May -- Mission Accomplished!

On May 1st, Leah from Amused by Books and I set out to read Hilary Mantel's Man Booker Prize winning novel, Wolf Hall.  We gave ourselves 31 days to read it -- and we did!  We both finished last night in Cinderella fashion -- a huge task that we are both very proud of.  Our last read along discussion with Elise will be posted on Wednesday with my final book review on Thursday.  Just as a teaser -- I loved it.  I think Hilary Mantel is brilliant.

In addition to the main goal, I was able to finish the following:

The Wednesday Wars by Gary Schmidt

One Crazy Summer by Rita Williams-Garcia

The Mostly True Adventures of Homer P. Figg by Rodman Philbrick

A Matter of Class by Mary Balogh

Wolf Hall was such a massive task that I chose to off set 16th century England with some EXCELLENT juvenile fiction. Indeed, all of my juvenile fiction choices are adult worthy reads.  Some of the best books I've read this year.  The romance novel by Mary Balogh, on the other hand, was chase down the garbage truck-worthy.

I look forward to a very prolific literary summer.  My work schedule has been reduced due to my kids being home, so I plan on devoting that time to the traditional "summer reads."  First summer read of the season, My Name is Mary Sutter by Robin Oliveria.  The bloggersphere has heaped high praise on this book -- I hope it holds true.

Others I hope to read this summer:

Shanghai Girls by Lisa See (this was our book club choice for May -- but we had to cancel due to a scheduling conflict)

The Icing on the Cupcake by Jennifer Ross

Evangeline by Ben Farmer

What is on your summer reading list?

Guest Book Review -- Percy Jackson and the Olypmpians: The Sea of Monsters

Percy Jackson and the Olympians: Book 2 – The Sea of Monsters



3 out of 5 stars

Guest Post by Daisy Dad

I can’t help it. No matter how much I want to like the Percy Jackson & The Olympians series, I am continually nagged by the thought that this is a not so clever, fairly blatant rip off of Harry Potter – but I know it is not. Was Harry Potter a not-so-clever, blatant-rip-off of something that preceded it? C. S. Lewis’ The Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe Chronicles? J. R. R. Tolkien’s Lord of the Rings trilogy? Maybe a series that I am not as familiar with? Unfortunately, after the second book, The Sea of Monsters, the parallels are unmistakable:

Percy Jackson = Harry Potter

Annabeth = Hermione

Grover = Ron Weasley (maybe a stretch)
Chiron = Dumbledore
Kronos = Lord Voldemort
Luke = Draco Malfoy
Half-Blood Hill = Hogwarts

I could go on…

But on its own merits, I still found The Sea of Monsters very entertaining. A fast paced voyage novel well suited for any young reader with adventure in their hearts. Updating the story of Jason and the Argonauts and the quest for the Golden Fleece, Rick Riordan again makes the world of the gods seem commonplace in the real world of today. Though the beginning of this book is maybe too similar to the way The Lightning Thief began, the introduction of a new character – Tyson – the half brother of Percy who is also a Cyclops – is a tender example of how cruel our world can be to those who are different – and how important it is to rise above first impressions and find the goodness in everyone. It may just surprise you!

Other than my HP comparison issues, the only other criticism I have, and it is really more a hope that the upcoming books don’t fall deeper into this trap, is that the writing verges on the cinematic – as if Mr. Riordan is writing with a screenplay and Hollywood in mind rather than writing a great story, with the depth and care it takes to rise above the lure of the quick and easy success a film franchise can bring. (Tsk, Tsk, Dan Brown and The Lost Symbol!) I guess that will be his “Golden Fleece,” the lure of “Circe”, or the hard to ignore “Siren” song. May Mr. Riordan avoid these human frailties and find his true, original voice in The Titan’s Curse.

Book source:  private purchase

CBC10 Day 2

I’m exhausted. Who knew blogging could break you down and have you begging for your bed at 8pm?

We had 4 breakout sessions -- my classes were: The Art of Story Telling, Niche Blogging, From Blogging to Writing: Is there really a difference, and How to Interact with Online Communities to Grow Your Readership.

One thing I must say – just because you are a popular blogger (although, I hadn’t heard of ANY of these bloggers, but I don’t live in Utah and I only focus on book bloggers, so that’s no big surprise) doesn’t make you a public speaker. One of the panels totally crashed and burned because of that. It wasn’t a pretty sight. It made me wish I had stuck with my original class choice. Oh well – I guess they don’t have to worry about what I think since they have HUGE followings!

The two writing sessions were the best. They both talked about finding your “voice” – and for the most part I think they were talking about bloggers who write personal narratives, unlike what I do the majority of the time, which is read and report. But even I struggle with how I want the tone or inflection of my reviews to read – do I want to be funny or serious, or how bad do I actually trash this book? Or, even a bigger problem is my lip-sync syndrome: “Oh, I really wish I sounded more like so-and-so,” and then try to fake my way through a review hoping I mimic someone. A recommendation from one of the speakers was to go back and reread a particularly popular review, or one that you felt really good about and try to figure out what made that work. The problem with reviews, though, is it the review that was popular or was it the book? But something I’m going to work on going forward.

Finally, the closing speaker was CJane. Of course EVERYONE is a follower of CJane, right? Everyone except me! I’m not too trendy when it comes to blogs – no Dooce, no Pioneer Woman, no CJane or Nie Nie . I figure, they have enough followers, why on earth do they need me too? (I’m not linking them either!)

So, my 1st CBC conference is done. Not sure I would do it again. I think next year, I’m saving my $$ for BEA!

CBC10 Day 1

Just when you think you’ve got a handle on the blogging world, you attend an event like this and you realize you know absolutely nothing at all!

My head is spinning: Technical features, Twitter, Kirtsy, Whrrl, tags, pivots, SEOs, key words, media kits, FTC regs, giveaway no-no’s, -- good gosh how am I supposed to learn all this stuff? Can’t I just write book reviews and hope someone reads them?

The intimidating and embarrassing thing is – everyone there seemed to be on curve or ahead of the curve, except me. Do I Tweet? No. Do I Whrrl? No. Do I have key words in my blog title that makes me Google friendly? No. I’m I operating illegal giveaways on my blog? Possibly!

It was a full day of very informative, entertaining, and prepared speakers.

In terms of what I do here at GDD, I think the most revelatory came from Ryan Bell, a local Intellectual Property attorney in Utah. He spoke about the “material connection” a blogger and an advertiser or agent. In my case, that would be a publisher or author who may contact me to do a review of their book. Since the beginning of the year, bloggers must put disclaimers on their posts if they indeed have a material connection with the product (book) they are reviewing and the nature of the relationship. Although I’ve had very few contact from either publishers or authors, that is something that has become standard protocol. And it doesn’t have to be “legalese” – he said something simple, but descriptive is sufficient.

However, the most “Ah ha!” moment I had was when he started talking about giveaways. Anyone who book blogs knows that books are given away daily! Some blogs offer significantly more than others. I have only offered 2 giveaways in my blogging tenure, one I supplied myself, the other was provided by the author. Here is the kicker (and I am not an attorney, I’m just doing my best to relay from my notes what this man related to us): Giveaways are essentially lotteries – and if you are in a state that doesn’t have a lottery, you are essentially breaking the law. I’m sure there is more to it than that, but he only had 45 minutes to speak. Additionally, if you are asking people to submit multiple chances to enter a giveaway (1 chance if you Tweet, 1 chance if you Blog, 1 if you stand on your head) you are essentially are creating an “uneven playing field” and that could be against the FTC regs as well. Finally, the rules of the giveaway must be clearly stated, for example: Void where prohibited by law; Full official rules must be listed on the blog, a definite end date and eligibility restrictions should all be linked somewhere.

After hearing all that, I think my giveaway days are over until I hire an attorney!

As with any conference, after sitting in the same strait back chair all day, your brain becomes spongy, your back begins to hurt and your attention span wanes, so I’m sure there are more things I could have benefitted from or learned, but they are lost to some Tweet feed somewhere.

I better check into that when I get home.

I’m curious – how many of you Tweet? And if so, have you noticed an increase in traffic to your site?

Casual Blogger Conference!

While most of the book blogging universe is participating in the BEA (Book Expo America 2010) in New York, I'm headed in the other direction -- Utah -- for the Casual Blogger Conference.

Even though I've been blogging for over a year, I still feel like a ROOKIE, so I hope to immerse myself in all things bloggerific this weekend. If nothing else, it's a weekend away, in a hotel, with a king-size bed -- SWEET!

If you are going too, let me know, maybe we can hook up!

Week 4 -- Wolf Hall Wednesdays

The reading continues. In theory, this should have been our last weekly post, but I'm still about 200 pages from finishing, so I'm sure we will post at least 2 more weeks. Cromwell is such a fascinating figure -- this individual who is respected by all, regardless of whether you are a Katherine-ite or an Anne-ite.

Here is our discussion for this week:

Amused By Books: How's the reading coming? I feel like maybe we are coming into a little more action. Here's some questions for our discussion and feel free to add some more!

Gerbera Daisy Diaries: The pace is definitely quickening…I’m up to 340 – still behind, but not too bad.

1. The burning at the stake scene of the 'witch'. Let's discuss!

Amused By Books: It was horrific but I was left wondering what part it played in the story. I am often left wondering this with lots of scenes: why was this added in? I can only assume this was to still show us that Cromwell, while he is rising to power, still has a heart. He was deeply affected by the woman who was burned at the stake, whereas it seemed like a lot of those in the crowd were not. On another note, I think Mantel did a great job evoking the sights and sounds of this scene, which some parts have lacked.

Gerbera Daisy Diaries: One of the most effectively graphic scenes I have read in literature. I was left gasping. When the women’s friends and family come to gather her remains, and they wipe a portion on Cromwell’s cheek – I’m not even sure I can explain how I felt: Numb, mortified, sickened – so many emotions by one scene and sentence. I think you have a point – What does this have to do with the big picture? My only explanation: To give a more complete picture of who Thomas Cromwell is and what he has endured; to show how once he becomes the King’s advisor, he isn’t swayed by religious arguments – he is all about legal solutions/negotiations to solve Henry’s marriage problems absent the Pope; also, to show readers the madness that was gripping 16th century England and how that had an effect years later.

2. Cromwell seems to be fully rising to the peak of his power. How is handling it?

ABB: Maybe I am missing some things but to me Cromwell still seems to be a pretty good man at the heart of things. He wants to still do things for his family. When they went on that trip to France he was bringing poor people home to give them a roof over their head. Sometimes I feel like I missing some things because Mantel often insists on referring to multiple men in one scene as just "he" and, well, how the heck am I supposed to keep them all straight, but generally, I do think that Cromwell seems to be balancing his power well with both humor and kindness and that makes him someone worth admiring and there aren't a lot of people in this book who I would say that about.

GDD: One of my favorite scenes so far is Cromwell’s treatment of Henry Percy, once Percy decides to tell the “world” that he indeed was married to Anne Boleyn. It’s something strait out of Goodfellas or The Sopranos – he walks into the bar and basically gives Henry “an offer he can’t refuse.” (OK, that was the Godfather, but you get what I mean). He is this ruthless negotiator, but with a level head. He seems so admired by his peers – on both sides of this Henry/Katherine/Anne issue. I think HE is always Cromwell.

3. Anne Boleyn, in this section of the book, has finally reached her quest and become Queen of England. What do you think of Mantel's version of Anne?

ABB: I don't like Anne. She is not painted as an admirable figure at all. Knowing what we know, that she will be beheaded soon, I often find myself wondering if she really thinks this would all have been worth it. I mean she seems so pinched and angry at pretty much everyone around her - what an awful way to live one’s life. When they travel to France, she has to stay behind because it isn't safe for her to go forward because the rumors about her are so unkind. Her own people don't like her. I don't know, I guess I just often found myself wondering if it was all really worth it to her in the end.

GDD: No! You mean she becomes Queen??!! (tee hee!) I’m not there yet. But, yes, I agree, there is absolutely nothing redeeming about Mantel’s Anne. She is the master manipulator. I think a person like her, would never realize how bad things are going to be – and why should she? She’s got Henry, literally, by the balls (sorry, there is no other way to describe it). I’m sure she envisions that she will wield this kind of power of him forever.

A couple of comments/questions:

GDD: I’m surprised how FUNNY some of the dialogue is!! On page 296, Anne is retelling the Old Testament story of Jezebel and her demise (she was thrown out of a window and eaten by wild dogs). Anne says, “if anyone is to be thrown out of a palace window…Thomas, I know who I would like to throw. Except the child Mary, the wild dogs would not find a scrap of flesh to gnaw, and Katherine, she is so fat she would bounce.” I laughed out loud at that comment! Oh -- and I think that may explain the "shrimp" comment -- she may be TINY -- not ugly!

ABB: Totally agree! I think it's kind of unexpected in some ways because the story for most part, to me anyway can seem so dry and factual and then all of a sudden there are these really funny and/or gripping scenes that kind of throw you for a loop!

GDD: Also, what is the significance (if any) of the painting/tapestry/art that Cromwell has hanging in the entry of Austin Friars? I know it was a Wolsey’s and was gifted to Cromwell from the King. Everyone that comes to visit mentions it. Again, it may mean nothing other than the obvious: it is of value and a gift from the King.

ABB: I don't know but I wish I did! Do any of our fair readers know? I wish there was a picture of them in the book so we knew what they were. Maybe this weekend I could try to google them and see if I could uncover something about their significance!

If you haven any comments or thoughts, please share them with us! The reading continues!

Book Review -- A Matter of Class

A Matter of Class by Mary Balogh


My rating: 1 of 5 stars

Summary:
Library Journal
Her scandalous near elopement with a coachman and his habitually drunken and spendthrift ways have brought Lady Annabelle Ashton and Mr. Reginald Mason to a pretty pass. Their families have had nothing to do with each other for 30 years, ever since the coal merchant Masons moved next door to the Earl of Havercroft's estate. But the highly successful Mr. Mason would like nothing better than to bring his aristocratic neighbor low by rescuing his daughter's reputation along with the earl's suffering finances while teaching his own son how to behave like a gentleman. Marriage between the two seems the only solution. VERDICT Fans of the popular Balogh (Seducing an Angel) are accustomed to her longer, more complex historical romances. Yet this slip of a novel manages to reveal a great deal about its misguided protagonists and how the past catches up with them. The happily-ever-after is never in doubt, but the unexpected denouement will have readers gasping and smiling with delight. A can't-miss choice for romance fans.

This was the biggest waste of time. I was sucked in by the pretty cover and the forlorn looking woman on the front AND that it was a brief 200 pages, perfect for a book "interlude" opposite my Wolf Hall odyssey. I don't read romance fiction often, but I do love a little romantic pas de deux every now and then. This one was pure nonsense. The characters were insipid and cardboard. The dialogue between the two characters (that spans the course of their lifetime) was for much older people, not the child/adolescent/teenagers/yearly young adults they were suppose to be. The author's use of the term ton, meaning society or town, was so overused I wanted to take a sharpie and black it out every time I read it.

This was really, really, bad.

At least I only squandered one afternoon.

After this, I will be glad to welcome back Thomas Cromwell, Henry VIII and Anne Boleyn.

Book source: Public library (thank goodness!)

View all my reviews >>

Bedtime Stories

I've discovered yet another perfect picture book -- this time, though, I think it was more meaningful for me, than my kids:



School Library Journal
PreS-K—In this reversal of roles in the bedtime routine, a mother tries all the familiar stall tactics when her daughter announces, "Time for bed, Mommy!" She tries everything from a plea for five more minutes to a final drink of water and the door left slightly ajar. The story is told in short sentences that fit neatly into dialogue balloons. The perky watercolor and ink cartoon-style illustrations on white backgrounds speak as clearly as the text. Some pages are wordless and allow readers to tell the story themselves. Little girls in particular will love sharing this bedtime story with their mothers.—Carolyn Janssen, Public Library of Cincinnati and Hamilton County, OH

How often am I staring mindlessly at the computer screen at 11pm, that I wish I had my sweet daughter to encourage me to go to bed, with a short bedtime store of Anna Karenina?

This was perfect!

Week 3 -- Wolf Hall Wednesdays!

We've now entered week 3 of Wolf Hall Wednesdays. I'm glad to have Leah from Amused by Books back! She's had to endure things I don't even want to imagine over the past two weeks. I think we are both behind in reading -- we expected to be over 300 pages by now -- I'm clocking in around 250 -- Leah is ahead a bit. The book's heft is starting to weigh on me. I still like it, but it's become more of a chore than an indulgence.

Leah came up with questions this week -- here are our thoughts:

1. We've spent a lot of time with Henry VIII now. What do you think of him as a king?

Amused By Books: It's fascinating to me how everyone's world revolves around this one man. I know that our tide shifts a lot when elect a new president but this seems a little ridiculous. His every whim is met without question. I don't necessarily think Henry is portrayed as a bad or selfish person, it just amazes me how someone is given so much power, and yet, will bow to Anne Boleyn. It's all very interesting.

Gerbera Daisy Diaries: I have this slovenly, overweight, overindulged, Henry VIII in my brain, when in fact, he doesn’t sound like that at all. I suppose that caricature comes much later in his life, but in my reading, my brain still wants to project that image. I’ve admitted to being a closet anglophile (how many days did I cry when Diana died??!!!), but this royalty thing, even now, is really over the top. That he can summons Cromwell to his bedside in the middle of the night (and he has to travel by BOAT to get there) to discuss a dream is mind boggling. And with regards to Anne Boleyn – it goes back to my “rules” theory – he wants her so bad, because he CAN’T have her. I don’t think it is anything particularly unique to Anne herself, other than the church says he can’t divorce Katherine (who I like more and more, by the way – are there any books on Katherine we can read?!) and Anne won’t give him what he wants, when EVERYONE else does.

OK, can I add a question: Why on earth do they keep referring to Mary as a “shrimp?” Is she THAT ugly???

ABB: I was thinking it was because she was shy? It could be because she's ugly! Yes - we need to research some Katherine books once we are done that we can read because I agree, she is an intriguing figure!

2. How are you keeping all of the characters straight?

ABB: Am I, really? Well the only thing that's helping is the fact that I have a degree in History but this wasn't my favorite time period. I'll tell you what is really helping is the proliferation of novels set in this time period that I've read recently. I don't find myself flipping to that chart at the front of the book. It's too dense of book to waste extra time. I'm just kind of barreling through!

GDD: Um…I’m not. There was a dinner scene I just finished, and when I got to the end, I thought, “who were those people?” The biggest mysteries: Brereton, Cranmer (another Thomas! Ugh!) Wriothesley – I have no idea what roles they play, other than they keep getting mentioned. But I’m doing the same – I can’t take the time to go back to the front as a reference – I just keep turning the pages hoping that it will all make sense in the end. And honestly, I know he plays an important role after Wolsey, but I still can’t figure out Thomas More.

Oh, and this has nothing to do with your question, but I was really disappointed in her treatment of Wolsey’s death. So anticlimactic.

ABB: Totally agree about the death being anti-climactic! They went on and on about how much money it would cost to bring him from wherever he was in hiding and how much Cromwell loved him and then, poof, he was dead. He was this character that was hated by so many, you would think that people would have been cheering in the streets while Cromwell would have been crying over the death of his mentor.

3. Wolf Hall has finally been mentioned. What kind of role do you expect it might play in upcoming events in the book?

ABB: Well if I understand what's happened correctly Wolf Hall is the ancestral home of the Seymour's and if I understand my history correctly, after Anne Boleyn, King Henry will go on to marry Jane Seymour so possibly Cromwell will help with that all at Wolf Hall. I don't know, just throwing out guesses here.

GDD: Totally agree. But so far, Mantel doesn’t portray Jane very well either. Like she is this fly on the wall -- kind of mysterious and unnoticed. I’m only speculating, but is she the one that starts the rumors about Anne and her brother George having a relationship?

Check out Elise's thoughts on our reading as well, here.

If anyone else is reading along -- what are your thoughts?

A Rose by any other name is sometimes not the same

Oh, poor misguided Juliet, she thinks if Romeo had not been a Montague, he would have been the love of her life regardless of his name.

I beg to differ. Romeo Montague is a much different person than say, Romeo Jones. Granted, she was trying to reconcile the fact that if he had been a Jones, their love life would have been a much easier, but really, wasn’t he more attractive because he was a Montague? Because you and I both know that when she was practicing her signature, Juliet Montague, was much sexier than Juliet Jones.

Same with Jane Austen: Would Elizabeth Bennett or Mr. Darcy been as engaging had they been called Valerie or Mr. Dalrymple? Hardly! Elizabeth Bennett would never have settled for a Mr. Dalrymple – because he sounds like the local dairy farmer, not the landed gentry with Pemberley Estate in his back pocket.

Authors single handily set the tone and success of their books by the naming of their characters. I would liken it to naming your children.

I think authors also follow trends (some successful and some not) when naming their characters. Shelah Minor, writer/blogger at Shelah Books It made this recent comment, “First of all, a plea: If you are an LDS (Latter-day Saint, aka Mormon) author and have a book in the works, do not name one of your characters Tristan. In 2009, ‘Tristan’ must have held the same power over LDS authors that ‘Jennifer’ did in 1978 for pregnant mothers across America.”

I can’t think of a book off hand that I’ve read that I instinctively thought, “That character’s name stinks.” Or, “That name SO doesn’t go with that character – or I would have called him/her something totally different.” But with the recent release of Brady Udall’s book, The Lonely Polygamist, I must say, I’m stunned by the main character’s name.

The Lonely Polygamist is the IT book of the summer – with reviews in The New York Times Book Review and Entertainment Weekly. As a Mormon, I’m always intrigued by members or former members works, either fiction or non-fiction (most recently, Elna Baker’s The New York Regional Mormon Singles Halloween Dance). And any book with POLYGAMIST in the title is a must read for me.

When I was reading both reviews I did a double take when the main character – husband with 4 wives and 28 children – was mentioned. His name is none other than: Golden Richards. Now to nearly everyone reading his book, that probably means nothing, other than, “Hmmm…I wonder where the author came up with Golden?” But for me, I immediately, thought – “Isn’t Golden Richards the former wide receiver from the Dallas Cowboys?” Seriously people! I am a football geek – and I can tell you that not only did Golden Richards play wide receiver for the Cowboys in the ‘70s but he played football for my Dad at Brigham Young University. And for what it’s worth, Golden had a brother named Sterling (guess his parents had a thing for precious metals).

I haven’t read The Lonely Polygamist yet, but when I do, I’m going to have the image of Golden Richards the football player in my head, and not the Golden Richards, polygamist that my imagination would create. I would also add, that the author could have used names like Jack Pierson or Thomas Larson or even Tristan Clark, equally admirable names, with Utahish flare, without any football attachment.

I wonder – is Brady Udall a closet football/Cowboys fan that he is paying homage to this long lost professional football player?

And something tells me, if Juliet had met a guy named Golden, things might have turned out much differently.