Barnes and Noble Bliss

I went to Barnes and Noble the other day with a 40% off of one book coupon, and after spending an hour browsing the fiction section A to Z, narrowing it down to about five choices, this caught my eye in the poetry section:

I couldn't resist. I was reading another translation of The Iliad from my library, and in all my geekiness was reading it out loud to myself. Now with this beautiful boxed set, it's almost complete bliss (except of course for the parts about animal sacrifice and the complete lack of thought for the rights of women). I even threw a chocolate bar into to the experience last night (that kind of messed up the read-aloud thing I had going on, but hey, it's chocolate.) Needless to say I'm super excited about my purchase, since I rarely buy brand-new books. I have to keep myself from carassing the covers too much--my husband's getting jealous!

Ten Signs That You Are a Book Blogger

Yesterday marks my one year blogoversary, and here are some thoughts about my experiences this year:

Ten Signs That You Are a Book Blogger:

1. For trips to the library, you've graduated from an extra-large book bag to a rolling cart.

2. You've entered your "To Be Read" stack into the Guinness Book of World Records.

3. On a trip to the park with your kids, you've stuffed a large bag with two possible reading choices, one book you've read and need to review, one notebook for notes and reviews, and one read-aloud book in case your daughter gets bored because she's the only girl, BUT. . . you forgot your purse. (True story)

4. You go to the library more times than you shave your legs.

5. You have found creative ways to get your slaves children to do more housework so you have more time to read.

6. Pumping yourself with caffeine and sugar in order to stay up for 24 hours to read does not at all sound strange to you. (Thanks to Dewey, who will be missed immeasurably.)

7. It takes longer to go through your Google Reader than it does to read War and Peace.

8. You actually get excited about jury duty/doctor's appointments/dentist's appointments--more reading opportunities!

9. You have a color-coded spreadsheet mapping out all of the reading challenges you SWORE you were not going to join.

10. Television? What's that? (Are there any other shows than The Office?) Okay, so maybe this one is just me.

Any other ideas to add to the list?

Mission Accomplished: A to Z Reading Challenge

I remember when I posted about this challenge at the beginning of the year I wasn't sure if I could read 52 books in one year--that sounded so daunting! But now I've learned when it comes to reading challenges, I have an "If you build it, he will come" mentality--if I make a list of books, I must, MUST read them. "If I list it, I will read."
Thank you, Joy, for hosting this challenge. This was so much fun. Never before have I thought of books in terms of what letter the title or the name of the author started with. I think I will always be aware of that from now on when browsing for books!
Here's the final list:

Authors (by last name)
A - Austen, Jane: Northanger Abbey
B - Brooks, Terry: The Talismans of Shannara
C - Cannell, Dorothy: The Thin Woman
D - Dean, Debra: The Madonnas of Leningrad
E - Esquivel, Laura: Like Water for Chocolate
F - Faulkner, William: As I Lay Dying
G - Gaiman, Neil: Stardust
H - Hamilton, Masha: The Camel Bookmobile
I - Ilibagiza, Imaculee: Left to Tell
J - Japin, Arthur: In Lucia's Eyes
K - Kadohata, Cynthia: Kira-Kira
L - Lowry, Lois: Messenger
M - MacLachlan, Patricia: Sarah, Plain and Tall
N - Nemirovsky, Irene: Suite Francaise
O - O'Dell, Scott: Island of the Blue Dolphins
P - Pool, Daniel: What Jane Austen Ate and Charles Dickens Knew
Q - Quindlen, Anna: Blessings
R - Riordan, Rick: The Lightning Thief
S - Stoker, Bram: Dracula
T - Twain, Mark: Tom Sawyer
U - Urban, Linda: A Crooked Kind of Perfect
V - Voigt, Cynthia: Homecoming
W - Westerfeld, Scott: Pretties
X - Xinran: Sky Burial
Y - Yep, Lawrance: Dragonwings
Z - Zusak, Markus: The Book Thief

Titles
A - Austenland by Shannon Hale
B - The Bourne Identity by Robert Ludlum
C - Castle Corona by Sharon Creech
D - Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde by Stevenson
E - Enna Burning by Shannon Hale
F - Femme Fatal by Dorothy Cannell
G - The Good Mood Diet by Susan Kleiner
H - The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood
I - The Invention of Hugo Cabret by Brian Selznick
J - Jennifer, Hecate, Macbeth, William McKinley, and me, Elizabeth by E. L. Konigsburg
K - The Known World by Edward P. Jones
L - Life of Pi by Yann Martel
M - The Moonstone by Wilkie Collins
N - Nefertiti by Michelle Moran
O - Organizing From the Inside-Out by Julie Morgenstern
P - Pictures of Hollis Woods by Patricia Reilly Giff
Q - Queen of Scots by John Guy
R - Reporting Iraq - Edited by Mike Hoyt, John Palatella
S - Snow Flower and the Secret Fan by Lisa See
T - A Tree Grows in Brooklyn by Betty Smith
U - Uglies by Scott Westerfeld
V - Veil of Roses by Laura Fitzgerald
W - The Wide Window by Lemony Snicket
X - Xenocide by Orson Scott Card
Y - You: The Owners Manual
Z - Zoo Station by David Downing

I was going to list my favorites, but there are so many. If I forced myself to pick three they would be A Tree Grows in Brooklyn, The Handmaid's Tale, and The Book Thief.

Zoo Station

Author: David Downing

Originally Published: 2007
Length: 293 pages
Personal Enjoyment Rating: 3/5
Amazon Rating: 4/5 (14 reviews)

This pre-WWII spy thriller was actually more interesting than thrilling. John Russell is a British journalist living in Germany, determined to stay to be near his 11-year-old son and his actress girlfriend, despite the inevitable war looming. The Soviets have asked him to write a series of articles for them, which he decides to do for the money. This arrangement becomes more involved and risky than Russell bargained for, and he also gets involved in trying to save a Jewish family that faces many obstacles in leaving Germany.
While I didn't really feel a whole lot of suspense in reading this book, I liked it from a historical perspective. I was able to see what different types of people might have experienced in Germany in the days leading to the war: a British journalist frustrated by limits on what he can write about; an actress who must play parts in Nazi-influenced plays and movies,;an 11-year-old boy subject to government socialization through school and youth groups; parents faithful to the Nazi party but who possibly have a mentally-challenged son who they learn could end up the victim of Hitler's "mercy killings"; and an idealistic American journalist determined to uncover secrets of the Nazi regime.
This is not a book I would normally have picked up (although I do love the cover). I was after that "Z" for the A to Z reading challenge. It's always fun to try something new, and although I wasn't wowed by this one, I do not regret reading it, and I may go on to try some others by this author. Don't these sound good: The Moscow Option, Russian Revolution 1985, The Red Eagles?

Homecoming

Author: Cynthia Voigt

Originally Published: 1981
Length: 480 pages
Personal Enjoyment Rating: 4.5/5
Amazon Rating: 4/5 (333 Reviews)

Dicey and her three siblings are abandoned by their mother at a mall in Connecticut. Thinking that she might have gone on to a relative's house, tough and determined Dicey leads her brothers and sister on a journey to either find their mother, or to find a place that they can call home. Along the way, each member of the Tillerman family faces his or her own challenges, but they all play an integral part in creating a sense of family, and realize that they must stay together no matter what happens.
This is a touching, well-written story that I couldn't put down. The characters are realistic and well-written, and I grew to love each of the Tillerman children, and their mother, even though I only saw her through her children's eyes. It was painful for me to imagine four children trekking across towns and beaches on their own, having four children of my own of similar ages, but it reminded me that children often can accomplish more than we might expect them to. At the end of the story I just felt good, (and I cried). Not only was I happy for them, but I was proud of them.

Nefertiti

Author: Michelle Moran

This edition published by: Three Rivers Press (2008)
Length: 496 pages
Personal Enjoyment Rating: 4.5/5
Amazon Rating: 4.5/5 (113 reviews)

Back of book blurb:

Nefertiti and her younger sister, Mutnodjmet, have been raised in a powerful family that has provided wives to the rulers of Egypt for centuries. Ambitious, charismatic, and beautiful, Nefertiti is destined to marry Amunhotep, an unstable young Pharaoh. It is hoped that her strong personality will temper the young ruler's heretical desire to forsake Egypt's ancient gods.

From the moment of her arrival in Thebes, Nefertiti is beloved by the people but fails to see that powerful priests are plotting against her husbands rule. The only person brave enough to warn the queen is her younger sister, yet remaining loyal to Nefertiti will force Mutnodjmet into a dangerous political game; one that could cost her everything she holds dear.

I really, really enjoyed reading this piece of historical fiction. I've read a little bit of non-fiction about general Egyptian history, but usually accounts that cover massive spans of time, so the important figures are just names or cardboard figures in my head. This book made me see Nefertiti, Akhenaten and their family more as real people and brought them to life. My favorite character was Mutny, Nefertiti's sister. I liked that she was good, smart, and loyal. She was constantly trying to cling to her own values while they were being challenged by Nefertiti's ambition. Many times, I wanted to strangle Nefertiti and shoot Akhenaten (with his own bow and arrow. You know a book is entertaining when you have thoughts of violence about some of the characters!)
I don't know about historical accuracy or probability, but it was a good story that kept the pages turning. I will definitely read the sequel, the Heretic Queen.

Xenocide

Author: Orson Scott Card

Published by: Tor Books (1991)
Length: 592 pages
Personal Enjoyment Rating: 3.5/5

This is science-fiction that is heavy on the "science." I couldn't decide if I would appreciate the novel more if I was a science whiz, or if having more knowledge would just frustrate me because I would see the holes in the different theories presented. Usually in these cases, I find that ignorance is bliss. It really aids my "suspension of disbelief!"

As the third of a series, it's difficult to provide a summary (which I'm bad at anyways). The first in the series, Ender's Game, I found to be entertaining and original. I had never read anything quite like it. The second book, Speaker for the Dead, had some disturbing aspects, but it was brilliant and emotional. I actually cried--not unusual for me in general, but not expected while reading sci-fi. It's taken me a couple of years to finally get to Xenocide (I waited forever and ever for a copy to turn up at the used book store in the library.) As I read this one, I kept getting a mental image of Card's brilliant mind spewing out an inordinate number of ideas and loosely gathering them all into one book. Interesting ideas--just too many.

Having said that, I still enjoyed reading it. The two main things that draw me to Card's writing are his themes about sociology and ethics. He comes up with the most bizarre characters and scenarios, but it manages to be "swallow-able" because of this framework of the inter-relationships of humans, alien species, and even computers. Card also constantly weaves in ideas of religion and faith, which never result in any strong conclusions (at least none that I picked up), except maybe that a society wants and needs to have faith in something, regardless of any evidence against it.

Here's one of my favorite quotes from the book:

"These are the people who hold a community together, who lead. Unlike the sheep and the wolves, they perform a better role than the script given them by their inner fears and desires. They act out the script of decency, of self-sacrifice, of public honor--of civilization. And in the pretense, it becomes reality. There really is civilization in human history, thought Valentine, but only because of people like these. The shepherds."