Top Ten Books That Taught Me Something

With school back in session, I have a little more time to write, so I wanted to get back to my Ten for Tuesdays feature, with my Top Ten Books That Taught Me Something.

These are books that educated while they entertained, books that introduced me to new ideas, new people, and new places. These are the books that taught me something about the world, made me think, and changed my outlook in some way. It wasn’t very hard to make this list (though I did have to trim it down to 10) because all of these books left a lasting impression on me in some way. In no particular order, here are those life-changing books with a brief note of their subject (and links to reviews where available):

• The Anatomy of Hope by Dr. Jerome Groopman (hope in the face of chronic illness; this book did literally change my life)
• The Kite Runner and A Thousand Splendid Suns by Khaled Hosseini (Afghanistan and muslims)
• Three Cups of Tea by Greg Mortenson (building schools in Pakistan and Afghanistan)
• Three Little Words by Ashley Rhodes-Courter (foster care)
• Nineteen Minutes by Jodi Picoult (school shooting)
• Infidel by Ayaan Hirsi Ali (middle east and Africa, muslim women)
• An Innocent Man by John Grisham (death penalty)
• Waiting for Snow in Havana by Carlos Eire (Cuba’s revolution)
• The House at Sugar Beach by Helene Cooper (Liberia, Africa)
• Jantzen’s Gift by Pam Cope (children in Vietnam, Cambodia, Ghana)

How about you? What books have taught you, inspired you, and changed your perceptions?

It’s Monday 8/31! What Are You Reading?

We had a wonderful last week of summer, packed full of fun and friends. My 11-year old son starts back to school this morning, and his 15-year old brother goes back on Wednesday. And for me, it’s back to work! I hardly got any writing done at all this summer, so it’s time to catch up. Meanwhile, it was another good reading week:

• I finished On the Road by Jack Kerouac and will post a review this week.
• I couldn’t wait any longer and asked my son if he minded if I read The Prophet of Yonwood (book 3 in the Book of Ember) before he did, after we gave it to him for his birthday last week. It turned out to be a prequel to the first book and just as good as the first two. I'll review it this week at Great Books for Kids and Teens.
  
• I started People of the Book by Geraldine Brooks for one of my book groups. It’s been on my want-to-read list for awhile, and so far I’m enjoying it very much. I loved her novel, March, also read for the same book group.

Last week, I posted a review of Julie & Julia at this blog and a review of a wonderful middle-grade audio book, Freaky Monday, at Great Books for Kids and Teens.

So, what are YOU reading this week?

(What are you reading Monday is sponsored by J. Kaye's Book Blog).

Memoir Review: Julie & Julia

I’ve been fascinated by Julie & Julia ever since I first heard about it (before it also became a hit movie starring Meryl Streep and Amy Adams). After all, this story combines two of my passions – cooking and blogging. In case you’ve been living in a cave this past month and somehow missed the movie ads shown on TV every 10 minutes, Julie & Julia is a memoir by Julie Powell, a self-described “government drone by day, renegade foodie by night.”

Feeling trapped in a dull job and anxious about her quickly approaching 30th birthday, Julie decided to cook her way through Julia Child’s first cookbook, Mastering the Art of French Cooking (referred to by Julie as MtAoFC), in a year within the confines of her tiny NY-area kitchen and blog about the experience. Here, the glimmer of this idea begins to form during a visit to her mother’s house:

Oh, God. It really was true, wasn’t it? I really was a secretary.

When I looked up from MtAoFC for the first time, half an hour after I opened it, I realized that deep down, I’d been resigned to being a secretary for months – maybe even years.

That was the bad news. The good news was that the buzzing in my head and queasy but somehow exhilarating squeeze deep in my belly were reminding me that I might still, after all, be something else.

Do you know Mastering the Art of French Cooking? You must, at least, know of it – it’s a cultural landmark, for Pete’s sake. Even if you just think of it as the book by that lady who looks like Dan Aykroyd and bleeds a lot, you know of it. But do you know the book itself? Try to get your hands on one of the early hardback editions – they’re not exactly rare. For awhile there, every American housewife who could boil water had a copy, or so I’ve heard.

I enjoyed Powell’s honest writing style and sense of humor as she examined her life and set out to accomplish her unusual goal. Be warned, though, if you’re easily offended, that she can swear like a sailor and takes pleasure in bashing the Republicans that she works with. I found those passages some of her most amusing but not everyone shares that sense of humor.

I did occasionally find Powell a bit whiney, but I enjoyed her memoir overall. Her cooking escapades were both interesting and amusing, though I can’t say I really identified with her passion for MtAoFC. I love to cook and understood why she set out on this venture but just didn’t get the appeal of making things like cold poached eggs in aspic, sweetbreads, and liver (something Powell is passionate about). To me, this particular cookbook is outdated. But to each her own. I admire what Powell set out to do and was entertained by her tale.

As a fellow blogger, I was also fascinated by the story of the book itself. When Powell embarked on this project, she didn’t even know what a blog was. She started her blog at her husband’s suggestion to keep her family and friends informed about her cooking project, but her blog took on a life of its own, with a rapidly growing and passionate audience. Out of the blue, magazines, newspapers, and TV news started calling her to cover her story, and she eventually got a book deal that turned into a hit movie. It’s an amazing story, and, ultimately, undertaking this project ended up changing Powell’s life dramatically. I was curious enough to look for and read her original Julie/Julia Project blog and found an article about her path from blogger to best-selling writer very interesting. And, if you're interested, you can also follow Powell's current blog, post-best-selling author. I’m looking forward to seeing the movie!

P.S. If you’ve read Julie & Julia, Barney’s Book Blog will be hosting a book discussion of it this Sunday, August 30. Stop by and join in!

It's Monday 8/24! What Are You Reading?

Hello! We took a mini vacation last week, so I haven't posted in awhile, but I've been reading some good books!

• After watching the movie The City of Ember, I was inspired to finally read the middle-grade books my son had been recommending. I loved The City of Ember by Jeanne Duprau and quickly devoured book 2, The People of Sparks. In a fit of selfishness disguised as generosity, I bought my son book 3, The Prophet of Yonwood, for his birthday last week! Do I have to wait for him to read it first?
• Since we were heading off on another summer road trip (a short one this time), I decided to read Jack Kerouac's 1955 road trip classic, On the Road. I'm almost finished and have enjoyed it, though it's very different from the contemporary books I normally read.
• In the car, we listened to the start of a wonderful new kids' series, Eric Rex: the Dragon's Eye by Kaza Kingsley. It's about a boy suddenly thrust into a magical world, and we all loved it. Even after arriving home, the kids wanted to start listening to the second book.

In the category of books made into movies...

• We watched the movie version of Inkheart, a favorite family book. The movie was very well-done, and my 15-year old son Jamie says that the next books in the series, Inkspell and Inkdeath are even better! So many good books to read and so little time...
• My husband and I watched The Nanny Diaries, which is also based on a book. I haven't read the book, but the movie was pretty good.

Last week, I posted reviews of Benny & Shrimp, a Swedish love story of opposites attracting, and Building a Home with My Husband, a wonderful memoir by Rachel Simon.

So, what are YOU reading this week?

(What are you reading Mondays is sponsored by J. Kaye's book blog)

Memoir Review: Building a Home with My Husband

Years ago, I enjoyed reading Rachel Simon’s memoir, Riding the Bus With My Sister, for one of my book groups, so I was glad to hear she had a new book out, Building a Home With My Husband: A Journey Through the Renovation of Love. I wanted to read it but didn’t expect to be able to relate to it very much. After all, it’s about Simon and her husband undertaking major renovations on their city rowhouse – something I’ve had no experience with, living out here in the suburbs in a newer home.

As with her previous book, though, Simon surprised me. I had forgotten about her talent for taking unique events from her own life and finding within them some basic truths about all human existence. That’s what she does in her new memoir; she uses the process of renovation as a metaphor for life and love, and, in the process, makes some very astute observations. Not only could I relate to her account, but by the time I finished the book, it was so full of Post-It flags, I could barely manage to turn the pages. I wanted to remember all of the amazing insights she wrote about and apply them to my own life.

In addition to being insightful, Simon’s writing is clever and eloquent. In one of many of my favorite passages, she talks about her sister’s preparations to visit their ailing mother, with whom they’ve had a difficult past relationship:

When Hal and I return from our walk, I plunge right in and dial my sister Laura. Days away from flying across the country to visit our mother so one of us can see the situation firsthand, Laura has been far more decisive about what clothing she should pack than about what emotions she will need. We know it would be wise if she could wedge patience, kindness, and acceptance into her suitcase, though we’re aware that space will be limited, given the well-worn disappointments and annoyances, and so many still-in-the-package fears.

I happen to be preparing for a visit with my own extended family this week, and these sentences are pure genius – what a perfectly apt metaphor.

I was pleasantly surprised to discover that Simon and I have a lot in common. She lives in Wilmington, DE, just a few miles from us, she’s a writer, and best of all, she’s very introspective, always analyzing what’s going on in her life and seeking to better herself. I enjoy this kind of reflection, too.

I really loved this memoir. It was both entertaining and thought-provoking, and I look forward to whatever writing project Simon tackles next.

Dutton Adult, 253 pages

Fiction Review: Benny & Shrimp

Benny & Shrimp, by Swedish author Katarina Mazetti, is a sweet and funny love story about two people who are wildly attracted to each other but who have little in common. This novel surprised me, made me laugh, and kept me turning the pages way past bedtime.

Desirée (aka Shrimp) is a well-educated librarian who lives in an all-white apartment in town and enjoys books, opera, and vegetarian food. Benny is a farmer who left high school to take over his parents’ dairy farm and is in desperate need of a farmer’s wife who can cook and clean and help him take care of the farm.

The two first meet at the cemetery, where Desirée’s late husband and Benny’s parents are in adjoining plots. They are each immediately annoyed with the other, but their distaste quickly changes into passion. Their story is told from both of their points of view, in alternating chapters, which adds to the fun as the reader sees first-hand how they each see the same event from completely different perspectives. Here’s Desirée’s first impression of Benny at his parents’ grave:

Next to Örjan’s stone there’s a really tasteless gravestone, an absolute monstrosity. White marble with swirly gold lettering; angels, roses, birds, words on garlands of ribbon, even a salutary little skull and scythe. The grave itself is as crowded with plants as a garden center. On the headstone are a man’s name and a woman’s name with similar dates of birth, so it must be a child honoring his father and mother in an overly lavish way.

A few weeks ago I saw the bereaved by the monstrosity for the first time. He was a man of about my age, in a loud, quilted jacket and a padded cap with earflaps. Its peak went up in the front, American-style, and had a logo saying FOREST OWNER’S ALLIANCE. He was eagerly raking and digging his little plot.

And Benny’s first impression of her:

Going to the grave is my only breathing space, and even then I never feel I can just sit there thinking. I have to rake and plant and weed before I can let myself sit down.

And then she’s there.

Faded, like some old color photo that’s been on display for years. Dried-out blond hair, a pale face, white eyebrows and lashes, wishy-washy pastel clothes, always something vaguely blue or beige. A beige person. The total insolence of her – it would only take a bit of make-up or bright jewelry to let the people around her know that here’s someone who at least cares what you see and what you think of me. All her paleness says is: I don’t give a damn what you think; I don’t so much as notice you.

It might seem odd that they are soon drawn to each other, but who hasn’t experienced a relationship where pure attraction overrode more rational considerations? I really came to care for these two misfits and was rooting for them to somehow work it all out. For me, that’s the mark of a good novel – when the author can make me care about the characters and what happens to them.

I have one minor complaint, a trivial thing that drove me a little crazy. The cover and all the promotional material for this book and many passages within the book describe the two main characters as “middle-aged,” but just a few pages into the novel, I discovered that they’re both about 35! If that’s middle-aged, I must have one foot in the grave at 44! Perhaps they just use the term “middle-aged” differently in Sweden than we do here.

In any case, that is a small thing, and once I adjusted to the fact that the lovers were in their 30’s and not their 50’s, I loved the book. In fact, I think the translation was otherwise excellent because the novel was very well written, and I never felt any cultural rift due to its taking place in Sweden. After all, love is a universal experience.

Penguin, 224 pages.

It's Monday 8/10! What Are You Reading?

(sponsored by J. Kaye's Book Blog)

I had a very enjoyable reading week.

• I finished Benny & Shrimp by Katarina Mazetti, a Swedish love story, and enjoyed it very much. I'll post a review of it this week.
• I read Julie & Julia by Julie Powell in honor of its movie release last week. It was an intriguing memoir made even more fascinating by the fact that Julie started a blog a few years ago - much like all of us here! - and is now a best-selling author.
• I started The City of Ember by Jeanne Duprau, a middle-grade novel. We watched the movie with the kids over the weekend which inspired me to finally read the book - my older son, Jamie, had told me it was very good (along with its sequel). He was right!

I'll post reviews this week for both Benny & Shrimp and Building a House with My Husband this week, then I'll be off on vacation for a few days - another chance to listen to some great audio books!

What are YOU reading this week?

Fiction Review: I Love You, Beth Cooper

I laughed all the way up the New Jersey Turnpike last week (an unusual occurrence!), thanks to the hilarious audio book, I Love You, Beth Cooper, by Larry Doyle. The book is read by Paul Rust, who also plays the role of the main character in the movie that was released in July.

Most people are already familiar with the basic plot from the endless TV commercials for the movie. Denis Cooverman, valedictorian of his high school class and captain of the debate team, stuns his classmates and their guests when he announces during his valedictorian address that he is in love with the ultra-popular head cheerleader, Beth Cooper. Denis has sat behind Beth in almost every class but has never actually spoken to her (except to lend a pencil once), and Beth is barely even aware of who Denis is.

The book takes place during the rest of graduation day and into the night. Denis and his best friend, Rich Munsch, hope Beth and her friends will stop by for Denis’ graduation party (a sad affair consisting of snacks and just two guests – Denis and Rich), but they don’t count on Beth’s menacing boyfriend, Kevin, who’s on leave from the Army to attend Beth’s graduation. What ensues is, as you might imagine, silly, outrageous, and farcical…and also very, very funny!

Listening to this book brought back memories of all those John Hughes’ high school movies of the 80’s, like Pretty in Pink and Sixteen Candles. All the classic stereotypes are there – the geeky guy who lusts after the popular girl, the quirky best friend who’s not sure whether or not he’s gay, the jealous boyfriend whose neck is larger than his IQ. And of course, there’s the huge, out-of-control party at the rich kid’s house whose parents are out of town and a few car chases, just for fun. The book is filled with alcohol, drugs, sex, and cursing, so you might want to skip this one if you’re easily offended.

By now, you’re probably thinking this book sounds silly and a bit trite. Apparently, that’s what most critics thought of the movie version (I haven’t seen it). I don’t usually go for those types of silly comedies, but I found this book absolutely hilarious. Doyle’s writing is clever and sharp (he’s written for The Simpsons), and his liberal use of movie quotes and pop-culture references adds to the fun. My face hurt from smiling so much by the time I’d finished, and I got plenty of strange looks for laughing hysterically all alone in my car. It was a wonderfully entertaining way to while away a tedious drive.

HarperAudio

Listen to a sample of the audio book.

It's Monday 8/3! What Are You Reading?

Lots of audio last week again because I drove up to my mom's house in Connecticut to pick up my kids. Some good paper books, too!

• I finished Building a House with My Husband by Rachel Simon and enjoyed it very much. I'll post a review this week.
• I started Benny & Shrimp by Katarina Mazetti, and I like it very much - more than I expected to. It's a novel about finding love, originally written in Sweden.
• In the car, I listened to I Love You, Beth Cooper by Larry Doyle and laughed out loud all the way to Connecticut! Hilarious novel about high school graduation night - I'm looking forward to seeing the movie now. I'll review this one this week, too.
• The kids and I finished Freaky Monday by Mary Rodgers and Heather Hach. It was excellent, a great follow-up to the original Freaky Friday, with excellent reading by Jennifer Stone (who plays Harper on the Disney Channel hit Wizards of Waverly Place). My boys and I enjoyed it very much, but it will be especially appreciated by tween girls.

What are YOU reading this week?

Memoir Review: Jantsen’s Gift

I received an advanced review copy of the memoir, Jantsen’s Gift by Pam Cope with Aimee Molloy, quite a few months back. Every time I went to my bookshelf to choose a new book to read, I passed it up, until I finally felt guilty for neglecting to review it for so long. I’m glad I finally read this inspiring story.

I know why I avoided it for so long. From the back cover, I knew that the memoir begins with the sudden death of Pam’s 15-year old son. My own son turns fifteen in a few weeks, and I just couldn’t face reading about something so unthinkable. It was difficult to read that first section of the book, but it sets the stage for the rest of Pam’s remarkable story. Once I got past my initial dread, I could scarcely put this compelling book down.

Suffering from a deep and crippling depression after her son’s death, Pam was pondering how to best put her son’s memorial fund to use, when she recalled some close friends who were trying to help a group of orphans in Vietnam:

In early November, Randy and I drove to Fayetteville to meet the Harlans for lunch at our favorite Mexican restaurant, and to talk about the decision we had made: We wanted to donate Jantsen’s money to them for their work in Vietnam. They were touched by the idea, but before they accepted Carol looked at me over her tacos.

“You know,” she said, “I’m going to Vietnam over Thanksgiving. Why don’t you guys and Crista come along with us and make sure this is the right place for the money? I don’t know if you’re up for something like this, but why not?”

Vietnam? I knew nothing about the place, other than old stories about the war. It seemed so faraway and foreign. It seemed like the farthest place in the world from Neosho, Missouri, and Thanksgiving dinner and birthday celebrations and family expectations…

I accepted immediately.

That impulsive trip to Vietnam changed not only her own life but also the lives of many children around the world. The more Pam learned about the orphans in Vietnam and other suffering children around the world, the more she felt compelled to help them in whatever way she could. She had never been involved in charity work before, but now she felt as if she could make a difference in the world, one child at a time. Along the way, Pam discovered how to fill a void in her life that had been there long before her son died.

It was difficult to read about some of the things that Pam encountered in her quest: abandoned children with disabilities in Vietnam, very young girls forced to become prostitutes to support their families in Cambodia, and children as young as five years old forced into slavery in Ghana, Africa. But this is not a depressing book; on the contrary, the things that Pam is able to do to help these children are inspiring and uplifting. She takes her own suffering and pain and uses it as motivation to give to others with passion and commitment. And in the process of helping these children, the children help Pam, too.

It’s a heartwarming story that opened my eyes to some of the terrible things that children face around the world but also to the remarkable difference a single person can make. Don’t avoid this story as I did because of its sadness; instead, open yourself to its joys and inspiration and maybe let it change your life, too.

Grand Central Publishing, 320 pages.

Blog Awards

I would like to thank two wonderful fellow book bloggers for honoring my blog with two awards recently. I'm a bit behind in acknowledging these, but that's no reflection on my gratitude!

Thanks to Harvee at Book Bird Dog for giving me the Friendship/Let's Be Friends Award:
Blogs that receive the Let’s Be Friends Award are exceedingly charming. These kind bloggers aim to find and befriends. They are not interested in self-aggrandizement. Our hope is that when the ribbons of these prizes are cut, even more friendships are propagated. Please give more attention to these writers.

And another big thanks to Laura at I'm Booking It for giving me the Humane Award:
The Humane Award is to honor certain bloggers that I feel are kindhearted individuals. They regularly take part in my blog and always leave the sweetest comments. If it wasn’t for them, my site would just be an ordinary blog. Their blogs are also amazing and are tastefully done on a regular basis. I thank them and look forward to our growing friendships through the blog world.

Both of these blogs feature well-written reviews and lots of extras, so be sure to check them out!

And now it's my turn to bestow these two awards on other deserving bloggers (who I don't think have received it yet). This was a tough choice because I've "met" so many wonderful book bloggers this year.

So, the Friendship/Let's Be Friends Award goes to:

• Jess at Barney's Book Blog
• Kristen at Bookworming in the 21st Century
• Katie at Katie's Book Blog
• Kim at Page After Page
• Pam at Pam's Perspective

And, the Humane Award (thanks for all those great comments!) goes to:

• Mary at Bookfan-Mary
• Kristen at Bookworm Kristen
• Connie at Constance Reader's Guide to Throwing Books with Great Force

Be sure to check out these fabulous book blogs!

It's Monday, 7/27! What Are You Reading?

I had a good reading week, filled with lots of audio books because we took a couple of short trips in the car:

• The book I'm currently reading is Building a House With My Husband, a memoir by Rachel Simon. I enjoyed her previous book, Riding the Bus With My Sister, and this one is very good so far, too.
• I listened to a teen audio book, Prism, by the mother-daughter team of Faye and Aliza Kellerman. All I can say is WOW! This book was so good that when I returned home, I immediately stuck the CD into our home stereo and kept listening. I don't think I've ever listened to an audio book in such a short time before. I'll post a review later this week at Great Books for Kids and Teens (though adults will enjoy this one, too).
• We drove our kids to Connecticut to spend a week sailing with their grandparents, and on the way, we all enjoyed listening to Freaky Monday by Mary Rodgers and Heather Hach. This is a sequel to the classic Freaky Friday, and so far, it's great.
• On the way home, my husband and I started a thriller, Black Water Rising, by first-time novelist Attica Locke. We got a little confused when I inserted disk 6 instead of disk 2, but once we got that straightened out, it was much easier to follow! So far, it's a very good story, with elements of murder interwoven with a backstory from the Civil Rights movement.

So, we have a lot of listening to do to finish these last two!

What are YOU reading this week?

(What Are You Reading Mondays is sponsored by www.j-kaye-bookblog.blogspot.com)

Fiction Review: Firefly Lane

I just finished Firefly Lane, a novel by Kristin Hannah, and I couldn’t wait to write about it. This was one of those books that I carried everywhere with me, sneaking in a few paragraphs whenever I could. The story pulled me in so thoroughly that I felt like I knew the characters personally.

Firefly Lane is the story of a lifelong friendship between two women, Kate and Tully, who meet when they are both lonely fourteen-year old girls:

Kate stood outside the drugstore looking up and down the street for someone who might know her mom. “Are you sure about this?”

“Absolutely.”

The answer was slim comfort, actually. In the day they’d officially been friends, Kate had learned one thing about Tully: she was a girl who made Plans.

And today’s plan was to make Kate beautiful.

“Don’t you trust me?”

There it was, the big question. It was like rolling a Yahtzee: once Tully said it, Kate lost the game. She had to trust her new friend. “Of course I do. It’s just that I’m not allowed to wear make-up.”

“Believe me, I’m such an expert your mom will never know. Come on.”

Tully walked boldly though the drugstore, choosing eye shadow and blush colors that were “right” for Kate, and then – amazingly – she paid for everything. When Kate said something, Tully said airily, “We’re friends, aren’t we?”

From then on, Kate and Tully are inseparable, and the novel follows their friendship and their lives for decades, through school, college, careers, and relationships. I especially enjoyed all of the details of the times (fashions, haircuts, music, etc.) as the girls grew up in the 70's and became women in the 80's.

Someone had told me that this book was too sad for her, but I loved every minute of it. Yes, I did actually cry – not once but three different times! – while reading it, but I love a novel that can make me cry. To me, the best fiction is the kind that mirrors real life, populated with characters who act like real people, and real life is full of both sorrow and joy, good times and bad. I did cry while reading certain parts of this book, but I also smiled and laughed at other parts. That’s life. Besides, it’s so cleansing to have a good cry over a great piece of fiction (either book or movie) – much better than crying over your own life!

Besides the events in the book mirroring real life, I loved that the characters were real, flawed people. They made mistakes, they didn’t always treat each other well, they did stupid things – there were times when I wanted to shake each of them – but they also had triumphs and good times, too. I’ve read novels about idealized female friendships before that just left me feeling inadequate, like what’s wrong with me that I’ve never had a fairy-tale friendship like this? But no relationship is perfect in real life, which is why this novel and these characters grabbed me so completely.

Despite the fact that the book is almost 500 pages long, I never wanted it to end. When I finished it last night, I immediately began to read the extra stuff at the end – author interview, discussion questions, etc. One thing I learned is that this novel was somewhat autobiographical for the author – not the complete storyline, but the time and place and some of the events. I think that explains why the book elicits such genuine emotions. Maybe I’ll get in touch with some old friends today...

St. Martin’s Griffin, 479 pages.

It's Monday, 7/20! What Are You Reading?

I had a great reading week...

• I read Everlost by Neal Shusterman, a wonderful teen/YA book about kids who are killed in a car crash and end up in Everlost, a sort of way station between life and death. My 14-year old son has been telling me how great this book is for awhile now - I'm glad I finally had a chance to read it!
• I started Firefly Lane by Kristin Hannah, lent to me by my neighbor last week. It's a novel that follows the friendship of two women, starting when they meet at 14. It's one of those books that pulls you in so much that you think about the characters all the time! I've been carrying it around with me and reading it every chance I get.

What are YOU reading this week?

Fiction Review: Breakfast with Buddha

There’s nothing better for a 3-week long road trip than a book about a road trip! So, on our recent vacation out to Colorado, I brought along Roland Merullo’s novel, Breakfast with Buddha, about a man who takes a cross-country road trip from NYC to North Dakota (many summers we’ve driven from the East Coast to South Dakota). The catch? His companion on this trip is a red-robed monk-type guru.

The road trip details in this novel are so accurate (Merullo says they’re based on an actual trip) that I mistakenly thought this was a memoir at first. At some point (I’m not saying how far in!), I figured out that the main character’s name was different than the author’s and it was a novel. Once I had that figured out, I absolutely loved this book! Its combination of travelogue, humor, and philosophy were perfect.

Otto Ringling is an ordinary kind of guy – a middle-aged husband, father of two teens, and editor of food-related books who lives in New Jersey and commutes into NYC. He has lots of friends, a nice house, and is happy with his life. Recently, though, his parents were both killed in a car accident, and Otto has to go back to North Dakota, where he grew up, to settle their estate and sell the family farm. He thinks he’s making the trip with his sweet but wacky sister, but she has other plans, as he finds out when he goes to pick her up and she somehow convinces him to instead travel with her guru, Volyo Rinpoche, to whom she wants to give her part of the estate:

Which is basically the story of how, after another half hour of pleading, on my sister’s part, and attempting to resist, on mine, I ended up agreeing to drive Volvo Rinpoche from NJ to ND. When we went outside to give him the news, the Rinpoche seemed interested, mildly curious, amused, but not in any discernable way grateful. His luggage consisted of one cloth bag that looked like an oversized, well-worn pocketbook with leather handles. He accepted a minute-long embrace from my sister, bowed to her in a tender way, and settled himself into the front seat as calmly as if he’d been making the insurance payments for the past six months. My sister hugged me double-long, a double-long spinal massage included.

I was behind the wheel, seatbelt on, without knowing quite how it had happened. I lowered the window. “You said you had a dream about Rinpoche and me,” I said to Cecilia. “What were we doing?”

A gorgeous smile lit my sister’s face. She leaned toward me, happy as a child, and said, “Bowling!”

The rest of the novel chronicles their trip across the U.S. Otto tries to show Rinpoche the essence of America, with stops at Hershey, a baseball game, various restaurants (he is a foodie, after all), and, yes, a bowling alley. Rinpoche, in a quiet, no-pressure sort of way, engages Otto in some very thought-provoking discussions about nothing less than the meaning of life.

I loved everything about this book. Of course, the details of the road trip entranced me, since we make similar journeys every summer; I even tried to find a restaurant they stopped at in Pennsylvania (no luck – we ended up at a Long John Silver’s – as the author correctly states in the book, there are few good dining options off the Pennsylvania Turnpike). I also very much enjoyed the author’s sense of humor and found myself frequently reading amusing passages out loud to my husband.

But besides the fact that this is just a fun novel to read, it is also very thought provoking. I loved the philosophical discussions about everything from religion to anger to sex. The author successfully introduces all sorts of sometimes controversial topics as simply food for thought in a gentle, non-intrusive way. The novel is never contentious or preachy, just fun and thoughtful. I came home dying to lend it to my friends and my mom. While I can’t think of a better accompaniment for a summer trip, this would also make an excellent book club pick.

It's Monday 7/13! What Are You Reading?

Wow, is it really July 13 already? Where's the summer going? We have piles of books taking over our house, so this morning my sons and I did a quick bookcase clean-out in their rooms. We now have a big box of books to donate, a big bag to give to younger cousins, and a lot more room on the bookcases!

Mostly this week, I (and our family) finished books I described in last week's post:

• Pendragon, Book 8: The Pilgrims of Rayne by DJ MacHale - I LOVE this series! As soon as I finished it, I said to my son, "We have to get Book 9!"
• Ordinary Boy Book 2: The Return of Meteor Boy? by William Boniface - very funny - see a review at my kids' book blog.
• Audio book Jake Ransom and the Skull King's Shadow by James Rollins - we all loved it!

And I started a new memoir that is absolutely amazing so far:

• Jantsen's Gift by Pam Cope - an incredible story of a woman who devoted herself to helping poor, orphaned kids around the world after her son died. I'll post a review when I finish it.
  

So, what are YOU reading this week?

Places I've Visited in Books

Thanks to Kim at Page After Page for this very cool idea (that she heard through Weekly Geeks)!

The map below shows places I've visited through reading - settings of various books I've read (at least those I could remember!). I've read about a lot of different places in the past few years especially and learned so much about the world, but making this map made me realize how many more places are out there. For instance, I've read lots of wonderful books about India - so many that I even have a Category Label for it! - but there are so many other countries in Asia I haven't read about. Since I don't have the means to travel the world in person, I'm glad I can go to these places in books!



create your own visited country map

Visit World66 to make your own reading map!

It's Monday, 7/6! What Are You Reading?

I didn't fall off face of the earth or give up on blogging - I've just been on a 3-week cross-country road trip. We had a wonderful time (you can check out our trip blog for pictures). I didn't do a whole lot of reading, mainly because I can't read books in the car. We listened to some great kids'/teens' audio books, though, and I read a few books during the trip. Here's what I read over the past three weeks:

• The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins - an absolutely amazing teen/YA book that I'd recommend to anyone of any age (teens and older) - see review at my kids' book blog.
• Breakfast with Buddha by Roland Merullo. I bought this one before the trip in part because it's a novel about a cross-country road trip! I really loved it and will post a review later this week (first I need to get through 423 e-mails).
• I'm currently reading Pendragon Book 8: The Pilgrims of Rayne by D.J. MacHale. I've raved here before about the Pendragon series for kids and teens, and this one is no exception.
• With our kids, we've been taking turns reading aloud from Ordinary Boy 2: The Return of Meteor Boy by William Boniface, a very fun and funny sequel to one of our favorites about a city called Superopolis where every citizen (except the title character, Ordinary Boy) has superpowers. Lots of laughs.
  

We also listened to the following kids'/teens' audio books during our trip:

• Simon Bloom and the Gravity Keeper and Simon Bloom and the Octopus Effect by Michael Reisman, a great series that combines science and magic in fast-paced, suspenseful stories.
• Jake Ransom and the Skull King's Shadow by James Rollins is the first entry into the children's market by a best-selling adult author (though I haven't read any of his grown-up books before). We're most of the way through this one and enjoying its exciting suspense and, like the Simon Bloom books, combination of science and magic plus history.

So, what have YOU been reading so far this summer?

Fiction Review: Gone Tomorrow by P.F. Kluge

We're on vacation on a road trip and enjoying lots of good books along the way! I stopped off in a Panera with internet access to post some new reviews. You might also want to check out my review of The Hunger Games at Great Books for Kids and Teens. It's a YA book that readers of any age will love! Now, onto this review...

Let me get this out of the way first: I loved this book. I spotted Gone Tomorrow by P.F. Kluge on my library’s shelf of new arrivals and picked it up because I remembered hearing some good things about it. I’m so glad I did.

Oddly enough, the likeable main character has already died in the first sentence:

George Canaris is the first faculty member of this college in half a century whose death merited an obituary in the New York Times. He was our best-known professor, one of those outsized characters who arrives in an obscure place and makes it his own. “A writer, a critic, a professor, a campus legend and a national figure, the very embodiment of the liberal arts,” the Times obituary said. And a mystery. He was the author of two well-received novels and a book of essays, all published more than thirty years ago. Taken together, they were the beginnings of an impressive shelf to which, in all his years here in Ohio, he added nothing. “Compared to Faulker and Dos Passos at the start of his career,” the Times observed, “in the end he resembled Harper Lee.”

To some of us on campus, that last remark seemed harsh and condescending: the what-have-you-done-for-me-lately school of criticism, unfair to George Canaris and to Harper Lee. They were both authors – add J.D. Salinger to the list – who left readers wanting more and whose accomplishments, even as they recede, remain fresh and new and magic. Of how many writers can this be said? Also, there was always a chance that something more would be coming from a small town in Alabama, a remote New England farm, a small college on a hill in central Ohio. There was that hope, tantalizing, like a phone call from an unlisted number. In Canaris’ case, there were specific grounds for hope, his references to a novel underway, something major, years in the writing. He called it “The Beast.” But, as time went by, inevitably, there was speculation that the book was a myth, a lie, a joke. Every passing year made skeptics more confident. But never certain.

And that’s the main set-up of this book within a book, told in part in Canaris’ own words: how he progressed from a famous and sought-after author to an aging professor at a small rural college. Much of the novel goes back and forth between his past and the present, gradually filling in the blanks. The central question, both in Canaris’ life and in Gone Tomorrow, is whether The Beast really exists and whether it will ever be published.

To make the book even more captivating, the author, P.F. Kluge, happens to be a writer-in-residence at – guess what? – a small college in central Ohio. I couldn’t help wondering how much of the novel was autobiographical (though, obviously, not the part about not publishing in 30 years). Perhaps his own experience is the reason why the setting and descriptions in this book are so vivid.

Gone Tomorrow is clever and engaging, and I grew to really like George Canaris. I was rooting for him and hoping that The Beast was real and that he would conquer it and show those naysayers. I also became fond of the college and its little rural town and enjoyed Canaris’ tales of teaching there. All in all, this was a very enjoyable novel.

Fiction Review: A Map of the World

Ten pages into reading Jane Hamilton’s novel, A Map of the World, for my book group, I realized I had read it before. That was probably about five years ago, though, and I didn’t remember how it ended, so I re-read it. I’m glad I did, and, oddly, I think I liked it better the second time. I remembered it was a somewhat dark book, filled with despair – something I don’t normally enjoy – but I had forgotten how well-written it is. The story, characters, and writing make it a very compelling book that’s hard to put down.

Right from the very first paragraphs, you know that something terrible is going to happen and you get some insight into how the main character, Alice, thinks and feels:

I used to think if you fell from grace it was more likely than not the result of one stupendous error, or else an unfortunate accident. I hadn’t learned that it can happen so gradually you don’t lose your stomach or hurt yourself in the landing. You don’t necessarily sense the motion. I’ve found it takes at least two and generally three things to alter the course of a life: You slip around the truth once, and then again, and one more time, and there you are, feeling, for a moment, that it was sudden, your arrival at the bottom of the heap.

I opened my eyes on a Monday morning in June last summer and I heard, somewhere far off, a siren belting out calamity. It was the last time I would listen so simply to a sound that could mean both disaster and pursuit. Emma and Claire were asleep and safe in their beds, and my own heart seemed to be beating regularly. If the barn was out the window, clean, white, the grass cropped as close as a golf course, then my husband Howard was all right. I raised up to take a look. It was still standing, as I suspected it would be. I had never said out loud a little joke I used to say to myself now and again: Everywhere that barn goes, Howard, you are sure to be close behind. He was a philosophical and poetical farmer who bought Golden Guernseys because he both liked their color and the way “Golden Guernsey” floated off his tongue. It was secondary that the breed was famous for their butterfat. I worried about his choice when we bought the farm because I was certain that poetry is almost never rewarded. Now, in my more charitable moods, I wonder if our hardworking, God-fearing community members punished us for something as intangible as whimsy. We would not have felt eccentric in a northern city, but in Prairie Center we were perhaps outside the bounds of the collective imagination.

Those first two paragraphs provide a huge amount of information about Alice and her family and give a good example of how Alice thinks – in a sort of rambling, thoughtful way. I sometimes found her lack of focus irritating, but some in my book group really related to her.

You know right away that something bad is going to happen, and you don’t have to wait long to find out what it is. In the first chapter, Alice’s best friend’s toddler daughter drowns in the pond at the farm while Alice is babysitting. The accident is, of course, absolutely devastating to every character, but it’s only the start of Alice’s problems in this community where she has never felt accepted and in her role as mother in which she has never felt completely adequate.

Does this sound depressing? Well, it is, but it’s also fascinating and suspenseful, culminating in a courtroom drama. Interestingly, as a friend pointed out at book group, customer reviews of A Map of the World on amazon.com are evenly distributed among all five ratings, from 1 to 5. We did an informal poll at book group, and almost everyone rated the book a 3 or a 4 and agreed it was well-written and compelling.

However, we were about evenly split on how we felt about Alice. About half of the group really related to her struggles with motherhood, depression, and her feelings of isolation. The other half – myself included – were vaguely annoyed by Alice’s behavior and wanted her to pull herself together (her response to the child’s drowning was understandable but her behavior in other aspects of the novel was sometimes hard for me to relate to). Some of the group found the book uplifting in the end and some still found it depressing. One thing we all agreed on – it was a gripping, very thought-provoking novel, and we had plenty to talk about!

Doubleday, 390 pages