Bad Blogger!!

I am a bad, bad blogger. In my defense, I have absolutely nothing to write about. Aside from playing a lot of Rock Band 2 these days (awesome birthday gift) and learning about my new Nikon D5000 (LOVE) I haven't been doing a heck of a lot.

So, in the effort of getting *something* up here, here's a quick list of books I've read since I last updated about them.

Book Update

So obviously I've been doing a lot of reading and I've gotten too far behind in my blogging when I tried to give each book its own post. Luckily there are a million reviews out there on most of these books, so I don't really have a lot to add.

The one most people probably haven't heard of is the first one, Saint Maybe by Anne Tyler. As I mentioned a few posts ago I really enjoy her writing style and the stories she tells. Saint Maybe is a fascinating story of family obligations, the choices we make and the consequences of them.

For most of the rest, they've all been turned into movies that I plan on seeing. Like most people I know, I like to read the book first. Now I can get caught up on some really great movies!

92. The Beach Club

I feel like all I've been doing lately is posting about the books I've read. Well...at least I'm posting about something.

Soon I should have some new cake ball pictures. I have been asked to make some for a birthday party coming up soon and I want to get some new pictures for some advertisements.

I've really been enjoying visiting the library lately. I have (somewhat) expanded the books I'm interested in, so that's always a good thing.

This book was a pure impulse while I was at the library. I knew I wanted to take out another book, but couldn't find one. I saw the cover of this book and was intrigued...it just looked good. This was a good case of judging a book by its cover. I really enjoyed this story.

I'm not sure if it's because I worked at a summer resort for a few years, or because we're on the cusp of summer, but this was a fun read. The characters were interesting and "real" enough and when I closed the book I found myself wondering what would happen in their lives.

My husband makes fun of me because I get SO involved in my books. The characters become so real to me, especially in a well written novel. There are times when he'll come into a room and I'll be sobbing or smiling based on what I'm reading. Please tell me I'm not alone - he thinks I'm crazy!

92. The Husband

After reading Odd Thomas I was looking forward to reading another 'Odd' book. However, they were all checked out at the library. I figured if I enjoyed Odd, perhaps I'd enjoy another Koontz book. Well...it wasn't terrible. But it wasn't great. It definitely didn't captivate me and wrap me up in the characters.

Ask my husband, I have a way of getting VERY wrapped up in a book. It never surprises Pat to walk into a room and see me sobbing my eyes out over a good book.

I'm not giving up on Koontz! I do want to finish the Odd series and at the rate I've been reading lately it won't be long!

92. One more book

This book was recommended to me by a friend on a message board and I am so so so glad that she did. Firefly Lane is a wonderful story of a life-long friendship with all the ups and downs that so often happen. I am really looking forward to reading more by Kristin Hannah.

I have a few other blog posts that are over-due, but I hope to get to them this weekend (provided I find my misplaced camera).

92. Two more books finished.

Many years ago I had read Back When We Were Grownups by Anne Tyler. I really loved that book, but I had never read anything else by her. Sadly I actually didn't realize she had written so many books!

The Tin Can Tree is Tyler's second book, written in 1965. It's a little hard to relate to in today's time, but it's a story of family life after the tragic loss of a child. This was a very nice story, although it didn't captivate me as I had hoped.

When I was a teenager I loved reading scary, mystery, horror type novels. However, as an adult I haven't read many from that genre. Maybe it's because I don't have the active imagination I once I had or maybe it was all those years living alone I didn't want to scare myself silly!

As I wandered around the Windham Public Library though I found myself standing in front of Dean Koontz's many, many books. I remember reading a few years ago so I decided to give him a try again.

I was pleasantly surprised by Odd Thomas. This book is about a young man named 'Odd' that has a special gift of seeing dead people...but not in a 'Sixth Sense' type of way. This was the strange story that I had been hoping for and I found myself really enjoying this book. In fact, there are other Odd Thomas books and I plan on reading those as well.

92. Salem Falls

I hesitate to say that I didn't like this book...because I did. But it definitely did not live up to her other books in any way. It did fit her typical writing pattern, and it is well written. It just seemed too predictable for me right from the start. I don't want to give anything away, so it's hard to do it justice. Lets just say for a tuned-in reader there are a couple of clues along the way that make the ending too predictable.

All in all, it was a good book, it just wasn't up to par with her others.

I think it's time for a break away from Jodi Picoult books though. I find when I read them back-to-back I get a little bored with them (but she's still one of my favorite authors). Do I sound like a walking contradiction?

92. Another book down

At the library on Saturday I found myself wandering around without a plan. This usually isn't a good thing for me because I'm not very creative with my book choices.

Case in point...last week I read Jodi Picoult and Anita Diamant. What did I check out this week? Another book from each author.

What a wonderful book this is! I haven't had a book suck me in like this in a long time. I started reading it last night and I finished it this afternoon. Such a wonderful story of friendship and being a woman.

This is a story of friendship, motherhood, being a wife, love and loss. It's just wonderful and I'd recommend this to any woman!

92. Two books down!

I have read quite a few of Jodi Picoult's books and I'm generally a huge fan. However, her books have a predictable pattern. I'm not saying that's a bad thing, it's just you know there's going to be some sort of unexpected twist at the end.

That being said, I did enjoy this book. As I do all of her books. It wasn't my favorite of hers (I think The Pact holds that honor), but still I enjoyed it. It's about a school shooting in a small town in New Hampshire and the aftermath. Very moving and thought provoking, which is one thing I love about her books.

I always recommend Jodi Picoult's books very highly.

The Red Tent was actually recommended to me by my boss and I was skeptical. However, it turned out to be a very enjoyable read and one that I would never have picked up on my own.

This is a historical novel of Dinah, the only daughter of Leah and Jacob in the Bible. This is the woman's perspective of that time and a story that hasn't been told. While we don't know how it "really" was, this book paints a believable picture.

I would recommend this book to anyone interested in historical fiction.