Book Review -- Billy Lynn's Long Halftime Walk

Billy Lynn's Long Halftime Walk by Ben Fountain

My enjoyment rating: 4 of 5 stars

Book hangover rating: 4 (took me awhile to have an "aaha" moment)

Source:  Personal copy

Genre:  General fiction

Objectionable material:  Language, including the F-bomb; multiple sexual references

Remember the war? The one in Iraq? Or is it Afghanistan? I know we are in one place, but not the other? (Yes, I know, we are out of Iraq – officially December 2011, just so you don’t think I’m stupid – but didn’t you think twice (where are we exactly?), just for a moment?).

 

Americans have a tendency to forget the goings on across the globe, even when it involves the lives of thousands of service men and women ho are engaged every day, risking their lives to insure peace and democracy to those in the Middle East. We only remember when it interrupts our dinner with a CNN news crawl, or a press briefing, or notice in the local paper if a resident soldier KIA.

Or when a hero, like Billy Lynn, returns home after his Bravo Squad heroically engages Iraqi insurgents, and is given a nationwide celebration tour to honor his and his buddies efforts.

Ben Fountain’s book, Billy Lynn’s Long Halftime Walk, is a brilliant, albeit mocking, look at how Americans (in general) treat our wars – like they are a sporting attractions (Get your popcorn! And watch an IED explode!) – and our service personnel – like they are rock stars or famous athletes (if they’ve done well) or if not, they are lost in the shuffle up on their return. Our pats on the back, or our, “thanks for your service,” or our yellow ribbons or flag waving are nothing more than feigned acknowledgements of what they actually do over “there” – which very few of us understand.

Truthfully, I didn’t “get this” when I started reading it – it was very slow in the beginning – then, it was like, “Oh – now I know what the author is doing!”

It’s not an easy book to read – but read it anyway.

View all my reviews

Book Review -- Everything That Makes You Mom

Everything That Makes You Mom: A Bouquet of Memories by Laura Lynn Brown

My enjoyment rating: 5 of 5 stars

Book hangover rating: 4

Source:  I received a copy of this book free from the author. I received no other compensation, and my thoughts are 100% my own.

Genre: Non-fiction; Journals

 

 

 

What are your favorite memories of your mother?

Do you remember her favorite movies? TV shows? Books? What made her laugh?

In her precious book, Everything that Makes You Mom, author Laura Lynn Brown provides the reader the perfect journal where you can treasure your own personal memories, sayings, recipes – that made your Mom the best mom ever.

It’s a beautiful keepsake to cherish your recollections, as well as share Ms. Brown’s reminisces of her own mother.

Some of her chapters and questions are very apropos – like, “When was a time you tried your mother’s patience?” Ummm…always? Other’s not so much (for me anyway) like, “Does she have nicknames for any of her {kitchen} gadgets?” Oh my…my mother hated to cook – still does – she wouldn’t know a gadget from a toolbox, let alone give them nicknames!  But I did chuckle thinking about it!

This is a perfect treat for yourself – anytime of the year – to help you appreciate the gift that is your mother.

View all my reviews

Book Review -- Letters from Skye

Letters from Skye: A Novel by Jessica Brockmole

My enjoyment rating: 2 of 5 stars

Book hangover rating: 0

Source:  BookBrowse.com

Genre: Fiction, historical fiction

Objectionable material: None

Letters from Skye by Jessica Brockmole is an epistolary generational novel, set in both WWI and WWII. We learn about the lives of Elspeth Dunn and her long distant suitor, Davey – and later, Elspeth’s daughter, Margaret, through their letters, as Margaret tries to uncover the secrets of her mother’s past.

I never felt any attachment to any of the characters. The letters’ prose seemed to be far too modern to be written at the earlier part of the 20th century. As chapters shifted between time periods – there was no distinct “voice” to differentiate between the letters. If it hadn't been for the chapter headings, one wouldn’t know if it was Elspeth or Margaret “writing” the prose. The plot was thin, and the ending contrived and predictable. I was emotionally detached throughout the entire novel.

View all my reviews

Book Review -- Inferno

Inferno by Dan Brown

My enjoyment rating: 3 of 5 stars

Book Hangover rating:  2 of 5 stars

Source: Library

Genre: Fiction

Objectionable material:  (none that I remember)

Robert Langdon – a cross  between Indiana Jones and James Bond – is off on another adventure involving art, history, architecture, high drama, and biological catastrophe.

For those who have read and liked Dan Brown’s books, you’ll find nothing new here. He uses the same successful formula, but with different insertable plot and storylines. We are treated to a rich history of Florence, the author Dante Alighieri and his poem, the Inferno, and numerous other exotic locales like Istanbul and Venice.

Dan Brown is my one weakness when it comes to reading brain candy – very little substance, but lots of action and a true page turner.

So sit back and enjoy a romp through Europe and be prepared for the end of life as we know it. At least according to Dan Brown.

View all my reviews

Book Review -- Mrs. Queen Takes the Train

Mrs. Queen Takes the Train by William Kuhn

My enjoyment rating: 4 of 5 stars

Book hangover rating:  1 of 5 stars

Source:  I received a copy of this book free from the author.  I received no other compensation, and my thoughts are 100% my own.

Genre:  Literary fiction

Objectionable material:  None

 

Trooping the Colour, Order of the Garter, Royal Weddings…just a few of the ceremonies that have me glued to the Daily Mail and any royal Flickr-stream to continually feed my British Monarchy need.

So when a book is published with the title, Mrs. Queen Takes the Train, you can count on it being high on my “to read” stack!

The Queen, feeling a bit melancholy about the state of her life, reflects on what has made her most happy: The Royal Yacht Britannia. Guided by her instinct to reconnect to all those marvelous memories, The Queen takes a stroll beyond the BP (Buckingham Palace) compound, much to the angst of her cadre of advisers, protection officers and ladies in waiting. Once she is on the lam, The Queen leads her bevy of personnel on a circuitous escapade worthy of the title “trains, planes, and automobiles,” which lands them all in Leith, Scotland, where the decommissioned royal vessel is moored. Along the way relationships develop, truths learned, and The Queen is none the worse for wear.

I absolutely adored this novel. It fed every need for British escapism one could imagine: What would The Queen be like alone among commoners? Could she function on her own without her rigid schedule? Could she really be like “one of us?” "Would you recognize her on the outside?" It was fun to suspend belief about how The Queen functions both as a “Queen” and as a human being.

I suppose if one does not have a penchant for all things royal, this might not be the book for you – following The Queen on a train might get a bit tedious – but for the rest of us who haven’t missed a royal wedding since Charles & Diana, I highly recommend it.

View all my reviews

Book Review -- The Great Gatsby

The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald

My enjoyment rating: 4.5 of 5 stars

Book hangover rating: 4 of 5 stars

Source: Personal copy

Genre: Classic fiction

Objectionable material: none (I would let my 12 yr old read it)

(Ladies of Literature and Big Love Book Club May book choice)

 

In Old Testament fashion, F. Scott Fitzgerald created a story of greed, decadence, inequality, and moral decay that led to utter destruction. All in turn of the century America.

I was completely captivated by the excess Fitzgerald created in such a sparse novel spanning only a few months.

It oozed lusciousness.

It celebrated temptation.

Souls were sold.

Dreams were shattered.

Lives ruined.

What an amazing piece of literature.

View all my reviews

Book Review -- One Summer in Arkansas

One Summer in Arkansas by Marcia Kemp Sterling

My enjoyment rating: 2 .5 of 5 stars

Book hangover rating:  0 of 5 stars

Source:  Copy provided by the author (I was not compensated in any way for my review)

Genre:  Fiction; Arkansas fiction

Objectionable material: some minor language

 

 

Lee Addison is coming home to spend time with family and begin his summer legal clerkship with a local law firm. But little did he know his summer in Riverton Arkansas would be far more complicated: his sister needs legal counsel when charged with a hit and run, his summer case work involves the suspicious death of a local minority teen, and things might not be quite over with his high school girlfriend, Annie.

Marcia Kemp Sterling has written an appealing novel about family, ethics and choices.

With expertise she has written what it’s like to live in a small town – neighbors, gossip, history, family. She especially captures the racial issues in Arkansas that continue to this day.

However, two of the main threads of the story – the death of Dewaine Washington and the hit & run charges against Lee’s sister, MJ – felt incomplete.

As Lee was researching evidence for the Washington case, I was expecting a John Grisham-like novel to unfold, but the case was solved quickly, before the first half of the book was over.

And MJs issues were written as if SHE was the victim and not the child she hit. For me, it made no sense, and a tad bit angry.

One character who was superbly written was Etta, the black neighbor. She spoke with wisdom and sereneness. A woman who had seen and experienced plenty of Arkansas racism.

One Summer in Arkansas was a satisfactory read – but not without a few storyline issues.

View all my reviews

Book Review -- Wild

Wild: From Lost to Found on the Pacific Crest Trail by Cheryl Strayed

My enjoyment rating: 4 of 5 stars (initially I was going to give it a 3)

Book hangover rating:  1 of 5 stars (I was ready for her journey to end).

Source:  Personal copy

Genre:  Memoir

Objectionable material:  Language (including the F-bomb); sexual situations; drug use.

Completely shattered by the death of her mother, Cheryl Strayed’s life hits bottom: she embarks on an adulterous lifestyle, divorces her husband (whom she claims to love), battles a potential heroin addiction, and becomes distant with her remaining family members.

In order to overcome her overwhelming despondence, Cheryl commits to hiking the Pacific Coast Trail, a 2600 mile trek through California, Oregon and Washington. In Wild, her successful memoir, she recounts the physical, personal, spiritual, and emotional journey she endures to reconnect with herself, and on many levels, with her mother.

This was an amazing excursion.

Admittedly poorly and underprepared, Cheryl battles horribly blistered feet, a back pack so over laden with supplies it becomes the “monster,” lack of water, late year snowstorms, rattle snakes and bears.

But fortunately, her trip is buoyed by the many strangers (who become friends) who help her along the way.

In times of difficulty, we often think of ways to “reconnect” or “find ourselves.” Most of us can get by with long weekends, or longer sabbaticals. But months long adventures are not possible. Ms. Strayed’s bravery and determination are unmatched. Especially for a woman traveling alone.

In the early days of her trek she recounts, “I knew that if I allowed fear to overtake me, my journey was doomed. Fear, to a great extent, is born of a story we tell ourselves, and so I chose to tell myself a different story from the one women are told. I decided I was safe. I was strong. I was brave. Nothing could vanquish me. Insisting on this story was a form of mind control, but for the most part, it worked. Every time I heard a sound of unknown origin or felt something horrible cohering in my imagination, I pushed it away. I simply did not let myself become afraid. Fear begets fear. Power begets power. I willed myself to beget power. And it wasn’t long before I actually wasn’t afraid…I was working too hard to be afraid.”

That was my favorite passage of the whole book.

The only issue I had with the book:  after weeks (which turned into months) on the trail, I grew a bit weary reading about her hike – it became much of the same -- waiting for supplies at the next outpost, hunger, blisters, setting up camp – same situation, different location.

But it is a bold book about, as Ms. Strayed says, “learning to bear what you cannot bear.”

View all my reviews

Book Review -- Because of Winn-Dixie

Because of Winn-Dixie by Kate DiCamillo

My enjoyment rating: 4 of 5 stars

Book hangover rating:  3 of 5 stars

Source:  Library Copy

Genre:  Juvenile Fiction (Newbery Honor)

Objectionable material:  none

I hate dogs. My kids will be forever scarred because we do not have a pet.

However, if they came home with a dog like Winn-Dixie – I would totally reconsider.

10 year old Opal is lucky enough to encounter Winn Dixie at, well, the local Winn Dixie.

Forever after, the two are inseparable.

This is a delightful tale of a girl and her dog and the friends she meets along the way.

Opal is a bit like Scout and a bit like Julia (from The One and Only Ivan) – a spunky girl, without a mother, who navigates childhood the best she can, with independence and zest and the companionship of an animal.

I’m particularly interested in this book because Duncan Sheik (Tony & Grammy award winner for Spring Awakening) will be directing Because of Winn Dixie – the Musical this December at Arkansas Repertory Theatre. Taran, an Irish Wolf hound, has already been cast and is in training to make his stage debut as Winn Dixie.

 

I'm secretly hoping I Kate DiCamillo will be at the world premier and I can meet her!

View all my reviews

Happy 10th Anniversary Big Love Book Club!

10 years.

I started this book club when I was 8 months pregnant with my 2nd child.  I did it for my sanity.  For my salvation.  For my soul.

It started with postcards. Not Evite or Facebook or Twitter or email.  Postcards with stamps sent to a group of women who I thought may be interested in sharing my love of reading.  A group of 10 (I think?) showed up at my house.  We read To Kill a Mockingbird. 

I had no idea it would last 10 years – or that we would be living in the same place for that long.

In that time over 50 women have read, discussed, laughed, indulged, cried with us.  One of our members died.

Has book group had any long lasting effect on any of these women?  I can’t say. 

All I know is, on the 3rd Thursday of each month – there is no place that I would rather be than at book club.