape boys thread...zombie-ish :)

true.. but I left a gif for him already :)
this one kinda made me think of your place of employment.. / new guy
Hope he is doing better though..

I had to pull a 300 lb plus kid away from a window where he was doing this once
so he crashed his head into my chest instead. :P

LOL I hear ya :)

he is doing as well as expected....baby steps :) skin around the G-Tube site is MUCH better, so the dressing changes are not so "rough n tumble" ;)

He still has a one on one for 1st and 2nd shift...as of today he no longer has one on 3rd shift, we have video baby monitors and he is doing well with those :)

He is LOVING his showers! remember, he had never taken one before.

progress is being made and that is all we can ask for...for now :)

poor kid

yup, I don't think his guardian had much help/services out in the community... or if she did she just really didn't know how to go about getting them or asking how to medically care for him.

at 4ft 8inches and around 88 lbs he is a little powerhouse and she just couldn't care for him anymore :(

we went out yesterday and bought a bunch of SOFT (since he likes to throw) things for him to manipulate :) and we tried a big bucket with some water in it for water play and he really liked that too! but he gets so darn disinterested so quick LOL maybe a diagnosis of ADD will be added to his list.

*hate* water play .. ugh!

for me...yes, too messy

for him...he likes, so, at this point what ever works :)

understood.

at this stage in the game it is....see what he likes...see what he doesn't like...and work around that :) form new habits behaviorally and provide teaching/training in personal care

I know you understand :)

going home :) here since 7:30am

night night!

Kara- Hope you can relax tonight! Are you enjoying The Likeness? That's why I like to space my authors, at least by a couple months .You never want to get burned out on anybody.

Great job with the CE credits! You da nurse bomb! :)

I can't do gifs on this computer - otherwise I would find one almost as good as Kath's. :}

Here's a rose for you:

@-,--'----

Super job with the CE credits, Kara!

Glad you left at a decent time yesterday. Do it again!

kath, not today...

today I leave around 7 :( rounds with doctor today...my day starts when he gets here and he got here at 10:30 *sigh*

Mark...I do like the Likeness but it was a little slooow in the middle and I'm 3/4 of the way through it and the mystery is building. :) the good thing is I really haven't figured it out :)

Thanks for the rose Cee! you had to do those CE things right? or was that before your time ;) hehe

Thanks terri :) it took a couple of days but I got it done :) wouldn't want to skip them and then get audited. I print mine out and keep at least 3 years filed...just in case!

I'm here...I'm here already

....gotcha *****STARRED**** as usual

;-}

some days i like to make faces at the world.....except they aren't all funny faces...GAK! on being a grown-up!

drat.. late days suck

Yup, had to do the CE classes. I never really minded except to find the time!

Well, it's Thursday...that's a good thing, right?

Yes it is Thursday!

Today I will be working late again...

but only to catch up on things that have to be done because tomorrow I am taking the day off to go with my step dad to his doctors appointment.

couple of years ago he had an abdominal mass that was removed and it was malignant. he has another one now but the doctors are more concerned with the lesions they saw,via CT scan, on his liver. I have read the results of the scan and as a nurse it does not look good.

he is 85...stubborn..wants no fuss or muss...so we will see what the options are *sigh*

IS STUPID

*SIGH*

flagged

sorry to hear about your stepdad :(
tough situation...hugging

I flagged and blocked :)

looks like a bunch of 6th graders

thanks for the hug :)

Checking in belatedly, Kara, to congratulate you on your CE test scores. Great job!

I hope today flies by kara!

Sorry to hear about your stepdad, Kara. My thoughts and good wishes are with you.

How is the weekend going, kara?

{{{{{Kara}}}}}

Hi All!

Doctor appt. with step dad went well....well, I mean the doc said what I hoped he would say

yes the mass in abd. is cancer(I knew that)...yes it has probably spread to liver(figured that)....BUT it is slow growing and has probably been there growing for 10 or so years. With his age at 85 and being somewhat healthy the doc said "If you were my father I would suggest that we monitor this with a scan and monthly bloodwork, I want to keep you healthy and surgery would be a risk to your health because of your age" :) No aggressive treatment at this time

*sigh* I wanted to hear that and he gave it to me :)

On another note I finished The Likeness...3.75 stars and I picked up last night Crow Lake by Mary Lawson...really enjoying this one :)

going to lurk some, then off to get ready for my week at work :)

****hugs*** to you!!!

;-}

Good. I like that plan. Cancer treatment kills people too, better he should live
out his life without being poisoned as well . I hope it grows very very very slowly..

((((((((((kara)))))))))))

Kara- Glad you liked the Likeness. Yah! I've had a copy of Crow Lake wasting on a shelf forever, maybe you'll inspire me to move it up.

Thanks Jude, Kath and Mark :)

I will not be on LT much this week...too much going on at work :(

going on vacation 6/23-7/6 :) :) so I have so much stuff to get done prior to leaving.

forgive me! ;)

Crow Lake is turning out to be a nice read...it really could be read in one sitting but I have not had the luxury to do that....I know I will finish it this weekend :)

Woot for Kara's vacation! I know you need it!

Enjoy your vacation, you deserve it:)

I loved Crow Lake.

Where ya going? Buy a nook before you go and load it up.. that is advice from me :)
hugs

Awesome! You get a nice long vacation!
Very exciting but don't exhaust yourself before you even get started.
Check in when you can and let us know how it goes...
:)

yesterday at work was the worst day ever!!!

my monthly reports I save on a zip drive (back up is on a different zip) I went to print 16 monthly reports for April yesterday and found them missing! gone! no where to be found on either drives.....I had to do them over on top of everything else I'm supposed to do :( left work at 9pm after I had redone them and printed them, ugh!!!!

today I am plugging away at the other stuff I have to do....long nights I see ahead of me until vacation.

vacation starts next thurs. on sat. my family is spending the week at St Pete beach! we each have a condo right on the beach.....tiki bar, quiet, sun, sand and surf! :) can't wait!

off to the daily grind...will check in tomorrow :)

omg.. kara. terrible news about the reports ..you poor thing..
and absolutely not.. no late nights. You are not the lonly one who works ther..
at least not every night.. you need to put you first. You have had an awful lot on your plate lately..
hugs

sorry about the extra work to get set for vacation...
I know what you are going through. :(
Sending energy to help you get to a good place so you can enjoy your time off.
Sounds like you have a great vacation planned. :)

Kara, I hope you had a much better day today than you did yesterday!

go home, please....?

too tired to type :)

checking in..going home now...thanks you guys for dropping by :)

talk/type tomorrow..will give update on my week of hell

promise

21 monthly reports left to do then print them... :) I will finish them today.

I have decided to take home the work that I can....will do it over the weekend....no I will not be paid for it but I have to do it if I want next week to be somewhat less stressful.

there are 3 of us that work in this office....boss #1 (rudette) is on medical leave....good thing, office is quiet, bad thing is boss #2 is doing her own work and boss #1's work...that leaves me to do my work and pick up any slack that is needed. so, I can't leave anything undone prior to my vacation. Oh, and there were 2 new admissions this week too!

my 17 year old goes to Connecticut this Sat. until the end of July for a visit with his birth mom..... he will have fun and I will be less stressed wondering what stupidness (sp?) he can/might get into while home alone :)

2 out of the 3 dogs have had their physical/shots for boarding done....I have been taking them one at a time in the mornings prior to going to work. last one goes on Mon :)

so, by the looks of things, I have gotten alot accomplished but there are some things still left to do...

there is a light at the end of this tunnel and it is Thursday June 23!

Not all that far away!

And at least Rudette is out, that is surely worth something?
Up side... the more work the faster the time goes.. ?

hugs

June 23rd is a good day! My wedding anniversary :) lol

Hang in there, Kara!

The 23rd is my anniversary, too! Our 21st.

#75: Ours will the the 23rd, Morphy. Hard to believe!

I think this august will make 40 for us.

Hope you are having an uber relaxing weekend!

well then I picked a good day to start my vacation!

congrats to you Stasia and Morphidae :) and an early congrats to you kath!

not really an uber relaxing weekend...I did bring some work home to do and I worked on it a little sat. and just finished it tonight :) my 3 days next week should be somewhat easier.

I did finish Crow Lake 4 stars I think! what a good book this one is! I am still savoring it and rolling it around in my mind.....I will reread this one but during a time that I can disappear into it in one sitting :)

not sure what to pick up next...really don't want to start anything right now but I will be bringing something with me to the beach :)

I haven't picked up a new read either. Antsy..trip looming. and more..

first official day of my vacation! I spent most of it running around and getting odds and ends for our trip :)

I did start Marley and Me...it's alright, nothing to write home about....fills the void for now and is easy to read :)

I will be taking A Mercy with me... maybe I can spend lots of quiet time on the beach lost in Morrison :)

{{{{hug}}}}

and thanks for posting on my thread, here...and on FB!

;-}

30. Marley and Me by John Grogan 3 stars



My quick thoughts on Marley & Me is that it is a quick read, funny at times but there were times that I thought Grogan might have embellished a little on certain situations. Maybe I'm wrong but it felt like a comedy movie that at times just goes over the edge. No, I have not seen the movie nor do I care to. It did make me cry at the end because my older dog is going through the older life pains that Marley had....hearing loss, hip arthritis, difficulty getting up on things etc. ...that's why I gave it 3 stars, it hit close to home for me.

I would probably have given it a higher mark if it wasn't for some of his "training" techniques that I thought were boarder line animal abuse. For example, in order to stop Marley from jumping up on people he heard that if you knee the dog in the chest as he goes to jump on you it would eventually curb this bad behavior. I always learned to turn your back on a dog not hurt a dog. :/

all in all it was a quick and easy read

I will probably be giving this one away....if anyone wants it send me a PM or I will take it to my job and hand it out :)

Hey there, I lost you there for awhile. *making the Calvin and Hobbes face*... that one comes in handy! Big congrats to Nurse Kara. Why am I not surprised there are no touchstones for the books you had to read to renew your license?

Glad you can get back to the real books now. I loved A Mercy but not sure I would consider it beach reading. But what do I know? It's been forever since I've read on a beach, although the St. Pete/Clearwater beach is where I would want to hang out and read. Time to visit our Clearwater friends again. ;-)

Have fun... and relax. Your job sounds like a real stressbuster!

hi Donna! good to see you :)

well, I'm off to get things together for my week at the beach!

stay safe everyone and I'll be back in a week :)

Have a save and fun vacation! Looking forward to your report-

"What I Did on My Summer Vacation!" :)

I'll miss ya ...

Hey you.. have fun... I always miss your merriness when you are gone :)

Hope you are having fun on vacation!! :)

Miss ya! Hope you are having mucho fun!

Hi all from the beach! using my sisters phone forgive the spelling :). Having a great time and just relaxing either on the beach or under the cabana, with a book of course. I brought my er book the circle cast by Alex Epstein, the lost years of Morgan le Fay. It is turning out to be pretty good. As I type I am watching the sun go down and enjoying the breeze coming off the beach :)

Went to the largest new and used bookstore in Florida called hasem's! I bought 3 books. Mama day, iodine and the dress lodger :). I have never been in a book store that huge it went on forever! Gotta go, talk later, miss you all!

Kara! Your vacation sounds lovely... so glad you are getting a chance to relax! Have a nice cool tropical drink for me... I'm not fussy. You pick.

yay for a fun vacation! remember sunscreen!

I've made a note of that bookstore and told the hubby that we are stopping there the next time we go to visit his mother. And I don't care that it's several hours out of the way!

I am back from the beach!!! :) had a wonderful and relaxing time, we didn't want to come back.

I misspelled the name of the bookstore Katie...it is Haslam's Book Store www.haslams.com :) it is not in the best part of town, it is real close to the Tropicana Field and for directions we had to use the store name on the GPS, it couldn't find it via address. Be prepared to spend lots of time there! :)

We spent most of the time getting up with the sun, sitting on the beach with a cup of coffee and a book....afternoons were spent under a beach umbrella on the beach with a book, in between napping on the beach we took dips in the ocean :) at night we had frozen alcoholic drinks from the Tiki Bar and just sat outside and talked, read or played Scrabble until late (like after 12mn) :) usually my hubby and I took a dip in the hot tub prior to going up to bed. It was just nice..... :) not a care in the world :)

One night we took my mother out for her birthday at the Salt Rock Grill.... steak and seafood they are known for, right on the water, you can watch the fishing boats come in while your having your meal and drinking wine :) we went through 3 bottles of wine.... I had the filet with a loaded baked potato and a huge grilled lobster tale :) dessert was creme brulee (sp)! yum!

On another day we went to John's Pass in Madeira Beach....they have a long boardwalk with shops, I picked up some really cute T shirts for the grand baby then we had lunch at Bubba Gump Shrimp Co. :)

I had the sunscreen Kath :) no burns for me! had the beach umbrella and my big floppy hat... got some nice color without the pain ;)

I go back to work on Thur. :( guess it's not so bad, I do have a couple more days to try to get back into the grind :)

So while I was at the beach I read 2 books! I finished one of my ER books called The Circle Cast.... 4 stars

and my 13 year old nephew was reading Touching Spirit Bear by Ben Mikaelsen for his summer reading....I picked it up and read it in a day and I will say for a YA book it deals with some pretty powerful issues and I was impressed! 3.75 stars

So, needless to say I have multiple books to review :( I am so far behind.... I will be working on them the rest of the week

I picked up Mama Day and I am loving it!

I'm adding Touching Spirit Bear to the tbr pile. Many YA books do indeed deal with some pretty powerful images.

Happy Monday to you!

Kara! You're back! Welcome home.

Sounds like a terrific vaca. I've been to that bookstore - a few years back. Hubby was ready to leave long before I was. It was great fun...

So glad you are relaxed and still have a few days to unwind at home. :)

Glad you had a good vacation, Kara!


glitter-graphics.com

Welcome back, Kara!

Mama Day .. fabulous book, beautifully written..
I loved it too :)

The Circle Cast by Alex Epstein 4 stars



Just one look from Uter Pendragon to Anna’s mother Ygraine reduces Anna's life to ruins. This forbidden look leads to the murder of her father Gorlois by Uter. During her grief and rage, Anna is forced into exile, by her mother Ygraine, as her only means of survival. As she leaves her native Britain for Ireland, 11-year-old Anna assumes the name Morgan. With a new name comes her unquenchable thirst for vengeance and to reclaim what was taken from her.

Now, as the boat pulled away from Din Tagell and everything she had ever known, she mouthed her new name, the one that meant “sea-born” in British. It was a darker, redder name than the name the wind had taken. It contained vengeance and power. It wouldn’t be so easily silenced. The sea breeze caught the name she spoke and hurled it, too, toward Britannia.
“Morgan,” she said, and then she shouted it: “Morgan!”

Rest of the review here

Touching Spirit Bear by Ben Mikaelsen 3.75 stars



Cole Matthews has been fighting, stealing, and raising hell for years. He is on an inevitable path to prison, and in all likelihood a life of crime. Cole is a violent, out-of-control, angry teen committing first crimes against property and increasing to crimes of violence against people. Like the mindless, vicious attack on innocent bystander Peter Driscal. Peter’s beating has left him with permanent brain damage and profound psychological injuries.

Through the intervention of two community workers, who play a large role in Cole’s rehabilitation, Cole is offered the chance to participate in Circle Justice- a process of restitution based on Native American tradition. Circle Justice offers the chance for atonement for the perpetrator of the crime, the chance for restitution, and perhaps also for the victim and community's forgiveness. These concepts are in fact completely foreign to Cole, himself the victim of an unstable and violent home situation. Given a choice between prison and Native American Circle Justice, Cole chooses Circle Justice: He'll spend one year in complete isolation on a remote Alaskan island.

Rest of the review here

*waves* at Linda, Cee, Terri, Katie and Kath!

2 reviews left :) Wrecker and Crow Lake...

tomorrow...tomorrow is another day per Scarlett :)

Hi Kara- Glad you had a nice vacation. Good to have you back!

Hi Kara - pleased you had a good vacation and read some good books.

I'm kicking myself for not requesting The Circle Cast from ER - I don't think I've seen a really negative review of it.

Touching Spirit Bear looks good as well.

I look forward to your review of Crow Lake - I've read that one:)

Doncha hate that back to reality day?
Hope it's a good one..

Belated "Welcome Home" you...and a well-deserved vacation you had, i must say

I'll try not to be a stranger here, i promise...and keep reading those YA titles...you do pick some good ones!

Hi Mark! thanks for the welcome back :)

Hi Calm! thanks for the thumbs :) don't kick yourself...might hurt ;) pm me if you want and I will send it to ya :) no kicking involved, promise :P

Hi Kath! reality day...aka D day is Thursday :( yup hate it....get cranky even thinking about it

Jude! where you been?!? glad you popped in :)

Crow Lake by Mary Lawson 4 stars



With intensity Mary Lawson's novel focuses on the tiny community in northern Ontario called Crow Lake. Here, the Morrisons have lived for generations. They have always set importance in education, ever since Grandma Morrison took to reading a book while she was spinning. But tragedy strikes, and the carefully laid plans for the education of the Morrison children (seven-year-old Kate, her baby sister Bo, and two older brothers, Luke nineteen and Matt seventeen) are put on hold as the four children compromise their dreams in the pursuit of the basic needs of their family. The Morrison children cling to each other, overcoming substantial odds with the intervention, support, and sometimes interference of some wonderful characters.

Rest of the review here

I've been here...it's you that's been away!!

Ironically, i found my copy of Crow Lake upstairs...while I was looking for another book...just this afternoon...Good review...and my copy is now downstairs...waiting its turn...

;-}

Kara- Loved your review of Crow Lake. I've had this one in the stacks forever. Time to move it up.

kara dear.. I am beginning to believe that you are perhaps the only one in florida who is not crazy.
hugs

Kara, how great that you're a Hot Review on today's home page!!

I knew she was a hottie.. but I hadn't noticed that she was a HOT hottie!

Jude...nope, I put you in my pocket to take with me but then you were gone! did I lose you on the boardwalk by the fishing boats? :P

Mark, move it up! it has a quiet strength to it :)

Kath, I'm not that crazy...I didn't go and stand in this heat with my cell phone in my hand waiting for a verdict on someone that clearly is a liar...I watched it on my TV in the comfort of central air :) I'm crazy but not that crazy! :P

Thanks for the update Richard! :) and good to see ya!

Wrecker by Summer Wood 5 stars



She called him HeyBoy or BigBoy or Beauty; she called him Honey and Sweetie and Champ. For a whole year she called him Luxe, for Deluxe, meaning the best and luckiest thing that had ever happened to her. When she was angry with him she called him Son, and he held his neck stiff and waited to hear what he had done wrong. One day, gazing around at the trail of broken things strewn in his wake, she said, “Kid! Can’t you leave off wrecking things, for once?” And he turned his round face, his plum lips, to her and said, “I a wrecker.” It made her laugh. “A Wrecker?” And he nodded his head, serious, sure, and on that day it was settled.

Wrecker was born June 1965 in San Francisco. His mother, Lisa Fay left her parents’ home to join the “hippy movement” in San Francisco. She had a short affair with a man and was left suddenly a single mom with a son unknown by his father. Lisa then gets involved with a drug dealer and because of a shooting is sentenced to thirty years in prison, eligible for parole in fifteen. Wrecker is in and out of foster homes until at the age of three his Uncle Len agrees to take him home.

Home is Bow Farm, an unusual arrangement deep in the Lost Coast woods on a plot of land in Humboldt County, California. On one part lives Uncle Len and his wife Meg, who recently suffered brain damage from a freak dental surgery accident, and needs constant supervision. On the other part lives four adults, none related, in a sort of commune arrangement .Each of them is fleeing a past that’s left them emotionally wounded. And in crashes Wrecker.

Rest of the review here

HA! ***I*** was your first thumbs-up on that review!

well damn!
you are mighty quick sir :) I feel like I just posted it :)
thank you for the thumb...*smoocher* to you :)

I am caught up now
no reviews breathing down my neck!
on to Mama Day :)

enjoy & nighty-night

Yep, very good review! I was thumb number 2...

Very good reviews again Kara - more thumbs:)

thumb 4 you... Now I can't wait to see what you think of Mama Day

thanks everyone for the thumbs!! looks like I have 2 hot ones now :)

I am really liking Mama Day.. it was a little confusing in the beginning until I figured out who was talking to who. If I'm correct there are 2 characters speaking to each other, almost like they are writing a long letter to the other then there is Mama Day's story....all the dialog is fitting together nicely and I think I know where it will end up :)

just relaxing today...it is my last day of peace until going back to work :)

Congratulations on TWOwell deserved hot reviews!

WOOT! I hope today lasts a long time for you...

is it raining on you?

if it is I am very jealous!

So on a scale of 1-10 how was your vacation?

yes! nice steady rain for the past 1 1/2 hours :)

10+ for the vaca :)

hubby was in a grumpy mood the day before we had to leave....understandable I didn't want to leave either but fur kids needed us and work was waiting...we will do it again, hopefully next year and stay for the 4th, they take a barge out into the ocean and set the fireworks off :)

back to work today :( been quiet... all my chickens are well, no one in hospital :)

just trying to catch up...if that can even be done!

funny how furkids can be such a worry :)
Glad it was a good one, heaven knows you deserve a good break!

I am way behind on threads, Kara, but waving as I try and catch up. I hope you had a wonderful vacation!

weekend almost here!

Hi Stasia nice to see you here! yup my vaca was wonderful.... *waves back* :)

yes the weekend is almost here :) still rainy here :) nice rain and we should probably have it through the weekend....

rain probably won't allow the shuttle to go up today, they say maybe this weekend but if not then sometime next week.

shuttle went up! wow I really didn't think it would...with all the rain heading that way.

Hi Kara, glad your vacation rated a Perfect 10! I have fond memories of St. John's Pass and fireworks, etc. We have close friends in Clearwater Beach and have spent many vacations there over the years. I'm checking out that bookstore next time we go!

I was surprised about the shuttle, too. It was certainly heading into a mass of clouds!

I wish someone would send rain my direction! :/

My son in law sent me a gorgeous pic of the shuttle.. just as it took off..
I am glad it managed to go on time.

I am to kath...and it is the LAST one! no more shuttles :(

I'm trying satsia :) really I am! If it helps any, we just got cloudy today and heard some thunder...must of been all around us but not a drop on my yard :(

Had a nice day today with the hubby...went to the bank, had some business to take are of but when I got out of there the post office was closed so my deliveries could not be mailed this weekend :( (calm + Kath)

Went to lunch at Tijuana flats :)

then went to Kohls and shopped my ass off :) 3 pairs of jeans (petite and Levi) and one was on clearance For $12! 2 peasant looking shirts for work, 50% off :) and a pair of black 1 inch heel dress shoes...also for work

then went to pet store and got kitty her food and walked next door into a shoe store and got another pair of brown suede 1 inch heel dress shoe :)

My job has decided to really enforce the dress code (won't last but a couple months) so I can no longer wear my clogs :( that's why I had to buy closed toe and heel shoes...but I like a little height and the job standard is no higher then 1 inch, so shazam! I got them :)

Kara, a place I used to work went and changed the dress code just after I went out and bought clothes that fit the old dress code. Grrrrr...... :(

It always puzzled me that the therapeutic aides who used to work with my son were not allowed to wear sneakers when they worked in the school. The way my boy tended to run off at the time, sneakers seemed by far the wisest choice of footwear for everyone's safety.

I tend to wear closed-toe shoes for work at the library. One incident of dropping a box of books on my foot convinced me . . . ;)

Nice shopping spree, Kara!

kara.. LOL @ post office dilemma.. been there ..I have so been there!
no hurry... not on my account.. I was just afraid that you had mailed it and it had gotten lost.

kohl's bet we got the same jeans.. ! My sister dragged me there
before I went to Amy's ... great jeans.

a dress code at a job like that is pure insanity.

I need a pair of sneakers.. I really need a pair of sneakers

Looks like a good shopping trip.

No worries about you not getting to the post office and absolutely no hurry on the book:)

Hi Kara! Hope you still have the vaca glow... it fades way too fast.

(Kath, didn't you buy those sneakers yet???)

Terri, when I worked the floor...passing meds and what not I always wore sneakers but now that I'm in the office doing admin. work I like my clogs but I will conform :) I like the shoes I got and they fit the dress code!

Stasia...thanks! I was pretty pleased with myself :) I can shop for others but when it comes down to clothes for myself everything looks either horrid on me or it is not the right size!

Kath...yup what Cee said!...thought you got those sneakers already. You need them to tackle that hill :) I saw some nice KSwiss and Sketchers that I will be going back to get :)

Calm, thanks :) I pm'd you

Cee, I don't now about that vaca glow! think it kinda faded :( but the sharp clothes and footwear might brighten me up a bit!

I am 3/4 of the way through Mama Day :) I really like it! I'm feeling that the end will either be what I saw coming or it will blind side me....either way I will be pleased!

Woot! Woot! on Mama Day...i read that one way before I joined LT.....i won't say anything else....

pfft on shoe shopping (except in your case, where the dress code at work involves footwear)....most of the time I go barefoot, in hot weather...unless I do yard work, etc...then I "boot" up!!

;-}

Jude!

tell me am I correct about Mama Day???? yes or no :) plz :) pm me if you want...I am terrible, I'm the kid that shakes all the presents to figure out what is inside :P

I hate shoes! I am a barefoot girl also :) hubby complains when I go outside barefoot...but my feet get so hot and sticky feeling...just hate it!

I enjoyed reading your thread. I already have Crow Lake on my wishlist, but I have added Touching Spirit Bear, Circle Cast and Wrecker. This was a dangerous place for me to come to today.

I have been walking every day, wearing crock flip flops.. an injury work
has made it difficult to find shoes that work for me ..
long story..

I need to go to Boscov's soon and look at shoes.

Shoes . . . I wondered why my feet got so wet when I wore my favorite blue shoes . . . then I looked at the soles and saw the hole worn clear through. That explained it.

Hi Kara!
Have been seeing so much about Mama Day that I feel like reading it again! I read it about 17 years ago and I LOVED it. Maybe I should sneak it in again when my reading glasses come in and I get out of my reading slump... which is not a reading slump as much as RL life interference.

LOL terri.. that happened to me x with my keds. they are the only ones that don't hurt the top of my foot.. but they keep cracking across the bottom and they have zero support.
have to shop..

chinquapin, sorry about those book bullets ;)
those 3 are good ones IMO to get hit with, so enjoy them when you get to them!

Mama Day, Mama Day, what to say about Mama Day :) she is making me stay up to late at night :) getting close to the end.....
am I the only one that hasn't read it? gee whiz I am slow on the uptake ;)
Read it again Cee :) new glasses and all!

Tennis shoes today...ugh!! doing rounds with the doctor...
I am notorious for wearing shoes until they completely fall apart and I am forced to buy new ones!

I have not read Mama Day yet, Kara, so you are not the last reader. . .

Definitely not the last reader - that would be me!

Get busy ladies! It is a good book..
Shall I send Mama Day back to you, Cee?
My sister is finished with it..

Nah... no need to send it back, Kath.
If I want it again, I'll go to the library.
If people stop talking about it, I'll forget and get to the new books calling to me.
I'm not much of a re-reader.
It was a DANG good book tho! :)

Hi Kara!
It just occurred to me I haven't bought anything but flip flops and slippers in the past couple years.
Wonder if I should buy some shoes? Nah. My sneakers are still ok. My feet are happy!

Have a good day today! :)

Mama Day!!.......... 5 stars

read a little last night...hated to put it down, I had like 20 or so pages left but I was tired sooo.........

I got up at 5:30 this morning and finished it!
I cried
I cheered
I cringed
I will read this again :)

To soon for me to review....I want it to simmer in my mind :)

Damn, what fierce women they are!

Mama Day is now one of my favorites :)
Right up there with The Mists

yeah... it was that good.
Both of them. I lost count of how many times I read Mists..
more than 12 for sure.

Mists I read every year... :)

I used to! I used to read it and Once and Future King every year. it has been a few years
since I have read either. I blame LT :P

Just had to share........

LOL! Love it!

#161: Terrific!

I thought it was fitting with all the heat waves everyone is going through :)

I sent it to a couple of friends.. now that I have a working computer!

:)

I saw another one that was funny....

I will check.........

here it is LOL....

ahahahaha LOL

love it :)

Me too!

LOL - fun cartoons:)

Happy weekend Kara :)

LOL! Very cute! My first smile of the day!
Wish I had the sense of humor this comic has! :)
*hahahahahaha*

LOL! Great cartoons, Kara :)

Been away for a bit...crazy life and crazy job

have only had time to pop in quick on FB and LT :(

but........

I finished 2 additional books

Speak by Laurie Anderson and Girl With A Pearl Earring by Tracy Chevalier

need a nap...
thoughts on them later but I will say I liked them both :)

Have a good nap Kara, pleased you liked the books.

I have not read either..
I seem to be stalled.. distracted and melting dead away

from a friend of mine on FB regarding The Hunger Games movie....

pretty cool I think!

http://bookshelvesofdoom.blogs.com/bookshelves_of_doom/2011/07/have-you-seen-the...

Kara- Nice to see you! Sorry everything has been so crazy for you. Any relief in sight?
BTW- Loved the Hunger Games poster.

*waving* at Kara

How do people survive in florida with heat like this all summer?

There is never a relief from "crazy job" unless I quit or take vaca. Mark :P "family crazy" should be going back north next Sun :)

*waving back* at Stasia :)

kath, ummmm central air in house and car....possible pool and do outside activities before 11am other then that you are cooked, literally!
I hate the heat, I get physically ill......we have a generator because of hurricane season, just in case. this way we can run fans or window air unit in one room to sleep at night. The pool saved us when Hurricane Charlie came through and knocked out power for like 3 weeks.

omg

if there is a hurricane this year, y'all can come up and stay with me..

Book arrived safe and sound, Thank you !
. Did not mail out the one I am sending to you yet.. will do this week though..

oh I'm so glad!
I hope you enjoy it :) it is a favorite of mine!
I can wait, just let me know when you do so I can look for it :)

I will.. Shall I send this one back to you when I finish?

Nothing has held my interest in a few days..
maybe this one will do the trick..

Only send it back if you can't find someone who wants it :) otherwise I was going to go out and buy it to keep for my collection at home :)

I will try to read it asap and send it back to you :)

Hi Kara!
Just stopping by to wave and throw cool wishes your way! :)

Kath, there is NO rush...really, read it when you want and send it back when you can :)

Thank you Cee for that cool breeze...got a drink with that? ;)

So I'm going to put some brief thoughts on the 2 of the 4 books I have read.....Mama Day will have thoughts for now but I will probably do a review at a later time :)

Mama Day by Gloria Naylor 5 stars



Loved It!!! It is divided into 2 sections...Part 1 and Part 2, no chapter dividers. Part 1 was a little slow going but it is the base of the love story between Cocoa and George told in alternating voices to each other.
Part 2 is when Cocoa takes George to her home, an island off the Georgia coast, to meet her family. Great Aunt Mama Day and Grandma Abigail are family and what a family they are. Powerful female characters, love, tradition, culture, attitude, humor, magic and sacrifice. I can not do this book justice in my words I loved it that much......It definitely deserves a second read.

Speak by Laurie Anderson 3.5 stars



Melinda is a ninth grade girl that is the total outcast of her school because she called 911 at the end-of-the summer party, resulting in the police arriving to break up the bash. Something has happened that has traumatized Melinda and transformed her from a good student with close friends into a withdrawn selective mute- she speaks only when absolutely necessary. Harassed and tormented by her classmates and mostly ignored by her busy parents, she falls deeper into a depression; cutting class, forgetting to wash her hair, spacing out, gnawing on her lips until they are cracked and bleeding. She finds solace in art class. Her year-long art project is something she can get lost in and ultimately something that helps her heal.
The ending was a little meh for me but Speak is an intimate and honest look into teenage depression; emotional, painful, honest, raw. Anderson did it well.

Mama Day looks to be a must read for me. Thanks for the reminder that I need to get to it soon, Kara.

Mama Day does look very good.

Hope you are getting some cool breezes.

Mama Day is a must read period, imo :)
The other book looks pretty good, too!

Hi Stasia, Calm Kath!

I agree...Mama Day is a must read and read again :)
funny thing is.... LibraryThing thinks you probably won't like Mama Day (prediction confidence: very high) HaHa! they were SO wrong on that one :)

Speak is good also...quick easy read but with powerful subject matter that Anderson did extremely well. The teenage language and cruelty was believable. I found myself thinking back to my high school days and all the cliques and outright meanness kids do to each other. I was a loner, not the popular kid, I observed and picked who to spend my time with depending on their actions to others. Suffice it to say I did not have many friends....maybe 2-3 that I could count on, but that was enough for me :)
The meh ending was because I wanted more....It wasn't resolved completely for me...I wanted to hear more about Melinda and her recovery, if that makes sense.
Definitely a book that would help teens in conjunction with group discussion.
I hear it is a 9th grade reading assignment/discussion in some schools :)

Heh! LT Oracle is only half thinking I would like Mama Day.
I rated it 5 stars! Apparently they missed that.
Anyway, not only does this book LOOK good, it IS good!!!
I agree with you Kara - but I think I've said that a million times before. ;-)

Mama Day looks like a great summer read. Thanks for the awesome review, Kara. I may also be thanking you for some lower temps this weekend. We are stuck in the hundreds, but 90 degree weather is on it's way from Florida according to the local meteorologist!!!

LibraryThing thinks you probably won't like Mama Day (prediction confidence: very high)

I guess we will see!

I usually struggle with books aimed at teens. I find their angst annoying.

Silly oracle!

Cee at least you got a half thinking oracle! mine was full on won't like at all ;) go figure!

Donna, I agree Mama Day is a good summer read! Your welcome for the cooler temps. :) looks like Texas might get some too with the tropical storm in the Gulf :)

Stasia, I think you will like it...don't listen to that oracle :)

Morphidae, I know what you mean, but Speak was done well and to me it was not irritating at all...

maybe it is not for you....teen drama and all :)

I read Mama Day way before joining LT...i'm so glad you liked/loved it!!

Speak...i thought i had that one...but not...i have Fever 1793, though....you did a good review, for a not-so-comfy read....props, girl!

I like YA books, for the most part, because...the good ones, at least, are honest...non-patronizing...can focus on topics/issues...without the "grown up" need to Impress...if that makes a lick of sense

Hug on you, girl!!!

I don't seek out YA books, but if one comes my way that looks good, I don't hold it against them either :)

Fever 1793 is in the pile, Jude :) thanks for the props, much appreciated! I didn't want to give too much away for those that have not read Speak so I made it short and sweet.

your right on in that the good YA books are honest...non-patronizing...makes total sense in what you said :) Now, I also read an annoying YA book called After, which I have not put my thoughts down yet...ugh the horror of it...the "whole idea" of it was interesting but it just didn't do it for me....seemed immature in all areas. Read After after Speak....big difference in the writing!

I really never entertained the idea of picking up a YA book until LT, Kath...so I know what your saying too :)

you find any shoes for your footsies?

Hug to you both!

Good to go, Kara

Regarding After.....i haven't read that one..but i do love Francine Prose....who can be a handful...her books take on many "viewpoints", etc.....that aren't always pleasant....so, i can't comment on After...haven't read it yet

if you think that one is "annoying"...try Blue Angel....in which the characters annoy...but, i liked the Book itself....go figger!!!

I think After was her first YA book...could be wrong but it seems like I read that on the jacket of the book :/

it just didn't gel for me...she had everything there to creep me the hell out but I just didn't get creeped ;) and yes a couple of the characters were annoying but I can deal with that. And the end! I won't even go there right now......was a huh, that's it? moment....oh well can't like them all :)

Thanks for the Heads-Up, girl!

>203 jdthloue: I keep trying though. I've got Vampire Academy and Wither and Feed. Oh, and Conspiracies. And Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie.

Heh. Not like I am avoiding it.

#201: I put the book on hold at the local library and hope to read it soon. I am not listening to the oracle!

Yah! Stasia! I hope you like it as much as Kath, Cee, Jude and I did!

yes, do read it Stas..

have a happy, nappy weekend, kara!

Hope you're home....!

sent books yesterday... walked down to the post office before it got too hot...
so.. soon, betcha by the weekend :)

Girl With A Pearl Earring by Tracy Chevalier 3.5 stars



The girl in the Vermeer painting 'Girl with a Pearl Earring' is the subject of this fascinating story by Tracy Chevalier. Griet, the Protestant daughter of a Delft tile painter who has lost his sight in a kiln accident, goes to work as a maid for the Catholic Vermeer household. This growing family with its jealous wife, five children, grandmother and long-time loyal servant make life difficult for Griet. Her only release is when Vermeer, recognizing her artistic talent, secretly takes her on as a studio assistant. Griet is overjoyed both to work with her intriguing master and to find an outlet for her talent. However, problems arise when Vermeer's most prominent patron demands that the lovely maid be the subject of the artist's next painting. Vermeer must paint Griet and it becomes an awkward, charged situation for them both.

Rest of the review here

After by Francine Prose 2.5 stars



A school shooting has occurred at Pleasant Valley High. In the aftermath of the shooting, nearby Central High School hires a grief and crisis counselor, who is determined on preventing a similar incident at Central. Slowly, changes are made. First, no one can wear ANYTHING red to school. That includes the red AIDS awareness button that a girl named Stephanie wears to honor her dead brother. One day Stephanie doesn't return to school. Daily assemblies, metal detectors, locker searches, random drug testing....every day the students' freedoms are being taken away and school is beginning to feel like a prison. Soon, students are being shipped off to boot camp, supposedly to cure them of their bad behavior before they turn into the next school shooter. But the students never return, and the parents don't seem to mind. In fact, it seems like the daily e-mails from the grief counselor are brainwashing all the parents.

See, the "whole idea" of After was interesting but it just didn't do it for me....seemed immature in all areas.
So many things were left unexplained and my thought process at the end was, really that’s it?!?…
It just didn't gel for me...Prose had everything there to creep me the hell out but I just wasn’t creeped ;) oh well can't like them all.

I have a copy of After...but haven't read it yet...

I do love Francine Prose's work..i have 5 of her books...on the bookcase to my immediate right...which I have read..

I'm not sure if After was her first foray into YA (god, that's almost poetic)...but, I'll reserve my opinion

I like your review......concise, smart, non-judgmental...You do good work, girl

;-}

Nice review of Girl with a Pearl Earring, Kara. I read it several years ago, and liked it a lot. I've enjoyed all the Chevalier works I've read.

#215: One of these days I will get to that book!

Thumbed! I will never read Pearl Earring.. but was there a movie? I could swear I saw one...
After is just too horrifying to think about..

Hi Kara,
I read Pearl Earring just after we returned from Holland and we had spent some time in the locale of this story. Having been there made this book very alive to me. I felt like I was there - in the story. I like Chevalier's books a lot. Thumb for your review!
After doesn't sound like anything for me... so, I'm glad it wasn't good. :)

You were in Holland?!??!

yup... been a lot of places, Kath. Now... I can only dream.

ah well... I have books! :)

You are a woman of many secrets!

:)

Jude, thanks! Prose is not crossed off my list yet...I would be willing to read an adult novel by her...any suggestions?

Thanks katie!

Hi Stasia :) it is a small book and a quick read, maybe you can squeeze it in somewhere!

I think there is a movie Kath...might be wrong but I think Scarlett Johansson played Griet...never saw the movie but would now that I have read the book :)

Cee...Holland?!? I'm green with envy! I would love to go there...Since I haven't been to Holland nor was I familiar with Vermeer and his work I found a great site online that went into amazing detail on each of his paintings...thinking about putting one of them as the header for my next thread :)

We Have Always Lived In The Castle by Shirley Jackson 5 stars



Sisters Constance and Mary (Merricat) Blackwood live with their wheelchair-bound Uncle Julian and cat Jonas, in a large, remote house on the edge of a small New England town. They’re the last of a large, wealthy family, the rest of the clan having been poisoned at dinner a few years earlier – an event from which Uncle Julian has never recovered, physically or mentally. The story is narrated by Merricat, a precocious, spiteful, charming, complex and totally insane anti-heroine, who spends her time wishing people dead, smashing mirrors and casting spells in her efforts to maintain the trio’s reclusive conditions.
The creeping tension in the story hinges around the poisoning of the Blackwood family (a classic whodunit) and the arrival of an unpleasant relative who acts as a catalyst for terrible changes. This is a world of black hearts and deranged desires. Yet within it, we also find sadness, gentleness, love and kindness.

Rest is here

Un Lun Dun by China Mieville 4.75 stars



Schoolgirl Deeba and her friend Zanna begin their adventure wondering why strange people and animals keep staring at blonde, beautiful Zanna and referring to her as ‘the Shwazzy’. Zanna’s investigation lands them in an alternative version of London known as UnLondon (Un Lun Dun), where they discover that a prophecy names Zanna as the Chosen. The book of prophecies says that Zanna will win her first encounter with the evil Smog. Confident, Zanna makes an attempt, but fails, her memory of UnLondon is erased, and she and Deeba are sent home. Deeba, however, cannot stop thinking of UnLondon …I will stop here because to go any further would give away too much.

Mieville is a wizard at word play and it was one of my favorite things about this book. Like as Conductor Jones talks about Manifest Station. If you’re brave enough to try, you might be able to catch a train from UnLondon to Parisn’t, or No York, or Helsunki, or Lost Angeles, or Sans Francisco, or Hong Gone, or Romeless… It’s a terminus.

Rest is here

well, there you go!

I'm caught up and looks like I'm at the half way mark of 75 :)

I will start another thread tomorrow...

Forgot to mention that I snagged an ER of Harbour by John Ajvide Lindqvist :) I really liked Let The Right One In by him so I hope this one doesn't let me down.

I started last night Forty Words for Sorrow by Giles Blunt.......so far so good!

Nice reviews, Kara! I am glad to see that you enjoyed We Have Always Lived in the Castle so much.

I have We Have Always Lived in the Castle on the TBR shelves - I'm saving it to read around Halloween.

I'll look forward to your thoughts on Forty Words for Sorrow as that one is also waiting for me...

You liked We have always lived in the Castle a lot better than I did.

I, too, am looking forward to your thoughts about Forty Words for Sorrow; I recently bought a copy at a used book sale earlier this year, and it sits patiently on the shelf . . .

Hi Kara- Wow, you've been reading some interesting books. Un Lun Dun sounds great. I need to get to more Mieville. I read and enjoyed Forty Words for Sorrow, a couple years ago, but never continued the series, for whatever reason.
Hope your weekend went well.

We have always lived in the Castle a favorite of mine...

Hope your weekend was good kara :)

Hi Stasia! yup it is a keeper :)

Halloween is a good time to read it Katie...it's not blood, guts and gore but it does have that creepy psychological side to it :)

Terri, I looked at the reviews for Castle seems like people either really liked it or they were middle of the road on it. It's all good, that's what makes LT great... :)

Forty Words for Sorrow is really good! it has been awhile since I have read a good page turning "thriller"...it is very graphic and it does involve kids so heads up to those that avoid these kinds of stories. Avoid this one :)

Mark I really think you would like Un Lun Dun it had the feel of Neil Gaiman and his Neverwhere :)

Hi Kath...weekend was good, sorta LOL took the teen school shopping....shoes, clothes, backpack and whatnot *sigh* one more year then no more school shopping for me! :)

New thread here