Book Challenge: December 2005 - Page 4

[broodymama]

#108, 109, 110, 111 & 112 for LB

"The Highwayman's Daughter" by Anne Avery

A re-read from my bookshelf.

"The Bride Thief" by Jacquie D'Alessandro

Another fluffy one from my bookshelf.

"Girls in Pants: The Third Summer of the Sisterhood" by Ann Brashares

This has already been reviewed so I won't do it again. A light, enjoyable read!

"Eleven On Top" by Janet Evanovich

from Amazon:

Stephanie Plum, Trenton's favorite bondswoman, is having a career crisis, which gives Janet Evanovich plenty of opportunities to showcase her series heroine in a variety of alternative vocations, from dry cleaner to factory worker. Most of them don't last a full working day, which is good for the reader, since it plunges Stephanie back into the always seedy, often dangerous, and always colorful world of fugitives who'd rather flee than face their day in court. She may be tired of having her life threatened, her cars torched or blown up, and her apartment broken into, but one thing she can say about her job is that it's never boring... and neither is she. Despite her intentions of going straight at a job with a little more security and a bit less excitement, an old client won't let her--he keeps leaving her threatening notes, stalking and scaring her, and making sure she needs the protection of the two men in her life--Joe Morelli, the sexy cop who's been bedding her since high school, and Ranger, the even sexier tough guy who can take down the meanest fugitive around but has a tender spot in his heart for the plucky Ms. Plum. All Evanovich fans' favorite characters people this sprightly caper novel, including Lula, the fast-food-chomping former hooker who's hot to take over Stephanie's job but really belongs in a WWE Takedown; Grandma Mazur, who'd rather go to a wake than a fancy-dress ball; Grandma Bella, the matriarch of the Corelli family whose evil eye frightens even the indomitable Stephanie; and Valerie, Stephanie's sister, who's about to embark on another trip to the altar.

I love her novels! Plus it doesn't hurt that Ranger reminds me of an ex-boyfriend.

"Immaculate Deception II: Myth, Magic and Birth" by Suzanne Arms

An outstanding read! The descriptions of some of the "routine" birth practices and procedures in this book just make me cringe and vow to stay far, far away from the hospital with this next birth. Of course, she is preaching to the choir, so to speak.

This latest batch of books from the library was supposed to last me through the end of the year but I don't see that happening. I picked them up yesterday and have already read three so I guess I better hit the library's website and pick out some more.

[snozzberry]

#29 Life of Pi by Yann Martel -- I loved the main character in this book -- he made me chuckle to myself many a time while reading. Being vegetarian myself, I have to admit that I skimmed certain sections in the middle of the book (you'll see what I mean if you read it), but otherwise I loved every bit of it.

I do think that those who are more into religion will get more out of this than I did, but even if you don't consider yourself religious in any way, it's an interesting adventure story.

Hmm...can I make it to a nice round 30 before the year's up?

[kofduke]

#45 Courting Trouble, Lisa Scottoline

New York Times bestseller Scottoline's cast of beautiful female lawyers at Philadelphia's Rosato & Associates is augmented by red-headed bombshell Anne Murphy, a woman with a secret past, who's trying to make a go of it in a new city. An intriguing character jammed into a laborious plot, Murphy toils as a career-minded loner. On a much-needed weekend away from her heavy caseload, she picks up a newspaper to read that she has been murdered by an intruder who blasted her in the face with a shotgun. Murphy knows the real victim was the woman who had agreed to feed her cat; she also knows that the murderer was likely Kevin Satorno, the stalker who nearly killed her a year earlier while she was living in Los Angeles. Murphy figures that if Satorno discovers he actually killed the wrong person, he'll continue hunting her, so she decides to play dead and enlist the help of her new colleagues at Rosato & Associates to track him down. Scottoline (The Vendetta Defense; Moment of Truth) wraps up the far-fetched action in high style, with a few predictable twists, at Philly's big outdoor Fourth of July celebration. As in her eight previous women-in-peril legal thrillers, she tempers the plot's bloodshed with a bouncy tone that some readers may find cloying. But this doesn't bother the former lawyer's growing base of fans she's now translated into 25 languages and despite Murphy's occasional "you go, girl" silliness, she's the best character Scottoline has created in a while.

#1 - Living History, #2 - Law of Invisible Things, #3 - TIme Traveler's Wife, #4 - Street Dreams, #5 - Digital Fortress, #6 - Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norell, #7 - Rosemary's Baby, #8 - Shadow of the Wind, #9 - Stepford Wives, #10 - Knitting for Dummies, #11 - The Man in my Basement, #12 - My Sister's Keeper, #13 - The Eyre Affair, #14 - Ruby in the Smoke, #15 - Pregnancy, Childbirth and the Newborn, #16 - The Birth Partner, #17 - Birthing from Within, #18 - Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time, #19 - Secret Life of Bees, #20 - Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, #21 - Dreams from my Father, #22 - Shadow in the North, #23 - Deception Point, #24 Deadly Slipper, #25 - Conspiracy Club, #26 - Past the Bleachers, #27 - Codex, #28 - The Eight, #29 - Appraisal Techniques for Counselors, #30 - Lost in a Good Book, #31 - Introduction to Counseling: An Art and Science Perspective, #32 - The Grand Complication, #33 - The Well of Lost Plots, #34 - Something Rotten, #35 - Spiritual Midwifery, #36 - Handbook of School Counseling, #37 Olivia Joules and the Overactive Imagination, #38 - Operating Instructions, #39 - Twisted, #40 - Footprints of God, #41 - Dogs of Babel, #42 - Caring for the Caretaker, #43 - Pledged, #44 - Therapy, #45 - Courting Trouble

[Alkenny]

#150 The Last Days of Dogtown by Anita Diamant

Set on Cape Ann in the early 1800s, The Last Days of Dogtown is peopled by widows, orphans, spinsters, scoundrels, whores, free Africans, and "witches." Nearly a decade ago, Diamant found an account of an abandoned rural backwater near the Massachusetts coastline at the turn of the nineteenth century. That pamphlet inspired a stunning novel about a small group of eccentrics and misfits, struggling in a harsh, isolated landscape only fifty miles north of Boston, yet a world away.

Among the inhabitants of Dogtown are Black Ruth, an African woman who dresses as a man and works as a stone mason; Mrs. Stanley, an imperious madam whose grandson, Sammy, comes of age in her rural brothel; Oliver Younger, who survives a miserable childhood at the hands of a very strange aunt; and Cornelius Finson, a freed slave whose race denies him everything. At the center of it all is Judy Rhines, a fiercely independent soul, deeply lonely, who nonetheless builds a life for herself and inspires those around her to become more generous and tolerant themselves.

Quick read for me. Not bad, but missing "something".

#151 Christ the Lord: Out of Egypt by Anne Rice

Having completed the two cycles of legend to which she has devoted her career so far, Anne Rice gives us now her most ambitious and courageous book, a novel about the early years of CHRIST THE LORD, based on the Gospels and on the most respected New Testament scholarship.

I can't believe I read the whole thing. I have to say that it being ANNE RICE, and this being a total turnaround for her, it had me intrigued. The writing was shoddy though, half of it was short little choppy sentences a 7 year old could have written. Others were run on sentences. Anne, where's your proofreader?

[cathe]

#149 Radio Live! Television Live! by Robert L. Mott

Well, I finally found a book I could get through. Robert Mott was a sound effects man live radio and TV and tells a lot of funny stories about Captain Kangaroo, Carol Brunett Show, and others. He also wrote comedy sketches for Dick Van Dyke and Red Skelton. The book is a mixture of history of radio and TV and anecdotes.

[Alkenny]

#152 Fantasy Encyclopedia by Jonathon Stroud

With a foreword by the award-winning fantasy author Jonathan Stroud, and
illustration by some of the world"s best illustrators including John Howe, the
Fantasy Encyclopedia is a spectacular one-stop guide to the creatures and people of folklore and fantasy. From goblins and fairies to dragons and Dracula, this encyclopedia covers them all with sparkling, readable text and stunning illustrations. Discover how the magic of stories throughout the centuries has kept these creatures alive in traditions and cultures around the world. Using a highly visual approach, featuring more than 400 photographs and illustrations, this book will introduce readers to each fantasy character within its habitat and genre. Cross-reference boxes direct readers to popular books and movies starring these fantastical creatures. This is a must-have for any fantasy enthusiast!

My DS and I read through this yesterday. Very interesting and great illustrations!

[cathe]

#150 Beasts of No Nation by Uzodinma Iweala

Wow! What a moving (though disturbing) book about a boy forced to become a soldier in West Africa. The voice and language were amazing. The author is a young (just in his early 20's) - he is extremely talented to be writing so well at such a young age. I will be looking for more from him, that's for sure.

#151 The PETA Celebrity Cookbook edited by Ingrid E. Newkirk

I am review this for VegFamily so read the whole thing thru. It's a fun books with pictures and quotes from a bunch of celebrities as well as some interesting recipes and lots of stats about the benefits of a vegan diet.

[Hollysmom]

#35 Puppet by Joy Fielding

From the Publisher
In this new page-turner by New York Times bestselling author Joy Fielding, the life of a beautiful young defense attorney is thrown into turmoil when she is called back to her hometown to defend her disturbed, estranged mother, who publically shot and killed a man.

High-powered, twenty-eight-year-old defense attorney Amanda Travis likes several things: the colour black, lunchtime Spinning classes at the fitness centre on Clematis Street in downtown Palm Beach; her all-white one-bedroom, oceanfront condo; a compliant jury; men whose wives don’t understand them.

Some of the things she doesn’t: the colour pink; when the temperature outside her condo’s floor-to-ceiling windows falls below sixty-five degrees; clients who don’t follow her advice; being asked to show I.D. when she goes to a bar; nicknames of any shape or size.

Something else Amanda Travis doesn’t like: memories.

But when Ben, the first of her two ex-husbands, calls from her hometown of Toronto with the alarming news that her mother has shot and killed a man in the lobby of the Four Seasons Hotel, it becomes more and more difficult for Amanda to continue running from her past. Now she must return to face her demons and the life she left behind — a love that once consumed her and a mother who holds a strange, dark power over everyone she encounters. “Puppet” is the nickname Amanda’s mother once called her. But now Amanda is determined to fight her mother’s fatal whims — even if it kills her.

A quick easy read. Well I guess that is it for me for this year. I think I'll just keep going from here and try for a total of 100 by the end of 2006

[broodymama]

#113 & 114 for LB

"Spiritual Midwifery" by Ina May Gaskins


"Love and the Single Heiress" by Jacquie D'Alessandro

This will probably be my last entry for this year, can't wait until the 2006 thread starts!

[Alkenny]

#153 Heaven by Randy Alcorn

We all have questions about what heaven will be like. Randy Alcorn helps answer some of these questions by sharing his extensive research on the topic--all from a biblical perspective. His writing will surprise readers and stretch their thinking beyond anything they've imagined heaven to be like. And Heaven will help readers strive for eternity while they're living on earth.

Eh...3 parts to this book, the second part being the most interesting. Of course, it is all opinion and interpretation, but I came away with a couple of things that made sense to me.

[grumo]

#35 The Penelopiad

I am pretty big Margaret Atwood fan, so this was an enjoyable read for me. Certainly not her best work but quick and mostly light. It tells the story of faithful Penelope who waits for 20 years for Odysseus to return. She tells her story from Hades during modern times.

[grumo]

I started a thread to post summaries with up down recommendation if others are so inclined.
2005 Book Challenge Summaries