March 2010 Book Challenge - Page 5

[kbond]

#17 Manhood for Amateurs by Michael Chabon
This is a collection of short essays by Chabon that ruminate on masculinity, fatherhood, and being a son. All of the essays were great, and I loved this book. I imagine, if I were a man, I might have gotten more out of it, but I still enjoyed it even as a woman.

#18 Battle for the Labryinth (Percy Jackson #4) by Rick Riordan
Percy Jackson is growing up. Enjoyable read, very quick.

[Bufomander]

Originally Posted by snozzberry

fwiw, I enjoyed Life As We Knew It but didn't like The Dead and the Gone. I thought the characters were flat, the dialogue was wooden, the emotions were told not shown, etc. Maybe I was just in a bad mood when I read it, but I gave it only half a star!

This makes sense...

#67 How to Breathe Underwater by Julie Orringer
A recent read of Fremontmama's. Short stories. One of the things I appreciated was that many/most of the stories were written from the POV of a child -- I find they are good reminders for me -- partially of how powerful adults are/seem to young children and how they can perceive events differently than adults...

#68 A Matter of Justice by Charles Todd
I've almost finished with this historical mystery series that takes place immediately after WWI in England -- well, almost finished with the ones that are published, that is. I continue to be struck by the enormity of that war as far as how many people were involved and how many people were killed. (which I realize is a somewhat obvious thing to say)

#69 The Dulcimer Boy by Tor Seidler, illustrated by Brian Selznick
a lovely novella for children. beautiful illustrations. two brothers are left at the doorstep of their nasty aunt and uncle -- yeah, yeah, I know it's formulaic, but what about the dulcimer? that's novel, right?

[cathe]

The Canning Season by Polly Horvath

This was kind of a weird book that is suprisingly (at least to me) a National Book Award winner. It's supposed to be a humourous children's novel but it's about a girl sent away by her uncaring mother to live with her elderly great-aunts--one of which is an alcoholic and both of which are having heart trouble. The place is overrun by bears and jokes are made about suicide, people being eaten by bears, unmarried pregnancy, underage driving, and kids being called f---'s. I'm no prude, but all of this did not seem funny to me, nor did it seem particulary appropriate in a children's book. In addition, most of the story was about the aunt's backstories, which made the book not very compelling. I wish I hadn't wasted my money on this one.

[cathe]

White Cat by Holly Black

This is the first in a new teen series by Black. Everyone in Cassel's family is a "worker" except him . . . and it makes him feel left out and different. That and the fact that he murdered his best friend. But things aren't always what the seem--a white cat in his dreams seems to be trying to tell him something and Cassel's brothers are behaving strangely.

[mammastar2]

#19 - Double Crossed: Uncovering the Catholic Church's Betrayal of American Nuns by Kenneth Briggs

Briggs starts by setting up the world of American nuns prior to the Vatican II Council held in the early 1960s - nuns generally lived communally, prayed communally, wore habits, and owed complete obedience to superiors. Vatican II opened up the potential for changes, seemingly inviting nuns to re-visit the purpose and history of their orders, while engaging more with the world and striving towards personal holiness. It also dovetailed with some pre-Vatican II developments among American nuns, many of whom had become interested in improving nuns' education and their ability to exercise individual decision-making. Thus, nuns increasingly moved away from wearing habits and communal living, towards working in social justice ministries and being guided by their own consciences. In doing so, they have run up against the conservative Church hierarchy.

This was a very interesting read for me, as I know very little about recent Roman Catholic history. I did find Briggs to be fairly repetitive from chapter to chapter, and the title didn't really seem to fit the book, as his point is much more nuanced - but I'm glad I read it.

[NewCrunchyDaddy]

#12 Still Life: Adventures in Taxidermy
by Melissa Milgrom

My review can be found HERE

#1 Tales from Outer Suburbia, #2 The Men Who Stare at Goats, #3 Under the Dome (Audio), #4 Benito Cereno, #5 Doctor Who: The Rising Night, An Exclusive Audio Adventure (Audio), #6 UR (Audio), #7 Pride and Prejudice and Zombies: Dawn of the Dreadfuls, #8 Shutter Island (Audio), #9 Watchmen, #10 The Darwin Awards II: Unnatural Selection (Audio), #11 Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter, #12 Still Life: Adventures in Taxidermy

[NewCrunchyDaddy]

April's Thread is ready (or is it?)

http://www.mothering.com/discussions...php?p=15249136