By the Great Horn Spoon!

Just finished this fast little read. A friend recommended it to me during a discussion on books so I figured I'd give it a try. When I recommend books I usually hope people will take me seriously and so I try to take others' recommendations seriously in return.

Let me start with the cover art. I don't love it. I wish the cover art had been more similar to the whimsical art within the chapters.

The story is about a boy named Jack and his butler that set sail from Boston to the gold fields of California to make enough money to save Aunt Arabella's house. I like the quick pacing of the novel and the little stories that make up the larger narrative.

The way the author tells the story reminds me of Half Magic (which I highly recommend along with pretty much anything else by Edward Eager). The words and descriptions are simple and child-like in their quality (which I'm considering a good thing in this case).

After chapter one (which is quite short) I already had a genuine affection for the characters and wanted to keep reading. This isn't normally the kind of story I'd pick for myself or the type of thing I find myself interested in, but it was a good book. Give it a try, it won't take you long to read and it's worth the time.

Anna and the French Kiss

First, a disclaimer. This book was not NEAR as cheesy as the title would suggest.

I really liked this book. It was a light kind of fluffy high school read about a girl who goes away to study at an American school in Paris. Three things stood out to me about this story.

1. The story was really fun and felt realistic until the girl realizes consciously that she's in love with the boy. Then there's this awkward Twilight-esque effusion of feeling and emotion and awkwardness and cheesiness. Don't love it.

2. While Anna's telling the story she talks about her father who is a popular southern author. He writes stories in a very formulaic way that are usually tragic and involve cancer and romance. Anna considers him a sell-out. The most amusing part to me is how much she's obviously making fun of someone who writes this way in real life. Can you guess who it is? Who always writes stories with no happy endings and usually cancer as a tragic life-ruiner? You are right! It's Nicholas Sparks! Don't get me wrong, I appreciate a Nicholas Sparks book every once in awhile. I sometimes like to cry when I read books and I appreciate stories that are simple to understand (life is hard, my reading enjoyment time doesn't always need to be difficult as well) at times. However, all of his books are nearly identical. I simply enjoy the way that this author pokes a little good-natured fun at good old Mr. Sparks.

3. The way the author deals with the feeling of being away from home for the first time long term and the subsequent stress and inherent difference in surroundings when returning home is quite accurate. It's just never the same when you go home after having been away on your own. I can definitely relate.

Give it a try. I recommend it.

Distant Waves

I have been visiting my older sister and her family in California and we made a trip to the library. While I was there, we picked up some books at the book sale. I grabbed a few, one being Distant Waves. I decided to read it this week. It was okay, but was not what I expected. Although the Titanic was an underlining theme, it was not really in it until the end, when the novel said it was all about it. The beginning was weird, but it did grow on me at the end. The ending was not predictable but a little cheesy. Basically, it involved five sisters and their different personalities and lives, all ending up on the Titanic. Good and easy read, but not the best.

Jane Eyre

There are two things I wanna talk about in this post. One is the actual book, Jane Eyre. I grabbed this book before I went on vacation mostly because it was small and wouldn't take up much room or be very heavy. I didn't really get into it until the way home from vacation and then my reading was kind of slow because my family was in town for graduation and all that jazz.

Ok, so the book. It was great. I was kind of wary at first because this was obviously more dense fiction than what I've been reading with mostly young adult literature. Secondly, really the only literature from this period I've read have been by Jane Austen (with the exception of Tess of the D'Urbervilles *shudder*). I love love loved this story. I found it easier to get into and faster moving than both Pride and Prejudice and Sense and Sensibility. Some aspects to this story were very surprising and some were expected as I went through, but I thought the balance was great. One thing I especially loved was the way the fourth wall was broken, though not constantly. I like being acknowledged as I read. The way Jane (who narrates the story) addresses the reader periodically and sometimes goes off on tangents makes her feel like a real person.

I do want to admit that sometimes the stereotypes used (about women, poor people, etc.) rubbed me the wrong way, but that is probably a product of the time period.

Ok, next. The edition pictured above is the one I read. I have three of these "Gramercy Classics Miniatures" that I picked up for two bucks each at a book sale. They are fantastic. I already mentioned the small size (about the size of my hand), the covers are lovely, and there's a ribbon bookmark attached. I find the size of these books and their durable hard covers to be fantastic. I just wish there were more stories available (I have Wuthering Heights (never read), Pride and Prejudice, and Jane Eyre). I know they also make Great Expectations, but I don't like Dickens. There, I said it. If you ever see these books for a good price, pick them up. They're fantastic.

Also, read Jane Eyre.

Amazon kindle

I have always been hesitant about the kindles and nooks. I think they are a great idea, but I did not want to lose the experience of opening a book, turning the pages, etc. However, my siblings got me a kindle for graduation, and after playing around with it I really like it. The kindle is really easy to read off of, it is so convenient when you are traveling, and it is easy to get almost any book you want instantly. Classics are free and it has been really convenient to have. Although I will never give up actually getting a book, I like it! Thanks to my siblings! What do you guys think of them?

cozy book nook

i would like to have this in my house.

link.

The Thief Lord

I'm sorry it took me so long to blog this. I finished it before vacation, but vacation was just too much about relaxing for me to focus on blogging.

Some of my kids in my fourth grade class were reading this for their book club book and my mentor teacher recommended I read it too. I was in the middle of some other books (see previous posts) so I didn't get to it right away. Once I did start I enjoyed the book for the most part. It moved along quite well with interesting characters. Basic plot outline: There are a group of kids living in Venice, Italy on their own (most of them runaways) that follow a character that calls himself the Thief Lord. The children steal in order to keep themselves fed and clothed and take are of each other. Problems start to arise when a private detective is hired to find two of the runaways. Overall it was a good book, but there were two things I didn't really love. One, I found many of the plot wrap ups to be very predictable from the beginning of the book. Two, I felt like the book switched genres mid-way through in a very deus ex machina way. I'll let you figure that out for yourselves if you choose to read it.