2010 -- A Book Year in Review

Another year has come to an end, and a few more books have been read.

This is what I accomplished this year:

1. The Wordy Shipmates by Sarah Vowell
2. Betsy and Tacy Go Over the Big Hill by Maud Hart Lovelace
3. People of the Book by Geraldine Brooks
4. Sugar by Bernice McFadden
5. Murder at Longbourne by Tracy Kiely
6. Betsy and Tacy Go Downtown, by Maud Hart Lovelace
7. Skin and other Stories by Roald Dahl
8. The Glass Castle by Jeanette Walls
9. The School of Essential Ingredients by Erica Bauermeister
10. From the Mixed Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler by
11. Lift by Kelly Corrigan
12. The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins
13. The Wives of Henry Oades by Johanna Moran
14. The Secret of the Old Clock (#1 Nancy Drew) by Carolyn Keene
15. Glorious by Bernice McFadden
16. The Wednesday Wars by Gary Schmidt
17. One Crazy Summer by Rita Williams-Garcia
18. The Mostly True Adventures of Homer P. Figg by Rodman Philbrick
19. A Matter of Class by Mary Balogh
20. Wolf Hall by Hilary Mantel
21. My Name is Mary Sutter by Robin Oliveira
22. Lizzie Bright and the Buckminster Boy by Gary Schmidt
23. Tuck Everlasting by Natalie Babbitt
24. Shanghai Girls by Lisa See
25. The Icing on the Cupcake by Jennifer Ross
26. Embers by Sandor Marai
27. Medium Raw by Anthony Bourdain
28. When You Reach Me by Rebecca Stead
29. Bad Mother by Ayelet Waldman
30. The Lost Summer of Louisa May Alcott by Kelly McNees
31. Nine Parts of Desire by Geraldine Brooks
32. Tallgrass by Sandra Dallas
33. Backseat Saints by Joshilyn Jackson
34. The Cellist of Sarajevo by Steven Galloway
35. A Thousand Sisters by Lisa Shannon
36. Every Last One by Anna Quindlen
37. One Day by David Nicholls
38. Summer at Tiffany by Marjorie Hart
39. Still Alice by Lisa Genova
40. The Sweet By and By by Todd Johnson
41. Wildflower by Mark Seal
42. The Many Secret Lives & Secret Sorrows of Josephine B. by Sandra Gulland
43. The Sunflower by Richard Paul Evans
44. Traveling with Pomegranates by Sue Monk Kidd and Ann Kidd Taylor
45. Loving Frank by Nancy Horan
46. Lonesome Dove by Larry McMurtry
47. Zoo Story by Thomas French
48. True Grit by Charles Portis
49. Little Heathens by Mildren Armstrong Kalish

Did Not Finish
Quartet in Autumn by Barbara Pym
Lunch in Paris by Elizabeth Bard
The Invisible Mountain by Carolina de Robertis

I must admit, this was not a banner year of great reads, only a few deserve any further mentioning:

My favorites of the year:

The Glass Castle by Jeannette Walls

The Wednesday Wars by Gary Schmidt (juv fiction)

One Crazy Summer by Rita Willimas Garcia (juv fiction)

Wolf Hall by Hillary Mantel (read along)

Bad Mother by Aylete Waldman

The Cellist of Sarajevo by Steven Galloway

Still Alice by Lisa Genova

Wildflower by Mark Seal

Lonesome Dove by Larry McMurtry (read along)

True Grit by Charles Portis (movie was AWESOME too)

Challenges:

I committed to and completed ONE challenge in 2010 -- Women Unbound:

NON FICTION:
Nine Parts of Desire, by Geraldine Brooks
A Thousand Sisters by Lisa Shannon
Wildflower by Mark Seal


FICTION:
Sugar by Bernice McFadden
Glorious by Bernice McFadden
My Name is Mary Sutter by Robin Oliveira
The Many Lives and Secret Sorrows of Josephine B. by Sandra Gulland
Loving Frank by Nancy Horan

I didn't read as many this year as last, and I hold my volunteer position in the PTA personally responsible.  Hopefully, once my service is done next spring, I can increase my reading hours.

Happy New Year everyone -- I hope 2011 is full of many literary accomplishments.

Book Review -- Little Heathens

Book:  Little Heathens:  (Hard Times and High Spirits on an Iowa Farm During the Great Depression) by Mildred Armstrong Kalish

My rating:  2 out of 5 stars

Book source:  Library copy

Mildred Armstrong Kalish shares her memories of growing up with an extended family on a farm in Iowa during the Great Depression. As one would expect, they depend on each other through good times and bad and make the best of any situation.

I was particularly fond of the stories of her ancestors – those great pioneers that settled “Yankee Grove” and her memories of crawling up on her great grandfather’s lap and hearing stories of their early life.

However, the remainder of the book was a drudgery for me. Reading in staccato narration about polishing silver with baking soda and saving the tail-end of thread did not hold my interest whatsoever. It was also a book that had I been a family member, I would have treasured it immensely, but since I am not, I couldn’t connect at all to her recollections.

This has been a very popular book, and I’m really disappointed that I didn’t enjoy it more, because generally I’m drawn to stories of courage, endurance, and thrift.

Other bloggers have written favorable reviews -- please check out Melissa’s at One Librarian’s Book Reviews.

For a brief audio clip form the memoir, please see below:

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:

Cherry-Walnut Crumb Cake Recipe - Christmas Brunch Recipes





I made this for Christmas Eve dinner...it was delicious!  And a perfect treat for breakfast tomorrow!

Cherry-Walnut Crumb Cake Recipe By Woman's Day Kitchen from Woman's Day


Active Time: 15 minutesTotal Time: 1 hour Recipe Ingredients

Cooking spray, for the pan

3/4 cup all-purpose flour

3/4 cup packed light brown sugar

1 tsp ground cinnamon

6 Tbsp butter, melted

1 cup walnuts, chopped

3/4 cup dried cherries, chopped

1⁄4 cup canola oil

1⁄4 cup water

3 large eggs

1 cup reduced-fat sour cream

2 tsp pure vanilla extract

1 box (18.25 oz) yellow cake mix

Recipe Preparation

1. Heat oven to 375ºF. Spray a 10-in. tube pan with cooking spray.

2. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, brown sugar and cinnamon. Add the butter and stir with a fork until crumbly; fold in the walnuts. Transfer half of the mixture to a small bowl and fold in the cherries.

3. In a large bowl, whisk together the oil, water, eggs, sour cream and vanilla. Add the dry cake mix and stir until fully incorporated.

4. Spread half the cake batter into the prepared pan and sprinkle with the cherry mixture. Top with the remaining batter and sprinkle with the walnut mixture. Bake until a wooden pick inserted in the cake comes out clean, 45 to 50 minutes. Let cool in the pan for 25 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.

Make-Ahead Tip: Store the cake at room temperature for up to 2 days.

Merry Christmas!

Have a peaceful and joyous holiday -- see you back in a few days!

Midwinter's Eve Giveaway Hop WINNER!

AND THE WINNER IS:

Benita who said:

I've not yet been to Ireland, but I'd love to go soon.

True Random Number Generator

Min: 1

Max: 67

Result: 31

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(if selected winner does not respond within 24 hours of being contacted, another winner will be selected).

Thank you to all who entered to win -- and for following my blog.  I hope you come back soon!

Midwinter's Eve Giveaway Hop!

It's giveaway time again!  Thanks to Kathy at I am a Reader not a Writer, for getting us all in the holiday spirit!

This is a quick giveaway -- just a brief 48 hours of fun -- and it leaves you with enough time to finish up any leftover holiday shopping!  Giveaway will close at 11:59pm CST on Wednesday, December 22nd and is good for US/Canada participants.

For my holiday offering, I have one hardback copy of:

An Irish Country Christmas by Patrick Taylor

Summary from Publishers Weekly:

Taylor's delightful holiday update to the Irish Country series returns to Ballybucklebo, where Dr. Fingal O'Reilly and junior partner Barry Laverty are still practicing their humorous brand of country medicine. As Christmas draws closer, the two men contend with a variety of comical village ailments and the usual array of Ballybucklebo characters, as well as romantic troubles. O'Reilly is trying to decide if he will allow himself to love again with the vivacious Kitty O'Halloran, and Laverty is distraught because his girlfriend can't seem to make it home for the holidays. Then a new doctor comes to town and causes a ruckus by poaching their patients and prescribing ludicrous cures. This has all the charm of Taylor's previous books and adds Christmas warmth without sacrificing credibility.

To enter the giveaway you must either be a follower or become a follower via GFC on the right sidebar, fill out the attached form AND answer the following in the comments section:  Have you been to Ireland?

To continue the holiday cheer, check out the many other blogs participating in the Midwinter's Eve Hop!

May your holidays be joyous and your stockings be filled with all things literary!

Birthday Book Bling!

Nothing says Happy Birthday like a stack full of books and a gift card!

Unfortunately, to off set the glee of a few hardbacks, I have to TREAT myself to 4 new tires for my car.  Definitely a birthday downer.

The kids are celebrating their first day of Christmas break, I think I will celebrate by reading all day.

Have a great day everyone, I know I will (except for the tires, of course). 

Book Review -- Zoo Story


Book:  Zoo Story: Life in the Garden of Captives by Thomas French

My rating:  3.5 out of 5 stars ««« ½

Book source:  Public library

For the sensitive reader:  OK


For someone who isn’t much of an animal lover, I have quite an affinity for animal/zoo-genre books. Some of my favorites:

The Zookeeper’s Wife
Life of Pi
Babylon's Ark: The Incredible Wartime Rescue of the Baghdad Zoo
The Lady and the Panda

My latest venture into the world of wild animals is Zoo Story: Life in the Garden of Captives, by Thomas French. Mr. French follows the daily grind of zookeepers, management, patrons, and primarily the animals, at Tampa’s Lowry Park Zoo.

We are introduced to Herman, an alpha Chimp, who was the first Lowry Park inhabitant; Enshalla, a Sumatran tiger whose beauty and ferocity is both feared and prized; and 4 African elephants that Lowry Park has had directly shipped to Florida from a reserve in Swaziland. Overseeing this menagerie is Lex Salisbury, the executive director, who is trying to marry three converging efforts: Conservation, increased animal population and a non-profit status.

There was nothing particularly extraordinary about this book. It did a nice job of exploring the day to day activities that zookeepers face when caring for a collection of animals. It also intimately tells the stories of how many of these keepers develop a direct love for those animals that are in their care. Particularly poignant are the stories of Herman and Enshalla.

The least liked part of the book was the political drama set forth by Lex Salisbury’s actions. A powerful animal advocate, Lex’s day to day administration of the Zoo leads to disaster, for both animal and human alike.

Ultimately, this book gives an objective look at the life of zoos. We as humans are decimating many animals’ natural habitat, making zoos necessary. Zoos are also leading the way to rehabilitating certain species for their release back into the “wild.” In the end I suppose, we all wish zoos weren’t necessary, but if current conditions continue, they may be the last place we see many of the earth’s current species.

From the publisher:

Quote of the Day

From Bobby Roberts, Director of the Central Arkansas Library System -- and ultimately, my boss!

"Books have a lot going for them as a commodity.  Anybody can operate them.  You don't need batteries.  I've never had a book that would not start."

Wise words!