April Showers bring...........

Hello all!
Unfortunately this is turning into a monthly blog rather than a weekly one but my life has been kind of crazy lately so I just need to give myself a break. I haven't stopped reading and have a few titles to add to my list:

Catcher in the Rye by JD Salinger which was the book club pick for April. We had a great discussion about this book and not everyone appreciated it but we agreed that the main character Holden was a handful and would be a tough kid to parent!

Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet by Jamie Ford. This one is a really sweet story that takes place in Seattle during WWII and is about the Japanese population there that is taken to internement camps after the bombing of Pearl Harbor. It tells a story about an unlikely relationship between two classmates and the bonds they form. I'm going to Seattle on a trip this summer and plan on checking out some of the spots they talk about in the book.
Death in a Prairie House was a nonfiction book I got from Deb after we read the March book, Loving Frank. It tells the story about the murders that took place at Taliesen in Spring Green. A bit more graphic than Loving Frank but a very interesting book.
Girls Night In is a collection of short stories from a bunch of authors I read already, including Jennifer Weiner, Sophie Kinsella and Meg Cabot. Short stories are great to read once in a while when you don't have the time to get into a whole book but you want to finish a story so check this one out! I have liked pretty much everything that I've read this past month and right now I am working out the book group pick for May which is called To Become a Priest- A Love Story by Den Adler. I'm only about 60 pages in so will talk about this one the next time I blog...which hopefully won't be another month!

Happy St Patrick's Day!

Ok people, it's going to be 70 degrees today! I have seen about 25 robins in the last couple days so I know spring is around the corner. Yeay!!!! I don't know about the rest of you but winter seemed unusually long this year and I'm ready for warmth and green.

I have been having a tough time keeping up with my blogging but did want you all to know that I am fulfilling my reading quota and hanging in there with my goals. I read a couple of interesting books these past couple weeks. The first one is one called "The Middle Place" by Kelly Corrigan which I absolutely loved and can't imagine anyone not liking it. It's nonfiction and about a young mom who has an amazing relationship with her father (who is really quite a character!) and her being in the "middle place" where she is raising children of her own but also feeling a little in charge of her aging parents. There is some illness involved but really inspirational and I suggest you read it. The other book i finished last week is called "The Shack" by William Paul Young. It's a different genre book than I usually read and to put it really simply it's about a man who has a family, something horrific happens to one of his children and he struggles for a couple years faithwise and one day God sends him a letter telling him to meet him at "the shack" where the crime took place. What happens in that weekend for him is pretty remarkable and it certainly is a story that makes you think and then think some more. If anyone else has read it I would be very interested in hearing what you thought. It may be a book to read for our book group at some point.
I'm trying to finish "Loving Frank" by tomorrow nite as it is book group nite and hopefully will get that in. I'm in kind of a slow part in the book, a little more than half way thru but I do like it and I think it will create some really good conversation. It was a lot different for women living in that period of time don't you think? There seemed to be alot of judgement involved. Anyway, beyond that I am also still pluggging away at Comfort Food" by Kate Jacobs and on deck is "Thank You For All Things" by Sandra Kring who wrote the book we read last year called "The Book of Bright Ideas" Remember that one? We all liked it...............so that's where I'm at with my reading. I hope you're all having a wonderful week and we'll see you tomorrow nite!

Book List

I thought I'd keep an ongoing list of what I've read so far and how much I liked them.

Tara Road by Maeve Binchy- C+

The Ha Ha by Dave King- A

The Sun Farmer by Michael McCarthy- B

Hannah's Dream by Diane Hammond- A-

Ten Eternal Questions by Zoe Sallis- B

The Daily Fix, Your Guide to Healthy Habits and Good Nutrition by Alexa Fishback- B

Belong to Me by Marissa de los Santos- A

Where did the last month go?

Wow, I am sorry about the falling off the face of the earth thing. I just looked and can't believe I haven't blogged since Jan 26th. That's crazy!

Anyway, Feb is half over and I'm a little behind on my reading but I have all the confidence in the world that I'll catch up very quickly. I have read a couple of books this month ....the book group book called "Belong to Me" by Marissa de los Santos which was really good. We had book group last Wed and everyone seemed to like it. I told everyone that this was a "sequel" to another book I read by this author called "Love Walked In" so for those of you that want to see what happened to Cornelia before she moved to the "burbs" check it out. I just lent it to Cathy, who in turn will give it to Kris S, who in turn will give it to Kris M so after that you can fight over it.

The other book I read in Feb is a "fluff" book but it was still ok. It's called "The Daily Fix, Your Guide to Healthy Habits for Good Nutrition" by Alexa L. Fishback. It actually had some helpful hints about nutrition and weight loss, etc....I always like to get ideas and it had some good ones. It's geared toward a younger crowd but that was ok. I'm still young. Right? Right! Anyway, check it out.

The book I'm reading now is called "Knit Two" by Kate Jacobs. It's a sequel to "The Friday Night Knitting Club" which I received from one of my lovely book group friends from the Christmas party we had. Cathy lent me this book (it actually was meant for Dawn but I intercepted it!) and I liked the first one so much that I'm excited to get thru this one and on to the next. I leave to see the kids in Denver next Thurs so will have alot of time to read in the airport, on the plane, waiting for pickups, etc....so on deck is yet another book by Kate Jacobs called "Comfort Food". This one is about a woman about to turn 50 (that also happens to be a celebrity cook) who has been the ultimate caretaker for everyone but herself decides to shake things up when the exectutives of her show want to include an on air cooking class and she gets the people in her life involved. It sounds good doesn't it? I'll keep you posted.
I'm writing another post after I get done with this one on the books I have read so far so you can see what I've accomplished. (actually that's for me, but you can read along) Have a great weekend everyone!
Barb

I Just Can't Get Excited About Mondays.....

Hello everyone!
I haven't blogged in over a week! That's bad......I will try to keep up a little better from now on. Because i do like to keep you posted on what is going on. So, I'm done with The Sun Farmer and it actually was a pretty good read.....sad in places but I also learned quite a bit about farming and farm machinery which sounds kind of odd but it was rather interesting. The farmer in this story had a very challenging life after his accident but he kept an amazing attitude and counted his blessings...when he didn't have that many to count. Anyway, a different story than what I'm used to reading but I'm glad I did.
This week I'm reading a book called "Ten Eternal Questions- Wisdom, Insight and Reflection For Life's Journey" by Zoe Sallis. It's really a neat book and has different questions answered by a variety of people such as Nelson Mandela, Bono, Gore Vidal, Bob Geldof, Jack Nicholson, as well as other artists, scientists, and religious figures. Some of the questions the author asks are "Do you think this life is all there is?" and "What is your concept of God?" It's really interesting to read what others think and believe....and makes you think yourself...I would recommend it to anyone who just wants a different insight. On deck is a book my mom gave Hannah called "Hannah's Dream" by Diane Hammond and it is about an aging elephant that is living at a zoo and her longtime zookeeper is trying to move her into an elephant sanctuary to make her last years more peaceful and happier. I am excited about this book as I like to read about animals and their relationships to humans. After that I will most probably start the book club book for February which is "Belong to Me" by Marissa de los Santos. Stay tuned and I will do my best to blog more. Enjoy the last days of January!!!!

Ha Ha Ha.......

Happy Saturday!
I'm almost done with "The Ha-Ha" and have about 50 pages to go. It's really an interesting book and the more I've read, the more I've enjoyed it. Really shows how people with limitations can make their lives so much fuller and richer when one thing changes or shifts. It's been a great story to read. Check it out!

Next up for me is "The Sun Farmer" by Michael McCarthy and this is the story of a corn farmer in Illinois who suffered a horrific farm accident where 93% of his body was burned. One of the doctors that I work for at UW, Mike Schurr is mentioned alot in this book as he is the Burn Chief and this accident happens at a time when they started using a new "artificial skin" product that had just come on the market. I'm only about 3 chapters into this book but I can tell it's going to be very interesting.

I'm looking forward to reading a fair amount this weekend so will keep you all posted on both books and what I'll be reading in the future. Hopefully I'll see alot of you this Wed nite at Book Group! Stay warm.....

Defining a "Ha-Ha"

Happy Friday and hope everyone stays warm.....how do the little outside critters survive this sort of weather? I found bunny prints all over my front steps this morning and that made me wonder. Maybe tonite I'll put out some carrots for them.

So, I'm still reading "The Ha-Ha" and continue to enjoy it. I think alot of you would like this book as well. There is a part in the beginning of the book that describes a "ha-ha" as follows:

"A ha-ha is a boundary wall concealed in a ditch so that it does not intrude upon the view. Much employed by the great nineteenth-century English landscape gardner "Capability" Brown, its original purpose was to make possible uninterrupted views from the lawns and other more nealty cared-for areas surrounding the mansions, of more distant trees, copses, lakes and meadows grazed by cattle and sheep....The name ha-ha derives from the explanation that a stranger might make upon coming upon such a ditch unexpectedly from the top of the wall. An experience of this kind could, of course, be highly dangerous to the unwary."

Thursday Means it's Almost Friday

Hello everyone,
I wanted to comment on the book that I'm reading this week. It's called "The Ha-Ha" by Dave King and this is his first book. I am really liking it and recommend it to everyone even though I'm only about a third of the way into it....he's a great writer that kind of pulls you in right away and the chapters are short....which is a bonus. It's about Howie, who had a traumatic brain injury in Viet Nam when he was 18 and the book takes place 30 years later when his girlfriend from high school asks him to watch her 9 year old son while she's in Rehab for cocaine addiction. Howie can't speak and actually can't read or write but thinks in the same way that everyone else does....so you can imagine the challenges that he faces. I'll give you more information as I get into the book a bit more but I really like it. My mom read this book last year and suggested it to me. I'll tell you what a "Ha-Ha" is the next time I blog. Happy Thursday to you all!

Monday Monday............

Hello to all........and Happy Monday! I'm not so keen on Mondays as it is a very early day for me ....but with coffee anything is possible!
I finished Tara Road! So book one is done! I did like it (soap opera story and all) and I think it will make for good conversation.......we can talk about all the crazy decisions some of the people in the book made! Does anyone want to slap Danny like I did? And I have a specific question about the ending....but I won't say it now because I don't want to spoil it for anyone that hasn't started or is currently reading it.
I have to think of a theme though....it takes place in Ireland and Ria sure was one heck of a cook so if anyone has any ideas on a fun way to do the food/drink, that would be great. I'll think about it as well.
Other than that, hope you are all doing well. TJ and Caitlin got back to Denver ok with no car issues and TJ is loving his new house. They both start school today....you guys with college kids are lucky to still have them home with you....our time seemed to go really fast. Anyway, on to a new year! Here's wishing everyone good health and happiness!

Slippery Sunday

Wow, it is brutal outside with the freezing rain we got last nite. Everyone needs to be careful. As for me, I'm staying inside and not even trying to go out. A good day to take down Christmas decorations and of course read.....Tara Road is coming along nicely. In fact, I've only got about 100 pages to go. It's rather addicting once you get started....I like Ria's character. She started out kind of wimpy but I think she's going to finish out rather strong. It's still reading like a soap opera in parts but I admit there have been a couple things that have happened that I didn't see coming. She's in the US now and I'm wondering what is going to happen to the house on Tara Road.
I'm going to try and see how I can make this blog better so people can write things or comment. I know Kelly has tried and not been able. It may be that I have to "invite" readers to be able to write or comment or blog themselves. I'm not very computer savvy so will spend some time this afternoon trying to figure that out.

2009 Begins!

For those of you who are in my book group, "Read 'em and Eat" you will know that I made a very public statement at our December book group nite of having a goal for 2009 of reading a book a week.....which translates into 52 books a year! I've been thinking of the craziness of this whole thing and just thought "oh gosh, can't do that, it's impossible, it's insane, it's nuts!" and then realized, "well maybe I can, I will, I must!" haha.....well not exactly like that but still thought it was kind of a fun challenge as 1) I love to read, 2)I have more than enough books in my library to sustain me and 3, 4, &5) it will give me alot of pleasure and relaxation and focus....so onward! My first book of 2009 is "Tara Road" by Maeve Binchy which is our book club's pick of the month. It's ok so far, although a little on the soap opera'ish side.....( when you blog, you get to make up your own words) but I'm already a little bit past the halfway mark so I don't think I'll have a problem finishing this one. On deck is "The Ha-Ha" by Dave King. If there's something you've read and you think I'd like it, please feel free to suggest. I have promised my oldest daughter I will read the Harry Potter series this year so watch for that too. Have a great day and watch for more posts.