REVIEW - THE MAN WHO LOVED BOOKS TOO MUCH

This book is for 2 of my reading challenges.
Countdown to 2010(2009)
Fall Into Reading Challenge 2009



"The Man Who Loved Books Too Much" by Allison Hoover Bartlett
(from back cover)

John Charles Gilkey is an obsessed, unrepentant book thief who has stolen hundreds of thousands of dollars' worth of rare books from book fairs, stores, and libraries around the country. Ken Sanders is the self-appointed "bibliodick" (book dealer with a penchant for detective work) driven to catch him. Journalist Allison Hoover Bartlett befriended both eccentric characters and found herself caught in the middle of efforts to recover hidden treasure. With a mixture of suspense, insight, and humor, she not only reveals exactly how Gilkey pulled off his dirtiest crimes and how Sanders ultimately caught him, but also explores the romance of books, the lure to collect them, and the temptation to steal them. Immersing the reader in a rich, wide world of literary obsession, Bartlett looks at the history of book passion, collection, and theft through the ages, to examine the craving that makes some people willing to stop at nothing to possess the books they love.

MY THOUGHTS: This is a very informative book about book collecting. John Gilkey is obsessed with rare books. He thinks owning them will make him important and well known. He also doesn't pay for them. He steals them! Ken Sanders is a book collector of rare and hard to find books. He buys his books. Sanders also is obsessed, with catching John Gilkey.
What starts Ms. Bartlett off to finding all this information about books? A nearly four-hundred-year-old book called Kreuterbuch ("plant book") of botanical medicine by Hieronymus Bock, a botanist and physician. Just where did she find this book? A friend came across the book while sorting through some things after a friends death. There was a not attached that explained someone had taken it from a college library and then moved, forgetting to return the book. Mx. Bartlett called the library and they said they no record of the book. This led her to something more intriguing, stories about theft of books. Which led her to Ken Sanders. She even has interviews with John Gilkey in this book. Plus lots of info on other rare and stolen books from as far back as the 14th century. If you want info collecting books and what to look for, that's in this book too. You can get this book at Amazon. com

MY RATING: 5

WONDROUS WORDS WEDNESDAY

Over at Bermudaonion's it's Wondrous Words Wednesday. Here's how it works.

Wondrous Words Wednesday is a weekly meme where we share new (to us) words that we’ve encountered in our reading. Feel free to join in the fun.

All of the words today are from Only the Cat Knows - Marian Babson

1. plethora - The more discreet broadsheets usually opted for 'Amazon Army' to describe the plethora of nubile females surrounding the billionaire.

Plethora means extreme excess
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2. ostentatiously - Smiling weakly, I swayed against Dr. Anderson, who tensed slightly before ostentatiously offering his arm.

ostentatiously means: intended to attract notice and impress others
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3. ectoplasm - No wisps of ectoplasm were visible in the mim light filtering into the room from the bedroom.

ectoplasm means: (spiritualism) a substance supposed to emanate from the body of the medium during a trance
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4. tournedos - Swomewhere between the wild mushrooms soup and the tournedos Rossini, someone glided into the place beside me.

tournedos means: thick steak cut from the beef tenderloin
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Did you find any wondrous words while you were reading?

REVIEW - FAEFEVER - KAREN MARIE MONING

This is for 3 of my reading challenges.
Genre Challenge - Thriller Fiction
Countdown to 2010 (2008)
Fall Into Reading 2009

"Faefever" by Karen Marie Moning
(from back cover)
Having traveled to Dublin to find her sister's killer, MacKayla is now a major player in a deadly game. And she knows how to find the one thing Fae and human alike are willing to kill for--the Sinsar Dubh, and ancient book of magic so dark it corrupts anyone who touches it. But what Mac soon discovers is worse thatn she had imagined....

MY THOUGHTS: When I picked this book up I didn't realize it was the 3rd book in a series, but it is a great book on it's own. If you like magic, demons, and visiting Ireland, you will love this book. Mac is a sidhe-seer and she has gone to Ireland to get revenge for her sister's murder. She is protected by a mysterious man called Barrens, which she can't find anything out about him, and he seems to be really old but is young in appearance. There is also V'lane who is a Fae Prince. And of course you can't forget the seelies and unseelies who are lurking in the dark, waiting for Mac to come out of her lite up safety zone, which happens to be Barrens book store. I can tell you there will be a book 4. Which I checked out Karen Marie Moning's site, has already been released. The name of the book is DreamFever. Amazon.com has it now. And according to Miss Moning's web site, Twentieth Century Fox has taken an option out on the Fever series of books. So there may be a couple movies coming. The list of books for the Fever series is:
1. Darkfever
2. Bloodfever
3. Faefever
4. Dreamfever
And coming soon, Shadowfever. No release date on Shadowfever.

MY RATING: 5

REVIEW - THE POISONWOOD BIBLE - BARBARA KINGSOLVER

This book is for 2 of my reading challenges
Random Reading Challenge
Fall Into Reading 2009




"The Poisonwood Bible" by Barbara Kingsolver
(from inside flap)

The Poisonwood Bible is a story told by the wife and four daughters of Nathan Price, a fierce, evangelical Baptist who takes his family and mission to the Belgian Congo in 1959. They carry with them everything they believe they will need from home, but soon find that all of it--from garden seeds to Scripture--is calamitously transformed on African soil. What follows is a suspenseful epic of one family's tragic undoing and remarkable reconstruction over the course of three decades in post colonial Africa.
The novel is set against one of the dramatic political chronicles of the twentieth century: the Congo's fight for independence from Belgium, the murder if its first elected prime minister, the CIA coup to install his replacement, and the insidious progress of a world economic order that robs the fledgling African nation of its autonomy. Against the backdrop, Orleanna Price reconstructs the story of her evangelist husband's part in the Western assault on Africa, a tale indelibly darkened by her own losses and unanswerable questions about her own culpability. Also narrating the story, by turns, are her four daughters--the self-centered, teenaged Rachel; shrewd adolescent twins Leah and Adah; and Ruth May, a prescient five-year-old. These sharpe observant girls, who arrive in the Congo with racial preconceptions forged in 1950s Georgia, will be marked in surprisingly different ways by their father's intractable mission, and my Africa itself. Ultimately each must strike her own separate path to salvation. Their passionately intertwined stories become a compelling exploration of moral risk and personal responsibility.

MY THOUGHTS: This book has been on my TBR(to be read)list forever. I have heard about it and all the people who have told me about this book said it was really good.
It is a fairly long book, 546 pages, but if so full of info on Africa and history that it keeps you turning the pages to find out what happens. The book starts out with Orlenna telling her story from Sanderling Island, Georgia. The book is put into sections like the bible. The first one is Genesis. As the family goes through their stay in Africa, of their trials and tribulations, they describe their life and all that happens to them. They each in turn have their own version of Africa. But of all the girls telling the story, Leah and Adah are the ones I like the most. They seem to have a better understanding of what's going on there in Africa. The political upheaval, the petulance, and the diseases that can wipe out whole villages. If you haven't read this book, put it on your list and read it. It's a truly awesome book!

MY RATING: 5

This book can be found at Amazon.com

REVIEW - A CIRCLE OF SOULS - PREETHAM GRANDHI

This book is for 3 of my reading challenges.
Suspense & Thrillers Challenge[Serial Killer Thriller]
Countdown to 2010 Challenge[2009]
Fall Into Reading Challenge



"A Circle of Souls" by Preetham Grandhi
(from back cover)
The Sleepy town of Newbury, Connecticut, is shocked when a little girl is found brutally murdered. The town's top detective, perplexed by a complete lack of leads, calls in FBI agent Leia Bines, and expert in cases involving children.
Meanwhile, Dr. Peter Gram, a psychiatrist at Newbury's hospital, searches desperately for the cause of seven-year-old Naya Hasting's devastating nightmares. Afraid that she might hurt herself in the midst of a torturous episode, Maya's parents have turned to the bright young doctor as their only hope.
The situations confronting Leia and Peter converge when Naya begins drawing chilling images of murder after being bombarded by the disturbing images in her dreams. Amazingly, her sketches are the only clues to the crime that has panicked Newbury residents. Against her better judgment, Leia explores the clues in Maya's crude drawings, only to set off an alarming chain of events.

MY THOUGHTS: This is a great book if you want to read a murder mystery. It's all there. And it has a serial killer they don't even know about until about middle way through the book. I also has to do with destiny and premonitions. When you die do you come back as someone else? This is a question that is put to Dr. Peter Gram. As the story works out Dr. Peter Gram, and Naya Hasting's has a predestined life that is about to collide. Throw in a friend who is hooked on cocaine and in debt up to his eyeballs and you have a really great book!!!

MY RATING: 5

WHAT'S ON YOUR DESK WEDNESDAY MEME

Bev over at Merry Weather tagged me to play along in this Wednesday Meme that Sassy Brit first started. The name of the Meme is:





HERE'S HOW IT WORKS

1. Grab a camera and take a photo of your desk! Or anywhere you stack your books/TBR pile - no tidying now ! Add this photo to your blog. Tag at least 5 other bloggers. Come back here and leave a link back to your photo in comments.





This is my desk, yea it's a little cluttered. Most of the time you can't see the desk for all the "stuff" on it. To the left and to the right are an extension of my desk. The left is a file cabinet and to the right is a book shelf. They both hold books either I am reading or going to read.

2. List at least 5 BOOKISH things on your desk.
Then list at least 5 NON BOOK things. Tag at least 5 people to do the same. Come back here and leave your link, so we can come and visit your blog. Or add your answers in the comments if you don't have a blog.

5 BOOKISH THINGS ON MY DESK

1. Books of course
2. Journals and diaries
3. Book lists - I have lots of those
4. Pens, pencils to keep track of all my books
5. tablets, so I can write down all the names of the great books I find at everyone's blogs.

5 NON-BOOKISH THINGS ON MY DESK

1. Head Phones for the computer
2. Clock so I can see if it's time for bed
3. A flashlight, for when the power goes off during a storm
4. Ashtray, yes I smoke, bad habit
5. Pink Piggy Bank, so I can save some money for more books

THE 5 BLOGGERS I AM TAGGING

1. Kim at Sophisticated Dorkiness
2. MizB at Should Be Reading
3. Vivienne at Serendipity
4. Kathrin at Secret Dreamworld of a Bookaholic
5. Razlover's Book Blog

So what's on your desk??

WONDROUS WORDS WEDNESDAY

What is Wondrous Words Wednesday?

Wondrous Words Wednesday is a weekly meme where we share new (to us) words that we’ve encountered in our reading. Feel free to join in the fun.

All of my words are from The Stone Diaries - Carol Shields

1. Obsequious - He shuffles up to doorways and knocks in a way that is obsequious and yet demanding.

Obsequious means: Promptly obedient, or submissive, to the will of another; compliant; yielding to the desires of another; devoted.
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2. Contagion - His gait is damaged, a slow uneven shuffle tht calls up memories of old-world contagion.

Contagion means: (1.) easily diffused or spread as from one person to another
(2.) (of disease) capable of being transmitted by infection
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3. Opacity - There is something here that speaks of our essential helplessness and how the greater substance of our lives is bound up with waste and opacity.

Opacity means: (1.) The state of being opaque; the quality of a body which renders it impervious to the rays of light; want of transparency; opaqueness.
(2.) Obscurity; want of clearness.
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4. Asceticism - His smile, like his voice, is beautiful, but it is a smile hatched from a frustrated asceticism, and the suspicion that love is no more than a diminutive for self-injury.

Asceticism means: (1.) the doctrine that through renunciation of worldly pleasures it is possible to achieve a high spiritual or intellectual state
(2.) the trait of great self-denial (especially refraining from worldly pleasures)
(3.) rigorous self-denial and active self-restraint
************************************************************

REVIEW - THE STONE DIARIES - CAROL SHIELDS

This is for 2 of my reading challenges.
100+ Challenge & Wrap-Up
Random Reading Challenge - #9




"The Stone Diaries" by Carol Shields
(from inside flap)
The Stone Diaries is one ordinary woman's story of her journey through life. Born in 1905, Daisy Stone Goodwill drifts through the roles of child, wife, widow, and mother, and finally into her old age. Bewildered by her inability to understand her place in her own life, Daisy attempts to find a way to tell her story within a novel that is itself about the limitations of autobiography.
Her life is vivid with incident, and yet she feels a sense of powerlessness. She listens, she observes, and through sheer force of imagination she becomes a witness of her own life; her birth, her death, and the troubling misconnections she discovers between. Daisy's struggle to find a place for herself in her own life is a paradigm of the unsettled decades of our era.

MY THOUGHTS: As I followed Daisy's life in this book, I was amazed at how much this resembled my mother's life. Daisy's mother dies the day she gave birth to Daisy. So Daisy doesn't have a mother to help her along the path. But she does have a good friend of her mother's, Clemitine, who takes Daisy to raise. When Daisy is 11 years old her father comes and gets her and they move to Bloomington, Indiana. Daisy is a smart girl and goes to college, which very unusual in the 1920's. Daisy also marries but her husband falls out a window on their honeymoon and dies. So Daisy is left wondering what to do with her life. She goes back to Canada, the country of her birth place, and meets and marries the son of her "Aunt" Clemintine. Has her children and raises them up. I don't want to give too much away so am stopping here. A really good book!!!

MY RATING: 5

*****************************************************************************

This is also a wrap-up for my reading challenge, 100+ Challenge. J. Kaye is the host for this challenge. I signed up with trepidation, thinking I would never be able to read 100 books. But I done it!!!! I got to read a lot of books that I truly enjoyed reading. Thanks J. Kaye for hosting this challenge. This is my list of 100 books. They are all listed on my sidebar and linked to my reviews.



1. The Stone Diaries – Carol Shields
2. The Real Wizard of Oz – Rebecca Loncraine
3. Benny & Shrimp – Katarina Mazetti
4. City of Bones – Cassandra Clare
5. A Mercy – Toni Morrison
6. Thief of Hearts – Tess Gerritsen
7. Dewey – Micki Myron
8. Black Hills – Nora Roberts
9. Dancing With Ana – Nicole Barker
10. In The Woods – Tana French
11. Trespassers Will be Baptized – Elizabeth Emerson Hancock
12. Dead Wrong – J. A. Jance
13 . Ice Land – Betsy Tobin
14. The Narrows - Michael Connelly
15. Mudbound - Hillary Jordan
16. The Lie - Fredrica Wagman
17. Garden Spells - Sarah Addison Allen
18. E is for Evidence - Sue Grafton
19. Now What? Laura Berman Fortgang
20. Grave Secrets - Kathy Reichs
21. A Thousand Splendid Suns - Khaled Hosseini
22. "D" is for Deadbeat - Sue Grafton
23. Around America - Walter Cronkite
24. Bare Bones - Kathy Reichs
25. The Black Echo - Michael Connelly
26. With Malice Toward None - Stephen B. Oates
27. Falling into the Sun - Charrie Hazard
28. Finger Lickin' Fifteen - Janet Evanovich
29. Dead Man's Bones - Susan Wittig Albert
30. "C" is for Corpse - Sue Grafton
31. Velva Jean Learns to Drive - Jennifer Niven
32. City of Bones - Michael Connelly
33. The Promise of Lumby - Gail Fraser
34. Kitchen Privileges - Mary Higgins Clark
35. Dog Years - Mark Doty
36. Irish Cream - Andrew M. Greeley
37. Retribution - Jilliane Hoffman
38. The Bride's Necklace - Kat Martin
39. Magyk - Angie Sage
40. Heaven - Angela Johnson
41. Riders of the Purple Sage - Zane Grey
42. Are You There God? It's me, Margaret - Judy Blume
43. The Tale of Peter Rabbit - Beatrix Potter
44. The Bridge of San Luis Rey - Thornton Wilder
45. Alias Grace - Margaret Atwood
46. Pretties - Scott Westerfeld
47. The Lightning Thief - Rick Riordan
48. Elephant Run - Roland Smith
49. Married by Mistake - Abby Gaines
50. Jantsen's Gift - Pam Cope
51. The Mighty Queens of Freeville - Amy Dickinson
52. The Genius - Jesse Kellerman
53. The View from Saturday - E. L. Konigsburg
54. The Second Mrs. Gioconda - E. L. Konigsburg
55. Work in Progress - Kristin Armstorng
56. What Jamie Saw - Carolyn Coman
57. G is for Gumshoe - Sue Grafton
58. Coraline - Neil Gaiman
59. Shadow Music - Julie Garwood
60. Everlasting - Kathleen E. Woodiwiss
61. Lioness Rampant - Tamora Pierce
62. The Woman Who Rides Like A Man - Tamora Pierce
63. A Caribbean Mystery - Agatha Christie
64. "B" is for Burglar - Sue Grafton
65. Last Mango in Texas - Ray Blackston
66. World Without End - Ken Follett
67. Betrayals - Carla Neggers
68. StarClimber - Kenneth Oppel
69. Uplift - Barbara Delinsky
70. The Killer's Cousin - Nancy Werlin
71. The Beach House - James Patterson
72. Until You Bertrice Small
73. Skybreaker - Kenneth Oppel
74. Austenland - Shannon Hale
75. Airborn - Kenneth Oppel
76. Treasure Island - Robert Louis Stevenson
77. Detective - Arthur Hailey
78. The Senator's Wife - Sue Miller
79. Sonata for Miriam - Linda Olsson
80. Breaker's Reef - Terri Blackstock
81. Julie & Julia - Julie Powell
82. River's Edge - Terri Blackstock
83. The Sum of Our Days - Isabel Allende
84. The Secret Life of Bees - Sue Monk Kidd
85. By The Time You Read This - Giles blunt
86. The Good Earth - Pearl S. Buck
87. The Pagan Stone - Nora Roberts
88. Little Women - Louisa May Alcott
89. High Noon - Nora Roberts
90. The Body in The Library - Agatha Christie
91. Southern Storm - Terri Blackstock
92. The Lovely Bones - Alice Sebold
93. Uglies - Scott Westerfeld
94. Bones - Jonathan Kellerman
95. "A" is For Alibi - Sue Grafton
96. In Defense of Food - Michael Pollan
97. Cirque Du Freak - Darren Shan
98. The Martian Chronicles - Ray Bradbury
99. The Book Thief - Markus Zusak
100. The Boy in the Striped Pajamas - John Boyne

TUESDAY BOOK MEMES

Raidergirl is hosting It's Tuesday, Where Are You? and MizB is hosting Teaser Tuesday.

I am reading three books. So am using all 3 for these two memes.

IT'S TUESDAY, WHERE ARE YOU?




I am currently in Canada trying to get along raising my 3 children without my husband, who has just passed away.

I am currently in the Congo, and trying to keep myself and children alive. We are missionaries and The Belgian Congo has just recently declared it's independence.

I am currently in Ireland trying to find the killer of my sister and fighting off demons and stay alive myself.

****************************************************************

TEASER TUESDAY





I am happy to say your late husband's will is now filed, and all dispersal's made.
P.197 The Stone Diaries - Carol Shields

So we strolled out into the unbearable heat of August 21, 1960. Bugs buzzed so loud it hurt your ears, and tiny red birds perched on the ends of long grass stalks beside the road, all swaying this way and that.
P.288 The Poisonwood Bible - Barbara Kingsolver



I knew I shouldn't have been up on the third floor, cataloging books, with an untended cash register and an unlocked ront door two floors below me, but it had been a slow day and my guards were down. It was daytime and I was in the bookstore. Nothing could hurt me here.
P.134 Faefever - Karen Marie Moning




What are reading? Let me know, I'll come and visit you.

FALL INTO READING CHALLENGE-2009

I was over at Kathrin's place Secret Dreamworld of a Bookaholic and found Katrina's Fall Into Reading Challenge 2009. So am joining up. Here are the rules:

1.Write your post before you sign up on the linky list that goes live on September 22nd.
2. Use a permalink when you sign up.
3. Keep your post family-friendly.
4. Get ready to read!
5. The challenge will start September 22, 2009 and end December 20, 2009.

My List of Books:[but this could change at any time]

1. The Stone Diaries - Carol Shields
2. A Circle of Souls – Preetham Grandhi
3. The Poisonwood Bible – Barbara Kingsolver
4. Faefever – Karen Marie Moning
5. The Man Who Loved Books Too Much – Allison Hoover Bartlett
6. Z-Z-Zoink – Bernard Most
7. Only the Cat Knows – Marian Babson
8. The Dangerous Days of Daniel X – James Patterson
9. You Have the Right to Remain Puzzled – Parnell Hall
10. The Quilter’s Legacy – Jennifer Chiaverini
11. Rashi’s Daughters – Rachel – Maggie Anton
12. The Story of Edgar Sawtelle – David Wroblewski
13. Made in the U.S.A. – Billie Letts
14. One for the Money – Janet Evanovich
15. The Seamstress of Hollywood Boulevard – Erin McGraw
16. Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Café – Fannie Flagg
17. The Key – Debra White Smith
18. The Sea of Monsters – Rick Riordan
19. The Christmas Letters – Lee Smith
20. Moon River and Me – Andy Williams
21. Aesop's Fables
22. The Help - Kathryn Stockett
23.
24.
25.

REVIEW - THE REAL WIZARD OF OZ - REBECCA LONCRAINE

This book is for 2 of my reading challenges.
100+ Challenge
Countdown 2010 Challenge(2009)

"The Real Wizard of Oz" by Rebecca Loncraine
(from inside flap)

L. Frank Baum wrote The Wonderful Wizard of Oz in 1899 and it was first published in 1900. A runaway it was soon recognized as America's first modern fairy tale. Baum's life story, like the fictional world he created, is uniquely American, rooted in the transforming historical changes of his times. Baum was a complex and eccentric man who could never stay put for long; his restless creative sprite and voracious appetite for new projects led him across the United States during his lifetime, and he drew energy and inspiration from each new dramatic landscape he encountered.

MY THOUGHTS: I have seen The Wizard of Oz lots of times, but have never read the book. I really couldn't have told you who wrote the book. Until now! Have you ever wondered how the yellow brick road got into the The Wizard of Oz? Or where the tornado that lifted Dorthy's house in Kansas came from? This book gives you the info and so much more about the man who's mind gave us The Wizard of Oz. Over his lifetime Mr. Baum wrote more books about Dorthy and the whole gang. I didn't know that. All the child fans of The Wizard of Oz kept Mr. Baum busy writing sequels. He wrote 13 sequels to his first Oz book. When reading this book you will travel back to your own childhood remembering the Oz you saw as a child or read as a child. You can find this book at Amazon.com

MY RATING: 5

ABC MEME

I have been tagged by Razlover's Book Blog. This is how it works.

1. Link to the person who tagged you.
2. Share your ABC’s.
3. Tag three people at the end by linking to their blogs.
4. Let the three tagged people know they have been tagged by leaving a comment on their website.
5. Do not tag the same person repeatedly but try to tag different people, so there is a big network of bloggers doing this tag.

Available or single? NEITHER, MARRIED

Best Friend? MY HUBBY

Cake or Pie? CAKE OR PIE BUT I LIKE PIE THE BEST

Drink of choice? FOUNTAIN COKE

Essential item for every day use? MY GLASSES AND COMPUTER

Favorite color? RED

Google? YES

Hometown? INDIANA

Indulgences? LAY'S CLASSIC POTATO CHIPS

January or February? NEITHER, I HATE COLD, SNOW AND ICE

Kids? YES A SON

Life is incomplete without? MY HUBBY, MY BOOKS AND SOMETHING GOOD TO NIBBLE

Marriage date? JUNE 8, 1968

Number of siblings? 3 SISTERS AND A BROTHER

Oranges or apples? APPLES WITH CO-JACK CHEESE

Phobias and fears? SPIDERS

Quote for the day? FOR EVERY ACTION THERE IS A REACTION

Reason to smile? BOOKS, PAY DAY, MY COMPUTER

Season? SPRING, ALL MY FLOWERS START BLOOMING AGAIN

Tag 3 people?
Rebecca at I'm Lost in Books
Jan at Loves Books and Tea
Tracey at Pen and Paper

Unknown fact about me? I HAVE BEEN A SUBSTITUTE TEACHER

Vegetable you hate? CAULIFLOWER

Worst habit? SMOKING

X-rays you’ve had? KNEES

Your favorite food? PIZZA, SPAGHETTI, AND ICE CREAM

Zodiac sign? ARIES

REVIEW - BENNY & SHRIMP - KATARINA MAZETTI

This book is for 2 of my reading challenges.
100+ Challenge
Countdown to 2010[2009]

"Benny & Shrimp" by Katarina Mazetti
(from inside flap)
It started in a cemetery, where they begrudgingly share a bench. "Shrimp," (Desiree') the childless young widow and librarian with a sharp intellect and a home so tidy that her jam jars are in alphabetical order, meets Benny, the gentle, overworked milk farmer who fears becoming the village's Old Bachelor. Both driven by an enormous longing and loudly ticking biological clocks, they can't escape the powerful attraction between them.

But how will she learn to accept that he falls asleep at the opera and has a house full of his mother's cross-stitch? And how could he ever feel at home in her minimalist apartment, bare as a dentist's waiting room?

MY THOUGHTS: This is a very charming love story of two people who are misfits. Desiree' meets Benny at the cemetery. They kind of ignore each other for awhile. Then Benny and Desiree' smile at the same time and it's kind of love at first site. Desiree's biological clock is ticking. She is 35 and wants to have a baby before her ovaries dry up. Benny is 37 and still a bachelor living in his parents home. Their attraction is strong, but their lives are so different that it puts them at odds most of the time. Will Benny get someone to help him with the farm? Will Desiree' get her man and have a family? To find out you'll have to read the book...You can find this book at Amazon.com

MY RATING: 5

BOOKING THROUGH THURSDAY

What is the question this week at Booking Through Thursday?

What’s the most enjoyable, most fun, most just-darn-entertaining book you’ve read recently? (Mind you, this doesn’t necessarily mean funny, since we covered that already. Just … GOOD.)

The book I have most enjoyed recently was Garden Spells by Sarah Addison Allen. Very funny and entertaining book. My review is here.



Isn't that book cover just beautiful and intriguing? From the Apple Tree that throws apples at them to cousin Evanelle that just has to give you gift, that you don't know what to do with it at the time, but you will eventually use the gift. And then there is Clarie's amorous neighbor, Tyler. Clarie is trying her best recipes to keep him away. Very entertaining book.

REVIEW - CITY OF BONES - CASSANDRA CLARE

This book is for 4 of my reading challenges.
100+ Challenge
Suspense & Thriller Challenge(Horror Thriller)
Genre Challenge(Horror Fiction)
Countdown 2010 Challenge(2008)



"City of Bones" by Cassandra Clare
(from back cover)

When fifteen-year-old Clary Fray heads out to the Pandemonium Club in New York City, she hardly expects to witness a murder--much less a murder committed by three tattooed teenagers brandishing bizarre weapons. Then the body disappears into thin air. It's hard to call the police when the murderers are invisible to everyone else. This is Clary's first meeting with the Shadowhunters, warriors dedicated to ridding the earth or demons--and with Jace, a Shadowhunter who looks a little like an angel and acts a lot like a jerk.

MY THOUGHTS: This is book one of a trilogy. This is a very good book, with lots of demons, warlocks, werewolves, vampires and pixies. If you like a good demon book set in today's time, this is the book to read. Clary goes to the institute with Jace, Isabelle and Alec after she witnesses the murder at the club, which was a demon killing. She wasn't suppose to be able to see this, but she did. Now Clary is asking why. Then her mother comes up missing, their apartment is a shambles and is being guarded by demons. The hunt is on for Clary's mother and the Mortal Cup.

MY RATING: 5

BOOK BLOGGER APPRECIATION WEEK

BOOK BLOGGER APPRECIATION WEEK
Today’s it’s all about the creativity. We have this fabulous reading meme for you below and all you have to do? Pick ONE or answer them all in as few words as possible! Be creative, have fun, stand out! That’s all! smile

Do you snack while you read? If so, favorite reading snack? ANYTHING EATABLE
Do you tend to mark your books as you read, or does the idea of
writing in books horrify you? I DON'T WRITE IN MY BOOKS
How do you keep your place while reading a book? Bookmark? Dog-ears? BOOKMARK
Laying the book flat open? FLAT OPEN
Fiction, Non-fiction, or both? BOTH
Hard copy or audiobooks? HARDCOPY
Are you a person who tends to read to the end of chapters, or are you
able to put a book down at any point? I ALWAYS END AT A CHAPTER IF NOT THE UPPER LEFT PAGE WILL DO
If you come across an unfamiliar word, do you stop to look it up right away? NO, I WRITE IT DOWN THEN CHECK IT OUT LATER
What are you currently reading? I AM CURRENTLY READING 3 BOOKS. "CITY OF BONES - CASSANDRA CLARE," "THE REAL WIZARD OF OZ - REBECCA LONCRAINE," AND "BENNY & SHRIMP - KATARINA MAZETTI"
What is the last book you bought? A MERCY - TONI MORRISON
Are you the type of person that only reads one book at a time or can
you read more than one at a time? I USUALLY HAVE 3 OR 4 BOOKS GOING AT THE SAME TIME
Do you have a favorite time of day and/or place to read? TIME - MORNINGS AND AFTERNOONS PLACE - IN MY CAR OR AT MY DESK
Do you prefer series books or stand alone books? EITHER ONE WILL DO
Is there a specific book or author that you find yourself recommending over and over?NOT REALLY, IF I LIKE THE BOOK I WILL RECOMMEND IT TO OTHERS
How do you organize your books? (By genre, title, author’s last name, etc.?) I DON'T ORGANIZE BY ANY PARTICULAR WAY, JUST WHEN I GET DONE WITH A BOOK IT GOES ON THE SHELF. MY SHELVES ARE "ALREADY READ" AND "TO READ".

WONDROUS WORDS WEDNESDAY

Over at Bermudaonion's Weblog, is a meme about words. Thought this was a very appropriate meme considering this is my book blog. So I decided to do Wondrous Words Wednesday today.

Wondrous Words Wednesday is a weekly meme where we share new (to us) words that we’ve encountered in our reading. Feel free to join in the fun. (Don’t forget to leave a link in your comment if you’re participating.)

I only have one word today, it comes from the book "The Real Wizard of Oz" by Rebecca Loncraine.



1. Theosophists - people, he explained, of "no faith," rather a sect whose members were not part of a religion as such but were "simply 'searchers after Truth'."

Theosophists means - theosophy holds that all religions are attempts by the "Spiritual Hierarchy" to help humanity in evolving to greater perfection, and that each religion therefore has a portion of the truth. This comes for Wikipedia.

TUESDAY BOOK MEMES

It's Tuesday, Where in the World Are You is hosted by raidergirl over at An Adventure in Reading. Teaser Tuesday is hosted my MizB over at Should Be Reading. Go and see what all the buzz is about.

IT'S TUESDAY, WHERE IN THE WORLD ARE YOU



At the moment I am on the plains of South Dakota. I am publishing a newspaper for the town of Aberdeen. We are all in fear of the Ghost Dancing my the Sioux nation.



TUESDAY TEASER



Baum and others may have imagined themselves to be potenial victims of the Sioux, but terrible news reached them at the end of December 1890, which confronted them with the truth that the Sioux were the real victims.
P. 126 The Real Wizard of Oz:The Life and Times of L. Frank Baum - Rebbecca Loncraine

(Product Description)
[from Amazon.com]
L. Frank Baum wrote The Wonderful Wizard of Oz in 1899 and it was first published in 1900. A runaway hit, it was soon recognized as America's first modern fairy tale. Baum's life story, like the fictional world he created, is uniquely American, rooted in the transforming historical changes of his times. Baum was a complex and eccentric man who could never stay put for long; his restless creative spirit and voracious appetite for new projects led him across the U.S. during his lifetime, and he drew energy and inspiration from each new dramatic landscape he encountered,. Born in 1856, Baum spent his youth in the Finger Lakes region of New York as amputee soldiers returned from the Civil War; childhood mortality was also commonplace, blurring the lines between the living and the dead, and making room in Baum's young imagination for vividly real ghosts. When Baum was growing up, P. T. Barnum ruled the minds of small towns and his traveling circus was the most famous act around. Baum married a headstrong young woman named Maud Gage and they ventured out west to Dakota Territory, where they faced violent tornadoes, Ghost Dancing tribes and desperate droughts, before trading the hardships on the Great Plains for the excitement of Chicago and the fantastical White City of the World's Fair.

Baum's writing tapped into an inner world that blurred his own sense of reality and fantasy. The Land of Oz, which Baum believed he had "discovered" rather than invented, grew into something far bigger and more popular than he'd ever imagined. After the roaring success of The Wonderful Wizard of Oz in 1900, he became a kind of slave to his creation, trapped inside Oz as his army of demanding child fans kept sending him back there to create new adventures for Dorothy, Toto and the humbug wizard. He went on to write thirteen sequels to his first Oz book. He also wrote the first Broadway adaptations of his Oz tales, and turned his Oz books into some of the first motion pictures in a small and undiscovered rural settlement called "Hollywood". Baum co-founded the Oz Film Manufacturing Company, even as critics warned that no one would pay to see a children's story. And they were right- his early ventures were box office flops and the world was not ready for Oz on screen until 1939, when MGM released "The Wizard of Oz" in brilliant Technicolor. Baum was not around to see it-he'd died in bed in 1919 just weeks after completing his final Oz book. But the book and film alike have become classics, just as well-loved today as they were when they first appeared.

The Real Wizard of Oz is an imaginatively written work that stretches the genre of biography and enriches our understanding of modern fairytales. L. Frank Baum, author of The Wonderful Wizard of Oz and its thirteen sequels, lived during eventful times in American history-- from 1856 to 1919-- that influenced nearly every aspect of his writing, from the Civil War to Hollywood, which was emerging as a modern Emerald City full of broken dreams and humbug wizards, to the gulf between America's prairie heartland, with its wild tornadoes, and its cities teeming with "Tin Man" factory workers. This is a colorful portrait of one man's vivid and eccentric imagination and the world that shaped it. Baum's famous fairytale is filled with the pain of the economic uncertainties of the Gilded Age and with a yearning for real change, ideas which many contemporary Americans will recognize. The Wizard of Oz continues to fascinate and influence us because it explores universal themes of longing for a better world, homesickness and finding inner strength amid the storms.

BLOG IMPROVEMENT PROJECT - WEEK 17

Kim over at Sophisticated Dorkiness is the host for the Blog Improvement Project. It's a year long thing to spruce up, learn new things, and meet new folks that blog. I have missed a couple of the weeks, but have been trying to keep up. What has Kim got us doing this week:

BIP task for this week is to find an old post and update it. Here are a few articles with some advice on how to do that:

* Interlink Your Old Blog Posts (ProBlogger) — In this post, Darren suggests updating old posts to link to other posts on your blog on similar topics. This way, readers stay on your site longer because posts give then further reading to ponder. He gives good suggestions on how to do this, I highly recommend reading this post before you start.

* How To Update Your Old Posts (Stefan Nilsson) — This post suggests a number of things you can update in your old posts including fixing links, adding new information, and linking to new posts. He also suggests making a link round up of best old posts after you’ve updated a few so new readers can get links to some of your old content.

* Increase Page Rank by Revitalizing Your Old Posts (The Blog Herald) — This post frames the issue as one of search engine rankings, but gives a very, very long list of techniques and ideas for updating old posts. This post is another must read before you get started.

Your task, should you choose to accept it, goes as follows:

1. Find an old post that gets a lot of traffic. If you have Wordpress, this is as easy as looking at your stats and seeing the most viewed. I’m not sure if there is a way to do this in Blogger, so anyone who knows help me out!

2. Re-read the post and figure out how you might update it. Have you covered this topic again more recently? Do you have posts on similar topics? Do all the links work? Is the picture still awesome? Whatever, there are lots of ways to do this.

3. Update the post! If you’re feeling excited, find a way to promote it (via Twitter, a link on your blog, something like that).

Now what am I doing for this. I read the trilogy, Sign of Seven by Nora Roberts. The names of the books in order are:

Blood Brothers
The Hollow
The Pagan Stone

I linked all the books so if you find one you can find the others. Here is a little about the trilogy:

In the small village of Hawkins Hollow, three best friends who share the same birthday sneak off into the woods for a sleepover the evening before turning 10. But a night of pre-pubescent celebration turns into a night of horror as their blood brother oath unleashes a three-hundred year curse.

Twenty-one years later, Cal Hawkins and his friends have seen their town plagued by a week of unexplainable evil events two more times - every seven years. With the clock winding down on the third set of seven years, someone else has taken an interest in the town's folklore. Quinn is a well known scholar of local legends, and despite Cal's protests, insists on delving in the mystery. But when the first signs of evil appear months early, it's not only the town Cal tries to protect, but also his heart.

The books follow one another very nicely. They pick up right where the other one ended. Which I like. I hate when a book wonders and you never know what happens. Ms. Roberts fills you in on what has happened previously while continuing the story. So if you think you would be interested in reading any of these books, you can now see the review because they all are linked.

REVIEW - A MERCY - TONI MORRISON

This book is for 3 of my reading challenges. This is also my book to read for September for my book club.
100+ Challenge
52 books in 51 weeks
Countdown to 2010 Challenge



"A Mercy" by Toni Morrison
(from back cover)

In the 1680's the slave trade in the Americas is still in its infancy. Jacob Vaark is an Anglo-Dutch trader and adventurer, with a small holding in the harsh North. Despite his distaste for dealing in "flesh," he takes a small slave girl in part payment for a bad debt from a plantation owner in Catholic Maryland. This is Florens, who can read and write and might be useful on his farm. Rejected by her mother, Florens looks for love, first from Lina, an older servant woman at her new master's house, and later from the handsome blacksmith, an African, never enslaved, who comes riding into their lives.
A Mercy reveals what lies beneath the surface of slavery. But at its heart, like Beloved, it is the ambivalent, disturbing story of a mother and a daughter--a mother who casts off her daughter in order to save her, and a daughter who may never exorcise that abandonment.

MY THOUGHTS: This is a good book. It is told from the view of all the characters in the book. Jacob and his wife Rebecca, Lina, Sorrow, and Florens the slaves at the farm, and the indentured men loaned out to Jacob, Willard and Scully. This is also the time of church controlling the people, their thoughts and lives. Witchcraft and demons are also abundant. Lina is the more sensible of all the slaves. She is the oldest of them. Sorrow is a young girl coming into womanhood. She is attracted to the blacksmith. Which leads to her having a child. Florens is a very troubled child not knowing what is to become of her. And also The Pox is prevalent at the time. Which is thought to be the work of the devil. Babies and children die at a high rate. Rebecca has lost 3 infants and her oldest child dies from a kick from a horse. Which is believed that all these deaths are due to the children not being fully immersed in water and baptized. The last chapter of the book is Florens mother telling her why she let her be taken by Jacob. This is the last paragrah of the chapter, to me it tells the whole story. This is Florens mother talking.

It was not a miracle. Bestowed by God. It was a mercy. Offered by a human. I stayed on my knees. In the dust where my heart will remain each night and every day until you understand what I know and long to tell you: to be given dominion over another is a hard thing; to wrest dominion over another is a wrong thing; to give dominon of yourself to another is a wicked thing.
Oh Florens. My love. Hear a Tua Mae.

MY RATING: 5

MY LIFE IN BOOKS MEMES

I was over at Rebecca's place, Just One More Page and found this cute little book meme. So I thought I would join in on this. Here's how it works:

Using only books you have read this year (2009), cleverly answer these questions. Try not to repeat a book title.

Describe Yourself: Work in Progress

How do you feel: The Genius

Describe where you currently live: Falling into the Sun

If you could go anywhere, where would you go: A Map of the World

Your favorite form of transport: Woman Who Rides Like A Man

Your best friend is: The Swiss Family Robinson

What's the weather like: Heaven

Favourite time of day: A Thousand Splendid Suns

What is life to you: Kitchen Privileges

Your fear: Shadow Music

What is the best advice you have to give: The Sum of Our Days

Thought for the Day: Chew on This

How I would like to die: The Good Earth

My soul's present condition: Treasure Island

LIBRARY OF CONGRESS BOOK FESTIVAL

I got an email today about a book festival. It is being held by the Library of Congress. Here is the email:

Hi Sherrie,

I hope this note finds you well.

My name is Monica, and I’m writing on behalf of the Library of Congress with the latest news on this year’s National Book Festival. The festival, which will be held on Saturday, September 26, 2009, is slated to feature over 70 best-selling writers, illustrators and poets. I wanted to invite you to attend if you’re able (the event is free and open to the public), and to share some details on ways to experience the festival even from afar.

New this year, the Library is bringing the festival direct to mobile phone users with their first-ever mobile campaign. By texting ‘BOOK’ to 61399, mobile phone users can opt-in to receive the latest festival announcements as well as author presentations and signing schedules. The text campaign is one of many interactive features to bring booklovers up-to-the minute festival information. The Library’s Twitter feed (@librarycongress, hashtag #nbf) and Facebook page already have thousands of followers. (If you’ll be at the festival, a tweet-up is also in the works.)

Additionally, festival fans can now download author podcasts, which can be accessed free of charge through the Library’s website or on iTunes. The recordings feature candid interviews with award-winning authors George Pelecanos, James Patterson, Rickey Minor, Nicholas Sparks, and more. Finally, The Washington Post is hosting live online discussions in the week leading up to the festival with several participating authors, including Annette Gordon-Reed, Ken Burns, and Douglas Brinkley.

If you are interested in learning more about the text campaign, the festival or interviewing an author, please let me know. Additionally, the most recent press release can be found at http://www.loc.gov/today/pr/2009/09-164.html. I hope you’ll share the news and all the ways to experience the festival with Just Books readers.

All the best,

Monica Goldenberg

On behalf of the Library of Congress

monica.goldenberg@fleishman.com

ARC

I got an email from The Penguin Group, and asked to review this book. Although it is book 3 and the final one in the trilogy, I think it will be really good. It is due for release this week. You can get all 3 books at Amazon.com

"Rashi's Daughters: Book III: Rachel" by Maggie Anton

Product Description(Amazon.com)
Rachel is the youngest and most beautiful daughter of medieval Jewish scholar Salomon ben Isaac, or "Rashi." Her father's favorite and adored by her new husband, Eliezer, Rachel's life looks to be one of peaceful scholarship, laughter, and love. But events beyond her control will soon threaten everything she holds dear. Marauders of the First Crusade massacre nearly the entire Jewish population of Germany, and her beloved father suffers a stroke. Eliezer wants their family to move to the safety of Spain, but Rachel is determined to stay in France and help her family save the Troyes yeshiva, the only remnant of the great centers of Jewish learning in Europe.

(from back cover)
Troyes, France, 1091. Rachel, the youngest daughter of scholar Salomon ben Isaac, is her father's favorite. A brilliant entrepreneur admired for her discernment as well as her beauty, she is working to build a successful textile business that will keep her husband Eliezer at home rather than traveling on increasingly lengthy trading missions.
Before Rachel can achieve her dream, however, disaster strikes. The marauders of the First Crusade massacre nearly the entire Jewish population of Germany, and her beloved father has a stroke. Eliezer wants their family to move to the safety of Spain, but Rachel is determined to stay in France and help her father save the Troyes yeshiva--the only remnant of the great European Talmud academies.
With Rachel, a timeless story of survival and love, Maggie Anton magnificently concludes her epic trilogy of Jewish women of dignity, passion, and strength who thrived, against all odds, in medieval France.

Has anyone read book 1 & 2? Book one is Joheved and book two is Miriam

Book 1 Joheved


Book 2 Miriam


Let me know if you have read any of these books. I'll come by and check them out.

COUNTDOWN 2010 CHALLENGE

I was over at raidergirl's place, an adventure in reading. She has a new reading challenge posted at her place. So went to check it out. The challenge is over at Michelle's place, 1 More Chapter. The name of the challenge is Countdown 2010. Here's how it works:

1. The goal of this challenge is to read the number of books first published in a given year that corresponds to the last digit of each year in the 2000s — 10 books from 2010, 9 books from 2009, 8 books from 2008, etc. The total number of books required, therefore, is 55.
2. This challenge lasts from 9/9/09 through 10/10/10.
3. Crossovers with other challenges are allowed and your lists may change at any time.

This is my list. In case I forget what I'm reading. This list is also subject to change at any time.

2010 - read 10 books

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.

2009 - read 9 books

1. Darkwood - M. E. Breen
2. Death of a witch - M. C. Beaton
3. The long fall - Walter Mosley
4. Early's fall - Jerry A. Peterson
5. Starvation Lake - Bryan Gruley
6. The sweetness at the bottom of the pie - Alan C. Bradley
7. 206 bones - Kathy Reichs
8. There's something about St. Tropez - Elizabeth Adler
9. The lost witness - Robert Ellis

2008 - read 8 books
1. The Dangerous Days of Daniel X - James Patterson
2. Made in the U.S.A. - Billie Letts
3. Lock and key - Sarah Dessen
4. Carrot cake murder - Joann Fluke
5. Nose down, eyes up - Merrill Markoe
6. Lessons from a girl's best friend - Michelle McKinney Hammond
7. The story of Edgar Sawtelle - David Wroblewski
8. Good dog. Stay - Anna Quindlen

2007 - read 7 books

1. You have the right to remain puzzled - Parnell Hall
2. T is for Trespass - Sue Grafton
3. Most likely to die - Lisa Jackson
4. Body trace - D. H. Dublin
5. The magic key - Emily Rodda
6. The Star Cloak - Emily Rodda
7. Starting out sideways - Mary E. Mitchell

2006 - read 6 books

1. Cherry cheesecake murder-Joann Fluke
2. The tavern on Maple Street - Sharon Owens
3. The book of fate - Brad Meltzer
4. Poison - Chris Wooding
5. Twilight child - Sally Warner
6. The field guide - Tony DiTerlizzi

2005 - read 5 books

1. Polar shift - Clive Cussler
2. Long Spoon Lane - Anne Perry
3. Mercy Falls - William Kent Krueger
4. The alpine quilt - Mary Daheim
5. Fairyopolis - Mary Cicely Barker

2004 - read 4 books

1. The Ironwood tree - Tony DiTerlizzi
2. The wrath of Mulgarath - Tony DiTerlizzi
3. Wed and buried - Toni L. P. Kelner
4. Hurricane - Janice Thompson

2003 - read 3 books

1. Second glance - Jodi Picoult
2. Lucinda's secret - Tony DiTerlizzi
3. Club Dead - Charlaine Harris

2002 - read 2 books

1. April fool dead - Carolyn G. Hart
2. First light - Philip R. Craig

2001 - read 1 book

1. Betrayal in death - J. D. Robb

REVIEW - THIEF OF HEARTS - TESS GERRITSEN

This book is for 4 of my reading challenges.
2nd Chance Challenge
100+ Challenge
Suspense & Thriller Challenge(Conspiracy Thriller)
Genre Challenge(Romance Thriller)



"Thief of Hearts" by Tess Gerritsen
(from back cover)

He was a gentleman bandit, she was a cat burglar. And they caught each other in more ways than one. But their desire was as strong as their distrust, and Jordan Tavistock began to fear that Diana Lamb was more than just a thief of hearts.........

MY THOUGHTS: This is the second book by Tess Gerritsen that I have read. I liked this one just as much as the first one. You may ask how one book can be a Conspiracy Thriller and a Romance Thriller at the same time. The Conspiracy is what the book is about. A Conspiracy to defraud an insurance company of millions of dollars by a very wealthy and influential man. He uses money and connections to find the one person who can topple him. That is Clea Rice, A.K.A. Diana Lamb. The Romance Thriller comes into play when Jordan Tavistock comes into contact with Clea Rice. Jordan is trying to help her get away and catch the guy that is trying to kill Clea. Well, you should know what happens then. Sparks, love, happiness the whole nine yards. But first they have to catch they guy trying to kill Clea.

MY RATING: 5

BOOKING THROUGH THURSDAY

Deb is hosting Booking Through Thursday. Go check out all the folks that playing along this week.

What’s the biggest book you’ve read recently?

(Feel free to think “big” as size, or as popularity, or in any other way you care to interpret.)

Well, I am going to interpret the biggest book I've read as the most pages in a book that I have read. The would have to be Ken Follett's World Without End. This is where you can see my review. I had previously read, well, it was last year sometime, Pillars of the Earth. Wonderful book! It was also a "big" book. I can't remember how many pages it had, but there were a lot. World Without End had 1014 pages. That's a lot of reading. It was also a great book! Has anyone read either of these books?