2007

The Echo Maker

2007, Fiction /

Sheesh, what a longgggg book. It was only 450 pages but they were longggggggg pages. Dense pages. I skimmed in places. I admit it. The Echo Maker was interesting, it was just long. But I said that, didn’t I?


A guy gets into a car accident. A bad one. Head trauma. He wakes up, slowly starts to recover. But he doesn’t recognize his sister – the only living relative he has – the person closest to him. He says she looks very much like his sister and yes she knows all sorts of things his sister would know but she’s an imposter.


So there’s this dramaaaaaa over him not knowing who she is. On top of the drama that goes along with recovering from a severe head injury. There’s also drama related to the migrating birds and big business doing what big business always does to birds. Also drama related to dysfunctional parents. And on top if it all, we get drama from the mystery surrounding the accident. Just how did it happen? And who left this mysterious note next to his bed on the night of the accident. Drama! Intrigue! But really, err not so much. Obvious, duh.


The superstar neurology guy is interesting. Until the author has him do dumb stuff at the end. Unnecessary. The brain isn’t that complicated or stupid, I could have done without all of that.

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Lullaby

1 Comment / 2007, Favorites, Fiction /

I’m sooo glad I put Lullaby back on my library reserve list. I had checked it out last summer but never got around to reading it. I put it back on the reserve list because Michelle wanted to read it. She still hasn’t had a chance, but I made time for it and I’m very glad.


Much better than Fight Club or Diary. Great idea for a story. Just imagine a culling song and what you might do with it. Because you KNOW you would do something with it.

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The Thirteenth Tale

2 Comments / 2007, A to Z Challenge, Books in Bed, Favorites, Fiction, Mystery /

There are some books that just should not end. The Thirteen Tale is that kind of book.


For some reason I had it in my head that this was a young adult book. When I picked it up to actually read it and saw that it wasn’t, I was surprised. While I think Michelle would like it, this is definitely not a young adult book. Sort of Flowers in the Attic meets Poppy Z Brite meets someone else who escapes me at the moment, lol.


Really terrific book. One I’d be happy to read again someday.

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A to Z Challenge

6 Comments / 2007, A to Z Challenge, Books in Bed /

I’m thinking about giving the A to Z Challenge a go in the New Year. But before I commit, I want a list of possible reads to start with. So far, the only thing on the list is the letter “V”. Heh. I’m going to start creating the list now and we’ll see what it looks like on January 1. Any letter “X” suggestions? *Updated 2/8/7*

A – A Town Like Alice – completed 1/27/8
B – Breadfruit completed 3/24/7
C – Choke – completed 2/8/7
D – Dark Angels – completed 1/14/07
E – Endymion Spring – completed 12/11/7
F – Forever in Blue completed 2/22/07
G – Garbage Land completed 2/03/07
H – Holy Cow completed 3/8/07
I – I Have a Bed of Buttermilk Pancakes completed 12/8/07
J – Just in Case Completed 11/22/7
K – King Dork (thanks sassymonkey) Completed 1/10/8
L – Lisey’s Story Completed 3/3/7
M – Miss Garnet’s Angel Completed 2/24/7
N – Nature Girl – Completed 12/23/7
O – On Becoming Fearless – completed 12/9/7
P – Pink Ribbons Inc – completed 1/7/7
Q – The Queen of Cool – completed 11/23/7
R – Rejuvenile – Completed 11/27/7
S – Sweet Swan of Avon – completed 12/13/7
T – The Thirteenth Tale – completed 1/19/7
U – Upstate – completed 12/16/7
V – Vilette (Bronte) – completed 12/2/7
W – Water for Elephants – completed 3/17/07
X – X stands for Unknown (Thanks toFramed and Booked!) – completed 12/31/7
Y – The Year the Gypsies Came – completed 10/31/7
Z – Zoia’s Gold -completed 5/2/7

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Fly By Night

1 Comment / 2007, Children's Literature, Fiction, Sci Fi and Fantasy /

Fly By Night feels a lot like an Edge Chronicle book but it’s a little too rambling in places. I found myself falling asleep or skimming in far too many areas and I’m betting kids are going to lose interest even more quickly than I did – unless they are patient with books or good at skimming in order to get to the good stuff.


I liked the characters. I liked the premise. I just wish it wasn’t quite so rambling, particularly at the end when the author was trying to tie it all up.


Not great but not bad either.

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The Privilege of the Sword

2007, Fiction /

The Privilege of the Sword was stocked as fantasy but I’m not sure what makes it fantasy. There was no magic or witchcraft or time travel or anything like that. TW says it was fantasy because the story wasn’t set in a “real place” or in a “real time”. But it didn’t feel like a fantasy world to me. Whatever.


A gender bending swordsman story with some gay sex tossed in for good measure. Men ruled the world. Women knew their place or faced disgrace and wanted nothing more than to make good marriages. Fun story, if you don’t mind gay sex or gender bending swordplay. Which I don’t, so this was fun. Fun enough that I’m thinking of reserving the other two books by Ellen Kushner the that share some characters and some settings.

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Dairy Queen

1 Comment / 2007, Children's Literature, Fiction, GLBT /

Dairy Queen was a fun little young adult book. About cows! And girls playing football! And figuring out your place in the world, in your family, in your relationships. Who knew a 250 page book set on a dairy farm in Wisconsin could touch on so many themes?



Dysfunctional family but only mildly so. Lesbians in high school, who knew?! Farm girl falls for popular boy, popular boy falls for farm girl but that sort of thing never works out in high school so everyone gets hurt and of course it is farm girl’s fault for being – awesome. Girls should not be so awesome, it makes popular boys uncomfortable. Bah.


I liked it. I would have liked the last few chapters to be a little different but that’s probably just me.

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Dark Angels

2 Comments / 2007, A to Z Challenge, Books in Bed, Fiction /

Dark Angels is the second book I’ve read from my A to Z list and if they all take as long as this one to read, I may not make it. Dark Angels was longggggg. Also, I’m not sure I read Through a Glass Darkly. I thought I had, but while reading Dark Angels, I began to question that.


As much historical fiction as I’ve read in my life, this didn’t seem like it could be related (aka a prequel) to anything I’ve read before. In some respects, it reads like all historical fiction from that era. In others, it’s completely different.


I liked it. Even if it was really long.

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Dear Stranger, Dearest Friend

1 Comment / 2007, Chick Lit, Fiction /

What a sappy title!  With a different title, I’d have liked Dear Stranger, Dearest Friend a lot more.  Also, with a few odd internet friendship stories tossed in as background, it would have been more realistic. 

Yes, you can find amazing friends and wonderful support online when you’ve been diagnosed with breast cancer.  But with every wonderful online support group comes a nutcase or two.  That is reality.  Granted this story stuck to the email correspondence between two women and in 2000 when it was written, I suppose that makes some sense – though to never read your bulletin board list again, well that seems inaccurate.  Anyway.  I liked it well enough.  It wasn’t too mushy.  There was the predictable happy but sad ending.  And some gripes about the idea of preventing breast cancer when obviously we’re just suppose to want to cure it, (which is my very own pet peeve.)

Looking for a breast cancer feel ok chick lit novel, then this will do. 

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Pink Ribbons, Inc

2007, A to Z Challenge, Books in Bed, Favorites, Non-Fiction /

I am not a fan of the Pink Ribbon or any other breast cancer campaign. Pink Ribbons, Inc just reaffirmed everything I feel about these campaigns and the people behind them. And the people who buy into them… do yourselves and the people diagnosed with these illnesses a favor and read the book. Your money is better spent elsewhere. Quit buying Pink Ribbons. Quit buying Live Strong bracelets. Write to these companies and tell them to lay off with these types of marketing campaigns. Tell your politicians you see through them and expect better.

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