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Love in the Time of Cholera by Gabriel Garcia Marquez - this was a book club pick, and sounded interesting, but after having read it I'm still not sure whether I really "liked" it or not.  I didn't hate it though!  Our original thought in choosing this book for our club read was that we could watch the movie together after we'd discussed the book - however, after discussing it with one of the readers that had seen the movie, I will skip the movie as she didn't give it a very good review at all.  The book is about a young man, Florentino Ariza that "falls passionately in love" with Fermina Daza and what happens down through the years as she rejects him, chooses to marry someone else, and he marks time until she is free again.  It sounds like a tragic romance, but I was not at all impressed with Florentino Ariza.  While he is supposed to remain hopelessly in love with Fermina Daza, and is waiting only for her through the 50-plus years until her husband dies, he engages in 622 affairs and some of them quite perverse.  It is hard to believe that even the most amoral character could fervently believe himself to be completely true and faithful to someone while engaging in so many illicit affairs. 

At the beginning of the book I was somewhat confused by the fact that the main character, Florentino Ariza, is not even mentioned until almost the end of the first chapter.  Another purely practical (for me) reason that I had trouble finishing this book in a timely manner was that the chapters were very long, without logical "bookmark points" within.  For someone who sits down with a book for hours at a time and reads until they finish it, this wouldn't present a problem, but these days I do most of my reading in short chunks of time so I tended to neglect this book until I knew I would have at least half an hour uninterrupted to get through it.  And since  wasn't entirely engaged with the characters I wasn' very motivated either.  Marquez's unique and lyrical descriptions of settings and emotions did keep me coming back for more, and moments of irony and dry understatement were appealing, but in the end the whole story left me feeling rather flat.

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The Gigantic Book of Pirate Stories

, edited by Steve Brennan. I’ve been reading this for an embarrassingly long time, but in my defense, it is a collection of about 60 pirate stories, poems, and articles of varying length, and a very thick volume. So one story every few days and it lasts awhile! Part I, The Histories is a collection of essays and articles chronicling real pirates and their stories. Rather different, in many cases, from the romanticized view of pirates we get from the movies! There are accounts of sea battles, biographies of pirates both notorious and obscure, and even court records - Indictment for Piracy, 1812. One item I really enjoyed from this section was The Female Captive by Lucretia Parker. It is a letter describing what a young lady experienced when she was taken captive by a pirate crew. As I was reading it, I wondered whether it was a true story or not, but I think it is. In Part II, The Captains, I enjoyed fictional accounts of pirate captains and some insights into history’s pirates. The section opens with Daniel Defoe’s Captain Singleton, which was very interesting, followed by the chapter titled Captain Hook from J.M. Barrie’s Peter Pan. Another classic in this section was the chapter Tom Sawyer, Pirate Captain by Mark Twain. Part III, Pirate Song and Verse entertained with offerings from Lord Byron, Shakespeare, and others, as well as a collection of Last Words and Other Pirate Quotations. And finally, in Part IV, The Tales, I found several stories that I really enjoyed, including The Old Buccaneer by Robert Louis Stevenson (chapter from Treasure Island), The Ghost of Captain Brand, and Captain Scarfield, both by Howard Pyle. Another Howard Pyle tale, Blueskin, the Pirate, was probably my favorite in this section and possibly in the whole book. I was initially interested in it because the setting was Cape May, New Jersey, which I am familiar with, having lived near that area for a few years. The story itself was engaging and had a touch of humour and kept my interest throughout. This book was fun to browse through and entertained in many ways.

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Organizing For Your Brain Type

by Lanna Nakone, M.A. My local library had this book on display during a recent emphasis on organizing and time management, and it caught my eye. I have lots of good intentions when it comes to organizing, but almost always lose my motivation and focus when I try to clean up my desk, organize my closet or cupboards, and maintain orderly files. The teaser on the back cover of this book claims that just as there are different personality types and learning styles, these preferences affect the way people organize and what works for them. In hopes of finding some practical ideas, I picked up the book. Near the beginning of the book there is a brain style quiz and by taking that I found that I was an “Innovating Style” thinker, so I turned to those chapters for advice. I was actually comforted to read that people with my Style tend to use stacks, piles, and post-it notes to keep track of information in a way that often looks chaotic to others, but is functional for us. Pretty descriptive of my desk, actually!! I do have stacks of papers and books everywhere, but if I’m asked for something specific, usually I can remember which pile its in and how far down, and why I put it in that particular pile. MY piles don’t bother me, but I’m very irritated when others make piles of stuff in my space. I suppose because I don’t know the reasoning behind that pile, whereas my own piles, I do. Out of sight is out of mind for this thinking style, which contributes to the tendency to pile and post-it and leave things out instead of filing them away. How true - if I don’t have a visual reminder of when a bill is due, it’s pretty random if I’ll remember it or not. The suggestions for keeping things organized range from using a vertical file or wall pockets instead of filing cabinets to using brightly colored folders and bankers boxes. The author also suggested simplifying the categories used for filing and keep them broad rather than detailed. Most of the suggestions made sense to me, and although I still need a kick in the pants to get me started, at least I now have some ideas to make the task less overwhelming for me and easier to maintain. So... I wrote down the suggestions I'd like to use (someday, when I get to it) and posted it on my bulletin board (so I won't forget!). 

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Were They Wise Men or Kings? The Book of Christmas Questions by Joseph J. Walsh - The title and cover of this book caught my eye while browsing at the library last week, so I picked it up for a quick look.  It looked like a quick read suitable for age 10 and up, maybe, so I brought it home.  At first I thought maybe I would read some of it aloud to the kids, but that never happened.  However, it was a quick, easy read and answered Christmas season questions in a common-sense way without being simplistic or overly scholarly.  The author taught (still teaches?) a course on Christmas to freshmen at Loyola, and I wondered whether his answers regarding the Nativity and its relevance to the Christmas celebrations would be dismissive.  After reading his answers, I really don't know whether he is a believer or a skeptic, because he stuck to the facts!  (Wouldn't it be cool if the NEWS media did that? But I digress...)   His answers were honest and sometimes humourous, acknowledging the unknowns such as when exactly Jesus was born, some of the facts surrounding the historical St Nicholas, and details about the wise men and the star.  He doesn't gloss over the fact that the church co-opted pagan feast days and remade them into celebrations of the Nativity of Christ, but is also quite clear that it is the Christian celebration of this holiday that has made it great and inspired most of the charity associated with it. 

 

The book is organized into chapters by topic - Santa; The Nativity; Celebration; Traditions; etc - and in each chapter is a series of questions along with the answer, each Q&A taking approximately two pages.  So you can read the book cover to cover like I did, or just look up the answer to a question that intrigues you, like my kids may do.

 

I am going to give this book to my kids and encourage them to browse through it before I return it to the library.  They are the ones that ask me what holly and ivy have to do with Christmas, and what the twelve days of Christmas are.  Now I can give them a sourcebook along with my favorite instructions:  "Why don't you look it up?"

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Save Me From Myself: How I Found God, Quit Korn, Kicked Drugs, and Lived to Tell My Story by Brian "Head" Welch - this is another book that was on my "to read" list for a long time, and I finally was able to borrow it from a friend.  Brian "Head" Welch was the guitarist for the rock band Korn, which was very successful, but also notorious for their hard living, drug use, profanity, etc.  Welch tells his story in this autobiography.  As a child, he had a friend from a Christian family that greatly influenced him and his later decision to turn to Christ.  But during his teens and his years with Korn, he admits to his addictions, sins, depression, and struggles.  Finally, he started to ask questions of two business associates that happened to be Christians, and accepted Jesus Christ as his Savior.  What a remarkable transformation!  He talks about his growth since making the decision to follow Christ, and about the things he is still struggling with. 

 

This book is an easy read, in that it is an easy conversational style, and one can easily picture Brian just simply telling his story.  I think his experience gives parents and youth workers valuable insights into what goes on in the minds of youth and their perceptions.  It should also serve as a challenge to the "established" church - I wonder how many of us would react if someone that looked like Welch walked into our church service?  And would we be willing even to engage in conversation and friendship with someone like this to earn the right to share the gospel with them?  And what would his impression of us or of our church be like? 

 

Welch doesn't mince words in this account though - and he quotes conversations literally, so you'll find some four-letter words scattered throughout.  I didn't find this objectionable, because of the context, but some readers might.

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Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen - While the title had intrigued me for awhile, this is a book I would probably not have read on my own.  It was my book club's pick for last month, so I dug into it.  I hesitate to "recommend" it because it is full of vile, coarse language, and there are several se**al scenes that are more graphic than necessary.  Not all of that is gratuitous, of course - I think its an accurate portrayal of the people and atmosphere to include foul language and immoral behaviors, and generally it is part and parcel of the plot, so it's not added as sensationalism.  The story itself is fascinating, unique, and unpredictable.  The reading went quickly and I always wanted to turn the page to find out what would happen next.  I rather liked the ending too - it really wasn't quite what I expected, but was truly satisfying.

 

The main character is an elderly man in a nursing home and he is remembering his experiences as a young man and how he happened to "run away and join the circus" and the drama and tragedies he witnessed and lived through.  The author's note at the end reveals that many of the incidents and circumstances in the novel are based on actual events and anecdotes from the circus trains of the early 1900s. 

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Sister's Choice by Judith Pella.  Not that long ago, i picked up the first book in this series, Bachelor's Puzzle, and was pleasantly surprised at the character development and plot twists in what I expected to be a formula Christian romance.  I enjoyed it so much I decided that I would watch for the next book in the series.  I happened to see it at the library last week and even though I had several other books on my reading stack, I couldn't resist grabbing it.  Once again, Pella delivered a sweet romance that was not always predictable.  Likable and realistic characters, and a little bit of humor along the way enliven this installment in the series.  I kept turning the pages late into the night, always thinking "just one more chapter"  Now I find myself hoping that there will be a third book in this series, and perhaps it will satisfy my curiosity about the source of the long-standing disagreement between Ada and Florence. 

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The Trailblazing Life of Daniel Boone - How Early Americans Took to the Road by Cheryl Harness.  I took is book out of our library to supplement our study of US History, thinking it might be a reference for the boys to write a biography of Daniel Boone.  Instead, we wound up using it as a read-aloud and enjoying it thoroughly!  It reads like a page-turning adventure story - which, of course, the life of Daniel Boone really was!  The illustrations included, especially the maps, are beautifully done.  I also found the timeline along the bottom of each page interesting - it highlights events taking place around the world at the same that Daniel Boone was... serving in the French and Indian War or blazing the Wilderness Road or moving his family to Missouri, etc. 

 

I'd recommend this book as a read-aloud or for tweens and up to read, even if its not a school assignment.  I found it engaging and entertaining to read, and I'm very glad I took a chance on it through the library!

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Bachelor's Puzzle (Patchwork Circle Series #1) by Judith Pella.  I saw this on the library shelf while browsing and decided it looked interesting.  I've enjoyed Judith Pella's books and this series has a quilt theme, so of course it looked good!  So this was my "light" reading while on vacation last week.  Like most Christian romance books, the eventual outcome was obvious (boy and girl fall in love, and both grow in their walk with the Lord), but what set this one apart was the plot twist that made it less easy to anticipate HOW the young man would extricate himself from the situation he was in.  I knew it was going to happen, just didn't know how, so it did keep me turning the pages.

 

The second book in the series, Sister's Choice, was released earlier this year, so I'm on the waiting list at the library.  Looking forward to seeing who the next couple in this frontier community will be!

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Crown of Fire (The Thistle and the Cross #1) by Craig & Janet Parshall - this first novel in a trilogy is set during the beginning of the Reformation in Scotland, at the time of John Knox.  Actually, the main character is a student, and later an assistant and colleague of Rev Knox.  As with so many historical setting novels, the appeal to me was "seeing" a historical event as it may have been from the perspective of those who lived through it.  I really enjoyed this story, and look forward to getting the next book in the trilogy, but I did find it difficult emotionally in places - reading a first-hand account, even a fictional account, of seeing people martyred or tortured for their faith in Christ alone and for their love of God's Word, can be heart-wrenching.  To be reminded of the great cost to these reformers is humbling, to say the least.  They loved God's Word with all their hearts, and many gave their lives to give that Word to the people in their own language, and I am ashamed that I so often take that sacrifice too lightly - I own multiple copies of the Bible, in several translations, and have no fear of arrest or persecution because I have them; and yet I take that for granted and neglect the reading and study of the Scripture too often.  Even though this book is a work of fiction, it reminded me of the "great cloud of witnesses" and has been used by the Holy Spirit to convict me in this area.  So many Christians in generations long past have given their lives so that the gospel would come to us - do we cherish the inheritance that we have? And what legacy will we leave to those who come behind us?

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The Shipwreck That Saved Jamestown: The Sea Venture Castaways and the Fate of America by Lorri Glover and Daniel Blake Smith - This book was mentioned in a library newsletter I received, and it came while I was working on lesson plans for our study of the settling and colonization of the Americas in History.  I thought it might be interesting to read this for myself, as background for our discussion of Jamestown, and found it to be quite engaging.  I have to confess that in some chapters - especially towards the end of the book - I did skim a lot rather than read; but that was more because I was pressed for time than because of the material.  Glover and Smith present a well-researched history that, in places, reads like a novel.  They rely heavily on - and quote from - original sources such as the first-hand accounts of the colonists.  It really is a remarkable story, and one that usually is told only from the perspective of the colonists in Jamestown.  For anyone interested in the history of Jamestown, or of Bermuda, I'd recommend this as interesting reading - not nearly so dry as you might expect!

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Dracula by Bram Stoker - This was my book club pick for October.  We usually do our discussion at the end of the month, and thought it would be a fun idea to read something "spooky" to discuss so close to Halloween.  Like most people, I'm very familiar with the general story of Dracula and the vampire legend, but hadn't actually read the book.  It has been on my "I should read that sometime" list for quite some time now, since I saw (and loved) the movie The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen.  After seeing the movie a couple of times, I decided it would be interesting to read (or reread in many cases) the literary works on which the "extraordinary gentlemen" were based.  At any rate, I really enjoyed this reading of Dracula, and of course throughout my reading, I pictured Mina Harker just as she was portrayed in the movie!

 

It's easy to see why this novel remains a classic.  Even knowing how it ends does not dampen the thrill and the suspense as I turned the pages.  Stoker tells the story using first person narratives of most of the characters, with a few newspaper clippings thrown in.  Each of the main characters keeps some form of journal and some write letters or memos, and the chilling tale of the vampire, his victims, and those who fight him are told through the chronological organization of these various pieces. 

 

The edition I read included an introduction by Leonard Wolf, in which he explains that Dracula is considered to be of the Gothic novel genre, and points out that this monster is an invention of Stoker's, just over 100 years ago.  Yet most everyone knows who Count Dracula is and what he looks like, and that the vampire legends date back at least to medieval Europe.  Don't they?  Wolf reminds us that they do not.  The vampire was introduced to English literature in only 1816, and that by what is considered a rather weak novel by John Polidori.  (Polidori was one who took up Byron's party challenge to write a ghost story - the best known story from that challenge is Mary Shelley's Frankenstein)  Two other novels appeared during the 1800s which featured vampires, and only one, Carmilla by Sheridan LeFanu, is likely to have influenced Stoker's writing of Dracula.  Wolf's analysis of Dracula observes that not only is it an imaginative and exciting Gothic adventure, but is also intended as somewhat of a Christian allegory in the struggle between good and evil.  Wolf says:

The struggle is not merely between good guys and a supremely bad man, but between high-minded Christians and a minion of the devil.  Dracula (his name, in Romanian, beans "dragon") is a creature of the night, cut off from God because he has chosen immortaility under the sponsorship of Satan rather than of Christ.  Though Dracula has supernatural powers, he is weak in God's daylight; he shrinks from any contact with the cross.  Still, he represents a more than mortal danger in his victims because his blood drinking is not simply an act of nourishment.  The more the vampire drinks, the greater is the victim's spiritual empoisonment, so that, when death finally comes, it brings not release from the shocks that flesh is heir to but the beginning of ****ation. (Introduction by Leonard Wolf , p xi, to Dracula)

Certainly the spiritual overtones are obvious, but I would not have described the story as a Christian allegory myself!!  And I certainly don't recommend reading it for the inspiration, because while good ultimately triumphs, Dracula could hardly be considered inspiring or uplifting! It is entertaining and well-crafted fantasy fiction, but dark and chilling in tone.  I enjoyed revisiting this classic novel.

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A Thousand Splendid Suns by Khaled Hosseini.  This was the September read for our MOMS Club book club.  We had originally thought about The Kite Runner, since the movie was coming out, but of course that meant the book was in high demand at the library.  So we decided on this, also thinking it would be an appropriate choice for a moms' group, since the story is about women.

 

I don't know quite how to describe it - not an "enjoyable" book, because it tells of so much sorrow and suffering.  But I certainly am glad I read it.  Although the characters are fictional, I know the situations are all too real.  Have been the reality for too many in Afghanistan and other countries where women are treated as property, chattel, or slaves.  I don't know how one could read books like this and not feel compassion for these people, or anger that these atrocities are committed in the name of religion.  Even considering all that heaviness, this story also had warmth and love, and portrayed an unlikely friendship that was characterized by a depth of devotion and commitment that was truly beautiful. 

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The Falcon and the Sparrow by M.L. Tyndall is a book I picked up because I'd read the previous pirate themed trilogy by Tyndall and quite liked it.  Then again, I tend to like piratey things.   (Did I write about those books here?  I somehow don't think so)   After the vaguely disappointing The Friday Night Knitting Club, which was the book I read previous to this one, I wanted something fairly light and escapist.  I like historical fiction, there is just something satisfying to me about reading a mystery or drama or romance set in the distant past.  From Tyndall, I knew I would get a historical setting (England in 1803), a little romance, and a "could only happen in fiction" adventure storyline.  Got all three in this quick read.  I thought she did a good job of creating the setting and she presented interesting characters.  As in the pirate trilogy, the events and plot are truly the stuff of fiction, but enjoyable (to me) nonetheless.  My favorite of the Tyndall books I've read is still the first one in the pirate trilogy - The Redemption.  That was the closest to being believable!  LOL  I will be watching for the next Tyndall offering, which is due out in the spring, The Red Siren. 

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The Friday Night Knitting Club by Kate Jacobs is a book that had been on my reading wishlist for quite some time.  In fact, several ladies in my MOMS Club wanted to read it, so we all held off until we could acquire enough copies from the library to make it book club pick of the month.  So all that hype and anticipation for this book ----  and in my opinion, it was only "okay"

 

A novel about women's relationships and knitting - of course I didn't expect adventure and suspense!  But I found the plot and characters to be entirely too predictable.  At least they were likeable characters, I will say that.  I did care what happened to them, and I liked the story as a whole.  I got teary-eyed at the places where I was expected to, and was sympathetic with the characters in general.  And when we got together to discuss the book, we found there wasn't much to talk about.  The other ladies in our book club felt more or less the same - it was an okay read, but slow going and predictable.

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I am behind on all kinds of blogging, message board, and email-related things, and my Bookcase is no exception.  I finished this book weeks ago!

The False House by James Stoddard is the sequel to The High House, which has become one of my favorite books.  In this one, the house is under great threat by a new plot of the Anarchists.  A young girl is kidnapped and held captive, and the anarchists are using her to change the house.  As in the first book, there are fairy tale and allegorical elements to the story, and lots of fantastic adventure as Lord Anderson and his brother search for the missing girl and for the key to unravelling the plot against the house.  And it appears there are traitors in their midst!

I'm so glad I found these books, and purchased them - they are on my list of books to read over and over again.  Perhaps they will become read-alouds as well.  I will certainly encourage my kids to read them!

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I just read this book again.  I love it.  I recently purchased my own copy, along with a copy of the sequel, The False House.  It had been only a couple of months since I read The High House, but since I was about to read the continuation of the story and because I loved the book so much, I decided to read it again so it was fresh in my mind.  I enjoyed it just as much the second time through, and was more attuned to some of the allegorical elements. 

 

This time I read the entire book in one day - that day being the travel day as we came home from our Honduras mission trip.  This small book fit easily into my purse and I was able to read it as we traveled from San Pedro Sula to Miami, during our long (otherwise boring) layover in Miami, and then from Miami to Baltimore.  And I still had time to visit, nap, browse a magazine or two, and do a couple of Sudoku puzzles.  That's more a commentary on how LONG the travel day was, not on how fast I read.   

My first "review" of this book can be read here.

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A Daughter's Inheritance, by Tracie Peterson and Judith Miller, is the first in a series titled "The Broadmoor Legacy."  I did have a slow start to this book, reading a few pages once every few days to begin with.  But yesterday I had some time in the evening to devote to reading and found that I was interested enough that I finished it last night.  I've read a number of books by Peterson and Miller, and historical fiction is a favorite genre of mine, so this book was sure to appeal to me.  The setting is the Thousand Islands area of the St Lawrence River, during the early 1900s.  Fanny Broadmoor and her two cousins have a very close relationship, but the rest of the Broadmoor family spend most of their time together arguing and complaining.  There are some surprises in store for all of them in the patriarch's will, and Fanny becomes the victim of her greedy uncle's scheme to get control of her share of the inheritance.  Of course there is a love story! Fanny loves a young man that her uncle doesn't consider suitable, and although the very nature of this type of novel dictates that they will eventually be together, there are many obstacles in their way.  I found a lot to like about this story and some of its characters, and plenty to dislike about the villain of the piece; and although the main plot is fairly predictable, some of the plot twists were not.  Although the end of the book does indicate that Fanny and her young man will eventually wind up together, it doesn't happen in this installment - if I want to find out how all the details work out, I will need to read the second installment in the series.  I will be watching for it to become available, as I'm interested enough to read some more.

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Pendragon by Stephen Lawhead.  - I actually finished reading this at least a month ago, but forgot to write about it!  This is the fourth book in the Pendragon Cycle, but it isn't a continuation of the story.  Rather, it is a retelling of the events in the books Merlin and Arthur, but completely from Merlin's viewpoint.  There are details and events that aren't included in these previous installments in the cycle, and yet in many ways, it feels like reading a different story entirely.  At some points I felt unsure that the timeline of Pendragon really did match up with the events already narrated, but I didn't bother to get out my copy of Arthur to check.  (And I have been known to do that very thing - for instance, when I read Mary Reilly I consulted a copy of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde several times to see that the two stories matched.)  Having read both Book Three and now Book Four of the Pendragon Cycle, I have twice reached the point in the Arthurian story where Arthur's injury appears to be fatal and he is taken to Avallon in hopes of his recovery there.  Familiarity with the legends tells me that Arthur must regain his health and return to rule in the Kingdom of Summer, and so I'm anxious to find out how Lawhead will tell that rest of the story.  In order to find out, I will have to find a copy of the fifth and final book in the cycle, Grail.

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Kabul Beauty School: An American Woman Goes Behind the Veil by Deborah Rodriguez.  This is another book that first caught my eye quite awhile ago, but I didn't start reading till last week.  Once I got started, I was really pulled into the story, although I have to say that the timeline of events was a bit confusing to me at times.  Deborah Rodriguez is a hairdresser from Michigan that volunteered to go to Afghanistan with a humantarian aid group shortly after the fall of the Taliban in 2001.  She relates how she felt rather useless during the first part of her stay because she had such limited skills in things that seemed practical - nursing, therapy, etc.  But she discovered that she made friends with the Afghani people easily, and found that her hairdressing skills were indeed very useful!  She wound up teaching a beauty school for Afghani women, training them so that they could open up their own salons and help support their families.   This book is a journal and memoir of her experiences and friendships.

 

When I started reading, I (in my relative ignorance) wondered how much demand there might be for hairdressing and cosmetology in a culture where - I thought - the women were almost always under a veil.  Boy, was I wrong about that!  Apparently, beauty salons are in great demand and are very successful businesses for these women.  I learned a lot about daily life in this war-torn nation and its people just by reading this simple memoir.