The Martian by Andy Weir

Wow it’s been a while since I’ve posted about my latest readings. . . Whoops!  Don’t worry, I have been reading.  And reading a lot for that matter.  First off, let’s talk about my book club reading of The Martian by Andy Weir.  

The Martian is about an astronaut, Mark Watney, who gets stranded on Mars after a wind storm forces his team to evacuate. With no way to communicate with his team or NASA back on earth, Mark has to rely on his brains and his sense of humor to survive until a rescue mission can be arranged.  Initially, both his team and NASA thought Mark dead, but after telescope pictures captured Mark and his temporary home, they all do whatever they can to help Mark survive.  Eventually communication is set up and Mark is able to work with NASA to arrange for his rescue.  With many bumps along the way, Mark’s rescue and survival is put into question. Readers are left on the edge of their seat until the very end of the book.

I didn’t think I was going to enjoy this book.  It is definitely not something I would EVER pick up on my own.  Man am I glad we chose this book though!  I really loved it.  Even though I didn’t understand every little detail of his survival (it is pretty Science-based) I was able to enjoy it.  Andy Weir is very good at making even the most complex, science-y scenarios relatable for all.  The sense of humor Weir gave Mark really makes the book.  If Mark had been given any other personality I think the book would have been boring and hard to read.  Because Mark was able to make jokes and make the most of his horrible situation, the book was enjoyable and fun. 

Good news for me and anyone else that has read and loved this book. They are turning it into a movie, set to release November of this year.  While typically I like books way better than movies, I think seeing how Hollywood portrays Mars and the different scenarios Mark finds himself in will be very interesting.  I’m definitely going to see this, maybe even with the book club.  Bonus, Matt Damon is playing Mark Watney.  Man  do I love me some Matt Damon J  There are actually some other big names set to play in the movie.  Check it out on IMDB.

There are more posts to come!  I’ve read a decent amount of books since the last time I posted.

Until next time,

Tara

The Little Women Letters by Gabrielle Donnelly

I finished this book!!  It took me a lot longer than it should have to finish this, especially since I really liked it.  As I have previously said, I had a bad habit of leaving this book at work over the weekend and choosing Netflix over reading.  But this book deserved more than that.  I actually finished it about a week and a half ago, but life gets really busy right before Christmas and I'm just getting the chance to blog about it.

The Little Women Letters is about the descendents of Jo from Little Women.  I don't know if I have said it recently, but Little Women is my favorite book of all time. And Jo is my favorite character in Little Women.  I found The Little Women Letters in the bargain rack of Barnes and Noble and figured a book about the descendents of Jo March would be worth my time. 

The book is about 3 sisters, Emma, Lulu, and Sophie.  They live in England with their American born mother (a direct descendant of Jo) and their English born father.  The sisters are pretty typical sisters (at least in my opinion, having 2 sisters of my own).  One day at Sunday brunch, Fee, the mother, asks Lulu to look in the attic for some family recipes.  Lulu never finds the recipes, but instead stumbles across letters written between the March sisters.  Donnelly uses these letters as a framework for the rest of the novel.

A bit about the characters.  Emma is the oldest sister. She is in the middle of planning her wedding. She has a bit of a brush with celebrity and struggles to balance her life with a desire to have a few of the "finer" things in life.  Her experiences are very similar to Meg's in The Little Women.

Lulu, the middle sister, is struggling to find her place in the world. She hasn't found the love of her life like Emma has and hasn't found something she is passionate about like her little sister Sophie.  She relates to Jo in a lot of ways.

Sophie, the youngest, is an aspiring actress.  She desires to be on the stages of London.  She is the "pretty" one of the family, much like Amy.

One thing that I wasn't sure of before reading this book but really ended up loving was the letters themselves.  I didn't know if Donnelly would be able to capture the essence of Louisa May Alcott's writing to get the right feel of the letters.  Donnelly actually does a great job, making it seem like Alcott almost left behind a secret stash of letters to be used at a later date to expand on the story of the March sisters.  One of my favorite aspects of this story was the fact that Jo wrote letters to Beth after Beth passed away.  One of the reasons why I have always loved Jo is because she writes to express her feelings.  It just made sense to me that Jo would continue to write letters to Beth after Beth has left this world.

This book was excellent.  I'm glad I decided to take a chance and pick up this book.  I tend to shy away from novels that are written as a continuation of novels written by other authors because it is hard for me to believe that the essence of the original book will carry on.  I think the reason this novel worked so well is because it wasn't written specifically about the March sisters but about their descendants.  Donnelly was able to capture what Alcott captured so many years ago: the relationship of sisters.  That relationship is the same now as it was a hundred years ago. 

Room by Emma Donoghue

For my November book club book we read Room by Emma Donoghue.  I unfortunately didn't make it to the meeting to discuss the book.  But I REALLY enjoyed it.  I wasn't sure how I would feel about it because the book tells a fairly dark story.  The way Donoghue tells the story is pretty genius and made the book a very good read.

Room is about a woman who is abducted and held for 7 years.  During the time of her captivity she gives birth to a little boy, Jack.    I don't remember ever learning the actual name of the woman who was abducted, but I could be wrong. Jack simply refers to her as "mom".  Jack and Mom are held in an 11x11 storage shed in the abductor's backyard. The abductor provides basic needs such as food and clothing, and even provides SOME entertainment such as television and books.  The book really reaches a climax when Mom devises a plan of escape which puts the 5 year old Jack in the spotlight.

I don't want to reveal whether or not they escape or not.  Check out the book!

The thing I really loved about this book is that it shows the love a mother has for a child. Jack was conceived out of HORRIBLE circumstances.  But his mom loved him unconditionally.  Mom does the best she can for Jack given her situation.  She has raised Jack to believe that "Room" (the name she and Jack have given their living area) is it's own world. She tells him that what he sees on television isn't real so that Jack doesn't realize the horrible situation he is in.  She does her best to have a school environment for him.  She has "gym" classes to provide Jack the physical development and exercise he needs.  Where many women would have wanted nothing to do with a child conceived out of rape Mom loves her child endlessly.   She counts Jack as a blessing, convinced that if it weren't for Jack she quite possibly would have been killed by her abductor already. Jack helps her from going crazy in this small room and gives her a reason to live and try to find a way to escape.

As you can tell from my short summary this book covers some dark subject matter.  If you are looking for a fun, easy-going read I would shy away from this.  But if you are looking for a great story that reads very quickly and keeps you on the edge of your seat I would DEFINITELY pick this up.   I seriously loved it a lot more than I thought I would.

Up next for my book club is The Martian by Andy Weir.  I am hopefully picking up the book this weekend so I can get started on this read.  I am still plugging along with The Little Women Letters as well.  I keep forgetting to bring the book home from work so that limits when I can read it.  Plus. . . Netflix.  I've been feeling really lazy and have been turning the tv on more than reading the past couple weeks.  Hopefully that changes.  Reading is SO much better for the brain.

Until next time!

~Tara

Now I See You by Nicole Kear

In my last post I told you that I had started reading Now I See You for my book club.  Well I have finished it and even got a chance to discuss it with the club.  Can I just say that I really enjoy my book club?  It's nice reading books that I probably never would have picked up.  Being able to talk about the books really makes me enjoy them more too.  In school I got to discuss books in the many English courses I took.  But discusses books in English class is more like "what symbolism did the author use" and "what is the theme of the book" as opposed to book clubs which is more "what  did you think of this character" and "did that annoy you as much as it annoyed me".  Don't get me wrong, I really enjoyed the English courses I took.  But I struggled to find the symbolism in EVERY SINGLE BOOK  I read in school.  Sometimes I just wanted to bash on a character or critique a decision that was made.  And that is why I love book club.

Now back to the book.  Now I See You is a memoir about a young woman who learns that what she thought was a bad case of near-sightedness and clumsiness is actually the beginnings of an eye disease.  She discovers at the ripe old age of 19 that she would probably be blind in the next 10-15 years.  The book tells the story of Nicole coping with that news and trying to get as much done on her bucket list before she loses sight.

 Now I See You is not a "woe is me, everyone feel bad for me, my life sucks" kind of memoir . It is hilarious and shows that even with a grim diagnosis life can be joyful and enjoyable. While her eye disease plays a huge part in this book and her life, Kear does a great job about making the book about the struggles every young adult faces: finding a job, falling in and out of love, getting married, and having children.  Everyone that met to discuss the book at our recent club meeting was able to relate to some story that Kear tells.  

I don't read a ton of memoirs.  I find myself drawn to stories about people I have heard of and know a little bit about, whether that be a historical figure or celebrity. On one of the flights I took this summer I read an article in one of the in flight magazines about Kear.  I thought her story was interesting, but didn't really think anything of it until this book was mentioned as a possibility for the club.  I thought it would be a great opportunity to read a genre that I don't read a lot of and see how I liked it.  I must say I enjoyed it.  Everyone has a story worth telling.  It's all about finding the angle or lens to tell that story through.  Kear did a great job finding a way to tell her story and make it interesting. If you can look past the language (which I think gets a little bit more under control as the story progresses) it is definitely worth the read.

I have started reading a book called The Little Women Letters on my own time.  I found this book on the bargain rack at Barnes and Noble. I'll be sure to keep you posted on how that turns out.

The next book up for the Book Club is Room by Emma Donaghue.  One of the ladies in the club read it before and said it would be a great book for discussion.  I'm definitely intrigued and will start reading it probably later this evening. 

Happy Reading!

~Tara

Summer Reading

Hello fellow readers!

It might not seem like it, but I have been reading all Summer long.  While I don't remember every book I finished this Summer, there are some that stick out in my mind that I will share with you here.

The first is my all time favorite book ever: Little Women.  I had started this book a while ago and finally finished it while camping in New York this summer.  I don't know if I had only read abridged versions or if I had just forgotten some of the details of the book, but there definitely seemed to be some additions that I had never read before, which was a surprise bonus!  I love reading a book I have read before and discovering new details and treats!

Another book/book series I read (and am currently finishing) is the Mistborn Series by Brandon Sanderson.  I initially picked up Mistborn because the book club I am in was reading it.  It is definitely not a book I would have picked up on my own.  But that's the beauty of book clubs!  They open your eyes to new books that you never would have read otherwise.  I'm glad I purchased this book and decided to read it!  It is AMAZING!  The series follows Vin and her group of friends as they try to overthrow their ruler and establish a new government.  Vin has "magic" powers that she discovers and perfects with the help of her mentor and friend Kelsier.  I am currently reading the 3rd book in the series and have yet to be disappointed.  The second book starts out a bit slow, but DON'T GIVE UP!

I have also read a few books on couponing as I am trying to get better at it.  I won't bore you with those details, but if you are interested in learning more or want to know the books I read just let me know!

I am currently reading Now I See You by Nicole Kear for my book club.  So far I am enjoying it, although there is some language.  I'm not opposed to cursing, but sometimes I feel like it is a bit unnecessary.  While I know that there are some things that can only be expressed with a well placed expletive, the extent to which she swears is starting to annoy me.  I think that writers especially should be able to express themselves and their emotions more eloquently than using curse words every other line.  I am willing to ignore it because this is a memoir and not a book written by a well established author.  That is my only criticism so far.  

I will be sure to blog about Now I See You and will do my best to stay up to date with my blogging from here on out.  I've had a busy summer, which you can read about here.  

Here's to recommitting myself to blogging!

Happy reading!

~Tara

A Little House Sampler by Laura Ingalls Wilder and Rose Wilder Lane edited by William T Anderson

Yay another post!  I am trying to get through as many of these as possible today in order to get caught up, so brace yourself!

When I was a little girl some of my favorite books were the Little House on the Prairie books.  I remember reading them with my mom and loving Laura and her story.  These books made me wish that I had grown up back in her time.  I wanted to be Laura's friend SO badly!   My mom also loved these books, to the point that when I was 9 or 10 we went and visited some of the homes Laura writes about in these books.  While I don't remember much about the homes we visited I do remember how awesome it was to see places that my childhood hero actually lived in and wrote about.  It was one pretty sweet history lesson.  It's been a long time since I've read these books.  Many other authors have captured my attention since then, but Laura Ingalls Wilder and her books will always hold a special place in my heart.  She was one of my first favorites and really turned me on to how awesome the wonderful world of reading can be.

This particular book is a compilation of some of Laura Ingalls Wilder and Rose Wilder Lane's writings that didn't make it into the stories.  A lot of the articles are pieces that these ladies wrote for their local newspapers.  There isn't any particular story line to this book because it is a compilation.  Anderson does provide some historical background to each entry which helps readers place what was going on in the Wilders' lives at the time that piece was written.

I loved reading this book and getting some more information about one of my favorite authors!  I think it would be neat to re read this book as I read the Little House on the Prairie books.  Reading this book has made me want to reread the series.  While I haven't started it yet, I think that will be a project I take on this year.  I  have been so focused on finding new books or more intellectual books that I have forgotten some of the classic books from my childhood.  It's time that I revisit them and give them the attention they deserve!

Until next time (which will probably be after I eat lunch :)  ),

Tara

The Red Leather Diary by Lily Koppel

I have read a lot of books since my last post.  I have a decent amount of free time at work to get reading done, but have been slacking on the whole "posting about it to my blog" thing.  I think I have 5 or so books to blog about, so please bear with me as I get through them all.

The most recent book I have completed is The Red Leather Diary.  This book was a completely random read for me.  I found it at the library and it seemed like an interesting idea so I decided to give it a shot.  The author, Lily Koppel, found this diary in a dumpster in NYC. After reading through the diary she wanted to learn more about the author so she recruited a Private Investigator to help her find the author of the diary.  The result of the diary and Koppel's meetings with the author of the diary is this book.

The red leather diary was a diary written by Florence Wolfson in the 1920s.  It covered a 5 year span in Florence's life from the ages of 14-19.  While the entries in the diary are short, the story itself is complete because of the interviews between Lily and Florence.  We journey with Florence as she graduates high school and goes to college. We spend time with her on her summer journeys to the coast.  We explore Florence's relationships and sexuality and she tries to discover who she is.  And then we learn what happened to Florence all these years later.  We learn who from her past she marries and how her life ends up. 

I really loved this book.  While it is a biography about a "nobody" it shows that everyone experiences the same trials as a teenager.  The same struggles I faced in the 2000's, Florence faced in the 1920s.  It is a timeless story that I believe anyone can enjoy.

I think one reason I was so attracted to this book is because I have a secret desire for my journals to become published pieces.  While I blog a bit, all of the super juicy fun stuff goes straight into my journals.  I think it would be so cool for my journals to be discovered when I am 90 years old by a New York Times author that wants to make them into a book.  The possibility, no matter how remote, of this happening really makes me want to be more diligent in my journal writing.

The book I am currently reading is my all time favorite.  Bonus points if you know what that is!  I will leave you in suspense until I am finished with it. 

Until next post (which is probably coming pretty shortly because work is pretty dead right now and I have nothing better to do),

Tara