The Rapture of Canaan

By Sheri Reynolds
My friend and coworker Belinda recommended this book to me and I really enjoyed it. It was totally different from anything else that I have read lately and I needed that. The author has an amazing writing style, it totally sucks you in. She has great descriptions of emotions and people, she has fine tuned the art of giving you lots of information in subtle ways that don't drag on forever. Her writing style is also really easy to read; the book is a decent size and I read it basically in one sitting.

The Rapture of Canaan is obviously meant for adults. which surprised me because the main character is a young girl. The writing is clean and decent for anyone to read, but the themes in it and the issues that the characters deal with are definitely better suited for adult readers. The book really makes you think about some hard issues in life. I don't want to tell you too much about the book, because I think it would ruin the reading but here is a little gist.

The main character, Ninah, lives in a religious community run by her grandfather. They have very strict rules, most of which lean to the absurd side. The grandfather didn't start the community to be absurdly religious, but more to keep his family together and near him. The book follows Ninah for over a year as she grows from a child to a young adult. During that time Ninah, with the help of her grandmother, learns how to balance making your own decisions while still being a part of a large, connected family. A lot of really interesting things happen along Ninah's journey, but I don't want to tell you. Then you wouldn't read the story.

P.S. While looking for a picture I found this other review by someone else who loved it.

An Afghan Girl on the Other Side of the Sky

By Farah AhmediI just finished reading our book club book for this month, just in time too! Our meeting is tomorrow night.

I loved this book. It is a very easy read. It is written by a teenage girl and it feels just like she is talking to you and telling you her story. In fact, if you can find it, I think this might actually be a wonderful book on tape (and I normally don't like books on tape). It would be just like listening to someone speak. The book is about this girl who stepped on a land mine when she was 7 or 8 and ended up losing her leg. The story follows her hospital stays, how the war in Afghanistan affected her family, and how she ended up a refugee in the U.S. She has a really great attitude about her life. She knows it's been difficult and is very honest about feeling angry and sometimes afraid. She is also very positive and optimistic about her future. She has such a strong will to live and to live happily. She has lost so much and yet still finds so many things to be happy about.

This book is a great book for anyone to read. Except for the fact that hard things have happened to her, there is nothing offensive about this book whatsoever. I think it could be enjoyed for many different reasons, I will let you know what everyone else thought after tomorrow night!

Breaking Dawn

By Stephanie MeyerI accidentally read this book. Crazy I know. I wasn't going to buy it yet (I want to buy them all together) and was I waiting until I ran into someone who would loan me their copy. I showed up at my parent's house on Tuesday night to go to my cousin's wedding and help with my sister's wedding. And Rachelle had a copy she had borrowed and didn't have time to read until after her honeymoon. So I wasn't very helpful for the first 30 hours or so I was there. Or very sociable. Because I loved this book and couldn't put it down until I finished it.

I agree with some other people that it is very different from the first three books, but I think it is different in a good way. If it was more of the same it just wouldn't be any good. I was very happy that it felt like a new book to read and that the characters were still changing and progressing. Most of the book was very unexpected to me, which I loved. I hadn't expected the plot to go in that direction at all and I thought it worked perfectly. The book didn't leave you hanging, wondering what would happen next to the characters and I really appreciated that. It was a great ending for a story that will supposedly never end!

What did all you who have read it think?

His Dark Materials

By Philip PullmanIf you haven't read these books you really should. I know there has been a lot of controversy about them but there was controversy around Di Vinci Code and Harry Potter too, try them and decide for yourself.

The series is mainly these three books that stand alone together, The Northern Lights is published in the US as The Golden Compass. The books follow a little girl named Lyra as she tries to rescue her friends. While she is trying to help her friends, she gets pulled into something much bigger and has many adventures as she tries to make the right decisions.

I know that is very vague but give me a break. There are three action packed books, a lot happens and I wouldn't want to give it away. Wikipedias page on His Dark Materials is really good if you want to know more about the plot. It talks about both sides of the controversies too. There is a lot of symbolism in these books; they are partially a retelling of Milton's Paradise Lost.

Basically these are fantasy novels that can be enjoyed as a child or read as an adult, similar to Lord of the Rings, Chronicles of Narnia, or Harry Potter. Anyone of you who has read those know that there are many levels on which to enjoy the story, same thing here. And they have that "epic story" feel that I love. They have multiple worlds layered upon one world, armored bears, witches, magical tools, angels, and tiny spies. The characters are very well developed, with good back stories and realistic motivations; you really grow to love them and want to help them.

Andrew just finished reading these too and couldn't put them down. The first book is the slowest, so don't be discouraged when you are getting started. The movie also doesn't do the books justice, movies never do. The author put so much thought into this world and all of the details motivating the characters; a lot of those details are lost in the movie. I love these books, this is the second time I have read all three in less than a year. Maybe third...I can't remember. Also like Lord of the Rings, Chornicles of Narnia, and Harry Potter, you get something different each time you read them.

One last word about controversy. The controversy is that Pullman portrays the church and authority negatively and all of the "good" characters fight against the church. This is very true. But the church in His Dark Materials is bad. It is oppressive and controlling and wants to take away peoples ability to think and make decisions. The church is using the name of the Authority (or God) to do bad, bad things. Some religions have tried to do this before. Makes sense to fight against a church like that, right?

Makes me wonder about the churches that don't want people to read these books.

100 books

I read about this on someone else's blog and I have no idea if it is true or not. Somebody should snopes it (new verb, kind of like google). Supposedly the average adult has only read 6 of these 100 books. I thought that was interesting since most of them are well known titles. I bolded the ones that I have read.

1. Pride and Prejudice-Jane Austen-I love all of Jane Austen's books, they make me wish I lived in a different time.

2. The Lord of the Rings-JRR Tolkien-These have to be reread every couple of years.*

3. Jane Eyre-Charlotte Bronte-This goes right along with Pride and Prejudice to me.

4. Harry Potter series-JK Rowling-I love them, what else can I say?*

5. To Kill a Mockingbird-Harper Lee- This is a book that anyone could like, everyone should try it.*

6. The Bible-Do you have to read it cover to cover? I tried that and got bogged down with all of the genealogy stuff.

7. Wuthering Heights-Emily Bronte- I liked it, I read it in a big chunk with Jane Eyre and Pride and Prejudice. They are all very different but I read them at the same time so they go together to me.

8. Nineteen Eighty Four-George Orwell-Kind of creeps me out but I like it.*

9. His Dark Materials-Philip Pullman-I have read it and I am currently rereading it right now. I love these books.*

10. Great Expectations-Charles Dickens-I made the mistake of starting this in the middle of the school year and got about halfway through. I should try again.

11. Little Women-Louisa May Alcott-I love this book. And Little Men, and Eight Cousins, and Rose in Bloom.

12. Tess of the D’Urbervilles-Thomas Hardy

13. Catch 22-Joseph Heller

14. Complete works of Shakespere

15. Rebecca-Daphne Du Maurier

16. The Hobbit-JRR Tolkien-How could you read Lord of the Rings without reading this?*

17. Birdsong-Sebastian Faulks

18. Catcher in the Rye-JD Salinger-I don't remember a lot about it. Thats bad I know, I should reread it.*

19. The Time Traveler's Wife-Audrey Niffenegger

20. Middlemarch-George Eliot

21. Gone With The Wind-Margaret Mitchell-The book was so much better than the movie, but still slightly ridiculous.

22. The Great Gatsby-F. Scott Fitzgerald I don't remember a lot about this one either, should go on the reread list.

23. Bleak House-Charles Dickens

24. War and Peace-Leo Tolstoy

25. The Hitch Hiker’s Guide to the Galaxy-Douglas Adams Great book! I haven't read this in a long time either!*

26. Brideshead Revisited-Evelyn Waugh (I hadn't heard of this until I saw the movie preview, I want to read it though).

27. Crime and Punishment-Fyodor Dostoyevsky (I think I started it once and didn't finish it. It was in high school though, maybe I should try again).

28. Grapes of Wrath-John Steinbeck-This one was kind of slow, I really love East of Eden by John Steinbeck though.*

29. Alice in Wonderland-Lewis Carroll-Good, good, kind of crazy.*

30. The Wind in the Willows-Kenneth Grahame-I don't remember much except that I liked it.

31. Anna Karenina-Leo Tolstoy (I keep meaning to...)

32. David Copperfield-Charles Dickens (this one too...)

33. Chronicles of Narnia-CS Lewis-I love these too, they have to be reread every few years.*

34. Emma-Jane Austen-why didn't they put this one up with the others?

35. Persuasion-Jane Austen

36. The Kite Runner-Khaled Hosseini-I loved this, very different type of book. I really want to read 1000 Splendid Suns

37. Captain Corelli’s Mandolin-Louis De Bernieres

38. Memoirs of a Geisha-Arthur Golden-Good, I highly recommend it.*

39. Winnie the Pooh-AA Milne-Fun, everyone should read it.*

40. Animal Farm-George Orwell-I read this in high school and I don't remember much, I should read it again though.*

41. The Da Vinci Code-Dan Brown-Great, you should definitely read Angels and Demons too.*

42. One Hundred Years of Solitude-Gabriel Garcia Marquez

43. A Prayer for Owen Meaney-John Irving

44. The Woman in White-Wilkie Collins

45. Anne of Green Gables-LM Montgomery-What about the rest of the series?

46. Far From The Madding Crowd-Thomas Hardy

47. The Handmaid’s Tale-Margaret Atwood (On my list to read)

48. Lord of the Flies-William Golding-another high school read, I found it slightly disturbing*

49. Atonement-Ian McEwan-I saw the movie preview and now I want to read it (notice I have only seen all the previews and not the actual movie?

50. Life of Pi-Yann Martel-I liked it, it is an easy read too.

51. Dune-Frank Herbert-Is this actually any good?

52. Cold Comfort Farm-Stella Gibbons

53. Sense and Sensibility-Jane Austen-They could have just done these in a list

54. A Suitable Boy-Vikram Seth

55. The Shadow of the Wind-Carlos Ruiz Zafon

56. A Tale Of Two Cities-Charles Dickens-Good, I like this one.*

57. Brave New World-Aldous Huxley-I read this one in high school, but I do remember liking it.*

58. The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Mark Haddon-I love this book. About it a boy with Autism, great.*

59. Love In The Time Of Cholera-Gabriel Garcia Marquez-I heard this was good, has anyone read it?

60. Of Mice and Men-John Steinbeck-Really short and easy and wonderful. You could sit down and read it in a day.*

61. Lolita-Vladimir Nabokov

62. The Secret History-Donna Tartt

63. The Lovely Bones-Alice Sebold-On my to read list.

64. Count of Monte Cristo-Alexandre Dumas-This is a great book, you have to read it with The three musketeers and the Man in the Iron Mask though.

65. On The Road-Jack Kerouac

66. Jude the Obscure-Thomas Hardy

67. Bridget Jones's Diary-Helen Fiedling

68. Midnight’s Children-Salman Rushdi

69. Moby Dick-Herman Melville-I think I tried in high school but didn't make it. Maybe I should try again.

70. Oliver Twist-Charles Dickens-Don't remember much...must reread.

71. Dracula - Bram Stoker-Don't remember much...must reread.

72. The Secret Garden-Frances Hodgson Burnett-I love this book. I just found a great copy at the thrift store.*

73. Notes From A Small Island-Bill Bryson

74. Ulysses-James Joyce

75. The Bell Jar-Sylvia Plath

76. Swallows and Amazons-Arthur Ransome

77. Germinal-Emile Zola

78. Vanity Fair-William Makepeace Thackeray-the movie was crazy, the book wasn't great but it was better than the movie.

79. Possession-AS Byatt

80. A Christmas Carol-Charles Dickens-Good, one of the first of his that you should read.

81. Cloud Atlas-David Mitchell

82. The Color Purple-Alice Walker-I should reread this, I haven't read it in a long time and I think I liked it.

83. The Remains of the Day-Kazuo Ishiguro

84. Madame Bovary-Gustave Flaubert

85. A Fine Balance-Rohinton Mistry

86. Charlotte’s Web-EB White-Everyone should have read this.*

87. The Five People You Meet In Heaven - Mitch Albom*

88. Adventures of Sherlock Holmes-Sir Arthur Conan Doyle-It was good, I think I want to buy it.

89. The Faraway Tree Collection-Enid Blyton

90. Heart of Darkness-Joseph Conrad

91. The Little Prince-Antoine De Saint-Exupery

92. The Wasp Factory-Iain Banks

93. Watership Down-Richard Adams-I just bought a copy and mean to read it.

94. A Confederacy of Dunces-John Kennedy Toole

95. A Town Like Alice-Nevil Shute

96. The Three Musketeers-Alexandre Dumas-Why didn't they put this with the Counte of Monte Cristo? They go together.

97. Charlie and the Chocolate Factory-Roald Dahl-Good, fun read.*

98. Les Miserables-Victor Hugo-Good, longer than it needed to be but I liked it.

99. One flew over the Cuckoo's Nest-Ken Kesey-I love this one, I tried one of his other books and it was no where near as good.*

100. The Scarlet Letter-Nathaniel Hawthorne-Good, I forgot about this book. I should start looking for it.*

I read 47 of them, how many have you read? Do you have any thoughts on the ones that I haven't read? That was kind of a fun way to remember which books you need to read.

The * are Andrew's reads, he has read 26.

Snow Falling on Cedars

By David GutersonThis book is amazing! I have read it before but it was quite a while ago. I recently found it at the thrift store and decided it was time for a reread. The book is set on an island in the Puget Sound around the time of World War II. A man dies while fishing one night and a Japanese American man on the island is accused of murder. The book alternates between following the trial and present events and flashbacks that the characters have of their past. The community on the island have some bad history that influences the way that they view each other. Most of the Japanese were moved to internment camps during the War and some of white islanders still view them somewhat suspiciously. Snow Falling on Cedars deals with a lot of heavy issues about racism and prejudice, love, family, relationships, and development of character. But it does so with an intriguing plot that keeps the book moving.

I read somewhere that the author was inspired by To Kill a Mockingbird. I love that book and I can definitely see the correlation. Not close enough to be a knock off, but definitely in the same genre. I can't think of much that I don't like about this book. Everywhere I went with this book, I had at least 3 people say that they loved it. That's a good recommendation right there. I know there is a movie, but I haven't seen it. Is it any good?

Book Club Meeting #1

We had our book club meeting! Things went well, it was nothing very formal. We had tons of food, way too much. We talked about the book some and about other things quite a bit. It was good to have a reason to get a group of people together, and have something that we could all talk about if we wanted to.

In case you forgot, we read Water for Elephants. Here are a few general conclusions that we came too.

The end of the book was awesome. Only one person thought it was a little cheesy. They couldn't come up with a better ending either, the rest of us thought it was perfect.

We all loved the animals in the book, the author really made them into integral characters in the plot.

We all agreed there was a good mix of character development, action plot, and humor. Anything else we talked about would ruin reading the book for you!

I have had a couple of people ask about swearing and sex in the book.
On sex: There are two scenes. They are not overly long, but they are there. They would be easy to skip as you know when they are coming. And you won't miss anything but skipping that section. Other than the two scenes, the book does not have lots of sex talk.
On swearing: There is some, but it isn't the most vulgar swearing and it is not very frequent. The book is following circus life in the depression era, if anything I think the swearing is probably less than what you would really hear. Not that it makes the swearing any better, just know that the author didn't add more just for sensationalism.

Also we picked our next book....we are reading The Other Side of the Sky by Farah Ahmedi.

Water for Elephants

By Sara GruenI finished my book club book! I let Andrew read it first, so I was tortured by hearing everyone say how much they loved it while I waited for my turn. Now I can be part of the "I love Water for Elephants club" and I'm glad. The book is written from the perspective of a 90 something year old man, Jacob, remembering the time when he dropped out of college and joined the circus. The chapters alternate between his current life at the assisted living home where he know lives and his memories. Jacob's reminiscing is brought on by the arrival of a circus on his block that prompts him to recall a secret that he has kept for almost 70 years. The book follows Jacob's experiences with the circus as he learns about the many brutalities of circus life, falls in love, and tries to save his friends.

I like this book A LOT. And I think it would make a very entertaining movie. It has humor, adventure, love, suspense, all of it. And the ending is perfect. Everyone that I have talked too thought that the ending was perfect, I've never heard so many people agree. Because of that, I managed to refrain from reading the end of the book ahead of time (a big deal for me!). I am amazed that we managed to pick such a good book without any of us knowing much about it. I'm even thinking about reading it again before the book club, it was that good.

I highly recommend this book and that's all I'm going to tell you, I don't want to spoil any of it for you!

Dreams from My Father

By Barack Obama

This is an autobiography written by Barack Obama around 1995, after Obama was elected the first African American president of the Harvard Law Review but before his political career began. My little brother Josh read this for school and my mom then passed it on to me.

Dreams from My Father is Obama's first book and it follows his early life in Hawaii, Indonesia, Chicago, and a visit to Kenya. It was interesting to read about how he learned to deal with being African American. He writes about the confusion of looking African American but being raised with his Caucasian mother and her family. For a good portion of the book, Obama describes feeling guilty that he didn't experience the same hardships that many in the African American community do. He struggles with how he should best help his people and where his role is. At one point, Obama becomes a community organizer in Chicago and he writes about getting to know the people in the city and how he found acceptance and purpose there. The people there inspire him to be as successful as he can and he ends up going back to school at Harvard. Obama ends with an emotional trip to Kenya where he meets his father's side of the family and discovers the truth about their life. The book is well written and emotional, leaving you with the idea that is only important that you are authentically yourself, not that you fit into any race or cultural ideas.

I really liked reading this book. Like most autobiographies, it took me a little while to get into it. Once I got interested in his life and worried about him it went a little faster. I liked how personal the writing was, it is written just like someone would talk to you, not like a speech. I also really appreciated the honesty of the book. I know I can't really say if Obama was being honest when he wrote it, but I like that he included the doubts and questions that he had. It was interesting to read, knowing that he wrote it before he even thought about running for Senator. Kind of gives you some perspective on where he came from.

Josh says: "It was as good as it gets for a boring old senator." With the side note that he didn't read the last 50 pages. The 50 pages where things kind of get wrapped up.

Book Club

So I've started a book club. I've never been part of book club before, and neither has anyone else who is participating so we will need lots of advice. Any of you out there who have been in a book club before, please help. The club started as Me, Emily, and Maggie. It now contains Me, Emily, Maggie, Ally (Emily's friend), Jenn (Emily's roomate), Andrew (my husband), Jessica (Maggie's roomate), Sara (my friend). Did you notice that Andrew is the only guy so far? We accidentally let it slip to a few of our other reading friends and it started growing. I guess book clubs sound more exciting than we thought. We have picked our first book.

Most amazing, none of us have ever read it before. We are meeting in about a month and having a potluck dinner. Do I need to plan more structure than that? What do you do to prepare for a book club? Do you have any suggestions for other books to read?

Cold Mountain

By Charles FrazierI liked this book a lot. But I don't know that I would have finished it if I didn't have as much free time as I do. It isn't a book that forces you to keep reading because you want to know what happens next. You have to be interested in the time period and the details of what the characters are doing. The book is about Inman, a Confederate soldier who leaves the war and walks home to the Blue Ridge Mountains and to Ada the woman he loves. Ada is a well bred woman who is provided for by her father and hired help. Half of the story follows Inman's journey home and the people that he meets along the way. The other half is about Ada, her father's death, and her survival. She is befriended by Ruby, a homeless but resourceful woman. Together they restore Ada's farm and create a home.

The book is a funny sort of romance in that the characters are motivated by their feelings for each other, but they are apart for most of the book and they never had much of a relationship to begin with. It was very real, with the characters having real problems, and changing because of them. I liked that. I also liked all of the details in the book about what the characters are doing and thinking. I like details. I wasn't too happy with the ending. But I'm not going to tell you why. You have to read it to find out.

The Mermaid Chair

By Sue Monk KiddOnce I started this book I couldn't put it down (but that's normal for me). Sue Monk Kidd is an amazing writer. I even cried at a few points during the book. But when it ended I felt very dissatisfied. The whole idea of needing to cheat on your husband in order to find yourself just didn't sit well with me. In my opinion, the character just didn't have enough consequences for that. The book was an easy, interesting read, but just doesn't list high on my all time favorites. Not something that I will probably read again.

A Breath of Snow and Ashes

By Diana Gabaldon
This book is the sixth book in the Outlander series and you should not read it without reading the others! My Poppy (my mom's dad) recommended these books to me and was even kind enough to send me all of his copies. I love them. Andrew hates it when I start one because I carry it with me everywhere. I can't think of a good way to describe them that doesn't sound kind of cheesy but trust me they aren't.

The premise of the series is that a woman, Claire, accidentally goes back in time and ends up in the 1700's. She falls in love with a Scottish Highlander, Jamie. The series is about their lives during the Scottish uprising, traveling to the colonies, and the American Revolution. I'm not a big romance novel person, but the romance in this book is balanced with some reason, not very mushy, and includes normal realistic fights. I'm not a big time traveler book, but the characters in the series are just as confused about the time traveling as I would be, so that makes it better. And I love historical fiction! My favorite thing about these books is the glimpse into the day to day life of the characters, not just an action packed plot. You really feel like you know them and that they are fairly normal people. The author is also pretty funny and remembers to write about both the humorous and sad things that happen in life.

There are at least 2 more books coming, the author is working on one that should be done at the end of this year and she says that it isn't the end of the story. Each of the six books is between 600-1100 pages, so don't get started on these unless you like a long, in depth detailed book.

The English Patient

By Michael OndaatjeThis book was a good follow up to The Twilight Saga, and a good break from school. I say that because it was very low-key and relaxing. It was enjoyable to read but nothing really exciting happens. The book is about 4 people who accidentally come together at the end of World War II. They live together in a deserted Italian villa that is wired with undetonated bombs. While they are together, we gradually learn their stories.

There is Hana, a young Canadian Army nurse, who has lost her father in the war. She is caring for "the English patient," a man who is burned beyond recognition in a plane crash and claims to be English. Carvaggio is a Canadian who was a friend of Hana's father before the war. He is a spy turned thief who was caught by the Germans and punished. Finally, there is Kip, a Sikh who specializes in bomb disposal. All of the characters have very interesting stories. Throughout the book their stories are told in a very dreamlike way, little bits at time.

I'm not sure that I recommend this book, just because I think that you have to have a distinct personality and be in a specific mood to really enjoy it. If you are big into plots, then this book isn't for you. It is very beautifully written but it sort of meanders around the point. And then it just stops suddenly. I don't say this very often, but I am wondering if it makes a better movie than a book. Has anyone seen it?

The Twilight Series

By Stephanie Meyer



So I just finished reading these three books last weekend. Several people had been trying to get me to read them and I had been resisting. For some reason I get stubborn about reading books that people gush over. Then my mom brought me up the first one. I didn't even pick it up for a few days. Once I did I was doomed. I read all three back to back and didn't do anything else for an entire weekend.

The basic plot line is fairly simple. A teenage girl, Bella, moves to Forks, WA and falls in love with a vampire, Edward. The rest of the story is about them trying to figure out how they can be together without her getting killed.

They are really well written, have a fairly unique plot line, and complex characters (for teen books). I'm always a little hesitant about romantic plot lines but this was really well done. And the vampires and werewolves thing wasn't weird at all (I was worried about this). I highly recommend them, they move along fast and are fairly easy reads. However, I don't recommend reading one until you want to read all three. I can't wait for the other two books to come out!