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RE: Book Reviews - 4/22/2005 10:31:10 AM
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Auben
Posts: 1611
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From: Where pines tower and cranberries float
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The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini
Amir grows up with best friend and servant Hassan in turbulent 1970s Afganistan. Despite wealth and privilege he longs for the attention of his bold and athletic father. He is desperate for it. Hassan aids him in this as in all of their other undertakings, until the day of Kite Fighting and Running when Amir's cowardice brings a lifetime of guilt. Guilt he must, as his friend Rahim Khan points out, "make all good."
Hosseini has as sharp and poetic hand, for character and dialogue. Characters are as well developed as a memoir. The patient Hassan and Amir's bear-like Baba especially. Unfortunately the plot is a bit contrived and sometimes becomes implausible (and even a bit cheap) in the name of drama. My favorite section is the gentle second section, when Amir comes to America and pursues his wife in traditional Afgani manner.
**Rant feel free to skip on** What is it with literary novels feeling the need to come up with the awfulest thing they can think of? If I want that much drama I'll read VC Andrews. I first began to notice this with The Prince of Tides, but at least then it was near the end so I was drawn into poetry of the novel. Hosseini sticks it right in the beginning so not only was I heartbroken but I seriously thought of just turning the book in. I honestly would rather read a literary novel which engages me with words...not with bizarre drama. **Rant over**
I loved the characters and information about Afganistan. I was disappointed with the plot. All in all, I was glad to have read it.
Grade: 7
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Tamara
~Everywhere is walking distance if you have the time~
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RE: Book Reviews - 4/22/2005 1:26:29 PM
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gratefulforgrace
Posts: 258
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From: Near Spokane Washington
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Before You Know Kindness by Chris Bohjalian
This is the latest Bohjalian novel (he is the author of Midwives, Water Witches, The Law of Similars, etc.). In this novel, he continues to amaze, his characters are always so well crafted! When I read Midwives I decided that Bohjalian wrote from a woman's point of view better than any other male writer I'd ever read...better than most women writers, even. Before You Know Kindness proves that he is equally adept at writing teenagers.
The plot of the story revolves around an accidental shooting. 13 year old Charlotte, stoned and drunk, finds her uncle's hunting rifle and accidentally shoots her father. The nearly fatal wound leaves her father without the use of his right arm. Charlotte's father, Spence, is a public relations person for an extreme animal rights groups, styled along the lines of PETA. The book has a lot of back and forth between animal rights and hunting rights arguments but Bohjalian presents both sides without bias while exposing the worst contradictions of each. Both sides end up learning something and, more importantly, Spencer's injury actually serves as a wake up call to him and saves his marriage and family.
I loved this book. It had a very slow start (nearly 160 pages before anything really happens) and a too-pat ending but still succeeded in being real. I definitely recommend it.
Grade: 8
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Proud Follower of Christ
Wife of Chris
Mother of Helen and #2 due March 23!
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RE: Book Reviews - 4/24/2005 1:39:41 PM
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Joanne-M
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CHEAT THE DEVIL by Jane Rubino
Mystery
This is the third in the Cat Austen mystery series, featuring feature writer Cat (Caterina) Austen and police lieutenant Victor Cardenas. By way of warning to those who only read Christian fiction, this is published by a secular publisher and is not evangelical in any way. However, the two main characters have Catholic backgrounds, and are moral people.
CHEAT THE DEVIL opens with the Cat dreading a trip to Puerto Rico with Victor. Victor is the first man she's shown any interest in since the murder of her policeman husband several years ago. But she's not sure if she's ready to get seriously involved with anyone. She's almost relieved when their vacation is canceled because of the murder of a former prostitute who has just started attending church and turning her life around. But things get complicated when Victor discovers that the victim has been attending St. Agnes Church, where Cat's older brother Dominick is a priest, as had the victim of an earlier unsolved murder.
Along with the mystery -- which is a good one -- Jane Rubino explores a lot of relationships. Cat's family is an overpowering crowd of Atlantic City, New Jersey, Italians. Of her six older brothers, five are cops. The St. Agnes parish is home to a group of Cat's childhood friends, and as it becomes obvious that the parish is a common denominator is a group of murders, Cat is forced to examine how the kids she grew up with have changed over the years. And, of course, there is the tension between the traditional Italian family and the Puerto Rican Victor Cardenas.
All in all, the whole series is worth reading. This book does refer back to the previous two books in the series (DEATH OF A D.J. and FRUITCAKE), so it would make sense to read them in order. But this book deals a lot more with Cat's faith and her religious upbringing than the others do, so I chose to review it here.
Joanne
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RE: Book Reviews - 4/24/2005 6:05:06 PM
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Auben
Posts: 1611
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From: Where pines tower and cranberries float
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2010: Odyssey Two by Arthur C Clarke
Sequel to the novel and movie of the same name. The Americans send a few crew members on a Russian ship to visit the Jupiter monolith and salvage the Discovery. More interaction with HAL and the person formorly known as David Bowman.
Clarke is a decent writer. The scenes with the crew are interesting. However, either this novel is just too old or the science too obvious. It comes off as simplified Carl Sagan knock-off. If you like to read about alien intelligences seeding the galaxy, try Sagan first. If you don't like to hear about evolution, avoid this.
Grade: 4
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Tamara
~Everywhere is walking distance if you have the time~
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RE: Book Reviews - 4/27/2005 10:08:19 PM
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Auben
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From: Where pines tower and cranberries float
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How the Irish Saved Civilization by Thomas Cahill
An easily read history about the dark days of Rome's fall and Christianity's ebb and flow through the Europe. It begins with an interesting look at the author's view of history and then segues into Classical learning, the fall of Rome, Augustine, pagan Ireland, saint Patrick, the Irish monastary tradition, missionaries from Ireland, and his subsequent thoughts for our future.
Most often the author flows easily and humorously from subject to subject (expounding on Augustine or Patrick) using quotes and tidbits. I greatly enjoyed some of the sections and how he worked various thinkers together. He obviously has a love and respect for the Church which made me enjoy this book a lot.
Where he falters is in detailing the How of the Irish Renaissance. His information is often vague and his reasoning a little too simple. His grand overview runs dry in detail. Ok, so Irish monks headed for Scotland, England, Gaul, and Italy. Where is the information of how they accomplished the conversion of the peoples in those areas? How did they touch them? Where is the proof that coptic (egyptian and syrian) texts and scholars came to Ireland and where is the documentation that none were left in Europe? I became a little frustrated. Hopefully his wonderfully descriptive bibliography will be helpful but I became skeptical near the end. It was all a little too laudatory.
An excellant book with a wonderful style. I highly recommend it for understanding part of that historical time (the Dark Ages) which rarely gets taught in school. I'll probably seek out his next in the series The Gifts of the Jews.
Grade: 8 (loses points for vagueness)
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Tamara
~Everywhere is walking distance if you have the time~
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RE: Book Reviews - 4/28/2005 9:25:46 AM
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gratefulforgrace
Posts: 258
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Every once in a while I pick up a book that makes me ask God why He didn't give me that gift! Oh, to be able to write like that.
Extrememly Loud and Incredibly Close by Jonathan Safran Foer is one of those novels. Absolutely stunning to read, the novel, Foer's second, follows an 8 year old boy as he attempts to find out more about his father. The book deals with father/son relationships, life after life-altering events, and learning to let go of your fears.
The main character, Oskar Schell, is on a quest to find the lock that fits a mysterious key that he found in his father's room after his father died in 9/11. He travels all the boroughs of NYC, meets interesting people, and learns to get over his guilt over his father's last phone call. The book is superb.
Some caveats: there is some language that people might object to, some reference to sex acts, and continued references to the 9/11 terrorist attacks. If you are sensitive to any of those things, this is not the book for you. It's also very gen-x. The only way I can explain what I mean is to tell you that I don't get what the big deal is about The Catcher in the Rye and I don't know if someone of that generation would be as affected by Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close.
Overall, this is one of the best books I've ever read.
Grade: A+++++
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Proud Follower of Christ
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Mother of Helen and #2 due March 23!
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RE: Book Reviews - 5/6/2005 11:07:24 PM
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Auben
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From: Where pines tower and cranberries float
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That sounds really interesting. :) That's why I like this thread. You always read such interesting stuff Kristen.
Did you read Saturday? How was it?
I've tried to post this twice and its wiped them out so I'm making it short and sweet.
The Land Remembers by Ben Logan
A memoir of a farming family during 1920s rural Wisconsin. Part poetry, part nature study, part humorous anecdote, always nostalgic. Logan brings a sense of wonder to the seasons and never ending work of a farm. Sometimes the landscape description and general artiness got a bit old, but I generally enjoyed this one. It reminds me of another group of stories about a Beloit farm in the 1920s-1940s called Stories from the Round Barn. That one was more anecdotal.
Grade:7
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Tamara
~Everywhere is walking distance if you have the time~
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RE: Book Reviews - 5/9/2005 3:03:44 PM
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gratefulforgrace
Posts: 258
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quote:
ORIGINAL: Auben
That sounds really interesting. :) That's why I like this thread. You always read such interesting stuff Kristen.
Did you read Saturday? How was it?
I feel the same way about this thread. That's the great thing about talking with other readers...someone has always read something that I've never heard of!
I actually just finally started Saturday this morning. I don't really know what happened but I got distracted and never managed to start it. So, I'll have to fill you in on it later.
Since this is the book review thread, I guess I should review my last book...I'm sure you will all agree that:
The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy is a laugh-out-loud fest of good times! I picked it up the last time I went to the library because I thought I should re-read it before going to see the movie. What a treat, I don't know why I don't read it more often.
If you haven't read it, I really can't say anything about it besides: Go read it now!!!
So long and thanks for all the fish!
Grade: whatever is better than A+++++++
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Mother of Helen and #2 due March 23!
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RE: Book Reviews - 5/18/2005 10:41:08 AM
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Auben
Posts: 1611
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From: Where pines tower and cranberries float
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Kindred by Octavia Butler
The story of a black woman in the 1970s. On her 26th birthday she begins to travel back to the early 1800s in order to save the life of one of her ancestors, the white son of slave owners. Over the next year of her life she travels back and forth watching him grow up and rescuing him when she can. Once she's even able to bring her white husband along. Many times she spends months as a slave. The complexity of the novel dawns in the last section, when you see how truly symbiotic a relationship she has with her ancestor. How she survives and how she becomes flexible, and the things that she just can not endure. How she forgives him and likes him, and then how she hates him.
The writing itself is simple, but Butler is a storyteller. It would have been very easy to use this as just a way to educate people about slavery, but it becomes so much more complex in feeling. Written in 1979, it's classified as 'science fiction' but even Butler herself says it is not so, despite the time travel plot. No science is mentioned. It's simply a novel about dealing with the past.
I was hooked from the first lines. "I lost an arm on the my last trip home. My left arm."
The complexities with trying to explain mysterious injuries so your husband isn't locked up or you thrown into a mental institution.
I admit that sometimes I felt things were a bit simplified, but the characters always rose up more complicated than I imagined.
Story: 7
Characters: 9
Total grade: 8.5
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Tamara
~Everywhere is walking distance if you have the time~
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RE: Book Reviews - 5/18/2005 8:42:32 PM
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techne
Posts: 580
Joined: 4/12/2005
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just finished salamander by thomas wharton. it's the story of an old world count who is sickened by the atrocity of war and who walks away from the military glory of his past after the death of his son ina meaningless battle and then builds a castle filled with mechanized and therefore moving walls and tables and beds like a giant watchworks and lives there with his daughter and then kidnaps (okay, bribes) a bookbinder to make an infinite book for him who then falls in love with his daughter and begins to court her with books and then they are discovered and separated and the bookbinder is thrown into a cell in the basement(?) and begins making a book on an imaginary press which then becomes real and...a truly strange and magickal story about telling tales and creating books, about the way we enter into the imaginary worlds of books as readers, about the power of ideas and imagination, about our need to be a part of a meaningful story. wharton weaves stories and narratives in and out like a canadian sheherezade. from india to china to england to canada the tide of narrative carries you deep and wide into the power of myth. ahem. a very good book.
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RE: Book Reviews - 5/19/2005 2:08:43 AM
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YawningSaturn
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Although I have not read How the Irish Saved Civilization, I have seen several excerpts and very much argree it is worth reading.
Auben reviewed it in post #6.
Well blessed missionary Mr. Hogan, quoted it in a history lesson on God's glory evidenced in missions and Christian History.
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in Windows NT Workstation 4.0 or you enter a date as a text value,
Excel interprets the two-digit year values 00 through 29 as the years 2000 through 2029.
Excel interprets the two-digit year values 30 through 99 as the years 1930 through 1999.
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RE: Book Reviews - 5/19/2005 2:49:37 AM
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soblessed53
Posts: 111
Joined: 5/1/2005
From: U.S.A. Still A Free Society!
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I kept hearing people mention "The Purpose Driven Life" by Rick warren in my church. Then my daughter in another state got it and raved about it,. She told me you are supposed to read one chapter a day,so I knew instead of getting it from the library I would have to purchase my own copy. I checked the reviews on Amazon it sounded like all everyone claims,so I ordered it and it has been such a blessing! An amazing book that is sure to make your spiritual walk closer to God. I just finished it,but intend to start it over againjust to keep me on my toes. My daughter said she intends to read it every 6 months. That is how valuable it is as a Christian workbook!
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RE: Book Reviews - 5/19/2005 12:00:22 PM
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stateofgrace
Posts: 2004
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I recently read When the Wind Blows and The Lake House by James Patterson, mainly because he has a recently released heavily marketed YA book with some of the same characters, Maximum Ride (and wow, do I ever hate continuity resets, which I've discovered is what the new YA novel basically is!). The two adult market novels have been out for a while, and are available in paperback.
Interesting thrillers with a sci-fi/sci-fact angle-- children that have avian qualities, including wings, as the result of genetic engineering. Patterson claims that a lot of what is depicted in the novels IS already possible and even being done.
One of the kids, called "Max" escapes, and enlists a young widowed veterinarian, Frannie, to help her find Max's brother and rescue the other kids. Hot on the trail of the kids for his own reasons is a maverick FBI agent named Kit Harrison (and no, we did NOT need the Fox Mulder references in both books in order to see the resemblance). Kit also has suffered personal loss -- his wife and son were killed. Kit and Frannie team up in order to keep the escaped kids safe, at great personal cost to each of them.
A slight disclamer over content...two characters who help the children have a relationship outside of marriage, and a pair of the kids in the second novel become intimate (they are teens at that point, and want to "mate for life"). Not heavily detailed or anything, but the book makes a point that Kit and Frannie have been role models/surrogote parents for the kids, and have been involved themselves outside of marriage. In addition, some of the scenes of genetic engineering may not be for the squeemish...there is a particularly heartbreaking scene in the first book where Frannie discovers pathetic dying babies that are the results of botched experiments.
The first book is better then the second, IMO. By the second, a new medical experiment angle has been added that is a little more difficult to swallow then the first, and involves global conspiracy. I read the second primarily to see the development in characters from the first book.
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RE: Book Reviews - 5/23/2005 1:01:17 AM
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Auben
Posts: 1611
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From: Where pines tower and cranberries float
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Quick trio.
Holes by Louis Sachar
A boy is sent to a Green Lake Camp for juvenile offenders. The boys must each dig a 5'x5' hole daily. What is the Warden looking for and how will Stanley survive with the other boys? Manages to combine wildly inventive situations with a meticulously constructed plot.
I really enjoyed this children's novel. Grade: 9
The Making of The African Queen or How I Went to Africa with Bogart, Bacall and Huston and Almost Lost My Mind by Katharine Hepburn
I secretly think that Katharine Hepburn didn't write. What she really did was dictate whatever came into her mind and someone else typed it out and sent it in. Sometimes it's a bit hard to follow. I like the movie. I enjoyed her stories. One of her greatest gifts is her knowledge that she is a self-involved person. The fact that she can laugh at that tells you a lot about her and she is able to laugh at many of the things that went wrong on the road to making this movie. Very similar in style to her autobiography Me. Good pictures. Never as dire as the title made out.
Grade: 6
2061: Odyssey Three by Arthur Clarke
Continuation of the 2001: Space Odyssey series. Bland. Clarke excels at people and their small talk but otherwise this book is dull.
Grade: 2
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Tamara
~Everywhere is walking distance if you have the time~
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RE: Book Reviews - 5/26/2005 11:59:16 AM
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gratefulforgrace
Posts: 258
Joined: 4/11/2005
From: Near Spokane Washington
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Saturday by Ian McEwen
I finished this book about a week ago and I've been intending to review it here since I finished. I keep hesitating, though, because I don't want to over or under "sell" the book. This is a book that left me somewhere in the middle.
I might have gone in to the book with unfair expectations. I love McEwen's work (I think two of his books, Atonement and Enduring Love are among the best character studies ever written) and I read a number of reviews of Saturday that indicated that it was McEwen's best book yet. So, I started reading it expecting to be totally wowed.
I don't mean to say that I wasn't wowed. Like all of McEwen's books, this one was gripping and thought-provoking. McEwen deals with the issues of living in a changed world. The book is a day in the life of a British neurosurgeon, a Saturday. From the very beginning of the book you know you are reading about the "post 9/11 world" (I really hate that kind of statement but I also think it's true, the world has changed). Henry Perowne, the neurosurgeon, wakes up in the middle of the night and sees a plane with one wing on fire land at Heathrow. Of course, his first thought is of terrorism...isn't that what 9/11 did to all of us? The incident ends up being a maintenance problem but the rest of the book deals with Perowne's feelings about the world and the way that things have changed. During his day he deals with questions of the Iraq war (the book is set in the days before the war began and portrays the London protests) and also more personal questions about his life and family.
The book is very interesting. McEwen manages to talk about terrorism and the Iraq war without telling us what to believe, without preaching about what he believes is right. The whole book was so thought provoking and I really haven't worked out what I thought about it. I would absolutely recommend this book without reservations but with a warning...this isn't a candy book. If you are looking for pure escapism, McEwen is not the author for you...not any of his books, really, but definitely not Saturday. If you like to think about the meaning of life, war, terrorism, family, aging, etc. then this is definitely the book for you.
Grade: A
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Mother of Helen and #2 due March 23!
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RE: Book Reviews - 6/1/2005 3:16:02 PM
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Auben
Posts: 1611
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From: Where pines tower and cranberries float
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Eva Luna by Isabel Allende
Follows a girl as she grows from childhood to adulthood in a South American country as the country faces dictators, corrupt democracy, and communist guerillas. Definitely follows Marquez's magical realism style. Definitely a product of Allende's politics as well as her fairy tales. A bit of sex and Scheherazade. Expect the bizarre and the exotic.
I loved the author's short stories (The Stories of Eva Luna) but was less fascinated by this full length novel. Perhaps because her world view seemed so obvious. Still, Allende is a storyteller. She keeps a strong hold on the reader.
Grade: 8
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Tamara
~Everywhere is walking distance if you have the time~
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RE: Book Reviews - 6/6/2005 10:37:06 AM
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Auben
Posts: 1611
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From: Where pines tower and cranberries float
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Pigs in Heaven by Barbara Kingsolver
Continuation of Kingsolver's first novel The Bean Trees. It follows Taylor Greer and her adopted Indian daughter Turtle as their adoption is found to be illegal. Spends a lot of time with the Cherokee Nation culture and feelings. Also spends some time on the plight of single moms working at minimum wage.
It seemed a bit overplotted and obvious to me. I also felt a bit emotionally railroaded with the social issues. Despite these factors Kingsolver is a lovely writer. Like most of my problems with Margaret Atwood's The Blind Assasin, the problem is not with the talent of the writer. Their small observations and comparisions are amazing and fun to read. The problem is they are trying too hard to 'make a difference' or something is out of balance in the structure.
Grade: 7.5
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Tamara
~Everywhere is walking distance if you have the time~
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RE: Book Reviews - 6/13/2005 2:42:55 PM
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Auben
Posts: 1611
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From: Where pines tower and cranberries float
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Woman in White by Wilkie Collins
This surprised me. It's a detective novel from the 1850s, one of the earliest english types.
The plot surrounds the one of the main characters chance encounter with a woman dressed all in white. She seems disoriented and frightened and he walks with her and helps her find a cab late at night. What follows includes escape, love, embezzlement, murder, kidnapping, false imprisonment, secret societies, etc. I can't even go into a tenth of what the book covers at breakneck speed.
My first thought was that it was slow. It took me well over 100 pages (the introduction and 'love' portion) to get into, but once the crime commenced this book steamrolled to the end of 550 pages. He had my total attention. The twists! The turns! lol The excellent characterization! One of my favorite characters of all time: Marian Halcombe. She's not the heroine. She's smart, determined, and funny. I was so shocked to see her in such an early detective novel written by a man.
Excellent. Occasionally a bit flowery...but not much. The characters are dead on. The plot is very complex. Highly recommended.
Grade: 9 (still took too long to get into, but when you do its well worth the effort for a fun read)
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Tamara
~Everywhere is walking distance if you have the time~
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RE: Book Reviews - 6/14/2005 12:12:12 AM
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gratefulforgrace
Posts: 258
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From: Near Spokane Washington
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Broken for You by Stephanie Kallos
I picked this book up over a year ago and, for some reason, just got around to reading it. Odd that I didn't get to it earlier...it was great!
I really enjoyed the characters. They were all a little damaged, but aren't we all? There isn't really a "main" character, it's more like an ensemble cast. The first character we meet is an older woman recently diagnosed with a brain tumor. The diagnosis leads her to change things in her life, she opens her large home to boarders and begins to think about what to do with the main part of her inheritance: a very valuable collection of porcelain figurines and china sets that were stolen from Jews during the Holocaust.
The second character we meet is a woman in her early 30s who is just recovering from a broken relationship. She is the first boarder at the elderly woman's house. In getting to know this character we learn that, actually, all of her relationships have been broken...she was abandoned by her mother and father and has never really felt like part of a family.
These two broken people, along with many others, end up creating a kind of family of their own and, in the process, heal old wounds. One of the women learns to really live while the other learns to die.
It's a really great story and uses a great metaphor about broken china to show that sometimes when we are broken we can be re-made into something even better.
Totally recommended: B+
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Proud Follower of Christ
Wife of Chris
Mother of Helen and #2 due March 23!
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RE: Book Reviews - 6/19/2005 6:52:40 PM
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Auben
Posts: 1611
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From: Where pines tower and cranberries float
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Dancing at the Rascal Fair by Ivan Doig
A novel covering two friends voyage from Scotland in the 1880s to settlement as sheepmen in Montana, their loves, work, children, and neighbors. Doig's narrator is interesting and funny, the tone light and boisterous through the first half. As the narrator matures the tone becomes more melancoly and accepting.
Often poetic, this novel is graceful and interesting. I did become annoyed with the love subplot at times (perhaps the choices the narrator made) and it diminished my enjoyment of the last third of the novel, but Doig masterfully brought everything back on track. The last third also seems less fleshed out in terms of characterization as the narrator focuses less on seeing his new world and more on himself and certain elements of his past. Things became more episodic as his focus narrowed.
Well worth the read, especially if you like Western novels or historical fiction. Doig was raised in Montana as the son of a stockman/sheep rancher. I've started his autobiography This House of Sky and its amazing how much of his background remembrances of 'real' Montana are caught in the novel.
Grade: 8.5
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Tamara
~Everywhere is walking distance if you have the time~
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RE: Book Reviews - 6/20/2005 11:18:43 AM
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BigBB
Posts: 92
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From: Maryland, my Maryland
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Quick review of the Disney Wars from my Amazon.com review:
Could Walt have imagined how ugly his namesake company has become under the watch of Michael Eisner. James Steward, the author, provides a wonderful distillation of court papers, interviews, recordings, newspaper articles, etc. that he gathered to weave together a story (how Disney-like!) that is very readable, enjoyable, even spellbinding in places.
MBA students, both experienced workers and babys just out of college should find this book on their required reading lists. It is not overly long, and you will find that Stewart pulls you through the occassional tedium by using dialogue and emotion to show how stock positions, hostile takeover bids and accounting issues affect real, live human beings. Eisner's mercurial decision-making process and temper, Katzenberg's lack of social graces and hardheadedness, Roy Disney's determination and toughness, the ineptitude of most of the board; Stewart uses his skill as a writer to bring us into the thinking and feelings of titans of the entertainment industry in an engaging manner. I highly recommend this book.
Grade: A (Would have had an A+, but there is one place where Stewart got caught up in the minutiae of Wall Street, and another where I actually didn't care about a minor participant in the Comcast deal).
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"There is no mystery in heaven or earth so great as this—a suffering Deity, an almighty Saviour nailed to a Cross."
S. Zweimer
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RE: Book Reviews - 6/22/2005 12:28:04 PM
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gratefulforgrace
Posts: 258
Joined: 4/11/2005
From: Near Spokane Washington
Status: offline
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The Falls by Joyce Carol Oates
Let me start by saying that Joyce Carol Oates is one of my favorite authors of all time. I have never read a book by her that I did not love. So, now that my biases are on the table, I will tell you about The Falls.
The Falls is essentially the story of a family set in and around Niagara Falls. The book opens with the story of Ariah. She arrives in Niaraga Falls on her honeymoon and, after only 24 hours of marriage, her husband commits suicide by throwing himself into the falls. Rather than the devastation that you would expect a woman to feel in such a situation, she seems to be relieved. She had married the man because her parents had pressured her, she was 29 years old...an old maid by late 1940s standards.
Surprisingly, this tragedy ends in love. Ariah meets Dirk, who supports her during the long search for her late husband's body, and they fall in love. They are married very shortly after and Ariah discovers that she is pregnant...is the child her first husband's or Dirk's? The accusations fly but, nonetheless, Dirk and Ariah are happy. After their first son is born they have two more children, a son and a daughter.
Unfortunately, Niagara Falls is not as pure as was thought. Dirk, a lawyer, takes on a highly controversial case. The Love Canal case claims that industrial powers around Niagara purposefully dumped toxic waste, covered it up, and sold the land to the city to build a school. Thousands of people suffer the health consequences but because these people are lower class, they are easy to ignore. When Dirk became involved in the lawsuit he was seen as beytraying his class.
How did the previous generation impact Dirk's life? Was his family involved in the toxic dumping and coverup? How will Dirk's actions impact the lives of his children? This book is an excellent portrayal of how the seemingly small decisions we make may have larger consequences than we know. Also, generational sin, are we responsible for the actions of our forefathers? Finally, Oates shows how history repeats itself.
I love the character development of this book. I love the background, reading about the beauty of The Falls was a lovely addition to the book. I love the true aspects: there really was a Love Canal case, there really was toxic waste dumping in the Niagara Falls region. I love the portrayals of parent-child relationships. This is a great book that I highly recommend.
Grade: A
<caveat>I feel like I should mention that Joyce Carol Oates is does not write "Christian books." She certainly uses language that some people may find objectionable. Her books occasionally contain sex, although not in a titillating way. If these are things that bother you, I would suggest that you not read any of her books. However, she doesn't use these things indiscriminately...every part of the novel... including language, sex, violence...adds to the richness of the story.</caveat>
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Proud Follower of Christ
Wife of Chris
Mother of Helen and #2 due March 23!
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RE: Book Reviews - 6/29/2005 12:40:33 AM
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Auben
Posts: 1611
Joined: 4/13/2005
From: Where pines tower and cranberries float
Status: offline
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I forgot to add this one last week.
The Bourne Identity by Robert Ludlum
Not much like the movie. This one twists and turns as Bourne tries to figure out who he really is. Sometimes I got annoyed at the repetitive nature of Bourne's inner struggle. Sometimes I wanted to smack the characters who thought they were suddenly in love after one chapter. Still, much more complex than the feature film. I think because it is tied to the Vietnam war and the 70s Hollywood did a makeover.
Suspenseful. Easy to read.
Grade: 7ish
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Tamara
~Everywhere is walking distance if you have the time~
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RE: Book Reviews - 6/29/2005 10:01:21 AM
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Sunnymom
Posts: 1860
Joined: 4/11/2005
Status: offline
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Forty Signs of Rain by Kim Stanley Robinson
I usually love techno-sci-fi stuff, but after a few chapters of this book, my eyes rolled into the back of my head, which made finishing the book rather difficult. I blew through the rest of the book last night, just to see who lived through it, and could see that some loose ends were left. I hate that.
It was basically a global-warming-end-of-the-world novel.
I think today I'll read a cookbook.
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