As I’ve mentioned Jodi Picoult is now one of my favorite authors. I love how she shows the storyline through the eyes of several different characters. This book follows the tragic life of June Nealon. This poor woman loses her husband in a car accident and is alone with her daughter. She is eventually able to remarry when more tragedy strikes.
**SPOILER ALERT**
I wanted to warn you before I mention some of the details from this story because I really am stumped as to how much I enjoyed this story or if it was just strange. After June remarries she becomes pregnant. She hires a young man to do some work around the house. This character Shay Bourne is found later with a gun and June’s daughter and husband are dead. He was also accused of trying to sexually abuse the girl. He was sentenced to death row for the murders. While he’s on death row these strange miracles start happening. I mean we’re talking changing water to wine, quoting scripture that is as rare to come across as the Dead Sea scrolls. Weird stuff. June’s daughter she was pregnant with is now a teenage with a very bad heart. She’s awaiting a transplant or she may not survive. Shay Bourne decides the only way for his salvation is to give his heart to June’s daughter, Claire. There’s a trial and another great conclusion to this book. Pretty good story, well written, but a little too odd trying to make this guy out to be a messiah. There’s a priest who even believes this guy could be the messiah. At the end the priest is left some of Shay’s things and finds out that Shay wasn’t performing miracles but he was a deceptive human. One of the things that did perplex me was in prison he brought a bird back to life (so it appeared) then at the end of the book the girl who has his heart finds her dog dead and brings it back to life. What’s this author trying to tell us? Very interesting but I’ll stick with Jesus.
I’m not going to spend too much time on this book because to be honest I only made it about 80 pages in. I know, it’s hard to judge a book unless you finish it, but I just couldn’t do it. I got to the point where I was spacing out more than I was actually reading the book. It has a great message. A mountain climber is climbing K2 in Pakistan when he comes across this remote village. They live very primitive lives to say the least. He discovers one day the kids at the top of a hill with small chalkboards practicing the lessons they had learned at one time when they were able to visit a nearby village which had a teacher. These kids were starving to learn. As a teacher, this was amazing because all I hear from kids is how they’d rather be playing video games or watching TV. Sometimes technology can hinder us. Anyhow, Greg (the climber) makes this effort back in the U.S. to raise money to build a school for these kids.
I’m sure this book is inspiring and at some other point I may try to read it again. But the writing just didn’t pull me in. I just couldn’t get that connection with the story. I’m not going to say stay away from this book because I’m sure many people will love it but for me I have to give it a low rating.
Bedsores:
I am starting Change of Heart by Jodi PIcoult. I will also recommend for any of you who enjoy young adult books, Peter and the Starcatchers. Great book! It tells the story of how Peter Pan became who he is.
Lacey commented on a few books she is reading. I am a Shannon Hale fan as well. I read the Princess Academy and enjoyed it but Goose Girl was my favorite so far. If you haven’t read it check it out. It’s an easy read and puts a new spin on an old fairy tale. I haven’t read, Austenland, which Lacey mentioned. I think I want to put These Is My Words (another one Lacey mentioned) on my list to read next. I linked this with a synopsis of the book to give you a little background.
My Dad emailed me about this book that he is reading now. I haven’t read it but it sounds like a great one, here’s the info on it.
This is the website to get the book, The Richest Man in Town, or you can go to www.simpletruths.com and type in the title in their search area. This is one of the best books I’ve read in a long time even though it is small and only 90 pages. On simple truths website you can click on the book and preview it.
I just got Three Cups of Tea, which I had on hold at the library. I’m really excited to dig into this one…I’ll keep you updated.
If you haven’t figured it out this is a non-fiction book recounting the days after Lincoln’s assassination. To tell you how clueless I was I didn’t even know there was a 12 day search for the killer. I assumed John Wilkes Booth was caught right away. This book gives details of how Booth pulled off the murder, who his accomplices were, and who else was on Booth’s assassination list other than our President. It also tells of how close he was to freedom and the price paid for those who helped along the way.
It’s very interesting how Booth dies. He was shot in almost the same spot as he shot Pres. Lincoln. Talk about poetic justice. What I loved about this book was how well it was written. I couldn’t put the book down! I felt like I was watching an award winning movie and yet learning about an important part of history all at the same time. This book made me really dislike Booth even more, the accounts that were given show the selfishness of this man. There are witness accounts (people he talked with along the way and before) but there’s also excerpts from his diary. Yeah this maniac kept a diary the whole time during his chase. I guess so he can try and justify his crime to the world. There’s no remorse for the crime he committed. It’s too bad he couldn’t see with this plan he was taking away one of the greatest leaders we would ever have. I mean if only he could see our options for president now…but I’ll stay away from modern politics. I loved this book! I’ll rate it with 4.5 out of 5 bedsores.
I don’t like to go out and purchase books because I usually don’t read them more than once. There have been a few exceptions to this rule but not many. So currently I am waiting on a couple of books which are on hold at the library. One is Change of Heart by Jodi Picoult, which I know nothing about but I have enjoyed her books so far. The other which I’ve heard good things about is Three Cups of Tea by Greg Mortenson. I don’t have anything in mind to read until then so I’m thinking of rereading the Harry Potter series all the way through. I always read those as they came out each year but I want to read them straight through and catch up. Any books you recommend?
I just returned from seeing the movie Wall-e. This was another great Pixar film! My Mom and I were commenting on how well they can get you attached to this robot. He just seems so human-like and even cuddly. Though I don’t know how that is possible with a robot. Wall-e ends up being one of the last life forms (is a robot a life form?) on Earth. You can see his sensitivity as he makes friends with a cockroach and yearns for hand-holding. Wall-e fights for the one he loves and is a hero though he doesn’t realize it.
There are definitely some themes to this movie that adults will catch. For instance, the earth has now become a giant trash heap. Go green, anyone? The remnants of buildings left behind have all been taken over by big business and even the President is working for (maybe even bought out by) a big business to get rid of trash and find a suitable planet to live on in the meantime. I think the writers were trying to show us what our world is becoming with the take over of big business. I don’t know if I’m sold though because I do love Super Wal-Mart. Another theme was seen as the former inhabitants of Earth are soaring through the universe on what appears to be the mother of all cruises, they all have become severely obese. They’re actually riding around on flying Lazy Boys and sipping Big Gulps all the while talking on their cellphone/computer/digital something. I do agree that as technology advances we as a nation and even as a world are getting lazier and fatter. Because honestly, how many of us would rather text someone than actually call them or heaven forbid go visit and talk face to face! There’s a little movie called Supersize Me which has already shown the effects of fast foods, and large quantities of it. If you haven’t seen that movie go rent it, your world will be rocked especially if you love burgers and fries. But as for Wall-e: it’s kid friendly, lovable characters, humor, real world issues to contemplate, and altogether a terrific movie. I give it 4.5 out of 5 bedsores!
This was an inspiring book. I love the way Jeannette Walls is so open with her life experiences. She begins the book with some foreshadowing of the rest of her childhood. (She ends up in the hospital at 3 years old because she spilled boiling water on herself while trying to cook a hot dog. Which she apparently does often at that age. ) In this book Jeannette’s parents seem to have a genuine love for their children but also they don’t have enough control of their own lives to really be parents. Jeannette Walls recounts her life and due to her parents erratic behavior they moved from town to town never setting down any roots. The children in this family never had a chance to go to school but their father, who appears to be a genius with a major drinking problem, home schools the kids. The children band together and help each other through the hunger, their father’s drinking, their mom’s depression, and every other challenge that came their way. It’s interesting to see how Jeannette went from hiding all of her childhood struggles to publishing it in a bestseller book.
As I was reading this book I found myself continually checking to make sure this was non-fiction. It’s hard to believe anyone could survive a life like she describes much less come out with the life she has now. At the end of this book I found myself admiring this person and being so grateful for my own parents and relatively boring upbringing. Boring has never been so great. This is a book I think everyone can learn from and enjoy. I give it 5 out of 5 bedsores.
There are apparently a lot of people who love this book. It won a Pulitzer Prize which blew me away because…well…this book is…just weird! It was also an Oprah Book Club book so I’m sure many of you will disagree with my feelings on this book.
This book is the story of a recessive gene which is passed down and causes a girl, Calliope to be born and later find out she also has male “parts.” It tells of how this gene is passed down through basically a lot of inbreeding. I mean her grandparents are brother and sister, this beats any hillbilly inbreeding! I was expecting more of an emotional journey and there is some but there’s also a little too much graphic detail of this man/woman’s struggle to find out who he/she is. Some of you may be more drawn to this kind of writing. I felt like I was given too much of some man’s lesbian fantasy than an actual emotional pull for this character. I did finish the book so it wasn’t a complete waste but when I finished I had the “why did I read this?” thought. I would say this book isn’t worth the bedsores. I’m going to be brutal and give it 1.5 out of 5 bedsores. It gets the half because I did finish it, though I’m still not sure why.
This is another great one by Jodi Picoult. I have to admit I didn’t know what to expect when reading this book. The theme is about how ordinary things in you life can be done in 19 minutes or your entire life can change in 19 minutes.
This was the second book I had read by Jodi Picoult (I read The Tenth Circle after this one) and the previous one, My Sister’s Keeper, is one of my all time favorite books so I expected to enjoy it. As a teacher this book had a real effect on me. It brings back memories of Columbine and other typical bullying gone bad incidents. This book made me think about how the way we treat others can change their lives. Right after reading this I just wanted to teach the kids in my class how important it is to respect each others differences. This is what makes the difference between a good book and a great book. Does it sit with us so long that we’re still thinking about it days later? The main characters in this book are friends throughout school and then when they get to high school the cliques appear and the one who is too nerdy gets left behind and tortured by the popular kids. In my opinion there’s never a good reason to kill an innocent person but I did find myself feeling extremely sorry for the shooter in this book because he was tortured by many of the people in his school. I liked the ending in this book as well, which I won’t give away, but Jodi Picoult does give a real-life ending to this book. This has been my favorite book of the summer and I would give it 4 out of 5 bedsores.
Jodi Picoult is quickly becoming one of my favorite authors. When you read her books you definitely have to give the book all of your attention. She switches viewpoints quite a bit. There are also many characters in her books which adds a bit of a challenge. I love being able to see how each character views the situation. I think it takes a talented author portray each characters feelings so well.
Anyhow, in the Tenth Circle you have a lot of family struggles. I could feel throughout this book that this family really has a lot of love but like any family they experience challenges and have to learn how to deal with these challenges. The father in this book, Daniel Stone, is a stay at home Dad and a good one. His wife, Laura, is a college professor, who specializes in a course about Dante’s Divine Comedy. Now in case you don’t remember Dante’s book which I have to admit I could remember flashes of reading this in high school but not anything solid. The Divine Comedy is all about Dante’s trip through Hell. The interesting thing is at the same time her husband is writing a comic about battling through Hell to rescue his daughter. This is exactly what ends up doing in this book. Their teenage daughter is raped and her parents are trying to hold her together while holding themselves together. This poor girl deals with the psychological effects of rape and then something unexpected happens (I’ll leave you hanging on this one). I kept thinking as I was reading this book I really hope life isn’t like this for teenagers. I know the world is bad now but you forget how difficult it is getting for kids. I kept hoping she could get rescued from her “hell” she is suffering but I’m sure that’s something rape victims deal with all the time–fighting through this internal hell. This book pulled me in so well I read most of the book in 1 day. I give it 4 out of 5 bedsores! This is a must read!
As I’ve mentioned Jodi Picoult is now one of my favorite authors. I love how she shows the storyline through the eyes of several different characters. This book follows the tragic life of June Nealon. This poor woman loses her husband in a car accident and is alone with her daughter. She is eventually able to remarry when more tragedy strikes.
If you haven’t figured it out this is a non-fiction book recounting the days after Lincoln’s assassination. To tell you how clueless I was I didn’t even know there was a 12 day search for the killer. I assumed John Wilkes Booth was caught right away. This book gives details of how Booth pulled off the murder, who his accomplices were, and who else was on Booth’s assassination list other than our President. It also tells of how close he was to freedom and the price paid for those who helped along the way.
This was an inspiring book. I love the way Jeannette Walls is so open with her life experiences. She begins the book with some foreshadowing of the rest of her childhood. (She ends up in the hospital at 3 years old because she spilled boiling water on herself while trying to cook a hot dog. Which she apparently does often at that age. ) In this book Jeannette’s parents seem to have a genuine love for their children but also they don’t have enough control of their own lives to really be parents. Jeannette Walls recounts her life and due to her parents erratic behavior they moved from town to town never setting down any roots. The children in this family never had a chance to go to school but their father, who appears to be a genius with a major drinking problem, home schools the kids. The children band together and help each other through the hunger, their father’s drinking, their mom’s depression, and every other challenge that came their way. It’s interesting to see how Jeannette went from hiding all of her childhood struggles to publishing it in a bestseller book.
Jodi Picoult is quickly becoming one of my favorite authors. When you read her books you definitely have to give the book all of your attention. She switches viewpoints quite a bit. There are also many characters in her books which adds a bit of a challenge. I love being able to see how each character views the situation. I think it takes a talented author portray each characters feelings so well.