Bout of Books Read-a-thon: Final update

Well to sum it up, it was complete disaster.  After quitting on Wednesday when I felt completely hopeless, I picked it up again on Thursday and read from The Winter Rose for the next three days.  And then Sunday hit and I didn't pick up my book.  Honestly I was tired and all I wanted to do was to beat the slight heat wave that happened on the weekend.  I didn't read anything on Sunday, unless you count some Bones fan-fic that I read on Sunday evening.  I am really at the end of the rope, as I want summer done with and I really want to get back to work.  I realize that part of my problem was that I set out with a too ambitious plan, but with the books that I had chosen I thought that it wouldn't be too difficult.  Maybe I should have chosen 3 books instead of 6...

Sunday Salon - My reading week

My week was okay, considering how lousy I felt a couple days ago.  I suppose perspective and time can change one's outlook, but with summer coming to an end I really want to get back to work, as I am feeling a bit tired of just sitting around.    And as a result this impacted my reading.  I had planned on getting a bunch of books done, but was really only able to get a few books worked on and a couple completed during the week.  Maybe I was waiting for something to happen and when it didn't, I was a tad disappointed.  And when I get a tad disappointed, I seem to get into a lull for a bit.

But the lull didn't last long and I was able to read a good portion of The Winter's Rose, which I am enjoying just as much as The Tea Rose, if not more so due to the fact that there are more storylines to anticipate than just the one main storyline in The Tea Rose.   I also picked up a few books from the library, one of which I am going to return because I really honestly have changed my opinion of the individual that the book focuses on (a few years ago, I wouldn't have such a negative point of view of the individual, but since certain things have allegedly come to light in the last year, I really don't think much of the person).  This week I also managed to sit down and watch True Grit (the 2010 film version) and really liked it all over again.  This version more clearly mirrors the book than the John Wayne version did 40 years ago.

Reading this week:
True Grit
The Winter Rose
Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban

Reviews this week:
The American Heiress
Sing You Home

Blog Hop

The question this week is:  In books like the Sookie Stackhouse (True Blood) series the paranormal creature in question "comes out of the closet" and makes itself known to the world. Which mythical creature do you wish would come out of the closet, for real?

Being as somebody who doesn't read a lot of books with mythical creatures I am going to have to say the Lochness Monster.   I don't know why, but its the one that came to mine.





This week the question is: Do you have pets?

No.  A few reasons why.  One reason is that during the summer I am gone for long stretches of time (about 4-6 weeks) and then during the course of the school year I am away during the weekends and its usually last minute.  Secondly, I didn't grow up with pets.  True, I had a hamster when I was about 8, but that lasted a few months before we had no hamsters at all.  My dad is allergic primarily to animals that shed.  I also guess because we didn't live on a large lot and both my parents worked, it wasn't a huge priority.   Thirdly, depending on what you get, you can be spending a lot of money just for the maintenance of your pet (vet bills, food, etc.) and being on a small income its hard sometimes to just put food on my own table.  Lastly, I live in an apartment and because there isn't much space, it wouldn't be fair to the pet, even if it were only just something small (they do require space for their living environments that I really don't have).

Book Through Thursday - History

Booking through Thursdays asks this week:

Sometimes I feel like the only person I know who finds reading history fascinating. It’s so full of amazing-yet-true stories of people driven to the edge and how they reacted to it. I keep telling friends that a good history book (as opposed to some of those textbooks in school that are all lists and dates) does everything a good novel does–it grips you with real characters doing amazing things.
Am I REALLY the only person who feels this way? When is the last time you read a history book? Historical biography? You know, something that took place in the past but was REAL.

I generally don't read history books for the primary reason is that they tend to be quite long and also can be quite dry unless you are interested in the topic or the person being talked about, even though I do own quite a few books that deal either with a specific person or with a specific historical event.  The last one that I read that could be classified as a history book/historical biography was Cleopatra: a life.

Bout of Books Read-a-Thon: Second Update

Yesterday (Tuesday) wasn't a great reading day; my mind was all over the place for some reason and there unable to concentrate on my reading.  I suppose it didn't help that the book I was reading got me bogged down and therefore didn't feel too encouraging.  Hopefully today is better.

The American Heiress - Daisy Goodwin

Title: The American Heiress
Author: Daisy Goodwin
Pages: 468
Published: 2011 (first published 2010)
Genre: Historical fiction
Rating: 3/5

Traveling abroad with her mother at the turn of the twentieth century to seek a titled husband, beautiful, vivacious Cora Cash, whose family mansion in Newport dwarfs the Vanderbilts’, suddenly finds herself Duchess of Wareham, married to Ivo, the most eligible bachelor in England. Nothing is quite as it seems, however: Ivo is withdrawn and secretive, and the English social scene is full of traps and betrayals. Money, Cora soon learns, cannot buy everything, as she must decide what is truly worth the price in her life and her marriage. (via Goodreads)


Thoughts: It was a nice summer read, as it had a fairly quick pack to the book and other than a few moments in which the story seemed to drag, it was a book that one could read large portions of the book without really getting lost.  It didn't really need to have the Bertha/Jim storyline, as it only seemed to serve really no purpose in the overall storyline and could have been easily reduced by about 50 pages and still be quite effective.  Interestingly enough, the story is believed to be based on the life of Consuelo Vanderbilt. Recommended for those that like reading historical fiction.

10809 / 15000 pages. 72% done!

Sing You Home - Jodi Picoult

Title: Sing You Home
Author: Jodi Picoult
Pages: 466
Published: 2011
Genre: Contemporary Fiction
Rating: 3/5

One miscarriage too many spelled the end of Max and Zoe Baxter's marriage. Though the former couple went quite separate ways, their fates remained entangled: After veering into alcoholism, Max is saved in multiple senses by his fundamentalist conversion; Zoe, for her part, finds healing relief in music therapy and the friendship, then romantic love with Vanessa, her counselor. After Zoe and Vanessa, now married, decide to have a baby, they realize that they must join battle with Max, who objects on both religious and financial grounds. (via Goodreads)


Thoughts: This was the first Jodi Picoult book that I have finished and quite enjoyed it, but to a point.  As an evangelical Christian, I found the evangelical side a little unnerving.  The reason that I found the evangelical side a little too over the top.  I do realize that most evangelicals in the United States feel this way and it plays a larger role in the US than it does in Canada, but it was a little preechy and too over the top as to how Ms. Picoult portrayed the evangelical side and I realize why she did that.  But couldn't there have been a more moderating evangelical point of view?

Another thing that bugged me was that the music CD that came along with the book really didn't have anything to do with the book as a whole.  Granted I only listened to a few of the songs, but I felt the CD didn't really have anything to do with the book.  I would recommend the book to those that like Jodi Picoult books or those who write in a similar manner.

10341 / 15000 pages. 69% done!