Books and Books...

A few more books read lately...can't stop!!

My Amazon links aren't working as I write this so you will have to survive without the visual picture.

Angry Housewives Eating Bon Bons - Lorna Landvik
- I liked it.  It was in my bag of books to pass on to others but I decided to keep this one.  It's about a group of friends  who get together to form a book club.  It follows the women in the club over the decades as their lives unfold.  While it wasn't the most amazing book I've ever read, I did thoroughly enjoy it and it will be going on my bookshelf to read again someday.

An Echo in the Bone - Diana Galbadon   I blame my work mate entirely for turning me onto this series.  While she does sometimes go on a little I can't stop reading this series.  This books ends in a bit of cliffhanger and its going to drive me batty to wait until 2012 to find out what happens!!

The Year of Fog - Michelle Richmond.  I downloaded this to our Kindle and finished it in a couple of days.  I could NOT put this one down.  What happens in the year when you look away from your daughter for 1 minute and turn back to find her gone?

Books!

I have read a pile of books lately but since it's been so long since I have blogged I won't be posting reviews on most of these. 

The Choice - Nicholas Sparks
Charley's Web - Joy Fielding
The Lucky One - Nicholas Sparks
Summer of Two Wishes - Julia London
The Beauty of Different  - Karen Walrond
Rodale's Vegetable Garden Problem Solver - Fern Bradley
The First 6 books in the Sookie Stackhouse Series - (True Blood HBO Series) - enjoying these but taking a break after 6.  :)

Oh Anne...

Another book under my belt.  I was cleaning out my closet last week and came across a bag with this inside.  I had forgotten that my mom had bought me this book during their cross Canada tour. 

I admit it here for all to see...I adore the movie Anne of Green Gables.  It is at the top of my movie lists most of the time.  I think I have seen the movie at least 20 times if not more.   I did enjoy the book Anne of Green Gables as well of course but I ADORED Megan Follow's portrayal of Anne.  When grouped with Colleen Dewhurst, Richard Farnsworth and Patricia Hamiliton it makes for the best movie ever.  Mrs Smith in my office would beg to differ.  Hailing from Nova Scotia she hates everything green gables and the mere mention of it sends her into the 'depths of despair.' 

I see you rolling your eyes out there.  You don't have to like Anne.  I do.  Did I mention that my daughter's middle name is Anne which may or may not be related to Anne Shirley.

I assumed that this book would be 'the most tragical thing that ever happened to me' but I was pleasantly surprised.  Yes - you have to suspend a little bit of reality but I am totally ok with that.  I finished this book in less than 48 hours and rather than add to my giveaway pile it's going to stay on my bookshelf.  This book isn't for everyone.  Die hard fans of the original book will likely find it a 'perfect graveyard of buried hopes' as it isn't dark enough but it's a fun story and an enjoyable read.  Easily a 9/10 for me.  Hee Hee.  

I enjoyed it so much that I am going to have to watch the movie again. Soon.  I know that this review did go on and on so thank you for bearing with me as I ranted and raved.  'If you only knew how many things that I want to say and don't you'd give me some credit.'

Currently reading "Charley's Web" by Joy Fielding and "Girl with the Dragon Tattoo" by Stieg Larsson.  Reviews coming eventually....

Books and more Books

Another from the pile from my aunt.  This one was a fairly quick read and wasn't too bad.  A little too stretching of my own reality to really buy into that much I give this one a middle of the road rating.  6/10

Yeah yeah...I know I alternate between /10 and /5 but it's my blog and I'll be inconsistent if I want to.







I am actually not quite done this one but my Kindle battery died this morning when I was at 92%.  It's plugged in getting new life now but I've read enough of it to have an impression.  I enjoyed this book.  My husband suggested it after we watched the entirety of Season 1 of The Walking Dead: Season One . REALLY LOVED Season one and can't wait to see where they go with it.

As for the book, I did enjoy this one.  It is written from a unique perspective and while I sometimes wished that some of the survivor accounts went on longer I really liked how the whole story unfolded.  I am looking forward to reading those last few pages and see how they wrap it all up.  4.5/5




Just returned this one to the library today.  I saw this book reviewed on a blog that I read and even though I don't have any more babies in my future I wanted to give this one a read.

The first few pages made me laugh out loud.  By the time I was over half way I had begun skipping pages and then I finally just closed it without finishing.  This book does have some really humorous parts.  I found though that the humor grew wearisome after a while and I just wanted to stop reading.  DH tells me that my sense is humor is off though so maybe I just don't appreciate this book like I should.  DH did read a few pages on his own and reported that it made him laugh out loud.  He wants to give this book as a gift to the next couple we know expecting their first baby.

There isn't a whole lot of real info here but there is some buried in between the sarcasm.  It's not meant to be though - that's what all those other books are for.  While DH would likely give it a higher rating I am going with a 4/10 here.


Live More, Want Less: I can't give this one a fair review.  I've read too many of these books recently and have cancelled my other library requests for them.  It had some good ideas but nothing all that unique.  I peg it average and tuck it in with the other books of the same genre.










By the same author as above I also read this one.  I really enjoyed this one.  I love the idea of giving something up each month to try.  My mother thinks the whole idea is absurd and why would anyone do that to themselves.  I think it's brilliant.  I may be adopted.

As I near the halfway point in my 2011 bucket list, I am wondering if I should have a bucket list in 2012 or do my own version of "give it up".  I think I'll do both.  :)

I don't have a rating here - I liked it!!




This book was recommended to me by a co-worker who took a free course at work by the same name.  This book is a very quick read with a great fundamental idea.

The idea of prioritizing your life certainly isn't a new one but it is an important one.  I  had the privilege of hearing a keynote speech on the same idea at a conference that I attended 2 years ago.  It was inspiring and thought provoking.

This book brought back memories of the keynote speech and while I enjoyed the keynote more - this book does deliver the same message.  Definitely worth a read if you don't get bored with all the circus analogies.



I don't review cookbooks.  It doesn't seem fair when most of the time I take it out of the library, look at the pictures and vow to make something from there someday.  This one deserves a special exception.  Even if you don't plan to cook a thing from here (and you may not wish to with all the cheese etc in the self described not low on calories but high on taste recipes) the stories and pictures within make this a worthwhile read.  Her story of the city girl turned country ranch wife is great as well as the stories that follow. I have seen her blog now and again but this cookbook is a great compilation of recipes.  I love how she shows every detail of all the recipes in it - step by step.  There should be a law that all cookbook should do the same. DH thought some of these recipes sounded good so I will likely take this out from the library again the next time I am on a cooking binge.

Another 2 books bite the dust...

I just finished this one a few nights ago. It's actually the second time that I've read it but this time I downloaded it to the Kindle instead.  I had the trade size paperback and it was beastly  to carry around and try to read. 

I like this series.  It does tend to get drone-y from time to time but I love the characters and I found that this particular one in the series got really great  in some parts.  I haven't yet downloaded the sequel.  My co-worker has warned me that it has a terrible cliffhanger and that the next one isn't due out until 2012 so I think I will take my time. 






The second book I read was the sequel to my other secret book listed below.  It was completely predictable in every way but at the same time - happened the way that it should so it was ok.  I liked it, but not enough to ever buy it.  I returned it to the library.

Books I've Read Lately

This book was in a bag of books from my aunt.  I've read a couple of her novels before and this one left me with the same impression.  The story was enjoyable but she does like to make a story far longer than what it needs to be.  I'm not afraid of a long book - some of my favorite reads are hugely long.  I just want the length to mean something and to me, this novel didn't do it for me.  For a free book - it was enjoyable and if you enjoy her style of writing you may enjoy this.  As for my opinion: 2.5/5 and it goes into the Goodwill recycle box.







I subscribe to the book of the day email and when I read about this one, it sounded interesting.  I picked this one up at the library and gave it a read.  I did enjoy it.  Essentially it talks about how angry a person would get if someone stole their parking spot and how your perspective would change if it were a cow rather than a person. It then goes into detail about how to change your reaction to things that would normally anger you.  I found some great ideas in here.  I rolled my eyes at some parts too, but that's just my personality.  4/5






Book 3 - I have no picture before because I don't want to say.  No, it's not porn.  LOL   There are certain books that would best be classified under guilty pleasures and this was one of them.  I rate it 3/5.  I am reading the sequel now.

Besides the secret sequel, I am also reading 2 other books - hopefully to blog about next week.

A few more books off the list...

I liked this book.  It was small like a pocket book and had tons of great colorful pictures.  I don't think we ever grow out of wanting pictures in our books!  I liked this book because I found myself nodding my head to about 1/3 of the book saying "I already DO that!" which is a great feeling.   The only problem that I had with the book is that it told me that I am organized.  I'm just lazy and need to clean up more.  I don't like that.  LOL.  I prefer to think that I'm just disorganized.  Maybe there a group for me...

I say 4/5 for this book.






I did not like this book at all.  I'm sure she meant well and it wasn't all bad.  I think I managed to glean 2-3 tips from it.  The problem I had with her approach is that she seemed to think that her readers were made of money and were able to run out and buy a ton of organizational products to make everything look perfect.  She did say that she has organized for the stars and since they make a hell of a lot more money than me - they can read this book instead.  I gave it 2/5 stars.










This book was ok. Learning to live more simply is something that I believe we all need to do.  I did find some good lessons in this book but I also found myself wanting more.  I think this book could be summed up as a "Living Simply 101" with a level 2 to come?  I say 3/5.










Just finished this one today.  I found that I couldn't put this one down.  I won't say that some parts weren't predictable because they were but it was still an easy and enjoyable read.  The vague storyline is that a boy and his Mom live alone. The Mom is somewhat reclusive.  Then something happens one weekend that changes everything.  I give it 4/5.  










My son reminded me that we finished this book last week.  I read to him some nights before bed.  Our copy is an old old copy that must have been dropped in ink at one time rendering the bottom corner of each page completely illegible.  It's a book that I read as a kid and my son chose it from a stack of books that I had brought out.

My son rates this one a 5/5 while I give it a 4/5.  Fun and very short chapters which is great for bedtime reading with a 6 year old.

More Books to Return to the Library

More books to return to the library today!

Picked this one up as a "Bestsellers to Go - One Week Loan".  It was due yesterday and I still had half of it left.  After the kids were in bed, I brewed a dreamy hot chocolate and curled up on the couch to finish the book.

It was a quick read with a bit of a twist at the end.  I'd consider it "beach read" quality and give it 7/10 or maybe 6.5/10.  I know that I rated out of 5 last time but I feel 10-ish today.  Suspenseful but predictable at a lot of the turns.  2 brothers & a friend make a bet to see who can take home the pretty girl in the bar(named the Wild Zone). Turns out pretty girl has some issues in her life. 






I got 2 really good ideas from this book which makes it worthwhile to me.  I didn't get enough use out of it to own it but enough to recommend a skim through.  I found their tips on work routines and clothing culling to be useful for me.  Logical and perhaps easy for some - but still things that I hadn't thought of.  Once read though, they had the effect of me slapping myself on the forehead for not thinking of that sooner.  Rating? Hmm...6/10.






This was a fun read.  Some of the topics were serious while some were tongue in cheek.  This one belonged in the "bathroom books" category of life. 7/10

A Reading Machine

Ok...I'm getting a great head start to the reading part of my bucket list.  With the snow that's been coming down, we had no reason to leave the house this weekend and I was able to finish my current book.

Here is what I've read so far in 2011:

I grabbed this one off the shelf at the Public Library. I don't know why the book has the rating that it does.  I didn't like it.  I would give it a 2/5.  It started out ok. It had a quirky idea and had the potential to go somewhere.  Somewhere part way through though it seemed to lose itself and become more disjointed.  Then the end came - and I hated it.  It made me wish I hadn't started the book in the first place.










Whenever I see my Aunt from out of province, she gives me a bag of books for my Mom and I to read before sending them to Goodwill.  This book was one of them. It was a quick, light beachy kind of read.  I'd rate it a 3/5.











This is the one that I finished this weekend.  I had actually seen the movie one night during random channel surfing.  It was the Hallmark movie of the week which is one of my guilty pleasures.  When I see a movie based on a book, I get the urge to read the book too.  I liked this book.  It is a slow moving, simple book that takes the reader back into WW2 times.  I give this one a 3.5 or 4 / 5.

Books of the Day

I am off to the library again today so I thought I'd share what I just finished...



This book was hilarious and a quick read.  Both DH and I read it and laughed like crazy.  I'm sure we've all seen notes like this around the office or thought about writing them at home. 



I have had a few people ask me why I am a happy person most of the time.  I've never had an answer for them.  I took out this book figuring it might give me some insight into that.  I take it as the greatest compliment in the world when someone says that I brighten their day by just being me.  :)   This book was both insightful and irritating.  She interviews 100 truly happy people and investigates what makes them happy people.  This book is insightful in that a lot of the reasons she gives for happiness are indeed things that I do automatically.   I also like the beginning underlying theory of what constitutes happiness levels.  Irritating - in that the book seemed like a shopping channel of excercises and techniques.  Once I began to ignore these and just read around them, I enjoyed the book.  :)   I also know a couple of truly happy people and they ARE a joy to be around.  I also know a couple of people who have such potential for happiness and yet they are stalled - THEY need this book.



This book was recommended by my parenting group so I had to request it.  My daughter goes to bed at 7 and my son goes to bed at 730pm already but again, I wanted to know the reasons that they say that it's a good idea.   They quote a book that I used for both kids bedtime/sleep routines.  I found that I couldn't relate to this book except for the bedtimes.  :)  This book is written assuming that a parent stays home with their children and can follow the daily routine posted here.

Finally - one book that I own.


This one was a fast, fun, great read.  It's one of those "beach books" as I call them.  Not a lot of substance but addictive, light and fun.  :)  Highly recommended.

Books of the Day

I am an avid reader.  I have stacks of upcoming books sitting by my bed at any given time.  I am heading to the library today to drop off my latest ones...


I had the opportunity to hear Hellen give a Keynote speech when I attended an APC Canada Conference a couple of years ago.  I really enjoyed her speech and she gave me a great idea on how to organize my monthly bills. I then adopted it and have been using it ever since.  For this book I really enjoyed the quiz that determines your learning style - it had my style bang on.  That being said, as it turns out I already do most of the things she was suggesting for my organzing style.  :)

Another book that I am returning to the library is



This one I flipped through quite quickly.   There were a few recipes that looked good but I couldn't imagine my kids actually eating some of this.  There are a lot of ingrediants here that currently aren't part of our everyday meals like couscous, eggplant, lamb etc.  I think I need to work up to this one.  On the other hand, my office mate Mrs. Smith who eats much healthier than we do got a gleam in her eye and jotted down the title of this one so she can check it out next.  :)


The 3rd of the 5 that I am dropping off today is



Mrs. Smith said this one was ok and enjoyed the case studies.  I also thought it was ok but I'm not at the point to take this one too seriously.  This book is for the person who is ready to take action and change the space they live in.  That's not me. 


The 4th book I am returning is



I am always on the lookout for ideas to improve my own space.  I didn't find that I got a lot of ideas from this book.  The style of most of the rooms here was way off my own style.  I can see how people with different tastes then me could really get into this book.  Which reminds me...I should tell my Mom about this one...

Finally, I am returning



Loved this book.  Earlier this week I made Frosted Banana bars and they were delicious!!  I have jotted down 3 other recipes from here to try soon (next will be mock apple squares).  I will be looking into getting this one again!!