Thursday 13 #88

13 Books You May (or May Not) Want to Read Some Day

Brace yourselves!  It's is yet another lame attempt on my part to cram 13 book reviews into a single post.  You'll be disappointed if you're looking for vampire books, you blood thirsty things you.

My rating system:  One star = Fit only for the fireplace.
                           Nine stars = Wow!  I rarely give these.
                           10 stars =  Only The Bible.  That's it.

In no particular order . . .

1.

 Broken for You by Stephanie Kallos   Diagnosed with cancer, a wealthy woman takes in a border to prevent her from dying alone.  Orphaned when her parents abandoned her, the border and the widow develop a friendship both peculiar and liberating for them both. Well thought-out characters with clear motives who experience personal growth within the ironies of their circumstances.  Enough unpredictability throughout the story to keep me guessing.  Interesting twists.  Bittersweet ending.  Good writing.  I definitely recommend this book.  8 Stars

2.

 Confessions of an Ugly Stepsister by Gregory MaGuire.  Strip the Disney out of the Cinderella fairy tale and it could well read like MaGuire's version.  Real people with real flaws facing real problems with real outcomes.  Well-written and unvarnished, I liked this book.  I like the characters, even the unlikable ones.  They were well-fleshed and intentional.  He stayed true to the fairy tale where it was, in my opinion, important to do so and strayed when it was more interesting to stray.  Fairy godmother?  Bah!  Who needs one?  7.5 stars.

3.

 Wicked by Gregory Maguire.  As much as I liked Confessions..., I disliked Wicked.  It was fun seeing the parallels between the story and the original Wizard of Oz.  But that's where the fun ended.  Wicked is a series of bad things happening. With every page turn it was, "Oh, that was bad.   Uh-oh, that's bad, too.   Woah. That's really bad.  Bummer.  Sux to be that guy."  And so on.  Nothing good ever happened throughout the book.  Any time it looked like something good was going to happen, it didn't.  And - I just have to express this trivial but personal disappointment - the Witch can't do any magic at all.  Wha'up there?  She did magic in Wizard of Oz.  But not here?  The best she can do is to fly around on that broom. After that, nada.  Zip.  5 stars because it was well written and I did keep reading. But only because I was waiting for something good to happen.  Will I read the sequel?  Maybe.

4.

 Foul Play by Janet Evanovich.  A 26-year old virgin?  Bravo!  She couldn't wait a few more weeks until she married the guy?  Boo hisssss!   This book should have started with "Did you hear the one about the rooster who...?"   It's like a really long joke that goes on and on without every hitting a punchline.  It's a who-dunnit romance novel with a hero who is more two-dimensional than a cardboard cutout.  The guy must have had no life whatsoever before he fell for this little space clown.  I should have stopped reading in chapter one where she locks her keys in the car, he gives her a ride home, then she unlocks the door of her house...with a key.  3 stars because I did chuckle one time.  I believe, however, the author and I could be great friends.

5.

 Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close by Jonathan Safran Foer.  Very interesting story of a young boy who loses his father in the World Trade Center catastrophe of 9/11.  Oscar is a little strange to begin with, but his eccentricities are what endear him to the reader.  The characters are complex and intriguing with one exception;  the mother.  What is this woman's malfunction that she knowingly allows her son to traverse the five boroughs of NYC by himself, knocking on the doors of strangers?  Lady needs a shrink worse than her kid does, is what I'm thinking.  And the driver's complicit participation in a midnight impossibility is weird, too.  Actually, all the characters have their mental issues and their motivations seem a little thin, but CPS needs to sit mom down for a serious discussion.  Otherwise, I loved the adventure. That the slowly untwisting plot lacks surprises would be my primary complaint.  7 stars.

6.

The Echo Maker by Richard Powers - A man emerges from a coma that leaves him with Capgras Syndrome, a rare and bizarre neuropathologic disorder.  The woman who claims to be his sister, looks, acts, sounds and has information that only his sister would have, but he is convinced she is an imposter.  This book appealed to the old psychiatric nurse in me. It also very much appealed to the reader in me.  It was well-written, frought with mystery and tension, the characters were believable and I truly found myself caring for them and their circumstances.  And I loved the twist at the end even though I saw it coming...sort of.  I recommend it.  8 stars.

7.

 California Girl by T. Jefferson Parker - I like a good murder mystery. This one was okay.  With the exception of the killer, the characters had good motivation for behaving as they did.  They were, otherwise, not very memorable.  Unless you count Richard Nixon, Timothy Leary, and Charles Manson who all had cameos.  (None of them were the killer, I should point out.)  The killer...well, he didn't seem to have much in the way of a motive for this heinous crime.  It was very much out of character for him.  I guess there's just no accounting for some people's pathology, right?   And it sucks to root for the good guys only to have them put the wrong guy in jail for 36 years.  (Not giving anything away there - says so in chapter one.)  And the victim sort of had it coming to her, to be real honest.  I mean, if you live your life in abject stupidity, something bad is bound to happen. (F-bomb alert)  So, 5 stars.

8.

The Shack by William P. Young.  You know what?  I have a long draft about this book waiting for me to post.  And I will one day.  Meanwhile, I'll just say it has good lessons on forgiveness and about God's love for us. But the characters are nonsense. It's not that well written.  The dialogue is stilted and the story doesn't flow well. From a biblical perspective, (it's Christian fiction so I'm holding it accountable to scripture) the book has a bit of heretical stuff going on.  Shame on the author!  If you're going to read it, do so with a lot of salt.  I don't know why it's such a great seller, to be real honest.    4 stars.

9.

Confessions of a Reformission Rev. by Mark Driscoll  (Hard Lessons From An Emerging Missional Church).  Loved it!  I first noticed Mark Driscoll's transparency and devotion to accurate biblical teaching when sitting in his church, Mars Hill, listening to him preach in person.  I've read all of his books and listened to all of his sermons to date via podcast.  While I don't agree with him 100% on everything, and don't always like the manner in which he expresses a point, I maintain he's the best preacher going today.  This book is, in a nutshell, the story of his ministry.  In it he bares his soul, the good and the bad side of it.  The guy is, unlike many of today's popular preachers, for real. And he always points to a very real Jesus.  9 stars for you, Mark!  8.5 for your book, though. Y'gotta watch how you say things, man.

10.

Playing for Pizza by John Grisham.  I adore John Grisham.  I've read everything he's written.  This book?  Meh. A washed-up American football player signs on with an Italian football team.  Unlike Grisham's previous departures from courtroom drama, this story was predictable.  The main character did nothing for me.  His agent was the only character meatier than a limp noodle.  Because the writing was good and I didn't abandon it half-way through like I was tempted to do, I'll be very generous and give it 6 stars.

11.

The Appeal by John Grisham.  Glory and hallelujah!  John redeems himself with this one...mostly.  It's not my favorite of his works, but I liked it just fine.  Strong heroes and sinister bad guys campaign against each other when a chemical company poisons an entire community and its residents start dying off.  It didn't necessarily end the way I wanted it to, but I'm giving it 8 stars anyway.  (And in the "Hot Authors" department, John gets a solid 9 stars. hubba hubba!)

12.

ProBlogger by Darren Rowse and Chris Garrett (Secrets for Blogging Your Way to a Six-Figure Income).  I wish I'd read this book before I started blogging.  I would have avoided a lot of the mistakes that I can't undo now.  Unfortunately, it wasn't written back then.  And now, it's actually a bit dated.  While it's packed full of great tips and information, blogging has changed quite a bit from when these guys first jumped aboard to make a lucrative income from it.  Those of us not at the top of the heap aren't going to claw our way to financial freedom with their tried-n-true advice, I'm afraid.  But their experience can help us have better blogs and, perhaps, a bit of monetary success.  7 stars for usefulness and good writing.  Kudos to the authors for making it work for them.

Was that thirteen?   Okay, one more. 

13.

 Ireland by Frank Delaney  A man searches for a story teller only to find himself.  The history of Ireland comes to life through the tales told within this novel.  Beautifully written, complex characters, intriguing and threaded with tension.  Loved it!  Hated to see it end.  And, unfortunately, I was a wee bit disappointed in the ending which was perfect story-wise, but could have been written with a stronger punch.  So...8.5 stars.

All this from someone who can't write her way out of a paper bag. 

And some of these titles are still available from me through Paperback Swap.  I've been a much happier reader since I started using this service.  Trading books is a very joyous thing! And it's FREE!  (The only money I'm out is the postage.) I have bunches of credits piled up there, so can order books any time.  Tell 'em I sent ya!

Got any titles you think I'd enjoy?

Related Posts: Uh-oh, She's Been Reading Again

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Comments

[Maricris]

These are good quick reviews. Janet Evanovich is always good so is John Grisham. I don't read as much anymore but I won't mind listening to the Audio version of it :)

[sobeit89]

I bought "The Shack" and just made it through the first few pages. Thanks for letting me know that it may not be all that I expected. I also have Wicked on my shelf to read! Happy TT!

[Adelle Laudan]

I'd be thrilled if you'd like to review one of my books. If you're interested, drop me a line at adellelaudanATadellelaudan.com

Happy Holidays!

[PQNation]

Awesome reviews...thanks for taking the time!!

Happy TT & Happy Holidays!

[Bernie]

Nice book list. Now if I could ever get around to reading one that would be wonderful!

My TT Forbidden Fruit is up.

[Lori]

Im a John Saul girl myself:) Happy TT.

[Nicholas]

I've read The Appeal, and enjoyed it even though it went the way it did, but I won't bother with that other one. Nothing bores me more than sport stories.

I'm tempted to read The Shack if it is heretical, but since you say its badly written I won't bother.

[Betty]

You've gone and done it! Now I've got *more* books to add to my TBR! Really, there are a few on your list that have really gotten my interest. Great list!

[Spicybugz]

I'm in the middle of reading the Appeal right now!

[Mulled Vine]

I am soooo glad that I have at last found someone who agrees with me on The Shack. Its the current rave in my circles and I really did not like to book.

[Margaret]

Impressive list of books, Carol! Some I've read, but most I haven't. We share some of the same tastes in books it seems.

ê¿ê

[Sue]

Great list. I'll have to keep some of these in mind. I love to read but find it hard to find the time. I really have to get back to it.

[MInTheGap]

Is the Problogger book really that good? I mean, I've been reading his blog for some time and I'm not sure if the book could give me that much more?

In any case, thanks for stopping by my TT, and happy TT to you too!

[Sherrie]

Hi!
Great TT. Several of those are going on my TBR list. Thanks for sharing and thanks for stopping by my place.

Sherrie

[colleen]

Wonderful! I love these short reviews and your writing style. I've written a couple down.

[carmen]

A Janet Evanovich book that's not that good? Argh! I love her stuff. :)

You should include my book on there in a few weeks!

[Denise]

My daughter read Wicked and Confessions and liked both. I haven't had the time to pick up either yet. Now, I might pass on Wicked.

Thanks for visiting my TT!

[Carol]

Maricris: I love listening to audio books while doing chores.

Adelle and Carmen, if you want to send me your books, I'll read and review.

Sobeit and Nicholas: I'd say go ahead and read The Shack. If nothing else, to find out what all the hullaballoo is about. And it definitely does have some good insights and lessons in it. Just make sure your discernment radar is engaged.

MintheGap: Problogger's website will always be cutting edge blogging. By the time a book gets written and through the publishing process, something as liquid as blogging will morph a bit.

Everyone: I'm pleased to know so many of you found something on this list to check out! I'll do another at some point. Be sure to check out my past reviews - linked above.

[Tyler]

I tried to read Wicked but I just couldn't get into it quick enough :(

[minnemom]

I agree on the Grisham, and interesting about the Problogging. Thanks for the quick reviews!

[On a limb with Claudia]

I'm kind of excited because I've actually READ some of these! :) I do love Gregory MacGuire - but the ones you picked, not the others. I wonder why they can be so very right, then so very wrong....

[kandyblossom]

Nice list.

I have read both of the MaGuire books. I liked them both ok, but found it somewhat harder to get through Wicked.

Never heard of the Janet Evanovich book, but I have read all of her Plum series and am always amused by those.

Started reading The Shack a couple weeks ago, but then life got in the way (all the Christmas activities and such) My sister raved about it and sent me her copy when I procrastinated getting my own. I plan to try reading it later, when things are less busy.

Not a Grisham fan at all. Thank you for the other recommendations though. Ireland and Broken for You have been added to my list of books I want to read.

[Jean]

I read both McGuire books. It's funny, I hated #2 but enjoyed #3. The thing that ruined Stepsister for me was the twist ending that came out of nowhere and didn't feel earned.

Anyway, great list, and happy TT!

[Toni]

Very nice list. I agree with you on the 2 Grisham books. The swap sounds very interesting. I have started utilizing the library more and this sounds like another great way to get good books with out the price. Thanks for the info.

[Lynn]

I like John Grisham but I haven't read that one yet. Thanks for the list. Happy TT!

[Carol]

It really is a great way to swap books. Tell 'em I sent you and I get a book credit, Toni. Then you tell some friends and so on . . .

[Carol]

Y'all need to read my post about finding a little more time:

http://she-lives.typepad.com/she_lives/2008/12/tv-not-so-much.html

[Ann Bruce]

Gregory Maguire is wonderful, but I still haven't read #2.