The Little Prince

By Antoine De Saint-Exupery

The Fall of Atlantis

By Marion Zimmer Bradley

Brisingr

By Christopher Paolini

Eldest

By Christopher Paolini

Eragon

By Christopher Paolini

The Good Husband of Zebra Drive and The Miracle at Speedy Motors

By Alexander McCall Smith


Still good. If you have been convinced to read any of the other ones you won't read these either. But you really should.

Into the Wild

By Jon Krakauer
A couple of weekends ago, when we found ourselves driving from Seattle to Bellingham without an Ipod or any cds, Andrew and I stopped and picked up the soundtrack to the movie, Into the Wild. A family member had played it the previous weekend and Andrew remembered that he liked it. I don't remember hearing it all. We both loved the cd, I listened to it repeatedly on the drive home. Good music and by the lyrics of the songs, it sounded like we would enjoy the movie and the person that it was about. The cd reminded us of my brother Josh, probably because that is what we are thinking about a lot right now. But I think he would have liked it. About a week later, Andrew picked up the book. I read it first and I loved it. I didn't especially like the flow of the writing at first, but it gets a little more organized after the first few chapters. I also don't like that most of the story is based on picture journals, but that the pictures aren't included. But the story is interesting. And it is an easy quick read.

Here is the Wikipedia summary:
The book begins with the discovery of McCandless's body inside an abandoned bus in Alaska and retraces his travels during the two years he was missing. McCandless shed his real name early in his journey, adopting the moniker "Alexander Supertramp". He spent time in Carthage, South Dakota with a man named Wayne Westerberg. Krakauer interprets McCandless's intensely ascetic personality as possibly influenced by the writings of Leo Tolstoy, Henry David Thoreau, and perhaps McCandless's favorite writer, Jack London. He explores the similarities between McCandless's experiences and motivations and his own as a young man, recounting in detail his own attempt to climb Devil's Thumb in Alaska. He also relates the stories of some other young men who vanished into the wilderness, such as Everett Ruess, an artist and wanderer who went missing in the Utah Desert during 1934 at age 20. In addition, he describes at some length the grief and puzzlement of McCandless's family and friends.

Blue Shoes and Happiness

Alexander McCall SmithI read this one and liked it too. I really like these books because I feel like I can read little bits here and there and enjoy them. Or I can sit down and read the whole thing cover to cover. If you don't think that you have time for reading, but want to, pick one of these books up. You will enjoy it and it will make you feel good reading it. She is a very well-rounded, logical person. I like her.

Here is the Wikipedia summary:
Mma Ramotswe is asked to investigate a cook who is being blackmailed, and a doctor whose nurse believes he is doing something illegal. She discovers the identity of the blackmailer, who is a newspaper agony aunt abusing the confidences of her correspondents, and forces her to stop. The doctor is selling generic drugs at the full cost to his patients, and she causes him to be reported. During the investigation she becomes more aware of her excess weight and its health risks and even tries to diet, but decides the most important thing is to be herself and happy.

Mr Polopetsi, the new employee, is happy in his work but still struggles with poverty and hostility from relatives due to his spell in prison. He wants to help Mma Ramotswe, his mentor, with detective work, and when superstitious fears disturb staff at the Mokolodi Nature Reserve, it is he who discovers the cause: an injured ground-hornbill, believed to bring ill luck. He removes it, but it dies, and he fears he has lost Mma Ramotswe's trust, but is relieved and grateful when she shows faith in him after all.

Mma Makutsi fears her engagement to Phuti Radiphuti is over after a misunderstanding about feminism, but all is explained and, in the process, Mr J.L.B.Matekoni gains a comfortable new chair which will make him happy too. She begins to appreciate how her fortunes will change with her marriage, and indulges her passion for impractical shoes with a new blue pair, even though they do not fit very well.

In the Company of Cheerful Ladies

By Alexander McCall Smith Another one of these wonderful books! I am still loving each and everyone of them. Mma Ramotswe is starting to feel like an old friend. When I have a few minutes, I enjoy picking up the book and finding out how she is doing now. These books really are great to read when you are really busy, because you can pick them up for short periods of time and read a little bit here and little bit there.

Here is the plot summary from wikipedia, sorry I am too lazy to write my own!

Mma Ramotswe and her new husband settle down to married life with their foster-children, but problems are piling up. At Mr J.L.B. Matekoni's own house, the tenant is running an illegal drinking den. Then Charlie, the apprentice, gets entangled with a wealthy married woman and quits his job after a row with Mma Makutsi. Help arrives in the person of Mr Polopetsi, whom Mma Ramotswe accidentally knocks off his bicycle with her van. He has been unemployed following a spell in prison after what appears to have been a miscarriage of justice, and Mma Ramotswe persuades her husband to employ him out of guilt and sympathy, but he proves an asset to the garage. He has tracking skills too, and when Mma Ramotswe's van is stolen after a breakdown, he finds it for her.

Mma Ramotswe's violent ex-husband Note Mokote reappears. She is frightened, having never obtained a divorce from him before marrying again. Note tries to blackmail her, but Mma Ramotswe discovers that he actually married her bigamously, so their marriage was invalid and she is legally married to Mr J.L.B Matekoni after all. Surrounded by her husband and friends at the garage, she finds the courage to dismiss Note and forgive him.

Mma Makutsi's love prospects improve when she starts dancing lessons and is partnered with another student, Mr Radiphuti. At first she tries to avoid him, as he is awkward and stammers, but he turns out to be a kind and gentle man with a good job in his father's business, and a romance begins. She removes some of Mma Ramotswe's burden of worry by solving an important fraud investigation on her own, and manoeuvring Charlie back to work. Mr Radiphuti's father enlists the help of Mma Ramotswe to put a proposal of marriage from his shy son to Mma Makutsi, and the two become engaged.

The Full Cupboard of Life

By Alexander McCall SmithLife is a rich, full, and happy experience for Mma Ramotswe, who is still engaged to the good-hearted Mr. J.L.B. Matakone. Even though they have not yet set a date for a wedding, she helps him with his problems and cooks and cares for the two orphans he has taken into his home. Over the course of this book, Mma Ramotswe and her friends face several "difficult" problems. First, a woman who has made a fortune establishing hair-braiding salons hires Mma Ramotswe to find out whether her suitors want to marry her for her money. Then, Mr. J.L.B. Matakone finds himself tricked into "volunteering" to do a parachute jump. He is also disturbed to discover that First Class Motors, a rival garage, has sold improper parts and failed to service a classic old Range Rover correctly, and he has been procrastinating about reporting him to authorities. However, as always, these problems and more are all resolved through Mma Ramotswe's quick thinking and observation skills.

One more book down, still loving them. I am going to be sad when they are all over.

P.S. Don't you love the artwork on the cover?

The Kalahari Typing School for Men

Mma Precious Ramotswe is content. Her business is well established with many satisfied customers, and in her mid-thirties. She has a house, two adopted children, a fine fiancé. But, as always, there are troubles. Mr. J.L.B. Matekoni has not set the date for their marriage. Her able assistant, Mma Makutsi, wants a husband and needs more income. And worse, a rival detective agency has opened in town, an agency that does not have the gentle approach to business that Mma Ramotswe’s does. Even more distressing, Mma Ramotswe is charged, through her casework, to determine the identity of a cheating man's lover, only to find that it is Mma Makutsi! But, of course, Mma Ramotswe manages these things, as she always does, with her uncanny insight and her good heart.

Still loving them....

Morality for Beautiful Girls

By Alexander McCall SmithThis book begins with Mma Ramotswe still engaged to Mr. J.L.B. Matekoni, owner of Tlokweng Road Speedy Motors. Things are not going very well for The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency, which faces a slowdown of business that may force them to close their doors. At this same time, Mr. J.L.B. Matekoni is dealing with a mysterious illness that is causing him to neglect his business and the people that are important to him. It takes all of Mma Ramotswe's intuitive thinking, and the assistance of Mma Grace Makutsi, secretary of the The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency, to get both businesses back up and running smoothly.

Still loving these books! They are perfect for busy people who don't have time to devote their life to reading. I can read a chapter here or there and be perfectly happy. And I am always happy to read more about Mma Ramotswe and her perspective on live.

Tears of the Giraffe

By Alexander McCall SmithAt the end of the first book, Mma Ramotswe became engaged to Mr. J.L.B. Matekoni, the garage owner. This book opens with the couple's first major problem, Mr. J.L.B Matekoni's rude maid's attempt to frame Mma Ramotswe for a serious offence. In this book we also see Mma Ramotswe use her intuitive skills to help an American woman whose son disappeared in Botswana some years previously and to deal with a paternity case. We also learn more about Mr J. L. B. Matekoni as he adopts two orphans and has to figure out a way to break the news to Mma Ramotswe.

I love the second book as much as the first, a sequel really felt natural for these characters. I really recommend reading these books. They have the best of everything, a little bit of humor, morality, and mystery all while taking you away to another place.

The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency

I love this book! The story follows Mma Precious Ramotswe as she uses her beloved father's inheritance to start a private detective agency. As indicated by the name of her agency, Precious is the first woman in Botswana to enter that profession. Through the curious cases that she receives, Precious encounters many dangerous and risky obstacles. Motivated by her desire to help other people and to make Botswana a better place, Precious uses her common sense and good observation skills to solve every case that she is given. Throughout the course of each investigation we learn more about Africa, the people who live there, the love they have for their land, and the many changes that are taking place in Africa.

That description just doesn't do this book justice. This isn't really a mystery book. And it isn't really a book about Africa. It is a book about a good, kind lady who uses her common sense and solves problems around her. It is a book about the observations that Precious makes on the world around her and her opinion of the people that she sees. This book is funny, yet filled with good solid values. I want to be like Precious!

P.S. I just read something on the internet, while looking for a picture of the book, that there is an audiobook version. I don't normally like to listen to someone else read, but I think this book might actually be very enjoyable in the audiobook version.

Afternoon of the Elves

By Janet Taylor LisleAfternoon of the Elves is about two little girls who are complete opposites. Hilary has the perfect family, a mother and a father that love her and take care of her, and a close group of friends. Sara-Kate lives with her sick mother, has no friends, and is left to fend for herself. The story follows the formation of their unlikely friendship as Sara-Kate shares her elf world with Hilary. Intermingled with the story of their friendship is frequent social commentary on how we, as a society, view and respond to children such as Sara-Kate who are left to raise themselves.

I remember loving this book as a kid. Mostly, I think, because of the descriptions of the miniature elf world in Sara-Kate's backyard. Reading this book as an adult, I recognize how beautifully written it is. But I don't like it. I feel that the book is not meant for children, as child, you could see the adults wanting to help Sara-Kate as doing something wrong. It is just to dark, and leaves to much unsaid on such a sensitive topic. And you don't get a sense of any of those deeper issues from the title or from reading the back. You might think you were just reading a happy, little, fantasy book about two girls who imagine a world of elves living in their backyard. But this book is much more than that and I wouldn't recommend reading it unless you are ready for that.