Title: Going Home
Author: Harriet Evans
Thoughts: Mixed thoughts on this one. I really enjoyed the book, but I also felt it probably could have been made tighter in places. Generally speaking, if I can put a book down, that's where something could have been edited. But it's a minor quibble, because when all's said and done, this book did a lot of other things right: it was well written and engaging, and I liked it enough that I'll keep an eye out for Evans in the future.
Monday, 25 August 2008
Title: Secrets of a Shoe Addict
Title: Secrets of a Shoe Addict
Author: Beth Harbison
Thoughts: I read Harbison's first book earlier in the year and quite enjoyed it. She uses familiar characters in this one, but it's definitely a different story. Because I live in a place where it's been difficult to make friends, I have a real soft spot for lovely little stories of women building friendships. I think Harbison does a nice job of tackling a sequel without making it too much of the same. I look forward to seeing what she does next!
Author: Beth Harbison
Thoughts: I read Harbison's first book earlier in the year and quite enjoyed it. She uses familiar characters in this one, but it's definitely a different story. Because I live in a place where it's been difficult to make friends, I have a real soft spot for lovely little stories of women building friendships. I think Harbison does a nice job of tackling a sequel without making it too much of the same. I look forward to seeing what she does next!
Title: Mistress of the Sun
Title: Mistress of the Sun
Author: Sandra Gulland
Thoughts: Gulland is the author of one of my very favorite series of books: The Josephine B. Trilogy, so I was terribly excited when I saw she'd written a new one. It certainly does not disappoint. She has a lovely way with words, and the way she tackles historical fiction bowls me over. She always has such perfect tone and layers everything with richness and detail, without losing the readability and just plain good storytelling so necessary in a good book. Absolutely recommended. (And if you haven't read the Josephine books, what on EARTH are you waiting for?!)
Author: Sandra Gulland
Thoughts: Gulland is the author of one of my very favorite series of books: The Josephine B. Trilogy, so I was terribly excited when I saw she'd written a new one. It certainly does not disappoint. She has a lovely way with words, and the way she tackles historical fiction bowls me over. She always has such perfect tone and layers everything with richness and detail, without losing the readability and just plain good storytelling so necessary in a good book. Absolutely recommended. (And if you haven't read the Josephine books, what on EARTH are you waiting for?!)
Thursday, 14 August 2008
Things I read/watched on my summer vacation:
Answer: not much.
Gemma Townley's new book The Importance of Being Married. Love her, usually, but this one relied too heavily on lies to further the plot. Don't like deception, much.
Tracy Chevalier's Burning Bright. Loved this one. That lady can describe, oh yes she can.
The X-Files Movie
Dark Knight
Mamma Mia!
All enjoyable for different reasons, though, as a former fan, I would have changed A LOT about the X-Files flick. Still. It was okay.
It's been a busy month and a half, where the first bit was spent planning/executing my sister's wedding, and the second half was spent in the hospital with my sister's daughter. Not exactly good times for reading/movie watching. I am back in New York now, though, and barring disaster, should be reading more.
Gemma Townley's new book The Importance of Being Married. Love her, usually, but this one relied too heavily on lies to further the plot. Don't like deception, much.
Tracy Chevalier's Burning Bright. Loved this one. That lady can describe, oh yes she can.
The X-Files Movie
Dark Knight
Mamma Mia!
All enjoyable for different reasons, though, as a former fan, I would have changed A LOT about the X-Files flick. Still. It was okay.
It's been a busy month and a half, where the first bit was spent planning/executing my sister's wedding, and the second half was spent in the hospital with my sister's daughter. Not exactly good times for reading/movie watching. I am back in New York now, though, and barring disaster, should be reading more.
Friday, 27 June 2008
Movie: Wanted
Well. James McAvoy. Angelina Jolie. There are worse ways to spend a couple hours than looking at these two. Honestly, it was so so so far out of the realm of believability (even out of suspend-my-disbelief-ability) it was just... kind of fun. Lots of bullets. And blood. And killing. And stuff. So, if you're in the mood for the aforementioned blood, killing, bullets, etc, this is probably your movie. If you're looking for anything deeper than the Deep Thoughts of the Loom of Fate (you'll get it later)... you're going to have to look elsewhere. My favourite moment was crying out in the theater, "Oh, I am tangled in the web of faaaaate!"
Because he was. Literally.
Because he was. Literally.
Title: Choke
Title: Choke
Author: Chuck Palahniuk
Thoughts: Man, Palahniuk has a great way with voice. Just loved the individuality of his main character, and the style of his writing. I've been meaning to read his books for quite a while, and this was definitely a great way to start them. In the middle I thought it was going a place I didn't want to follow, but everything turned around and worked out perfectly. Great book. Really great tone.
Author: Chuck Palahniuk
Thoughts: Man, Palahniuk has a great way with voice. Just loved the individuality of his main character, and the style of his writing. I've been meaning to read his books for quite a while, and this was definitely a great way to start them. In the middle I thought it was going a place I didn't want to follow, but everything turned around and worked out perfectly. Great book. Really great tone.
Thursday, 26 June 2008
Title: The Flirt
Title: The Flirt
Author: Kathleen Tessaro
Thoughts: This has been a magical year in books for me. Every time I think the name of an author I like, or whose books I love, I am told: "Hey, they have a new one coming out!" (There has been one disappointment, where an author I like wrote a book I couldn't stand, but...) I've loved, loved, loved Tessaro's previous books, and, thankfully I loved The Flirt, too. The only thing I didn't like was her asides where she spoke in the "I" voice as the author. Not my cup of tea. But everything else about the story--the characters, the premise--was lovely and enjoyable.
Author: Kathleen Tessaro
Thoughts: This has been a magical year in books for me. Every time I think the name of an author I like, or whose books I love, I am told: "Hey, they have a new one coming out!" (There has been one disappointment, where an author I like wrote a book I couldn't stand, but...) I've loved, loved, loved Tessaro's previous books, and, thankfully I loved The Flirt, too. The only thing I didn't like was her asides where she spoke in the "I" voice as the author. Not my cup of tea. But everything else about the story--the characters, the premise--was lovely and enjoyable.
Title: Chronicle of a Death Foretold
Title: Chronicle of a Death Foretold
Author: Gabriel Garcia Marquez
Thoughts: Okay. Admission time. Embarrassing admission. I have never been able to get through a Marquez book. And I have tried. I cannot begin to tell you how long One Hundred Years of Solitude sat in my bathroom. A million years. Or at least two. I couldn't get through it! I'm sorry, because I know so many people swear by his writing. At last, with Chronicle I begin to understand why. This is a short little book, and it packs so much punch into it's 120 pages... it's hard to wrap my brain around. No word is extraneous. Every description is amazing. The hints of layers and layers and layers astound. So, perhaps... perhaps I will move Marquez back into my reading list.
Author: Gabriel Garcia Marquez
Thoughts: Okay. Admission time. Embarrassing admission. I have never been able to get through a Marquez book. And I have tried. I cannot begin to tell you how long One Hundred Years of Solitude sat in my bathroom. A million years. Or at least two. I couldn't get through it! I'm sorry, because I know so many people swear by his writing. At last, with Chronicle I begin to understand why. This is a short little book, and it packs so much punch into it's 120 pages... it's hard to wrap my brain around. No word is extraneous. Every description is amazing. The hints of layers and layers and layers astound. So, perhaps... perhaps I will move Marquez back into my reading list.
Title: Gigi
Title: Gigi
Author: Colette
Thoughts: This was such a lovely and unexpected story. I really love the way Colette writes--her way with words, her fabulous descriptions... I love them all. I only wished it was longer, because I was enjoying the read so much and then BAM it was over!
Author: Colette
Thoughts: This was such a lovely and unexpected story. I really love the way Colette writes--her way with words, her fabulous descriptions... I love them all. I only wished it was longer, because I was enjoying the read so much and then BAM it was over!
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