My how time flies

Geez, is it December already? And I haven't done much posting since school started. This is basically because I haven't been reading as much, but I have a guilty confession as to the real reason. My daughter had a bad fever the first week of school and I had her sleep in my bed, which she had never really done before. Well, she got used to it. And actually so did I. Now she doesn't sleep with me EVERY night, but probably more often than not. And it really cuts into my reading time. On the good side, I've been going to sleep a lot earlier and getting more sleep and staying healthier because of it! So to get past my questionable parenting skills and on to the real reason for my post: books!

I am currently reading The Alchemyst by Michael Scott and very much enjoying it. I will finish it before the end of the year as I'm already 63% done. I don't want to make any comments about the story as yet, but will say that I am reading this one on the Kindle app on my iPad instead of on my Kobo. One thing I like about this, is that I can read in the dark because of the backlighting. Which is nice when a little one is in bed with me. Another is the ability to turn the page with just a small movement of my finger on any part of the screen. It's really nice having multiple options for reading - my Kobo, my iPad and a real book.

The last book I finished I just loved. It's called The Snow Child. I picked it up at Target and it was just delightful. I loved the fact that it was set in Alaska. I love the fact that it is a spin off an old fairy tale - one that I was not familiar with. I loved the characters. I loved the ending. Read it, read it!!!

And while I ordinarily don't talk about movies on here, I watched a documentary that I believe every American should watch called The One Percent, made by Johnson and Johnson's son Jamie Johnson. Very eye-opening and I think until the majority of the country understands and questions how things work, the gap is just going to continue to grow. Watch it, watch it!!

Broken Harbor

I just love Tana French. I read the first three of her books right in a row after I discovered them. Then I sucked it up and read other stuff for a couple of years. And finally, her next book! I was not disappointed. I love her characters. I love the Irish brogue. I love how she chooses a main character from a previous book's supporting character. I love the twists and turns. I will admit - I figured this one out but I certainly don't hold that against her. It didn't take anything away from the story because there is so much more to it than just a whodunit. This story has depth people! You feel like you know these players and can identify with them as someone you know. That takes talent. And Tana's got it. Love her. 10 out of 10.

Shadow of Night/Gone Girl

Well I can see that I've gotten a little behind on my blog entries. I've read two books since I finished the Song of Ice and Fire series. Both were pretty good. But I must admit that I do miss the land of Westeros. No, I won't go on again about all that, but I will reiterate that it made a lasting impression.

So, I think I'll start with Shadow of Night. This was the much-awaited for sequel to A Discovery of Witches. Which I recommended to just about every single person I know who has ever picked up a book. I will admit that I wasn't very impressed with the beginning. In fact I was downright worried and kinda ready to put it down. But I hung in there, and I'm glad I did. Diana and Matthew had some adventures back in Elizabethan England/Europe. It was not nearly as good as the first. And not nearly as good as I had hoped. Having said that, I still love the characters. I won't boot them from my friends list on Facebook or anything. And I'll read the third book when it comes out for sure. But I won't be as eagerly anticipating it as I was this book. I might not buy the autographed copy from Books-A-Million when it comes out. Like I did for this book. I think I'll give it 7 stars.

The next book I read was Gone Girl. It is being read by a lot of reading bloggers, and I'm seeing it get more popular. And everyone seems to have the same type of initial impression... kind of a "holy shit" thing. I would definitely agree with that. It isn't like anything I have ever read. These characters are very.... dysfunctional? warped? Let's just say the author does a splendid job of letting you really get to know them. If I had any criticisms of her portrayal of them, it would be a small one. That she needs to do something about Nick's good looks. I think it plays a big part of the book, but she could have used that better along the way. Not sure if that makes sense, but I kind of kept forgetting that about him until the later part of the book. The other criticism I have, and this is a BIG one, is about the ending. It SUCKED!!! I absolutely hated it! And I am usually very diplomatic when it comes to opinions and looking for any sort of reason to give both sides credence. No, it really sucked. I did not like it one little bit. I don't know if Flynn intended to end it that way, or if she got so caught up in the story that she just couldn't do anything else. But for me, it just did not work at all. I can't say much more without giving the story away. So, I'll give this a 9 star rating. It definitely was suspenseful and unique. Actually just the kind of read that I was itching for.... except for... you know... the ending.

A Dance with Dragons

Finally, finally, finally, I am done with this series. I have decided I have a love/hate relationship with A Song of Ice and Fire (ASOIAF) by George R.R. Martin. I have been reading this series since May 19th. No I'm not a slow reader really, but these books are just REALLY long folks!! And I am no closer to knowing what is going to happen to the characters I fell in love with in the first book. Oh, that's not entirely true, many of them are dead. I will say one thing that constantly surprises me about it - no matter how frustrated or irritated I get with the lack of forward progress, I feel that this world has me in its grip. I think in terms of phrases like "break my fast", "making water", and "dark wings, dark words". I can honestly say that I am transported, no doubt about that. But once I'm there I feel like I'm on the slow train through town.

There are several story lines that I am very intrigued by and am so curious to see how he's going to wrap up:  Arya and her Many Faces of God, the Dondarrion gang, Bran and the heart tree, and that complete bastard Ramsey - ooohhh I HATE him!! Someone needs to stick a quarrel or two up his arse! I have no idea what to think about Jon Snow.... and Cersei. Not what I wanted to see happen at all with those two.

So, from what I understand since I'm rather late to this party is that this Martin dude takes a long time to write his sequels. I do hope his next one comes out this year. But if not that's ok too. I might actually enjoy a bit of a breather to read some other books.


I'm not sure how I would rate this book. Probably a 7.5 or 8 on a scale of 10. Pretty slow like I said, but  he sure got me hooked. Right now all I can say is "ahhhhh" I have earned a breather!

A Feast for Crows

A part of me is seriously starting to feel like I live in Westeros and that I personally know Arya, Sansa, Tyrion, Jaime, Cersei and the rest of the crew. A Feast for Crows is the fourth very long book in the series by George R. R. Martin. I still like Book #1 the best. I still like Book #2 the least. I thought 3 was  a tad better than 4 because I got to read about ALL the characters and I felt like shit got done. This one drug things out a bit. It almost seemed like a whole new back story was beginning as he starts the book with a bunch of new characters that you don't hear about again until the very end.

So what happened here George? Did you change your mind on how this story was supposed to go and it just took on a life of its own or what? I swear every time I start to feel like the apex is approaching, I turn the corner and see another bigger mountain to climb. And I will admit that I was quite p.o.'d when Tyrion did not even make an appearance. George explained why at the end, but I spent a lot of time while reading building up some serious resentment.

I'm getting a little irritated by this series just for the fact that it's taking a long time to tell a very good story. And I really don't think it needed to be quite as wordy as he does it, but hey, he's the novelist not me. I will start book #5 next. I will finish it. I will probably like the twists and turns which he does a nice job of doling out. But I'm pretty sure that I'm going to be left feeling a little aggravated when the last book does not finish the story. I've already heard that there is going to probably be another book or two.

Good grief!

Bottom line: I wouldn't start this series unless you are a serious reader. They are good. They are addicting. They are long. I hope the HBO series continues for several more seasons as I am very much enjoying watching it!

Storm of Swords

Well, George sucked me back in with his third book A Storm of Swords. It was much better paced than book #2 and had a lot of plot thickenings going on. It also had some big surprises in the last fourth of the book. I started A Feast for Crows a few days ago and hadn't gotten a chance to write my post until now, so of course all the things I was thinking about the book have slipped my mind!

As anyone reading my blog has certainly noticed by now, my thoughts and comments regarding the books I read are in no way meant to be any sort of professional review. I have discovered a plethora of websites that do a very good job of that and I know my limitations! One thing I have learned from reading all those reviews is that of the *spoiler alert*... so there are several things I would love to mention about this book, but won't because if you do decide to read it you will definitely not expect them!

The only other comment I can remember, now that I am halfway through, is I'm seriously wondering how in the world the author is going to wrap this series up.... I mean it really seems like a medieval/fantasy soap opera in some ways (a little foreshadowing there for you Stefano fans) and I have a sneaky suspicion that the ending won't be very satisfying.

So there you have it. I give this book an 8 out of 10. Very long, but he keeps you wanting to read more!

One more little thing that I really dig about how he organizes his books - he titles each chapter (at least in the first 3 books) with the name of a character. This really helped me follow all the different plot strands he created. When I would see the next chapter start with a favorite characters name, I knew I wouldn't be putting it down right away.

Clash of Kings

The Game of Thrones sucked me in but good, and I had to continue on with the second book RIGHT AWAY. But I will admit that I was a bit disappointed. First of all, I am not a huge medieval knights fantasy genre reader. I liked GoT so much because of the characters and intriguing plot. So, this book was a struggle for me because so much of it was about the war and who was rightfully heir to the throne and which lord was aligned with which house. Blech!!! I will admit I finally just skimmed over that stuff. And the characters I have come to love didn't do a whole lot in this book. Dany, Jon Snow, Arya, Bran - some critical issues but they took a LONG time coming. Tyrion on the other hand was featured a lot and he is also one of my favorite guys in the story. All in all, I'm tempted to put book 3 on hold, but I'm afraid if I do then I'll never finish the series. Another compelling reason to continue is that I started watching the HBO series via Netflix videos. I now can pronounce the names in my head (I was pretty spot on with how I was saying them unlike Hermione's name when I read Harry Potter) and have a face to go with some of these people. I think they did a very good job of casting for that show. I'm almost more excited about watching the next video than I am about reading the next book! However, I will plug away and hope that number three sucks me back in. If not, there may not be a 4 and 5 for me.

Game of Thrones

Well folks, I have found my first book of 2012 that I know will make it to the top ten list of the year. Possibly the top 5. The Game of Thrones is good. No. Great. Wow. I was so surprised by how much I loved it. This genre isn't always easy for me to read. There are a lot, and I do mean A LOT, of names to remember and they are spelled funny and I would never dare to read it aloud for fear that I cannot pronounce most of them. The story is medieval in part, magical in part, a lot of political intrigue, and has many twists and turns in the plot. There are five books in the series and I want to devour them all, but they are rather long. This one was 766 pages and very difficult to put down.  It was certainly a book where I could not predict what was going to happen. Some of my favorite characters did not make it unfortunately.

Lately I have been trying to read the first in a series and then trying another author. I don't think I'll be able to do that with this writer just yet. I have invested some time and emotion in these characters and I owe it to them to follow their story wherever it may lead. Probably to death by the sounds of how the first book left off!

The first HBO series dvd is next on my Netflix queue. I'm anxious to watch it if for no other reason than to find out how to say some of those darn names!

Delectable

They say things happen for a reason. Everything in their own time. You get what you need at the time in your life when you need it. The School of Essential Ingredients was like that for me. It was a story I needed to read just at that point in time in my life. In fact, I probably could have read it, and reread it, at many points in my life. After reading it I felt like I had more patience. A greater ability to take my time with people. A desire to just slow down and enjoy life. Ah. Comfort food for the soul.

The book is set around a cooking class that brings together a montage of characters. Each with their own story. A Past. A History. And each with their own future. It was an easy read. But not one that I wanted to read quickly. I liked to read about only one or two people at a time and let their stories fully digest.

This book is another that I think would make a great book club selection. It is definitely more of a "chick book". But I will admit that it didn't inspire me to do much in the kitchen. I'm sure others might disagree with me on that point! Overall I would give it a 7.5 to 8 out of 10. The only reason I wouldn't rate it higher is because a part of me thinks she should have gone farther with it. Told more about some of the characters. Then again sometimes the best meals aren't the ones that over serve, but the ones that only give us our daily food allowance. Just what our bodies need for sustenance instead of gluttony. Like I said -  delectable.

The Inner Circle

The Inner Circle is a pretty good mystery story. The excerpt from Goodreads:  There are stories no one knows. Hidden stories. I love those stories. And since I work in the National Archives, I find those stories for a living.

Beecher White, a young archivist, spends his days working with the most important documents of the U.S. government. He has always been the keeper of other people's stories, never a part of the story himself...

Until now.

When Clementine Kaye, Beecher's first childhood crush, shows up at the National Archives asking for his help tracking down her long-lost father, Beecher tries to impress her by showing her the secret vault where the President of the United States privately reviews classified documents. After they accidentally happen upon a priceless artifact - a 200 hundred-year-old dictionary that once belonged to George Washington, hidden underneath a desk chair, Beecher and Clementine find themselves suddenly entangled in a web of deception, conspiracy, and murder.

Soon a man is dead, and Beecher is on the run as he races to learn the truth behind this mysterious national treasure. His search will lead him to discover a coded and ingenious puzzle that conceals a disturbing secret from the founding of our nation. It is a secret, Beecher soon discovers, that some believe is worth killing for.

Gripping, fast-paced, and filled with the fascinating historical detail for which he is famous, THE INNER CIRCLE is a thrilling novel that once again proves Brad Meltzer as a brilliant author writing at the height of his craft

I best liked the information about the National Archives. I've been to Washington D.C. on two school trips and that was one building we did not tour. I found the description of what they do very interesting. The actual story was pretty good too. Suspenseful. My biggest problem, was that my e-reader kept saying that it was 900-some pages long and so I was confused when I finished the book early. The e-book had another book included as a bonus afterwords, so it was a bit of a letdown for me as I kept expecting more plot to unravel. The way he left the ending, it wouldn't surprise me if there were a sequel. All in all, I am going to investigate the author some more as I believe he has a show on the Discovery or History channel, and he seems pretty knowledgeable. I give this a 7 out of 10.

Stunning

The Glass Castle is simply stunning. I have had this on my to-read list for quite some time. You just never know how good a book is going to be until you read it I guess. And I just absolutely LOVED it! The main reason I think I loved it so much was that it was a true story. You just can't make up some of this stuff. Geez - what this girl went through. Simply unbelievable and I can't imagine what it was like for her. The other part that made me REALLY love it, was that she prevailed. She didn't fall victim to her life circumstances. She still made it, despite all the odds that were against her. I especially liked the part when they were discussing homelessness in her college class and she stated that perhaps homeless people didn't need to be homeless if they would just make different choices. I agreed with her point, and I also completely understood why she didn't pursue the line of argument with her annoyed instructor. But a little part of me wished she would have had the courage to admit that she was speaking from a personal perspective. I think many people are curious how homeless people find themselves living on the street and   maybe some even feel a tad bit guilty that they aren't helping more. Maybe all the help in the world wouldn't be enough to set some people on the "right track". Because then you would have to define right track, and obviously for the Walls' parents, they were okay with their choices. Kudos to J. Walls for finding the courage to tell her story. I hope that college professor of hers has read it!

I give this a 10 out 10 stars. Definitely a book that would meet all book club criteria - lots of things to discuss. An interesting side note, is that while looking at it on Goodreads I noticed that it contained a wide variety of reviews from readers. (see reviews) Some people absolutely loved it, and for others they didn't even want to finish it. I'm curious how one novel can elicit such varied responses from people - a similar group of people in a way as they are all "avid readers". My theory is that it is an emotional, gut response. An empathic tuner. It seems that the people who enjoyed it, were more empathic to her situation than others. But hey, I'm not a psychologist or anything. Who knows. Just more proof that this would most likely be a very easy book to discuss - or argue depending on the crowd - with others.

Don't judge a book by its cover

I admit, the cover of a book determines for me whether or not I pick it up and read more about it before buying it. There are some covers that can make me NEVER pick up a book. This is one of those covers. It has a hint of Harlequinn romanciness, mixed in with a bit of gothic and some sci fi. Very confusing to the eye in my opinion. I think I read a synopsis on Goodreads.com that made me want to give it a try:

Amelia Peabody, that indomitable product of the Victorian age, embarks on her debut Egyptian adventure armed with unshakable self-confidence, a journal to record her thoughts, and, of course, a sturdy umbrella. On her way to Cairo, Amelia rescues young Evelyn Barton-Forbes, who has been abandoned by her scoundrel lover. Together the two women sail up the Nile to an archeological site run by the Emerson brothers -- the irascible but dashing Radcliffe and the amiable Walter. Soon their little party is increased by one -- one mummy, that is, and a singularly lively example of the species. Strange visitations, suspicious accidents, and a botched kidnapping convince Amelia that there is a plot afoot to harm Evelyn. Now Amelia finds herself up against an unknown enemy -- and perilous forces that threaten to make her first Egyptian trip also her last.


As I reread this, I don't know what it was about the description - in fact I think it was one of the reviews that clinched it for me. The way one person described Amelia just made me want to give it a try and I'm so glad I did! Amelia Peabody is spunky, feminist, logical, and someone that I want for a best friend. It is a mystery and I'll admit, the story itself is a teeny bit on the lame side - Mummies and such somewhat reminiscent of a Nancy Drew mystery. Elizabeth Peters captured my attention however, with her characters and the dialogue. I knew I would read another of her books when Amelia said the word "ratiocination". There was a "ratiocination room" in our math department in college and seeing that word always makes me think of that room, bringing back fond memories.

It was a quick read overall, (262 pages) but it did go a little slow during the last third of the book. I would recommend it if you are a fan of strong female characters and if you enjoy witty dialogue over the details of the mystery. I especially liked the ending of this book. Here is one detective who does not exhibit all those dysfunctional characteristics I spoke of in an earlier post!

Case Histories

Tana French fans take note: If you have read all three of her books and are looking for a similar type story, check out Kate Atkinson's Case Histories. It is a mystery. It is set in Great Britain. It has a dysfunctional, but lovable main character.

An excerpt from Goodreads:

Case one: A little girl goes missing in the night. 

Case two: A beautiful young office worker falls victim to a maniac's apparently random attack. 

Case three: A new mother finds herself trapped in a hell of her own making - with a very needy baby and a very demanding husband - until a fit of rage creates a grisly, bloody escape.

Thirty years after the first incident, as private investigator Jackson Brodie begins investigating all three cases, startling connections and discoveries emerge . . .


I really enjoyed this. I liked the intersection of the different cases and how the author teased out the endings. Jackson Brodie is not quite as dysfunctional as some other detectives, but he has his fair share. What, do ALL detectives have to have major issues to be good at that job?? At any rate, I look forward to reading more from this author. It is customary for me to find an author and then read the shit out of him/her, but I'm going to vary from the norm and pick something else and let the other Kate Atkinson's on my shelf wait a bit. Not because I'm not interested, but because I want to spread out the enjoyment. I've got a lot of reading time coming up this summer...

American Wife

What an interesting story. This book has been sitting on my to-read shelf for quite some time. I bought it before Border's closed and was happy that I finally got around to reading it. What makes it so interesting to me, is what I discovered about it as I was reading it. A quote on the back cover says, "What a remarkable (and brave) thing: a compassionate, illuminating, and beautifully rendered portrait of a fictional Republican first lady with a life and husband very much like our actual Republican first lady's. Curtis Sittenfeld has written a novel as impressive as it is improbable." - Kurt Andersen. I did not know which first lady they were referring to, and I assumed it would be obvious as I read it so I didn't do any research beforehand. The book is divided into four parts: by her home addresses. The first being her childhood home, the second an apartment she lived in during her twenties, the third where she lived with her husband and daughter, and the last 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue. It wasn't until I was well into the third part that I finally caved and looked up which first lady it was referring to and I almost wish I hadn't as it would have become obvious by the time I reached the fourth part. Was I surprised? Hell yes! And from that point on in the book, the main characters suddenly had an identity crisis in my mind. Warring between the images my mind had already assigned to them, and what I know to be true about their real-life counterparts. I struggled with the rest of the book for that very reason, but I wouldn't say that is a bad thing. I definitely did do some research before I finished it, wanting to know if certain parts were true and I was surprised by how much was confirmed in Wikipedia.

I enjoyed the first half of the book more than the last half. Overall I found interesting the idea of taking a biography and making it into a novel. In a biography I don't think you are as free to fill in the gaps with the characters internal motivations and desires as freely as a novel. On a scale of 1 to 10 I think I would give it an 8. I don't think I would have read a book about this particular first lady if I had known who it was about from the beginning, but I'm glad I did.

Time Lottery

I have a couple of things reading related to report. First of all, my new Kobo eReader arrived yesterday. Ahhhh.... so comforting to have an eReader again. I plugged it in to get it charged up and anxiously awaited to load some new books to read. Once it was fully charged, I started it up and noticed that it did not have the pre-loaded classics that it advertised. Grrr.... so disappointing. That was one of the reasons I chose the WiFi model instead of the touch model. I sent the company an email, it will be interesting to see how they respond. Regardless, I am pretty happy with my choice as I did not want to spend the extra money on a fancier model and then have to upgrade all my accessories as well. For now, it will work and perhaps I will upgrade again in the future and this model will get handed down to someone else.

While waiting for my reader to arrive, I scanned my bookshelves for things I had picked up at the second hand bookstore. The Time Lottery was the big winner. I was surprised because as I started reading it, I realized this was a Christian book. I normally do not read this genre as I'm not what I would call a practicing Christian. I will save my thoughts on religion for a whole nother post! I almost stopped reading it a couple of times, and had my eReader arrived sooner, I might have given up before finishing. Some might say that it was FATE that I read it! It was ok. The story is about a lottery that allowed three people to win a trip to their past to change something they wished they had done differently. Of course, all three met God and that helped them become better versions of themselves. I did not get turned off the story as I normally would when God is used as the solution to life's problems, mainly because of how the story was written. The author did a nice job of using God and Jesus' message to help the characters make different choices. Instead of just having them accept Jesus in their life and magically things are better. That makes a lot more sense to me. Overall, I can't say it was a great book, but it was thought provoking and if I take anything away from it, it's that I want to investigate more into what was Jesus' message - not whether or not he was born of a virgin, not whether or not he actually rose, not whether or not I'm going to heaven when I die. But what exactly did He advocate? What were his words and advice for how to live and have a stronger connection with God? That is what interests me.

Death of an eReader

My dad received his eReader last week and I think he likes it. He seemed a little reluctant to go techno, and I can't blame him. I made the adjustment by thinking of my eReader as my "100 classics for $99". I didn't buy it to replace my books, but I thought it was a thrifty way to purchase 100 more because the Kobo came preloaded with 100 classics. His came pre-loaded with a lot, since I hooked him up with a bunch. At any rate, I think the final straw that got him was a little reading light I had purchased that attaches to the top of the reader so he can read out on his porch at night. I'm pretty sure that after he gets used to playing with it he will come to love it as well. 

My Kobo did not fare so well on vacation. On day #2 while at the beach a tragic and stupid accident occurred. We had set up a small sun shelter for the hot afternoon sun, and as it was rather windy off the gulf, the anchor pins kept pulling out of the sand. In my haste, I decided to use my eReader (which was in my hand at the time) to push down on the stake. Even though it was in a leather case, I must have pushed on the screen side and busted some of the ink cells in the screen. When I opened it back up there it was a mess of black lines across the screen and I could barely read a thing. That's what I deserve for not taking the time to put a shoe on and simply step on the damn stake! I was SO mad, mainly because I had to go through the rest of vacation without all my books. Grrr.... My dad was gracious enough to let me finish the book I was reading on his eReader, but I mourned my loss the rest of the trip. The next question is, what do I buy to replace it?

Good question!! I didn't want to spend a lot of money to upgrade to something better. I realized that what I had suited my purposes just fine. I don't download or shop for books using WiFi while on the unit. I wanted it to be able to hold a lot of books, and I didn't want to spend a lot of money on new accessories. After reading many, many reviews and watching several videos demonstrating different readers, I narrowed down my choices to the Kobo Touch, or the same Kobo WiFi unit I destroyed. One of the main features I wanted to have, was the ability to view and navigate through my library and the Kobo WiFi was the only I saw that you could jump to the letter T without having to scroll or search through everything that was loaded. I was still a little interested in seeing how the Nook felt, so I went to Best Buy to see the units they have on display. What a disappointment. First of all, out of the three the only one that had a battery charge was the Kobo WiFi unit. The one I was already very familiar with. When I decided I'd go ahead and  pick up the WiFi to take home with me, I saw there weren't any on the shelf, and it was available for purchase online only. Grrr!! So I just ordered another one of the same unit I had from the Kobo website and hopefully it will get here before the end of next week. I did check on eBay and they had a couple of refurbished ones for $50, but after shipping/handling I figured I'd spend the extra $20 and get a brand new one with no shipping costs.

One thing I discovered during my research I found very interesting is that the Kobo is made in Canada, and is one of the only eReaders that can be used internationally when purchasing books wirelessly. Now, I put enough books on my dad's Kindle to last him PLENTY, but he is taking a trip overseas and now I see that he won't be able to purchase a book while there and upload it to his reader. Oops... sorry Dad! We'll see how savvy he gets with the technology before I break that news to him!

I am anxiously awaiting my UPS man this week!

Here is a good eReader website if you are looking to purchase and want reviews and information:

http://www.the-ebook-reader.com/

Coulda skipped this

I just finished read Skipping a Beat by Sarah Pekkanen. It wasn't horrible. It wasn't great. It was definitely different than what I have been reading. I might characterize this as a fluffy, sitting-by-pool, quick read. I will admit that I shed a tear or two towards the end. So I guess that says something. Here's the synopsis by Goodreads.com:

Julia and Michael meet in high school in their small, poverty-stricken West Virginia hometown. Both products of difficult childhoods -- Julia’s father is a compulsive gambler and Michael’s mother abandoned his family when he was a young boy – they find a sense of safety and mutual understanding in each other. Shortly after graduation they flee West Virginia to start afresh. Now thirty-somethings, they are living a rarified life in their multi-million-dollar,Washington D.C. home. From the outside it all looks perfect – Julia has become a highly sought-after party planner, while Michael has launched a wildly successful flavored water company that he sold for $70 million. 
But one day Michael stands up at the head of the table in his company's boardroom -- then silently crashes to the floor. More than four minutes later, a portable defibrillator manages to jump-start his heart. Yet what happened to Michael during those lost minutes forever changes him. Money is meaningless to him now - and he wants to give it all away to charity. A prenuptial agreement that Julia insisted upon back when Michael's company was still struggling means she has no claim to his fortune, and now she must decide: should she walk away from the man she once adored, but who truthfully became a stranger to her long before his near-death experience - or should she give in to her husband's pleas for a second chance and a promise of a poorer but happier life?


I guess I found the dialogue a little inconsistent. Sometimes I felt like she went very in-depth with the conversation and it sounded real. At other times, it was just on the lame side. I liked the fact that they highlighted what Michael's personality was like in parts throughout the narrative. You found out bits and pieces of why Julie grew apart from him as it went. At times, it made me sad when I connected it to parts of my own life and relationships. Like I said, it was such a stretch from the genres I have been reading that it felt strange. It was the perfect type of book to "cleanse my palate" which was my goal. So, given that I will give this book a 7 out 10.

The last of Thursday Next

I just finished Thursday Next: First Among Sequels, but I can tell you that by the way this ended, I'm sure there is another coming eventually. This Next novel was not my favorite. I'm not sure if it's because I stopped and read the Hunger Games trilogy before continuing. Possible. But it just seemed a little too scattered and random. There were definitely some parts that I enjoyed - seeing Friday as a teenager and meeting his sister Tuesday, a brainiac who has a hand in helping solve the time travel problem. A new character I adored was Isambard Kingdom Bunuel, an engineer in the BookWorld. His speech and word choices (a mashup of words rather) was what endeared me to him. Take a looklisten:

"Posttruthful, but it makes nonsense. It's potentious new books we should be cashsquandering on, not the stalnovelwarts who will be read no matter what. Besides, the costcash of the extra conduits is verlittle compared to the amount of custard needed to fillup all."

Overall, I think I'm just simply ready to move on to a different series. I have thoroughly enjoyed Thursday Next and she still ranks pretty high as far as female detectives go, and I would recommend her books in a heartbeat. And I have met my goal of finishing the series before heading off on vacation. Yay!

I've started reading Skipping a Beat by Sarah Pekkanen. I'm not sure it's what I'm looking for to quench that literary thirst, but maybe I just need to cleanse the palate before moving on to something new. At any rate, I will give it a try knowing that I have plenty more to choose from if it just doesn't do it for me!

Happy Reading to all!

Mockingjay

Well, I just finished the third in The Hunger Games trilogy, Mockingjay. I can't say I enjoyed it nearly as much as the first two, but I'm grateful to know that Katniss and company seem to have a country in which to live and grow old and raise a family. As usual when I finish a series that I've immersed myself in, I find it difficult to transition to a different book. I had put down the last Thursday Next book, which wasn't too hard to do unfortunately, and have picked it back up but not with any relish. Just plugging away to finish before spring break.

My biggest question now is what to read next? I have 91 books on my to-read shelf on Goodreads. Hmmm.... I'm intrigued by the Game of Thrones by George Martin and The Night Circus also sounds good. But so do many others.

On a side note, I loaned out my Kobo e-reader, so I've been reading the last two books on my dad's Kindle. I do like the page turners on either side of the unit and the speed at which it turns. But what I didn't notice before and love, is that it shows a "time-line" at the bottom of the screen that marks your progress through the book. It is shaded darker for the part you have already read with a percentage finished, and a little arrow showing where you started on that particular reading. My Kobo only shows a numerical percent finished when you initially open and close the book. There might be some way to check the menu while you are reading, but it isn't nearly as convenient as the Kindle. So, until I decide to truly upgrade to a new e-reader I will certainly make do with the Kobo. As far as recommendations go, I would have to recommend the Kindle. Just know that if you decide to buy the low-end model that you will be forced to look at ads instead of the cover of the book you are reading.... marketing, marketing, marketing.

Hunger Games the movie

I saw The Hunger Games movie this weekend. As far as movies based on a book go, it held up pretty well. I don't think I would rank it as high as Harry Potter, but it was better than Twilight's first one. The casting was done with obvious consideration as to the characters and not for box office draws. I thought Woody Harrelson was my favorite as Haymitch. And Donald Sutherland did a very good job as President Snow. Josh Hutcherson as Peeta threw me off a little bit, because I recognized his face and kept trying to figure out what movie I had already seen him in. Also, his hair freaked me out a little,  just seems too "fake" as a blonde and consequently not as genuinely in love with Katniss as I got from the book. The only criticism I have with Katniss was that I thought she needed to look a little thinner. She was always hungry - starving in the book, but she looked pretty well fed to me! I went with a friend of mine who hadn't read the book, and I asked her about halfway through if she was following the story ok and she said she thought she was... the reason I asked was because once they were headed to the Capitol and the games began, you didn't have the luxury of knowing what the characters were thinking of their "strategy". I really think that the movie was made with the assumption that most viewers would be people who had already read the book. Along that same line, they showed a little more of Haymitch working for sponsors, and they left Madge and the Mayor of District 12 out altogether, which required a minor change in the story with reference to her Mockingjay token.

Overall, I'm glad I saw it. I love going to the movies and my Netflix queue is much longer than I'll probably ever get to watching. Glad I got this one under my belt before I had to wait for it on DVD. Which is where I'm at with One for the Money.

I am a fan now

Ok, I finished the first book and had every intention of staying away from the rest of the Hunger Games trilogy for a bit. But I couldn't! I kept finding my thoughts drifting back to Panem and what was going to happen to Katniss, Peeta, Haymitch, Gale and the others. I stopped reading the last Thursday Next book and impulsively started on book two, Catching Fire. It's filled with many surprises and a cliffhanger ending. I'm so glad I waited until all three books were out to start reading these. I'm sure at some point today I will be starting the third book as well. This evening I'm heading out to watch the Hunger Games movie. From what I've seen on the trailers, I don't think I'll be disappointed.

The Hunger Games

I just finished The Hunger Games and I must say that it lived up to the hype. It was very good. I thought Katniss Everdeen's character was so likable. And believable. As I have said before, I love strong female characters and she did not disappoint me once. Katniss is physically strong, emotionally strong yet vulnerable, and she's smart. Not cunning or witty smart, but a kind of smart where things dawn on her after she has had some time to let it simmer in her subconscious. I like that. The book was incredibly difficult to put down. I almost feel like I neglected my own daughter a couple of times because I was so absorbed in reading this story. The ending was somewhat expected, I figured she would win, but not so much so that it was corny or trite.

The only part of the story that I thought distasteful (for lack of a better word) was the premise of the games themselves. Children fighting to the death? Backed by the government? The whole country forced to watch? I understood the author's purpose in using the games as a way to remind the masses of past errors, but I felt that was almost a little over the top. I realize the story wouldn't have worked without it, and I guess it IS fiction after all. As I was reading it, I kept wondering how the author came up with the idea and it's not far-fetched to come up with a "reality show" theme given all that we see on television today. It is like a true Survivor. And of course there have been novels over the years that focus on the government as Big Brother and being all powerful. Maybe it is just my maternal instincts that cringe at the thought of losing a daughter in such a way that made it distasteful to me.

Overall I would give it an 8.5 out of 10. I will read the second one in the trilogy. And I will probably see the movie at some point. But first I need to finish off that last Thursday Next novel.

Feeding the Hunger

A couple of different items to comment on tonight.

First, I finished the fourth, and my personal favorite, of the Thursday Next books Something Rotten. I absolutely LOVED-LOVED-LOVED the ending. What a unique twist involving a character that was introduced earlier on in the series. It was much better than the third one, and I am now confidant that I will be able to finish all five, if not before my vacation, then while in Florida. I know I say this with every post that involves this series, but really, you must at least consider reading this author. He also wrote another book (the first one I read) called The Big Over Easy which is also a detective novel, but it doesn't feature Thursday. Instead it has a rollicking cast of nursery rhyme characters where Humpty Dumpty is murdered and another detective (whose name escapes me at the moment) is investigating the murder. This book sat on my shelf for several months, recommended by my dad, but for some reason it just didn't appeal to me for quite awhile. In fact, I think I finally picked it up and started reading it because he kept pestering me about it. Needless to say, I'm so very glad I did as it has led me here. So buy a copy, set it on the shelf and when you eventually get around to picking it up, I hope you agree.

Secondly, speaking of my dad, I recently purchased a Kindle for a birthday/Father's Day gift for him. I bought the $79 version, since he wasn't all that keen on having an e-reader. He is going to be taking an extended vacation overseas in the fall, and I told him that if nothing else, it would be nice for that so he didn't have to pack a lot of books. So I have been playing with it to see the main differences between the Kobo and the Kindle. There are some features of both that I like and dislike. The Kindle is a little lighter and much easier to turn the page. There is also less pause when you do turn the page. Which is really a selling feature if you are a fast reader. However, I do not care for the way the Kindle organizes your library. The Kobo has all the books you have "opened" on the main page when you power it up. Maybe the Kindle CAN do this, but I haven't figured out how to do that yet. Also, it seems easier to find a book you want to get to on the Kobo as it has the alphabet listed at the top as a menu and you can arrow over the beginning letter. On the Kindle, you have to scroll through each page, or use the keypad to type in the name in a search. The Kindle also has page turners on both the right and left side of the device. Nice feature when someone is snuggled up right next to you. The Kobo has only one button located on the bottom right, and it is downright uncomfortable to use your left hand to turn the page. But, I really enjoy the fact that the Kobo has pre-loaded 100 classics on the e-reader. They are free to download from the Gutenberg Project, but it was a very nice convenience to have. And it has definitely inspired me to read more of that type of book. OH- one thing I absolutely HATE about the Kindle is all the advertisements. Yuck - yuck - yuck!!! Talk about distracting and cheap. Get rid of that!

Lastly, I have finally succumbed to the hype and started reading The Hunger Games. I don't know why it has taken me so long. Everyone, and I do mean every single person I have talked to, has said they are VERY good. I fought the good fight, and now I surrender. I opened it on the Kindle and then on the Kobo and used that book as my comparison novel. I will finish it on the Kobo as the Kindle is all packed away and ready for vacation.

Favorite children's books

Here is a list of my favorite children's books:

The Very Quiet Cricket - about a very lonely cricket looking for a friend he can talk to.

The Story of Ferdinand - a classic story about a bull who is happy being himself under the shade of a cork tree.

Llama Llama Red Pajama - a fun read aloud about a little llama who is scared when his mama leaves his bedroom.

I Love You Stinky Face - a book you and your child will love to read complete with monsters of every type. 

Harold and the Purple Crayon - Harold has a creative streak with his purple crayon.

Roar of a Snore - Where is that snore coming from? It's a surprise for sure but one the whole family will love!

Can I Play Too? - a lovely story about problem solving and remaining loyal to your friends.

Harold's Fairy Tale - another adventure with Harold and his purple crayon, plus great vocabulary words.

Reading goal for 2012

I have finally decided how many books I would like to set as my goal for this year. Based on the number I have already read, I think 40 would be a reasonable choice. The only bad thing about reading goals is that (like golf) once you have reached a magical number (like 85) it really sucks when you don't meet that goal consistently. So I'm trying not to set my goal too high, since it really doesn't have much meaning anyway. Just something fun to do! Now if I can score 85 even once this summer on the golf course I'll consider myself very successful!

Little Bee

After I gave up on The Strain, I needed a book that wouldn't creep me out. I found it in Little Bee. What a story! It definitely didn't creep me out. In fact I felt like doing something to help change the world after I read it. The premise is an African refugee girl that comes to England escaping death in Nigeria. The story comes when her life re-intersects with an English journalist and mother of a two-year old boy. I don't want to say anymore and spoil it. This book definitely stirred emotions, and it made me realize that our life outside of a third world country might as well be on another planet because they are so different. It makes me wonder what would I be like if I had grown up under such circumstances. Would I have had the inner strength to survive? Or would my spirit have been broken by all the evil man can do to each other?

This is certainly a good choice for a book club read. There is plenty of material ripe for discussion ranging from the relationships between the characters to the world problems from which we are so far removed. I would rate it an 8 out 10. It was a fast read and a perfect choice after those creepy vampire creatures!

Annoying

So I just noticed that I have been very inconsistent with how I referenced book titles and the correct use of punctuation when doing so. After looking up how to do it... underline?  quotation marks? italics? I discovered that I should be using italics. I just went through all my blog entries to fix my errors. However, in the Jane Eyre post I accidently used the Edit button instead of just clicking on it and updating. Now it is at the top of my blog posts and dated today instead of the actual date that I wrote the post. Grrr..... I'm annoyed! I know that probably sounds very Type A and possibly borderline compulsive, but it does. If anyone knows how to fix this please let me know!

Jane Eyre

Today I finished Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte. I'm usually a little unsure starting a book considered "a classic", wondering whether or not I'm going to be able to enjoy it. Sometimes the writing is just too far over my head, sometimes I'm just not in the mood to think that hard, sometimes I just don't find them very engaging. Thankfully none of these were the case with Jane Eyre. If I were REALLY diligent, I should have kept a dictionary close by and looked up several words I didn't understand; but it didn't detract from the general story line, so I trudged on and made it through just fine. Overall I gave this book a 4 out of 5 stars on Goodreads rating scale. I'm actually a little surprised I hadn't read it before now, it seems like a natural choice for a high school literature class.

Why did I like it? What did I like about it? Well, first of all I loved Jane's character - her strength and independence and forthrightness. I admired how her character spoke to others. She was very straight-forward and called "a spade - a spade", and did so without losing her composure. She also seemed to be able to ferret out the internal motivations of those she spent much time with, by listening, asking bold questions (for this time period especially), and thinking about the answers carefully. It seemed that most of the conversations held in her story were more honest than those I hear today. It makes me wonder if this was simply her writing style or if we have incorporated a more "politically correct" way of communicating with one another in modern times.

I also sympathized with her upbringing. As a teacher it reminds me that my students come from a variety of backgrounds, and they may be dealing with issues outside of school that have a profound effect on their self-image. How would my character be today if I was brought up under similar conditions? Would I have persevered as she did? I would guess that the very fact that I'm asking these questions is testimony to a successful novel. And that people who read it are still asking those questions 165 years after being published attests to its timelessness.

The only criticism I have is that of the "neatness" of the plot. Jane Eyre did not have a large circle of acquaintances, and yet they neatly create a full circle. Not something that would probably happen in real life, but it IS called fiction for a reason. I was very satisfied with how the story ended, so while I criticize her choice as being unrealistic, I'm glad she made it the way she did.

Now what book to pick up next? I read Jane Eyre as background for Jasper Fforde's Thursday Next series starting with The Eyre Affair. I also would like to get caught up on Janet Evanovitch's bounty hunter books (#16 was the last one I read) and someone recently recommended a vampire trilogy starting with The Strain. Hmmmm..... we'll have to wait and see!

I'm a wimp.

It's official. I'm a wimp. I started reading The Strain last night while my daughter was spending the night with her grandma. The book is about vampires (I think). To be honest, I didn't even get far enough that they were labeled vampires, but these creatures sucked the blood out of people and brought them back from the dead, so I will assume they were vampires. Now I don't have anything against vampire books in general. I loved A Discovery of Witches. Matthew is a very agreeable and friendly vampire if you are on his good side. And I really enjoyed The Passage as well. So what was it about this book that made me unable to read anymore? Well, I guess the best way to describe it was creepy. If it were a movie (and I think one of the authors is a movie writer or director) I would be too scared to watch it I'm sure. About the time one of the newly changed humans-into-vampires started hearing the thrushing of his son and daughter's blood through their veins, after he had cleaned out the blood from the family St. Bernards, I absolutely had had enough. The last part that I read, he was chaining himself out in the shed using one of the deceased dog's collars because he was afraid of what he would do next. It was simply disturbing. No thank you.

So I have now started a new book called Little Bee by Chris Cleave. I can already tell this is more up my alley. It is about a Nigerian refugee that has just left a detainment prison in England and has called a man whom she last saw on a beach in Nigeria. She happened to have his business card in her possession and she called him to ask for his help. I'm sure there will be some sort of very sad story involved. An excerpt from the first chapter will show off adept my foreshadowing skills:

"In a few breaths' time I will speak some sad words to you. But you must hear them the same way we have agreed to see scars now. Sad words are just another beauty. A sad story means, this storyteller is alive. The next thing you know, something fine will happen to her, something marvelous, and then she will turn around and smile."

Now this is a story I can handle. I want to hear what fine things happen to her and even if they don't, the fact that she has the hope in her to believe they will is enough to keep me reading.

Satisfied again

Thank you Jasper Fforde for the creativity you expended in writing the Thursday Next series. The Well of Lost Plots was a welcome read after A Perfect Spy. Thursday does not disappoint in the third book as she goes on adventures in the bookworld. I would admit that I did like the first two better, but I still think she is one of my favorite female detectives. While I love to read, I have never been much of a writer, nor have I ever taken any classes on how to write much beyond an expository paper. Fforde does a nice job of sprinkling in references on how writing occurs, and as always has play on words and grammatical errors that I find an entertaining side note.

Here is a synopsis from the Goodreads website:
Jasper Fforde has done it again in this genre-bending blend of crime fiction, fantasy, and top-drawer literary entertainment. After two rollicking New York Times bestselling adventures through Western literature, resourceful literary detective Thursday Next definitely needs some downtime. And what better place for a respite than in the hidden depths of the Well of Lost Plots, where all unpublished books reside? But peace and quiet remain elusive for Thursday, who soon discovers that the Well is a veritable linguistic free-for-all, where grammasites run rampant, plot devices are hawked on the black market, and lousy books-like the one she has taken up residence in-are scrapped for salvage. To make matters worse, a murderer is stalking the personnel of Jurisfiction and it's up to Thursday to save the day. A brilliant feat of literary showmanship filled with wit, fantasy, and effervescent originality, this Ffordian tour de force is the most exciting Thursday Next adventure yet.


Overall I would give this book an 8 out of 10. If you are a lover of reading or the English language, I think you would find this book appealing. They do have several copies of the first book, The Eyre Affair, available at the Book Rack in Moline for a discounted price.

A Not So Perfect Read

I recently finished the John LeCarre novel A Perfect Spy. Here is a synopsis of the book from Goodreads:

Magnus Pym -- son of Rick, father of Tom, and a successful career officer of British Intelligence -- has vanished, to the dismay of his friends, enemies, and wife. Who is he? Who was he? Who owns him? Who trained him? Secrets of state are at risk. As the truth about Pym gradually emerges, the reader joins Pym's pursuers to explore the unsettling life and motives of a man who fought the wars he inherited with the only weapons he knew, and so became a perfect spy.


To be perfectly honest, I almost put this book down after the first couple of chapters. The reason I didn't was because I had already started and stopped five other books: Uncommon Grounds, The Magician King, The Forgotten Founding Father, Jonathon Strange and Mr. Norrell, and Ordinary Thunderstorms. I was determined to finish the next book I started.

I really liked the characters: Magnus, his wife Mary, his spy mentor Jack Brotherhood, and even his creepy father Rick. But the actual plot was buried underneath so many words. The timeline constantly bounced back and forth, and it was a little difficult to keep it all straight. I think it wasn't until I was 73% through the book that I felt it was difficult to put down.

I wouldn't say I hated it. I wouldn't say I loved it. I think I'll remember it well as it was rather different. But I won't rush out to read another of his novels in the near future. It didn't take me long to chose my next book. I immediately picked up the third book in the Thursday Next series, The Well of Lost Plots. Ahhhhh..... something familiar and comfortable. Plus, I need to finish all five before I go on spring break.

I've got so many on my list it will be hard to say what comes next.

Super Freaky

I finished the book SuperFreakonomics a couple of days ago. I had read Freakonomics when it first came out and remembered liking it a lot. I wish I were the type of person who had a better memory for details, because both of these books are chock full of interesting things that make great conversation. The book is written by a couple of economists (I think) that research some commonplace things (like prostitution, altruistic behavior and global warming) and then look at the research through different eyes. The eyes of an economist. Now from what I gleaned, apparently an economist has more scientific method than the scientists do. Much of the research was done by scientists testing a hypothesis, but these guys just interpreted the data differently, or compiled other data and added that to their conclusions. At any rate, it is very interesting to see how easy it is to spin the data to make it support whatever conclusion you hold near and dear to your heart. Being a math person, I know that statistics is the least "pure" of the mathematical areas precisely because of this scenario. John Allen Paulos wrote several books in fact that discuss how statistics are manipulated by the media to make their case and since the general public is not as numerate as they are literate, they tend to take the statistics for granted. They read the words written, assume the statistics are set in stone and that it is an irrefutable fact since it is in print. I can't say that I believe every single conclusion these authors set out to claim, HOWEVER I give them huge kudos for pointing out the fact that there are many factors to consider and to conduct many experiments, or look at many different groups of data before claiming one as truth. Another author who wrote several books that I put in this same category is Malcolm Gladwell. He wrote The Tipping Point, Blink and Outliers. Again, good fodder for those of us with a hint of conspiracy theory blood in our veins and who are willing to question the facts as presented to us.

I've been toying with the idea of adding my own rating scale. Being a math person, I want to choose a scale that will be meaningful. The scale from 1 to 5 seems to me to not have enough range to fully differentiate between the levels of "like" and "really like". So I think I will try a scale from 1 to 10 and see how that goes.

SuperFreakonomics
Finished February 1, 2012
Rating:  8
Comments: Easy to read and understand. Good bathroom reading if you are into that kind of thing.

To e-read or not to e-read

For those of you who are trying to decide whether or not to buy an e-reader I would be happy to share my thoughts on the subject. I have owned the first generation Kobo (was there even a second generation?) for a year now, and generally use it to read the classics that came preloaded on it. I had some hesitation before buying it and thought I would discuss it's pros and cons here on my blog. My first choice when it comes to choosing a book would be one that is a soft cover but the bigger size than a traditional paperback. My eyes aren't what they used to be, and I find the print in a smaller size paperbacks, well, too small. The e-reader is fantastic for this because I can adjust the font size and I find that I don't have to wear my glasses to read it. Definite pro. Also, it's so convenient when I know there is a book that I must have and start RIGHT NOW to be able to download it instantly to my e-reader. With a young child at home sometimes it is impossible to get to the bookstore when I want to. That is the second pro. The third pro is a little embarrassing to admit, but nonetheless I will share. When long books come out in hardcover, I actually find that it gets uncomfortable to hold the book while I read in bed. I know, pretty lame, but it really does make a difference when I can easily hold my e-reader in one hand. I suppose another possible pro is that it takes up less space on the bookshelf, but I sort of like being able to peruse my past reads, and ones that I haven't gotten to yet, and show them off to friends and family. It's a nice way to share with people a part of who I am and what I like. So I guess we better scratch that off the pro side and add it to the con side!

So, what are the other downsides? You may have noticed that I did not mention the price of books being any cheaper as one of the pros of owning an e-reader. I do not fully understand why, but they are not that much cheaper, especially when you consider the fact that they are considerably less expensive to produce. The economics definitely doesn't add up there. Usually the e-books are a couple of dollars less, especially if you shop around on Amazon or have a membership card at one of the big chain bookstores. Apparently you can borrow ebooks from the library, but I have yet to try this feature out. Ok, so back to my list of cons. My first con made itself known when I was snuggled in bed, about three-fourths of the way through a gripping murder mystery (don't remember the name right now) and my battery went dead! That never happens when reading a real book obviously. I was so pissed, I grabbed my blanket and went and sat at my computer desk with my blanket wrapped around me and finished reading it. Since then I have purchased a charger, and I have discovered that some chargers will do double duty for your cell phone as well. I wasn't quite that lucky though. The next con is also one I didn't consider right away, and it isn't a big deal, but being a big reader I often like to see what other people are reading too. When someone is reading on an e-reader, you aren't able to surreptitiously glance at the cover and, if the fancy strikes, start up a conversation about said book. Not a deal breaker, but an unintended consequence to be sure.

As I was reading SuperFreakonomics there were several passages I wanted to highlight and return to later. If I had been reading a hard copy, I would have turned down a corner of the page. My Kobo doesn't have a bookmark feature, but I've been told that some of the Kindle editions do, and some even offer a highlighter feature. I would never have thought about wanting this until the need for it arose. I was bummed. The last and possibly most annoying downside of the e-reader is the inability to be able to pick up the book and turn it over and read a synopsis of the story. Upon finishing one book, I often struggle with what to read next. I do not want to just pick up the next one off the shelf in a sequential order. It is a very important decision. If I do not choose correctly I run the risk of banishing that book to the "never to be read/finished" list simply because I wasn't in the mood for that kind of book. At the moment, if I want to choose from books on my e-reader I must check on my GoodReads shelf (if they are there) or Google the book if it isn't and find out if it's the right time for me to start reading that particular novel. It seems so impersonal. I like to hold the book in my hand. Get an idea of how long it might take me to finish it. I've been known to pick up as many as 8 or 10 books at Border's and sort them into piles based on reading a paragraph or so from the middle of the book. Can't do it with a Kobo. That puts a huge cramp in my book selection style. If anyone knows of a newer edition e-reader that has a capability similar please pass along the information. Quick, before I buy a new one!

Overall, I've been happy with my purchase. I bought the Kobo for $99 and it came loaded with 100 classics, so I feel like I got a deal at a $1 a book there. Yes, I know they are free to download, but if I didn't have the e-reader I would have had to buy them or pay the late fines to the library. I have learned to share my reading time to include my old, familiar comfortable reading habits while incorporating the wave of the future. They each have their good and bad sides. Like just about everything else in this world. My biggest question now is whether buying one for my Dad would be a good gift idea or if he would scoff at the idea..... perhaps I will take the chance that he too will find the benefits of owning and e-reader. And he will be a step ahead of the game since he didn't have to buy it!