I really, really was into the first half or so of Breaking Dawn, but did not like the second half at all. I read the first half or so immediately after Eclipse andabsolutely couldn’t put the book down until the end of the birth scene. I thought it was really intense and I was totally engrossed. Then, afterwards… what a let down. For starters, I actually was a little disappointed that she had to ‘cross over.’ I understand the reasons why, but it was so much more interesting to me before she did. And the way they told Charlie was totally hokey. I didn’t think that part was written well at all. Jacob’s new love interest seemed a little bizarre, but it did keep everyone in the same family so I guess I can live with it. And the vampire showdown? It went out with a whimper instead of a bang, didn’t it?
Oh, well, now it’s over, and I can feel great that once again this 40-ish woman is up on a small portion of pop culture. It’s difficult keeping up with the youngsters, but the Twilight series (at least most of it) made it a little more fun to do so. Now I’m just looking forward to the release of the movies!
2008, 754 pp
[Disclosure: This book was not received from the publisher. It's hard to admit, but I actually purchased a copy.]
I read Eclipse pretty much straight through in one sitting the day after finishing New Moon. These books are addicting, if nothing else. I liked these two books the best of the four, and I couldn’t read fast enough. Since so many have already read the book, this post will contain spoilers.
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Eclipse was a fun one, what with the Edward/Jacob rivalry heating up even more. I especially enjoyed the tent scenes. Teenage love and angst at its best. I thought it was a little weird, though, that Bella wanted to be with Edward forever but resisted marrying him. What’s the difference when it comes down to it? I also really felt for Jacob in this one. I’m not really ‘Team Jacob,’ though, but in some ways I’m not ‘Team Edward,’ either. If you had to pin me down I’d have to say that I was ‘Team Bella’ in the sense that I’m rooting for her to realize and attain what she really wants for herself. Sometimes that’s the hardest thing in life to do — figuring out what one really wants.
2007, 629 pp.
[Disclosure: This book was not received from the publisher. It's hard to admit, but I actually purchased a copy.]
I have now read through the entire series and will be publishing reviews for the other two books very soon.
Spoilers ahead
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I actually liked this one much better than Twilight, probably because it was better written. In fact, my favorites of the four were New Moon and Eclipse. I didn’t mind at all that Edward wasn’t in New Moon very much and was even half rooting for Jacob. It was fun to find out Jacob’s story as well. And although some readers felt that Bella’s grief was way over the top, I didn’t. Teenage love and loss– heck, adult love and loss– is very painful. Sometimes excruciatingly.
I’m excited for the movie to come out. I’ve seen some of the sneak previews from Comic Con and they look great. I’m also looking forward to seeing Dakota Fanning play Jane.
You know, I haven’t gone through chunks of books like this for a long time, and I must say I’ve missed it.
2006, 608 pp.
[Disclosure: This book was not received from the publisher. It's hard to admit, but I actually purchased a copy.]
This was my first book by Alice Munro, who was recently named as the 2009 Man Booker International Prize winner. This book of stories is a personal, though fictional, history of her family’s emigration from Scotland and their settlement in Canada. It was on the NYT Notable Book list in 2007.
Munro illustrated the struggles of her ancestor immigrants very well. Though I am of German ancestry, I know many of my great-grandparents had many of the same challenges when they settled in Nebraska from Germany. (I would soooo love to read a fictionalized account of their story!)
I enjoyed this book very much, but some may find it a little slow and boring in parts. I’m very interested in family histories of immigration, so I appreciated both the stories and Munro’s writing. I have to wonder, though, were all European immigrants a little hard and cold? Perhaps just the act of survival took all their energy.
I am now curious to read more of Munro’s work for the Canadian Challenge III. If you have any you strongly recommend, please let me know.
Winner of the 2003 Orange Prize, Property by Valerie Martin is an extremely readable story set in the South and is, obviously, about slavery and what it means to be free.
Manon is the wife of a cruel slaveowner and is miserable in her marriage. She idealizes her father, who was kind (relatively speaking) to his slaves, and hates her husband, but really, she is not that kind to her slaves herself. Manon is not a likable character at all, though we do feel a little sympathetic toward her situation. Her attitudes toward slavery were probably typical of the time — in other words, deplorable.
It is ironic that Manon really is ‘property’ to her husband as well. I believe that is the thrust of the novel. There is a parallel story between her and her slave Sarah. Both desperately want freedom, but Manon cannot understand why Sarah won’t accept her position as slave. There is a certain scene between Manon and Sarah that I *did not* care for, but it illustrated Manon’s attitudes perfectly. She was enforcing her ‘ownership’ of Sarah just as her husband did.
I thought the story was leading up to a certain conclusion in the end, but it didn’t happen, and the book ends a bit abruptly. Though I wanted more, the book definitely is thought-provoking. It is a quick read — I read it in a single day, and I do recommend it if you’re interested in the time period or Orange Prize winners.
Valerie Martin is a native of New Orleans so I am also counting this for the Southern Reading Challenge.
Do you always read what you know you will like, or do you sometimes try to stretch yourself to see ‘what’s out there’? I go in cycles. Sometimes I have no patience for something that doesn’t fit my personality, and other times I do like to be exposed to books or other art that is far from my own personal norm.
Skim is not something I probably would have picked up if not for the Canadian Challenge or the Graphic Novel Challenge. It was also a quick read. While I very much sympathize with the typical teenage angst in the book, with themes of suicide, w*tchcr*ft, and hom*s*xual*ty, Skim just wasn’t for me. I do give the author credit, though, for writing the characters in such a way that the reader does feel their emotional pain. That alone, though, just wasn’t enough for me to enjoy the book.
Of course it’s every peasant whose forgiveness must be sought. But the rabbi’s point is even more tyrannical: nothing erases the immoral act. Not forgiveness. Not confession.
And even if an act could be forgiven, no one could bear the responsibility of forgiveness on behalf of the dead. No act of violence is ever resolved. When the one who can forgive can no longer speak, there is only silence.
Fugitive Pieces is a must read for those interested in Jewish fiction or the history of World War II. The book is told in two parts. In the first we have Jakob Beer, rescued as a child from the forces of WWII by a Greek scholar. He struggles mightily with the memories of his parents and sister. They haunt him throughout his life, overshadowing even the good. In the second, we have Ben, the son of two Holocaust survivors. He is much influenced by Jakob’s poetry, which helps him understand his parents’ deep emotional pain, and, in turn, his own. In this regard, I found the second section a bit reminiscent of Maus. In both parts, there is always the question of whether or not the survivors really and truly survived or if they are hopelessly caught in their pasts.
I have a difficult time reading anything about the Holocaust, even if it deals primarily about the aftermath of the survivors. But, I feel it is extremely important for me to do so. I highly recommend this book if you have a similar interest in this topic.
“And where would we be in a world without the old Botswana morality? It would not work, in Mma Romatswe’s view, because it would mean that people could do as they wished without regard for what others thought. That would be a receipe for selfishness, a recipe as clear as if it were written out in a cookery book: Take one country, with all that the country means, with its kind people, and their smiles, and their habits of helping one another; ignore all this; shake about; add modern ideas; bake until ruined.”
It is clear from this series that Alexander McCall Smith loves Botswana and the people in it. His respect is such that with each book that I read, he makes me want to visit Botswana someday all the more.
In this installment, we have an advice columnist, a cook, a hornbill, high blood pressure, uncomfortable chairs, and questions about being ‘traditionally built’ and feminism. Good fun as always!
Dream Angus by Alexander McCall Smith is one of the books of the Canongate Myths. I’ve only read one other book in the series, The Penelopiad, by Margaret Atwood, and I truly loved it. I enjoyed this one as well, which is a retelling of the myth of the Celtic god of dreams and love.
The book starts out with the tales of how Angus came into being and grew up, and then it has separate stories, alternating between modern and ancient times, of Angus and his doings. One of the stories seemed a bit harsh, but in most of them Angus was a giver of good dreams, enabling people (and sometimes animals) to come to peace with their situations.
I really enjoy Alexander McCall Smith’s writing style and I love myths, so I was very happy to read this book. Since both of the books I’ve read in this series were very enjoyable, I may branch out into the other installments listed below as well.
I finally read Twilight. I think I was (almost) the last to do so. Even my sisters both bragged that they read the whole series before I even got to the first book.
So what did I think? Well, for the first few pages,I thought, I don’t know if I’m going to be able to do this… Then I don’t know if the writing got better or I just got sucked (pun intended) into the story, but I did end up liking it quite a bit. I think Stephenie Meyer knows how to tap into a teenage girl’s mind and the book fits its audience quite well. As far as this 40+ woman goes, well, I did roll my eyes at some passages, but the overall plot of the book is pretty darn good.
The movie was remarkably faithful to the book for the most part, and l quite enjoyed it when I saw it last year. In fact, I’ll probably re-watch it soon and then go ahead and read New Moon so when talk comes up about the upcoming movie I won’t have anything spoiled for me. Then I’ll read Eclipseand Breaking Dawn during Carl’s R.I.P. challenge (if I can wait until September).
“But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law.”
I read Eclipse pretty much straight through in one sitting the day after finishing New Moon. These books are addicting, if nothing else. I liked these two books the best of the four, and I couldn’t read fast enough. Since so many have already read the book, this post will contain spoilers.
This was my first book by Alice Munro, who was recently named as the 
Winner of the 2003 Orange Prize, Property by Valerie Martin is an extremely readable story set in the South and is, obviously, about slavery and what it means to be free.
Do you always read what you know you will like, or do you sometimes try to stretch yourself to see ‘what’s out there’? I go in cycles. Sometimes I have no patience for something that doesn’t fit my personality, and other times I do like to be exposed to books or other art that is far from my own personal norm.
Dream Angus by Alexander McCall Smith is one of the books of the 
I finally read Twilight. I think I was (almost) the last to do so. Even my sisters both bragged that they read the whole series before I even got to the first book.
