Friday Fill-ins

1. Contact may cause illness.
2. The parties hereto do mutually agree to cease all tomfoolery (My kids hate it when I use this word, so of course I say it often).
3. Disney parks are great places to read while you're waiting in line. (I read half of Stardust at Disneyland the other day.)
4. A nap sounds really good right about now!
5. I positively hate being the center of attention.
6. Steve Carell always makes me smile :-)
7. And as for the weekend, tonight I'm looking forward to redoing our pantry and preparing to paint the kitchen, tomorrow my plans include painting the kitchen and Sunday, I want to be done with the kitchen!

Click on the flower button to play along!

Meme - Negativity

I was tagged by Dog Ear Diary, a site I love because of the variety of reading selections--I enjoy even just looking at the titles: Horse People, The Man Who Mistook His Wife for His a Hat, and An Anthropologist on Mars are some of the latest. Anyways, here's the meme:

1. When you dislike a book, do you say so in your blog? Why or why not?

If I don't like a book (which doesn't happen very often--I'll read just about anything!), I will say so in my blog. I don't know what the point of a review would be otherwise.

2. Do you temper your feelings about books you didn’t like, so as not to completely slam them? Why or why not?

I don't think I ever completely slam any books--almost everything I read has some good and bad qualities--even some of my very favorites have their weaknesses.

3. What do you think is the best way to respond when you see a negative review about a book you enjoyed?

I usually just write a comment saying how I feel about the book, and I would hope others would do the same for me. I like to read different opinions and perspectives. Variety is the spice of life! Just like food, everyone has different taste in books. I wouldn't get upset if someone hated banana cream pie (which I could live on), so I won't get upset if someone hated David Copperfield.

4. What is your own most common reaction when you see a negative review of a book you loved or a positive review of a book you hated?

I think sometimes a book can bring you so much joy or pleasure that you want to share that with someone else, and when they don't have those same feelings, it can be a bit of a disappointment.

5. What is your own most common reaction when you get a comment that disagrees with your opinion of a book?

Bring it on . . . just don't get personal!

6. What if you don’t like a book that was a free review copy? What then?

This is something I've never done, but I guess I would try to be honest.

7. What do you do if you don’t finish a book? Do you review it or not? If you review it, do you mention that you didn’t finish it?

Since I'm still pretty new to blogging, I don't think there is a book I have not finished since I started, although there have been a couple I was tempted to quit! I think I would review it, either to warn others who think their taste is similar to mine, or to find out from someone that I should really read the whole thing--that in the end it's worth it.

I'm so bad at picking people to tag--I'm a horrible decision maker! I'll have to give it more thought. How about if I just invite anyone who reads this to join in?

The Painted Veil by W. Somerset Maugham (1925, 246 pgs.)

I was inspired to read this book after watching the movie, which I loved, so I thought I would post the movie trailer instead of making a my usual feeble attempt at summarizing the plot:

The book and movie were very similar except for the endings. The movie had a more hopeful, moving conclusion, while the book was probably a little more realistic. Either way, I love the story as well as the setting. It is also very readable and not too long. There were several passages that I loved, but I was reading this at Disneyland, and I didn't have a pencil to underline them. Oh, well. They're a part of me now, stored somewhere in my brain.

The Goose Girl by Shannon Hale (2003, 383 pgs.)

I was tempted to do this four-word review for The Goose Girl:

Loved it. Read it.

But unfortunately that doesn't say anything about the content of the book. For those who need more to go by, here's what the inside if the front cover says:

She was born with her eyes closed and a word on her tongue, a word she could not taste. Here name was Anidori-Kiladra Talianna Isilee, Crown Princess of Kildenree, and she spent the first years of her life listening to her aunt's stories and learning the language of the birds, especially the swans. When she was older, she watched as a colt was born, and she heard the first word on his tongue, his name, Falada.
From the Grimm's fairy tale of the princess who became a goose girl before she would become queen, Shannon Hale has woven an incredible, original, and magical tale of a girl who must find her own unusual talents before she can lead the people she has made her own.

Of course if fairy tales aren't your thing, you probably wouldn't love or want to read it. But for those who enjoy a wholesome, beautifully written tale of fantasy every once in a while, this is one of the most enjoyable I've read.

Friday Fill-ins

1. Ahhhh, it's so nice to go to bed at night.
2. One of my favorite things on my desk or bureau is the computer?
3. Japanese Cherry Blossom is a scent I would probably like in a body wash.
4. The couch is my favorite place to sit and read. (Although, if I had a nice backyard and some outdoor furniture, that's where I would want to read.)
5. Ben and Jerry's "Dave Matthews Band" (Raspberry and Sweet Cream Ice-Cream with brownie chunks) and "Banana Split" flavors are delicious!
6. I love to watch great dialogue in movies.
7. And as for the weekend, tonight I'm looking forward to being at Disneyland, tomorrow my plans include a huge Dodge Ball game and Sunday, I want to go to church and spend time with my family.

Here's the link if you want to join in.

The Bourne Supremacy by Robert Ludlum (1986, 646 pgs.)

I almost wanted to dub this "The Bourne Disappointment," but that made it sound like I didn't like it. I liked it, just not nearly as much as The Bourne Identity. In this one, David Webb (aka-Jason Bourne) is tricked by the government into going to Hong Kong after an assassin who has taken on his name and is working for a Chinese leader who is secretly planning to take over in China. The back cover says, "The real Jason Bourne must maneuver through the dangerous labyrinth of international espionage--an exotic world filled with CIA plots, turncoat agents, and ever-shifting alliances." I found all of these elements terribly confusing. I can't blame the author though--CIA terminology is like a foreign language to me (blind, off the wire, sterile, etc.), as well as some of the political and economic aspects of the plot. I do feel like if I read another book with similar terminology, it will be a little easier. (I'm hoping I added a few brain cells.) This one also had more language and mildly disturbing violent scenes. Apparently in Hong Kong and China, people tend to repeat cuss words, so you get to read the "F" word not once, but twice each time it is said--kind of like saying "What the heck-heck are you doing?" This was new for me. This part (with an American speaking, no repeats) cracked me up: "Who the f*** do you think you are? And if my language offends you sir, look up the derivation of the offending word. It comes from a term in the Middle Ages meaning to plant a seed in the ground." (I guess the late Ludlum wouldn't appreciate my complaint about the bad language.)
Whenever I read a work of fiction about a place I don't know much about, I like to read a non-fiction book about that place so I can learn about it and picture the setting. Being the scholarly person that I am, I head right for . . . the children's section of the library. This one being mostly in Hong Kong, I checked out this one:

I learned a lot the related to the book, and a lot that didn't. It may sound silly, but I have learned a lot from these quarter-inch-thick children's books, and they're right at my level of comprehension. I guess it's my way of learning all the things that I feel like everyone else already knows! Someday, maybe, I'll catch up to all of you smart people!

The Golden Compass by Philip Pullman (1995, 10 hrs. 41 mi.)

Don't you just feel weird when you don't love a book that is raved about? After looking at the ratings on Amazon (1,078 people gave it five stars) and seeing it on a few top ten and top one-hundred lists, I just keep asking "Huh?" It is a very imaginative and original story about a girl named Lyra who is accompanied by her "daemon" Pantalaimon, a sort of separate manifestation of her soul that changes to different animals based on her emotions. She is a strong and courageous young girl, as well as rebellious and often dishonest, who is trying to rescue her friend Roger from "The Gobblers", a mysterious group of people who steal children. (That's just skimming the surface--the story is much more complex, with many unique characters and a beautiful setting.)
Despite the great writing and originality, I just didn't make any kind of connection with the story or the characters. There are definitely many layers to this novel, some of which have caused controversy for some religious groups due to the fact that the author is an atheist and is accused of trying to undermine Christian beliefs. All I can say is I read it, and I'm still going to church. Reading Harry Potter didn't get me into witchcraft either. But I do understand that literature can have a great impact on our beliefs and philosophies, and although this particular book in the series didn't seem too offensive to me, I probably wouldn't want my kids to read it without some discussion. And I definitely prefer the British title--Northern Lights. Doesn't that sound more intriguing than The Golden Compass?