September Mother Daughter Book Club -- The Mysterious Benedict Society

The Mysterious Benedict Society by Trenton Lee Stewart

My enjoyment rating: 2 of 5 stars

Daisy Daughter enjoyment rating:  4 of 5 stars

Genre: Juvenile Fiction

Source:  Personal copy

Objectionable material: None

Mother Daughter book club – year #4!

We’ve made it to Middle School! We’ve lost a few members, but the girls were glad to be back together.

Our selection this month was The Mysterious Benedict Society by Trenton Lee Stewart. Mr. Stewart is a local author, so it seemed appropriate to read a book by a “neighbor.”

There were several aspects of this book that the girls enjoyed discussing: What determines a family? What are your strengths/talents? Does this book exemplify teamwork? How well would you have worked as a team?

Daisy daughter and her friends enjoyed this book much more than I did. I found the depth of the story lacking, and had a really difficult time maintaining interest. The four society members had some really interesting tests to accomplish in the beginning that were VERY clever. After that, it meandered, and introduced a "whispering machine" that I still don't quite understand. I didn’t finish it until 3 days after our discussion. That being said, Daisy daughter is already on book #2 of the series. I think I am done.

Although the book was a bust for me – I can tell you that I am thrilled that after 4 years, we are still meeting. As the girls mature, their comments are more thought provoking and in-depth. And the moms get a chance to talk about our developing pre-teens. It’s a joy!

 

Our October selection:

Stargirl by Jerry Spinelli

Part fairy godmother, part outcast, part dream-come-true, the star of Spinelli's novel shares many of the mythical qualities as the protagonist of his Maniac Magee. Spinelli poses searching questions about loyalty to one's friends and oneself and leaves readers to form their own answers.

View all my reviews

Book Review -- True Grit




 True Grit by Charles Portis (Arkansas author)

  My rating: 5 of 5 stars

  Book source:  Library copy

  Sensitive reader:  mild descriptions of gun shot wounds, gun fighting and SNAKES!

  Challenge: Support Your Local Authors perpetual challenge

Mattie Ross, a 14 year old dynamo, is out to exact vengeance on one Tom Chaney, a former work hand for her family. Tom has killed her father, and whether she has help or not, she is determined to bring Tom back to Forth Smith and Judge “Hanging” Parker for justice.

Mattie is able to secure for $100 the assistance of a one-eyed Marshall, Rooster Cogburn. Thus they begin their quest into Indian Territory for the renegade Chaney.

Mattie Ross has become my new favorite adolescent heroine – she’s Scout Finch, but rides a horse and carries a revolver. She shoots, squirms, saves herself from snakes and survives to tell her tale.

The other characters are equally as colorful: Rooster is a former felon, turned law-man with a proclivity to drink. Even though I didn’t see the original movie, John Wayne’s image was superimposed on my brain throughout the novel and it was a PERFECT image. The two also meet up with LeBoeuf, a Texas Ranger who is also on the trail of the menacing Chaney. A somewhat bumbling figure, LeBoeuf adds enough variety to their trifecta to make it interesting.

The prose in this book is stark and sharp – and surprisingly funny! I read it in the car on our way to Tulsa, and through ALL the major towns mentioned in the story: Dardanelle, Fort Smith, Fort Gibson Indian Territory (now Oklahoma), and I laughed out loud at many of the passages. Mattie when describing her opinion of men said, “Men will live like Billy goats if they are let alone.” True Mattie, so very true.

I couldn’t help comparing this book to Lonesome Dove since I read them so closely to each other. Honestly, I could see where McMurtry could have been “influenced” by Charles Portis’ work. In fact, I was expecting Gus and Call to meet up with Rooster, Mattie and LeBoeuf at any of the many outposts where they stopped. But I was amazed at what Portis was able to accomplish in a sparse 200+ pages compared to what McMurtry was able to drag on for 900 pages.

In short, I loved this book.

And Mr. Portis lives a few blocks from my house – you think if I go camp out on his porch he would sign a book for me?!

I'm off to see the movie tonight (had to read the book BEFORE the movie). I hope it meets expectations!

Here is the movie trailer:

Support Your Local Authors Book Challenge 2010

Since my foray into book blogging, I’ve developed a love/hate relationship with book challenges: I love the “challenge” of reading a certain number of books over a designated period of time for a purpose, however, I hate to feel “forced” to read a book, especially when I’m not “in the mood” or some other title is calling my name. Couple that with my normal reading schedule and my book club books, challenges then begin to overwhelm.

With that, I’m only committing to one challenge this year – Women Unbound (on my side bar) – I’ve selected 8 wonderful books (I think I may add a ninth) that have languished on my shelves for years, and I really look forward to reading all of those.

In spite of this, there is a challenge I stumbled across that really piques my interest, and if it weren’t for my prior commitment, I would sign up. It is Support Your Local Authors, sponsored by It’s All About Books. The beauty of this challenge is there are no rules, no set requirements, no floggings or guilt if you don’t finish.

Guidelines are:

The idea: Learn who your local authors are, famous and not so famous, and read their books! Then review their books and promote them to us. I'll have a different post for linking to your reviews.

The rules: No rules. Just have fun keeping up with and promoting your local authors! This is an ongoing, perpetual challenge with no time limit. Make a goal for yourself regarding how many books you'd like to read this year, then post about them.

What a great idea!!

I think most people have the impression that Arkansas is some hillbilly, illiterate wasteland – but I’m proud to say we have a vast literary heritage. There are so many authors to choose from:

The late, Donald Harington, whose works include, the Stay More, Arkansas series.
The legendary poet, Miller Williams, who spoke at Pres. Bill Clinton’s second inauguration.
National Book Award winner, Ellen Gilchrist.
Charlaine Harris – author of the the Sookie Stackhouse series; Lily Bard series and Aurora Teagarden series (among others)
Kevin Brockmeier, author of The Brief History of the Dead, Things That Fall from the Sky and The View From the Seventh Layer
Trenton Lee Stewart, author of The Mysterious Benedict Society
John Grisham, author of so many I’ve lost count
Charles Portis, author of True Grit, Norwood and Dog of the South, and others.
Dee Brown, author of Bury My Heat at Wounded Knee.
Joan Hess, author of the Clair Malloy and Maggody mystery series, “"Joan Hess has won a heap of praise for her wry and wildly funny series of whodunits set in the unforgettable town of Maggody, Arkansas. A small-town Arkansas dweller herself, Hess brilliantly captures the local color of a sleepy backwoods Southern community."

Gosh, I’m energized just listing all of these wonderful authors!

Although I’m not fully committing myself to this challenge, I will be adding more Arkansas authors to my reading repertoire this coming year.

And my challenge to you -- become an adopted Arkansan, by adding some of these worthy authors to your reading list too!