A Prayer for Owen Meany

Recently someone asked me to tell them about my all time favorite book. Well, here it is....
Owen Meany is an odd little boy with a wrecked voice. His family is dysfunctional squared, but he has a best friend whose family becomes more substantial in his life than his own. I have recommended this to anyone who has ever asked for a good read and only one person has not liked it (to tell you why would give it away). I love Owen, I love his life and his relationship with John. I have purchased at least 8 copies of this book and every time I loan it out I never get it back!
When we put our first house on the market and were 'staging' it to look kind of nice with very little furniture - I went to Salvation Army to find some cook books for the kitchen and found a worn copy of this book and left it behind for the new home owners!
They did try to make this into a movie, thanks be that they didn't stay close enough to the real book that they could use the name and ended up calling it "Simon Birch" a passable movie but the book could just never be matched.

We're Just Like You Only Prettier

Need a laugh? Here you go.
I simply can't get enough of Southern female humorist writing. Every time I read Celia Rivenbark's writing, I feel like I am with my aunts again listening in on their conversations.
While she does go on about how 'trendy' it is to be White Trash. I don't know a southerner who really wants to be called White Trash. We may laugh about it and even call ourselves, sisters, brothers, cousins best friend's mama white trash, but if you hint that you really think we are we'll cut you like a Thanksgiving Turkey. ;-)
I do appreciate folks who can find humor in life's inconsistencies.

He's Just Not That Into You ****UPDATED****

I just finished He’s Just Not That Into You by Greg Beherendt and Liz Tuccillo. Crazy right, since I am quite happily married, but what led me to the book was my in-laws. (brother & sisters)
As I read the first chapters I was tempted to just put it down and move on - something that I have really never been able to do with any book. Ever. This book is not a cure-all for dating, but rather a wake up call to those women in the world who can’t seem to see all of the red flags that don’t just sit there but jump up and down screaming “You deserve better!” I don’t care for the whole ‘self-help’ genre, but a little self-actualization can benefit everyone now and again. Nothing here is earth shattering, there is no information that you haven’t heard before, but as with many things sometimes hearing it again from a different voice helps a little.
There probably won’t be a time ever again when I offer advice to the in-laws on their love lives because they all seem to have reached a point where they think I don’t have a clue about what is really out there in the wonderful world of dating. But, as a last ditch plea to all of the people I care about who are still single - READ THIS STINKIN BOOK!
I won’t recommend it to anyone under 21 only because there are some pretty mature themes and language and lifestyle acceptances that are contradictory to my personal beliefs (premarital sex being the most prominant). Having said that, this book is a must for anyone who has ever felt like crap because of a crappy relationship or has sat up with a pint (Ben & Jerry’s of course) and a pal trying to pick apart what went wrong in their most recent relationship.
“Don’t waste the pretty!”

So, for any of my friends......I am so excited about the upcoming movie that I am looking for some friends to go see it together!

Movie update!

Well, last night I joined what felt like 159,000 tweens in the same theater to see the movie "Twilight".

I fully expected to hate the movie, but I must say I was pleasantly surprised.

I really thought that in the book, the Bella/Edward relationship was more of a romantic and sweet situation than the intense sexual tension and lust that was portrayed in the movie. Oh well, that is probably what will gather the non-readers into the twilight fold.

As I read, I will often try to picture what actor/actress would fit my imagination of the characters in a book. The girl who was cast as Bella was exactly who I imagined as I read the book - her father was perfect, as was Jacob. The rest of the cast were not quite what I imagined, but it was (regarding the casting) fine and the adaptation to the big screen was better than I imagined. CGI effects were kind of cheesy at times but passable, the acting was not always in keeping with the characters that were developed in the book. But I wonder if actors would be better served to read the book instead of carrying around the attitude that they are above reading the "banal" books that make them rich and famous once they are adapted to the big screen. It might make for more good transitions to movies.

*****UPDATE TO THE UPDATE*******

My friend just posted on the experience with a totally different take and I really think it has merit and deserves some attention! The Bobby Pin

Homicide A Year on the Killing Streets

Way far back in 1993 a new show came to my television. "Homicide, Life on the Street", (see Homicide Life on the Street - The Complete Seasons 1 & 2)
I thought it was just a spin off from Law & Order. A freakin' AWESOME spin off but not more. I don't remember when I actually paid attention to the credits and saw that it was based on this book. I was faithful to Pembleton & Bayliss for 6 years - don't get your knickers in a knot, I mean in regards to my television viewing, they were my #1 show - even when, in the last 2 seasons, it kind of jumped the shark.
Well, it took me 15 years to finally read the book but it was worth the wait! I admit to spending the first third of the book trying to figure out who the television characters were based on until I noticed that there were photos in the middle that let me know (fyi - didn't need them, yes i'm a little awesome that way).
If you are squeamish, or if reading foul language bothers you, don't read this book. If you are highly (or moderately) interested in procedural type drama and police stories and you can get beyond the language. Read the book! I have never seen death the way these men have and probably never will but David Simon really brings life and humanity to all of the people who are mentioned in the book.
I have yet to find a good rating system for my opinion on the books I read, but this gets 4 1/2 out of 5 whatever rating I end up using.

Virus on Orbis 1

When he was in 5th grade, I picked my youngest son up from school and he said the words that I'd long waited to hear - "Mom, we have to go buy this book!"

An author had come to speak to the kids at the school and he was so dynamic and excited about his book and reaching out to kids to try and get them interested in reading that his excitement was infectious enough to rub off on my son. As a reader, I have hoped for the day when one of my sons would want to read and when it came I was over the moon! We ended up having to wait a day before the stock of books got back to the bookstore, but our patience was rewarded when we got the book, it was signed.

The next year we went to a book signing and got to meet PJ Haarsma



- it wasn't well attended, but if there is another this year, I will make sure I bring every kid we know.

The book was great! JT is a kid traveling through space on a ship where all of the adults have died. Once the ship arrives, the kids start a four year stint of servitude to the Citizens of Orbis.

I have mentioned before that I like getting in at the end of a series so that I can power through and know what the heck is going to happen. We got in at the beginning here and it is the only time I really haven't minded. Book 3 is scheduled to be on the shelves on March 10, 2009.

The Twilight Saga

OOOOOOH movie coming out this week!
Where do I fall with this set of books? After having (almost) everyone I knew saying I had to read this book, one person lent it to me and it sat on my shelf for almost a year before I finally picked it up. I mean really, human girl falling in love with a vampire (did no one watch Buffy The Vampire Slayer?) it has been done!
So, I read about 30-40 other books first and when I ran out of everything in my house, it was a Sunday so I wasn't headed to the library, this was the only thing I had never picked up and I sort of got tired of feeling like it was screaming at me to be given back to Justyn every time I looked at the shelf - I thought what the heck, I'll give it a shot!
If you don't know yet the gist of the story - you must be living under a rock.
There were really no BTVS comparisons, other than the obvious - but here is what I liked:

1. Bella is pretty but not perfect. I think she is universally relate able to almost all young women.
2. Jacob (sorry Edward fans, I am more practical in relationships)
3. This is a youth book - geared toward girls but I know a couple of teenage boys who read and liked it - that it is not trashy with sex and foul language.

My friend's sister had a freak out about the popularity of the book because Edward stays in her room while Bella sleeps, but it didn't strike me as inappropriate material for young girls. Most of what they see on television and in school is far worse. In fact, Edward's control and desire to keep Bella safe and I'll use the term "whole" is sweet and an indication of true love and not the teen lust that many girls fall into. I think it gives a young woman a relationship to aspire to, one in which her boyfriend truly values her total worth.
I'll be in line at the end of the week to check out the transition it made to the movie theater but I feel safe in the assumption that it won't measure up to the mental canvas in my mind.

Good to Great

I have a very difficult time with Non-fiction. It isn't that I dislike it, I just love the fact that normally I can complete and enjoy a book in a few hours where non-fiction takes a lot longer to finish.

Having said that, when this book was recommended to me by a friend I wasn't excited to dive into the book, but this was really an interesting read!

The book chronicles companies that have pulled ahead of the pack in their respective industries. What choices they made, and how those choices affected the development and progression of their business are the rear view indicators of how they excelled.

If you are okay with non-ficiton - I do recommend this book. The principles can be used in nearly every aspect of life.

Don't Make Me Choose Between You and My Shoes

Well, fiction fluff is a fun way to spend a few hours. Edwina and Debbie Sue have a small town detective agency they work when they aren't busy fixing the hair and makeup for the ladies of Salt Lick, Texas.
The enjoyable thing for me here is that I feel (to a certain degree) that I know these girls. They are the chicks I grew up with who stayed behind and built their lives in the south. Ed and Debbie Sue remind me that plain talk and common sense are my heritage.
The girls head to New York for a convention of Private detectives. Having received some recognition for cracking a previous case they have been asked to be presenters and dive whole hog into the adventure taking a young woman who wants to join the detective profession under their wing and falling right in to a murder mystery.
I do enjoy southern stories no matter what form. This is a good fun read, don't look to have it answer the questions of the universe. Don't even expect it to require your brain to shift into 3rd gear. This is strictly for fun.

The Merchant of Death

If I am going to read a book series, I want to jump in at the end. There is nothing more frustrating than waiting a year (or so) to find out what happens next.
Happily, I found the Pendragon series just last year and had 9 books to read! I won’t tell you how long it did (or didn’t) take me to complete all 9, but I will say that I have no idea when the last book comes out and it is killing me!
This is a very good series - my 12 year old came kicking and screaming to the first book, but he is a firm fan now. Reading these books as an adult, I did enjoy the story and it kept me involved despite the inconsistencies and the fact that Bobby Pendragon rarely behaves his own age whether it is 14 in the first book or 17 in the most recently published one.
The stories are clean, and fun. The characters are likable and you will root for the good guys. I have to respect an author who chooses paths that I don’t see coming a mile away and let me say that doesn’t happen often. For the most part you can discern what direction the stories will take; however, there are some nice turns.
We got to meet the author last year at Jake’s school and if you are a fan you should know he is a really nice and likable man. The type of man you want to see succeed in his career. Which, yeah he is doing…..

What the Dickens

Are you kidding? I was kind of excited to give this book a shot. Rouge tooth fairy - secret world, magical birthday candles, Gregory Maguire does seem to have a corner on a subject matter that holds my interest. He loses it here.

When I read books like this, I wish I had the ability to just put them down and not finish, but I just can't. If you are (like me) at times a glutton for punishment, go ahead read the book.

The Devil Wears Prada

For my purposes here, I created a category for books like this - Fiction Fluff. Books that are a fun read, don't require a lot of concentration or investment of time, and give entertainment without really trying to "bring change" to anything.

Usually these types of books are made into movies and they make that transition far better than most others. This book was a fun read and I am glad (as I usually am despite the outcome) that I read it before I knew it would be made into a movie. If you are into fiction fluff, as described above, this won't disappoint. But if you just want to know how the story goes buy the movie they did a good job get it in widescreen........