CMBohn, Challenge 2, part 2

For the second half of the year. Will fill this in more later. Link to my previous thread:

http://www.librarything.com/topic/87957#1880236

Here are the categories again:

North American historical fiction - COMPLETED!

1. The Last of the Mohicans - 3 stars
2. The Help - 4.5 stars
3. The Teacher's Funeral - 4.5 stars
4. The Green Glass Sea - 4 stars
5. Death Comes for the Archbishop - 5 stars
6. The Evolution of Calpurnia Tate - 4.5 stars
7. Murder on Washington Square - 2.5 stars
8. Pale Horse, Pale Rider - 2 stars
9. The Wednesday Wars - 5 stars
10. Freckles - 5 stars

LDS Books - COMPLETED!

1. One More River to Cross - Standing on the Promises 1 - 3.5 stars
2. The Essential Mormon Cookbook - 2 stars
3. Russia and the Restored Gospel - 3 stars
4. To Draw Closer to God - 5 stars
5. Fire of the Covenant - 4 stars
6. Hearing the Voice of the Lord - 4 stars
7. The Continuous Atonement - 4 stars
8. Temples: A Photographic Journey - 4 stars
9. My Dear Sisters - 3.5 stars
10. The Church Encounters Asia - 3.5 stars
11. Press On: Messages of Faith, Hope, and Charity - currently reading

Suggestions: The Great Apostasy, From Quaker to Latter-day Saint, The Writing on the Wall

Biography - COMPLETED!

1. Polk's Folly - 3.5 stars
2. She Got Up Off the Couch! - 4 stars
3. Let the Trumpet Sound - 3.5 stars
4. Appetite for Life - Julia Child - 2 stars
5. Sam Houston: Liberator of Texas 3 stars
6. To Hell on a Fast Horse - 3.5 stars
7. Dr. Seuss and Mr. Geisel - Morgan - 3.5 stars
8. American Jezebel - 2 stars
9. Tisha: The Story of a Young Teacher - 4.5 stars
10. Uncle Boris in the Yukon - 4 stars

Suggestions: A Life Decoded, Andrew Jackson, His Life and Times, Falling Leaves

Set Aside: Defender of the Faith: The B H Roberts Story

European historical fiction and non-fiction - COMPLETED!

1. Harvest of Death - Ray Harrison - 3.5 stars
2. The Vicar of Wakefield - 2.5 stars
3. Murder at Mansfield Park - 4 stars
4. A Very Long Engagement - 2 stars
5. Wives and Daughters - 4 stars
6. The Seven Ages of Paris - 3 stars
7. The Warden - 3 stars
8. Thrush Green - 4.5 stars
9. The Case of the Gypsy Goodbye - 4.5 stars
10. Counterfeit of Murder - 2 stars
11. Game of Patience - 4 stars

Debuts - COMPLETED!

This one is for the first mystery in a series or the first by a mystery author.

1. Free Man of Color - 5 stars
2. The Christopher Killer - 3 stars
3. A Duty to the Dead - 4 stars
4. A Great Deliverance - 3 stars
5. The Black Echo - 5 stars
6. Three Bags Full - 3.5 stars
7. Third Person Singular - 4 stars
8. The Face of a Stranger - 1 star
9. A Carrion Death - 3.5 stars
10. Mistress of the Art of Death - 3.5 stars

Put aside: Booked to Die, New Orleans Mourning

Alternate Worlds and Magical Lands - COMPLETED!

1. Troll Fell - 3 stars
2. Queste - 4 stars
3. Syren - 4 stars
4. Lirael - 4 stars
5. Abhorsen - 4.5 stars
6. 1632 - 4 stars
7. Ring of Fire - 4 stars
8. 1633 - 3 stars
9. Doomsday Book - Connie Willis - 5 stars
10. Cybele's Secret - 4.5 stars
11. The Book of Lost Things - 5 stars
12. The Girl Who Could Fly - 4 stars
13. The Last Thing I Remember - 4 stars

Twists - COMPLETED! Twists on well known stories, like fan fiction, retold fairy tales, etc.

1. Once Upon a Crime - The Sisters Grimm - 3 stars
2. Jenna Starborn - 2.5 stars
3. Princess of the Midnight Ball - 4 stars
4. Spinners - 2 stars
5. The Land of Green Ginger - 4 stars
6. A Curse as Dark as Gold - 4.5 stars
7. Winter's Child - Dokey - 3 stars
8. Maskerade - 4.5 stars
9. East - 4.5 stars
10. Rose Bride - 2 stars

Saturday Morning Matinee - COMPLETED!

1. The Haunting of Alaizabel Cray - 4.5 stars
2. The Turn of the Screw - 1 star
3. The Moon is a Harsh Mistress - 4 stars
4. The Ear, the Eye, and the Arm - 4 stars
5. Dracula - 5 stars
6. Beautiful Creatures - 2 stars
7. The Seance - 4 stars
8. The Tomb - Wilson - 3 stars
9. Frankenstein - 2 stars
10. Earth Abides - 4.5 stars
11. Boneshaker - 2.5 stars

Suggestions: Fantastic Voyage, The Hungry Moon, Shiver, How to Survive a Robot Uprising

Abandoned book: Malice

Read Up! They're Good for You! - COMPLETED!

1. The Potato: How the Humble Spud Rescued the Western World - 4 stars
2. The Fortune Cookie Chronicles - 4 stars
3. Against the Grain: How Agriculture has Hijacked Civilization - 3 stars
4. Salt: A World History - 4 stars
5. Your Inner Fish - 4 stars
6. Inheriting a Trade - 3 stars
7. The Endurance - 4 stars
8. Beyond the Body Farm - 3.5 stars
9. The Rabbit Proof Fence - 4 stars
10. The Survivors Club - Save Your Life - 4 stars

Suggestions: The Secret Knowledge of Water, Mastering the Art of French Cooking, Fruitless Fall, Cooking with Master Chefs, Scurvy: How a Surgeon, a Mariner, and Gentleman, Genome, The Good Doctors, Who They Were - Inside the World Trade Center, The Great Mortality

Set Aside: Death, Daring, and Disaster: Search and Rescue in the National Parks, Death by Black Hole

Look at the Pretty Pictures! photography, art, and graphic novels - COMPLETED!

1. Battle Eye - 4 stars
2. The Professor's Daughter - 1.5 stars
3. Eisenstaedt Remembrances - 5 stars
4. Signs of Life - Olivia Parker - 3.5 stars
5. Cowboy and Octopus - 4 stars
6. Dorothea Lange - Mark Durden - 5 stars
7. Josef Sudek - 3 stars
8. Visual History of Costume: The Twentieth Century - 4 stars
9. Rapunzel's Revenge - 5 stars
10. Calamity Jack - 4 stars

Eisenstaedt Remembrances for the Pretty Pictures category

Themes: history, art, politics
No setting in particular

I really enjoyed this book. Eisenstaedt is probably most famous for his picture after WWII ended, with the sailor kissing the girl in Times Square, but he also photographed hundreds of famous faces. This book has pictures of Hitler, Mussolini, the Kennedys, Martin Luther King Jr, and dozens of movie stars. But then are pictures of ordinary people in quiet everyday moments. 5 stars

The Seance by John Harwood, Saturday morning matinee category

Themes: family heritage, the supernatural, curses, love,
Setting: a good old Gothic story, Victorian England

review coming later, but I really liked it.

I'm waiting eagerly for your review. Sounds like something I would like already.

>12 cmbohn: It's funny you should mention the Times Square photograph. I just happened to catch a news headline the other day about the death of the woman who claimed to be the nurse in that photograph. She was 91.

@15 Wasn't there some sort of scandal involved? As in they were both engeged to other people or something like that - and then ended up in one of the most re-printed photographs ever...

>12 cmbohn:, 15, 16
According to her obituary, she was married at the time the photograph was taken. It seems to me that the first story I heard about the photograph is that they were complete strangers, and the sailor had grabbed and kissed her because she happened to be standing near him.

Apparently that's how Eisenstaedt got the photo. The sailor was kissing every girl he could catch, so he just set it up and waited for the next kiss!

The Seance by John Harwood, Saturday morning matinee category

Themes: family heritage, the supernatural, curses, love,
Setting: a good old Gothic story, Victorian England

Constance Langston is drawn into a creepy little series of events when she learns that she has inherited a 'haunted house.' Wraxford Hall has been the scene of a few disappearances and mysterious deaths, and now the house is falling down. But it has a horrible history, and the book jumps back into time and explores some of those events. What really happened and who was to blame is the real question of the book. Is there a supernatural force at work, or is there a more logical, but still sinister explanation? As the book continues, it revolves around the story of Magnus and Eleanor. Which one was the murderer? Constance wants to get to the bottom of things, but it may be much more dangerous than she expects.

I enjoyed this book. It didn't start exactly how I expected, but it was a compelling and creepy read. 4 stars.

To Hell on a Fast Horse by Mark Lee Gardner

Themes: crime and justice, a Western, law and order, outlaw society
Setting: New Mexico, mostly, also Texas and Arizona

This is sort of a dual biography of Billy the Kid, also known as William Bonney, Henry Antrim, and Kid Antrim, and Sheriff Pat Garrett, the man who swore to bring the Kid in. And he did, but it wasn't quite as easy as it sounded. The Kid was a legend for getting himself out of tight spots. But Garrett was determined.

This book explores (sometimes at a little too much length) the conditions that existed in the Old West, the cattle wars, the buffalo raids, and the social structure with the Mexican or Hispanic population and the Anglos. It was an interesting build up, but it made it a little tedious to keep track of all the bit players. The book was more interesting in the play between to the two main characters and at the end, when it covered the third act, the beginning of the legend surrounding Billy the Kid and what happened to Pat Garrett afterward. It was a fun story, but it could have been a little better. 3.5 stars

A Great Deliverance by Elizabeth George

Themes: family secrets, crime, love, social class
Setting: Yorkshire, England and London, 1990s

Roberta Teys is found next to the decapitated body of her father. She immediately confesses and doesn't say another word. The village is shocked. They all know Roberta. Surely she couldn't have killed her father. There must be another explanation. The local police investigate, but there are a lot of loose ends. Why was the family dog killed? If Roberta did it, why? And if not, who? Scotland Yard is called in. Inspector Thomas Lynley, who is also the 8th Earl of Ashcroft, is assigned the case along with Inspector Barbara Havers. Havers is on her very last chance to stay keep her job. Too bad she can't stand Lynley.

I had a little bit of a hard time with this book. I found the case interesting, and the two main characters were well drawn. But Havers with her enormous chip on her shoulder almost ruined the book for me. I did a little research online and found that the series does continue, so I decided to keep listening to see if things looked up. Then I thought that for Scotland Yard detectives, they were awfully slow to figure out what the motive was, almost unbelievably so. Is this really the first case of this type they had ever worked on? If so, they are fortunate indeed. I couldn't believe how long it took them to spot the signs of what was going on, and Havers didn't ever figure it out until 'all was revealed.' That's a bit thick, if you ask me. (I hope that wasn't a spoiler! I'm trying to be discreet.)

But these flaws aside, I am planning on reading the next book in the series. I liked Lynley and Havers and I want to read more. I haven't seen any of the PBS series, but I've been warned that the two are a little different, which is only to be expected. But I will pick up the next book. 3 stars, and I hope that the next one is better.

The Book of Lost Things by John Connolly

Themes: Death, War, fairy tales, sibling jealousy, stepfamilies, mothers,
Setting: WWII England and the Other World

It starts with the death of David's mother. David retreats into a world of books, reading their favorite fairy tales over and over. Then his father remarries and David gets a new stepmother and a baby brother all at the same time. He also moves to a new house, a house with a passage to the Other World. And the Crooked Man is there, beckoning David to enter and search for his lost mother. David steps into the Other World, and finds that it's not so easy to get back home.

This creepy little story features some not so pleasant twists on Red Riding Hood, Snow White, werewolves, trolls, harpies, and lots of other nasties. None of the stories are quite the way you would expect, and most of them have a sting in the tail. David remains a great character, a young boy who is almost a man and who is learning to move on with his life.

One of the things that bugged me about this book is that all the female characters are rather one-dimensional, until the end. David's mother is a saint, but all the rest are nasty, rapacious, hypersexual or violent or greedy, or even a combination of all three. I'm not sure if that's meant to represent David's rather confused views on womanhood as an adolescent boy whose mother has died and whose stepmother has arrived with her aura of sexuality, or if that is just a part of the world in the story. If it's the first, I can live with it easier than if it's meant to represent a true picture of the Other World. The male characters are not typecast like that.

However, there is a lot to like in the book. I would recommend it to older teens and adults. Really good story. 4.5 stars

>22 cmbohn: This book sounds so FAMILIAR. . . wonder if it is on my ever growing wish list? now I want to read it becuase of your review!

DS
(Bruce's evil twin :-))

To Draw Closer to God by Henry B. Eyring, LDS category

Themes: religion, prayer, faith, devotion

Sometimes a book comes into your life at just the right time. With all the stuff going on in my family right now, this book was just what I needed to read. I love President Eyring and his calm, sweet faith that just permeates everything he says and does. In this book, I found just what I needed to help me deal with some personal heartaches. It gave the strength and the understanding to keep going just a little longer, and with God's grace, that's when things began to look a little less grim. It wasn't so much the words themselves, as the spirit that filled me as I read them. It was a very personal experience, but I am sharing it here because I am so grateful that it happened. Much of my reading is just for fun, or for a little enlightenment, but sometimes I need to read something that feeds my soul. This was just what I needed.

>22 cmbohn: I've had The Book of Lost Things on my tbr stack for a long, long time. Your great review makes me want to get to it soon!

Some non-challenge reads in here lately, Murder Talks Turkey, a funny cozy set in the UP of Michigan - linda, cheli, and tutu should look for this one - and Seventy-Seven Clocks, the third one in the Bryant and May Peculiar Crimes Unit series. That was disappointing. Four murders, right off the bat, but they don't manage to solve the crimes until almost 10 people are dead! I like the setting and the characters, but the plot was like Swiss cheese it was so full of holes. Disappointing.

>25 ivyd: That was my thought too! I bought it sufficiently long ago that I can't even remember why or what it was about but that sounds really interesting. Especially since I'm pretty sure I'd never heard about the familiar stories angle. That's a plus.

#24 "something that feeds my soul" Books like that are important. What's unsettling for me, though, is when I go back for a re-read, hoping for more of the same inspiration, and it's just not there. Glad that this one gave you what you were needing.

25 & 27 - Glad to see I've inspired you to pick up The Book of Lost Things! I think you'll enjoy it.

28 - Me too. Like I said, just what I needed.

Two washouts in a row, neither for the challenge. I'm still slowly making my way through Salt: A World History and enjoying that one, but I was also reading Water: Elemental Spirits by Robin McKinley and another author, and just started The Glade Manor Murder which was on my list for a while, and gave up on both of those. Just wasn't interested enough in the fantasy to finish it and the mystery was all tell, no show. In fact, it was "tell us what you're going to do, tell us while you do it, and then tell us that you did it." Very tedious. Plus the identity of the murderer was obvious from the first chapter. My only defense of the book is that it looks like the author was 82 when she wrote it, so I guess she can be excused for writing it, but why publish it? Lame.

Salt: A World History by Mark Kurlansky

Themes: food and eating, exploration, trade, labor, technology, science, government
Setting: China, Europe, North and South America

This was an interesting look at a substance so common, most of us have never given it a second thought. But salt has played an important part in world history and development. Governments have failed or succeeded based on their salt policy, believe it or not, and Gandhi's protest against British rule revolved around salt. It may have even caused his assassination.

For a mineral as common as salt is, it sure took humans a long time to figure out exactly what it is and how to reliably find it and process it. The Chinese were way out front when it came to salt mining. Americans are in the front when it comes to the amount of salt used, but most of it is used on roads, not on food. Anyway, the book was full of little tidbits like that. It wasn't necessarily tied together well, and the end of the book was rather weak, but it was still a really cool read.

Pale Horse, Pale Rider by Katherine Anne Porter

Themes: family, death, fate, alienation, war
Setting: Kentucky, Georgia, and Denver, all during the first part of the 20th century

This short book consists of three stories, either long short stories or short novels, "Old Mortality", "Noon Wine" and "Pale Horse, Pale Rider." The first is a sort of reflection on family legends, mainly about a young woman famous for her charm and beauty who died young, the second is a tragedy set on a small dairy farm, and the last is about a young female reporter who falls in love with a soldier on his way to fight in the Great War, but is overtaken with influenza.

This is just the sort of book that English teachers love. It's full of Meaning, and Symbolism, and all the stories have ambiguous or depressing endings that could mean just about anything. I will not be reading anything else by this author, as this was not really the kind of thing that I enjoy reading.

>30 cmbohn: I want it! I love salt, I have pink salt from the Bahama's and an orange salt from Hawaii (I think) and of course a grey one, and some others that I can't remember. And my favorite ice cream was the Hagen Daz Fleur de Sel Caramel.

DS

(Bruce's evil twin :-))

Ooh, I've never heard of that one! But now I want to try it too!

Dr. Seuss & Mr. Geisel by Judith and Neil Morgan, biography category

Themes: writing, art, friendship, publishing, family, love and marriage
Setting: California, mostly

I just stumbled on this one at the library, and thought, wow, 'who wouldn't want to read more about the genius of Dr. Seuss? That's got to be a fun book.' It was fun, but it wasn't as much fun as it could have been.

I definitely learned a lot about Ted Geisel, about his childhood, his education, his courtship and marriage, and then his early career. Lots of good stuff in here about his friendship with Bennett Cerf and his work for the Army during World War II. He didn't fully commit to children's books for longer than you might expect. He enjoyed writing for children, but was still trying to make a movie career work for a long time. Eventually he gave up on Hollywood and threw himself into writing for children.

Lots of personal stuff in here I had never heard, about the suicide of his first wife and his marriage to his second wife, his health challenges, and so on. If you are a fan of Dr. Seuss, I think you'd like the book.

My one disappointment is that there are not really any Seuss drawings in here, other than a few line pictures at the beginning of each chapter. There are some photos, but I'd love to see some of his early stuff that they talked about so much and more pictures of The Cat in the Hat, the Lorax, Yertle the Turtle, and Horton. I guess I'll have to go check some of his books out from the library! 3.5 stars

Just finished East by Edith Pattou for book club next month. So good! I'll post more thoughts later and a full review.

The Face of a Stranger by Anne Perry, debut mystery category

Themes: identity, crime, war, family, secrets, memory, class
Setting: Victorian England

Now I remember why I don't read Anne Perry anymore. I don't really like her writing. This book sounded like a change from her Thomas/Charlotte Pitt series, which I did enjoy at one time. I just got a little tired of reading about the seamy side of Victorian life, and she explored deviance in all its forms, the worst crimes she could imagine, and on and on and on. There wasn't much to smile about in her books, ever. But this is about a different character, so it was possible that it would be enjoyable.

Nope.

This is a classic example of how NOT to write a mystery, IMO. It starts with Detective William Monk awaking in a hospital to find that he is very weak, injured, and that he doesn't remember anything at all, even his name or how he got there. He returns home and searches for clues all over his flat to find anything that will help trigger a memory. When nothing helps, he goes to visit his sister. On his return to London, he gets sent to investigate a crime that occurred the same night he had his accident, the murder of a popular gentleman with a titled family. Someone beat Joscelin Gray to death.

So far, it could have been a good book. We've got both the mystery of Monk's past and the mystery of murder. But the writing was so darn bad that I really couldn't finish the book. I was listening to it, which means that it took stinking forever to finish, so I finally gave up and got a paper copy at the library so I could skim through to the end.

The main thing that turned me off was the way the writer stuck interior monologue in the middle of PRACTICALLY EVERY CONVERSATION! So Monk is questioning someone, and then randomly thinks, "I wonder what kind of man I was before my accident. I wonder if I liked music. Did I have a girlfriend? Did I like pie? Why can't I remember?" and on, and on, and on, while the actual conversation just sort of hangs there until Monk comes to his senses and starts paying attention again.

And the other main character, Hester Latterly, does the same thing. She'll be listening to some discussion of the Crimean war and have a flashback to her service there as a nurse and we'll get a page of her reminiscences. I know we all do that from time to time, let our minds wander now and then, but it's really super boring to listen to! Even reading it was bad enough, but at least then I could skip ahead a couple of paragraphs.

I know that this series, and her other one, have some fans, but I am not reading anymore by this author. One series is too dark, and this one is too dumb. The writing itself is not very good and the style is extremely irritating. 1 star.

Good review. You have convinced me to not bother attempting The Face of a Stranger for my Bloody Victorian England category.

@35 :: I'm actually about to start East for my "Once Upon a Time" category -- so I look forward to reading your thoughts! :)

>36 cmbohn: I've read several of Anne Perry's books -- both the Pitts and the Monk series -- and I enjoyed them. I don't think I read this first Monk book, but picked up the series mid-stream. Perhaps she became a better writer along the way. Or perhaps I agree with you, since I stopped reading her books a few years ago, but don't remember why. At this point, her books are not even on my wishlist.

Yeah, it's a bummer when a series just doesn't live up to its potential. And then, tastes change too.

East by Edith Pattou, twist category

Themes: adventure, superstition, trolls, seafaring, magic, love, family
Setting: Norway, more or less

Rose is the youngest of a family of eight. Her highly superstitious mother insists that Rose is an East, according to the direction in which she was facing when she was born, which means Rose is destined to be an obedient, home-loving daughter. But the truth is that Rose is a North, born for adventure, wandering, exploration. Rose is restless, but doesn't question her fate until the white bear arrives. The bear has been watching her. If Rose will go with him, he promises good health and fortune for her family. Her mother agrees, but her father refuses. Rose defies him and sneaks out to meet the bear and ride away with him.

If you have spotted this as a retelling of the fairy tale "East of the Sun and West of the Moon" then you probably have a good idea of the plot of this book. It sticks pretty closely to the traditional story. But the fun in a fairy tale retelling is not so much in unexpected plot twists as it is in the blend of the familiar tale and the writer's skill at creating characters that the reader can love and new little things that make them smile. This book does a very good job at all of those things.

Rose is certainly a very smart, independent girl. She doesn't even seem to think twice when a bear shows up promising adventure. But when she begins the next stage of her adventure, her stubbornness will save her life.

I liked this one a lot. I loved Jessica Day George's version of the same story, Sun and Moon, Ice and Snow a little more, I think, but this one is very good. 4.5 stars

I've read a few of the Thomas Pitt and a few of the Monk books and liked them, some more than others. I also started the Monk series mid-stream. I keep thinking I ought to go back to the beginning of the series and see what I missed, but you've convinced me it's probably not worth my time.

I read the first of her World War I mystery series a few months ago and thought it was dreadful. If that had been the first book of hers that I had read, it would also have been the last.

Anne Perry is an author I've never gotten around to reading. Nice to know I haven't been missing anything!

A Carrion Death by Michael Stanley, debut mystery category

Themes: family secrets, crime, witchcraft, mining, business
Setting: modern Botswana and South Africa

A corpse is discovered near a wilderness camp, after the hyenas have been at it. There's not a lot left, but there's enough to tell that the man was murdered and his body left for scavengers. The police are called in.

Inspector David Bengu received the nickname of Kubu as a young man, which means hippo in Setswana. It's not a bad name - he's big, apparently genial, but dangerous when provoked. He's an extremely well developed and likable character. He's also a dogged detective, which is a good thing, because this case is about as complicated as it could be.

And that was my main complaint about the book. While I liked the main character, found the mystery interesting, loved the setting, really, it was just too complicated. The bodies sure piled up and there were plenty of suspects. Everyone has something to hide. But in the end, I wasn't entirely sure what had happened or why. I did get a sense of the killer and the victim, but it just felt like there were an awful lot of holes left. I'm not sure it all tied together. But I did enjoy it, and I will read more by this author. I actually read the second book, The Second Death of Goodluck Tinubu, first, but that didn't really make much difference. 3.5 stars

I loved "East of the Sun, West of the Moon" when I was young, so East sounds really good will have to try and fit that into my fantasy category.

I have had A Carrion Death on my wish list for awhile, another one of those that I hope to get to someday.

You'll have to tell me what you think! I'm on a roll at last - two good reads in a row!

#44 Did he settle down any in the 2nd book, or was it still as confusing as the first? It does sound interesting...

I actually liked the second one more. Kubu visits more with his family in the village and I love the feeling that gives the book.

The Wednesday Wars by Gary D. Schmidt, North American historical fiction category

Themes: family - especially dysfunctional ones!, Vietnam war, school, Shakespeare, romance, growing up, religion
Setting: Long Island, 1968

Holling Hoodhood - what a name! - is stuck. Half his 7th grade class attends bar mitzvah lessons, the other half attends Catholic class. But Holling is Presbyterian, and that means when everyone else gets out of school early on Wednesday afternoons, he is stuck at school. With his teacher, Mrs. Baker, who can't stand him. First she tries having him clean the erasers, but that gets old. So they turn to Shakespeare. Over the course of the year, they cover everything from dealing with bullies to the Vietnam war to parental pressure to escaped rodents to winning the Olympics and all courtesy of the Bard's finest.

I really loved this book. I couldn't put it down to go on vacation today, that's how into it I was. Fortunately it's a short book, so it only took a couple of hours to read the whole thing from beginning to end. Partly it was because I loved Holling. He's such a weenie at first, but he sure grows over the course of the book. His family is a mess. His dad is a control freak of legendary proportions, while his mother is completely passive and his sister is ready to rebel.

Mrs. Baker is a great character too. At first, all we know of her is what Holling can see, and that's a strictly no-fun teacher. But as they spend time together, he comes to see her as a worried military wife, a former Olympian, and even a friend.

I strongly recommend this book. I hope it's not the kind that only adults will read. I think kids would get a lot out of it too. It is very, very funny in parts, and then surprisingly sober in others. Just great. 5 stars

I loved The Wednesday Wars, too. And also The Book of Lost Things, which I took off the tbr stack and read earlier this week because of your recent review (thanks!).

I'm so glad you liked it! I've been on a teen book roll for a while. I read The Girl Who Could Fly today and The Last Thing I Remember yesterday - both good.

Inheriting a Trade by Thomas deWolf, good for you category

Themes: race, stereotypes, slavery, oppression, sexism, group therapy
Setting: Ghana, Cuba, and Rhode Island

When I first heard about the idea for this book, confronting a family legacy of descending from a powerful family of slave traders, I was impressed by the honesty and the good intentions of such a quest. So many times, we like to tell the stories about the great things our ancestors did and cover up all the dirty little secrets. But our ancestors were human beings, and sometimes, they did things we find hard to explain or defend. Some of my own ancestors were slave owners, who farmed in the American South, and that's a troubling legacy for me and even more for my children. So I applaud the idea behind this book and the TV show involved.

But unfortunately, that doesn't mean it's a great book to read.

For me, the book was best when it focused on the actual things that the cousins were learning about their ancestors and about slavery. I found their trip to Ghana and the slave forts to be very powerful stuff. Same with the trip to Cuba, which was also interesting for its view of modern life under Castro. But when he got into the sections of the "big discussions" between community members and the cousins themselves and everyone started talking - and talking - about their own feelings, and experiences, and what it all means - wow, talk about boring! I know that's just me, but it's like reading someone else's therapy session. I just don't want to know that stuff. What I would like to know is now that you've had this amazing experience and you have learned all this stuff about yourself, what are you going to do differently? Because to me, how you feel is not as important as what you do.

Still, I think this is an important book. Racism is still a secret thing in our society. No one wants to admit that it's there. But race has a profound influence on how we experience the world. We all have racial stereotypes we have to deal with, but so few people are willing to admit that. And until we admit it, we can't really change it. So I really admire the idea behind the book. I just found it rather tedious to listen to.

The Tomb by F. Paul Wilson, Saturday morning Matinee category

Themes: creepy cults, missing persons, adventure, relationships, crime
Setting: New York City

Repairman Jack is the name he goes by, but he doesn't fix appliances. He fixes other stuff. Like when a mugger beats your grandmother half to death and steals a necklace from her, or when your elderly sister goes missing. Don't look for him in the phone book, or get a recommendation from the police. He doesn't work with the cops, he's not in the phone book; in fact, as far as the government is concerned, he doesn't exist. He pays no taxes and has no driver's license. Well, actually he has several, all in different names, but his real identity is a secret. But when you need someone on your side, someone who won't give up, Jack is your man.

It's a great idea, and he's a great character. But the plot was silly and the love scenes were unnecessary. Still, it was a fun book. I stayed up late trying to finish. I'm not sure I loved the ending, but as I said, I did like the main character. This is not a book meant to be taken seriously. It's just for fun. 3 stars.

edit for duplicate post removed! Phooey!

I see that we are still suffering from the duplicate posting issue. . . I hate it went that happens!

DS
(Bruce's evil twin :-))

The Endurance:Shackleton's Legendary Antarctic Expedition by Caroline Alexander, good for you category

Themes: teamwork, exploration, endurance, determination, hardship
Setting: the Antarctic and South Polar regions, 1914-1916

These guys give a whole new level to tough. Shackleton was amazing. I love this book too because it has many of the original photographs taken by Hurley,the expedition photographer. This one was a book club pick; otherwise, I don't know if I would have picked it up. I read another book, Endurance: Shackleton's Incredible Journey, a few years ago, and I didn't really plan on reading another book about the same subject. But I'm glad I picked this up. I think in some ways Lansing's book was better, but this one did a better job of telling what happened after the trip was over, and it had all the photos. I'm looking forward to the discussion. Very good. 4 stars

I picked up And To Think that I Saw it on Mulberry Street at the library today. Just as much fun as I remember. Thanks again, Dr. Seuss!

Murder at Mansfield Park by Lynn Shepherd, European historical fiction category

Themes: love and marriage, social class, crime, gender roles, honesty, hypocrisy
Setting: Mansfield Park, England, 19th century

For all you Jane Austen fans - what would have happened if little Fanny Price, instead of being the poor relation, had been instead a wealthy heiress and orphan, raised at Mansfield Park? And instead of being ignored, had been flattered and condescended to? What if Edmund had been the son of Aunt Norris, William had been young Julia Bertram's favorite brother, and Mary Crawford had been the heroine of the story?

Don't even think about reading this if you haven't read Mansfield Park already. You could, I guess, but it would make a lot less sense and it wouldn't be anywhere near as much fun. I am a fan of Mansfield Park, and I actually like Fanny Price. I think she's a great character and I was completely rooting for her through the whole book. But many Austen fans can't stand her. Too insipid, too self-righteous, and so on. So to see her reimagined in a completely different mold was a lot of fun.

Then Fanny is murdered. That's not a spoiler; it says so on the back cover. And Mary Crawford is the one who is entangled and called on to figure out the whole mess, with the help of a professional thief taker from London. Which of the familiar characters is the murderer? Which will also be dead by the end of the book? And who will survive to live happily ever after?

I highly recommend this fun book. It came yesterday and I couldn't resist staying up to read it last night. I don't know that I will keep it and reread it, but it was just what I needed - a fresh, involving read with enough twists to keep my interest and give me a good time. 4 stars.

Freckles by Gene Stratton-Porter, North American historical fiction

Themes: belonging, nature, overcoming challenges, love, family
Setting: the Limberlost swamp in Indiana, 19th century

I loved this quiet little classic. Freckles was raised in an orphanage. He has only one hand, no friends, no family, and no prospects for a job. He doesn't even have a name, just Freckles. But he arrives at Mclean's lumber camp and is willing to do anything at all, if he is given a chance. Mclean feels sorry for the boy and decides to take him on, giving him the name of his own father, and makes him the guard of the camp. His job is to walk along the trail through the swamp, seven miles or so, and make sure that the lumber is safe from thieves.

Freckles may not look like much, but once his is shown some kindness, he repays it with his complete loyalty and hard work. He learns to love the swamp and the creatures that live there. He gets to know all the birds and plants and trees there and makes friends with them. He falls in love and faces a gang of thieves. And it all has a happy ending.

It sounds like it would be unbearably sweet and sappy, but it's not. I really enjoyed this book. I'm counting it for my 50 states challenge. I had no idea there was a swamp in Indiana, and now I'll have to read more about it. 4 stars.

@49 :: I just got Murder at Mansfield Park via Early Reviewers, and your review has made me really eager to start it! I am pro-Fanny Price as well, so I'm hoping my reaction will be similar to yours.

@50 :: I've never read Freckles, but I did read the sequel, A Girl of the Limberlost! The latter is a very sweet book about a girl who loves and collects moths. It alludes to the character of Freckles but definitely works as a stand-alone novel. I think it takes place near the same swamp, though! :)

My mother grew up in Indiana, and Freckles and A Girl of the Limberlost were some of her favorites. She persuaded me to read them years ago, and I love them, too. I've been to Gene Stratton-Porter's home in Geneva, Indiana, a couple of times. It's a beautiful house. I love its library. They also have her insect collection on display. (I don't remember now if it's just butterflies or if it includes other insects, too.)

Much of the county where several generations of my mother's family lived was originally swamp land. Sometime in the late 19th century the land was drained for farming. I'm related to some of the people who were employed to dig the drainage ditches. I think a lot of the Limberlost Swamp was drained around the same time. The soil in the drained areas is very rich. From my Christmas visits, I have vivid mental pictures of clumps of dark black earth dotted with snow.

What a great story. I think I read A Girl of the Limberlost a few years ago and enjoyed it. I'd like to see her house. That sounds cool.

Signs of Life - Olivia Parker - pretty pictures category

Themes: art, nature, beauty

A collection of photographs, some beautiful, some weird, some funny, some cool, and some kind of yucky. My favorite was called "The Asparagi." It was a group of Romans, a cow, and some asparagus hidden in the picture. I also liked the dancing peas. I never would have thought of peas as looking like dancers, but I totally get it now. 3.5 stars

Cowboy and Octopus by Jon Scieszka and Lane Smith, pretty pictures category

Themes: friendship, honesty, fun
Setting: the playground, Cowboy's house and Octopus's house

Cowboy is trying to seesaw, but it doesn't work with just one person. Then Octopus comes along and the two become friends. This is a very silly book, but it made me smile. If the idea of a cowboy and an octopus being friends doesn't sound like fun, don't bother with the book. That's pretty much the whole story. Cowboy invites his friend over for a surprise dinner - beans with bacon. Octopus doesn't like beans, but he likes his friend, so he eats one to be polite. There are a few more stories, but they are all pretty much like that. The pictures are great. It's just a fun book about two unlikely friends. 4 stars.

60 - I'll be looking for your review!

American Jezebel by Eve La Plante, biography category

Themes: gender roles, religion, separation of church and state, individual freedom versus community
Setting: Massachusetts 1638 or so

Anne Hutchinson was a terrible threat to the Puritan fathers of Boston. She discussed scriptures. And she was a woman. That's really about it. She also didn't agree with them, but I think even if she had, the idea that a woman was perfectly capable of reading, writing, reasoning, and preaching was going to make them very uncomfortable, no matter what else she did.

This is a biography of Hutchinson and a story of the time and place she lived in. It includes a bit about the religious controversies involved and talks a lot about the other players in the case. She was eventually brought to trial, more than once, and charged with “traducing the ministers.” John Winthrop, governor of the Massachusetts Bay Colony, conducted the trial himself and made it his mission to get her punished for her behavior. He won, eventually, and Hutchinson and her family were forced to move to Rhode Island and then to Long Island where Hutchinson died.

Hutchinson is an interesting subject, but something about this book just couldn't hold my interest. At one point I skipped ahead 100 pages and I really hadn't missed anything. I didn't enjoy this book very much. But I won't anti-recommend this book, if you know what I mean, because I think for the right reader, this would be a good book. Just not for me. 2 stars

Abandoned book:

Malice by Chris Wooding

I got about 1/4 way into this and wasn't really hooked. Then I realized that it was the first in a series, and for some reason, that sort of turned me off. Really the whole book just wasn't working for me. I'm not sure why, but I didn't enjoy it.

Dorothea Lange - Mark Durden, Pretty Pictures Category

Themes: poverty, race, America, class, farming
Setting: 1930s - 1950s America

I always loved that famous photo of Lange's, Migrant Mother. And I love the artist Maynard Dixon. I didn't realize that the two artists were married. According to the book, he expressed envy at how well Lange captured the essence of the Forgotten Man. He then turned to capturing the same subject in his painting, but her photographs seem to be the more familiar of the images. Many of her most famous pictures are from the Depression era, but this book also contains some of her pictures of the Japanese interment camps as well. Amazing and powerful stuff.

>66 cmbohn: It's too bad it wasn't a good book. I'd like to know more about Anne Hutchinson, but this doesn't sound like the right book for it.

Rabbit Proof Fence: The True Story of one of the Greatest Escapes of All Time by Doris Pilkington, Good for You category

Themes: freedom, race, civilization, family, tradition
Setting: Australia 1931

It's a familiar story. The white colonizers decide that for their own good, native children must be taught to be more like their white fathers rather than their Aborigine mothers, so they take the children away from their families, from everyone and everything they've ever known, and lock them up in a school to teach them to read and write. For their own good. The children will be locked into a school with bars on the windows and locks on their doors, given just enough food to keep them alive, and threatened with beating if they try to escape. The government were sure that these half-caste children must be saved from going native.

But not everyone is willing to submit. Molly, age 16, and her half siblings, Gracie and Daisy, are taken to the resettlement school from their home. It's their first trip in a car, on a train, and then even on a boat. Molly decides she's not about to stay and she and her sisters set off on their own to get back home.

Along the way they meet other aborigines who help them by giving them meat and matches, capture their own food from time to time, and even beg from farmhouses along the way. The white farmers always report them to the police, who are looking for the children, but the girls stay one step ahead. They make it to safety, having traveled 1000 miles on foot.

This is a true story, written by the daughter of one of the girls, but it reads more like fiction. It's not really especially well written, but the story itself is amazing, even more so since it is all true. 4 stars

Frankenstein by Mary Shelley, Saturday Morning Matinee category

Themes: scientific experiment, the nature of life, Good versus Evil, love, pride, responsibility, epistolary novel, fallen Man
Setting: Germany, Switzerland, Britain, and the North Pole, 19th century

After reading and loving Dracula earlier this year, I had high hopes for this book. Maybe my hopes were just too high, because it didn't measure up at all. It starts about the same way, as a letter written by a secondary character about Mysterious People and Events. But while Stoker's writing was suspenseful and original, this came off as rambling and rather predictable. I realize that part of that is because the story is so familiar, but so is Dracula. At one point I got so tired of Victor Frankenstein that I was hoping the Count would come and finish him off! No such luck.

Victor Frankenstein is a wealthy young man of good family who has a best friend and a sweetheart. He goes off to Germany to study natural philosophy, which I guess would be like chemistry and biology today. He becomes rather a figure there, known for his quick mind and inventions. Then he decides to create life. Without even asking himself whether this is a good idea anyway or trying it out with a cat or a bunny first, he sets off to make a human being out of cadaver parts. Ignore whether this would ever be practical, because it wouldn't. But the story has to start here. But given that, it still doesn't work because Frankenstein is such an idiot.

As soon as his experiment is complete and his creation wakes up, Frankenstein takes one look at his creepy face and yellow eyeballs, and freaks out. He just walks away from the creature and GOES TO BED. No joke. The monster looks in on him, but Frankenstein pretty much pulls the covers over his head and ignores him until he goes away. The next day, the monster is gone, and Victor congratulates himself on having gotten rid of him.

Yeah, that is totally believable. He just created life, decided he didn't like it, and waited for it to go away. At that point, I decided that Victor was an idiot and whatever happened to him, he had it coming. Too bad it was everyone else who suffered first, but you kind of saw that coming, right?

I could go on a bit more, but that was my big problem with the book. In Dracula, the monster was clearly the bad guy, the ones after him were clearly the good guys, and there was this adventure and tension as they tried to capture the vampire and stop him. In this one, the monster is still clearly the bad guy, but Frankenstein tries to avoid him and manages to put off doing anything decisive until the very end of the book, despite the havoc this causes. Not much of a good guy, not much of an adventure.

I still recommend it if you are interested at all, because it is the basis of the whole Frankenstein myth. Of course, most of the time it's the monster who is called Frankenstein, not the creator, but you can get used to that. It's the way Captain Walton, the guy the doctor is telling his story to, treats Victor like a hero that really bugged me. Some excitement here and there, but mostly predictable. 2 stars

Hearing the Voice of the Lord by Gerald N. Lund, LDS books category

Themes: revelation, prayer, inspiration
No setting

I really enjoyed this book. It takes a look at how the Lord speaks to us and gives solid examples both from the scriptures and from personal experiences. Then it talks about what to do if you aren't getting any answers.

Tisha: The Story of a Young Teacher in the Alaska Wilderness by Robert Specht, biography category

themes: race, discrimination, love, education, survival, courage
setting: Alaska 1920s

Anne Hobbs grew up in mining towns, but she decided she wanted some adventure, to do something different with her life. So she set off for Alaska to be a schoolteacher. She faces some harsh conditions there, but the hardest thing to deal with is the persistent racism against the Indians. Anne's own grandma was an Indian, and she was the only person who ever showed her unconditional love. Anne is the last person to hold someone's race against them. Whenever Anne needs a standard for how to behave, she looks to her grandmother. This puts her in opposition to most of the town people, but she refuses to back down.

This is very similar in feel to Mrs. Mike. This also has a love story, but it's not such smooth sailing. Only after a tragedy is Anne able to find her way to a happy ending, and even then, it may take a while.

I really loved this book. Great feeling for the place and time, the attitudes and the hardships settlers faced in Alaska. Highly recommended.

Abandoned book: Death by Black Hole by Neil deGrasse Tyson, supposed to be Good for You category

I just found this one hard going. I don't know if it was the writing or if it was me, but I found myself losing interest and putting it aside again and again. Finally gave up. My favorite essay was "Goldilocks and the Three Planets" about Venus, Mars, and Earth and how earth is "just right."

Kind of tired of writing reviews, for some reason. I have several books I've finished - The Survivors Club: The Secrets and Science that Could Save Your Life, Three Bags Full, Mistress of the Art of Death - but I don't feel like it! Maybe later. I'll just say that I liked them all.

@75 With e reading pace at about a book a day, who can blame you for not feeling like writing reviews all the time!?

That being said, I really enjoy your reviews. The Frankenstein one cracked me up :)

Thanks! I appreciate the applause!

I find that writing reviews helps me organize my thoughts and remember the main points of the books better. Of course with fiction, it’s different. But it makes me think about why I liked it.

I saw Michael Palin (Monty Python fame) on Graham Norton recently and he said that he re-read his diaries and when he was like a teenager he would write I went and saw the movie X and it was brilliant, the best movie ever. Every movie he saw was brilliant or fantastic. But nothing explaining why he thought that. A lot of times I read a book and say to myself that I really like it. Like David Weber’s books, I haven’t met one that I have not absolutely loved. But how does that help people who haven’t read any of his books? And if I have spent hours reading something, I think that it is nice to spend a few minutes to reflect on the story and how it was told.

But yes, sometimes I just want to say – ugh!

DS
(Bruce's evil twin :-))

Earth Abides by George R. Stewart, Saturday morning matinee category

Themes: survival, technology, nature, plague, apocalypse, civilization
Setting: California 1940s and on

This book is going to haunt me until I write a review. Ish comes back from a camping trip where he got bitten by rattlesnake. He's been gone for weeks. When he gets back to town, eerie signs are everywhere and the whole place is much too quiet. Then he finds a newspaper talking about this terrible plague that has a 30% mortality rate. Looks like it climbed much higher than that - around 99.9%! At first, Ish thinks he is the only survivor, but as time goes by, he finds a few others. Eventually he forms a new tribe, and he and his family must start over in the new world.

Lots to think about with this one. It sounds like it would be uniformly depressing, but it really wasn't. It was more that it gave me a lot to think about - what would happen to the planet with most of the humans gone? How would those who were left survive? What would be the most important skills to survive in a totally different world? Highly recommended, but like I said, it's been haunting me. I hope I quit dreaming about being the last survivor in my town.

Hi Cindy, Earth Abides sounds interesting and I have added it to my wishlist.

Yeah, me too. Thanks for the review.

Just be prepared for some weird dreams!

Finished Thrush Green for European historical fiction - a reread of a charming slice of English village life set in the 1950s. It all revolves around the coming of the fair to town and the lives of the people in the village. Some fall in love, some get engaged, some get hurt. I love this writer and this is one of her best.

Also finished A Visual History of Costume: The Twentieth Century, which was fun. Descriptions of all the clothing and styles. It stopped about 1984, which was probably when it published. My kids liked the picture of the Beatles.

And I finished The Continuous Atonement. It was very good. I liked all the references he gave in the book and the stories were great. But for some reason, I had a little trouble concentrating now and then.

That may because I feel stinking rotten. I've had what I thought were stomach flu-related symptoms several times this month - nausea and stomach cramps. But now they are non-stop and no one else is sick. I went to the dr. today to run some tests and see what is going on. Meanwhile, all I want to do is stay in bed and read or sleep.

Now I'm rereading the Percy Jackson series and the Young Wizards series. I'm not up to any tough brain work right now. I just want to hide in bed.

I hope you feel better soon. In the meantime, I hope you're allowing yourself to stay in bed and read YA novels.

Let us know how you're doing?

I just love Miss Read, and especially her Thrush Green Series. Whenever I need a good comfort read, I tend to reach for one of these.

I am slowly recovering. I wish I knew what was wrong! We'll see if it stays better. Thanks for the good wishes.

The Case of the Gypsy Goodbye by Nancy Springer

Themes: family, mystery, gender roles
Setting: Victorian London

Enola Holmes is the younger sister of Sherlock and Mycroft. In the first book in this series, The Case of the Missing Marquess, their mother goes missing and Enola runs away from home rather than be sent to a strict boarding school at her brother Mycroft's hand. She winds up in London and has a series of adventures. This book is the 5th and final in the series. It is lots of fun, great for girls or boys, has several puzzles to solve, and it's completely improbable. Kids might not notice, and I was able to go along with the far-fetched aspects of the story (mostly, Enola living successfully on her own for so long) because it was so much fun. I'm rating this kind of high, really. It was quite a slight story, but it made a great conclusion, with Enola's problems all be resolved in a very satisfying way. If you want to start the series or buy it for a child, start with the first in the series.

Counterfeit of Murder by Ray Harrison

Themes: banking, financial crimes, counterfeiting
Setting: Victorian London

Two Victorian mysteries in a row, but they were quite different. This one was an unpleasant surprise. Some interesting stuff in here about printing money and the Bank of London, about ways to rip off a bank, and Victorian society. But too much sex, more than in the rest of the series I've read. It starts with a bank robbery followed by a dismembered body found in a sewer. Then a policeman goes undercover to find a counterfeiting gang. That part wasn't completely believable, that he just got picked up so fast by the gang.

I didn't hate it, but it wasn't as good as the rest of the series by a long way.

I have found myself really appreciating the Victorian mysteries out there since having a related category for my challenge. I will have to add Springer and Harrison to my future reading list as possibilities.

Harvest of Death is the Harrison book I read before this one and it was much better, set in the English countryside.

Off challenge read: Dani Noir by Nova Ren Suma, a tween mystery sort of read.

Dani lives in a little town with nothing going for it except a movie theater. The theater shows old movies, her favorites being the ones with Rita Hayworth. Dani likes her movies in black and white, with dramatic backgrounds and a femme fatale.

Her real life is not quite so much fun. Her parents are getting divorced. Her dad has moved in with his new girlfriend and he can't wait for Dani to get to know her soon-to-be stepmother. Dani is not so thrilled. She can't wait to get out of there and get home, where she has a real life mystery on her hands. Who is that mystery girl with Jackson, the projectionist at the movie theater? It's not his girlfriend. So what's the story?

I liked this one, but I didn't love it. It was written for tweens, so that probably has a lot to do with it. Nothing wrong with the feel or the complicated family dynamics. Dani herself just felt like such a brat, but then again, that's probably about right too. I think I'm just a little too old. It felt kind of light. But for the right age group, I think it would be a good read.

I've been rereading a lot lately: the Charlie Bone series, the Castle Perilous series, a mystery or two.

I also managed to get a few off my TBR list. The Adoration of Jenna Fox is a sci-fi YA read about a girl who wakes up from a coma to find that she has lost her memory and her family is keeping a big secret from her. I really liked it. I reminded me a lot of Unwind, with a different sort of angle. Not as good, but still a solid read.

And I tried Territory. It's a cross between a Western and a fantasy, which sounds like an odd sort of marriage, but it worked well in The Thirteenth Child, I thought, so I was interested in this adult book. It's set in Tombstone, and features Doc Holliday and Wyatt Earp. But it never got off the ground for me. I found it stiff and slow. Didn't finish that one.

And I read a couple of cozies. Dead Canaries Don't Sing was about a mobile vet in Long Island who discovers a body. I didn't really connect with the main character and thought the mystery was too confusing to be worth figuring out. I liked the idea for the series, but I don't think I'll read more. And I read A Wedding to Die For. It's the second in the Abby Rose series, but I never did read it and I haven't managed to find the first. This one I liked, but didn't love. I think Abby gets better as the series goes. She's a private eye who specializes in adoption cases. I love the Houston setting in these, since that's where I was born.

Nothing for the challenge, though, you'll notice. I am wandering far off field lately.

You're almost finished the challenge, in any case, so taking a month off to read whatever catches your fancy might just recharge your engines. How about being able to read anything except challenge books for a few weeks?

...Especially since this is your second challenge. And you're not well on top of that! Perhaps a couple of DVD boxes and a week's break from reading alltogether?

Thanks for the encouragement. I don't really mind slowing down for a bit, but I hate missing out on here! But school starts soon and I think I will have more time to read then.

Rapunzel's Revenge and Calamity Jack by Shannon, David, and Nathan Hale, pretty pictures category

Themes: Western, steampunk, romance, magic, fairy tale retelling, strong heroine, family

Setting: Out West plus magic

These are some great graphic novel retelling of a couple of familiar fairy tales, Rapunzel and Jack and the Beanstalk. In the first one, Rapunzel is a terrible tomboy growing up in a very restricted castle with no one but the guards and her mother around. One day she decides to climb to the wall that surrounds the castle.

What she sees comes as a complete shock. The entire horizon, as far as she can see, is a complete wasteland. Her mother has used her magic to drain the energy and power from the land and used it to create the gardens and food she grows for the castle. Even worse, Rapunzel's own real mother is working in the mines. Rapunzel was taken from her by the witch.

Well, anyone familiar with the story knows what comes next, with the whole locked in a tower thing. But the Hales have given this story a fun Western twist and made Rapunzel a feisty heroine who can save herself, thank you very much. She eventually does meet Jack and teams up with him to save her real mother and stop the witch.

The second one features Jack, as he talks about what lead him to leave his home town (hint: giants) and go on the run. Now he's determined to go back home and make good on the mess he left behind. When he and Rapunzel get there, they find the town overrun with giants and with giant ants. The whole town is a war zone, and Jack's mother is forced to work for the giants. Time for another rescue. I liked the first book better, maybe just because it features a girl instead of a boy, but this one is a lot of fun too. Both recommended for kids and teens and anyone who enjoys graphic novels.

Rose Bride by Nancy Holder, twist category

Themes: love, religion, magic, fairy tales
Setting: fairy tale France

Rose is a sort of Cinderella. Her mother dies when she is young, her father remarries to a completely unsuitable woman with a daughter of her own and then dies, and Rose is mistreated by her new stepmother. But Cinderella didn't have all this stuff about Artemis the Goddess and have her turn into a deer.

Several other reviewers here on LT, plus my own daughter, complained about the odd mesh between the Greek mythology and a fairy tale called "The White Bride and the Black Bride," which I'd never heard of before. But I didn't listen, because I had this on my list, and because I often enjoy this series. My mistake. It wasn't awful, but it wasn't good. Maybe the story makes sense to the writer, but it wasn't doing it for me. Plus Rose is such a drip! Whine, whine, whine, my life is awful, nobody loves me, whine, whine, whine. Get some backbone, already! Not worth reading.

#96 lol! I hate when the heroine of a book is like that. Who wants to read about that person when there are so many more interesting characters out there?

Boneshaker by Cherie Priest, Saturday morning matinee

Themes: fate, family, prejudice, zombies!, steampunk
Setting: alternate Seattle, 1860s

This is put forward by many as a steampunk teen classic. Maybe so, but it just didn't do it for me. I did enjoy it, but it wasn't the amazing, take-your-breath-away sort of book I was hoping for.

Seattle has become a sort of no man's land, cut off from most of the country. The Civil War is still raging, and Washington is still a territory, and the Russians haven't agreed to sell Alaska yet. And then somebody (all right, Leviticus Blue) has created a machine that caused a huge explosion resulting in - zombies.

Except that here they are called rotters, and they are in a part of the town that is walled up. A poisonous gas still escapes, which means that it's not safe to be over the wall (apart from the zombies, and that's bad enough) in case the gas gets you and makes you a rotter too.

It's a bit complicated, but the main story revolves around Briar, the daughter of a folk hero who saved several prisoners from the gas outbreak before being killed, and the wife of the guy who caused the mess in the first place. Her son Zeke has never been told anything about his father or his grandfather. And now he's a rebellious teen, and he's ready to find out more for himself. He decides the only way to get answers is to go into the walled city himself.

It's not pretty. Briar sets off after him, but seems to be one step behind. Both of them are befriended by mysterious folks, but in this horrible place, who can you trust? And will they stay alive long enough to be reunited and get home?

You kind of know that it will have a happy ending that way, but ----

SPOILERS AHEAD!!

But that's as far as it goes. Yes, they get out and they kill the bad guy, but the zombies are still hungry and there are just as many as ever. And the gas is still there, and the city is still in just as much danger, and Briar and Zeke are just sort of hanging at the end of the story. And that's how it ends.

SPOILERS OVER!!

So I didn't really enjoy this one. I wanted a better resolution at the ending. The rotters were extremely gross and convincing as zombies, but there are so many holes in this story. It just wasn't for me. I know it has some major fans, so take that rating as my own feelings and if it sounds intriguing, judge it for yourself. 2.5 stars.

97 - Exactly!

Off challenge read: The Sheriff of Bombay by HRF Keating.

Inspector Ghote is tied up in a frustrating theft case that's going nowhere when his superior gives him a new responsibility - accompany an aging film star through Bombay's sex district. Eww. Ghote is not thrilled, but he has no choice. Surely he can ...more Inspector Ghote is tied up in a frustrating theft case that's going nowhere when his superior gives him a new responsibility - accompany an aging film star through Bombay's sex district. Eww. Ghote is not thrilled, but he has no choice. Surely he can put up with this for one night and get back to work. But things don't work out that way.

At their first stop he finds a murdered prostitute, strangled and beaten to death, and he sees the murderer. The problem is, he's the only one to see the suspect, and the man is a celebrity - the Sheriff of Bombay from the title. The position is largely a political one, with just a few real duties and lots of baby kissing and hand shaking, with an occasional bazaar opening thrown in. But the man is also a cricket star with a devoted following. How is Ghote going to put together a case that will stick? Especially since he's ordered not to question the suspect at all, but build a case without telling anyone what he's up to.

This is certainly different from the usual Inspector Ghote story, which doesn't make an effort to sanitize Indian life and society, but is rather a look at police work in the busy, multicultural metropolis of Bombay. But this one is full of the seamy side of life there. It's not really meant to be titillating. In fact, the prostitutes, from the 5 rupee gay girls to the high priced beautiful call girls, all get a chance to tell their story of how they got into the business and why they stayed. There are a few tragedies, here and there, but for most of the women, prostitution is a trade that they are happy enough to be in, since they don't see much else to choose from. The girl Munni is almost philosophical about it. She gets to have fun with many, many men, and if a few are not so nice, well, that happens sometimes.

Overall, it was a well done and engrossing book. If a few of the twists were a bit predictable, it was still a good read and I'm glad I found it.

Overflow for European history category:

Game of Patience by Susanne Alleyn

Aristide Ravel is a police agent. In his time, 1796, that means that he is an investigator, although some agents are nothing more than police spies. But he is called in on a double homicide. Both victims, a young society girl and an older gentleman are both found shot dead in the man's apartment. The police have a lot of trails to follow, first identifying the dead girl, then trying to decide which was the intended victim and who might have wanted them dead.

At the same time, the whole city is struggling with the aftereffects of the Revolutions. Everything has new names: the days of the week, the months, the streets, the 'citizens' themselves. And the memory of the Terror hangs over everyone, making them reluctant to get involved in a police investigation. Ravel himself is haunted by the execution of a close friends and by the more recent execution of what he believes was an innocent man. This case, he says, must be without any doubts.

I really enjoyed this mystery. I just found it at the library and I'm glad I saw it. I hope the series continues.

Game of Patience sounds good!

@101, There's a sequel and a third book which is a prequel already available by the looks of things. A Treasury of Regrets and The Cavalier of the Apocalypse respectively.

I wasn't sure if this was the first in the series or not. Thanks for looking it up for me. I will definitely look for the other two books. I really had no idea of what France was like between the Revolution and Napoleon, so this kind of fills in a few blanks.

I've not read many historical mysteries and your review made that one sound good so I checked out the workpage and noticed the series info.

Looks like I stumbled into this thread at just the right time. :-) Game of Patience is now available for Kindle at a low low price, and the fourth book in the series, _Palace of Justice_ (no LT page yet, sorry) will be out in hardcover, eBook, and at your local library in November.

FYI, for order freaks: Chronologically, _Palace_ is the *second* story in the series (so far), and takes place between The Cavalier of the Apocalypse and Game of Patience. Thanks for reading!

Susanne
Susanne Alleyn, author
The Aristide Ravel Mysteries

#101 I thought it looked really good, too, and added it to the wishlist.

#106 Susanne, thanks for the clarification on the order. Actually, when the chronological order of the stories is different than the publication order of the books, I prefer to read them in the order they were written. What order do you suggest?

If you want to read the Ravel Mysteries in publication order, it's:

Game of Patience (published 2006, takes place in 1796)
A Treasury of Regrets (published 2007, takes place in 1797)
The Cavalier of the Apocalypse (published 2009, takes place in 1786)
...and by the time you're done with those, you might be able to get
_Palace of Justice_ (coming November 2010, takes place in 1793)

Is that confusing enough for you? :-) (Blame my publisher for the weird chronology.)

Cheers,
Susanne
Susanne Alleyn

Off-challenge: Abandoned Book, Dead at Daybreak by Deon Meyer

About a former police officer turned rowdy drunk who is hired to investigate the murder of a reclusive businessman. Lots of violence, lots of swearing, and a very unlikeable protagonist. It just wasn't one I wanted to stick with. I had heard good things about this one and I wanted to like it, but it just wasn't for me.

My Dear Sisters by Gordon B. Hinckley, LDS Books category

Themes: charity, education, compassion, motherhood, faith
No setting in particular

This little book was like an inspirational picture book for women. It had artwork on one page, and a quote by LDS President Hinckley on the opposite page. I enjoyed it, but my artistic daughter was not impressed by the quality of most of the paintings. I didn't entirely agree with her, but it was a very romantic looking book. I enjoyed reading it, and found a lot of inspiration in the quotes, but I wouldn't buy it.

3 books left in this challenge, one biography and two LDS books. So why do I want to read EVERYTHING but those? I have started one LDS book, but can't seem to get interested in any biography. I think I'll head to the library and see what I can find. Maybe something will look good.

@111 -- How broad is your biography category? Does it extend to memoirs, for example? They tend to be much quicker, easier reads than scholarly biographies. For example, I'd recommend Haven Kimmel's A Girl Named Zippy for a fun and funny memoir.

I am including memoirs, but I already read (and enjoyed) A Girl Named Zippy. If I can find Falling Leaves, that one sounds good. I'll just browse around, I guess. But thanks for the suggestion.

I'm just finding your current thread. You've done some marvelous reading!

I must comment -- I really like the way you write your book entries, highlighting the themes and settings; and your comments are very helpful in deciding which books would interest me.

Thanks! I think tutu is the one who I first saw doing themes and settings. I thought it was a great idea.

I found Uncle Boris in the Yukon by Daniel Pinkwater at the library for a biography. I'm not sure biography is exactly the right term. It's sort of biographical, but given the talking sled dog, I'm guessing it's more like tall tales. But it's very entertaining so far.

Off challenge: The Black Arrow by Robert Louis Stevenson

This is a rowdy boy's adventure story set during the Wars of the Roses between the Yorkists and the Lancastrians in England. (My 15 year old had never heard of the War of the Roses, so I'm offering a little explanation here.) Dick Shelton is an orphan who is being fostered by a tough warrior type. Then he finds out that a band of outlaws has targeted his benefactor and others as being responsible for the deaths of many people, including Dick's father.

So who can Dick trust? Practically no one, it seems. That part is kind of dark. But there's a romance too, and plenty of fight scenes thrown in for no apparent reason whenever the story slows down. Don't look for a lot of plot continuity in here. There isn't much. But there are plenty of sword fights, being captured and then daring escapes, a guy disguised as a leper, and lots more. I got kind of tired of it, really. Too much going on. I was glad to be at the part with Richard of Gloucester, the Crookback, who became King Richard III. But he doesn't show up until the end of the book.

I would recommend this if you like adventure type stories and if you don't mind loosely plotted book. Or if you want to see what kid's books were like once upon a time. For the modern reader, I think it's a little tougher going.

The Church Encounters Asia by Spencer J. Palmer, LDS category

Themes: religion and faith, sacrifice, brotherhood, growth
Setting: Most of Asia, 19th century to 1970

When I saw this little book at the library, I knew it was going to be WAAAAAY out of date, but that was actually the reason I wanted to read it - I wanted to see what had changed since it was written. It's all about the LDS church in Asia, and boy, have things changed. When it was written, Vietnam was still in the middle of the war, the Korean war was barely over, Hong Kong was still independent (sort of), and the Philippines was mostly Christian. And as the LDS church goes, there were hardly any members anywhere in Asia except in Japan, the Philippines, and a few in Hong Kong and Taiwan. Now there are 8 temples there, either already open or being built. I loved reading about one missionaries story who was sent to India. He was attacked several times, befriends by a Muslim king (according to the story), poisoned, beaten, and on his way home, the ship hit a typhoon, had a mutiny, ran out of food, and had disease on board all before making it safely back to California. That's a crazy ride.

But I admit that most people will probably not love this book. Still, I thought it was fun.

Two books left!

Cindy, you are amazing! And this, your second time around. I have two books left on my original challenge, but I am already looking forward to 2011 and the 11 in 11 Challenge.

Off challenge read: Murder on Nob Hill by Shirley Tallman

I don't want to be too mean with my review, but this book was bad.

Sarah Woolson lives in San Francisco in 1880 and she has just passed the bar exam. Too bad no one wants to hire her, but women are too emotional and illogical to practice law, right? Well, I don't buy that one, but Sarah IS pretty silly. She is such a crusader for women's rights and she doesn't think ahead much. She has completely modern views on politics, marriage, and romance.

And besides that, the book itself was too predictable. I picked out the murderer on page 10 and the love interest on page 12 or 13. It's the sort of book where the MC has a client who is completely innocent, investigates the scene of the crime and finds all kinds of clues the police missed, meets Chinese warlords, visits a brothel, an opium den, and a place where Satanic rituals involving bizarre sexual rites takes place. Seriously, what's left for the next book in the series? She's already done everything!

My favorite line from the book (and one that tells you exactly what kind of book it is):

"With a shock, I realized my assailant was Chinese!"

You may enjoy it anyway, if you view it as pure escapist fare that doesn't have to make any sense, just be packed with adventure. But if you want more, you will be disappointed.

@120 -- Haha, that made my day! :) I'm almost curious to read this book now, just to mock it!

Uncle Boris in the Yukon and Other Shaggy Dog Stories by Daniel Pinkwater, Biography category

Themes: crazy families, dogs, love
Setting: the Yukon, New York, New Jersey

I like Pinkwater. He's got this quirky sense of humor that makes me smile. Really, I think he's a little crazy, but now that I've read this book and a little about his childhood, I understand why so many of his characters are kids with a weird family. Write what you know, right?

I love the dog stories too. Really, there are a lot of fun stories in here. Some get a lot of play, like the one at the beginning about his Uncle Boris, the Polish gangster turned Yukon prospector. But the brief little paragraph about how he met his wife was a jewel. 4 stars

Temples: A Photographic Journey by Don Busath, LDS Category

Themes: faith, religion, devotion, family
Setting: around the world

This was a lovely book with some wonderful pictures. Most of the pictures were of the temples themselves, either the exterior or the grounds, with some of the construction. But Busath also including pictures of the general area, cityscapes, and landmarks. The only thing that kept this from being a 5 star book was that it was oddly organized - not chronological, not geographical, but some random pattern - and that some of the pictures were a little out of date and the quality was a little uneven. But otherwise it was a very nice book and I really enjoyed it. 4 stars.

And just like that, I am done with Part II of my challenge! I want to do a nice wrap-up, with best/worst of each category and so on, but I'm still feeling kind of rocky. I'm fine to sit around and read, but any kind of serious thinking is just beyond me. So I will probably make a start on the best/worst tomorrow and we'll see how far I get. Maybe if I break it down into a couple of categories at a time, I can handle that.

Very tired of being sick. Between the abdominal pain early this month and the current jaw problems, I haven't been feeling good for a while. On the plus side, I've lost some weight, but I would love to be able to enjoy my food again. I'm currently on yogurt, milkshakes, applesauce, oatmeal, and soup. When I tried eating pasta and some nice tender chicken, I was nearly in tears from the pain about an hour later. So I'm sticking to soft foods. Very boring.

Wait until you're feeling better to do anything! Do you have a stack of truly escapist literature?

Keep us up to date on how you're feeling and I'll be thinking of you and wishing you more comfortable days.

I know what you mean about boring diets. Several years ago, right before I had my gallbladder removed, the only foods that didn't seem to make me sick were canned chicken, canned peaches, poached eggs, toast, and animal crackers. I lived on those foods for several weeks.

Hope you feel better soon.

Cindy, I didn't realize you were feeling so poorly. :-(

Definitely keep us updated on your progress. In the meantime, you'll be in my thoughts and prayers. I hope you'll get some relief soon.

Congratulations on finishing the challenge! Twice in 8 months - are you going to go for a 3rd one in the last 4 months left this year? No pressure from me on a recap - do it only if YOU want to.

Congratulations on finishing your 2nd challenge, Cindy! You amaze me, and I love following your reading -- a good proportion of the books on my wishlist come from your thread!

So sorry you haven't been feeling well! (Mashed potatoes, sweet potatoes, squash might also work -- at least they did for me when I couldn't chew anything, but they do not result in weight loss...)

Thanks for all the get well wishes! I tried instant mashed potatoes, but they were too yucky and I didn't finish them. Sweet potatoes sound really good, though. Physical therapy tomorrow - holding my thumbs that this works fast.

July/August recap

I enjoyed adding the Pretty Pictures category, for graphic novels, photography, and picture books. It seems like that got things moving again for a while.

Winners:

Eisenstaedt Remembrances - photography
Wednesday Wars - YA fiction
Freckles - YA fiction
To Draw Closer to God - religion
Tisha - biography
Thrush Green - fiction
The Case of the Gypsy Goodbye - children's mystery
The Book of Lost Things - YA fantasy
East - YA fairy tale
Earth Abides - apocalyptic sci-fi
Dorothea Lange - Mark Durden - photography
Rapunzel's Revenge - YA graphic novel

Overall winner - The Book of Lost Things. Loved it.

Losers:

The Face of a Stranger - mystery
Pale Horse, Pale Rider - short stories
Counterfeit of Murder - mystery
American Jezebel - biography
Frankenstein - horror
Rose Bride - YA fairy tale

Biggest loser - The Face of a Stranger. Biggest disappointment - Frankenstein.

Challenge recap to come.

Best and Worst of the Challenge!

Category 1 - North American historical fiction

Several solid winners in here. I loved The Help, The Teacher's Funeral, Death Comes for the Archbishop, The Wednesday Wars, The Evolution of Calpurnia Tate and Freckles. I think my favorite was Death Comes for the Archbishop - beautiful writing, great characters, and a strong setting. But I found myself laughing a lot during The Teacher's Funeral and Calpurnia Tate, while The Help was the one that promoting the best discussion.

No really terrible books in here, but I didn't enjoy Pale Horse, Pale Rider. That was the only Katherine Anne Porter book I've read, a collection of three long short stories or short novels, however you want to put it, and I just wasn't impressed. They all seemed fairly pointless to me, although the middle story was the best. (don't remember the title now).

Category 2 - LDS books

One clear winner, To Draw Closer to God by Henry B. Eyring. I want to buy this one when I can. It was full of inspiration that would repay reading again and again. Really great for when you are going through tough times.

No real losers in here, although The Essential Mormon Cookbook was very NON-essential - lots of casseroles my kids wouldn't eat, jello salad (seriously, you need a recipe for that?) and my favorite, desserts. But I have lots of better cookbooks that this one, and I didn't like the way it was organized.

Category 3 - Biography

Another one with a clear winner, Tisha: A Young Teacher was just excellent. And two clear losers, American Jezebel, which was boring and Appetite for Life about Julia Child, which was over the top. The latter was probably the worst.

Category 4 - European history, fiction and non-fiction

This category didn't work the way I wanted it to, really. I had a hard time finding the books I really wanted in the first place. I enjoyed a lot of the books I chose instead, but it wound up being mostly England, with a little France, and nothing else. Only one non-fiction book, too.

Winners: Wives and Daughters, Thrush Green, The Case of the Gypsy Goodbye. Wives and Daughters started out to be my favorite, but since the author died without finishing it, the ending just sort of hung there. Still, worth reading, especially if you are a Jane Austen fan. Very similar feel.

Losers: A Very Long Engagement was quite a disappointment. Rather pointless story about WWI.

Category 5 - Debut Mysteries

I enjoyed this category a lot, even if I didn't love all the books, because I had so many mystery series I wanted to try. This gave me a chance to check them all out! I'm glad I'm making room for lots of mysteries next year.

Winners: Just two, A Free Man of Color and The Black Echo, and the second one was a little too dark for me to want to continue the series.

Loser: Wow, a clear choice here - The Face of a Stranger was guilty of so many mistakes it's hard to pick one. All telling, no showing, too predictable, and sloppily written. I also decided that the Cliff Janeway series and Julie Smith's New Orleans series are not for me. I didn't even finish those.

Overall, I will definitely continue with the Barbara Hambly series and probably with the Ariana Franklin series, the Charles Todd series, and the KJ Erickson one. No more Anne Perrys for me, ever.

Category 6 - Alternate Worlds and Magical Lands

Looks like my highest rated category. Reminded me how much I like Angie Sage and Garth Nix. But my favorites from this category are The Doomsday Book - Connie Willis and The Book of Lost Things. Both were extraordinary. No real losers here at all.

Category 7 - Twists

Wound up being mostly retold fairy tales.

Winners: A Curse As Dark As Gold, a twist on Rumpelstiltskin, Maskerade, a Terry Pratchett twist on the Phantom of the Opera, and East, a version of East of the Sun and West of the Moon.

Losers: Didn't enjoy Jenna Starborn, a sci-fi variation on Jane Eyre, but didn't HATE it. I was more disappointed, because it sounded like something I would really love. But Rose Bride and Spinners were both pretty lame.

Category 8 - Saturday Morning Matinee

This was for horror, sci-fi, and steampunk. It was maybe the most disappointing category. I was hoping for some good escapist fare, but either I was expecting too much or I read the wrong stuff or something.

Winners: Dracula. Nothing else came close, although Earth Abides gave me nightmares for a while and The Haunting of Alaizabel Cray creeped me out for a while. But Dracula was way ahead of all the rest, for writing, for atmosphere, for characters, for the story itself. I guess there's a reason this book has been imitated so often (and so often poorly!) for so long.

Losers: My worst of the challenge is in here - The Turn of the Screw. Wow, Henry James is dull. Even what could be a neat little creepy tale put me to sleep.

Also disappointed by Beautiful Creatures, which was a rather predictable teen supernatural romance which still held my interest until the terrible ending made me angry I'd spend ANY time on it at all, and by Frankenstein which could have been great but was instead just dumb.

Category 9 - Read Up! They're Good for You! Nonfiction books

Winners: A pretty solid category. Nothing that just stood out above all the rest, but several that I enjoyed. The Potato: How the Humble Spud Rescued the Western World, The Fortune Cookie Chronicles, Salt: A World History Your Inner Fish, The Endurance, The Rabbit Proof Fence and The Survivors Club - Save Your Life all wound up with 4 stars, and I really couldn't pick a winner out of them all.

No real losers here either.

Category 10 - Pretty Pictures - Photography, graphic novel, and picture books

Winners: Eisenstaedt: Remembrances and Dorothea Lange - Mark Durden were the best of the photography books. My library is actually having a photography exhibit right now and has some of Lange's pictures displayed. Rapunzel's Revenge was a GREAT graphic novel, a teen Western fairy tale, which sounds funny, but worked really well.

Loser: Only one, The Professor's Daughter, which made no sense at all. Dumb.

And there it is! I guess I will keep posting other reviews here, as I'm still reading, but I'm not planning on spending a LOT of time on the reviews. I just hate going away! Then I don't have anyone to talk to about my books! So I'll still be here.

Great recap, Cindy. I should probably recap my Challenge but I don't have the energy right now, maybe later on a rainy day in the fall.

Glad you are sticking around, I felt the same, it's great to have a place to come to and post about the books I'm reading, and see what others are reading too.

Thanks for this recap! Now I know what to read and what to avoid. :) I definitely agree with you on A Curse Dark as Gold and East, which I also read for my challenge -- both were excellent!

Extra book!

Death of a Squire by Maureen Ash

Setting: England, 1200

King John has just married and crushed his foes. Now he's set to meet with the King of Scotland to receive his pledge of loyalty. They're going to meet in the Lincoln castle. But when a squire is found murdered, hanging from a tree a few days before the meeting, there's a rush to get this death resolved before the king shows up. Was he killed by bandits, as the sheriff would like to believe? Or was it a political death, as his wife fears? Templar Bascot de Marins is asked to investigate.

I really enjoyed this book. I forgot that I had read the first in this series, The Alehouse Murders, a couple of years ago. I must have enjoyed it and put this one on the TBR list, but somehow forgot about it. I'm glad this month's RTT challenge encouraged me to pick it up. King John is not in the book until the end, but he is still a presence in the story, with his coming royal visit. If there is a plot, the king is not known for being even a little forgiving, so the pressure is on to solve the murder in a hurry.

4 stars and I'm looking forward to the next one!

Extra book 2:

The True Meaning of Smekday by Adam Rex

Gratuity Tucci gets an assignment to write an essay on "The True Meaning of Smekday" for school and for a contest. So she starts off about how her mom disappeared, how she met an alien, and how they set off on this journey to Florida. But that's only the first attempt. That one doesn't quite work, so she tells a little more of the story - what happened before her mom disappeared, when the aliens landed, how the alien fixed her car, and what they found in Florida. That attempt wins her the contest. But once she started writing, she just had to tell the whole story, of how she saved Earth from the Boov and the Gorg (there were actually TWO aliens species involved), saved her cat, what she found in Roswell, and how she made it to Arizona and found her mom.

Amazon kept pushing this book at me, and I admit that I liked it. J. Lo the alien and Gratuity are great characters, and it's certainly original. 4 stars.

Extra:

The Actor and the Housewife by Shannon Hale

I love Hale's teen books, mostly fairy tale retellings. I mentioned her graphic novels above, Rapunzel's Revenge and Calamity Jack. But her adult books are lots fluffier. This one was no exception. Becky Jack, a housewife who is seven months pregnant with baby #4, becomes unlikely friends with a movie star hunk. Their respective spouses are a little uneasy at first, but eventually go along with it. And somehow, their friendship endures.

It is escapist fun, not even a little believable, but I enjoyed it all the same. 3 stars

The Crime Writer

Drew Danner wakes up in a hospital with a surgeon and a cop next to his bed. The surgeon wants to tell him about the brain tumor they just removed. The cop wants to tell him that Drew just murdered his ex-fiance.

The tumor is definite enough. He takes it home from the hospital in a jar. And his fiancee is definitely dead. But Drew can't remember anything about that night and has no idea if he killed her or not. But he's arrested, sent for trial, convicted, and then acquitted on grounds of temporary insanity. That tumor in a jar came in handy at the trial.

So now what? Drew wants to know what happened that night. He needs to figure out if he's really a killer, and if not, then who is? And who is stalking his home, setting him up?

Fortunately, Drew is a crime writer, so he's got contacts. His agent, the actor who starred in his movie, his crime scene specialist, the consultant cop. But someone is following him, and then a second murder follows soon after Drew comes home from jail.

This wasn't a perfect book. Drew was a little too reckless and dumb in some ways. But I liked the setting and I was wrapped up in the story. I'm giving it 3.5 stars. Great opening, BTW.

#147 Sounds good - added it to the wishlist

Finished Ruby Holler today and Stealing History yesterday. Review on the latter book coming. Also had book club for Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet, which I don't think I've reviewed yet.

Stealing History by Roger Atwood

Themes: art, crime, poverty, cultural heritage, archeology
Setting: Peru, Iraq, and the US

From the opening pages set in Iraq after the downfall of Saddam Hussein to the mountains of Peru to the Museum of Art in New Mexico, Atwood traces the looting of art, textiles, and other artifacts from the tomb to the looter to the middleman to the collector. He's not afraid to ask questions and follow the story. He comes up with a few solutions in the end, but how many of them will ever be followed is anyone's guess. My bet is not very many. As long as there are people willing to buy history, someone will be there to sell it. Organizations like the FBI and others are trying to enforce laws, but there is only so much they can do without help from some serious legislation. What I found shocking was the extent to which museum themselves were collaborators in this cultural rape. They ask mighty few questions about where their acquisitions come from, especially their older ones, and are very reluctant to part with anything, even when the piece is proven to be looted. Finders keepers is the only law that really operates in the art world. Great story.

The Invention of Air by Steven Johnson

Themes: science, history, religion, politics, chemistry, biography, electricity, "paradigms"

Setting: 18th century England and US

I was looking through the other reviews on here, trying to gather my thoughts, and I found one I really agreed with - this could have been a great book, if only it were about 100 pages shorter.

A good editor would have really helped. Johnson was trying to do too much with this book. He wanted to write a biography of Joseph Priestley, he wanted to persuade us about how important Priestley was, he wanted to talk about science and scientific thought and how discoveries are made, he wanted to talk about politics, about religion, about American history.

And then there was the stuff in there that I didn't understand at all, something about paradigms and some diagrams that had nothing AT ALL to do with the actual subject of the book. What was going on here? Didn't this get edited, ever? Yes, I understand that he thinks Priestley was some kind of genius who wrote about all kinds of things, science and religion and politics, but I didn't feel that I really understood him. He just jumped onto the scene in London and threw himself into intellectual life. What about some deeper analysis of who he was?

I didn't hate this book. It was a quick read. But it wasn't what I expected at all. 2.5 stars.

Congratulations on finishing the second challenge, Cindy. Sorry to hear you've been so unwell. Wishing you a speedy recovery.

Thanks, Pamela! I need all the good wishes I can get!

Genome by Matt Ridley

Themes: science, genetics, eugenics, disease, mental health, heredity, biology,

Setting: Your DNA

I will come back and do a detailed review later, but here's a list of books that I read lately that came up in this very readable book:

The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks
Chaos
Your Inner Fish
The Language Instinct
Mendel in the Kitchen
The Book of Man: Human Genome Project
Beyond the Body Farm
In Reckless Hands

Highly recommended.

#154 Cindy, I've already got this book on the wishlist, so you can't do any more damage there, but I am looking forward to your comments.

39 Clues: Into the Gauntlet by Margaret Peterson Haddix

Solid conclusion to a fun series. I've enjoyed these books as a great escape. No, they are not even remotely plausible, but seriously, who cares? Does everything have to be so serious? Why not have a little fun and excitement? Dan and Amy have been to China, to Africa, to Mount Everest, to Venice, and in this one, they're heading to England.

The previous book answered the big questions about what was going on, who was behind the deaths of Dan and Amy's parents, and who they could really trust. It was a little heavy! But this time around, it's a race to the finish to get that final clue and put it all together. It's also a chance to wrap up all those storylines that have been woven in through the series. Everyone gets a chance to end their story - Jonah Wizard, the Kabras, the Holts, and all the rest. Dan and Amy have struggled throughout to know who they could trust and they've taken some chances. But there's really only one enemy here, and they're all going to have to figure out how to work together if they want to win.

This is a great series to read with kids, either at home or at school, and get them interested in geography, foreign culture, and history. From Mozart to Shaka Zulu, there's a lot to get kids interested in the past. They're all fast reads and this is a great ending.

154 - More about Genome:

I found this a very readable, informative book that had me reading all day. Ridley takes the DNA, one chromosome at a time, and uses each chromosome to tell about a different aspect of your genetics. He stresses that genes do NOT cause disease - you get a disease when a gene isn't working, not when it is working. And they can mess you up in amazing ways when they don't work. Huntingdon's chorea was a truly horrifying disease he discusses.

But it's not all disease - he also talks about genes and their connection with language, with nurture versus nature, with sex. He talks about the development of genetics as a study and what we still need to learn. He talks about genetically modified food, about evolution, about DNA testing. And it was all pretty easy to understand. Maybe not for a total science newbie, but it was about 95% easy for me to understand. For the last 5%, I would have loved a glossary in the back, as these terms are confusing and often misunderstood. But still worth looking for. 4.5 stars

I'd seen the 39 Clues series, but hadn't paid any attention, since my kids were beyond the target audience. But taking a closer look now, and reading your comments, I'm going to put it on the list of books to get my husband. I hadn't realized that each book in the series was written by a different author.

Now I'm more interested than before in Genome!

Check back in when you read either one; I'd love to know what you think!

I'm reading Aristocrats: Power, Grace, and Decadence right now for the RTT challenge, which has an interesting perspective on English history but has so many details that it's kind of overwhelming at times, and listening to Redcoats and Rebels by Christopher Hibbert and really enjoying it. It's also a different perspective, more from the English point of view. It's grabbed my attention for sure.

>154 cmbohn: You made me do it! Genome has been added to my wish list! And I was down to 934 items! I liked the Seven Daughters of Eve, well the first part anyway.

I think that I gave the mailman a backache last week :-) The receptionist gets to read any that she wants becuase I feel guilty I order so many books. She really liked Stop Over in Venice and wants to send it to her sister in Switzerland.

DS
(Bruce's evil twin :-)

Wow! I was so proud when I got mine under 700, but now it's back up again. I feel much better now!

Some of mine are DVDs,. . . so it turns out I only have 877 books on it. Bruce has 228 books on his wish list and we have a seperate wish list for Kindle with 57. . . so that puts us at. . . 1162 books on our wish lists, though some might be duplicates. Some are books that I know I will never get, like the Harry Potter Scottish-Gaelic edition currently selling for $2,244.71 USD. Though it would be fun to try to get the 1st Harry Potter book in as many languages as possible. . . I am currently looking for either Turkish or Hindi if anyone knows someone who wants to part with one . . .

DS
(Bruce's evil twin :-))

Oh, come one! Wishlists do not count. They're the chocolate bonbons you thought about eating, but didn't! They are imaginary.

That you are likely to buy them when you come across them is a completely separate issue.

And I loved A Stopover in Venice and was surprised that it wasn't more popular.

Aristocrats: Power, Grace, Decadence by Lawrence James

Most English history books focus on the kings and queens of the land. Occasionally you'll read a book, usually fiction, about some other aspect of history - towns or village life. But this is the only book I've read that talks exclusively about the aristocratic class and how history worked from THEIR perspective. Which doesn't mean that kings and peasants don't get their fair share - they do. It's just that the emphasis is on the 'upper class' and their role in the history of Great Britain.

Some of it was review. I was glad to get a chance to read about the signing of the Magna Carta. Some was entirely new. I never really understood the history of the House of Lords or the Glorious Revolution, for instance. And some was confusing. I still don't really understand the War of the Roses.

While I enjoyed this book, and it sure gave me much to think about, it was overload in the amount of names that were thrown around. I had a very hard time keeping things straight. The writer also assumes that the reader already knows about English history and society, and doesn't explain things as much as he occasionally needs to, especially during the modern era. I got kind of overwhelmed.

It's safe to say that this book will not overcome my own republican tendencies - that's with a lower case r, to be sure - but it did give me a lot to think about. I am still very much a populist at heart, but when the aristocratic tradition worked as its best, a tradition of honor and public service, it produced great things for England. But when it went wrong, it was amazing how much suffering it caused.

Another Day in the Frontal Lobe by Katrina Firlik

Themes: science, medicine, brains
Setting: major hospital in NY

Maybe it's because I have my own neurological issues (want to see my MRI?), but I find the brain fascinating stuff. So this book is right up my alley. It starts by talking about the texture of the brain. Is it more like tofu or toothpaste? I'm not sure, but it was sure an interesting image.

Firlik is both a doctor and a good solid writer. She compares neurosurgeons (they don't just work on brains; they do spines too) to mechanics. Sometimes it's medicine, but sometimes it's tinkering. They are not psychiatrists. They don't worry about how your MIND works. They just fix the brain itself, when they can.

This is not for the squeamish. If you can't make it past the first paragraph, then put the book down. It contains some graphic descriptions of surgery. And maggots. OK, that was gross. But it was still really cool, at least, to me. And surprisingly addictive stuff. 4 stars.

The Secret History of the Mongol Queens by Jack Weatherford

Did you know that Genghis Khan was noted as a fair and enlightened ruler? Well, in part. He believed in a fair trial, a code of rules, and women's rights. In fact, his sons were all mostly washouts. But his daughters were pretty darn talented. So he made them administrators and generals and sent them out to maintain order along the borders of his empire. But then he died, and his heirs starting squabbling.

I really enjoyed this. Every once in a while, I got a little bogged down in details. But overall, it was a very interesting read.

Oh, some parts are not for the squeamish. Some super nasty torture descriptions that I would have been happy to skip, if I had known they were coming. Ew. But I loved the story of Queen Mandhuhai the Wise who united the Mongols against the Chinese.

Great story and recommended. 4 stars

Pay It Forward by Catherine Ryan Hyde

Themes: helping others, race, family, change
Setting: California 1990s

Trevor is a 12 year old junior high student and nice kid. Arlene is his mother, a recovering alcoholic and single mom. Reuben is his teacher, a Vietnam vet with physical and emotional scars from the war. And Trevor has an idea that will change the world.

This book and the movie are pretty much a part of popular culture. The phrase "Pay it Forward" is common enough. But I hadn't ever read the book, so when I found it at the thrift store, I thought it looked like it was worth a try. I'm glad I picked it up.

The story is pretty straight forward. I haven't seen the movie, but I have to admit that I kept picturing Helen Hunt and Haley Joel Osment as Arlene and Trevor. But Reuben was nothing like Kevin Spacey, being a Black man who is missing an eye. I can see that the disfigurement would be hard to leave in the movie and make it convincing, but why did they change his race? That was an important part of the book.

As a story, I enjoyed it. As a believable recipe for social change, I'm not buying it. People are not that altruistic. It's too bad, but there it is. In the book, gang violence drops by 80%. In a book, that might work. In real life? No way. Still, it was a nice feel-good story. I'd call it a fantasy. 3.5 stars

Murder by the Slice by Livia J. Washburn

Themes: cozy mystery, school setting
Setting: Weatherford, Texas

Phyllis Newsome, retired schoolteacher, is recruited to help with the local elementary school's fall carnival bake sale and cake auction. She owns a large house and rents rooms out to fellow retired teachers, so they get involved in the school activity. But in the middle of the cake auction, the body of the PTO president is discovered - murdered.

The woman managed to fight with everyone who knew her, so there's no shortage of suspects. Phyllis gets involved in the investigation for no reason that I could see except that she was on the scene and her son is a deputy. The sheriff is an idiot and everyone can't wait to tell Phyllis all their secrets. It wasn't really a bit believable.

There were a couple of recipes included in the back, but there were also long descriptions of Phyllis baking a cake, frosting the cake, slicing the cake.

As you can tell, I didn't love the book. But I didn't really hate it either. I did like the main character quite a bit. If the author could figure out what to do with her, it could be a good series. As it is, I'm not really motivated to look for more. This is the second in the series and I just found it at the thrift store, but I wouldn't mind reading more. Only if I'm in the right mood, however, and if the writing doesn't tighten up, I won't read more than one more. 2.5 stars

Still here, I just haven't posted in a bit! I finished a reread of Artemis Fowl - the Time Paradox so I can start the next one, Artemis Fowl - the Atlantis Complex. Still listening to Redcoats and Rebels, and I'm really enjoying getting a different perspective on a familiar story.

I also finished two in a medieval mystery series, A Play of Isaac and A Play of Dux Moraud. They are by the same author who does the Dame Frevisse books. These feature a traveling group of players who get mixed up in mysterious events. The first one was better; by the second I was catching on to some foreshadowing and was not very surprised by the ending at all. I got four of these from the library book sale, so I hope that the next two are worth reading. If you like historical mysteries, you might give the first one a try and see what you think.