The Undomestic Goddess

The Undomestic Goddess
by: Sophie Kinsella

I quite enjoyed this book - about a work-a-holic who gets a change in her life. It is written from an English perspective which I very much enjoy too. I love the different English terms; hob, hoover, boot and such. This is the same author as the Shopaholic books.

Very light, funny, easy read and enjoyable.

World Without End

World Without End

Author: Ken Follett

I loved this book so much, I had to post about it on the other Payne site.

Ken Follett tells this medieval story so well! I am almost sad to be done with it because I enjoyed it so much.

Boo

From: Julie

Boo by Rene Gutteridge

I got this book because it was next the the book Riding Lessons in the library. I liked the cover, thought I would try it. Apparently it is a series, and I am glad.

I really enjoyed this book. It was funny, cute with a bit of a romance. Easy read with funny character names. The author does not take herself so seriously. I will definitely read more of this series...after I finish my tome, World Without End.

Riding Lessons

from: Julie

Riding Lessons by Sara Gruen

This is by the same author as Water For Elephants. This was her first book. Could it be good?? IT WAS GREAT. I really liked it. It reminded me of The Horse Whisperer. If you haven't read that book, it is great too. I thought this was a compelling story, one that I had a hard time putting down.

Balzak and the Little Chinese Seamstress

From: Julie


Balzak and the Little Chinese Seamstress
by Dai Sijie

I heard about this book awhile ago and found it on the shelves on my libary. Very interesting story about the "re-education" of Chinese citizens. This happened in the 1990's! The story is fiction, but the re-education did occur.

The story is about two friends who were sent to be re-educated in a very remote mountain village. Their parents were highly educated, doctors, dentist. Therefore the boys needed to be re-educated. Interesting story.

One Thousand White Women

From Julie

One Thousand White Women

by Jim Fergus

Fiction, but written as a woman's diary who volunteered to live with the Cherokee Indians for two years. She was to marry an Indian and have a baby.

The Chief of the tribe meets with the President of the United States to say that they will trade 1,000 horses to the U.S. government in return for 1,000 white women to marry and give birth to Cherokee babies. That is true, in real like the President does not agree, but in this book, the President agrees. The book is the diary of one of those women.

I heard about this book about 10 years ago, thought it was fascinating, but my library never had it! Then suddenly, there it was and I scooped it up. The beginning was GREAT. Then the author got too carried away with himself and the story, it dragged and was too slow for me. I skipped to the more interesting parts and then the end. I liked it, just wish it was 150 pages shorter. It is a hefty book.

Read it if you have a lot of time.

Water for Elephants

from: Julie

Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen

I loved this book!!! One of my top favorites. It is about circus life in the 1930's. Very Interesting.
The book goes back and forth between the present 2004(?) and the past, 1930's. The man is a veterinarian for the circus. The book starts with him being between 91 or 93 years of age. He is living in an assisted living establishment. He remembers his past, then we see a glimpse of his life in the circus.

Playing For Pizza

Playing For Pizza - by John Grisham

Sadly, THE worst Grisham book I have read. Was not his usual style. It was just a book he wrote so he could travel to Italy. It was ok, but I cannot recommend it. Very heavy into football. The main character goes to Italy to play.

Into the Wild

from Julie:

Into the Wild by John Krakauer

I REALLY liked this book. Non-fiction about a boy, 21, and his journey by himself, hiking, camping, eventually living up in Alaska. It is about 2 years of this boy's life. Very interesting because this boys is totally different than anyone I have ever met. I enjoyed "getting to know him". And, you know the outcome of the book on the first page. I could read it with ease. It is also short, won't take a lot of time.

I have also read other Krakauer books, liked them all.

Dear John

from Julie:

Dear John by Nicholas Sparks

I have read many books by Nicholas Sparks. My favorite being "Three Week With My Brother".

I liked this one ok...barely. It is a sad, somewhat depressing book. I like my books to all end happy, everyone ends up with the one they want, no suffering, or sadness. I finally just read the end to get me out of my suspense...then I decided to just finish it becuase I think his next book, "The Choice" is about these same two characters. So, maybe after I read The Choice that will make this one worth it.

Dead Heat

Dead Heat by Dick Francis

If you like Dick Francis, you will like this book. It is very much like his other books. A nice mystery, easy read.

The Yummy Mummy

from Julie

The Yummy Mummy by Polly Williams

I rate this book ok. I liked it only because it was a great contrast with "Shopaholic & Baby". The Shopaholic book and Yummy Mummy are about the same thing - pregnant women in London and how they cope. Shopaholic comes from a positive point of view, the Yummy book is much more negative. It makes you realize that if you have a positive outlook, thinks will be much better. Attitude is the key.

The Misadventures of Maude March

I have been reading this book to Kylie and we LOVE it! It is about 2 young girls that have to go out on their own and what happens to them. It takes place in the 1800's. Very good, we can hardly read our scriptures long enough until we can get to this book.

French By Heart

French by Heart: An American Family's Adventures in La Belle France.

Ok, I just saw this book on the "return" cart, it looked interesting, so I got it. I have enjoyed it. It is non-fiction, it is funny and intereresting. Easy read. I reccommend it.

A Perfect Day

From Julie:

Fast, easy read. Pretty good, makes you remember what is really important in life.

It is about a man who wants to write a book, does, and then we see what happens to him and his family....choices.

Confessions of a Shopaholic

From Julie:

I thought I heard Tatia talking about these books on the cruise, so while at the library, I picked up a book that had 3 "Shopaholic" books in one.

I have very much enjoyed them, they are an easy read, and very funny.

The three books that I just finished are: Confessions of a Shopaholic, A Shopaholic Takes Manhatten, A Shopaholic Ties the Knot.

Twilight

This is a teenage fiction book about a human and vampire falling in love! Don't gag - I was so addicted when I first started reading it. I read it the whole way from my flight to Paris. In fact, when we got to Paris I had finished it and so I had Gil find an American book store in Paris so we could buy the sequel. Now the third book is coming out in ten days. I'm very excited.

I have a question.

I read a GREAT book in Paris that I want to share . . . . but how do I post a picture of the book?

TELL MY STORY, TOO

I just found this book from Amazon this summer and I love it. It's all about the pioneer stories, especially about the Willey and Edward Martin handcart cos. I feel badly that my beloved grandchildren are really not interested in learning what their great great grandparents did as children or young adults even though they did much to shape the unborn lives of my grandchildren. I tried to tell Lyssy about them before she went on the "trek". I even told her to look on the wall in Wy. where all the names of the handcart people and the rescuers are listed. She would be surprised of how many there are who are our ancestors.
But someday, all my children will be very interested and be thankful for what went before them. It is a great book - tells one page stories so is easy to read. I love it.

The Secret Life of Bees

I finished this book just before reading Thirteen Moons.

The Secret Life of Bees by Sue Monk Kidd was FANTASTIC. It was filled with great wisdom. I borrowed this from Mom - thank you - it was a great read.

I highly recommend this book.

A Thousand Splendid Suns

This is what I am currently reading....so far so good. I think I am around page 100. I read his first book - The Kite Runner, which I liked VERY much.

I'll let you know how it goes.

I REALLY enjoyed this book. It is about people living in Afghanistan in this current time. It was so real, but it is a fiction book. Very good.

Velvet Elvis

Best book I have read this summer.

You can read an excerpt from the first chapter.

It's a nonfiction book dealing with the postmodern veiw of Christianity. It's really very good. Really. I promise.

Alright, I'll post one about the 2 fiction books I have read.

Daughter of the Forest

Of course, I think you all have already read this one. But I loved it as well. You know that the premise is based on a fairy tale from the Grimm Brothers. I loved the way Juliet Marillier developed the characters and gave a much deeper motivation to the story.

I was very interested in the point of view of the practioners of the "Old Religion" and their perspective on how Christianity was violent in their methods of converting the people. The whole book had a very ancient-world perspective that I found rather facinating--as I am in the middle of comprehending my own change of perspective from modernity to a post modern viewpoint.

I also read the second book of the trilogy. I was about 10 pages from the end of it when I remembered why I don't read too much fiction anymore. It really takes me away from reality and I stop doing all the things I should be doing--painting, spinning, writing, studying, talking to my family. I almost didn't finish the book. But in the end, it was only 10 more pages, so I finished it. And that will most likely be the last fiction book I read for long while.

Thirteen Moons

I waited for this book from the library with bated breath. I read his first book, Cold Mountain, and loved it.

This book is a bit of a chore. I am only now skimming it to read the good/interesting parts. Sadly, I cannot recommend my first book on this reading blog.

I finished the book today, Sun, July 22. NOT worth reading, or even skimming to the end.

Easy To Do!

When you read a book, good or bad, blog about it!!

Let us know what you read, was it good or bad, would you reccomend it? You can also post a picture of your book, or of you reading your book.

Let's get started. Think about the great list of books we could have VERY soon. I will post soon about what I am reading.