Pete the Cat: I Love My White Shoes / Eric Litwin

As a chair of the Building Block Committee, I have to say that I am particularly attached to all of this year's nominees. My favorite, however, is "Pete the Cat: I Love My White Shoes." You can download an audiofile of the author, Eric Litwin, reading/singing his story at http://www.harpercollinschildrens.com/kids/gamesandcontests/features/petethecat/. I guarantee that it will you have you walking around your house (or the library!) singing "I love my white shoes..." with a spring in your step. I gave this book as a birthday gift to two 3-year-olds in the past month, and have been compelled to read it over and over and over (and over) again. Does this make me cry? Goodness no! There's no such thing as too much Pete the Cat.
Keep walking along and singing your song!

At Home: A Short History of Private Life / Bill Bryson / 497 p.

This book is an endlessly interesting and incredibly thorough history of the home and everything in it. Bryson goes through each of the rooms in his mid 19th century English country parsonage, discussing the history of each room, its functions, and the objects that inhabit it, primarily focusing on English and American history. In the drawing room, Bryson discusses the history of furniture; in the dressing room, the history of fashion; and in the nursery, he discourses on the often horrifying plight of children in the 18th and 19th centuries. These histories reach far beyond the home, however--discussion of the dining room leads to the history of salt & pepper, which leads to a history of the spice trade and the Age of Exploration. Anyone interested in learning the history of ice, how people fall down stairs, and how the lawn mower was invented, take heed!

Queen of Attolia / Megan Whalen Turner / 279 pages

Turner's series featuring Eugenides, the Queen's Thief, is totally intriguing and riveting reading. Queen of Attolia is the 2nd book in the 4 book series. In this book, the three mythical kingdoms are a war, and Eugenides must use his craftiness to overcome a most violent and tragic personal attack to form new alliances and defeat the forces that seek to overrun the countries. Besides a plot that moves along quickly, the characters are ones that you will believe and with whom you may identify. There's plenty in this book to think about; characters that are complex, consequences of actions, alternate solutions to problems, and the impact of behaviors. Just check out The King of Attolia (the next book) right away because you won't want to wait to see what happens. Oh, yeah, this is a kids book....great for about grade 5 & up....and proof positive that well-written children's books have great appeal to all readers and can be read on many different levels. Highly recommended.

Night Before Christmas / Brenda Novak, Day Leclaire, Molly O'Keefe

Three romances are set in the Christmas holidays.

Brenda Novak's On a Snowy Christmas tells the romance that blossom between two adversaries while campaigning for the same Senate seat in the aftermath of a plane crash in the high Sierras.

In Day Leclaire’s The Christmas Baby, Carrie Manning is having a bad hair year culminating with a baby left on her doorstep. Three couples find a healing of old hurts.

Molly O’Keefe won the 2010 RITA for Best Romance Novella for The Christmas Eve Promise. Merrieta Monroe finds romance when she returns home to Webster, Missouri, to work in her parent’s diner at Christmas time. It’s really the about reconnecting with family and past loves.

2010 RITA for Best Romance Novella

Whisper of Warning / Laura Griffin 369 p.

In this sequel to Thread of Fear, Courtney Glass finds herself in the chief suspect in the brutal murder of her former boyfriend and lawyer John David Alvin. Courtney has been in and out of trouble her whole life. She must prove she isn’t the murderer and is one of the killer’s intended victims. Will Hodges, investigating officer, resists her looks and her sharp tongue as he comes to realize that a powerful enemy has her in his sights.

2010 RITA Winner for Best Romantic Suspense.

If I Stay / Gayle Forman / 199 p.

While in a coma following an automobile accident that killed her parents and younger brother, seventeen-year-old Mia, a gifted cellist, weights whether to live with her grief or join her family in death.

This book should appeal to Young Adults as many have (or will) fantasize about what would happen if they were in a coma and could still hear what their friends and family say about them.  Also the short length of the book makes it a good quick read for those reluctant readers.  But other than these two factors I really hope teens read this book because it covers topics like life, family, true love, growing up, and resilience.   The main character is going through something very tragic, and I think the author does a good job describing her loss and grief.  While reading this book it's hard not to think and reflect on your own life and loved ones.

Trial by Desire / Courtney Milan / 360p.

Okay, so I’m a sucker for a pretty face. 

This quick read is pretty straightforward.  Young Ned Carhart marries the lovely Lady Kathleen (Kate) and then promptly leaves her for a job located in China; in hopes he can prove to be a mature, trustworthy man.  Kate feeling completely abandoned spends the following three years running the household and learning to be independent.  She also rescued a few local women escape their abusive husbands.  When Ned returns home, Kate happens to be in the middle of a rescue of the wife of one of Ned’s closest childhood friends.  Ned and Kate have to rebuild their relationship and trust, which is difficult when both are keeping secrets. 

I liked the story, but of course the “secrets” that the main characters are hiding about themselves is never as horrific as the characters think they are.  This makes the second half of the book kind of drag as you just want the character to come out and just say what’s bothering them instead of whining and holding back all the time.  ;)

The Confession/John Grisham/418 pgs

This is the best John Grisham novel I have read in a while. It is the story of a career criminal who says that he has a brain tumor and is dying so he wants to confess to a murder for which another man has been convicted and is about to be executed. It gets into the details of what happens during a death penalty sentence and what could happen if the wrong person is put to death . There are a few twists and turns that you don't see coming but it was a great story and may make you think about how you feel about the death penalty.

First Lady / Susan Elizabeth Phillips / 376 pages

Nealy Litchfield Case schemes to escape her life as First Lady if only for a few days.  After her husband is assassinated, she is pressured into staying on and serving as First Lady for her husband's successor.  She hate it!  Longing for freedom and an ordinary life, she disguises herself as a grey-haired older lady, and later as a pregnant one.  She catches a ride with ex-newspaperman Mathias Jorik and his 2 "daughters" after her car is stolen at a truck stop.  What follows is a heartwarming story and scenic trip along the less-travelled byways of America.

RITA Award 2001

Dream a Little Dream / Susan Elizabeth Phillips / 390 pages

This heartwarming sequel to Nobody's Baby But Mine follows the Bonner family as both Ethan and Gabe are married - Ethan to his childhood friend and secretary, and Gabe to Rachel Stone, widow of tele-evangelist, G. Dwayne Snopes.  After a stormy "courtship" Gabe is able to recover from the loss of his wife and son and open his heart to Rachel and her son, Edward (Chip).  This is the kind of book that makes you cry happy tears and encourages you to re-examine your view of God, family, and relationships.


RITA Award 1999

What the Night Knows / Dean Koontz / 442 pages

"Not all magic is black magic...Most magic is about wonder and adventure, new horizons, and learning how to fly...This isn't magic.  This is the kind of weird stuff that's real."  Dark magic is definitely at work in What the Night Knows.  Detective John Calvino is determined to prevent a copycat re-creation of a ghastly murder spree that happened twenty years ago and involved his own family.  The target this time is once again his family -his wife and three children, and the perpetrator is the same - Alton Turner Blackwood - whom John himself killed 20 years ago.  John and is family battle evil personified; realize that "when the divine enters the world from outside of time, it manifests through children and animals"; and "what the heart knows trumps what the night knows." 

Not Quite a Husband / Sherry Thomas 341 p.

Asquith is a surgeon physician in the 1890s, a rarity for her time and especially for her lineage. Marsden has a brilliant mathematical mind, is witty, handsome and well-liked. Two intellectuals, yet, Bryony Asquith’s marriage to Leo Marsden fails before it really gets started. The story opens with Marsden tracking her down in a clinic in India with a message from her sister. Her father is in ill-health. Reluctantly, Asquith agrees to make the trek back to England. The trek runs headlong into civil unrest and war (where Asquith gets to shine as a surgeon). Along the way the sparks rekindle between Marsden and Asquith. Asquith comes to realize that Marsden has loved her from their days as childhood neighbors. The explanation for their unhappy marriage is not revealed for some time – the source of the strife is real.

2010 RITA Winner Best Historical Romance

Lucy & Desi / Warren G. Harris 641 p.

Lucy and Desi. One of Hollywood’s most famous couples. So popular that they are known by their first names. Harris tells their story with candor. Lucy is the Queen of the ‘B’ movies until 1940 when she teams up with a young Cuban singer, Desi, in the film Too Many Girls. Lucy and Desi began a romance that led to marriage. Harris tells of their pre “I Love Lucy” lives and romances. He describes their live together; the ups and downs, and their careers, Lucy’s radio show and Desi’s band show. He continues the insider view of their marriage and the flaws and its eventual breakup. Desi is the behind-the-scenes powerhouse that took care of production for their show as well as the force behind Desilu Productions. It was nostalgic to read about the most popular of all TV with the series still running today.

The Good Good Pig - the extraordinary life of Christopher Hogwood/Sy Montgomery/228 pgs

This is the story of Sy Montgomery, a naturalist who is more comfortable dealing with wild animals in their natural habitat then with people, who brings home a very sick piglet named Christopher Hogwood. This is the story of how Christopher changes her life completely and takes place in my home state of New Hampshire (which was pretty cool reading about places I have actually been to). It is a very good book, especially if you are a fan of Jon Katz's novels.

Bliss to You - Trixie's Guide to a Happy Life/Trixie Koontz as told to Dean Koontz/158 pgs

This story is written by Trixie Koontz who was Dean Koontz's dog and a service dog dropout. I had listened to the audio version of this book and enjoyed it. Trixie had written this book after she died and left a chapter on Dean's computer every morning. It is a collection of stories about enjoying and living life to its fullest. It was a very enjoyable story and I think that any dog lover out there will relate to this story.

The Darkest Evening of the Year/Dean Koontz/354 pgs

This is the first Dean Koontz novel I have read and it was mainly due to one of the main characters is a dog. I normally do not like a horror story but this is not really a blood and guts horror story. It is a story of a dog rescuer and the dog she saves who just happens to remind her of a former dog. The dog seems to have some unique powers and the twists and turns of the story will keep you on the edge of your seat.

I Have Lived a Thousand Years/ Livia Bitton-Jackson/ 224 pages

This is the memoir of Elli Friedmann, who was 13-years-old when she was taken to Auschwitz. As you can imagine it's a hard story to read at times. But, it is also an amazing story of survival. Any time I am reading stories about the Holocaust or true war stories, I have to remind myself that this is real. These terrible things were really inflicted on people by other people. Since this is the story of a 13-year-old girl, it is in the Young Adult section. I have read a lot of Holocaust memoirs, and this survivor, like others is very inspiring.

Building Block Nominees

I'm not sure that I have a clear favorite for the Building Block books. But, I do know that my 2-year-old does. He loves "The Terrible Plop". After reading it the first time, I explained to him how the apple fell and made a sound, and he thinks it's hilarious. So, I guess I would list that as my favorite, because he enjoys it so much.

Tick Tock/James Patterson & Michael Ledwidge/387 pages

This Patterson novel features Detective Michael Bennett, one of my favorite Patterson characters. Michael is a widower and a single-dad of 10 adopted children and the grandson of one wild and crazy Irish priest. His deep love and his close relationship with each of his children really seems to be almost as much a focus point of the book as is his handling of insane killers. Though still grieving Maeve, his saintly wife, in this book Michael starts to acknowledge the more-than-a-friend and more-than-a-nanny feelings he has for two women in his life. When you see a book with chapters that average no more than 3 pages, you know it's a plot-driven, nail biting, race to the end with pretty much formulaic characters. In fact, you know how every Patterson book will end, but maybe in our wild and crazy world, those endings are what we crave the most.

Bill Peet: an Autobiography/Bill Peet/190 pages

While this is a childrens book and was a Caldecott Honor Book, it will also be enjoyed by adult readers. Bill Peet, illustrator of many beloved children's books, tells his story from boyhood to parenthood with an emphasis on the time he worked for Walt Disney. He starts out telling about his life as a boy in Indiana, fun on his taciturn grandfather's farm, an absentee father who just showed up when he needed money, a mom who taught to support her family, making it through the Depression, struggling as a student, surviving the 27 years in the Walt Disney studios and finally his achievement as a reknowned illustrator of books. The story of the years with Walt Disney are highly revealing...almost cathartic in nature. What every reader will gain is how we are constantly recreated by our lives but also formed by our childhood. And the best thing of all, the book is filled with wonderful Bill Peet illustrations on each and every page. I am sooooo glad I read this!

Call Me Irresistible / Susan Elizabeth Phillips / 385 pages

Susan Elizabeth Phillips does it again! Each one of her books grabs you in the first few pages and won't let you go. Even though every book she writes stands on its own, many characters from her previous works make an appearance here. It makes me want to read all of them again.

Meg Koranda becomes the most hated woman in Wynette, Texas after persuading her best friend, Lucy Jorik, to cancel her wedding to the town's favorite son - the irresistible Ted Beaudine. Lucy disappears, and when Meg tries to leave town too, she's forced to survive on her own wit and some hard work. She butts heads with Ted and most of the town's other inhabitants with hilarious results. The ending is somewhat predictable but getting to that part was irresistible!

Forget me not/336p/Hinze

Forget Me Not pulled me in from the very first page and kept me guessing until the end. Besides being a great storyline the book also boasts an awesome cover.
A mysterious woman finds herself brought to the Crossroads Crisis Center
by a good Samaritan. When she wakes she finds herself dealing with amnesia with some crazy killers on her tail. Beaten and dealing with memory loss, she finds herself staring at what she believes is her own portrait hanging on the wall of the Center.
The woman in the portrait happens to be the dead wife of the Crisis Center owner, Benjamin Brandt. Ben can't believe it when the center calls and tells them that they have a woman at the center that resembles his deceased wife Susan. At first Ben finds himself angry at the young woman who so resembles his dead wife. He has been mourning the loss of Susan and his young son and feels like this woman is hiding something from him. They both agree to work with one another to unravel the truth behind how his wife and this woman are connected. Susan's look alike has a strong belief in God but will her faith be enough to keep her out of harm's way? Be prepared to lose track of time while you try to figure out the twists and turns in this story. Forget Me Not makes a great book discussion pick if you like Christian suspense and even includes a wonderful set of discussio questions. For a similar author you may like to try in DiAnn Mills.

Tandem/312p/Bateman

Tandem by Tracey Bateman – ISBN 9780307457172 - Another Christian Supernatural book from the author of “Thirsty”. This story takes place outside of Branson Missouri in
the little town of Abbey Hills. Lauryn McBride, is dealing with the fast decline of a father with Alzheimer’s and preparing the Chisholm estate belongings for auction. Little does she know that some of the antiques in the Estate will bring evil to Abbey Hills. Amede Dastillion receives a package from Miss McBride and it draws her to Abbey Hills to explore what family secrets she might find in Abbey Hills. Amede lives in New Orleans, and has been searching for her sister Eden for many years. Both Amede and her sister Eden belong to a very old vampire covenant. Once Amede arrives in Abbey Hills strange things start happening again, animal carcasses turn up and people are found murdered. Both women are working through family issues and their relationships with God. The book is very intriguing but it does bounce around which could be confusing at times to the reader. I am looking forward to reading more of Bateman’s titles.

Incarceron / Catherine Fisher / 442 p.

(Note: Yes, you can review a book that has already been reviewed!)

Incarceron is a experimental prison that was suppose to help reform inmates, but instead becomes a dark, desolate place that traps and devours human souls.  Prisoners, Finn and his friends, are trying to escape with help from Claudia, the Warden’s daughter who lives outside Incarceron.

I was a bit confused at the beginning of the story.  It was hard to visualize the two worlds and how they were set up.  There is plenty of action to move the story along and I want to stick with this series (there are 2 more books). 

YA’s will pick up interest in this story as there is a movie starring Taylor Lautner (ie the werewolf from Twilight) and perhaps Emma Watson (from Harry Potter) based on this book due out in 2012/2013.

Unveiled / Courtney Milan / 378 p.

Lady Margaret’s world is crashing around her when it is discovered that she and her brothers are illegitimate and therefore cannot inherit their ailing father’s Title and Manor.  Instead everything will go to Ash Turner a second cousin who has been waiting for the chance to seek revenge on the Old Duke, and has no plans to show any mercy towards the family.  As Lady Margaret’s brothers go out to find a way to convince parliament to reverse their decision and let them keep their Dukedom, Margaret stays behind disguised as a nurse to keep watch over her father and spy on the Turners.  I’m sure you can guess where the story goes from here…

The author’s writing style is a little more literary than the typical quick, formulaic, romance novel.  I thought there was a nice balance of detail in the setting and character development and plot. 

I would recommend this Romance to anyone that enjoys good writing and a little soap opera-ish drama. 

101 Weight Loss Tips for Preventing & Controlling Diabetes/Daly, et al./123 pages

This book was put out by the American Diabetes Association, and I picked it up to read for my father who was recently diagnosed with diabetes. The format of the book is very straightforward. Honestly, it doesn't include anything that we haven't heard before, but it would be informative for someone who is just learning the ins and outs of diabetes.

Secrets of Eden / Chris Bohjalian / 370 pages

Domestic abuse, murder, suicide, angels, and a small-town, Vermont pastor having a crisis of faith are some of the elements comprising Secrets of Eden.  Told in four voices:  Stephen Drew - the pastor, Catherine Benincasa - the prosecuting attorney, Heather Laurent - the well-known (fictional) author of angel books, and Katie Haywood - the orphaned daughter of the deceased, the novel examines the dynamics of spousal abuse and the meaning of faith in a profound, suspenceful, intimate style.

Saving Max/van Heugten/376 pages

Danielle Parkman, attorney and single mother, has her hands full with her teenage son Max. After discovering his journal, she takes him to a top psychiatric facility for diagnosis and possible treatment. A violent and fatal incident there puts both her and Max in a struggle with the legal system. She will do whatever it takes to clear her only child's name. The blurb on the cover promises "the best of John Grisham with a feminine twist." I wasn't impressed with the twist aspect. It was spoon-fed to us throughout the book. And while I believe you have to suspend disbelief to some degree with many books (and movies), the actions this mother takes is completely over the top.

The Year of Magical Thinking/Didion/227 pages

"Life changes fast. Life changes in the instant. You sit down to dinner and life as you know it ends." Joan Didion, noted author, comes home one December evening with her husband, John Gregory Dunne, also a successful author. They have been visiting their comatose daughter who only days before fell mysteriously ill. As Joan begins to make dinner, John sits down at the table and suffers a massive and fatal heart attack. Joan begins her year of learning to cope as a widow and as a mother with a extremely ill adult child. While everyone can certainly sympathize with the author, the book is too clinical for me to relate to her plight. The book has been made into a one-woman play that recently played in St. Louis to good reviews. Possibly seeing this performed would be more satisfying.