Book Count ...

I'm up to 39 books read for the year ... and #40 is going to be the Pelican Brief. If you've read it let me know what you think about it!

I haven't decided on what my aim for the # of books by the end of the year, but I think I can make it at least 50! So, help cheer me on for the last 4 months of the year!!!

Book Review ...

The Pillars of the Earth by Ken Follett

This book was definitely one of the best books I've read in a long time! It was extremely thought-provoking. From the way he made you feel like you were right there in the 12th century to the vivid imagery of the time period!

By far the best part of the book was the realistic battle between good and evil. This was no magical Harry Potter version of good and evil ... but the real battle that waged for centuries, and still wages today, between those that who will stop at nothing to achieve power and wealth, and the good God-fearing people that were caught in the endless web of treachery and violence of the time.

At times in the book, it seemed a bit boring, but once the story started to come together it was difficult to put down. I even read the last 20 pages on my way to and from church on Sunday so I wouldn't miss the epic ending.

In the end like most stories of its kind, evil is destroyed and good wins out, but not in the typical fairy tale way we are used to. It ends with bloodshed, not only of the evil, but the good as well. Follett doesn't give us the Cinderella ending we have become accustomed to, but a feeling of peace that all has been resolved and evil has been outdone.

This was definitely an epic story and I believe will be considered a "classic" someday! If you haven't already picked up a copy head to your local bookstore or favorite book-buying website and get reading! It's an action-packed story of cathedrals, monks, war, love, and the desperate attempts of the wicked to prevail over the Godly.

*Also, if you are reading, or have read this wonderful book, check out the Starz Mini-Series that is airing right now. Mine are all DVRed and ready to go, but I haven't had an opportunity to check them out yet.*

Quote of the Week ....

Life is a storm. You will bask in the sunlight one moment, be shattered on the rocks the next. What makes you a man is what you do when the storm comes.

-The Count of Monte Cristo

The best neighborhood library ...

Today I spent a little time in my neighborhood library. I admit for someone who loves books as much as I do, it is quite how long it has been since I’ve been to one. But, I think, after years of hanging out in stuffy university and law school research libraries, I decided to try my hand at the more fun upbeat book stores and cafes instead.

This library holds many memories of my school year summers. When I was in grade school, my mother would bring my sister and I to the library almost weekly to pick out different books and movies. I remember feeling overwhelmed and overjoyed at the same time at the number of magnificent and beautiful books on the shelves.

Even as I got older and could drive myself to the library, the feeling never changed. My best friend and I could frequently be found on Monday mornings at the library looking through the massive collections of books for something delicious to read while we lounged by the pool.

And now that I am an adult, the library has not lost its magic. The feeling of not even knowing where to begin, because there are so many shelves stocked full of books you have yet to read . . . the soft whispers of mothers reading to their children . . . the excitement of the children when they discover the “perfect” book . . . the beeping sound of the computer when books are checked out . . . and the gentle whispers of the librarians to shush noisy visitors. Libraries are truly places of wonder and excitement.

Today, my heart swelled when I heard a couple of young girls excitedly bring their book treasures to show their father. They sounded so proud to find such wonderful treasures, and so excited to find a comfy spot on the couch and begin to read them. One had a stack of about 5 books and proudly proclaimed that she was going to begin reading them right now!

In my lifetime, I cannot count the number of wonderful moments and feelings I have gotten from the hundreds (maybe even thousands) of books I have read. And the magic all started for me in this very neighborhood library . . . It’s so comforting to know that those feelings haven’t changed and to see a whole new generation feeling the wonder and awe of these great buildings, the way I learned to love books as a child myself.

TV Mini-Series

Going along with yesterday's post, I found out that The Pillars of the Earth is a mini-series on Starz starting tomorrow! So anyone who has access to Starz or Encore and liked The Pillars of the Earth should tune in!

We don't have Starz anymore but I'm hoping it will come out in a DVD form sometime soon so I can catch up!

The Pillars of the Earth

by Ken Follett

is the novel I am currently reading. A copy was given to me by my mother-in-law. Before I decided to read it I started looking it up and noticed that many other people have thought it was one of the best books of this century! Well, obviously that got me intrigued. I'm not quite to the halfway point yet, but it is so intriguing to read about how people lived during the 1100's time period, and yet have it be written in a modern day English way to make it more accessible. So far, I'm hooked and I can't wait to get back to it to find out more!! If you haven't picked up a copy, do yourself a favor and buy, beg, borrow (but don't steal) a copy and get reading today! And if you have already read this wonderful novel, let me know what you think!

Quote of the week . . .

The truth is, part of me is every age.

I'm a 3-year-old,

I'm a 5-year-old,

I'm a 37-year-old,

I'm a 50-year-old.

I've been through them all, and I know what it's like.

I delight in being a child when it's appropriate to be a child.

I delight in being a wise old man when it's appropriate to be a wise old man.

Think of all I can be!

I am every age, up to my own.

-Tuesdays with Morrie by Mitch Albom

*I recently discovered this one and had to share because I think it is the most true and honest thing I have read in a long time.*

Library closings . . .

In this tough economic time we are facing, I know that some businesses cannot afford to stay open . . . but I never expected local libraries to be closing . . . and not just one but several around Indianapolis. I know that that is just the time we are in right now, but I found this completely sad. All these libraries are in rough areas where they are needed the most. They also bring hope to neighborhoods that otherwise do not have much hope. They also sponsor a lot of after school, and other activities for students and young people in the areas. I find it sad that our government does not bat an eye to bail out big automobile companies and banks that made their own messes . . . and yet no government funding is going to helping institutions like library's stay open during times like these. It's just really sad . . . and in my opinion really wrong.

How many libraries in your area are closing?

Current Book Count . . .

I have read 33 books since January of this year . . .

Last read: The Firm by John Grisham

Currently reading: The Pillars of the Earth by Ken Follett

Quote of the Week . . .

There's a crack in everyone . . . that's how the light of God gets in.

-Eat, Pray, Love by Elizabeth Gilbert

Question of the week . . .

Who is your favorite book character?

Mine would have to be Scarlett O'Hara. She was a strong-willed, beautiful southern girl who most people believe was just a spoiled, rich brat. But she was much more than that. She was extremely smart, although she played the part of the damsel in distress very well. She was also very determined . . . to come home during the Civil War and find your land barren and dying, she transformed Tara back into the bountiful plantation it once was and saved her family from despair by marrying a man she did not love but knew would give her the financial freedom she needed to save her beloved land and family. What a classic character, and not to mention, how wonderful to see a woman in such a position during a time when women were not even allowed to vote!

Independence Day

To celebrate this Independence Day, in print, look up a copy of our nation's Declaration of Independence and read it! There are sadly too many people in our country that could not even tell you what the Declaration says! So take 20 minutes on this Holiday Weekend and read about what our country stands for!

"We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness."

Happy Independence Day :)

Author of the Week

Sandra Brown

Unless you're into romance novels, you've probably skimmed right past Sandra Brown's books on the shelf . . . but a lot of her books have more of a murder mystery twist to them and some are actually pretty great. Here are a few interesting facts about her:

• She is the author of 58 New York Time's bestsellers. (That is pretty impressive!)
• She's even had one of her books made into an ABC-TV movie . . . French silk.
• She's published books under a few other names. (If it weren't for Wikipedia how would we ever know these things!)
• She was a weathergirl and anchorwoman for in Texas.

Looking into the lives of the authors we love to read is always interesting and often gives you insight into the books they write.

For more information on Sandra Brown, check out:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sandra_Brown

http://www.sandrabrown.net/

And if you haven't read any of her books, I encourage you to pick one up and check it out . . . I highly recommend Envy for anyone who loves to read. It was extremely well-written and the twist is great!

A great escape

I often find, in those times that the world seems to have let me down, that a great book is the greatest of escapes. No matter what kind of escape you need, there is a great book out there to provide you that particular kind of fantasy that you most need in that moment. Whether you need a great romance to remind you that people do really fall in love . . . or a great tragedy that reminds you that you really don't have it that bad after all . . . or whether you just need to pick up a travel guide and pretend you're somewhere far, far away . . . a great book is one of the only things in the world, I have found, that can provide these fantasies and escapes with little to no consequences at all.

Quote of the Week . . .

In the beginning the Universe was created. This has made a lot of people angry and been widely regarded as a bad move.

-The Restaurant at the End of the Universe by Douglas Adams

Last Read . . .

Chill Factor by Sandra Brown

This one was a little bit too predictable for me. Not even halfway through I figured out most of the secrets that were flying around the who-done-it murder mystery. There was only one thing I didn't see coming at the end, but otherwise it was a little too predictable. Some of her books are really good and have great twists, but lately they've been overly predictable and the same old story with a different location and different characters. I'd like to see more books like the ones she wrote in the early to mid-90s like Envy. That that keep you guessing until the very end!

Recommendation: If you need something to read quickly and don't find the predictableness of the story, go for it. If not, move on to something else.

Book sale . . .

This morning we were fortunate to be able to attend the Half-Price Bookstore warehouse sale at the Indiana State fairgrounds. They had an entire building filled with books of all shapes, sizes, genres, and looks. It was a little glimpse of heaven for me. We got so many books we had been looking for to put on our shelves. I can't wait to dive in and read some of these books.

Does anyone have a great used book store by you? I definitely believe in what they do. I've always felt you should either keep books to re-read or sell / donate them so someone else can enjoy them!

If you've never been to a used bookstore, you would be surprised at how many really good best-seller books you can find that people have already read. I find most of the books they have either are, or were at one time, best sellers!

So next time you're looking for a really great book to read check out your nearest used bookstore or Goodwill!

Book Count

2010 Books Read Count: 30!!

I can't believe I have read 30 books this year. And I'm not done yet. Thanks to the Half-Price Bookstore, I still have 2 bookshelves full of books to read.

Last Read . . .

Breaking Dawn by Stephanie Meyer

In light of the Eclipse movie just a short time from release, I decided to read the whole Twilight Saga for the second time. I wanted to make sure I would remember the "book version" of the story so I could compare. I don't want to spoil this book for those who have not read it yet so I will not go into too much detail about specific events in the story, but I was again disappointed with several events in the book and the lack of cohesiveness with the first the. The writing style is totally different than the first three; and although it did bring many parts of the story to a logical end, it only gave me more unanswered questions about the future of the Cullen family (immediate and extended). I did not feel either time reading the book that it really belonged in the Saga. In part because the writing style just does not make sense with the first books. Also, in part because Eclipse really brought the story to a peak and I felt that another book should have only added to climbing that peak, not starting back down the mountain, so to speak. As is often the case in these situations, I felt strongly that Meyer riding on her 15 minutes of fame wrote Breaking Dawn without the passion she had for books 1 - 3 because the money had already started rolling in and she knew it would sell regardless of the actual story presented. (I'm still hoping they'll end the movies with Eclipse, since much of Breaking Dawn was totally unsettling to read, and I can't imagine having to see it play out on the big screen.)

Recommendation: Although you cannot read the Twilight Saga without reading this book, or you will be missing some critical parts of the story, unless you're a Twilight buff I would leave this one on the shelf.

Quote of the Week

"I swear by my life and my love of it that I will never live for the sake of another man, nor ask another man to live for mine."

-Atlas Shrugged by Ayn Rand

*This is one of my all-time favorite book quotes. I hope you enjoy it, and if you haven't read Atlas Shrugged I highly recommend it.*

O Romeo, Romeo wherefore art thou Romeo?

I thought I would use my first blog post to talk about an issue I observed that was totally appalling to me. Earlier this year I was substitute teaching at a local high school in a Social Studies class. One of the students saw that I was reading and approached me to ask if I could help him with his English homework because he did not understand what they were reading. I said I would help if I could. He then produced a copy of Romeo and Juliet . . . only it wasn't a nice Shakespearean looking play book with a cheesy illustration of the Romeo and Juliet balcony scene on the cover (like the one I had in high school). It was an ugly yellow book . . . yes, a Cliff's Note book! I asked the student where his real copy of the book was. He informed me that was in fact the copy the school issued!! I was in complete shock. After looking at the book, I did notice that it had the real Shakespeare version on one page and the opposite page was the Cliff's Notes version of what was going on. Now I don't know about anyone reading this, but hopefully if you are following my Blog (or just happened across it) it is because you love books. I realize that Shakespeare is not easy for anyone to read (especially high school students), but aren't we not only teaching our children to take the easy way out by giving them Cliff's Notes to a timeless story but also ruining the beauty of the timeless lines written by Shakespeare so many years ago? Romeo and Juliet is such a classic and well-known story that many of the students probably have some familiarity with the underlying story of the play before reading it in the first place. Also, English teachers are supposed to teaching our children to learn to love to read and when the reading becomes difficult helping them understand the difficult content. Let's be honest, as a high school student if you were giving the Cliff's Notes and the actual play which would you choose? (I actually would've chosen the real version, but that is just because I have always loved to read.) Unfortunately, many children in school today hate reading and would rather do anything else than sit and read. Therefore, it is not a difficult stretch to assume that most of these students did not actually read the play but the generic Cliff's Notes version of the play. Technology has changed the next generation so much that they cannot even appreciate beautiful Old English Shakespearean prose. This episode had me completely appalled with our schools today and I can only hope that what I witnessed was an isolated incident among schools in my town, my state, and even our nation, and not an indication of how educators are approaching classic English text on a regular basis.