The Bronte Sisters, by Catherine Reef

How did a family produce not one, but three, stunningly talented writers?  And how would these talented women fit in to Victorian ideals of femininity?  We learn the family history of the Brontes, as well as the life experiences that so clearly colored the sisters' writings?  Known originally as Acton, Currer, and Ellis Bell, the girls would end up writing some of the most groundbreaking literary works of the times, and their stories would last throughout the ages.

Jane Eyre has always been one of my favorite pieces of classic literature.  There is something so universal to the story, aspects that resonate with modern readers despite the fact that it was written in a much different time and social climate.  So, given the chance to read more about the live of the author, and her sister, I jumped right on.  And typically, I love biographies, particularly of people I admire, but for me, this book just seemed flat.  I found very little in the book that would be engaging to the intended age group (ages 10 and up).  As an adult, with a vested interest in the subject matter, I was quite bored for the majority of the book, so I imagine many kids would be as well.  The facts of the Brontes lives were presented in a straightforward manner, but it was not until the book discussed the writings of the girls that I became the least bit interested.  The book is almost 200 pages, at the middle grades reading level, yet it took we an entire weekend to read, not because it was difficult, but because I just was not engaged at all by the writing.

Even as a child, I was a voracious reader.  I read any and every thing I could get my hands on.  I had a knowledge of classic literature, and while I was too young to read the works themselves, I adored film adaptations of many classic literary works, even before I was of school age.  So, as a child, this type of literary biography would have certainly appealed to me.  However, I was an unusual child, and kids today have so many other options in terms of reading, I am not sure that this book will appeal much to kids.  Certainly parents would encourage their children to read this, and it could be a great supplement to public school or homeschooling curriculum, but I do not see a child going out of their way to read this, as opposed to more engaging books.

I received a review copy as part of the Amazon Vine program.

Diving Belles, by Lucy Wood

Welcome to a place where the magical and mundane are entwined.  Prepare to realize that every person, place, and feeling has a story of its own.  This collection of short stories ranges from wives recovering husbands lured by mermaids to a house watching over its ever chancing occupants to a boy searching for a sign of his father in a boneyard for giants.  If this book teaches you anything, it is to not look at the everyday as being so everyday afterall.

I have quite mixed feelings about this book.  First off, Lucy Wood writes in a way that is silky and enchanting.  Her command of language is amazing, making me feel as if I were wrapped up in a giant sable on a cool winter's day.  I loved the exquisite way that she writes, full of sadness and beauty, joy and despair, dark and light all at once.  It is quite clear that she has a tremendous gift.  And I did enjoy the fact that the stories are so mystical.  I liked the hints of magic and the unexplained, it felt like a game of make believe.

As with any book of short stories, some struck me more than others.  I particularly enjoyed Of Mothers and Little People, as well as Notes from the House Spirits.  They were sweet and sad at the same time.  My only real criticism of the book is that I found a lack of resolution to the stories.  It seems like the just start and stop so abruptly.  It made me feel as if I were dreaming, or trying to hear underwater or something.  And this is not necessarily a bad thing overall regarding the book.  It just left me wanting a little closure.

I received a review copy as part of TLC Book Tours.  See the rest of the tour here.

 

The Last Little Blue Envelope, by Maureen Johnson

After spending the summer running around Europe following instructions left in letters by her now dead aunt, Ginny seems lost.  She is lost because the letters, and her chance for closure, were stolen, and she was unable to carry out her aunt's final request.  When someone contacts Ginny about the final letter, she finds herself once again London bound, and headed off for another grand adventure.

It has been some time since I read the prequel to this book, so I was a bit worried that the details might be a bit funny in my brain regarding the unorthodox storyline of this series.  Luckily, within the first few pages, the story came back to me, and I was able to funny enjoy Ginny's adventure.  I feel like we really got to see Ginny undergo so serious growth with this last chapter of her story.  She is preparing for college, and reflecting on how much her life has changed since she read her aunt's first letter.  We find her dealing with a bit of a love triangle, which kind of becomes a love quadrangle in the end, and I liked this subtle tension.

I found that, despite the fact that the plot once again involves a teenager tromping unchaperoned through Europe, the very heart of the situations in the book were quite believable.  Most teens have, at some point, pined for a romantic partner.  Some have found themselves making risky choices.  And I would venture to say all have found themselves facing a crossroad in life, and unsure which path to choose.  The biggest gift Ginny's aunt gives her is the ability to really seek out her own path, and her own story.  Even by revisiting places she had already been, each adventure has it's own story to tell.

All in all, I thought this was a good read.  Not as fast paced and crazy as the first book, but I found this book to be much more heartfelt than its predecessor.  I think in Ginny we see the "every girl" character who is given an opportunity to experience something amazing.  It is an opportunity of which most of us secretly dream, which is why so many will be able to relate to this book.

I borrowed this book from the local library.

   

Dancing Dog: Stories, by Jon Katz

Dogs can have a huge impact on the lives of humans.  And humans can have an even greater impact in the lives of dogs.  See the profound nature of the symbiotic relationships that can be formed between man and dog in this collection of short stories.

I feel like I was reading a totally different book than everyone else who has reviewed it so far.  I really disliked this book.  A lot.  I felt like the stories were trite, and the character development was very superficial.  And, in many of the cases, the stories portrayed humans perpetrating terrible acts upon these animals.  I anticipated that this book would be uplifting, and to me, it just was not.

One story actually made me pretty angry.  It involved a woman dying and visiting her dog in the dog portion of heaven.  In dog heaven, they can run all over, defecate and urinate all they want, eat rotten food and never get sick, tear apart homes and furniture, and that is their version of heaven.  And the angel that guards dog heaven says that hell is a place where dogs on tethered on leashes, forced to eat what the masters chose, must void themselves in specific locations.  In other words, dog hell is life on earth as pets to humans.  As an extreme dog lover and owner of two dogs, I take great offense to the idea that canine hell is life in a home that provides safety, shelter, and nutrition.  I do not crate or leash my dogs to be cruel or to have mastership over them, I do not chose their diet to be in control of them.  I do these things to keep them safe and healthy.  Hell might exist on earth for dogs with abusive owner, for sure, but to paint all life on earth as hell is a total slap in the face to people, like me, to would do anything to insure our pets are happy and healthy.

Perhaps I just missed something, but this book simply did not connect with me.  

I received this as part of the Amazon Vine program.

As I Close My Eyes, by Sarah DiCello

At the tender age of 18, Danielle has her whole life ahead of her, when suddenly, an accident has her contemplating the life she has behind her.  After a boating accident, Danielle begins having odd dreams of a woman named Caroline who lived over a hundred years prior.  It quickly becomes apparent that Danielle actually was this woman, and the people in her present day life have counterparts in the past as well.  Danielle becomes obsessed with learning about her past life, and determining if it was real.

I thought this was a really great concept, one that I have seen similarly employed in other books.  I like the juxtaposition of past and present, and the idea that everyone has a past/future counterpart.  It makes me wonder what it would be like to live in the past.  I actually enjoyed the "past" parts of the book more than the present.  I felt like the storyworld was more vivid, and the rich details made it seem more real.  Similarly, I was much more interested in the stories of the past characters.  I felt like the transitions between the scenes of the past and present were smooth, and one never wondered who we were seeing, Caroline or Danielle

While I did like Danielle as a character, I felt like the modern portions of her story were not as well developed, and therefore a little less realistic.  She meets a man, and boom they are in love, meeting each others' families and such.  I mean, sure, I guess that could happen so quickly, but I could not help but feel like the relationship seemed to lack enough substance to ignite so quickly.  In direct contract, I thought the relationship between Robert and Caroline in the past seemed to have an incredible amount of depth.  Similarly, I found myself wanting to learn Ben's version of the whole story.

I found the ending to be pretty surprising, with the last sentence being a bit of a twist.  This, coupled with what appears to be some unfinished business with other characters, leads me to believe there will be a sequel to this eventually.  All in all, a quick, engaging read, perfect for a little vacation reading.  I think fans of romance novels, particularly historical romance, will enjoy this unique book.

I received a review copy courtesy of the author.

I Am Forbidden, by Anouk Markovitz

As a child, Josef witnessed the senseless murder of his strict Hasidic Jewish family.  He is taken in and saved by a Catholic woman, until friends of his parents find him and send him to American to live in a Hasidic community.  Mila also watched her parents get slaughtered in her childhood, and was taken in by a devout family.  For a while, both of these orphans live in the same house, connected forever by tragedy.  As young adults, they are reunited, and begin a life together.  The impact of their ultra orthodox upbringings colors their lives in ways never expected.

Talk about an intense book.  There is a so much going on here, I am not even sure where to begin.  At the book's opening, the reader is thrust into what is, for most of us, a totally foreign, darkly intense world of Hasidic Judaism.  I was really struck by the strict nature of this sect.  I knew some of the commandments, but the portrayal of them in the text was, at times, overwhelming.  The books' opening is confusing, and the religion is so foreign, but I think that this is intentional, to signify the confusion and guilt of Josef and Mila, as well as some of the other characters in the book.  By a third of the way through the book, everything that happened at the opening made perfect sense, and I was really glad that I was able to hang in there with the story, even when it was uncomfortable.

While Josef and Mila's stories take up the majority of the book, there is this really exquisite substory involving Atara, and her rebellion against Hasidism.  She pushes back against the oppression of women within the sect, and her level of independence has a profound impact on Mila, though that impact will take years to be evident.  

The book is incredibly complex, dealing with raw and dark aspects of Jewish life in Europe during the 30s and 40s.  I found the writing to be a little dense, which I chalked up to this being the author's first English language novel.  Even with that density, I found the book incredibly compelling.  It is certainly not the kind of book that will appeal to everyone.  If you are looking for a light read with a happy ending, this is not a good match for you.  But if you are looking for an intense, honest, raw glimpse of a world you might otherwise never experience, dive on in, you will not be sorry.

I received this book as part of the Amazon Vine program.

My Father at 100, by Ron Reagan

Ronald Reagan would have been 100 years old in 2011.  As a celebration of his father's life, son Ron sought to learn more about family history, and glimpse the often unseen side of our 40th president.  In learning more about family history, Ron learns a great deal about himself, as well as what shaped his father into the leader he seemed destined to become.

It is not often that I write a harsh review of a book, because I know that is most cases, an author has poured his life's blood into the book, eating, breathing, and sleeping the all consuming work for many months, only to put it out there for all the world to see, like their exposed inner child.  So, normally, I try to respect authors even when I do not like the book.  The exception to this is when a person with a famous name masquerades as an author, cashing in on that name, with a piece of pure schlock.  And that is totally the case with this book.

I personally have no strong feelings one way or the other in terms of Ronald Reagan.  I was too young during his presidency to remember much of it, and am too disinterested in politics now to devote too much time learning about him.  However, I thought a biography would be a good way to slightly expand my knowledge base regarding the former president.  And in that way, the book was successful, as I did learn facts about his life.  But I had to learn them in the most boring way possible.  This book is so boring, and poorly written.  It tries to be both a historical genealogy about generations past and a memoir of growing up as the son of the president; it fails at both.  The book starts out ok, if not a little slow, tracing the family roots back to Ireland, and telling how the family made their way to, and across, America.  However, the book kind of tanks about 60 pages in, when the author starts interjecting childhood anecdotes, often unrelated to the overall topic of the chapter, in a way that confuses the narrative.  In one chapter, he discusses himself as a teen, his dad as a teen, then his dad at his first inauguation, his dad as an adolescent, himself as an adolescent, and his grandfather as a young adult, pretty much in that order.  It was awful.  The same chapter included the following obnoxious (and what I suspect to be inaccurate in terms of current alcohol consumption) sentence about his grandfather Jack: "He drank during an age when men imbibed far more alcohol, on average, than in today's more abstemious climate."

I think that this book could have benefited from a heavy handed editor not so intimidated by the Reagan name that he was scared to tell Ron he cannot write.  Either an editor like that, or a ghost writer.  I cannot even speak to the factual nature of the content, because I could not get past the awful awful writing to even devote any energy to the content.

If I felt this were a book by someone who really tried, or that this was an earnest endeavor to write ones memoirs, I would probably not be so harshly critical.  However, I feel like this was just an attempt for Ron to cash in on his famous dad.  I would imagine there are many biographies, and even memoirs written by other Reagan family members, that are written better than this, and would tell more about Ronald Reagan in a clear, concise, logical manner.  I doubt I will go looking for them, however, as this one kind of soured me.

I received a review copy courtesy of the publisher.