Provocative title

Hands down, a great title.  This was a book club read, and I glad that it was suggested.  I don't think I would have ever stumbled across this one, and although I can't shout down it's praises from the rooftops, it is a decent read.  This is a provocative title, and a novel based on a provocative idea.  This book is written from a female perspective, male writer, during the 19th century during the push west and the inevitable wars with First Nations. The book is loosely based around a true event - that of a great Cheyenne Chief Little Wolf requesting the American government for a "1000 white women" for their men to help them facilitate entry in to "white man's culture"  It didn't happen, but this is an interesting take on what would have happened if even one group of willing women was sent west in to temporary marriages with Cheyenne men.  Interesting idea, overall good book, some great history included.  I did find that this book sometimes dragged for me.  It wasn't quite a quick read.  You know when your hubby notices that you have been carting it around for a bit that it isn't a speedy read.

This is one of those books we should all read...

Really, truly, where did the last month go?  I was doing so well there for a while, posting about the books I was reading, lamenting about how things were going, and then time really started to take off in the last few weeks, and here we, mere days before the end of February.  Things are slowly getting better.  It was almost as if things had to get pretty fugly before there were going to get better. 

To summarize, wee man is doing way better in his new daycare setting.  That is except for the meltdown he had this morning when I tried to drop him off.  People don't tell you about the moments you try to drop your child off at care and then they freak out and don't want you to go, the crying, the fists beating their chest, the wailing, and the tears.  It is heartbreaking.  Starting your work day, which happens to be a Monday, like this, really sucks.  It makes you hope your day can only get better from there.  At the end of the day, when I picked him up, all was good,  He had a great day by all reports.

Of course, since he was late, our big guy was also late.  So I got to sign him in.  We are all trying to help him engage more positively.  Ultimately I think more attention was spent on motor skill development that his social skills - especially since he is a loving and happy kid.  It appears the next task is to help him make better friendships.

My job has been an endless learning curve.  A bit unreal at times, a bit overwhelming at times, but also good.  It is rewarding when things come together, I look forward to having another term under my belt and more confidence to answer the endless barrage of questions that seem to come my way.  My volunteer job has felt like that - another learning curve that has shifted a bit in to what has become very time consuming.  It isn't quite what I expected, or anticipated evolving over the last year.  I have started knitting dishcloths again, and up next may be a hat for one of the folks that takes care of B after school.  I am trying to think of what else I read this month... I tried to read a popular thriller writer, but it was beyond what I want to read now. 

Ah yes, I started Crow Lake, by Mary Lawson but am postponing it until I finish this month's book club book.  I did finish the Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skloot.  What a novel.  What a story to tell.  I wasn't sure what to expect, but this is totally worth reading.  It has been a few weeks so I am not in the position to truly go off as I would have a few weeks ago, but what a powerful story about science, about a life, about ethics, about perseverance.  I admire Skloot for seeing this story through and for having the courage to tell this story.  I am proud to hear about this family, and how they are claiming their own place in the world, and this is a story to read about how cellular/cancer research evolved, and tissue culture, and this whole world most of us don't have an idea about.  A really powerful novel, incredible storytelling considering it is non fiction, well written, I can't say enough about how important reading books like this is. 

Why, oh why, did I say, 'success'?

What an interesting month.  Funny that I craft a post about success at the beginning of the month, then a whinging post about what it doesn't look like, and another week later, at the end of another week, I am contemplating another element about success and this success theme in the last month seems to evolved around my kids, and work.  Although breaking from that thought for a moment, I am reading more, I did pick up some knitting (dishcloths count, even if they are simple), I am getting out for more walks, I am eating more vegetables and less wheat, and I am really trying to find some balance.  It does seem that my housekeeping abilities have been sorely lacking this January, we have struggled with winter illnesses, and my motivation at times has been really flagging.  Did I mention that I love coffee, it has kept me going at times?

Our daycare situation for our youngest started falling apart last week, and then completely this Monday.  It got to the point that I pulled him from their care and said he wasn't coming back.  They also had an exit plan for my kid, and I knowing this when I got the call he wasn't behaving and they couldn't cope because they have casual staff on, I was pretty angry and disappointed to say the least.  In a summary vent, not every childcare facility, no matter how praised it is, isn't going to be the best fit for every kid.  I would say that this place wasn't supervised or structured enough for my little guy, because the boy he was there, wasn't the boy he was at night, or during the weekends.  He is back at his old home daycare for a few weeks, and he is acting like he never left there.  Already back to napping, and maybe a little more rambunctious at the end of the day because they don't always get outside, but the concerns have stopped.  Was it him, or was it the situation? I will play nice and say both, but much more on the centre side.  Not the right place for him. I truly should have thought more about what it would be like for a kid to go from a home with 7 kids, to a centre with 50 kids, especially when those 50 kids were in a space that didn't have a lot of toys and frankly, not a lot of boundaries either.  Who knew.  Well, now I do.  If you kid has always been in a big centre, that is one thing, but no matter how new or cutting edge the place is, you have to think about your kid, and how he is going to be there, as themselves. 

Moving ahead, I think we have the best of both worlds coming up.  Wee guy will start at a smaller centre in a few weeks 4 days a week, and then will get one day a week at his old place.  A different kind of balance, but I think an overall better transition to being a bid kid.  We have had other issues with our big guy too.  Time to look at boy scouts, and martial arts.  Time to start scheduling in some of these kinds of activities.  I see our nights getting busier. I have to start thinking about swimming lessons again too.  We are going to pass on baseball this year, B was keen on blastball, but not on regular ball.  We all can't be good at everything.

It has been an exhausting month.  Between childcare issues, norovirus, worrying about the big kid in school, and learning the mechanics of a new job, after Christmas finances... I am really glad a new month is rolling along and that time is marching on.  One foot, in front of the other... some times it is just that.  You aren't running, you are more taking baby steps, and side steps, and sometimes just rocking from side to side.  

Catchy title

First off, this wasn't a book that I would normally pick.  One of the ladies in my book club had a bag of books and invited us to plunder, and this was one cover page that caught my attention.  I had not idea what it was about, missed the baby hat altogether, and was caught up in the names of all those classics against the red background.  Interesting on how one picks out a free book to read. 

This is young adult, and an easy read.  This is a book about friendship, teenage pregnancy and young love, making mistakes, relationships, and even touches upon postpartum depression.  Perhaps a current version of "Are you there God, it is me, Margaret?", but not quite.  There is a big leap between reading about masturbation and your best friend delivering a baby out in a cabin with her brother, whom you have a crush on.  There were parts of this book that were a bit much, such as the religious fundamentalist parents that wouldn't accept their daughter's pregnancy, and some parts that were great, such as a house designed with a special chill out room.  It's a quite read, and I quite liked that each chapter started with the first line from a classic novel.  It was a nice way to frame the story, especially as our narrator, Julie, starts the book contemplating first lines, and then finishes with a similar reflection upon closers.  All in all, a decent read, and I liked that teenage pregnancy wasn't glorified, rather, it was a life changing, terrifying event that created a lot of unknowns in a young women's life.

Caught in another series

The nice thing about finding a new author that writes decent crime fiction, is that you have a new series to delve in to.  The down side is that I keep leaping in to these series part way through.  Of course, they all say that each novel is a stand alone, and you don't have to read them in order, however, it really does help in terms of character development, especially when the author likes to use flashbacks. 

I have to admit that I used to like using italics in some of my writing.  I have come to realize that I tend to skip over what is italicized, even though I am aware that these are generally points that are trying to be emphasized for one reason or another by the author.  A few chapters are like this in this book, and I found I had to really work at reading these sections, even if they included a lot of important past information that shed light on one character actions. 

A thoroughly satisfying crime novel.  Since I have now read a few books in the Cole/Pike series, this one felt a bit familiar.  Again, having read later novels that also use flashbacks, I think some of the familiarity came from that.  I am glad that I am now tracking the books I read.. when I get those moments of deja vu, I can now easily look back to see what I was reading, and when, and try to figure out the connection. 

I find it interesting that I like to go back and forth between crime novels and literature.  Through in the odd romance by an old favourite author, and then a totally random book, and you have a pretty eclectic bookshelf!  I have started a pile of books that I will use as trade ins to get more.

Did I mention success?

Was it only a week ago I was shouting to the world about what a successful morning looked like? I think I had a great big failure of one this morning.  Well, maybe not a failure, but some learning moments! Such as, better to take the trash out the night before, rather than scrambling to do it before I head out to work.  When the kids are up at an ungodly hour with me, it does help to get them dressed earlier rather than later.  Weirdly enough, if everything seemed to unravel for a bit before we left, by the time we started to drive, everything sorted itself out.  We won't talk about whether or not I was on time for work today.

I should be asleep.  I can't believe I say that and it is 10:30pm.  I remember a short time ago when it was a Friday night and Ken and I would be getting ready to play a hockey game at this time.  Seems like a lifetime ago and then some.  I remember being an undergrad, and I didn't do mornings.  I would stay up until all hours, and then try to sleep in as long as I could.  Now a sleep in is 7... of course getting to 7 I usually wake up about 5:45 since that is when my alarm goes off.  Then I try to coax myself back to sleep. 

Long day, meeting at the end of the day so I didn't get home until 9.  A quiet house, I had time to finish my book, and catch up on some posts.  The last few months have been chaotic, and too much winter illness through the house, which has hit us all, takes it toll.  Time to regroup, make sure we all gets lots of sleep (ironic, considering the last paragraph), continue to work on improving diets and exercise.  Speaking of which, I made it 2 jogs again in to 10km running.  Two runs seems to be my magic number.  It felt great.. and then it seems life got in the way.  No matter how motivated I am to try to train to JOG a 10km, I can't seem to get my ass out of bed early to get out for a jog, or to even think about it once the kids are in bed.  Not happening.  I think I will aim for a jog on the weekends, even just to walk and jog and get out in nature, and just breath.

At work, it seems like groups of us end up wearing the same colour at the same time... we joked about the colour blue tomorrow.. will be interesting to see if the idea stuck.  On to transitions, it is really and truly a transition going for a home daycare to a group daycare.  Our poor wee guy I don't think has had an easy go of it, especially since he is deciding to give up on naps.  No naps, means he is melting at the end of the day.  Ironically, now that he is going to bed earlier, that piece is easier.  I also think he has gone through a growth spurt, has been really hungry, and ultimately needs to learn how to become friends with people.  Amazing how much learning we do throughout our lives.  Being a parent is not an easy gig.  All this self-actualization and setting our kids up for success isn't easy, especially when I am still a work in progress.

An unlikley pilgrimage

What an unexpected pleasure.  This will likely be one of my favourite books for 2013.  What a profoundly moving story.  Sometimes light, sometimes incredibly dark.  This was a beautiful story, and even more meaningful for me because Ken picked it out for me.  In life, it isn't the grand sweeping gestures that sweep you off of your feet, I believe it is the little kindnesses one can do, the little things we do to show how much we love someone.  Out of all the gifts I got for Christmas, it is the books I will remember the most (okay I got a really cool Popsicle maker, good for a later post,) because they were totally unexpected, and well thought out.

How to describe a novel like this?  It is so many things it is.  This is the story of Harold Fry, recently retired, whom one day to goes out to post a letter.  The difference being, he then decides that he must go on a pilgrimage to visit an old friend, in the hopes that his walking will somehow keep her alive as she is dying of cancer.  There are some unhappy threads to this story, but they are interwoven with hope, and humour.  This book will catch you off guard, it will catch your imagination, and it will stick with you.  Well worth picking it up and spending a few hours between its covers - great book.

A swift read

Now this was a page turner.  It would seem that the books are starting with a bang, and oddly enough, I read my first Crais novel this time last year.  Funny how things work out!

This is like the literary version of "lock, stock, and two smoking barrels".  Everything that can go wrong, does.  Twists, tension, quick snappy writing.  About as believable and entertaining as Die Hard, LOL.  Speaking of which, it looks like this got made in to a movie in 2005... I am not sure if we saw it, but perhaps this would be good weekend fodder to check out. 

Success.

Lately I have been reflecting on what "success" means to me.

Such as, what a successful morning is to me has taken on a whole new meaning. 

In the past, a great morning (during the work week) was getting up around 7:30 am, shower, get ready for work, eat, run out of the house, attempt to be at work on time. 

Now, it is get up before 6am, shower, have a coffee, make lunches, kids get up, feed them breakfast, make sure they are dressed, get all their gear together, load the car, make sure they have eaten, make sure they have shoes, figure out dinner, maybe do some dishes, try to remember my breakfast, get dressed, maybe run a brush through my hair, get a second coffee, load the car, cat herd the kids in the car, and leave.  Maybe, remember to ask the kids if they need to go to the washroom, and hope that I don't get stopped by a train as I try to leave our home community.  Hope traffic is good.  Get up the hill. Drop C off at daycare, park car, walk B to his daycare walking group, run across campus, hope that I am close to being on time for work, start my day.

We can get off track in so many ways in the morning. Rebellion about eating, rebellion over clothes.  Get in the car, and one of the boys has to pee.  Get stopped by a West Coast Express.  Get stopped by multiple freight trains.  Accidents, traffic, unexpected pit stops along the way.  Mornings are an adventure.  Sometimes they don't get along, sometimes there is yelling, on any of our parts.  This morning was a great morning.  Traffic patterns have positively changed for us, and I think I am slowly getting the hang of this morning gig.  Success is getting to work, almost on time, no yelling involved, kids faces somewhat clear of breakfast, and not forgetting jackets, hats, gloves, lunches, library books, and my own breakfast.

Some mornings I get in to work, and I am already tired.  Or still tired.  Some mornings I just wonder.  Speaking of which, did I mention today was a good morning?  Ultimately success in all parts except that it is now snowing.  Dropped off B with only shoes and no snowboots.  I hope he avoids the  puddles at lunch and when he walks to daycare...

On the same note, for Christmas, I got two things that have really stood out.  The coolest popsicle set (Star Wars light sabre set) and some books from my hubby.  I love to read, and the books he picked were awesome.  Well thought out, a total surprise, and well, romantic as a result.  Weeks later, makes me happy.

You can tell I had a few days away from work...

Well, here we are at the beginning of another year.  When I was a kid, 40 seemed old.  My folks used to talk about how fast the years went by, and here I am, echoing their sentiments, and now that 40 is staring me in the face, I will say wholeheartedly that 40 isn't even close to being old.  Maybe a little wiser, maybe a few more miles on the body, but not old.  New Years has come and gone, and I am glad that work is quiet, traffic has been good, and I am slowly easing in to 2013.   I was looking through the books that I read in 2012, and although I wished I posted more throughout the year, I am glad that atleast I tracked what I read because it is interesting to reflect back upon what you have read, and what were the stand outs, and what books I have already forgotten that I have read.

I will remember books like Girl in Translation, Unbroken, The Corner of Bitter and Sweet, Lamb, Terry Fallis books, Peter Robinson series, and others, that I was surprised to realize they were books I had read only months ago.  Either time moves that fast, or those books didn't leave that much of an impression.

Speaking of which, first book of 2013 was a perfect choice for holiday reading.  Somewhat in the same style of Da Vinci Code, a good, fast paced read.  Characters aren't completely rounded, but it is a page turner without a lot of depth and it made for interesting reading.   Next!

Reflections, 2012

Looking back, it is nice to have a post from the start of the year, if only to remember what that year started off like.  Nice, quiet evening to ring in the New Years.  We took the kids to the Stanley Park, Bright Lights train, and then came home and ate popcorn and watched movies.  I banged on pots, we both called our folks, and it was lovely.  For this year, that was the perfect way to celebrate a new year.  Next year, I think I will be looking for a Polar Bear swim again... ultimately, this year I was so glad for a break and to not have to leave the house to come back again today.

2012 was a busy year.  A year of adjustment to change (between the move, and changing daycares, and shifting jobs, to name but a few elements).  A year of a few new thoughts, or different thoughts.  Such as, we brined the turkey this year, and it was amazing.  We are rethinking how we eat, and the thoughts circle around wheat, and to a lesser degree, sugar.  Jumping on the "wheat belly" fad, lifestyle, (whatever you want to call it), reading this book can't  help but open your eyes a bit as to why we are so much unhealthier than we were in the past.  We have significantly cut down on our wheat consumption, and I am trying to make different choices when it comes to my baking.

I had no idea of how much of an emotional connection I had to wheat, that was enlightening.  I never questioned why wheat was great, and why things like spelt were weird.  Where did I get these thoughts?  Spelt is actually a lovely grain, and pastas made from rice and other grains, taste pretty darn good!  I hope that by the end of 2013 I can say that I am down a few pants sizes.  Between a longer walk to work from my parking spot, to rethinking how we eat and loving veggies more than anythign else, it will be an interesting year.  This post may get edited in the future when I have more time to add some reflections from 2012, but for now, this is a good start.

Speaking of which, for 2013 I want to see new things, get  out camping more, get a little fitter, pick up knitting again, and continue to take risks in books and food and try out new things!  Spend more quality time with my family, get out on more dates with my hubby, spend quality time with my dearest friends when I can.  Okay, now the list is really taking off.. ttfn.

Inspiring read

This is one of those books that has been on the shelf a few years.  Do you have any books that you know you will enjoy, but somehow know it isn't the time to pick it up and delve in to it yet?  This was one of those for me.  I was skimming through titles, and thought - why not.  I am glad that I did.  This was a great novel, and I think the lead character, Kimberly, is one that will stay with me for a while. 

How to capture a book like this in a few sentences?  Well worth a read, and for me, I managed to finish it in a day or two.  This Christmas break has been good for me - I have totally avoided thinking big thoughts about work and the board, and it is has been great.  I think I needed to chance to just catch up with me, our life.  Outside of Christmas, our plans were pretty slim and it was nice. 

Back to the book, this is a book about a mother and daughter team that immigrates from Hong Kong to America (NY) just before British rule ends.  They are sponsored by the mom's older sister, whose husband owns a sweatshop factory.  This is a story of courage, survival, focus, young love, and shifting dreams.  Makes you stop to appreciate "stories".  We all have one.  Especially when you consider in Canada/North America most of us were immigrants at some point, strangers in an even stranger land struggling to eke out a living and create a "better" life than the one that was left behind.  Spend a few hours lost in this story, I was glad I did.

Time to read!

Merry Christmas!  The chaos has come and gone.  These are magic years with the kids, because they really truly do believe in the magic of Christmas.  Every now and then B makes comments about the kids at school, and then I ask him, "Isn't it better to believe, just in case?"  I am not entirely sure what he believes about it all, but I can see it in his eyes that it is magic. 

I took a leap and brined the turkey. It was amazing.  Best turkey ever, hands down.  We also had a local ham, and everything came together well for the meal.  A smaller Christmas, only 15 this year! Ken and I both worked on Christmas Eve, and my folks had the boys for the day.  I had a window of time where I wrapped like a fiend... I never got to my cards, and I never did get ANY baking done.  I have grandiose ideas about how to be better organized next year.  Although I think all told, things came together pretty well.

I am also going through my shelves and reading some books that have been kicking around for a while.  You know those books, the ones you buy for one of those days and then other more interesting books come along?  This isn't quite one of those - it was one I borrowed from a coworker after the yearly book sale.  It was good - reminded me a bit of Crightons books.  Big scientific ideas, the lure of big bucks, and some protectionism thrown in to the adventure.  A good vacation read.

Maybe in series would have been a better way to go

Brilliant novel.  Time and time again, Robinson continues to be one of my favourite novelists and I enjoy the mysterious yarns he weaves.  Very rich characterization, the stories have depth, and again, it is a great way to escape the day to day.  Although you don't have to read the Inspector Banks series in order, I almost wish I hadn't skipped around so much in the series just to have appreciated a bit of how the relationships between characters developed.  In a way I have been playing catch up, or plugging gaps in what I knew.  Definitely another great addition to the series.

I prefer my crankypants

I am not sure what I expected, so I can't really say that the book fell short of my expectations, but I think I expected more.  More what, I am not totally sure, but I think more autobiography.  Fey drops some great notes about leadership, however, I thought it would be a little more personal.  Yes, there are stories, but not really all that many personal details.  I think Fey succeeds in creating a somewhat humourous novel, with some real gems, and some really important notes about women in comedy... yet, for me, the cover still sticks in my mind the most.  Those forearms.  The justaposition.  I think I would have liked to have seen more of her story related with more details, to make it feel more personal rather than at an arm's length.  That being said, as a person in the public eye, Fey does a decent job at keeping a certain amount of her privacy intact, so likely a success on a few fronts.

Catching something

I start years off with such promise for my blog, and since I decided to start blogging (or rather listing and then making a few random comments) about the books I read, it seems that I have been posting more about the books I read, and then occasionally, when I have a moment, throwing a few thoughts out for good measure.  Well, we survived the first year in our house.  I am glad that going in to this Christmas season, it doesn't feel as totally hectic as last year's did.  Moving, and setting up house, and figuring out all new routines... glad that is starting to move in to the past. 

Our community seems to suit us - we are getting out for more walks, and experiencing more of the local flavours (blueberries, Christmas trees, little festivals) than we really did in our previous community.  Our lights are up (I suspect we will never have enough lights.  I foresee a future in which my DH buys a few extra strings every year until we get a computer program to have the lights dance to music).  Our tree is up, and the lights are on.  My pop would be proud - it isn't a bushy, trimmed up Douglas Fir.  Rather, we have a Nordman Fir.  I must say, I like it.  It doesn't quite smell as much as some trees, and it hasn't dropped as many needles either.  We already have hundreds of lights on the tree, and tomorrow night we will finish decorating our masterpiece.  Our tree is tall, and you can see through it, and the branches are strong.  Totally different tree experience. 

We are having our first Christmas dinner next weekend, so we are getting ready a few weeks earlier than normal.  It's strange though - we are pretty much set.  Maybe a few more gifts to get, and all in all, pretty close to done.  I have no idea when I will get to my baking.  I have moved almost completely to spelt (a wheat post will be a different post when I actually sit down to talk about it) so it has been enlightening to see how it cooks up in recipes.  All in all, not that much different than whole wheat! I also want to get cards done again this year, although somehow December 3rd is already upon us and time is marching forward!  Weekends are too short.  Nights too short.  Work days too long!

At three, our wee guy seems to be craving attention in all the wrong ways.  He also hasn't quite grasped the concept of the advent calendar.  B, is overall doing well, but seems to be in a classroom that I wouldn't call the perfect fit.  We get to meet tomorrow to discuss strategies to help him engage in different ways with his classmates.  Interesting comment from the teacher - they want him to be resilient when it comes to kids, because there are some kids that aren't big fans of his in the class.  I am tempted to give a piece of mind of how I view resilience, and what he brings to the table.  Then again, our experience is not the usual one, and I am going to challenge the team about the environment they are also creating, in which some behaviours are unique to the setting since I am not getting complaints from daycare!  Some behaviours present opportunities for B to grow, and figure out how he wants to present himself.  Ah yes, the ongoing struggle for self.  I am still a work in progress myself!

Another odd book coincidence

This was a book I stumbled across a few weeks ago when I was looking for books to recommend for my book club.  It looked intriguing.  If the Fall started out with books with ties to the circus, it is ending with books with ties to WWII and the war in the Pacific.

This is truly a bitter and sweet book, and I read it in less than four days.  It has been months since I have managed to make it through a book that quickly!  I really enjoyed this book.  A completely different coming of age novel set against 1942 and 1986 Seattle.  The time structure works, and coming after a book like Unbroken, was another slice of what life during WWII was like on the west coast.  It is amazing what history can gloss over, and what isn't taught in school, and what is revealed because you love to read.  This is a great story, I was thoroughly caught up in the love story between Henry, a first generation American Chinese, and Keiko, a second generation American Japanese, caught up between several old and new worlds, during wartime.  I enjoyed the characters, I enjoyed seeing a different side of Seattle, and I enjoyed the historical lesson.  I certainly look at parts of the Pacific Northwest slightly differently now, and this is another book that will likely make my most memorable reads of the year list.  Dive in!

Surprising tale

 I picked this one up at Costco a few years ago because it was the right price and the cover intrigued me.  Not that I have read Seabiscuit, or seen the movie, but something about this book caught my eye.  Then it sat on the shelf, waiting for the right time.  Funny how some books are like that - some you can't wait to dive right in to, and others, well, you almost have to wait for that right time to take a go at it.

This is one that will stick with me, and I have already recommended to a few people.  This wasn't what I expected - it is more like non fiction, since it is based on the life of Louis Zamperinelli.  What a story of survival - I always say life comes down to attitude, and that is exactly what this book is about - courage in the face of absolute disaster.  This is a side of WWII I don't know as much about - the war in the pacific.  Louis is many things, and this book mainly tells of how WWII experiences as a gunner in a Liberator, his experiences getting shot down, surviving being adrift in the endless Pacific Ocean, surviving Japanese POW camps, a return to normalcy, and failure, and then forgiveness and moving forward.  Well worth picking up this book.  It is one that will stick with you and makes you wish you could sit down and just listen to this fellow tell stories, if he was so willing.

And now, something different

If I blazed a path through books at the beginning of the year, I certainly have not done so this fall.  To say that I have been busy, feeling overwhelmed at times, learned a lot, is an understatement to say the least.

I wish I would have read more of this book in fewer settings.  I was able to read the last 75 pages over the weekend, but it was weeks of reading a few pages here and there.  This is one I will want to read again when I have a  little more energy and less on my plate.  A totally "novel" concept.  A mystery that delves a bit in to the paranormal, and a real escape from the same old, same old.  Some of the characters were frustrating at times, but they were crafted that way.  If you are looking for something different, this is a good choice!

Hard luck story with Heart

The magic of looking over your shoulder and updating at least the books you have been reading with the touch of a few numbers in the date setting feature.

This was our book club book for the month of October.  Ironically enough, we are still somewhat on the circus theme, albeit on a different page.  I found that the first part of this book was harder to get through - it is a down-on-your-luck story to begin with, and a darker portrait of North America.  The story shifts and turns, and although it doesn't resolve in to a completely happy ending, this was a good book.