March 2008 Blog Posts (18)

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Wild Swans

I didn't particularly enjoy this book. I know that I'm in a minority in that opinion though. It's not an easy book to read. Nor is it a fast read. Slow books frustrate me. It plods along, but is fascinating and unsettling. It was interesting to me to see the changes that occurred in China in just a few short generations.

Historically it's fascinating and follows the lives of a woman and her mother and grandmother through the reign and fall of… Continue

Added by Holly on March 28, 2008 at 3:30pm — No Comments

Summer of the Monkeys

This is probably one of my most favorite books from my childhood. I loved it and I read it over and over again. It's better than Where the Red Fern Grows. When Disney came out with a film adaptation, I was thrilled. The book is still so much better than the film though.

It's a wonderful "coming of age" book. Jay Berry Lee wants nothing more than to have his own pony and .22 rifle. The book is about his summer adventure of trying to capture… Continue

Added by Holly on March 27, 2008 at 3:30pm — No Comments

A Joyful Mother of Children

I loved this book. Honest and entertaining, but with a lot of great ideas for being a better mother. I've enjoyed the Eyre's books and this one is just a fun read. At the end, she includes 12 ways to reduce stress and actually become a joyful mother. Who doesn't want to be a happy mom, and who can't use practical ideas to help you along the way?

There are LDS (Mormon) references throughout, but you don't need to be LDS to appreciate it or learn… Continue

Added by Holly on March 27, 2008 at 3:30pm — No Comments

Papa Married a Mormon

My grandmother had this book on her bookshelf and I found it as a teenager. I loved it. It immediately became on of my favorite books, ever, and I was thrilled when she gave it to me. Written by John D. Fitzgerald (of Great Brain fame), it's a somewhat fictionalized family history of his family life growing up in rural Utah.

His mother was Mormon and his father Catholic. Neither one ever converted to the others' faith. He tells the story of their… Continue

Added by Holly on March 27, 2008 at 3:30pm — No Comments

Little House in the Ozarks: The Rediscovered Writings of Laura Ingalls Wilder

It was a beautiful day when I walked into my local bookstore and discovered this gem. Much like many other children, I grew up with a love of the Little House books. I was thrilled to discover that Laura's writings hadn't ended and actually hadn't even begun with her Little House books.

This is a compilation of newspaper columns she wrote for a rural newspaper in Missouri from 1911-1925. They are entertaining, and full of good old common sense.… Continue

Added by Holly on March 27, 2008 at 3:30pm — No Comments

The Prize-Winner of Defiance Ohio: How My Mother Raised 10 Kids on 25 Words or Less

A simply delightful book to read. Set in the 1950s, the author's family struggled to make ends meet. Ten kids and an alcoholic husband drained what income they had. Evelyn Ryan, was an amazing woman and by entering contests, she managed to provide an additional income and prizes to support her family. Evelyn's daughter, Terry, tells an entertaining story about her mom. It's clear that she admired and loved her mother a great deal.

Her voice rings… Continue

Added by Holly on March 27, 2008 at 3:30pm — No Comments

Tisha

I loved this book when I read it as a teenager. I wanted to be a teacher after I read it!



A true story about Anne Hobbs. She's a wonderful heroine. She goes to Alaska in the 1920s to teach school and as she tries to befriend the people of Chicken, Alaska (what a funky name) she finds that the white people don't like it when others of their kind mix with the Indians. Anne befriends and teaches the Indian children and falls in love with an Indian man. Her strength and character are… Continue

Added by Holly on March 27, 2008 at 3:30pm — No Comments

Mrs. Mike

I loved this book. I was probably 12 the first time I read this novel. I read it many, many times as I was growing up.

I loved the story of Kathy and Mike. It's not the best written book, but it's delightful and entertaining. Kathy goes to northern Canada as a young, innocent girl and falls in love with a rugged Mountie. The books shares their story of love and hardship in an unforgiving wilderness: friendship and loss; childbirth and death. How… Continue

Added by Holly on March 27, 2008 at 3:30pm — No Comments

Carpe Demon

Entertaining horror-lit. Sort of the horror version of chick-lit, I suppose. It's obvious the author drew on the Buffy the Vampire Slayer lore to write this: her hunter/alimentatore relationship is just like the slayer/watcher one, along with the holy water, stakes, demons, research, etc. She takes the premise of what would happen if someone like Buffy grew up, had children and didn't tell her family about her previous life. A little far-fetched, but… Continue

Added by Holly on March 26, 2008 at 3:30pm — No Comments

Identical Strangers

Fascinating. Absolutely fascinating. A memoir of twin sisters who, until the age of 35, didn't know the other existed. The story is told by both sisters' alternating viewpoints. Their voices are compelling as they share how they reacted to the news of discovering they each had a twin. The journey they then undertake together, to discover their history and birth mother is amazing and heart wrenching at the same time.

They were part of a… Continue

Added by Holly on March 25, 2008 at 3:30pm — No Comments

Don't Bet Against Me

This happened to be on the shelf near the checkout counter at the library and looked interesting. It's a quick read, but a good one. I enjoyed it. It's autobiographical about her life with Brett Favre, but also about her experience with breast cancer.

She's a very Christian person, and so there are many biblical examples and scriptures used in regards to faith, hope and enduring trials. I didn't mind that so much, others might.



It's a… Continue

Added by Holly on March 23, 2008 at 3:30pm — No Comments

P.S. I Love You

Very much a chick-lit novel, although not as shallow as many others. I found this book both entertaining and poignant at times. The premise is interesting: after her husband's death, a young woman receives a packet of letters from him. Each letter is to be opened at a particular time and has something for her to do. All of these tasks are to prepare her to let go and move on. Cecilia Ahern nailed the poignancy of losing a husband and trying to come to… Continue

Added by Holly on March 21, 2008 at 3:30pm — No Comments

The Revelation

The final chapter in the Abram's Daughters series and, by far, the best book of the 5. I couldn't put it down. I was so anxious to find out what happened to Leah, and if things would finally come together for her and Jonas. The story wraps up neatly, but not without some heartbreak, confession, reconciliation and forgiveness. I was so happy to see Sadie finally find her own happiness as well.

I found the absolutely rigidity of the Amish faith… Continue

Added by Holly on March 19, 2008 at 3:30pm — No Comments

Escape

I didn't particularly like this book. It was an uncomfortable book to read and at time even laborious and mundane.

I do have a great deal of compassion for Carolyn Jessop and the unfortunate circumstances into which she was born. That she was able to escape the FLDS wackheads was fortunate. The book provides an incredible insight into the polygamist lifestyle, and the price that is paid by these polygamist wives and children. They are under the… Continue

Added by Holly on March 19, 2008 at 3:30pm — No Comments

The Prodigal

I have loved this series. And this fourth book did not disappoint me. In many ways, I think this one is my favorite so far. It continues the story of Leah and her sisters. Her mother has died and she has raised her youngest brother and sister. Her sister Sadie has returned, and her father has mellowed a little. Thank goodness!

I thought I had the story figured out a couple of books ago, and while I was correct in at least one of my assumptions, I… Continue

Added by Holly on March 13, 2008 at 4:00pm — No Comments

The New Year's Quilt

This book picks up where The Quilter's Legacy left off. Sylvia and Andrew married on Christmas Eve, and then set off to visit his daughter who is opposed to their marriage. Along the way, Sylvia works on her New Years Quilt and remembers past New Years Eves.

While much of Sylvia's experiences have been told in other books, this one does add some additional dimensions to those stories. For one, you learn about Sylvia's regrets in leaving Elm Creek… Continue

Added by Holly on March 11, 2008 at 4:00pm — No Comments

The Christmas Quilt

Sometimes I think you can have too much of a good thing. I'm afraid that if Chiaverini keeps writing Elm Creek books, she'll weaken the series.

That said, I did enjoy this book. It's a short read, almost a short story, really. The setting is the first Christmas that Sylvia is back at Elm Creek. Being back at the manor and decorating for Christmas brings back many memories for her. Much of the novel is reminiscing and because of that, there is a… Continue

Added by Holly on March 5, 2008 at 4:00pm — No Comments

The Diary of Mattie Spenser

This book was one that I had a hard time putting down. It was compelling. Mattie's voice rings true. She is someone you like. The story is set in the pioneer days. Mattie and her husband Luke head to the Colorado frontier to build a home and farm. Mattie records her journey, thoughts and life in a journal. Her story is told through this journal.

So often the journals and stories of pioneer women are softened and the difficult times glossed over… Continue

Added by Holly on March 4, 2008 at 4:00pm — No Comments

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