It is the eve of my fiftieth birthday. You would think I would feel sad or self-conscious or dreadful about saying that but I don’t. I love birthdays. I’ve never felt deprived by having a birthday so close to Christmas. I have my awesome parents to thank for that. They never once gave me a combined gift for the two occasions, not that it would have been the worst thing in the world, as I have never been in need for anything. It’s fun having another reason to celebrate between Christmas and New Years. I know none of us really relish the thought of growing old, and believe me, I receive daily physical reminders that I am not getting any younger, but on the inside I feel perpetually young.

This past summer I went on a cruise with my girlfriends from college. We were all turning fifty this year and we decided to do something together to celebrate since we let it get past us when we were forty.  That trip was my big celebration and it was a blast!

And since I’ve had the distraction of my son’s wedding earlier this month, I haven’t thought very much about what I would do to celebrate tomorrow. Did you catch that? My son was married on December 15th. My baby. I have arrived at that time in life where my children can be married.

So, with my life a little on the busy side these days, I did not finish two of the three reading challenges I participated in for 2018. I read 11 of 12 books for the Modern Mrs. Darcy Reading Challenge and 11 of 12 books for the Roof Beam Reader To Be Read Pile Challenge. I actually had enough time in the last couple of months to finish both challenges but when I got down to the last titles I had committed to read, I just couldn’t put my mind or energy on those particular books. On the up side, I got rid of three or four books from my shelf that I have no intention of ever reading. I’ll be doing more of that in the next few days.

I did meet my goodreads goal of 30 books. I know that doesn’t sound like much to some but may I mention that two of those books were Moby Dick and Anna Karenina? And I am a slow reader. SLOW. Overall, I had a great reading year. I loved almost everything I read. All but two of the books were four or five stars for me. Also, some buddies and I started a Big Book Book Club that will meet twice a year. Our first book was Moby Dick, the next one will be The Brothers Karamazov. I’m happy about that because I read it four or five years ago and I still remember a fair amount. I think I’ll try listening to it this time.

I’m pretty sure I’m going to read “challenge free” this year, other than my goodreads goal. There are several big ones I want to read and they take me long time. I’ll also keep working on reading books I already own. I’m committed to keeping that number under control.

Happy New Year and happy reading to us all!!

I’m not someone who spends too much time trying to evaluate my reading life to determine what kind of reader I am. (Not that it’s not a fun thing to do). I know that most of the time what I’m reading is not new, and I’m usually reading something that has made a considerable impact and has staying power in the reading world. I like to play catch up on what I’ve missed out on. I don’t read to inform or confirm my worldview. I sometimes, only sometimes, read with the intention of considering someone else’s worldview. I mean, you don’t have to be all that purposeful about that, it’s sort of an automatic benefit of reading anyway. (Now look who’s spending too much time evaluating her reading life…) Forgive me.

I do know this. When I want popular, plot-based, fast-paced fiction, John Grisham is my guy. I don’t believe I’ve ever been disappointed in one of his books. I’ve read all of his sports novels, and I’ve read A Painted House, Skipping Christmas, Camino Island and a handful of his legal thrillers. (Some folks assume all his writing is of the legal type but it’s not.)

I recently finished Sycamore Row and I looovved it!!! I wanted to pick this book up every free moment I had.

Jake Brigance, the same Jake Brigance of A Time To Kill, (Matthew McConaughey if you saw the movie), is still living and working in Clanton, Mississippi. On a Monday morning Jake receives an envelope containing a letter and a hand-written will from Seth Hubbard, a man who just the day before committed suicide.  In this will, Mr. Hubbard revokes a previous will and completely cuts out all of his children and grandchildren. He has amassed an incredible fortune and he leaves 5% to his church, 5% to a long lost brother and 90% to his black, middle-aged house keeper. SHOCK AND AWE!!

It’s just good, ya’ll. It’s good. If you’re interested, you can read here where someone gushed about it in The Washington Post a few years ago when the book came out.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/entertainment/books/sycamore-row-by-john-grisham/2013/10/20/0f5a11be-34fd-11e3-be86-6aeaa439845b_story.html?utm_term=.ef2ee5431cb0

I read this one as part of Roof Beam Reader’s 2018 TBR Challenge. Only two more books to go!

“It takes two people to make you, and one people to die. That’s how the world is going to end.”

I did it. I read William Faulkner and I survived, all the way to the end!

It really wasn’t so bad. Well, at first it was, but eventually it got easier, and that THICK AS MOLASSES southern dialect finally began to make more sense.

What’s interesting to me about this is that I’m from the south. I’ve been here my whole life. When I go anywhere that’s not in the south, people like to ask where I’m from, because they hear the accent in my voice. (Which I don’t even think is that significant.) When I was a junior in high school, I went to New York with my mom on a work trip. While another girl and I were in Bloomingdale’s, the store employees would just ask us to talk, so they could listen to our accents and smile. Anyway, that all came to mind because of the work it required in me to get to comfortable with the language in As I Lay Dying. The story takes place in the deep south, 80 or 90 years ago, and I would equate the dialect with what you might hear from those native to the NC or Tennessee Mountains. But this was so much more. And then when you consider that part of the story is told in stream of consciousness, which often doesn’t appear in complete sentences, then you’ve got yourself a challenge. But, like I said, it got easier as it went along.

As I Lay Dying tells the story of the Bundren family of Yoknapatawpha county, Mississippi. Addie Bundren, the matriarch of the family, is dying and her last wish is to be buried in her hometown of Jefferson, Mississippi. The family is preparing for her death and the eventual long wagon ride to take her to her final resting place. The story is told in the point of view of 15 narrators. All of the family contribute to the story, as well as neighbors, friends and one reverend.

When I first read from Dewey Dell’s perspective, I imagined her a him so I didn’t know who the girl was that was fanning Addie by her bedside. This is not unusual, as Faulkner doesn’t really spell anything out for you. You as the reader get to piece the story together as you read along. And when I read the scene of her and Lafe picking cotton,  I remember thinking, “wait, something’s going on here and she’s not making it clear,” but I  totally got the mood of the scene. Then when I watched the scene from the movie on Youtube, the SAME mood was portrayed and I was so proud of myself for getting it. Then I knew my reading instincts would be alright for the rest of the book.

Many dangers and mishaps happen along the way to Jefferson. Darl, my favorite son, is thoughtful, intellectual and brooding, Dewey dell is hiding a secret, Jewel is angry and defiant, Cash is injured and the treatment is grotesque and unbearable. Animals die, Addie decomposes, and Anse, the father/husband, is focused on the task but useless in any other way.

There was a time in the beginning where the language was so mixed up, repetitive and convoluted that all of a sudden I could hear Bill Clinton saying, “Well, it depends on what your definition of IS is.” Because that’s how much sense it made! I read the paragraph aloud to my husband and he just looked at me, blankly.  I’m sure he wonders why I spend my time reading such hullabaloo.

Overall I’m glad I read it. It’s not a happy book nor a hopeful book, but it’s a picture of a family and what they experience. It ends abruptly and I was like, “What..?”  I’m unsure of whether Dewey Dell’s issue got resolved and I don’t like how things turned out for Darl. If you’ve read As I Lay Dying and you have thoughts on these things I’ve mentioned, please comment below and let me know what you think.

Thanks for reading!

I first encountered Athol Dickson’s work back when my husband and I had our bookstore. (See previous post if you don’t know what the heck I’m talking about).
He has several titles under his belt. Of the three that I’ve read, a pattern emerges. The writing is fast-paced, the setting is New Orleans, and they have C-R-E-E-P-Y and dark themes. Also, they end on a hopeful note. (Thanks, Athol!)

In They Shall See God, Dickson tells the story of two childhood friends who witness a gruesome murder, testify in court, and see the accused locked away for 25 years. That day in court marked the end of their friendship and they don’t reconnect until the murderer has served his time, is released, and a series of new and unusual murders begin to take place.

Now, I’m about to show my ignorance or naivete in something. I’m old enough now to not really care about how this makes me look, I mean, we’re all ignorant about some things, right? So, in this book, there is a fair amount of protesting going on. But this protesting was of a different nature than I typically see. And maybe this doesn’t really happen, since this IS a work of fiction, but either way you go, it was thought-provoking, and thought-provoking-ness is a good thing. Am I right?

Back to the story….Ruth and Kate are best friends in childhood. After the murder, their parents prevent them from seeing each other again. The story opens in their adulthood and you find that Ruth is a reformed Jewish Rabbi and Kate is a born-again Christian. The protests that take place are the Christians rudely and loudly and obnoxiously protesting against the Jews, every day, outside of their Temple. Signs, marches, chanting, the works. These protests are what was so strange to me, and a little hard for me to buy into, initially.

I recognize, though I could never say I fully understand, the historical plight of the Jewish race.  God’s chosen people have been enslaved, annihilated and despised from their beginning. As a born-again Christian, from the age of 12, I have never encountered New Testament Believers who have anything but respect and gratitude for the Jewish people and their heritage. Yes, there are fundamental differences in our faiths but there is also an overwhelming amount of common ground, and really, an undeniable acknowledgement that without the Jewish faith, Christians would not have their own! So it was strange to see these two sides pitted against one another, with the antagonizers being the Christians.

It turns out there is a plotted reason for all the protesting that has it’s origin in the murder escapade 25 years previous. There is a cool revelation into the pattern of how the new murders are taking place. There is anger, insanity, wild animals; lions and tigers and bears, (oh, my!) and a slow but meaningful coming to terms and understanding between Ruth and Kate. It takes a while to untangle the truth that has been knotted up for so long but they get there. And it’s a really creepy and dark process along the way.

I read this one as part of my 2018 TBR Challenge. I’ve now read 8 out of the 12 books on my list and I’m getting a little nervous about being able to finish. Sigh…

Here’s something you probably don’t know about me. (Unless you know me personally). My husband and I used to be bookstore owners. We owned a Christian bookstore, part of the Lemstone Books chain of eighty-something Christian bookstores in the US. They were based out of Chicago and every August, Mike and I hopped a plane and flew to Chicago for the annual Lemstone conference and Christmas buying. It was a great seven or eight years of our lives, except for those seven or eight Thanksgivings before Black Fridays, as we spent the majority of our time those Thanksgving days getting the store ready for Christmas.

Those Lemstone years were the years I was birthing and rearing little ones so I really was not at the store very much. When I was there, you could see the disappointment on the faces of the teens that came in wanting to talk to my super nice and super informed husband on all the latest Christian bands and music. It’s fine, it really didn’t bother me, but when I see some of those teens that are now adults around town, I like to hold that over their heads. And really, who can be offended? It’s true, my husband is one of the nicest and smartest people I know.

Here’s another thing you may not know about me: I’ve always wanted to write a book. For the longest time, I wanted to write a middle-school age book. (Back in my day, it was Junior High) It was going to be about a girl who goes to summer camp. Things would happen, lessons would be learned, camp would be the best thing ever.

In those early days at Lemstone, I discovered a new author, Robin Jones Gunn, and she caught my eye because she was writing a series for young teens that reflected so much of what I wanted to write too! The Christy Miller series began with twelve books, seeing Christy from about age thirteen through her high school graduation. As time passed, Gunn wrote Christy Miller, The College Years, Christy and Todd the Married Years and in the last year or two she has completed Christy and Todd The Baby Years. I’m a little behind now on the series but I did just recently finish Book Two in the Married Years, Home of our Hearts.

Semi-newlyweds, Christy and Todd experience the realities of young adulthood while walking through financial anxieties, faith-testings, family dramas and friendships. In Home of our Hearts they travel across the world for two very special weddings; Todd’s father has finally found the love of his life and is marrying in the Canary Islands and Christy’s best friend Katie is getting married in Kenya. Christy experiences all of the culture and sacredness of both ceremonies and begins to wonder if she and Todd are in the right or best place for them to serve God. I have one more to read in the Married Years to find out.

I’ve enjoyed this series over the years so much. I like moving through them slowly, always knowing there is another one I have to look forward to reading.

Gunn has written many other series as well. The Glenbrook series is a great romance series for the twenty-something reader, and The Sisterchick Series is a great adventure series for the middle-aged woman. If you never get to travel the world, you can always read a Sisterchick novel and get a great glimpse of the food and culture of other countries;  Holland, Mexico, Finland, France, Hawaii, Italy, England and Australia!

Au revoir!

Chad Williams was an outgoing, self-motivated, somewhat obnoxious young man who knew what he wanted in life and pursued it with a passion, one hundred and ten percent. After bouts of celebrity fame in skateboarding, Vans shoe endorsements, and professional fishing, Chad decided that what he wanted most in his life was to become a Navy SEAL. His father, weary of his son’s fickle decision making, arranged for him to have some training sessions with Scott Helvenston, a current Navy SEAL, to be sure it was really something he wanted to pursue before signing up. Chad and Scott began an intense training relationship that ultimately led to mentorship and friendship.

A few days before he was to report for Boot Camp, Chad turned on the television and was horrified to see Scott, who had been deported to Iraq, being drug through the streets of Fallujah, mutilated and murdered after being ambushed. He was filled with anger and grief and he allowed those emotions to fuel his desire to move forward with the Navy and his desire to become a SEAL.

A large portion of this book details the excruciating training regimen Chad endured to become a SEAL. Some of it was hard to imagine anyone making it through. One thing I found interesting though is that one doesn’t get “cut” from attempting to make it to SEAL. One excuses himself when he can no longer move forward in the training. It is designed to be too difficult. It is an incredible test of endurance and strength. It is an awesome display of what the human body and mind are capable of overcoming. And when you read about some of the missions the SEALS complete in the field, then you can appreciate why they must go through what they go through.

After  years of planning and preparing, obsessing actually, about becoming a SEAL, he made it.  And just a couple of months after, something in his life changed and his desire to serve as a SEAL began to fade fast.

This book highlights Chad’s journey to becoming a SEAL and also the journey his life took when he became a born again Christian. It was actually funny the way his conversion happened, as he was quite belligerent about not being a follower of Christ. But like the Good Book says, “A man’s heart plans his way, but the Lord directs his steps.” Proverbs 16:9 NKJV

I enjoyed reading this true account of someone who had the ambition and physical prowess to become a SEAL, and I especially enjoyed reading about his missions in the field for the 5 or 6 years he served before retiring as a SEAL and becoming a full time minister/evangelist.

I read this book as part of my 2018 TBR Pile Challenge. This is book 6 of 12 that I have challenged myself to read, and since July is ending I am a tiny bit behind schedule. Oh well, maybe I’ll catch up in August??

John Grisham is known for his legal thrillers, and he’s written a great many of them, but he has occasionally hopped off the legal train and delved into other subjects. I’ve read and enjoyed a handful of his thrillers and almost all of his non-legal books. (Playing for Pizza would be my least favorite, but still not too bad.) I recently finished Calico Joe, a book written for the love of baseball, and I reeeaaallllyy loved it.  I’m feeling quite lazy in thinking of how to craft words to tell you about this story so instead I’m posting the blurb from goodreads in which some professional writer recounts and teases us beautifully.

   It began quietly enough with a pulled hamstring. The first baseman for the Cubs AAA affiliate in Wichita went down as he rounded third and headed for home. The next day, Jim Hickman, the first baseman for the Cubs, injured his back. The team suddenly needed someone to play first, so they reached down to their AA club in Midland, Texas, and called up a twenty-one-year-old named Joe Castle. He was the hottest player in AA and creating a buzz.

In the summer of 1973 Joe Castle was the boy wonder of baseball, the greatest rookie anyone had ever seen.  The kid from Calico Rock, Arkansas dazzled Cub fans as he hit home run after home run, politely tipping his hat to the crowd as he shattered all rookie records.
 
Calico Joe quickly became the idol of every baseball fan in America, including Paul Tracey, the young son of a hard-partying and hard-throwing Mets pitcher. On the day that Warren Tracey finally faced Calico Joe, Paul was in the stands, rooting for his idol but also for his Dad. Then Warren threw a fastball that would change their lives forever…
 
In John Grisham’s new novel the baseball is thrilling, but it’s what happens off the field that makes CALICO JOE a classic.

There is a whole lotta baseball speak in this one and a lot of  lingo that any baseball lover will follow, but fear not, if you are not attuned to the ins and outs of baseball you don’t have to be. This is, at it’s heart, a story of forgiveness. And I’m not gonna lie, I cried.

Everything I Never Told You tells the story of young Lydia, the favorite child of James and Marilyn, and the impossible weight she carried living a life of unprecedented pressure. Pressure from her Caucasian mother determined not to allow her daughter to make the same life decisions she had made, of not finishing college and becoming a housewife, and from her Chinese-American father who faced prejudice all his life and his all-consuming need for his child to be accepted by her peers.

It’s no spoiler to let you know that in the opening lines, fifteen year old Lydia is dead. The trajectory of this book is the explanation and exploration of the life Lydia was living and her desperate struggle to please the two people whose job it was to nurture and protect and set free their precious little bird. Instead, their little bird was trapped, smothered and starved of the security she ached and longed for. Her only comfort came from Nath, her compassionate brother, but even his capacity for strength and comfort could not accomodate the two of them and eventually Lydia was left to survive on her own. Naturally, her death creates havoc in the family, testing the strength and resolve of marriage and siblings.

I’m giving this one four stars because this was beautifully done, so well written and so intricate in details of the heart and mind. But this book is sad. Sad and heavy. It makes you long for resolution. And you get it in some ways, thankfully, but in keeping with reality, in some ways you don’t.

It’s so like me to be behind on the times.  I rarely indulge in new releases or anticipate upcoming titles. I’m just drawn to books that have already made their impact on society. Occasionally, I’ll pick up a new release from an author I have enjoyed, but normally I read books that most book lovers have “been there – done that” a long time ago. It’s just how I roll. My fashion is old, my music is old, my books are old, and my EYES are old. That’s why I am loving my kindle more and more. And the last book I read on my kindle is the beloved The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society by Mary Ann Shaffer.

The story takes place immediately post World War II. Author Juliet Ashton receives a letter from someone on the island of Guernsey, one of the Channel Islands off the coast of France, that was occupied by Nazi’s for five years. Her name and address were discovered inside a book written by Charles Lamb and the reader/writer of the letter is hoping she can assist him in finding additional books by Lamb. He doesn’t know that she herself, is an author. They strike up a friendship in their correspondence which leads to Juliet traveling to Guernsey to get to know his friends, the members of the Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society, and to begin her next writing project.

This book is compiled solely of letters. I thought that this might eventually annoy me but it didn’t and the story unfolded beautifully. The characters were superb and their personalities were fun, smart, quirky and most of all compassionate. I enjoyed this book wholeheartedly and it still managed to teach me some hard things I didn’t know about occupied life.

If I have only one criticism it would be that I never got much of an English vibe from Juliet. Nor did she seem to me like a woman living in the 1940’s. I don’t know what a feminine voice from that time and place should sound like but she seemed incredibly modern, confident and free from the typical reserve we’ve come to expect from the English. I guess it shouldn’t seem strange to me since I’ve been watching The Crown. Those are some strong women!

I read this one as part of two reading challenges.
I. Roof Beam Reader’s 2018 TBR Challenge
2. Modern Mrs. Darcy’s 2018 Reading Challenge for the “Recommended by Someone with Good Taste” category. My book club friend, Marcy, who is working her way through the entire Newberry Award list as we speak, recommended this jewel to me. It is my favorite read of the year so far.