Realizations Inspired by a Bad Book

I have discovered:

About myself -
          If there is a book I'm supposed to read, and I don't want to read it, I will find any means to put off reading it. But out of guilt I will not read anything else either. Reading screeches to an unhappy, guilty stop.

About Jadyn -
          She can push through a section in a book that nearly killed me by with violent eye rolling, and quickly catch up to my book mark. She is perseverance in a bottle! I really expected her to "set it aside" and absolve me of having to finish the dang thang.

About my Mom -
          When I try to explain glaring, laughable plot holes to her, she will defend those holes, come up with wild scenarios to make them accurate, and then pull out of her butt the caliber of a handgun required to kill a bear in a single shot. ?!? Mom, what have you been doing since I moved out?

About my Friend -
          She will listen to my endless ranting and surround me with sympathy. Thank you Dear. You are an island of sanity for me.

About my Brother -
          He will immediately jump to the same conclusion as I did, and even use the same vocabulary as I did in my head. That I'm going to be blacklisted. Rock on.

About Everyone who had the Misfortune to Listen to
Me in the Last Few Days -
          That honesty is the best policy. This I know. I never had any intention of being less than honest (though perhaps had hoped to escape) but it does my heart good to hear that everyone values honesty so much.

Have you had any realizations lately?

Black Hole Reviews: Sucked in by YOUR Reviews

I thought it would be fun to put up a weekly (or whatever) list of the books that I read about - on all of the wonderful book blogs I know - that most sucked me in. These are the books that I immediately added to my Goodreads list so I wouldn't forget their names. These are the books that I've been thinking about this last week and wondering when I'd be able to get my hands on them.

(And thanx to my husband for another mind-blowing button whipped up on the fly!)

Check out these books and awesome reviews by some awesome reviewers!

• The Morning Gift by Eva Ibbotson reviewed by Bookish in a Box
• Ondine: The Summer of Shambles by Ebony McKenna reviewed by In the Hammock
• The King of Elfland's Daughter by Lord Dunsany reviewed by things mean a lot
• The Passage by Justin Cronin reviewed by Book-a-rama
• The Survivor's Club - The Secrets and Science that Could Save Your Life by Ben Sherwood reviewed by Reading Thru the Night
• The Handbook for Lightning Strke Survivors: A Novel by Michele Young-Stone reviewed by A Novel Source
• Alchemy and Meggy Swan by Karen Cushman reviewed by One Librarian's Book Reviews

PPB: Falling for Rapunzel by Leah Wilcox

Falling for Rapunzel
by Leah Wilcox
illustrated by Lydia Monks
Picture Book, Fairy Tale
published: 2003
5 of 5 stars

About

What if Rapunzel really didn't need saving? What if her cries where only hair woes? What if the Rapunzel was so high up she couldn't quite hear what the prince was asking?

Reaction

This is one of my favorite picture books. (I need to make a list of those. Hmmm. Listful Monday idea, huh?) It is told in spot on rhyming couplets. It is illustrated in an adorable, expressive style with cut photos thrown in for foliage. Oh yeah. And it is funny. Giggle-fest funny. Your Littles will love it. You will love it. You will love reading it over and over - and we all know that is exactly what you will have to do. There is even a plot twist at the end that you probably won't see coming.

Do I go too far? NOT AT ALL. It is a perfect picture book. Ha! That's gotta be my new feature series. Perfect Picture Books. Huzzah.

Anyhoo. This one is awesome.

Have a couplet (from my memory no less...though I did check for punctuation accuracy):

          By now the prince was feeling hammered,
          not to mention less enamored.

Your welcome. :)

Review: Dragons of Autumn Twilight by Margaret Weis and Tracy Hickman

 Dragons of Autumn Twilight
by Margaret Weis and Tracy Hickman
Fantasy
448 pages
published: 1984
6 of 5 stars

About

A motley group of friends meet up at a reunion after years of going their separate ways and find themselves entangled with a pair of none-too-friendly strangers who possess a token from the now-forbidden ancient gods. Rather they like it or not, the strangers find themselves under the protective wing of the friends as they all run for their lives.

The friends fall into their problematic old roles, the strangers bring new insights into the old religion, and soon the gods themselves are involved in the epic journeyings of these friends.

More

Reaction

This is the first 'real' book I read. It was provided by my older brother and according to my parents, wasn't appropriate the the elementary student I was. I loved it. I don't just mean, I loved it. I mean it became part of my identity. It cemented Fantasy into my psyche. I have reread them all more than once. (Though not in the past few years.) Let me try to tell you why this first one is so great.

• A fully described and involving world with it's own history, geography, religion, races, moons and constellations, magic and cultures. I know you can say that about many fantasies, but this is an all-the-way deal. When I say history, I mean thousands of years of history. When I say races, I mean races you've never heard of. And beautiful. This world (Krynn) has awe inspiring beauty.
• Characters that you'll never never forget. Each one is so individual and so well drawn that their names are engraved in my mind.They have their own histories and demons and talents. And they have detailed and real relationships among each other. The group dynamics make this book amazing. Friends. Brothers. Lovers. Mentors. Traitors. Leaders.
• Adventure. Epic world saving adventure. Personal struggle adventure. Conflict. Terror. Mystery. Miracles. And safe havens every once in a while.
• Romance. There is a love triangle and young love and devoted self-sacrificing love.
• There is no swearing, sex (beyond references, perhaps, or that could be a later book), or gratuitous descriptions of evil. There is violence, which can be graphic, in the war/battle sense. But nothing that seemed more than exciting even when I was young.

I feel inadequate to describe my love for this book. These characters have been standing over my shoulder and providing a measure by with to judge all future stories since grade school. I want so much to introduce you to my them, Tanis and Tasslehoff and Flint and Sturm and everyone. I feel like if I turned around fast enough they would be standing there.

I highly recommend giving this one a try.                                                                  

Listful Mondays: Sections in my Library

Sections in My Library

This might seem like a strange or boring subject, but I thought it would be interesting, so there! 

Actually, I did think it would be interesting because I know my library is organized in a way that make sense to me and is according to the books I actually own. I figured everyone would approach things differently, and have different sections depending on what books they collected. That's why. So here goes - in the order of scanning around the room clockwise:

1. Adult Fantasy and Science Fiction (Fantasy outnumbers by far, and these are all paperback in very short shelves. It is the biggest section in the library mostly due to all the books my husband came with.) 
2. Fantasy Hardback (This section is due to the fact that the hardbacks don't fit in the short shelves. It has both adult and YA fantasy.) 
3. Contemporary YA (This is a default section. Everything here doesn't fit anywhere else genre-wise.)
4. Middle Grade (This has a large number of books in a small section since the books are so small - many Magic Treehouse, Fairy books, A to Z mysteries, and the like. There is a large stack sitting on floor in front of shelf because we are out of room.)
5. YA Historical Fiction
6. YA Fantasy
7. Fairy Tale Retellings
8. YA Survival
9. YA War
10. Children's Books Out-of-Reach (This is for all those pictures books {old, special, or holiday} that I don't want accessible to small hands.)
11. Science (Large section with animal/dinosaur/chemistry/anatomy/nature/space books. There are some history thrown in.)
12. Audio Books
13. Computer Books (These are slated for boxes and the basement. I need more room for prettier and readable books. :)
14. Health/Development/Pregnancy Stuff
15. Religious (Big section. Very varied. From study guides to biographies to school notes to family histories.
16. Text Books (The stuff from college that I couldn't part with. Mostly English books.)
17. Poetry
18. Humor
19. Non-Fantasy Adult Books and Classics (This section is growing now that I occasionaly read and acquire things that fit here. In the past this section has been so small that I've attempted to do away with it entirely by giving away the three books there. My husband wouldn't let me - he has emotional value attached to that copy of Ben Hur in spanish. But it's a good thing now. I've expanded it to include classics recently.)
20. How-To and Reference (Hiking books, How to Raise Your Spirited Child, and all that jazz, along with my huge thesaurus and rhyming dictionaries.)
21. Early Readers (This shelf is actually my salvation. If I had to rely on someone else for enough books to fill my learning readers' required time I'd just die.) 
22. The Stuff That's Left (I've got yearbooks here, health books that didn't fit in the other spot, and I know not what.)
23. Picture and Board Books (This is actually a whole huge shelf that didn't fit in the library, but you can see it from the doorway. The board books are tossed into plastic bins that fit into the lower cubbies of the shelf. I love Ikea.)
24. In Transit Shelf (This shelf is in my bedroom and contains many TBR books and books recently finished and on their way down stairs.
25. Library Box (A pretty Ikea organizing thing in the front room to keep the library books corralled.)
26. Piano Music (Another Ikea thing in the front room holding volumes of piano music.)

There ya go! How is your library organized?? I'd love to read about it.

{Next week: Books I Have Lost}

PS Sorry for the tardiness of this post today. We were out of town for the weekend, and then I woke up to pukey kids. We'll see how blogging goes this week! 

Time Out for Fairy Tales

Confession. I'm fairy taled out. And I'm sure you, dear Bloggies, are fairy tale reviewed out. I blame the innundation on three things:

1. My own idiosyncrasies and tendeny to get comfortable in a rut.
2. An ecstatic library frenzy. You know I don't get to go all that often, and when I went there on a date sans children...well. Five books I haven't read by this author? Grab them all! Three retellings of Beauty and Beast? My favorite! You get the picture. I had a ginormous stack that I am officially done with now.
3. The Once Upon a Time Challenge. But I have no more spots for fairy tales, so it's safe to move on.

But there is an irony. Over a year ago a friends recommended a specific book to me and I have been impatiently waiting for it to come out in paper back so I could buy it. Then I recently discovered the wonder of holds at the library and slapped a hold on this book. But I was way down the line and didn't think I'd be reading it any time soon. It came up! Now. Today. I'm headed out to get it once the Boy gets home from scouts. So even though I'm fairy taled out, I'm be reading one more.

Irony number two. It is a retelling of Rumplestitskin. I just did that. So you will be getting a double dose of that obscure one soon.

And yet, I'm getting excited. I'd really love to love it. Or even to hate it. Something stronger that what I've been feeling lately about my reading. I want to gush or bash. Politely of course. :)

But I'll tell you one thing. If this book contains any more about 'looking with the heart' or 'reading his heart' or 'understanding your own heart' or 'following your heart' or 'your heart's true music' or 'make sure you only wash your car with your heart,' I'm gonna scream. There might be a book throwing.

Stay tuned.

Review: And Only to Deceive by Tasha Alexander

And Only to Deceive
by Tasha Alexander
Historical Fiction, Mystery
336 pages
published: 2005
For: Book Club assignment from last summer *chagrin*
3 of 5 stars

About

For Emily, accepting Philip's proposal was an easy way to escape her overbearing mother. And when Philip dies on safari soon after their wedding, she feels little grief; she had barely known him. Now, nearly two years later, she learns that her husband was very different from the man she thought she had married.
Eager to find out more, Emily begins to study the priceless Greek statues her husband collected. Her search leads to the British Museum, where she discovers that a ring of forgers is stealing artifacts from the Greco–Roman galleries. Solving the crime will lead to more discoveries about Philip and cause Emily to question the role in Victorian Society to which she, as a woman, is relegated.  - from Goodreads

Reaction

I had a good time reading this. It wasn't anything amazing or compelling, but a good time. I found the situation of having to mourn someone you don't miss and then falling in love with your dead husband intriguing and sorrowful. The pain of regret and lost opportunities is awful. I liked the journal entries from Philip and freedom afforded a widow. I appreciated how Emily's character wasn't so radical she thought she didn't have to marry, but did what was necessary to ensure what she hoped was the most happiness she could find. I liked how she woke up out of her own selfishness and began broadening her education.

I got annoyed with the mystery. But that might have more to do with me than the book. I rarely read MysteryMystery books. Maybe you mystery readers can tell me if impatience is a normal emotion while reading mystery. I wanted more to be going on while it took forever to figure out 'who done it.' And I got truly annoyed with that woman who kissed back every time. Pick a side, Lady.

So, while I had fun with this book I don't have any plans to read the sequels. This one ended at a nice satisfying place. The mysteries were resolved, the romance progressed enough. I'm just fine.

Review: Sunlight and Shadow by Cameron Dokey

Sunlight and Shadow
by Cameron Dokey
YA, Fairy Tale
208 pages
published: 2004
4 of 5 stars

About

A retelling of The Magic Flute (which I knew nothing about, and now know is an opera. I don't actually know if it is/was a fairy tale, but it is part of the Once Upon a Time series so I'm not going to stress about the classification.

In a time when the world was young and many things were quite commonplace that are now entirely forgotten, Sarastro, Mage of the Day, wed Pamina, the Queen of the Night. And in this way was the world complete, for light was joined to dark. For all time would they be joined together. Only the ending of the world could tear them apart. In other words, in the days in which my parents married, there was no such thing as divorce....
Thus begins the tale of Mina, a girl-child born on the longest night of the darkest month of the year. When her father looked at her, all he saw was what he feared: By birth, by name, by nature, she belonged to the Dark. So when Mina turned sixteen, her father took her away from shadow and brought her into sunlight.
In retaliation, her mother lured a handsome prince into a deadly agreement: If he frees Mina, he can claim her as his bride.
Now Mina and her prince must endure deadly trials -- of love and fate and family -- before they can truly live happily ever after....  - from Goodreads

Reaction

I enjoyed this one from start to finish. I loved how it had a mythological feel and tone, speaking of the beginnings of the earth and godlike jobs and powers. I enjoyed the dynamic of a marriage that wasn't working but had to work. I appreciated that my suspicions of who I would like/dislike were proven wrong. But most of all, I loved that this one had humor. There were two characters, in fact, who had a sense of humor, the wit, and the guts to be funny. This was a quick read, lyrical, mythical, comical at times, and enjoyable. Happy endings sometimes are so yummy. This was another book where the secondary characters made the story. I loved Gayna, Lapin, and Tern. But perhaps I loved the Queen of the Night best. Confident, understated power is...appealing.

If I had to split hairs, I'd mention that the romance was sudden and the trials passed through melodramatic. But who wants to split hairs?

Review: Spinners by Donna Jo Napoli and Richard Tchen

Spinners
 by Donna Jo Napoli and Richard Tchen
YA, Fairy Tale
208 pages
published: 1999
For: Once Upon Time Challenge
3 of 5 stars

About

Rumplestitskin.

Reaction

Fascinating. Napoli takes a fairy tale and makes it makes sense. She gives it a backstory, a logic, that feels real. When those 'ah-ha' moments happen (like when you realize so-and-so is really her/him from the fairy tale, or this event is really that moment, or a 'so that's why' dawning) they are smooth and seamless. You saw them coming, but they were still an 'ah-ha.' Even a strange tale like Rumplestitskin is...believable...is that the right word? Even Rumplestitskin had a story and a heart.

So why wouldn't this be a 5 star book when I am full of astonishment and a very very strange sense of satisfaction?? Well. Simply because it wasn't enjoyable. It was, in fact, dark and dreary and all but hopeless. And the end was sudden, messy, and tortured.

Should you read it? I have no idea. Do you like fascinating character studies that make you wonder if perhaps that twisted fairy tale might have started out with a poor tailor? Do you mind not having a happily ever after that leaves a sweet taste in your mouth? If so, you might very well find this book valuable. I did, to a certain extent...but I also threw the book at the end. I guess I wanted a little more reward for what I had suffered while reading about these people.

I'd like to note, in a purely venting sort of way, that the tailor didn't deserve what he got in the beginning, but his blindness in the end erased my sympathies for him. The young woman was a B. Saskia got the short end of the stick - but you shouldn't make promises you can't keep.

And just by word of warning, it opens with a sex scene. How 'bout that for audacious? Usually you gotta wait for that kind of stuff. ;)

Listful Mondays: Book Pet Peeves

Book Pet Peeves

1. Dog-eared pages.
2. People who break the spine when they read.
3. Computer-read audio books.
4. Covers that have nothing to do with the book. (example: The Blue Castle by L.M. Montgomery)
5. Price tags that won't come off or leave sticky stuff behind forcing me to break out the goo-gone.
6. Another story about "becoming a man." (I referring to "literary" stories {ya know, the only ones with merit*} from my college classes. As we all know, there is nothing more important than how to become a man.**)
7. Writing in books. (By all means, write in yours. Don't write in mine.)
8. Books with no summary on the flap or back. I don't care what so-and-so said. Tell me what it's about!
9. Library stickers right over the blurb.
10. Twenty pages of reader quotes in the the beginning of the book. Does anyone read those?
11. Typos. I know these books get copy edited up the wazoo. I can imagine the frustration of an author who finds some typos have slipped through.
12. Binding errors - like when the words get sucked into the glue for the spine.

 p.s. I'm not really all that uptight. These things bug me but I'm not likely to lose my cool. Unless you break the spine! :)

I'd love to see your peeves, please join me!

* I'm referring to opinions other than my own.
** Can't we all just agree on a sarcasm icon?

{Next Week: Sections in My Library.}