verity83 | Entries tagged with reading again in 2010

37. Louisa May Alcott: The Woman Behind Little Women, Harriet Reisen. 302pp

This was a well-written biography and I enjoyed it. I've always admired Alcott's books (at least her children's ones - I am not interested in the pulp fiction she did), but didn't know a whole lot about her life, so I learned a lot.

There were a few statements I took issue with, and they may well be the result of poor proofreading, but for someone who appears to be as obsessed with Alcott as the author claims to be, I found it ridiculous that she made the three following erroneous remarks, all about events in the "Little Women" series.

Page 21: She says that the scene where Mr March and Demi are doing alphabet gymnastics is in "Little Men". It's not. It's in "Little Women" (or "Good Wives", to be perfectly accurate).

Page 139: I haven't pulled out my book to find the exact age of Beth at her death, but off the top of my head I know she wasn't 16. She was nearly 18 when Jo left for New York, so she was 19 or 20 when she died.

Page 238: She says that Jo had boy and girl twins, Daisy and Demi. She did not; Meg did. Jo had Rob and Teddy.

Aside from these errors, I really did enjoy the book, and found it really interesting to learn more about the Transcendental movement. It amazes me how many new and anti-Christian philosophies took root and grew like weeds in the 1840s: spiritism, Transcendentalism, evolution, et cetera. I was intrigued that she actually did mention the Millerite movement in passing, although she says they planted no crops in 1843, and as far as I am able to find in fact, some chose not to harvest crops. Anyway.

She had a hard life and strikes me as a very sad individual in whom the love of Christ would have made a world of difference. Working working working and never able to maintain happiness.

38. The Great Controversy, Ellen White. 678pp.

Third time through in three years. It gets better every time.

36. 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea, Jules Verne. 297pp

Quite fascinating. Very verbose in its descriptions of sea creatures and very formal in its dialogue, but managed to not be creaky in spite of the awkwardness. "Friend Ned." Seriously.

Not sure I liked it enough to read any more Verne, but it was interesting. I would have liked to know more about Captain Nemo and he just didn't put enough information there for me to read between the lines, and I found that cruel.

I've been so out of it. This includes all books since June's list.

30. The Desire of Ages, Ellen White. 835pp
Second time to read through this - it's been several years since the last time. It was so rich and so moving. I actually had to put it down for a little bit when it got to the scenes of Christ's trial and death, because I was overwhelmed with the realisation of what He endured and would have endured if only ONE person would be saved through it. Wow.

31. Harry Anderson: The Man Behind the Paintings, Raymond H Woolsey. 127pp
This was from the church library. I enjoy his paintings a lot and it was a quick, simple overview of his life and work.

32. Farmer Boy, Laura Ingalls Wilder. 371pp
This was my favourite Little House book as a child (and probably still is). SO. MUCH. WORK. I was exhausted this time around just reading about all the work they did.

33. Dan Webster: Union Boy, Bradford Smith. 192pp
Very simplistic, almost too simplistic, but since it is meant for very young children, I'll let that pass. I really liked the silhouette illustrations, and since I knew absolutely nothing about the guy, it was educational for me.

34. Shakespeare: The World As Stage, Bill Bryson. 196pp
Not the best of Bryson, but considering the subject matter I think he did very well. What really is there to do but speculate when the facts we have about Shakespeare are so low in volume? I really enjoyed his insights on what was going on in England during his time and the information about others with whom he would have worked or been involved.

35. The Acts of the Apostles, Ellen White. 602pp
This was my first time reading this, and I was highly engrossed by it. I have to admit, I've never read Acts very much, and this put a lot of things into perspective: when and why the various letters were written to the churches and so forth.

Current Mood: blah

27. In Defense of Food, Michael Pollan. 201pp

Everyone interested in health and food needs to read this book. Actually, I think everyone should read it regardless. It is so plain and simple and full of common sense, and really balances out a lot of things.

Dan has always been (at least since I've known him) big on buying local and shopping in the periphery of the grocery store. We both spend a lot of time reading ingredient labels, so some of what Pollan writes about we already know and practise. But there was a lot that was new to me as well.

It's late and I'm not doing the book justice.

28. Prophets and Kings, Ellen White. 733pp

I have to admit, this one was really a lot harder for me to get into than the others I've read in the Conflict of the Ages series. I enjoyed it but didn't get that overwhelming amazement and emotional connection I've had with the others. The accompanying Bible reading plan for this one was a bit daunting (huge chunks of Scripture often accompanied each chapter) and I'm wondering if that might have been a factor.

29. The Life and Times of the Thunderbolt Kid, Bill Bryson. 268 pp

A tad too much time spent on sex-related topics for my liking, but aside from that, it was a grand, fun excursion into growing up in the 50s. The part where he discusses Dick and Jane was priceless. He talks about how much he loved the books and brought them home from school, and then writes:

There was just one very odd thing about the Dick and Jane books. Whenever any of the characters spoke, they didn't sound like humans.

"Here we are at the farm," says Father in a typical passage as he bounds from the car (dressed, not incidentally, in a brown suit), then adds a touch robotically: "Hello, Grandmother. Here we are at the farm."

"Hello," responds Grandmother. "See who is here. It is my family. Look, look! Here is my family."

"Oh, look! Here we are at the farm," adds Dick, equally amazed to find himself in a rural setting inhabited by loved ones. He, too, seems to have a kind of mental stuck needle. "Here we are at the farm," he goes on. "Here is Grandfather, too! Here we are at the farm."

It was like this on every page. Every character talked exactly like people whose brains had been taken away. At which point he draws comparisons to Invasion of the Body Snatchers.

30. Thursday's Child, Noel Streatfeild. 275pp

There was something about this one that just... didn't sit well with me. It was well-written, but the main character was really annoying thinking she was somebody so special and deserving of all kinds of attention.

18. The Princess Bride, William Goldman. 429pp
This was a truly fun, grand read with the exception of two things. First, I agree with

ruthette that the introduction needs some editing. It's incredibly long and drawn out. (Although, I wonder if this was intentional. He gets on Morgenstern's case for rambling on about unnecessary and trivial things, and does the same thing himself. Notable example: chick by pool scene.) Second, I found the "Buttercup's Baby" section at the end just downright biZARRE.

What lies between those two points, however, is brilliant, witty, and charming, and doesn't spoil the movie at all like most books would.

19. Cake Wrecks, Jen Yates. 208pp
I read this one while visiting my family. It's lovely. What more can I say?

20. Awkward Family Photos, 192pp
Ih. Got this free from Amazon Vine to review. Not super thrilled with it.

21. The Brothers Kennedy, 40pp
Another Amazon Vine. The pictures: delightful. The story: a little lacking.

22. I am Legend, Richard Matheson. 170pp
I'm only going to count the 170 pages that I did actually read of this. When the story transitioned into short stories that quickly became so disgusting I couldn't handle them, I stopped. I did finish the main story though (which was really the only one I was interested in anyway).

This is one instance where the movie was better in my mind than the book. I really didn't like it. I knew it dealt with vampire themes, but wasn't anticipating it to dwell so much on that aspect and the science and technical side of vampires. I was hoping for more of a lone man survival story.

23. Neither Here Nor There, Bill Bryson. 245pp
Quite good, although I was under the impression it would involve more with Katz than it did.

24. Your Developing Baby - Conception to Birth, Peter M Doubilet and Carol B Benson. 184pp
I really felt this was a sales pitch for radiology, honestly. I brought it home because I thought it would be helpful in explaining what's what on an ultrasound (and it was), but as information found it not much use to me.

25. Ballet Shoes, Noel Streatfeild. 281pp
Having thoroughly enjoyed "Skating Shoes" a few months back, I decided to try another pair of shoes. I didn't enjoy this one quite as much, but I did like it. I found Posy to be completely annoying; Petrova was my favourite. I also was amused at the idea that the girls didn't want to be film stars because that wasn't how one became famous. Fascinating that the film profession back in the day was looked upon so lightly.

26. Blue Willow, Doris Gates. 172pp
I picked this up at the library. Never heard of it or the author before, but I liked the cover art. Yes, I'm that shallow.

HOWEVER... the story was really, really good. Well-written, concise, even profound while never being more than an age-appropriate children's story. I particularly could relate to Janey, having always been the Odd One. Very, very charming, and I'm going to see if there are more books by this author.

I picked up the pace this month. It felt good.

7. Ten Commandments Twice Removed, Danny Shelton/Shelley Quinn. 126pp

Although I agree with the Sabbath doctrine presented in this book, I was NOT keen on the presentation. I found it to be very verbose, somewhat repetitive, and not very friendly. I much prefer Joe Crews' "Why God Said Remember" as far as the Sabbath topic goes, and if someone asked me for something to read about the Sabbath, I'd much sooner recommend that.

8. Airs Above the Ground, Mary Stewart. 286pp

After

eattheolives posted about another book she read and liked by this author I decided to check our library. They didn't have Nine Coaches Waiting, but they did have this and probably around seven other titles by her. I thoroughly enjoyed this book. I found the characters realistic and engaging, the plot twists kept me guessing and in suspense, and... dude. Lipizzanner. Seriously. I saw those horses once as a little thing and wish I could remember better.

9. A Walk Across America, Peter Jenkins. 288pp

I remember my dad reading this book years ago when I was a teenager. From the minute the dog entered the story I knew the dog was going to die at some point. Whether that is something that stuck in my subconscious or not from my dad having read the book I have no idea, but it was there. *sigh* I'm not a dog person, but come on. The poor guy, losing his furry friend. I dreaded the page where that would come along, and then when I got to it I cried.

That aside, it was an excellent read, and there is a lot I could say about it. I particularly enjoy the concept of a narrow-minded individual giving people a chance and finding out that there is a whole world of people of all kinds, and learning what makes them tick and just seeing how they live is seriously fascinating.

10. The Walk West, Peter and Barbara Jenkins. 350pp

Definitely liked the first one better. It seemed this one rambled on interminably at times about cowboys, oil rigs, and cowboys. I did enjoy it though in spite of that.

I think my favourite aspect was the growth of both P and B as individuals. They were tough. They had to be to walk across the country. Amazing.

11. Rose Cottage, Mary Stewart. 186pp

This promised to be far more interesting than it actually was. There were a variety of things I didn't like about it - mostly, however, it boiled down to feeling like a quick job. It was only mildly engaging and seemed rushed and tired all at once. Also was not keen on the spiritist neighbour lady. Didn't find the characters came to life or that I really cared about them much.

12. Seven for a Secret, Victoria Holt. 326pp

Another author I keep hearing about from my LJ friends. I don't know if all her books are this rubbishy or if I just picked a bad one, but it read like the magnum opus of a fifteen-year-old who reads too many sordid newspaper articles. How else can you cram seduction, suicide, identity crises, divorce, deception, illegitimate children, and South Sea islands into just one story?

Also, the NAMES. Tamarisk is bad... but Crispin?!?

I rest my case.

13. The Lost Continent: Travels in Small-Town America, Bill Bryson. 299pp

During the "East" part of this book, I laughed almost uncontrollably many, many times. During the "West" part of the book, I felt the pace slowed and there was less entertainment value. I guess the West doesn't have as many amusing things to observe. It corresponded, though, to my "Walk Across America" reading: once they hit the west, my interest lagged more. I guess I am not a huge fan of sprawling open countryside. I like Oregon. I'll stay here, thanks.

Anyway, I thoroughly enjoyed this. I only wish he'd used fewer four-letter words. It seemed this particular book was peppered with a lot of those.

14. Girl in Hyacinth Blue, Susan Vreeland. 253pp

I saw this on

ruthette 's recent reads on Facebook and was intrigued, so I looked to see if our library had it and shock!awe they DID. It was good; that's about as excited as I can get about it. It felt a little bit patchy (the author wrote in the afterword thing that it was written in pieces, and to me it felt very much like it was). I did, however, like the idea of going backwards in time - a lot.

15. Alice Adams, Booth Tarkington. 434pp

I hated the movie with the burning passion of 999 burning suns. Kate or no Kate. Decided to see if the book was any better, and it really was not. Few things are more annoying to me than people who pretend to be something they are not, lying through their teeth, superficial, silly creatures. Mother was the worst offender: nagging, shallow, and... nagging. In the end it seemed that Alice got her act together, though I am not so sure about the mother. At any rate, this was a terribly irritating read.

16. The Music of Silence, Andrea Bocelli. 243pp

I've had this book for years, bought for me as a gift at some point during my Bocellimania years. I started to read it a long time ago and found it a bit dull and didn't finish it. Decided that before I would bring home any more library books I must read a book in my own house I haven't read yet, and chose this one. I got all the way to the end. It was marginally less dull. I can't really pinpoint what about it seemed dull to me - perhaps his referring to himself in third person or perhaps he's just not the best writer in the world? Oh well. At least now I have read it.

17. The Mother Tongue: English and How It Got That Way, Bill Bryson. 245pp

This was very good, obviously well-researched. Not as exciting a read as, say, Walk in the Woods or Lost Continent, but very educational. I learned a lot about our language and other languages that I never would have known otherwise. I learned that poppycock comes from an old Dutch word meaning "soft dung". I made the mistake of sharing this factoid with my brother.

I think the most interesting concept I picked up, however, was this: English is in a constant state of change. The rules we use are often absolutely ridiculous. So, while it's important to speak and communicate clearly, we shouldn't be so uptight about things like using "hopefully" in a non-adverbial way or ending a sentence with a preposition.

4. The Happiest Baby on the Block, Dr Harvey Karp. 260pp

Oooohkay. This guy had a lot of good things to say. However, he bordered on being egotistical, as well as using all kinds of ridiculous scenarios involving our "cave ancestors" that just made me unable to take him completely seriously. This I will say, however: I went ahead and swaddled Molly the other night for bed, she went down at 7.30ish, and there wasn't a peep from her until 6 this morning. I'm going to try it again tonight. Time will tell if this method is, indeed, as failproof as Dr Karp insists that it is.

(Since I wrote this, it was failproof until last night - she managed to wiggle her arms out.)

5. Patriarchs and Prophets, Ellen White. 764pp

This is the second time I've read all the way through. Lots of things to provoke me to deeper thought. Thoroughly enjoyed, again.

6. Eye of the Red Tsar, Sam Eastland. 265pp

I chose this as a Vine selection (Amazon Vine) and thoroughly enjoyed it. Even though this is fictional, anything to do with the Romanovs grabs my attention, and I found this a great combination of fact and fancy. It is not often that a contemporary author makes me want more, but I definitely do. Looking forward to the next book in the series!