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Monday, September 6, 2010

Reading Review!

Check out my friend Rebecca's blog, The Mommy Saver: Moms saving money, time and sanity. She gives tips for saving time and money in your household as well as yummy freezer cooking recipes. And, she's doing a giveaway right now of my Monkeyshiners items! Check out her blog here and enter to win a pacifier leash, bib clip, OR $5 off your purchase!
Giveaway ends Friday, September 10.





I "enjoyed" this latest book, The Murder Room, by Michael Capuzzo.



This book tells the true story of the Vidocq Society, an elite group of detectives, profilers, and other forensic experts who work on cold cases. The author talks about how the society came to be, gives a brief biography of the 3 founders, and details many of their cases.



I enjoy most mysteries though have not been a huge fan of "true crime"; this one is well written and keeps your attention better than most in my opinion.
However, knowing that it was true made some of those scenes a little harder to take. My one complaint would be that the author jumps around between the cases before sharing their conclusions, but I suppose this does hold your interest! I'd recommend it to those who enjoy the forensic/profiling/case solving genre!

The Lacuna by Barbara Kingsolver
I forgot to add this to the reading sidebar til now, but I just finished this book by Barbara Kingsolver. This is a long book, as was The Poisonwood Bible, the only other of hers I think I've read. I’m not sure if I would have enjoyed it as much as a “regular” paper book; I listened to it as an audiobook while doing my chores around the house, and this way, picking it up for different bits through out the week, I didn’t tire of it as I do at times with these longer, not so action packed books. Kingsolver educates the reader on Mexico and the communist era both in Mexico and the United States in an entertaining way. I at first wasn’t sure about the author’s narration (she reads this book herself), as I thought it was a bit monotone, but as the book continued and the characters developed and couldn’t have imagined it any other way. Because of my experiences in Central America, I really enjoyed the parts set in Mexico. I had never read very much about the communist “witch hunt” in our nation’s history and was appalled at the way our government handled the whole situation. I definitely enjoyed this historical fiction and will be looking for more in this genre. I recommend it to you as well! One more note: I was pretty proud of myself when I heard a Trotsky reference somewhere after reading this and actually knew who that was!)


 

I’m a fast reader, so there will probably be multiple books in each book review post. Tigerheart by Peter David was a sweet book based on the story of Peter Pan. You’ll find similarities to the popular children’s story, but it seems to be set in another time to the traditional tale; at one point the author says, “There has always been a Boy, and his cohorts, in the Anyplace. The names change. The circumstances of how they got there and who they might be are constantly in flux. But heroes and villains remain heroes and villains”.



The author has a very quirky writing style; my favorite statement in this book is the following. It is concerning the Boy and Gwenny (Peter Pan and the girl character… my mind is a blank…) and the Boy’s wanting to at times act like father and mother, though at other times wanting to be treated as a child as well: “In his inability to decide whether he wanted the most significant female in his life to be his mother or his life mate-and perpetually alternating between the two-The Boy was closer to the attitude of adult men than in any other aspect of his life.” LOL!



But anyway, I would recommend this book, it’s an entertaining and sweet book, a twist on the tale we all know and love. One note: if you enjoy it and decide to continue with others by this author, they may be a bit more… hmmm. What’s the word… raunchy is coming to mind… I began with David’s Sir Apropos of Nothing series. Also entertaining and inventive, though at times a bit vulgar. The author enjoys slipping in little jokes about modern culture, the typical" medievel novel, etc.  This series is set in a magical world of knights and the main character is the ultimate anti-hero, falling into situations and somehow scraping out of them. I enjoyed them, but just wanted to give a warning!

As always, leave your comments, thoughts and suggestions as well!




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