Books Mania

Heaven is for Real

mathiaslapaix@gmail.com (swaggariffic) — Sun, 01 May 2011 22:13:00 +0000

is the true story of the four-year old son of a small town Nebraska pastor who during emergency surgery slips from consciousness and enters heaven. He survives and begins talking about being able to look down and see the doctor operating and his dad praying in the waiting room. The family didn't know what to believe but soon the evidence was clear.

Colton said he met his miscarried sister, whom no one had told him about, and his great grandfather who died 30 years before Colton was born, then shared impossible-to-know details about each. He describes the horse that only Jesus could ride, about how "reaaally big" God and his chair are, and how the Holy Spirit "shoots down power" from heaven to help us.

Told by the father, but often in Colton's own words, the disarmingly simple message is heaven is a real place, Jesus really loves children, and be ready, there is a coming last battle.

Death On the Ice

mathiaslapaix@gmail.com (swaggariffic) — Sun, 01 May 2011 22:03:00 +0000

Challenges, Movies, and Literacy and Longing in L.A.

mathiaslapaix@gmail.com (swaggariffic) — Sat, 02 Apr 2011 15:39:00 +0000

I finally seem to be getting to all of those books I have been wanting to read for sometime now, but for whatever reason have gotten distracted from somewhere along the way. For instance, Literacy and Longing in L.A. has been on my TBR list for months now, and at last I have immersed myself in it and am enjoying it immensely. I love the fact that the main character Dora goes on "book benders" whenever she is faced with emotional turmoil she doesn't want to deal with. There are tons of literary references in this book and each chapter's heading begins with a perfect literary quote. One paragraph in particular early on in the book really jumped out at me.

"I collect books the way my girlfriends buy designer handbags. Sometimes I just like to know I have them and actually reading them is beside the point. Not that I don't eventually read them. I do. But the mere act of buying them makes me happy - the world is more promising, more fulfilling. It's hard to explain, but I feel, somehow, more optimistic. The whole act just cheers me up."

This describes my book buying habits to a T. I am forever buying books, excited by the new novels that will line my bookshelves. No matter that I already have more books than I know what to do with and that a good chunk of them are those that haven't been read yet - just knowing that I can walk into any room of my house and pick up a book that suits my mood is somehow comforting. It can make a crappy day seem less crappy and provide a much needed escape.

I'm hoping to crack open some Jane Austen novels in the coming weeks. I've been watching the Masterpiece Theater film adaptations on PBS Sunday nights. I thought Persuasion was ok, but I really enjoyed Northanger Abbey. And I am ashamed to admit that I've never actually read any of Jane Austen's works. In an attempt to inject some classical literature reading into a standing bookclub I am a member of, I suggested we pick a Jane Austen novel, read it, and compare it with the movie and then discuss both for a future meeting. Sounds like a good idea, right? I had noticed that PBS posted a nifty book and film club discussion guide. However, my suggestion went over like a lead balloon so suffice it to say I will be reading Austen on my own. Ah well, I tried...and everyone's tastes are different. But I couldn't help feeling disappointed by those people who weren't willing to even try reading one of her books. Kind of like when people tell me they don't like to read or couldn't possibly find the time to read...it doesn't make me think any less of them as a person, but right away I get that deflated feeling from knowing that I will never be able to talk books with that person as books are such a huge part of my world. It makes me want to scream at these people too - "Do you have any idea what you are missing???" But at the same time I know I have to realize that not everyone loves to read. And there's nothing wrong with that (even if I happen to think it's bizarre :)

And speaking of PBS, while watching the Jane Austen adaptations I stumbled across the show the Vicar of Dibley and found myself roaring with laughter. Definitely a show to be DVR'd for me!

I've seen some challenges posted about in the blogosphere and I think I'm going to jump on the Chunkster Challenge bandwagon. I thought this one would be perfect for me since three of the books in my current TBR pile are indeed chunksters. Here is my pick list for now with the option to add others as I think of them.

1. The Winter Rose by Jennifer Donnelly
2. The Historian by Elizabeth Kostova (It's about time - this one has been waiting on the shelf for me for the past 2 years!)
3. Eclipse by Stephenie Meyer (I've been saving this one for a rainy day because I know it is going to be oh, so good! I think it qualifies as a chunkster, although I haven't checked the page count.)

And last but not least, have people seen that there is to be a movie adaptation of Meyer's Twilight series? If you go to her website, you can see who has been cast as Bella and Edward. I'm in agreement with the casting - both actors look similar to how I had envisioned the characters. Robert Pattinson, aka Cedric Diggory from HP, is a great choice I think - those cheekbones lend themselves well to the vampire look. What does everyone else think? Are they happy with the casting choices?

Still Alice

mathiaslapaix@gmail.com (swaggariffic) — Sat, 02 Apr 2011 15:25:00 +0000

Has anyone else read Still Alice by Lisa Genova? The minute I started reading this book, I could not put it down. The main character, Alice, is a cognitive psychology professor at Harvard with the world at her fingertips when she is given a devastating diagnosis. Recent memory lapses thought to be a symptom of menopause turn out to be an indicator of early-onset Alzheimer's disease. Completely riveting, the book follows Alice through the early stages of her disease and then its inevitable progression and the effect it has not only on her, but her family as well. Definitely a must read!

The Local News by Miriam Gershow

mathiaslapaix@gmail.com (swaggariffic) — Sat, 02 Apr 2011 15:20:00 +0000

I quit the P.D. James book. I loved her beautiful sentences, and I truly believe she is some kind of a genius, but the timing was off between the book and me. The book was like a nice-looking, smart boy I once dated too soon after a messy break up, and I ended up feeling tired and sarcastic whenever he opened his mouth to speak, even though I knew I was the one with the problem. The real issue is that I was too dim to keep up with the characters/plot without constantly flipping back to previous chapters, and I was reading the book on my Kindle iPhone app, of all crappy, impractical mediums. So I quit. Basta. Done. The book is good, though. It'll find someone who treats it right.

But I quickly cuddled up with Miriam Gershow's The Local News, inconstant thing that I am, and proceeded to blow off my life until I finished the last page. In The Local News, fifteen-year-old Lydia Pasternak struggles to survive the aftermath of her brother's mysterious disappearance. As her parents and community grieve, Lydia wrestles with ambivalent feelings about life without her indomitably popular, sometimes cruel, older brother. Lydia is an over-achiever, and she throws her energy into organizing any clues that might lead to her brother's recovery. Her hunt for information causes her to tunnel into her own mind and heart, leading her to confront and make sense of a crumbled family dynamic that--if she's honest--predates her brother's disappearance.

This books was top notch. Emotionally taut, painfully and deliciously pitch perfect, sharp, focused, darkly funny. Not a word wasted--I did not happen upon a single skim-worthy paragraph. At one point, Lydia watches her grieving father and describes the things he mutters to his missing son when he thinks no one is listening, and I'm telling you: the scene is grip-your-sides-and-rock-sad. And yet, Lydia's highschooler-y musings are also so earthy and devastatingly true that I laughed quite a bit (and read out loud to myself) as well. Why can't every book be this engaging? I was convinced that Gershow had a brother who went missing, and that this book was a quasi-true tale, but nay. I googled it. I'm definitely looking forward to Gershow's next thing.

I know many of you reviewed this book a few months ago, and I wondered if you might link up those reviews below so that I can read through them and mentally muse with you, book-club-style. Please and thank you.