Musing Mondays

Miz B asks this week:

As a book blogger, does reading others’ blogs spark ideas for what to write on your own?

No, except maybe it makes me think about something for a bit.

Chunkster Challenge 2011

 Yes, I am joining again.  And this time I do intend on reading some pretty big books, at least four.  If you are interested, you can find the information and the sign up here.  As for me, I plan on doing the Chubby Chunkster.

1.  The Tea Rose
2.  The Book of Negroes
3.  The Swan Maiden
4.  Juliet: a novel
5.  Sing You Home
6.  The American Heiress
7.  The Winter Rose
8.  Rebel Angels
9.  The Wild Rose

The Tea Rose - Jennifer Donnelly

Title: The Tea Rose (The Tea Rose #1)
Author: Jennifer Donnelly
Published: 2007 (first published 2002)
Pages: 544
Genre: Historical fiction
Rating: 4/5

East London, 1888 - a city apart. A place of shadow and light where thieves, whores, and dreamers mingle, where children play in the cobbled streets by day and a killer stalks at night, where bright hopes meet the darkest truths. Here, by the whispering waters of the Thames, Fiona Finnegan, a worker in a tea factory, hopes to own a shop one day, together with her lifelong love, Joe Bristow, a costermonger's son. With nothing but their faith in each other to spur them on, Fiona and Joe struggle, save, and sacrifice to achieve their dreams.

But Fiona's life is shattered when the actions of a dark and brutal man take from her nearly everything-and everyone-she holds dear. Fearing her own death, she is forced to flee London for New York. There, her indomitable spirit propels her rise from a modest West Side shop-front to the top of Manhattan's tea trade. But Fiona's old ghosts do not rest quietly, and to silence them, she must venture back to the London of her childhood, where a deadly confrontation with her past becomes the key to her future. (via Goodreads)


Why I read this book: I read this book because I had read another book of her's a few months earlier and was intrigued.


Thoughts:  I really liked this book and was the best book that I have so far read this year.  There was something special about this book that made me not want to put down the book for a number of hours a few weeks ago and incur the amount of fines that I did so that I could finish the book before I went away for a couple of weeks.  The only problem I really had with the book was that the ending seemed to be a bit rushed.

8754 / 15000 pages. 58% done!

House Arrest - Ellen Meeropol

Title: House Arrest
Author: Ellen Meeropol
Published: 2011
Pages: 211
Genre: Literary Fiction
Rating: 3/5

Home-care nurse Emily Klein can’t get out of her new assignment – weekly prenatal visits to Pippa Glenning, a young cult member under house arrest for the death of her daughter during a Solstice ceremony. But Emily takes her work seriously and plays by the rules, so she is determined to take good care of her high-profile and unconventional patient.

With two other cult members in prison, Pippa Glenning struggles to keep the household intact. If she follows the rules of her house arrest, she may be allowed to keep her baby; but as the pregnant woman in the family it’s her duty to dance for Isis at the upcoming winter Solstice ceremony. To escape the house arrest without being caught, Pippa needs Emily’s help. (via Goodreads)


Why I read this book: I read the book for a reading challenge through Books On the Nightstand


Thoughts: I found the book to be a bit dry at times, which made this a challenging read for me.  Found that only one of the characters to be at all interesting and I honestly didn't like how the book ended, which was ambiguous at best.  Thought that the book just sort of ended and there was nothing to indicate as to what happened to Pippa and her baby.  My heart just wasn't the book, probably because the main narrative jumped around so much and there wasn't a single narration to the book or even what felt like a single thread to the book.  Maybe I just expected too much out of the book.

8243 / 15000 pages. 55% done!

Musing Mondays

Miz B asks this week:

What is the last book you struggled to read through to the end, even though you weren’t really enjoying it? What made you keep reading?

I believe it was Twilight's Serenade.  What made me keep reading the book was that I wanted to finish the series.  And quite honestly, it was actually a better book by the end of it; most of it felt like I was going through a bog.  Probably because I wasn't enjoying it as much as other books, I probably read it faster than I probably would have normally read a book.  It was something that I avoided reading as much as possible, primarily because of the cliched storyline.

Musing Mondays

Miz B asks this week:

Do you think it makes you NOT (or less) “well-read” if there are certain genres that you won’t read because you KNOW you won’t enjoy them? Why?

The short answer for me is no.  The reason that I think this is that I read enough variety that I can probably say that I am well read.  I realize that it is only a matter of how one views what it means to be well-read.  While I think it is important to read a variety of genres and to experience them and understand how they are used, I think it is also important to realize that people who read on a regular basis usually do read a wide variety of fiction and non-fiction.  I do feel that sometimes I should read more fantasy and dystopian fiction, but honestly I don't really care for it, especially dystopic fiction as I feel that when you have read one you have basically read them all.  While there are differences in how the authors have written their books, they basically have the same sort of format.  I am not saying that dystopian fiction shouldn't exist, I am saying that I don't prefer it and would rather not read it, as I find it a little too depressing for my liking.

Twilight's Serenade - Tracie Peterson

Title: Twilight's Serenade
Author: Tracie Peterson
Published: 2010
Pages: 368
Genre: Christian fiction, Historical fiction
Rating: 2.5/5

Britta Lindquist left Sitka six years ago in an attempt to distance herself from the love of her life, Yuri Belikov. Upon her return, she finds Yuri absent and his wife about to deliver a child. When tragic circumstances ensue, Britta suddenly finds herself caring for Yuri's children--and her life intertwining with the man she's tried so hard to forget.
But Britta's other great love is for the violin, and her talent is recognized by Brenton Maltese, a conductor from England. He proposes she accept the coveted first chair position in his orchestra•and also his hand in marriage. At a crossroads, Britta must determine what her heart truly longs for--and if she's willing to fight for it. (via Goodreads)


Thoughts: I read this book due to the fact that I had read the other two books and wanted to find out what happened to the Lundquist family.  And quite honestly, I was a tad disappointed in the book. The reason that I was tad disappointed was because I had hoped that the book wouldn't be as cliched as the second book, but sadly it was, at least in sections of the book.  I did find that towards the end of the book that the storyline improved, but only slightly.  It nicely closed out the series, although I would have liked to have the middle child, a daughter, more involved in the story, even if it were only through letters, etc.

8032 / 15000 pages. 54% done!

Sunday Salon - Its finally summer

The weather has finally turned for the better and its finally feeling like summer and will likely stay that way for the most part...at least that is what I am hoping for.  And that means more books will be read, hopefully.  But this weekend is going to be set aside for my dad, who after 30+ years as a teacher has retired and we as a family are celebrating the occasion.  If you think he is going to be sitting idly by, he won't be.  He'll be working for a family member doing construction in another place for at least the next year.

Back to the weather, its funny how grey skies and rainy weather can ruin a reader's mood.  Usually by this time of year I have gotten into my reading groove, but for some reason I haven't.  While the weather is partly to blame, I also blame it on the fact that I have gotten addicted to my tweetdeck, which I downloaded a year ago this coming September.  But I do plan on spending a lot time reading this coming summer and a lot less time offline.  Hope that wherever you are have a good, relaxing weekend, whether it be in the US and Canada, where I am hoping you are enjoying the long weekend, or elsewhere, just enjoying the pleasant weather.