Jennifer's bookshelf: all en-US Sat, 09 Jul 2022 12:13:54 -0700 60 Jennifer's bookshelf: all 144 41 /images/layout/goodreads_logo_144.jpg A Christmas Story 5319 A beloved, bestselling classic of humorous and nostalgic Americana—the book that inspired the equally classic Yuletide film and the live musical on Fox. The holiday film A Christmas Story, first released in 1983, has become a bona fide Christmas perennial, gaining in stature and fame with each succeeding year. Its affectionate, wacky, and wryly realistic portrayal of an American family’s typical Christmas joys and travails in small-town Depression-era Indiana has entered our imagination and our hearts with a force equal to It’s a Wonderful Life and Miracle on 34th Street. This edition of A Christmas Story gathers together in one hilarious volume the gems of autobiographical humor that Jean Shepherd drew upon to create this enduring film. Here is young Ralphie Parker’s shocking discovery that his decoder ring is really a device to promote Ovaltine; his mother and father’s pitched battle over the fate of a lascivious leg lamp; the unleashed and unnerving savagery of Ralphie’s duel in the show with the odious bullies Scut Farkas and Grover Dill; and, most crucially, Ralphie’s unstoppable campaign to get Santa—or anyone else—to give him a Red Ryder carbine action 200-shot range model air rifle. Who cares that the whole adult world is telling him, “You’ll shoot your eye out, kid�? The pieces that comprise A Christmas Story, previously published in the larger collections In God We Trust, All Others Pay Cash and Wanda Hickey’s Night of Golden Memories, coalesce in a magical fashion to become an irresistible piece of Americana, quite the equal of the film in its ability to warm the heart and tickle the funny bone.]]> 144 Jean Shepherd 0767916220 Jennifer 4 4.04 1983 A Christmas Story
author: Jean Shepherd
name: Jennifer
average rating: 4.04
book published: 1983
rating: 4
read at: 2008/12/12
date added: 2022/07/09
shelves:
review:
When I found out that A Christmas Story, one of my favorite Christmas movies, was based on books written by Jean Shepherd I immediately went to my library and checked one out. I loved reading about the hijinks of his childhood. This book got me thinking about the quirkiness of all families and made me think about viewing some of my own family quirks (like our Norwegian Code of Silence) with humor instead of annoyance, embarrassment, etc. Kind of weird that I got a lesson out of a book that is meant to be humorous and entertaining. One part made me think of my own dad, "He was always an aggressive sleeper. Sleep was one of the things he did best, and he loved it. Some look upon sleep as an unfortunately necessary interruption of life; but there are others who hold that sleep is life, or at least one of the more fulfilling aspects of it, like eating or sex. Any time my old man's sleep was interrupted, he became truly dangerous." My sister and I called my dad a bear when we were little because he hibernated. It was funny to read someone else's account of the same thing!
]]> The Portable Dorothy Parker 44450
For this new twenty-first-century edition, devoted admirers can be sure to find their favorite verse and stories. But a variety of fresh material has also been added to create a fuller, more authentic picture of her life's work. There are some stories new to the Portable, "Such a Pretty Little Picture," along with a selection of articles written for such disparate publications as Vogue, McCall's, House & Garden, and New Masses. Two of these pieces concern home decorating, a subject not usually associated with Mrs. Parker. At the heart of her serious work lies her political writings—racial, labor, international—and so "Soldiers of the Republic" is joined by reprints of "Not Enough" and "Sophisticated Poetry—And the Hell With It," both of which first appeared in New Masses. "A Dorothy Parker Sampler" blends the sublime and the silly with the terrifying, a sort of tasting menu of verse, stories, essays, political journalism, a speech on writing, plus a catchy off-the-cuff rhyme she never thought to write down.

The introduction of two new sections is intended to provide the richest possible sense of Parker herself. "Self-Portrait" reprints an interview she did in 1956 with The Paris Review, part of a famed ongoing series of conversations ("Writers at Work") that the literary journal conducted with the best of twentieth-century writers. What makes the interviews so interesting is that they were permitted to edit their transcripts before publication, resulting in miniature autobiographies.

"Letters: 1905-1962," which might be subtitled "Mrs. Parker Completely Uncensored," presents correspondence written over the period of a half century, beginning in 1905 when twelve-year-old Dottie wrote her father during a summer vacation on Long Island, and concluding with a 1962 missive from Hollywood describing her fondness for Marilyn Monroe.

A Penguin Classics Deluxe Edition with French flaps, rough front, and luxurious packaging. Features an introduction from Marion Meade andĚýcover illustrations byĚýrenowned graphic artist Seth, creator of the comic series Palooka-ville.]]> 626 Dorothy Parker 0143039539 Jennifer 0 currently-reading 4.29 1944 The Portable Dorothy Parker
author: Dorothy Parker
name: Jennifer
average rating: 4.29
book published: 1944
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2012/04/15
shelves: currently-reading
review:

]]> The Lovely Bones 12232938
So begins the story of Susie Salmon, who is adjusting to her new home in heaven, a place that is not at all what she expected, even as she is watching life on earth continue without her -- her friends trading rumors about her disappearance, her killer trying to cover his tracks, her grief-stricken family unraveling. Out of unspeakable tragedy and loss, The Lovely Bones succeeds, miraculously, in building a tale filled with hope, humor, suspense, even joy.]]> 372 Alice Sebold 0316166685 Jennifer 5 Strange but beautiful. 3.87 2002 The Lovely Bones
author: Alice Sebold
name: Jennifer
average rating: 3.87
book published: 2002
rating: 5
read at: 2009/08/15
date added: 2011/08/09
shelves:
review:
Strange but beautiful.
]]> Here Comes Santa Claus 1377113
note:
Sandra Hill wrote Sam's chapters
Kate Holmes wrote Stan's chapters
Trish Jensen wrote Kevin's chapters]]> 394 Sandra Hill 084394918X Jennifer 4 3.61 2001 Here Comes Santa Claus
author: Sandra Hill
name: Jennifer
average rating: 3.61
book published: 2001
rating: 4
read at: 2008/12/04
date added: 2010/12/10
shelves:
review:
I admit it. I judged a book by it's cover...chose this book at the library purely for the fact that the cover (and title) screamed Christmas. I was pleasantly surprised (no insult to the authors intended I just had no expectations) to find it entertaining with quite a few funny moments thrown in. Written by three authors who takes turns with their characters, they managed to weave the story into a cohesive whole very well. The best part is definitely the background characters, the senior citizens who make up the "Santa Brigade". These minor characters were more interesting than the main ones and made the story for me!
]]> Peony in Love 24472 273 Lisa See 140006466X Jennifer 0 currently-reading 3.64 2007 Peony in Love
author: Lisa See
name: Jennifer
average rating: 3.64
book published: 2007
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2009/08/15
shelves: currently-reading
review:

]]> American Bungalow Style 963388
Beautifully illustrated with more than three hundred color photographs, "American Bungalow Style" presents two dozen American houses that capture the bungalow spirit. Many are Arts and Crafts in style, others show a touch of Spain or colonial America, and all exemplify the charms that enticed thousands of bungalow buyers during the form's heyday from 1880 to 1930. Among the bungalows included are examples by famous architects from Frank Lloyd Wright to Bernard Maybeck, as well as Gustav Stickley's own log cabin retreat. Many are the work of anonymous but skilled builders, and some were ordered by mail.

Bungalows may differ widely in style and size, but they have in common a simplified natural lifestyle made possible by these small houses.

Beautifully illustrated with more than three hundred color photographs, "American Bungalow Style" presents two dozen American houses that capture the bungalow spirit. Many are Arts and Crafts in style, others show a touch of Spain or colonial America, and all exemplify the charms that enticed thousands of bungalow buyers during the form's heyday from 1880 to 1930. Among the bungalows included are examples by famous architects from Frank Lloyd Wright to Bernard Maybeck, as well as Gustav Stickley's own log cabin retreat. Many are the work of anonymous but skilled builders, and some were ordered by mail.

Bungalows may differ widely in style and size, but they have in common a simplified plan that places most of the living spaces on one floor. They are typically one or one and a half stories high, low in profile, and fitted with lots of built-ins and all the conveniences of their time. On their own piece of land, with a garden in front or back and space to park a car, bungalows provided the privacy and independence that many Americans favor.

The idea that simplicity and artistry could harmonize in one affordable house spurred the bungalow's popularity -- a rare movement in which good architecture was found outside the world of the wealthy. Bungalows allowed people of modest means to achieve something they had long sought: respectability. With its special features the bungalow filled more than the need for shelter. It provided fulfillment of the American dream.

A fully illustrated appendix features more than one hundred furnishings suitable for bungalows and Arts and Crafts houses. This special catalogue section highlights modern reproductions of tables and chairs, lamps, textiles, wall coverings, tile, and hardware that look right at home in bungalows old and new, commodious and compact.]]> 224 Robert Winter 068480168X Jennifer 5 4.09 1996 American Bungalow Style
author: Robert Winter
name: Jennifer
average rating: 4.09
book published: 1996
rating: 5
read at: 2009/08/15
date added: 2009/08/15
shelves:
review:

]]> Summers with Lincoln 2793898
A few years ago, anticipating the bicentennial of Lincoln’s birth in 2009, Jim Percoco, a history teacher with a passion for both Lincoln and public sculpture, set off to see what he might learn about some of these monuments―what they meant when they were unveiled, and what they mean to us today. The result is this captivating book, a fascinating chronicle of four summers on the road looking for Lincoln stories in statues of marble and bronze.

Of all the monuments, Percoco selects seven emblematic ones. He begins and ends the journey in Washington, starting with Thomas Ball’s Emancipation Group, erected east of the Capitol in 1876 with private funds from African Americans, and dedicated by Frederick Douglass. Here, Percoco and his multi-ethnic band of teenage historians explore the impact of this Freedman’s Monument showing Lincoln and a kneeling freed bondsperson. What does the statute say about race and freedom to today’s Americans? What did Ball―and his sponsors―want it to say? From Augustus Saint-Gaudens’s majestic Standing Lincoln of 1887 in Chicago, which helped move our image of Lincoln from great emancipator to that of statesman to Paul Manship’s 1932 Lincoln the Hoosier Youth, in Fort Wayne, Indiana, which glows with an art deco sleekness, Percoco mines a wealth of Lincoln legacies―and our reactions to them expressed across generations. Here are controversial gems like Barnard’s 1917 tribute in Cincinnati and Borglum’s Seated Lincoln, struggling with the pain of leadership, beckoning visitors to sit next to him on his metal bench in Newark, New Jersey.

At each stop, Percoco chronicles the history of each monument, spotlighting its artistic, social, political, and cultural origins. His descriptions of works so often seen as clichés tease fresh meaning from mute stone and cold metal―raising provocative questions not just about who Lincoln might have been, but also about what we’ve wanted him to be in the monuments we’ve built.]]> 224 James A.Percoco 0823228959 Jennifer 4 4.58 2008 Summers with Lincoln
author: James A.Percoco
name: Jennifer
average rating: 4.58
book published: 2008
rating: 4
read at: 2009/08/07
date added: 2009/08/15
shelves:
review:
What I loved most about this book was the author's acknowledgement of the way our modern day perspectives colors how we see history- something many history writers ignore. Although I sometimes found myself dragging through the details, there were definite gems in this book that kept me moving forward. As a teacher I loved that Percoco connected the job of a teacher with that of a sculptor's- their goal is the same, to shape and mold. A good read that I would recommend to anyone who loves Lincoln or public monuments.
]]> <![CDATA[Pride and Prejudice and Zombies (Pride and Prejudice and Zombies, #1)]]> 5899779 “It is a truth universally acknowledged that a zombie in possession of brains must be in want of more brains.�

So begins Pride and Prejudice and Zombies, an expanded edition of the beloved Jane Austen novel featuring all-new scenes of bone-crunching zombie mayhem. As our story opens, a mysterious plague has fallen upon the quiet English village of Meryton—and the dead are returning to life! Feisty heroine Elizabeth Bennet is determined to wipe out the zombie menace, but she’s soon distracted by the arrival of the haughty and arrogant Mr. Darcy. What ensues is a delightful comedy of manners with plenty of civilized sparring between the two young lovers—and even more violent sparring on the blood-soaked battlefield. Can Elizabeth vanquish the spawn of Satan? And overcome the social prejudices of the class-conscious landed gentry? Complete with romance, heartbreak, swordfights, cannibalism, and thousands of rotting corpses,]]> 320 Seth Grahame-Smith 1594743347 Jennifer 0 currently-reading 3.32 2009 Pride and Prejudice and Zombies (Pride and Prejudice and Zombies, #1)
author: Seth Grahame-Smith
name: Jennifer
average rating: 3.32
book published: 2009
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2009/07/19
shelves: currently-reading
review:

]]> <![CDATA[Dream When You're Feeling Blue]]> 127387 As the novel opens, Kitty and Louise Heaney say good-bye to their boyfriends Julian and Michael, who are going to fight overseas. On the domestic front, meat is rationed, children participate in metal drives, and Tommy Dorsey and Glenn Miller play songs that offer hope and lift spirits. And now the Heaney sisters sit at their kitchen table every evening to write letters–Louise to her fiancé, Kitty to the man she wishes fervently would propose, and Tish to an ever-changing group of men she meets at USO dances. In the letters the sisters send and receive are intimate glimpses of life both on the battlefront and at home. For Kitty, a confident, headstrong young woman, the departure of her boyfriend and the lessons she learns about love, resilience, and war will bring a surprise and a secret, and will lead her to a radical action for those she loves. The lifelong consequences of the choices the Heaney sisters make are at the heart of this superb novel about the power of love and the enduring strength of family.]]> 288 Elizabeth Berg 1400065100 Jennifer 4 3.53 2007 Dream When You're Feeling Blue
author: Elizabeth Berg
name: Jennifer
average rating: 3.53
book published: 2007
rating: 4
read at:
date added: 2009/07/19
shelves:
review:

]]> <![CDATA[When You Are Engulfed in Flames]]> 1044355 When You Are Engulfed in Flames confirms once again that David Sedaris is a master of mystery and suspense.

Or how about...

when set on fire, most of us either fumble for our wallets or waste valuable time feeling sorry for ourselves. David Sedaris has studied this phenomenon, and his resulting insights may very well save your life. Author of the national bestsellers Should You Be Attacked By Snakes and If You Are Surrounded by Mean Ghosts, David Sedaris, with When You Are Engulfed in Flames, is clearly at the top of his game.

Oh, all right...

David Sedaris has written yet another book of essays (his sixth). Subjects include a parasitic worm that once lived in his mother-in-law's leg, an encounter with a dingo, and the recreational use of an external catheter. Also recounted is the buying of a human skeleton and the author's attempt to quit smoking In Tokyo.

Master of nothing, at the dead center of his game, Sedaris proves that when you play with matches, you sometimes light the whole pack on fire.
(front flap)]]> 323 David Sedaris 0316143472 Jennifer 4 4.08 2005 When You Are Engulfed in Flames
author: David Sedaris
name: Jennifer
average rating: 4.08
book published: 2005
rating: 4
read at:
date added: 2009/07/19
shelves:
review:

]]> <![CDATA[Shanghai Girls (Shanghai Girls, #1)]]> 5960325
In 1937, Shanghai is the Paris of Asia, a city of great wealth and glamour, the home of millionaires and beggars, gangsters and gamblers, patriots and revolutionaries, artists and warlords. Thanks to the financial security and material comforts provided by their father’s prosperous rickshaw business, twenty-one-year-old Pearl Chin and her younger sister, May, are having the time of their lives. Though both sisters wave off authority and tradition, they couldn’t be more different: Pearl is a Dragon sign, strong and stubborn, while May is a true Sheep, adorable and placid. Both are beautiful, modern, and carefree . . . until the day their father tells them that he has gambled away their wealth and that in order to repay his debts he must sell the girls as wives to suitors who have traveled from California to find Chinese brides.

As Japanese bombs fall on their beloved city, Pearl and May set out on the journey of a lifetime, one that will take them through the Chinese countryside, in and out of the clutch of brutal soldiers, and across the Pacific to the shores of America. In Los Angeles they begin a fresh chapter, trying to find love with the strangers they have married, brushing against the seduction of Hollywood, and striving to embrace American life even as they fight against discrimination, brave Communist witch hunts, and find themselves hemmed in by Chinatown’s old ways and rules.]]> 309 Lisa See 1400067111 Jennifer 5 3.91 2009 Shanghai Girls (Shanghai Girls, #1)
author: Lisa See
name: Jennifer
average rating: 3.91
book published: 2009
rating: 5
read at:
date added: 2009/07/19
shelves:
review:

]]> Bet Me 854757
But Fate has other plans, and it's not long before Min and Cal meet again. Soon, they're dealing with a jealous ex-boyfriend, Krispy Kreme donuts, a determined psychologist, chaos theory, a freakishly intelligent cat, Chicken Marsala, and more risky propositions than either of them ever dreamed of. Including the biggest gamble of all—true love.]]> 432 Jennifer Crusie 0312987854 Jennifer 4 3.93 2004 Bet Me
author: Jennifer Crusie
name: Jennifer
average rating: 3.93
book published: 2004
rating: 4
read at: 2009/07/19
date added: 2009/07/19
shelves:
review:

]]> Swim to Me 481455
Bringing together an eccentric assortment of outcasts, poseurs, and underdogs, this wise and poignant novel conjures up a time in America when anything was possible, especially in the Sunshine State. A story of family, chasing dreams and finding your way, Swim To Me will have you believing the impossible—even in mermaids from the Bronx.]]> 280 Betsy Carter 1565124928 Jennifer 0 to-read 3.40 2007 Swim to Me
author: Betsy Carter
name: Jennifer
average rating: 3.40
book published: 2007
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2009/06/07
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> Teaching Makes a Difference 1080373 0 Carol Cummings 0961457414 Jennifer 0 4.00 Teaching Makes a Difference
author: Carol Cummings
name: Jennifer
average rating: 4.00
book published:
rating: 0
read at: 2009/06/07
date added: 2009/06/07
shelves:
review:

]]> Lost on Planet China 1975116 The bestselling author of The Sex Lives of Cannibals returns with a sharply observed, hilarious account of his adventures in China—a complex, fascinating country with enough dangers and delicacies to keep him, and readers, endlessly entertained.

Maarten Troost has charmed legions of readers with his laugh-out-loud tales of wandering the remote islands of the South Pacific. When the travel bug hit again, he decided to go big-time, taking on the world’s most populous and intriguing nation. In Lost on Planet China, Troost escorts readers on a rollicking journey through the new beating heart of the modern world, from the megalopolises of Beijing and Shanghai to the Gobi Desert and the hinterlands of Tibet.

Lost on Planet China finds Troost dodging deadly drivers in Shanghai; eating Yak in Tibet; deciphering restaurant menus (offering local favorites such as Cattle Penis with Garlic); visiting with Chairman Mao (still dead, very orange); and hiking (with 80,000 other people) up Tai Shan, China’s most revered mountain. But in addition to his trademark gonzo adventures, the book also delivers a telling look at a vast and complex country on the brink of transformation that will soon shape the way we all work, live, and think. As Troost shows, while we may be familiar with Yao Ming or dim sum or the cheap, plastic products that line the shelves of every store, the real China remains a world—indeed, a planet--unto itself.

Maarten Troost brings China to life as you’ve never seen it before, and his insightful, rip-roaringly funny narrative proves that once again he is one of the most entertaining and insightful armchair travel companions around.]]> 382 J. Maarten Troost 076792200X Jennifer 0 to-read 3.77 2008 Lost on Planet China
author: J. Maarten Troost
name: Jennifer
average rating: 3.77
book published: 2008
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2009/06/07
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> My Sister’s Keeper 10917 New York Times best-selling author Jodi Picoult is widely acclaimed for her keen insights into the hearts and minds of real people. Now she tells the emotionally riveting story of a family torn apart by conflicting needs and a passionate love that triumphs over human weakness.

Anna is not sick, but she might as well be. By age 13 she has undergone countless surgeries, transfusions, and shots so that her older sister, Kate, can somehow fight the leukemia that has plagued her since childhood. The product of preimplantation genetic diagnosis, Anna was conceived as a bone marrow match for Kate—a life and a role that she has never challenged ... until now. Like most teenagers, Anna is beginning to question who she truly is. But unlike most teenagers, she has always been defined in terms of her sister—and so Anna makes a decision that for most would be unthinkable, a decision that will tear her family apart and have perhaps fatal consequences for the sister she loves.

My Sister's Keeper examines what it means to be a good parent, a good sister, a good person. Is it morally correct to do whatever it takes to save a child's life, even if that means infringing upon the rights of another? Is it worth trying to discover who you really are if that quest makes you like yourself less? Should you follow your own heart or let others lead you? Once again, in My Sister's Keeper, Jodi Picoult tackles a controversial real-life subject with grace, wisdom, and sensitivity.]]> 423 Jodi Picoult 0743454537 Jennifer 5 4.10 2004 My Sister’s Keeper
author: Jodi Picoult
name: Jennifer
average rating: 4.10
book published: 2004
rating: 5
read at: 2009/05/24
date added: 2009/06/07
shelves:
review:
A beautiful read with an unexpected ending that had me gasping out loud. How does Jodi Picoult do it?
]]> Girls in Trucks 2336101 But Sarah can't quite ignore the barbarism just beneath all that propriety, and as soon as she can she decamps South Carolina for a life in New York City. There, she and her fellow displaced Southern friends try to make sense of city sophistication, to understand how much of their training applies to real life, and how much to the strange and rarefied world they've left behind.
When life's complications become overwhelming, Sarah returns home to confront with matured eyes the motto "Once a Camellia, always a Camellia"- and to see how much fuller life can be, for good and for ill, among those who know you best.
Girls in Trucks introduces an irresistable, sweet, and wise voice that heralds the arrival of an exciting new talent.]]> 256 Katie Crouch 0316002119 Jennifer 1 2.84 2008 Girls in Trucks
author: Katie Crouch
name: Jennifer
average rating: 2.84
book published: 2008
rating: 1
read at: 2009/07/06
date added: 2009/06/07
shelves:
review:
I am bitter. The best thing about the book (besides finishing it so I could read something more worthy) was the picture on the cover. I thought this was a terrible book. There was no redeeming qualities about the main character (or any of the characters) so I never really cared what happened to them. Good thing too because it doesn't even leave you with a satisfying ending. A waste of money. A waste of time. A waste of paper. I. AM. BITTER.
]]> <![CDATA[Dead Until Dark (Sookie Stackhouse, #1)]]> 301082
Maybe having a vampire for a boyfriend isn't such a bright idea.]]> 292 Charlaine Harris 0441008534 Jennifer 4 3.98 2001 Dead Until Dark (Sookie Stackhouse, #1)
author: Charlaine Harris
name: Jennifer
average rating: 3.98
book published: 2001
rating: 4
read at: 2009/05/03
date added: 2009/05/03
shelves:
review:
I started off really getting a kick out of this book. I found the premise that vampires had "come out of the coffin" amusing and loved the quirky main character, Sookie. I lost momentum reading it a little over half-way through, though it's tricky trying to figure out if I lost interest in the book (aside from my Nancy Drews as a kid I've never been a huge mystery fan) or just wasn't making time to read. I decided to go with my first impression of the book and still gave it four stars, though I've yet to decide if I'll be picking up the next one in the series.
]]> <![CDATA[Ender’s Game (Ender's Saga, #1)]]> 375802
But Ender is not the only result of the experiment. The war with the Buggers has been raging for a hundred years, and the quest for the perfect general has been underway almost as long. Ender's two older siblings, Peter and Valentine, are every bit as unusual as he is, but in very different ways. While Peter was too uncontrollably violent, Valentine very nearly lacks the capability for violence altogether. Neither was found suitable for the military's purpose. But they are driven by their jealousy of Ender, and by their inbred drive for power. Peter seeks to control the political process, to become a ruler. Valentine's abilities turn more toward the subtle control of the beliefs of commoner and elite alike, through powerfully convincing essays. Hiding their youth and identities behind the anonymity of the computer networks, these two begin working together to shape the destiny of Earth-an Earth that has no future at all if their brother Ender fails.]]> 324 Orson Scott Card 0812550706 Jennifer 4 4.31 1985 Ender’s Game (Ender's Saga, #1)
author: Orson Scott Card
name: Jennifer
average rating: 4.31
book published: 1985
rating: 4
read at: 2009/04/13
date added: 2009/04/13
shelves:
review:

]]> <![CDATA[Breaking Dawn (The Twilight Saga, #4)]]> 1162543 "Don't be afraid," I murmured. "We belong together."
I was abruptly overwhelmed by the truth of my own words.
This moment was so perfect, so right, there was no way to doubt it.
His arms wrapped around me,
holding me against him....
It felt like every nerve ending in my body was a live wire.
"Forever," he agreed.

WHEN YOU LOVED THE ONE WHO WAS KILLING YOU, IT LEFT YOU NO OPTIONS. How could you run, how could you fight, when doing so would hurt that beloved one? If your life was all you had to give, how could you not give it? If it was someone you truly loved?

TO BE IRREVOCABLY IN LOVE WITH A VAMPIRE is both fantasy and nightmare woven into a dangerously heightened reality for Bella Swan. Pulled in one direction by her intense passion for Edward Cullen, and in another by her profound connection to werewolf Jacob Black, a tumultuous year of temptation, loss, and strife have led her to the ultimate turning point. Her imminent choice to either join the dark but seductive world of immortals or to pursue a fully human life has become the thread from which the fates of two tribes hangs.

NOW THAT BELLA HAS MADE HER DECISION, a startling chain of unprecedented events is about to unfold with potentially devastating, and unfathomable, consequences. Just when the frayed strands of Bella's life - first discovered in Twilight, then scattered and torn in New Moon and Eclipse - seem ready to heal and knit together, could they be destroyed... forever?

THE ASTONISHING, BREATHLESSLY anticipated conclusion to the Twilight Saga, Breaking Dawn illuminates the secrets and mysteries of this spellbinding romantic epic that has entranced millions.]]> 756 Stephenie Meyer 031606792X Jennifer 5
I felt that this book was a departure from the other novels. This book did not feel like a appropriate young adult book (maybe because I see kids much younger carrying the books around the elementary school I teach at) due to the high degree of sexuality in the book. Bella and Edward seemed obsessed with having sex and I was definitely left with the impression that vampire sex is better. Darn shame since I'll never have it =).

That aside, I loved this book for all the strings that were neatly tied up. Edward and Bella were together and happy. Jacob even ended up happily imprinted with an unexpected person. The problem with the Volturi had a conclusion. I like when books wrap up nicely- life so rarely does. It was also fascinating to read how Bella took to the changes of becoming a vampire.

I have to admit I felt a odd mixture of emotions when I finished this book. I felt relieved. And a little bereft. The characters took so much of my time for a week and then it was over. What does one read next? ]]> 3.74 2008 Breaking Dawn (The Twilight Saga, #4)
author: Stephenie Meyer
name: Jennifer
average rating: 3.74
book published: 2008
rating: 5
read at: 2009/02/28
date added: 2009/04/05
shelves:
review:
Coming to this book was a huge relief. I knew that I would not be carting around a think heavy book anymore searching for a moment to read and I wouldn't be ignoring my personal relationships anymore. From start to finish, I found this series completely engrossing (to my chagrin). The final book did not disappoint and gave needed closure to the series. Unlike the previous three books, this book had a finality to it and I did not find myself looking for the next chapter of the saga to pick up.

I felt that this book was a departure from the other novels. This book did not feel like a appropriate young adult book (maybe because I see kids much younger carrying the books around the elementary school I teach at) due to the high degree of sexuality in the book. Bella and Edward seemed obsessed with having sex and I was definitely left with the impression that vampire sex is better. Darn shame since I'll never have it =).

That aside, I loved this book for all the strings that were neatly tied up. Edward and Bella were together and happy. Jacob even ended up happily imprinted with an unexpected person. The problem with the Volturi had a conclusion. I like when books wrap up nicely- life so rarely does. It was also fascinating to read how Bella took to the changes of becoming a vampire.

I have to admit I felt a odd mixture of emotions when I finished this book. I felt relieved. And a little bereft. The characters took so much of my time for a week and then it was over. What does one read next?
]]> <![CDATA[Eclipse (The Twilight Saga, #3)]]> 428263 "BELLA?"
Edward's soft voice came from behind me. I turned to see him spring lightly up the porch steps, his hair windblown from running. He pulled me into his arms at once, just like he had in the parking lot, and kissed me again.
This kiss frightened me. There was too much tension, too strong an edge to the way his lips crushed mine - like he was afraid we had only so much time left to us.

As Seattle is ravaged by a string of mysterious killings and a malicious vampire continues her quest for revenge, Bella once again finds herself surrounded by danger. In the midst of it all, she is forced to choose between her love for Edward and her friendship with Jacob - knowing that her decision has the potential to ignite the ageless struggle between vampire and werewolf. With her graduation quickly approaching, Bella has one more decision to make: life or death. But which is which?

READERS CAPTIVATED BY Twilight AND New Moon will eagerly devour Eclipse, the much-anticipated third book in Stephenie Meyer's riveting vampire love saga.]]> 629 Stephenie Meyer 0316160202 Jennifer 5
I think Meyer's decision to have Bella and Edward marry was an interesting one and it was more interesting that Bella was the one that was hesitant (doesn't it seem like the guys are always the commitment phobes?!). This book was also great for finding out more details about characters and the mythology of the wolves. The ending was satisfying and left me ready to dive into the final book!]]> 3.73 2007 Eclipse (The Twilight Saga, #3)
author: Stephenie Meyer
name: Jennifer
average rating: 3.73
book published: 2007
rating: 5
read at: 2009/02/26
date added: 2009/04/05
shelves:
review:
Does anyone have a life when they read Meyer's books? You know you're addicted to a book when going to Disneyland on your birthday seems like a inconvenience to your pursuit of finding out whether a fictional character will become a vampire or not! This book was so engrossing for me because I just had to know whether Bella would pick Edward or Jacob in the end. Half my brain was shouting that Meyer had to have her choose Edward to give readers (ME!) a satisfying ending but the other half worried that Jacob would be the choice in the end so that she could stay human. I'm embarrassed to admit that this young adult novel had me in knots!

I think Meyer's decision to have Bella and Edward marry was an interesting one and it was more interesting that Bella was the one that was hesitant (doesn't it seem like the guys are always the commitment phobes?!). This book was also great for finding out more details about characters and the mythology of the wolves. The ending was satisfying and left me ready to dive into the final book!
]]> <![CDATA[New Moon (The Twilight Saga, #2)]]> 49041 There is an alternate cover edition for ISBN13 9780316160193 here.

I knew we were both in mortal danger. Still, in that instant, I felt well. Whole. I could feel my heart racing in my chest, the blood pulsing hot and fast through my veins again. My lungs filled deep with the sweet scent that came off his skin. It was like there had never been any hole in my chest. I was perfect - not healed, but as if there had never been a wound in the first place.

I FELT LIKE I WAS TRAPPED IN ONE OF THOSE TERRIFYING NIGHTMARES, the one where you have to run, run till your lungs burst, but you can't make your body move fast enough.... But this was no dream, and, unlike the nightmare, I wasn't running for my life; I was racing to save something infinitely more precious. My own life meant little to me today.

FOR BELLA SWAN THERE IS ONE THING more important than life itself: Edward Cullen. But being in love with a vampire is even more dangerous than Bella could ever have imagined. Edward has already rescued Bella from the clutches of one evil vampire, but now, as their daring relationship threatens all that is near and dear to them, they realize their troubles may be just beginning....

LEGIONS OF READERS ENTRANCED BY THE New York Times bestseller Twilight are hungry for the continuing story of star-crossed lovers Bell and Edward. In New Moon, Stephanie Meyer delivers another irresistible combination of romance and suspense with a supernatural spin. passionate, riveting, and full of surprising twists and turns, this vampire love saga is well on its way to literary immortality.]]> 563 Stephenie Meyer 0316160199 Jennifer 5
Bella seemed a little whiney with her obsession with growing older. But I guess when your boyfriend doesn't age, getting older seems worse than dying. . . or becoming a blood sucking vampire. Her deep depression at the beginning of the story seems very crucial in retrospect to her decision later to become a vampire. The months that go by without Edward cement for Bella and the reader that this is no passing infatuation, but something deeper. By the way, the author leaving pages blank with only the months written on them were a perfect representation of how depression is. Ingenious on the part of Meyer.

Though there was a definitive feeling throughout the first half that this a transitional book serving to move the story forward to the next segment of the saga, it was still a good absorbing read. ]]> 3.61 2006 New Moon (The Twilight Saga, #2)
author: Stephenie Meyer
name: Jennifer
average rating: 3.61
book published: 2006
rating: 5
read at: 2009/02/23
date added: 2009/04/05
shelves:
review:
Though not as good as Twilight, this sequel was still just as absorbing as the first book. I found myself racing through the story, waiting for Edward to reappear. The focus of this book was more on the character of Jacob, who is a minor character in the first novel. Though Jacob is an interesting character, I guess I like "boys who sparkle" better and things definitely improved when he resurfaced.

Bella seemed a little whiney with her obsession with growing older. But I guess when your boyfriend doesn't age, getting older seems worse than dying. . . or becoming a blood sucking vampire. Her deep depression at the beginning of the story seems very crucial in retrospect to her decision later to become a vampire. The months that go by without Edward cement for Bella and the reader that this is no passing infatuation, but something deeper. By the way, the author leaving pages blank with only the months written on them were a perfect representation of how depression is. Ingenious on the part of Meyer.

Though there was a definitive feeling throughout the first half that this a transitional book serving to move the story forward to the next segment of the saga, it was still a good absorbing read.
]]> <![CDATA[Twilight (The Twilight Saga, #1)]]> 41865
First, Edward was a vampire.

Second, there was a part of him - and I didn't know how dominant that part might be - that thirsted for my blood.

And third, I was unconditionally and irrevocably in love with him.

Deeply seductive and extraordinarily suspenseful, Twilight is a love story with bite.]]> 498 Stephenie Meyer 0316015849 Jennifer 5 3.66 2005 Twilight (The Twilight Saga, #1)
author: Stephenie Meyer
name: Jennifer
average rating: 3.66
book published: 2005
rating: 5
read at: 2009/02/22
date added: 2009/04/05
shelves:
review:
Upon hearing that I was planning to read this book, a wise coworker said to me, "save it for the weekend" (thanks, Karen!). She was absolutely right because the best word I can use to describe this book is ABSORBING. It is not by any means remarkably well written (sorry, Stephenie), but it's just plain good. I zipped through it in a day and a half despite being quite busy. The biggest compliment I can pay the book is to say that when I finished it this afternoon I immediately got up, went to the store, and bought the sequel because I wasn't ready to leave the story behind me. I wasn't even willing to wait a couple of days to borrow it from someone. Now if that isn't a good read I don't know what is.
]]> The Host (The Host, #1) 1656001
As Melanie fills Wanderer's thoughts with visions of Jared, a human who still lives in hiding, Wanderer begins to yearn for a man she's never met. Reluctant allies, Wanderer and Melanie set off to search for the man they both love.

Also see: Alternate Cover Editions for this ISBN [ACE]
ACE #1 - ACE #2 ]]> 619 Stephenie Meyer 0316068047 Jennifer 5 3.85 2008 The Host (The Host, #1)
author: Stephenie Meyer
name: Jennifer
average rating: 3.85
book published: 2008
rating: 5
read at: 2009/03/11
date added: 2009/03/13
shelves:
review:
The first hundred pages I thought, "Oh, this is interesting- but certainly not as absorbing as her other books." But after a hundred pages or so I found myself completely sucked into the story and anxious to see how it would all work out. The story progressed from the strangest love triangle ever (between two souls in one woman's body and a man) to an even stranger love square (is there even such a thing? I guess Stephanie made it so!) between two men each in love with one of the souls in the woman's body. It's not as confusing as it seems and is really quite engaging! My only beef with it was something I noticed throughout the Twilight books as well. The use of the word "hissing" is repetitive and tiresome. At some point I think I'll reread and tally them all. I mean really, how often do the people in our lives "hiss" words at us? Granted, I don't have friends that are vampires or aliens from other planets (though some act like it), but really what's with all the hissing?! Let's break out a thesaurus once in a while people! In general though, Stephanie Meyer did it again. Wonder when she'll send another book our way. . .
]]> <![CDATA[The Tail of Emily Windsnap (Emily Windsnap, #1)]]> 161656 209 Liz Kessler 0763628115 Jennifer 4 3.92 2003 The Tail of Emily Windsnap (Emily Windsnap, #1)
author: Liz Kessler
name: Jennifer
average rating: 3.92
book published: 2003
rating: 4
read at: 2009/03/13
date added: 2009/03/13
shelves:
review:
I only read this book to help out with making questions for Battle of the Books at school. I actually found it to be a cute creative read. What little wouldn't want to unexpectedly discover that she is half mermaid? I loved the title!
]]> <![CDATA[Love Walked In (Love Walked In, #1)]]> 115076
When Martin Grace enters the hip Philadelphia coffee shop Cornelia Brown manages, her life changes forever. But little does she know that her newfound love is only the harbinger of greater changes to come. Meanwhile, across town, Clare Hobbs—eleven years old and abandoned by her erratic mother—goes looking for her lost father. She crosses paths with Cornelia while meeting with him at the café, and the two women form an improbable friendship that carries them through the unpredictable currents of love and life.]]> 307 Marisa de los Santos 0452287898 Jennifer 4 3.71 2005 Love Walked In (Love Walked In, #1)
author: Marisa de los Santos
name: Jennifer
average rating: 3.71
book published: 2005
rating: 4
read at: 2009/02/14
date added: 2009/02/20
shelves:
review:
Love Walked In was a charming read. Usually in a book I am rooting for the love story between a man and a woman. To me a satisfying ending is one where everything is wrapped up nicely with a couple living happily every after. This book took that and sent me topsy turvy as I rooted, not for a man and a woman, but for a woman and the little girl who unexpectedly walked into her life. I loved the main characters- I identified with Clare's need to protect her mother and maintain the illusion that everything is all right in the face of upheaval. I loved Cornelia for her love of old movies and her open heart that embraced life as it came. I found myself just wanting all obstacles to fade away so that Clare could get a chance to have a normal stable childhood and Cornelia could have the child of her heart (and maybe a chance at happiness with someone unexpected). Though it didn't end quite the way I wanted, it was a satisfying ending with a realistic resolution. I look forward to reading the sequel so that I can live with these characters a little longer.
]]> <![CDATA[The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society]]> 2728527
“Treat yourself to this book, please - I can’t recommend it highly enough.� (Elizabeth Gilbert, author of Eat, Pray, Love)

“I wonder how the book got to Guernsey? Perhaps there is some sort of secret homing instinct in books that brings them to their perfect readers.�

January 1946: London is emerging from the shadow of the Second World War, and writer Juliet Ashton is looking for her next book subject. Who could imagine that she would find it in a letter from a man she’s never met, a native of the island of Guernsey, who has come across her name written inside a book by Charles Lamb....

As Juliet and her new correspondent exchange letters, Juliet is drawn into the world of this man and his friends - and what a wonderfully eccentric world it is. The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society - born as a spur-of-the-moment alibi when its members were discovered breaking curfew by the Germans occupying their island - boasts a charming, funny, deeply human cast of characters, from pig farmers to phrenologists, literature lovers all. Juliet begins a remarkable correspondence with the society’s members, learning about their island, their taste in books, and the impact the recent German occupation has had on their lives. Captivated by their stories, she sets sail for Guernsey, and what she finds will change her forever.

Written with warmth and humor as a series of letters, this novel is a celebration of the written word in all its guises and of finding connection in the most surprising ways.

Praise for The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Society

“A jewel... Poignant and keenly observed, Guernsey is a small masterpiece about love, war, and the immeasurable sustenance to be found in good books and good friends.� (People)

“A book-lover’s delight, an implicit and sometimes explicit paean to all things literary.� (Chicago Sun-Times)

“A sparkling epistolary novel radiating wit, lightly worn erudition and written with great assurance and aplomb.� (The Sunday Times [London])

“Cooked perfectly à point: subtle and elegant in flavour, yet emotionally satisfying to the finish.� (The Times [London])]]> 277 Mary Ann Shaffer 0385340990 Jennifer 4 4.13 2008 The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society
author: Mary Ann Shaffer
name: Jennifer
average rating: 4.13
book published: 2008
rating: 4
read at: 2009/02/20
date added: 2009/02/20
shelves:
review:
The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society tells a story that is as interesting as it's title. Told in letter format, this book is a fictional account of the very real Nazi occupation of an island off the coast of England. The story unfolds from a treasure trove of quirky characters as they remember the difficult war years. I quickly fell in love with the characters (as soon I got over some mild confusion of keeping them all straight!) and waited the whole book for the main character Juliet and Dawsey to fall in love with each other (as I knew they must!). Finally, I got a satisfying ending with Juliet taking fate into her own hands because, as she wrote, "this obsession with dignity can ruin your life if you let it." After reading this ending, maybe I should cast off "my obsession with dignity" and get my own life rolling!
]]> <![CDATA[Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day]]> 916856 234 Winifred Watson 190315510X Jennifer 4 "Are you a lady?" "Yes," said Miss Pettigrew. "I knew it," said Joe gloomily. "I suspected it. I felt you were different." "I'm sorry," said Miss Pettigrew humbly. "It does rather complicate matters, doesn't it?" said Joe sadly. "Does it?" said Miss Pettigrew. "Doesn't it?" said Joe hopefully. "No," said Miss Pettigrew. "I find it much pleasanter not to be a lady. I have been one all my life. And what have I to show for it? Nothing. I have ceased to be one." "Ah!" said Joe, brightening. "That simplifies matters." "What matters?" asked Miss Pettigrew. "A kiss matters," said Joe tentatively. "Oh!" said Miss Pettigrew. She became bold. "I'm not so sure." "Then...suppose we try it." They tried it. Inexpertly, it is true, on Miss Pettigrew's part, but Joe's tuition was sound, his technique polished. When Miss Pettigrew at last left Olympus and came back to earth, she was a changed woman. She never need hang her head again. She could now speak with authority. She was experienced no longer. She had been kissed soundly; with experience, with mastery, with ardour. Her face had such a radiance Joe felt humble. "I've never been kissed before," said Miss Pettigrew. "Then I'm a lucky man," said Joe. "I shall make up for lost time."

I love it! I know exactly how she feels!]]> 3.98 1938 Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day
author: Winifred Watson
name: Jennifer
average rating: 3.98
book published: 1938
rating: 4
read at: 2009/01/20
date added: 2009/01/20
shelves:
review:
A charming story! I loved Miss Pettigrew and her deep seeded sense of how a lady should behave. Down on her luck, Miss Pettigrew is on the verge of ruin with no job and no prospects. Through an error in a job lead, she has one day of adventure that changes not only her life but the lives of those she meets. Her journey as she learns to enjoy life and take it as it comes is wonderful. In the progress her wisdom and odd ways unintentionally influence the lives of the those around in a positive ways. This is my favorite part:
"Are you a lady?" "Yes," said Miss Pettigrew. "I knew it," said Joe gloomily. "I suspected it. I felt you were different." "I'm sorry," said Miss Pettigrew humbly. "It does rather complicate matters, doesn't it?" said Joe sadly. "Does it?" said Miss Pettigrew. "Doesn't it?" said Joe hopefully. "No," said Miss Pettigrew. "I find it much pleasanter not to be a lady. I have been one all my life. And what have I to show for it? Nothing. I have ceased to be one." "Ah!" said Joe, brightening. "That simplifies matters." "What matters?" asked Miss Pettigrew. "A kiss matters," said Joe tentatively. "Oh!" said Miss Pettigrew. She became bold. "I'm not so sure." "Then...suppose we try it." They tried it. Inexpertly, it is true, on Miss Pettigrew's part, but Joe's tuition was sound, his technique polished. When Miss Pettigrew at last left Olympus and came back to earth, she was a changed woman. She never need hang her head again. She could now speak with authority. She was experienced no longer. She had been kissed soundly; with experience, with mastery, with ardour. Her face had such a radiance Joe felt humble. "I've never been kissed before," said Miss Pettigrew. "Then I'm a lucky man," said Joe. "I shall make up for lost time."

I love it! I know exactly how she feels!
]]> Scaffolding Young Writers 734627 112 Linda J. Dorn 1571103422 Jennifer 5 3.85 2001 Scaffolding Young Writers
author: Linda J. Dorn
name: Jennifer
average rating: 3.85
book published: 2001
rating: 5
read at: 2009/01/14
date added: 2009/01/20
shelves:
review:
Teach the writer not the writing.
]]> <![CDATA[The Higher Power of Lucky (The Hard Pan Trilogy, #1)]]> 62151
Lucky, age ten, can't wait another day. The meanness gland in her heart and the crevices full of questions in her brain make running away from Hard Pan, California (population 43), the rock-bottom only choice she has.

It's all Brigitte's fault -- for wanting to go back to France. Guardians are supposed to stay put and look after girls in their care! Instead Lucky is sure that she'll be abandoned to some orphanage in Los Angeles where her beloved dog, HMS Beagle, won't be allowed. She'll have to lose her friends Miles, who lives on cookies, and Lincoln, future U.S. president (maybe) and member of the International Guild of Knot Tyers. Just as bad, she'll have to give up eavesdropping on twelve-step anonymous programs where the interesting talk is all about Higher Powers. Lucky needs her own -- and quick.

But she hadn't planned on a dust storm.

Or needing to lug the world's heaviest survival-kit backpack into the desert.]]> 144 Susan Patron 1416901949 Jennifer 4 3.58 2006 The Higher Power of Lucky (The Hard Pan Trilogy, #1)
author: Susan Patron
name: Jennifer
average rating: 3.58
book published: 2006
rating: 4
read at: 2009/01/16
date added: 2009/01/20
shelves:
review:
The Higher Power of Lucky is a poignant story whose main character worked her way into my heart with her heavy burdens that no young child should have to bear. Eavesdropping on 12 step meetings, Lucky becomes convinced that if she could only find a higher power of her own, then her life will be ok and the insecurities that plague it will fall away. The subject of finding a higher power repeatedly comes up throughout the story but is never resolved in an obvious way. Having a friend who is in a 12 step program, I know that a higher power can be anything, from a door knob to a more traditional view of God. As an adult, I can see that as Lucky learns to let go of her dead mother and her fear of being abandoned by those around her, that maybe her higher power is the people of the small town that she lives in that love her. However, for a child I think this may be hard to grasp and kids reading this story may leave this book wondering just what a higher power is and if Lucky ever found one. I would be curious to see if a young reader would enjoy and understand this book. As a grown up, I loved it.
]]> A Long Way Down 10073 New York Times-bestselling author Nick Hornby mines the hearts and psyches of four lost souls who connect just when they've reached the end of the line.

Meet Martin, JJ, Jess, and Maureen. Four people who come together on New Year's Eve: a former TV talk show host, a musician, a teenage girl, and a mother. Three are British, one is American. They encounter one another on the roof of Topper's House, a London destination famous as the last stop for those ready to end their lives.

In four distinct and riveting first-person voices, Nick Hornby tells a story of four individuals confronting the limits of choice, circumstance, and their own mortality. This is a tale of connections made and missed, punishing regrets, and the grace of second chances.

Intense, hilarious, provocative, and moving, A Long Way Down is a novel about suicide that is, surprisingly, full of life.

What's your jumping-off point?

Maureen
Why is it the biggest sin of all? All your life you're told that you'll be going to this marvelous place when you pass on. And the one thing you can do to get you there a bit quicker is something that stops you getting there at all. Oh, I can see that it's a kind of queue-jumping. But if someone jumps the queue at the post office, people tut. Or sometimes they say "Excuse me, I was here first." They don't say "You will be consumed by hellfire for all eternity." That would be a bit strong.

Martin
I'd spent the previous couple of months looking up suicides on the Internet, just out of curiosity. And nearly every single time, the coroner says the same thing: "He took his own life while the balance of his mind was disturbed." And then you read the story about the poor bastard: His wife was sleeping with his best friend, he'd lost his job, his daughter had been killed in a road accident some months before . . . Hello, Mr. Coroner? I'm sorry, but there's no disturbed mental balance here, my friend. I'd say he got it just right.

Jess
I was at a party downstairs. It was a shit party, full of all these ancient crusties sitting on the floor drinking cider and smoking huge spliffs and listening to weirdo space-out reggae. At midnight, one of them clapped sarcastically, and a couple of others laughed, and that was it-Happy New Year to you, too. You could have turned up to that party as the happiest person in London, and you'd still have wanted to jump off the roof by five past twelve. And I wasn't the happiest person in London anyway. Obviously.

JJ
New Year's Eve was a night for sentimental losers. It was my own stupid fault. Of course there'd be a low-rent crowd up there. I should have picked a classier date-like March 28, when Virginia Woolf took her walk into the river, or November 25 (Nick Drake). If anybody had been on the roof on either of those nights, the chances are they would have been like-minded souls, rather than hopeless f*ck-ups who had somehow persuaded themselves that the end of a calendar year is in any way significant.]]> 368 Nick Hornby 1594481938 Jennifer 4
The narration of the story goes back and forth between the foursome and keeps the story interesting with different perspectives. Hornby gave me a few things to reflect on like this quote, "I was beginning to realize an important truth about suicide: Failure is as hurtful as success, and is likely to provoke even more anger, because there's no grief with which to water it down." Having a mother who has battled depression and has been suicidal at times, I thought Hornby had it spot on.

I really appreciated that the author didn't have these characters choose life and then suddenly have everything wrong in their lives get fixed neatly by the end of the book. Instead, they were real people with real problems who helped each other get through one day, then a week, then a month, and so on. Everything didn't wrap up neatly with a bow at the end. Except that they were all alive and making peace with life as it was. ]]> 3.45 2005 A Long Way Down
author: Nick Hornby
name: Jennifer
average rating: 3.45
book published: 2005
rating: 4
read at: 2009/01/04
date added: 2009/01/08
shelves:
review:
I seriously only read this book because my best friend's dad handed me it while standing in a used bookstore and swore I had to read it. It turned out to be a good use of my $6. I was a bit dubious of the synopsis at first- four people all show up at the top of a building in London on New Year's Eve all determined to jump and end it all. A book about four suicidal people did not seem like a cheery or entertaining read. However, I was very pleasantly surprised to find myself enjoying the journey as they took the "Long Way Down". This book was much more about finding the strength and courage to continue with life instead of ending it all in what appears to be an easy out.

The narration of the story goes back and forth between the foursome and keeps the story interesting with different perspectives. Hornby gave me a few things to reflect on like this quote, "I was beginning to realize an important truth about suicide: Failure is as hurtful as success, and is likely to provoke even more anger, because there's no grief with which to water it down." Having a mother who has battled depression and has been suicidal at times, I thought Hornby had it spot on.

I really appreciated that the author didn't have these characters choose life and then suddenly have everything wrong in their lives get fixed neatly by the end of the book. Instead, they were real people with real problems who helped each other get through one day, then a week, then a month, and so on. Everything didn't wrap up neatly with a bow at the end. Except that they were all alive and making peace with life as it was.
]]> Holidays on Ice 4136 Us and Them); the difficulties of explaining the Easter Bunny to the French (Jesus Shaves); what to do when you've been locked out in a snowstorm (Let It Snow); the puzzling Christmas traditions of other nations (Six to Eight Black Men); what Halloween at the medical examiner's looks like (The Monster Mash); and a barnyard secret Santa scheme gone awry (Cow and Turkey).]]> 176 David Sedaris 0316191299 Jennifer 4 3.92 1997 Holidays on Ice
author: David Sedaris
name: Jennifer
average rating: 3.92
book published: 1997
rating: 4
read at: 2008/12/22
date added: 2008/12/23
shelves:
review:
I came upon this book in a roundabout way. I enjoy listening to a radio show called This American Life on the internet and this particular author/comedian is often featured on the show. His stories (mostly about his younger years) are always interesting and often get a laugh out of me. I liked this compilation of stories- some of them were downright quirky, like the one that parodied the traditional holiday letter. All in all, this was an off-beat quirky read that was worth my time.
]]> <![CDATA[The Lost Continent: Travels in Small-Town America]]> 26
And, as soon as Bill Bryson was old enough, he left. Des Moines couldn't hold him, but it did lure him back. After ten years in England, he returned to the land of his youth, and drove almost 14,000 miles in search of a mythical small town called Amalgam, the kind of trim and sunny place where the films of his youth were set.

Instead, his search led him to Anywhere, USA; a lookalike strip of gas stations, motels and hamburger outlets populated by lookalike people with a penchant for synthetic fibres. Travelling around thirty-eight of the lower states - united only in their mind-numbingly dreary uniformity - he discovered a continent that was doubly lost; lost to itself because blighted by greed, pollution, mobile homes and television; lost to him because he had become a stranger in his own land.

The Lost Continent is a classic of travel literature - hilariously, stomach-achingly funny, yet tinged with heartache - and the book that first staked Bill Bryson's claim as the most beloved writer of his generation.]]> 299 Bill Bryson 0060920084 Jennifer 0 to-read 3.82 1989 The Lost Continent: Travels in Small-Town America
author: Bill Bryson
name: Jennifer
average rating: 3.82
book published: 1989
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2008/12/22
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> <![CDATA[The Shadow of the Wind (The Cemetery of Forgotten Books, #1)]]> 1232 487 Carlos Ruiz ZafĂłn Jennifer 0 to-read 4.26 2001 The Shadow of the Wind (The Cemetery of Forgotten Books, #1)
author: Carlos Ruiz ZafĂłn
name: Jennifer
average rating: 4.26
book published: 2001
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2008/12/22
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> Me Talk Pretty One Day 4137 272 David Sedaris 0349113912 Jennifer 0 to-read 4.01 2000 Me Talk Pretty One Day
author: David Sedaris
name: Jennifer
average rating: 4.01
book published: 2000
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2008/12/22
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> Silver Bells 3130640
In the air, there's a feeling of Christmas... so settle into your coziest armchair and enjoy four captivating tales that will make your holidays merry and bright...

"Silver Bells" by Fern Michaels

For years, movie star Amy Lee wondered what it would be like to leave her shallow Hollywood life and go back home to Apple Valley, Pennsylvania. This Christmas, she plans to find out. And Hank Anders, her high-school boyfriend, is now ready to give her a welcome she'll never forget...

"Dear Santa..." by JoAnn Ross

Mystery author Holly Berry's SUV has broken down in the little hamlet of Santa's Village, Washington. Holly hates the holidays--that is until lodge owner Gabriel O'Halloran and his five-year-old daughter rekindle her belief in passion, magic, and Christmas wishes...

"Christmas Past" by Mary Burton

Photographer Nicole Piper just received a very unwelcome Christmas gift--a letter that holds clues to an elusive killer's identity. Uncovering the truth means enlisting homicide detective David Ayden's help, and embarking on a road trip that will take them both into the heart of danger and desire...

"A Mulberry Park Christmas" by Judy Duarte

Every Christmas, the folks living on Sugar Plum Lane pull out all the stops when decorating. After a bitter breakup, Alyssa Ridgeway's heart just isn't in it this year. But running into her first love, James "Mac" MacGregor, fills her with memories of the tender Christmas kiss they once shared...]]> 393 Fern Michaels 1420103636 Jennifer 3 3.78 2008 Silver Bells
author: Fern Michaels
name: Jennifer
average rating: 3.78
book published: 2008
rating: 3
read at: 2008/12/19
date added: 2008/12/22
shelves:
review:
A cute compilation of holiday tales. I enjoyed them all except for one that had a story line about a psycho husband who sends a hit man after his wife. Cause nothing says Merry Christmas like a psychotic husband and a hit man?! Sorry- didn't really get that one.
]]> Searching For Santa 4780758 320 Janet Dailey 1420103067 Jennifer 3 3.22 1984 Searching For Santa
author: Janet Dailey
name: Jennifer
average rating: 3.22
book published: 1984
rating: 3
read at: 2008/11/30
date added: 2008/11/30
shelves:
review:
Christmas makes me happy and nothing beats a good book AND Christmas as the setting. However, this story was only ok; mildly entertaining. Searching for Santa...well, maybe the author should have searched for a more fitting title. There was a rather pathetic attempt to make the title fit. Did the author just choose it to sell books? Perhaps. My other gripe is that the main characters (who were supposed to be falling in love) spent the majority of the book angry at each other. And why do men like woman who treat them badly? So ridiculous! However, I was just looking for a slice of Christmas in the book world and as imperfect as it was, I found it!
]]> Thanksgiving 6418 “Evanovich’s romantic humor is comfortably performed in Critt’s relaxed and inviting voice� (AudioFile).

When it comes to men, Megan Murphy has an aversion to “I do�. Then she meets irresistible pediatrician Pat Hunter. Add in a cozy colonial cottage, the world’s biggest turkey, two hopeful families, and a skirt-chomping rabbit, and you’ve got a feast of fabulous fun!]]> 228 Janet Evanovich 0060598808 Jennifer 4 3.57 1988 Thanksgiving
author: Janet Evanovich
name: Jennifer
average rating: 3.57
book published: 1988
rating: 4
read at: 2008/11/27
date added: 2008/11/27
shelves:
review:
A fun read perfect for the fall season. Evanovich's style is always entertaining and keeps me smiling from beginning to end.
]]> <![CDATA[Multiple Bles8ings: Surviving to Thriving with Twins and Sextuplets]]> 3129678 208 Jon Gosselin 0310289025 Jennifer 3 3.35 2008 Multiple Bles8ings: Surviving to Thriving with Twins and Sextuplets
author: Jon Gosselin
name: Jennifer
average rating: 3.35
book published: 2008
rating: 3
read at: 2008/11/25
date added: 2008/11/27
shelves:
review:
I'm not sure what I was expecting from this book. I love watching Jon & Kate Plus 8 on TV and it seemed only natural that I would read the book. The book did not really deliver any information that I didn't already know and it would be easy for me to pick on the writing style of the book. Instead, after completing the book I realized that this book was really so much more than that. It was a beautiful testimony of what God did in the lives of the Gosselins' as they went through the remarkable journey of having multiples. Kate's focus for the book was not so much about daily life with so many children (and in reality I can turn on the TV for that), but to tell of the many lessons learned along the way as she faced unexpected and sometimes overwhelming things.
]]> Letter to My Daughter 4016515 Ěý
Dedicated to the daughter she never had but sees all around her, Letter to My Daughter transcends genres and guidebook, memoir, poetry, and pure delight.

Here in short spellbinding essays are glimpses of the tumultuous life that led Angelou to an exalted place in American letters and taught her lessons in compassion and how she was brought up by her indomitable grandmother in segregated Arkansas, taken in at thirteen by her more worldly and less religious mother, and grew to be an awkward, six-foot-tall teenager whose first experience of loveless sex paradoxically left her with her greatest gift, a son.

Whether she is recalling such lost friends as Coretta Scott King and Ossie Davis, extolling honesty, decrying vulgarity, explaining why becoming a Christian is a “lifelong endeavor,� or simply singing the praises of a meal of red rice–Maya Angelou writes from the heart to millions of women she considers her extended family.

Like the rest of her remarkable work, Letter to My Daughter entertains and teaches; it is a book to cherish, savor, re-read, and share.

“I gave birth to one child, a son, but I have thousands of daughters. You are Black and White, Jewish and Muslim, Asian, Spanish speaking, Native Americans and Aleut. You are fat and thin and pretty and plain, gay and straight, educated and unlettered, and I am speaking to you all. Here is my offering to you.”—from Letter to My Daughter]]> 192 Maya Angelou 1400066123 Jennifer 5
"You may not control all the events that happen to you, but you can decide not to be reduced by them."
"The ship of my life may or may not be sailing on calm and amiable seas. The challenging days of my existence may or may not be bright and promising. Stormy or sunny days, glorious or lonely nights, I maintain an attitude of gratitude. If I insist on being pessimistic, there is always tomorrow. Today I am blessed."

Wow. I think I will be digesting the lessons of this book for sometime to come.]]> 4.09 1987 Letter to My Daughter
author: Maya Angelou
name: Jennifer
average rating: 4.09
book published: 1987
rating: 5
read at: 2008/11/21
date added: 2008/11/23
shelves:
review:
What a beautiful book. I appreciated the wisdom and love that seemed to emanate from this work. It seems amazing to me that so much wisdom can be wrapped up in one woman and I can only hope that after a lifetime of living I will have an ounce of what she possesses. What resonated the most with me was the idea of not having your circumstances or the events of your life reduce you to a miserable being. I've had a rough year and this book reinforced the lessons I've learned this year- that I can daily choose my attitude and my approach to what's happening. A dear friend said to me a while long ago something that stuck to me, "it's your resistance to what's happening that makes you unhappy". For me, this popped out of Angelou's book, but in different phrasing.

"You may not control all the events that happen to you, but you can decide not to be reduced by them."
"The ship of my life may or may not be sailing on calm and amiable seas. The challenging days of my existence may or may not be bright and promising. Stormy or sunny days, glorious or lonely nights, I maintain an attitude of gratitude. If I insist on being pessimistic, there is always tomorrow. Today I am blessed."

Wow. I think I will be digesting the lessons of this book for sometime to come.
]]> Sarah's Key 556602
Paris, May 2002: On Vel' d'Hiv's sixtieth anniversary, Julia Jarmond, an American journalist, is asked by her Paris-based American magazine to write an article about this black day in France's past. Julia has lived in Paris for nearly twenty-five years, married a Frenchman, and she is shocked both by her ignorance about the event and the silence that still surrounds it. In the course of her investigation, she stumbles onto a trail of long-hidden family secrets that connects her to Sarah. Julia finds herself compelled to retrace the girl's ordeal, from the terrible days spent shut in at the Vel' d'Hiv' to the camps and beyond. As she probes into Sarah's past, she begins to question her own place in France and to reevaluate her marriage and her life.

Writing about the fate of her country with a pitiless clarity, Tatiana de Rosnay offers us a brilliantly subtle, compelling portrait of France under occupation and reveals the taboos and denial surrounding this painful episode in French history.
(front flap)]]> 294 Tatiana de Rosnay 0312370830 Jennifer 0 to-read 4.18 2006 Sarah's Key
author: Tatiana de Rosnay
name: Jennifer
average rating: 4.18
book published: 2006
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2008/11/19
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> On the Road 70401 307 Jack Kerouac 0140042598 Jennifer 2
The most interesting line of all, "But then they danced down the streets like dingledodies, and I shambled after as I've been doing all my life after people who interest me, because the only people for me are the mad ones, the ones who are mad to live, mad to talk, mad to be saved, desirous of everything at the same time, the ones who never yawn or say a commonplace thing, but burn, burn, burn like fabulous yellow roman candles exploding like spiders across the stars and in the middle you see the blue centerlight pop and everybody goes 'Awww!'"

What the heck are dingledodies? And, is it just me, or did he violate some law with his excessive use of commas in this passage? But it is interesting. No one can argue that.]]> 3.63 1957 On the Road
author: Jack Kerouac
name: Jennifer
average rating: 3.63
book published: 1957
rating: 2
read at: 2008/11/19
date added: 2008/11/19
shelves:
review:
I have a lot of mixed feelings about this book. I've heard a lot of people argue that it's one of the "great" pieces of literature or that it's art. This book is definitely unique, I'll give them that. That being said...I wish that I had read this as a reckless teen who would've appreciated the freedom loving-darn it all characters and said, "yeah, man- let's hit the road!". Only I was never a reckless teen, and as an *ahem* responsible tax paying adult, I couldn't really like any of the characters. Their irresponsible choices and complete disregard for rules (okay, yes, I admit it, I like rules- they maintain order and make sense of things!) were a real turn off. So, did I like it? Probably not. Did I find it interesting? Oh, yeah.

The most interesting line of all, "But then they danced down the streets like dingledodies, and I shambled after as I've been doing all my life after people who interest me, because the only people for me are the mad ones, the ones who are mad to live, mad to talk, mad to be saved, desirous of everything at the same time, the ones who never yawn or say a commonplace thing, but burn, burn, burn like fabulous yellow roman candles exploding like spiders across the stars and in the middle you see the blue centerlight pop and everybody goes 'Awww!'"

What the heck are dingledodies? And, is it just me, or did he violate some law with his excessive use of commas in this passage? But it is interesting. No one can argue that.
]]> Elvis Takes a Back Seat 2188107 314 Leanna Ellis 0805446966 Jennifer 0 to-read 3.22 2008 Elvis Takes a Back Seat
author: Leanna Ellis
name: Jennifer
average rating: 3.22
book published: 2008
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2008/11/04
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> Love, Rosie 147865
She gets into Boston University, Alex gets into Harvard, and everything is falling into place, when on the eve of her departure, Rosie gets news that will change their lives forever: She's pregnant by a boy she'd gone out with while on the rebound from Alex.

Her dreams for college, Alex, and a glamorous career dashed, Rosie stays in Dublin to become a single mother, while Alex pursues a medical career and a new love in Boston. But destiny is a funny thing, and in this novel, structured as a series of clever e-mails, letters, notes, and a trail of missed opportunities, Alex and Rosie find out that fate isn't done with them yet.

Sometimes you have to look at life in a whole new way...

From the bestselling author of PS, I Love You comes a delightfully enchanting novel about what happens when two people who are meant to be together just can't seem to get it right.]]> 512 Cecelia Ahern 0786891084 Jennifer 4 3.95 2004 Love, Rosie
author: Cecelia Ahern
name: Jennifer
average rating: 3.95
book published: 2004
rating: 4
read at: 2008/11/01
date added: 2008/11/01
shelves:
review:
Written in the form of emails, letters, etc. this book had a different feel to it. The back and forth question of "will the two friends end up together?" kept me reading to a satisfying ending.
]]> Shantaram 33600
So begins this epic, mesmerizing first novel set in the underworld of contemporary Bombay. Shantaram is narrated by Lin, an escaped convict with a false passport who flees maximum security prison in Australia for the teeming streets of a city where he can disappear.

Accompanied by his guide and faithful friend, Prabaker, the two enter Bombay's hidden society of beggars and gangsters, prostitutes and holy men, soldiers and actors, and Indians and exiles from other countries, who seek in this remarkable place what they cannot find elsewhere.

As a hunted man without a home, family, or identity, Lin searches for love and meaning while running a clinic in one of the city's poorest slums, and serving his apprenticeship in the dark arts of the Bombay mafia. The search leads him to war, prison torture, murder, and a series of enigmatic and bloody betrayals. The keys to unlock the mysteries and intrigues that bind Lin are held by two people. The first is Khader Khan: mafia godfather, criminal-philosopher-saint, and mentor to Lin in the underworld of the Golden City. The second is Karla: elusive, dangerous, and beautiful, whose passions are driven by secrets that torment her and yet give her a terrible power.

Burning slums and five-star hotels, romantic love and prison agonies, criminal wars and Bollywood films, spiritual gurus and mujaheddin guerrillas—this huge novel has the world of human experience in its reach, and a passionate love for India at its heart. Based on the life of the author, it is by any measure the debut of an extraordinary voice in literature.]]> 936 Gregory David Roberts 192076920X Jennifer 2 4.27 2003 Shantaram
author: Gregory David Roberts
name: Jennifer
average rating: 4.27
book published: 2003
rating: 2
read at: 2008/10/14
date added: 2008/10/14
shelves:
review:
Okay- so 600 pages into this 900 page work and I quit! While some of his imagery makes it a beautiful book I just can't take anymore of the author's pretentiousness. I rarely quit on a book, but the reality is I just couldn't waste anymore precious reading time. The first hard to swallow thing is that the author wants us to believe that this is his real life story. So, I am supposed to care about a man who turns his back on his wife and kid in Australia, avoided serving his time by escaping and fleeing to India. Then I am supposed to think he's a great man because he choses to live in the slums of Mumbai and help people (though he is still involved in illegal activity on the side because of course he has to have a way to make money). And of course the people of India love him dearly. The most torturous portions of the book were the long philosophical talks he would have with people- usually while smoking pot. This morning I googled the book, curious about what was out there about it. I found the author's website where he has constructed his own philosophy- more pretentiousness! I really tried to give this book a chance because my aunt loved it so much and had lent it to me to read. But, I think I will be happiest handing it back and knowing it won't take up any prime space on my bookshelf.
]]> The Secret Life of Bees 37435 The Secret Life of Bees tells the story of Lily Owens, whose life has been shaped around the blurred memory of the afternoon her mother was killed. When Lily's fierce-hearted black "stand-in mother," Rosaleen, insults three of the deepest racists in town, Lily decides to spring them both free. They escape to Tiburon, South Carolina--a town that holds the secret to her mother's past. Taken in by an eccentric trio of black beekeeping sisters, Lily is introduced to their mesmerizing world of bees and honey, and the Black Madonna. This is a remarkable novel about divine female power, a story women will share and pass on to their daughters for years to come.]]> 302 Sue Monk Kidd 0142001740 Jennifer 5 4.10 2001 The Secret Life of Bees
author: Sue Monk Kidd
name: Jennifer
average rating: 4.10
book published: 2001
rating: 5
read at: 2008/10/11
date added: 2008/10/12
shelves:
review:
I loved this book. I very quickly felt myself absorbed into Lily's life in the tumultuous 1960s. I couldn't seem to read it fast enough and then didn't want to finish the last 50 pages because I knew that the book would be over. The Secret Life of Bees is a beautiful story of healing, finding your place in the world, and forgiveness of others and self.
]]> <![CDATA[There's a (Slight) Chance I Might Be Going to Hell: A Novel of Sewer Pipes, Pageant Queens, and Big Trouble]]> 339189
After a series of false starts nearly gets her exiled from town, Maye decides that her last chance to connect with her new neighbors is to enter the annual Sewer Pipe Queen Pageant, a kooky but dead-serious local tradition open to contestants of all ages and genders. Aided by a deranged former pageant queen with one eyebrow, Maye doesn’t just make a splash, she uncovers a sinister mystery that has haunted the town for decades.]]> 302 Laurie Notaro 0812975723 Jennifer 5 3.56 2007 There's a (Slight) Chance I Might Be Going to Hell: A Novel of Sewer Pipes, Pageant Queens, and Big Trouble
author: Laurie Notaro
name: Jennifer
average rating: 3.56
book published: 2007
rating: 5
read at: 2008/10/09
date added: 2008/10/09
shelves:
review:
Hilarious- a crazy read that was laugh out funny. The title of this book was so promising of something a little quirky and different and the book didn't disappoint. Filled with quirky characters the book kept me interested right to the very end. I can't wait to read the author's other book!
]]> That Summer Place 2836869 else can you account for what happens to the most mismatched, unlikely couples?

There's Beth, who's stuck sharing the lodge with a complete stranger --- and a difficult one at that. And Mitch, a workaholic on a deadline who has to depend on free-spirited Rosie, who functions on "island time." Not to mention Catherine, who's falling in love with Michael, the lodge's handyman --- for the second time!]]> 377 Jill Barnett 0778327132 Jennifer 1 3.71 1998 That Summer Place
author: Jill Barnett
name: Jennifer
average rating: 3.71
book published: 1998
rating: 1
read at: 2008/10/06
date added: 2008/10/06
shelves:
review:
Terrible, Terrible, Terrible. I picked this book because I love Debbie Macomber and Susan WIggs books. They are almost always a good read. I have to say almost because I just read this compilation. The first story was okay, the second a little less okay, and the third just downright bad. I kept thinking that it had the feel of a Harlequin romance novel instead of the quality of writing I usually expect from these authors. I look to see when they had been written and suddenly a light bulb went on over my head. 1998- Back when these authors were still young in their craft and probably not writing to the level which we expect today. This is all well and good, but nothing on my newly purchased book suggests that its a repeat except when I went looking for the publication date. I guess I will have to check books by both these authors to make sure they are not reprints before I plop down my hard earned money. Not that I'm bitter =). More sad about wasting my reading time which is so precious.
]]> <![CDATA[The Future Homemakers of America]]> 202393 Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood, this moving novel, filled with warmth, wit, and wisdom, is about a group of women who discover--over the course of 40 turbulent years--the nature of true friendship.]]> 380 Laurie Graham 0446679364 Jennifer 0 to-read 3.65 2001 The Future Homemakers of America
author: Laurie Graham
name: Jennifer
average rating: 3.65
book published: 2001
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2008/09/06
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> I Capture the Castle 31122 408 Dodie Smith 0312181108 Jennifer 0 to-read 3.99 1948 I Capture the Castle
author: Dodie Smith
name: Jennifer
average rating: 3.99
book published: 1948
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2008/09/06
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> Tender Is the Night 46164 Tender Is the Night is the tragic romance of the young actress Rosemary Hoyt and the stylish American couple Dick and Nicole Diver. A brilliant young psychiatrist at the time of his marriage, Dick is both husband and doctor to Nicole, whose wealth goads him into a lifestyle not his own, and whose growing strength highlights Dick's harrowing demise. A profound study of the romantic concept of character, Tender Is the Night is lyrical, expansive, and hauntingly evocative.]]> 430 F. Scott Fitzgerald Jennifer 0 to-read 3.81 1934 Tender Is the Night
author: F. Scott Fitzgerald
name: Jennifer
average rating: 3.81
book published: 1934
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2008/09/06
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> Austenland (Austenland, #1) 248483 197 Shannon Hale 1596912855 Jennifer 3 3.55 2007 Austenland (Austenland, #1)
author: Shannon Hale
name: Jennifer
average rating: 3.55
book published: 2007
rating: 3
read at: 2008/09/06
date added: 2008/09/06
shelves:
review:
I can always count on some author to appeal to my love of all things Jane Austen. This story was interesting- not your typical let me rewrite one of her stories for the modern era- but something entirely different. In this story, the main character Jane gets left a trip in her great aunt's will. It's not just any trip, but a trip to an estate where you get to dress up and play "regency world" for a few weeks. Where can I sign up for that adventure?! Of course this book is filled with many little things that remind any reader of Austen's novels of her books. And, of course, Jane finds her own Mr. Darcy in the end. A good read, but not the best "ode to Austen" I've read.
]]> The Undomestic Goddess 33722 Alternative cover edition of ISBN 9780385338691

Workaholic attorney Samantha Sweeting has just done the unthinkable. She’s made a mistake so huge, it’ll wreck any chance of a partnership.

Going into utter meltdown, she walks out of her London office, gets on a train, and ends up in the middle of nowhere. Asking for directions at a big, beautiful house, she’s mistaken for an interviewee and finds herself being offered a job as housekeeper. Her employers have no idea they’ve hired a lawyer–and Samantha has no idea how to work the oven. She can’t sew on a button, bake a potato, or get the #@%# ironing board to open. How she takes a deep breath and begins to cope–and finds love–is a story as delicious as the bread she learns to bake.

But will her old life ever catch up with her? And if it does…will she want it back?]]> 404 Sophie Kinsella Jennifer 4 3.87 2005 The Undomestic Goddess
author: Sophie Kinsella
name: Jennifer
average rating: 3.87
book published: 2005
rating: 4
read at: 2008/09/01
date added: 2008/09/02
shelves:
review:
Entertaining...I love the idea of walking away from your life when it isn't working and stumbling into something new. Mmm. . . maybe I should try housekeeping as a new career (but only if there is a handsome gardener!).
]]> <![CDATA[Plum Lucky (Stephanie Plum, #13.5)]]> 1434105
Stephanie Plum is back between-the-numbers and she’s looking to get lucky in an Atlantic City hotel room, in a Winnebago, and with a brown-eyed stud who has stolen her heart.

Stephanie Plum has a way of attracting danger, lunatics, oddballs, bad luck . . . and mystery men. And no one is more mysterious than the unmentionable Diesel. He’s back and hot on the trail of a little man in green pants who’s lost a giant bag of money. Problem is, the money isn’t exactly lost. Stephanie’s Grandma Mazur has found it, and like any good Jersey senior citizen, she’s hightailed it in a Winnebago to Atlantic City and hit the slots. With Lula and Connie in tow, Stephanie attempts to bring Grandma home, but the luck of the Irish is rubbing off on everyone: Lula’s found a job modeling plus-size lingerie. Connie’s found a guy. Diesel’s found Stephanie. And Stephanie has found herself in over her head with a caper involving thrice-stolen money, a racehorse, a car chase, and a bad case of hives.

Plum Lucky is an all-you-can-eat buffet of thrills, chills, shrimp cocktail, plus-size underwear, and scorching hot men. It’s a between-the-numbers treat no Evanovich fan will want to miss!Ěý

]]> 166 Janet Evanovich 0312377630 Jennifer 3 3.76 2008 Plum Lucky (Stephanie Plum, #13.5)
author: Janet Evanovich
name: Jennifer
average rating: 3.76
book published: 2008
rating: 3
read at: 2008/08/29
date added: 2008/08/29
shelves:
review:
The Stephanie Plum novels are always highly entertaining, but this wasn't one of the best. Still gave me a good laugh though- an easy read.
]]> The Pact 10916
So when midnight calls from the hospital come in, no one is ready for the appalling truth: Emily is dead at seventeen from a gunshot wound to the head. There's a single unspent bullet in the gun that Chris took from his father's cabinet—a bullet that Chris tells police he intended for himself. But a local detective has doubts about the suicide pact that Chris has described.]]> 512 Jodi Picoult 0061150142 Jennifer 5 4.03 1998 The Pact
author: Jodi Picoult
name: Jennifer
average rating: 4.03
book published: 1998
rating: 5
read at: 2008/08/26
date added: 2008/08/26
shelves:
review:
Wow...a book that kept me guessing to the end. I sat in bed with my coffee this morning and refused to leave until I finished the book. I had to know how it all played out. An enthralling story and very emotional for me at times. I can't wait to read my next Jodi Picoult book.
]]> <![CDATA[Such a Pretty Fat: One Narcissist's Quest to Discover If Her Life Makes Her Ass Look Big, or Why Pie Is Not the Answer]]> 2202049 400 Jen Lancaster 0451223896 Jennifer 4 4.04 2008 Such a Pretty Fat: One Narcissist's Quest to Discover If Her Life Makes Her Ass Look Big, or Why Pie Is Not the Answer
author: Jen Lancaster
name: Jennifer
average rating: 4.04
book published: 2008
rating: 4
read at: 2008/08/21
date added: 2008/08/21
shelves:
review:
This book made me laugh out loud! I've battled my weight and dieting my whole life and it was fun to read someone else's struggles with the same thing from a humorist standpoint. I identified with her struggle between wanting to accept herself the way she is and wanting to be healthier.
]]> The Grapes of Wrath 4395 The Grapes of Wrath is a landmark of American literature. A portrait of the conflict between the powerful and the powerless, of one man’s fierce reaction to injustice, and of one woman’s stoical strength, the novel captures the horrors of the Great Depression and probes into the very nature of equality and justice in America. Although it follows the movement of thousands of men and women and the transformation of an entire nation, The Grapes of Wrath is also the story of one Oklahoma family, the Joads, who are driven off their homestead and forced to travel west to the promised land of California. Out of their trials and their repeated collisions against the hard realities of an America divided into Haves and Have-Nots evolves a drama that is intensely human yet majestic in its scale and moral vision, elemental yet plainspoken, tragic but ultimately stirring in its human dignity.

First published in 1939, The Grapes of Wrath summed up its era in the way that Uncle Tom's Cabin summed up the years of slavery before the Civil War. Sensitive to fascist and communist criticism, Steinbeck insisted that "The Battle Hymn of the Republic" be printed in its entirety in the first edition of the book—which takes its title from the first verse: "He is trampling out the vintage where the grapes of wrath are stored." At once a naturalistic epic, captivity narrative, road novel, and transcendental gospel, Steinbeck’s fictional chronicle of the Dust Bowl migration of the 1930s is perhaps the most American of American Classics.]]> 455 John Steinbeck Jennifer 5 3.88 1939 The Grapes of Wrath
author: John Steinbeck
name: Jennifer
average rating: 3.88
book published: 1939
rating: 5
read at: 2008/07/20
date added: 2008/07/21
shelves:
review:
I loved this book. Usually my tastes run to happy books...life can be crummy at times and it makes me tend to crave happy endings. This book was anything but a happy book, but it was beautiful. There was something so real about it that I couldn't help but become completely involved. The characters were amazingly depicted. Imperfect, yet more realistic than any characters in other books I've read. It made me really think about the gift of human life and right for people to be treated with dignity. I thought a lot about my grandparents who struggled through the depression. My dad's parents both came out to California during the depression. I wonder if they found it to be the paradise that they thought it would be. They never talked about it. It wasn't until after my grandfather died that I learned he was a part of the Civilian Conservation Corp that was formed to create work for the countless unemployed. I wonder how he struggled before that came along and how many hungry nights he had. This book gave me glimpses into their lives that I never had while they were living.
]]> David Copperfield 58696 882 Charles Dickens Jennifer 3 4.02 1850 David Copperfield
author: Charles Dickens
name: Jennifer
average rating: 4.02
book published: 1850
rating: 3
read at: 2008/07/13
date added: 2008/07/14
shelves:
review:
I have read several Charles Dickens books and what always strikes me is how happy I am NOT to be a Dickens character. His heroes always tend to be good people who suffering horribly at the hands of evil people. Still, I enjoy them for the interesting characters and because I like seeing how the characters overcome (or try to) the terrible obstacles to their happiness. This one piqued my interest because it is supposed to be the most autobiographical of his novels. If this book is truly indicative of his life, I suppose one could see where he would formulate other characters who have to overcome staggering odds. All in all, David Copperfield was not my favorite Dickens by any means, but it was an entertaining read.
]]> <![CDATA[The Code of the Woosters (Jeeves, #7)]]> 105986 286 P.G. Wodehouse 1841591009 Jennifer 0 to-read 4.37 1938 The Code of the Woosters (Jeeves, #7)
author: P.G. Wodehouse
name: Jennifer
average rating: 4.37
book published: 1938
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2008/06/30
shelves: to-read
review:

]]>