My First Chunkster

This weekend at the library I found my first Chunkster! :)

The Tea Rose by Jennifer Donnelly.
Published: 2002
Pages: 544

I just happened to run across this book. My library is now 20mins. from my house as opposed to 5mins. like it was before I moved. So...because I had so many errands to run, I decided this trip to the library needed to be quick. I gave myself a time limit, and this is what I found! I haven't started the book yet, but from what I can tell, I'm in for an intriguing story and beautiful prose.

2010 Challenges

Since one of my goals for 2010 is to blog more, I've decided participating in a couple of challenges couldn't hurt. Obviously, I've never done this before, so I'm hoping everything turns out well. The challenges I've selected to participate in this year don't seem that hard--though I suspect they are called challenges for a reason.

Here is what I've chosen to participate in:

The Challenge: The 2010 Pub Challenge

The Host: Michelle at 1MoreChapter.com

The Timeline: 2010

The Goal:

Read 10 (5 must be fiction) books first published in 2010.

(Reprints & Newly published paperbacks do not count.)

The Challenge: The 2010 Chunkster Challenge

The Host: Caribousmom.com

The Timeline: Feb. 2010 to Jan. 2011

The Goal:

I've decided to participate in the level entitled,

"The Chubby Chunkster"

For this, I need to read 3 books over 450 pages.

I'm really excited for the reading ahead! I can't wait to post my selections for the challenges!

A New Year

Let's be honest...I'm quite horrible about keeping up with the blog.

When I think about everything I've done since I last posted, I'm quite amazed. I moved to a different state, changed jobs, found a new library, and settled into life in a new home. Then of course came the seemingly endless travel for the holidays. However far I traveled, it was well worth it. Seeing everybody's smiling faces made the distance between us seem not so far away.

But, before I look ahead to 2010, let's reflect on 2009.

I rang in 2009 with Ex Libris by Anne Fadiman.

In April, I made the delightful discovery of author Mireille Guiliano. I started with French Women for All Seasons, and subsequently read French Women Don't Get Fat. I'm currently working on her latest book: Women, Work, and the Art of Savoir Faire.

Then came my further discovery of Jen Lancaster. I continued to read her hilarious and charming books...I still need to read Pretty in Plaid though.

And then of course, months later (with lots of reading in between), I started to blog. Here I discovered and discussed, The Wednesday Sisters and Not Becoming My Mother.

Given my absence, my goal for this year, naturally, is to read and write more. But, I do have some specifics. Since my drive to work is now 45mins. (one way), I plan to use audio books to turn drive time into listening time. Also, I'd like to read some international authors/books. I've found that I don't really travel much beyond the U.S. borders when reading, and this year I intend to expand my horizons. This year I have also decided to read one "business" book a month. And while I'm reading and listening, my goal is to blog 3 times a week.

I'll of course be recording all my reads in my book journal, hoping to fill its pages by next year. So, here's to 2010 being filled with great memories, great laughs, and great reads.

The Lakeshore Chronicles

The Lakeshore Chronicles by Susan Wiggs

The Chronicles consists of seven books--Summer at Willow Lake, The Winter Lodge, Dockside, Snowfall at Willow Lake, Fireside, Lakeshore Christmas, and Summer Hideaway. The series begin in 2006, and Summer Hideaway is going to be published in the Spring of 2010.

Summer at Willow Lake follows Olivia Bellamy. She returns to Camp Kioga on Willow Lake, which her grandparents own, to celebrate her grandparents' wedding anniversary. Not long after her arrival she stumbles across Connor Davis. Olivia and Connor have a history which they are forced to face in order to go forward in their new relationship.

The Winter Lodge is the story of Jenny Majesky. Jenny owns the family bakery, but has secretly always wanted to write. The only person who knows her secret is Rourke McKnight. Their relationship blossoms under trying circumstances. This one is my favorite so far! :)

Dockside revolves around Nina Romano and Greg Bellamy--two characters that by now the reader is familiar with. Nina, who is now an empty nester, follows her dreams, and is forced to deal with Greg Bellamy.

Those three are the only ones I've read so far. I can't wait to read the other ones, though!

Admittedly, these are romances. However, Susan Wiggs brings so much more than romance to The Lakeshore Chronicles. Summer at Willow Lake wonderfully sets up a whole family and community that the rest of the books are based. The interesting relationships in theses books just aren't between the hero and heroine. Characters are introduced and relationships are discovered and built.

Wiggs' writing style is great. She brings to life not only the characters, but the town. What I love is that each couple so far has a history. She depicts that history to the reader by periodically having flashbacks. Personally, I love reading flashbacks, and I loved writing them in college. So for me, flashbacks as a writing device works.

When I purchased this series a couple of weeks ago, I was in the mood for a cozy read with well-written characters that I could live with for a while. The Lakeshore Chronicles met and continue to meet those expectations.

Rating: 4 out of 5.

Library Loot (Week of Nov. 1st)

Time for another Library Loot! :)

Here is what I found...

The Smart Cookies' Guide to Making More Dough by The Smart Cookies

When you think about it, what woman wouldn't want to be a smart cookie?

Plus, finance books are the only types of books my husband reads....so to keep up with him, I read ones I think I'd like.

The Wishing Year: A House, A Man, My Soul: A Memoir of Fulfilled Desire

by Noelle Oxenhandler

Isn't is nice when you get everything you wished for?

Vision in White by Nora Roberts

This is the first book in her bridal quartet. I read this yesterday, and I don't know if I'm gong to review it , but it's a great, feel good, easy read.

The Ultimate Southern Living Christmas Book

First of all, I love Southern Living.

And for some reason, I'm already in the Christmas spirit--ready to decorate, cook, and make some cute gifts.

Library Loot is a weekly event hosted by Eva from A Striped Armchair and Marg from Reading Adventures encouraging bloggers to share their library finds.

Success! :D

While in college, I studied abroad for a little while. For the majority of the trip, I was England, and our campus had a little library that I would frequent. I found on the second floor a biography of Virginia Woolf, that I have been unable to find since. I never finished the book, as I had to return home to the U.S. I have never forgotten the book, though I have forgotten the author--which is why I couldn't find it. Search, no more! Here is the book! I am so excited I found it. And it was a complete accident! Off to purchase! :D

Library Loot (Week of Oct. 25th)

Yesterday, I went to two branches of my local library trying to find books that I wanted. I wasn't very easy to please yesterday. :) In order for me to finish my book journal by the end of year, I need to read on average six books a week. Given my full time employment, I usually only read two or three. My strategy that I've developed so far is to read two or three slimmer books on the weekend, and to continue to read my average sized books during the week days. I took that strategy on my library visit this week. This is how it turned out...



I Was Amelia Earhart by Jane Mendelsohn

A short book of 146 pages that seems well-written.







Rereadings edited my Anne Fadiman

I loved her collection of essays in Ex Libris. I think this one will be great as well.






The Ultimate Cheapskate's Road Map to True Riches: A Practical (and Fun) Guide to Enjoying Life More by Spending Less by Jeff Yeager.

This one I already read. It's thought-provoking and amusing.






The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society
by Mary Ann Shaffer and Annie Barrows
A popular novel I've never read.

Here's an interview with the author Annie Barrows:
http://www.bordersmedia.com/bookclub/barrows

I love the Borders Media website! :D I can not get enough of it! From the author interviews to tours of authors favorites, it is always interesting and enjoyable.


Chasing Shakespeares by Sarah Smith

A novel that looks to be fun, while the characters delve into the mystery surrounding Shakespeare.








Library Loot is a weekly event hosted by Eva from A Striped Armchair and Marg from Reading Adventures encouraging bloggers to share their library finds.

Not Becoming My Mother

Not Becoming My Mother & Other Things She Taught Me Along the Way By Ruth Reichl

Published April 2009

Ruth Reichl, author of Tender At The Bone and Comfort Me with Apples, leaves the kitchen and enters the attic to discover a box of mememtos that belongs to her mother. On what would be her mother's 100th birthday, Ruth discovers who her mother really was.

Ruth admits early on that her mother is everything she doesn't want to be. She writes of her mother that she is grateful,

Not to be any of the women of her generation, who were unlucky enough to have been born at what seems to me to have been the worst possible time tohave been a middle-class American woman.

She later describes these women as smart, educated, and bored.

The bottom line is both Ruth and her mother, Miriam, were determined for Ruth to have a happy life and to realize her dreams--a luxury Miriam never had. Sadly, Miriam was the happiest in her life after both her mother and her husband were deceased. It was after that, Miriam become the independant and happy woman she always wanted to be. While Ruth doesn't want to be her mother, she does learn a lot from her.

I really can not say enough about this book. I finished it two weeks ago, and have struggled with what to say because I'm not sure anything I say will give the book justice. It's poignant and intelligent. Reichl fills 110 pages beatifully. You can't close this book without asking similiar questions that Reichl asks. I wonder what my mother and grandmother would not only think about this book, but their lives. I wonder what if they feel even an inkling like Miriam.

Long after you close Not Becoming My Mother, you'll be thinking about it--and that is the mark of great writer.

Rating:

Library Loot (Week of Oct. 17th)

Here are my library finds this week.

A Long Fatal Love Chase by Louisa May Alcott

I'm a big fan of Little Women, but I never even knew this book existed. Just from reading the jacket, this is going be a suspenseful read!



Casino Royale by Ian Fleming

At a bookstore, I bought the Complete Idiot's Guide to the Ultimate Reading List for $2.99. There are nearly 1,000 books listed. Since I love reading lists, I totally bought it. My goal is to eventually have read all the books listed. This book is on that list. I can't get enough of the newest Casino Royale movie, and I've never read an Ian Fleming book before.


Time of My Life by Allison Winn Scotch

I just happened to come across this book. It's got a cute cover and seems to be light-hearted while asking some legitimate questions.



Library Loot is a weekly event hosted by Eva from A Striped Armchair and Marg from Reading Adventures encouraging bloggers to share their library finds.


On another note, I went to a couple of used bookstores this week and found the Lakeshore Chronicles by Susan Wiggs. I read the first book in the series--Summer at Willow Lake this weekend. It's a cozy enjoyable read!

The Wednesday Sisters

The Wednesday Sisters by Meg Waite Clayton

Published June 2008

I've been looking forward to reading The Wednesday Sisters for a couple of months. I saw this in a bookstore, and I knew I had to read it, even though I wasn't going to buy it. So, I waited until it was available at my library.

It was worth the wait! The Wednesday Sisters really did live up to my expectations. And of course, there were plot points I wasn't expecting.

Simply, this book is about the lives of the five women who make up the Wednesday Sisters--Kath, Ally, Brett, Linda, and Frankie. Frankie, the narrator, is new to the neighborhood and bond with the four other women over their mutual love of books. A few of the books mentioned are: The Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath, The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald, Middlemarch by George Eliot, and Rebecca by Daphne Du Maurier. Here is Frankie reflecting on her favorite--Rebecca:

...I sat wondering why I was drawn to Rebecca. Because the narrator was an
unremarkable girl who'd landed a remarkable man? Because she, like me, imagined
other women's lives in great detail, and always imagined those women as better
than herself? (pg. 41)

Soon, this group of readers turns into a group of writers. But, their love of reading and writing is simply the tie that binds them.

Set in the 60's, the reader uncovers another element of the novel when these women deal with infertility and the desperation that accompanies it, infidelity, interracial marriage, and illness. All of these women, however, are trying to discover themselves in a world that won't let them. Frankie states, "...a girl didn't have to relinquish her dreams on her wedding day" (pg. 33).

One neat thing for me was reading the cultural details of the 60's. A few mentioned include the shooting of Bobby Kennedy, the phone being released with the * and # keys for the first time, and the man on the moon. There is quite a lengthy scene depicting the group watching Neil Armstrong's famous footsteps. While this scene was powerful, I think someone who was actually alive and remembers the even would be really moved by it.

I do think the book was well-written. Though, I did notice my favorite passages were in the first half of the book. The narration is great. I feel it does get a little choppy towards the end however. Despite a few flaws, and decisions by characters I didn't always agree with, I really enjoyed spending 284 pages with these intelligent and independent women. And in the end, the reader gets a little update on these Wednesday Sisters.

Rating: