*****SPECIAL GUEST REVIEWERS******

We have the priveledge of having 2 guest reviewers. They graciuosly accepted the invitation to review a book of their choosing. So, without further interuption here are the reviews from Emma and Hannah Graff......

Diary of a Wimpy Kid
by Emma Graff

When I first got the book i thought it was going to be hilarious and it was. One of my favorite parts is when he got a present from his uncle Charlie was an 8x10 picture of Uncle Charlie. Another part is when Rowley broke his hand and two girls were feeding him. Another one is when he made a comic it said, " Doctor could I have a new Butt, my old one has a crack in it." I told you everyone has a crack in the butt" "Oh yeah I forgot"

Diary of  A Wimpy Kid, The Last Straw by Hannah Graff

When I first got it I thought it would be really funny and it was. My favorite parts are when he got Wonder Woman underoos. Also when he bought stuff on the back of a comic book like; x-ray goggles, personal hovercraft, print your own money with Cash Machine, and throw your voice. Last but not least my most favorite part is when Greg went to play bingo with his grandma because he didn't want his grandma and dad to fight.

Almost Moon by Alice Sebold

Book Synopsis:
For years Helen Knightly has given her life to others: to her haunted mother, to her enigmatic father, to her husband and now grown children. When she finally crosses a terrible boundary, her life comes rushing in at her in a way she never could have imagined.

Unfolding over the next twenty-four hours, this searing, fast-paced novel explores the complex ties between mothers and daughters, wives and lovers; the meaning of devotion; and the line between love and hate. It is a challenging, moving, gripping story, written with the fluidity and strength of voice that only Alice Sebold can bring to the page.


My Review

If you hadn't noticed, this is the same author who wrote The Lovely Bones. I liked that book. I enjoyed it and thought it brought a new perspective to such a horrible thing. But this book was different. I started it and really tried to plug away at it. It was taking me a long time to read. I was losing my interest in reading and I didn't want to. So, I eventually put it down. I admit it, I did not finish this book. I really wanted to but just could not. The BOOK WON!!! I tried and tried to finish but I couldn't. It could be the reason I let my husband pick out my next few books. (which were hilarious!!) It was just dark and very slow. Perhaps I should have read the synopsis better and noticed that the whole book only takes place in 24 hours. Oh well, too late now. I may try later and finish it but can't guarantee it.

Let me know if you read it and if you have insights as to why I could not finish it.

Till next read........

Look Again by Lisa Scottoline

Book Synopsis:
When reporter Ellen Gleeson gets a "Have You Seen This Child?" flyer in the mail, she almost throws it away. But something about it makes her look again, and her heart stops—the child in the photo is identical to her adopted son, Will. Her every instinct tells her to deny the similarity between the boys, because she knows her adoption was lawful. But she’s a journalist and won’t be able to stop thinking about the photo until she figures out the truth. And she can’t shake the question: if Will rightfully belongs to someone else, should she keep him or give him up? She investigates, uncovering clues no one was meant to discover, and when she digs too deep, she risks losing her own life—and that of the son she loves. Lisa Scottoline breaks new ground in Look Again, a thriller that’s both heart-stopping and heart-breaking, and sure to have new fans and book clubs buzzing.

My Review

This is a great book. It really makes you think about what you would do in the situation the main character gets into. It really got to me and I don't even have kids yet. During some of the book, I was at the edge of my seat ready to jump to defend and encourage the characters in the book. That to me is a great book. I was more engrossed in the book, then any movie I have seen recently. And I think that says a lot. It is very well written and I enjoyed it so much I have sent it to someone else to read.  I have also grabbed a couple of her other books to read.

 I encourage you to read it and let me know how you think you would respond if you were the main character.

Wishin' and Hopin' by Wally Lamb

Book Synopsis:

It's 1964 and ten-year-old Felix is sure of a few things: the birds and the bees are puzzling, television is magical, and this is one Christmas he'll never forget.

From the Funicello family's bus-station lunch counter to the elementary school playground (with an uproarious stop at the Pillsbury Bake-Off), Wishin' and Hopin' is a vivid slice of 1960s life, a wise and witty holiday tale that celebrates where we've been-and how far we've come.

My Review

This book was just funny for me. As I was reading it, I could just imagine a 10 year old little boy in catholic school just trying to be cool like his friends. It is a short book and pretty quick read. There is a lot of language, mostly the F-word, and some innuendo's, although they are not explained in detail, it is very easy to figure out what they are talking about. Although I liked the book, I wouldn't recommend it to my mom because I know she would put it down quickly because of the language, which I totally understand. If that would not bother you, go for it. It is cute and fun and won't take that long to read.

Enjoy.......

For My Daughters by Barbara Delinsky

Book Synopsis: Wealthy, widowed socialite Ginny St. Clair has always been cool and distant to her three daughters. The summer of her 70th birthday, she abruptly invites all of her offspring to help her settle into a flower-strewn mansion on the rocky Maine coast. Each daughter arrives at the estate, aghast to find the others: Annette, the suffocatingly good mother of five; hard-edged Caroline, a hotshot Chicago lawyer; and Leah, the twice-divorced youngest sibling. Their mother, by design, is not there.

Though the three grimly assume battle positions, enforced proximity fosters grudging respect and the opening of minds. For Leah, there is also a scalding affair with groundskeeper Jesse Cray, the wild echo of a romance that had flared half a century earlier between a gardener and the mistress of the house.

My Review

I liked this book. The main characters are 3 sisters who do not get along. I think this story is really about them learning to accept each other and themselves as adults and not as three little girls under the roof of their parents. During this process, they find out the circumstances that made their mother the way she is.

There is a love affair that is detailed in the book, but I can't remember any language really. If there was, I glanced right over it and didn't catch it.

It was a nice read and I enjoyed it... How about you?

On a separate note: Sorry for the delay and long time without posting. Everything that I have not been doing because I was reading caught up with me and then company came. Sorry and hope not to wait too long before posting next time.

The Nazi Offiicer's Wife by Edith Beer

Book Synopsis:

Edith Hahn was an outspoken young woman studying law in Vienna when the Gestapo forced Edith and her mother into a ghetto, issuing them papers branded with a "J." Soon, Edith was taken away to a labor camp, and though she convinced Nazi officials to spare her mother, when she returned home, her mother had been deported. Knowing she would become a hunted woman, Edith tore the yellow star from her clothing and went underground, scavenging for food and searching each night for a safe place to sleep. Her boyfriend, Pepi, proved too terrified to help her, but a Christian friend was not: With the woman's identity papers in hand, Edith fled to Munich. There she met Werner Vetter, a Nazi party member who fell in love with her. And despite her protests and even her eventual confession that she was Jewish, he married her and kept her identity secret.

My Review

As I was reading this book, I was able to imagine her sitting at the kitchen table telling me her story. Due to the subject matter and time in history, some of the story contains situations that some could not imagine. I am always amazed at both the desperation and humanity that people found during their times in either work or concentration camps. It is very hard to look back at that time in history and wonder why more was not done to help those being persecuted but I have to remember that I am looking back in time with the knowledge of today. It also reminds me how we can easily slip back into the mindset that let the persecution happen. (Off my soapbox now). There is some language but honestly, I think 99% of the books I have read about the concentration camps has had some. I like reading about survivors of the Holocaust and learning their stories. This book was very interesting and I very much enjoyed reading it.

Hope you do too.....

Remarkable Soul of a Woman by Dieter F.Uchtdorf

Book Synopsis:

If you are feeling overwhelmed with change, challenges, or checklists, you may wonder how you can partake now of God's happiness and find your pathway to peace, hope, and joy.

With loving insight, President Dieter F. Uchtdorf addresses two attributes that contribute to our Heavenly Father's perfect happiness — the power of creation and service with compassion. As a treasured daughter of our Heavenly Father, you can develop those remarkable abilities as well as find happiness in the journey.

By listening to the Spirit, you can come to realize that creating is not just done with paint, pen, or pottery, and compassionate service is more than a casserole or a card. As you bring something into existence that has never been before and as you serve others — even in small ways — you cannot help but participate in the wonder that is God's joy.
In The Remarkable Soul of a Woman, President Uchtdorf's timely thoughts on creating and being compassionate will buoy you up, give you strength, and help you realize what a great power for good you truly are.

My Review:

Honestly, how can I review a book published by any member of the Church Presidency. This book is a fast read ( I think it took me about 30 min to read) and a great pick me up. I would recommend this to anyone who is feeling a little down and needs some uplifting. The pictures are heart warming and fit in wonderfully.  Love It and would recommend this to anyone......

The Lovely Bones by Alice Sebold

Book synopsis:

When we first meet 14-year-old Susie Salmon, she is already in heaven. This was before milk carton photos and public service announcements, she tells us; back in 1973, when Susie mysteriously disappeared, people still believed these things didn't happen. In the sweet, untroubled voice of a precocious teenage girl, Susie relates the awful events of her death and her own adjustment to the strange new place she finds herself. It looks a lot like her school playground, with the good kind of swing sets. With love, longing, and a growing understanding, Susie watches her family as they cope with their grief, her father embarks on a search for the killer, her sister undertakes a feat of amazing daring, her little brother builds a fort in her honor and begin the difficult process of healing. In the hands of a brilliant novelist, this story of seemingly unbearable tragedy is transformed into a suspenseful and touching story about family, memory, love, heaven, and living.

My Review:

For those who don't know, the book is about a girl who is murdered. If you can get past the first chapter, where the horriffic actions that cause her death happen, the book is very good. It is very gritty sometimes and you need to be prepared for the turmoil that the famly undergoes. It does contain some subject matter that some would find uncomfortable even after the first chapter. I can't remember if there was any language but there was an extra-marital affair. I still enjoyed it very much. As I was reading the book, I wondered how anyone could write about such a tragedy happening to a child but after I read a little about the author, I suspect that this book and her others is her way of dealing with the events in her life. I would recommend it. I have not seen the movie so I can not say how similiar or dissimiliar the movie was.  Actually, after reading the book, I do not know if I want to watch the movie. The movie usually misses the message of the book, leaves some of the details out and twists the plot. We will see.

Did you read it and what did you think?

Band of Sisters by Annette Lyon

Book Description:

When the war on terror calls their husbands to duty, five LDS women are left behind to fight battles of their own: Kim, the newlywed and pregnant, frightened of what the future might bring. Brenda, struggling to manage three unruly boys and a crippling bout of depression. Jessie, secretly grappling with mixed feelings about her crumbling marriage. Marianne, wrestling with a rebellious teenage daughter. And Nora, the seasoned Army wife with perfect hair, an immaculate home-and an ill-tempered mother dying of cancer.

Knowing the separation of deployment is extremely difficult, Nora gathers the wives every week to share lunches and burdens. In good company, they worry over safety in the field and stability at home and offer one another counsel and comfort.

But as their personal build, each woman faces the risks of forming deep bonds of trust. And when tragedy strikes, they must confront the painful realities of war that pull families apart and bring friends together as sisters.

http://www.anenettelyon.com/

My opinion:

OK, I loved this book. The further into the book I got, the more I hated to put it down. In fact, when I got to the last couple of chapters, I didn't put it down. I stayed up too late with a book light in bed finishing the book.  (Then of course, I was cranky in the morning but happy I finished the book.) As a reader, I was able to find a little bit of myself in each of the women. The fact that they weren't perfect, their families weren't perfect and they struggled with their own insecurities made every one of them believable.

If you have read it, let me know what you think. What did you like or dislike about it?

Till next book review......

On My Selections.....

I had just finished reading the Band of Sisters and figured I would go to the bookstore and get some books to hold me over till I could order more from Deseret Books. I purposely wanted to get books from authors I had not read before. I went around the tables, read the synopsis and if I liked it, I got it. So, 7 books later, I had a handful of different authors and no rush to order my books. That was it. There was no special formula for the selections and am excited to get out of my "author comfort zone". So, come along for the ride and maybe you will find some authors that are out of your "author comfort zone".

Reading....

Recently, I have jumped into the deep end of reading. Tired of all the reruns on TV, I have decided to let my mind to the walking. While Tom and I were on vacation at Christmas and having a very relaxed time, I decided to get a few books to mix things up a little. Then I started reading them and found another hobby.( I know, another one to go along with my many jobs, a quadrillion hobbies, and a church calling to boot.) I have been reading before I go to bed, relaxing on Sunday after church, and at lunch. Unfortunately, laundry, grocery shopping and dishes have gone by the wayside but I have been enjoying the books!

In order to share by reading adventures with you, I will be posting and reviewing the books and would love to get your feelings on the reads. As we go along, I may open up a selection to you and let you pick my next read. I have some books waiting for my review, some books at home waiting to be cracked (my waiting list) and then those books I would like to read (my wish list).

Come along with me as I let my mind go wild in books. If you have read the books, let me know what you think (even if you disagree with me).

Got to go words are waiting......

New Site

Hey Folks!!

I just created this blog for my fun and exciting discoveries that I want to share with everyone. There are somethings I get so excited about and want to tell the world. So, here is my chance. Please be patient as I get this up and running.

I hope you enjoy this blog as much as I enjoy telling everyone about my finds.

Take care and I'll be back soon to update!

Dim