The Help

The Help by Kathryn Stockett

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


As someone born well after this time period and about as far away within my own country as possible, I can't make any real personal connection to this era in our history, yet in this book I felt like I was there with these ladies as they navigated through the often treacherous obstacles of daily life.

It is definitely a book that not only makes you think about the situation as a whole (and think again and again what a shame it was that there ever was a time like this, and that sadly it still occurs today much more often than most people realize....), but it also made me think about myself. I would like to gallantly think that had I lived in this era and locale that I would have been like Miss Skeeter...beginning to see what was right and wrong about the world around me and doing something, no matter how large or small, to open other people's eyes. But just like everything else, my current ideals are based on where, how and by whom I was raised. Would I have had the fortune and foresight that she had? Or would I have been just like Elizabeth and Hilly; blind to the injustices I put on other people and the selfish little bubble around me? The thought makes me cringe, and it did so many times during this book.

This was a wonderful story, with so many different smaller stories hidden within. Definitely a favorite.



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Sunday's at Tiffany's

Sundays at Tiffany's by James Patterson

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


Nothing too monumental to say on either side of the fence, but a nice and easy afternoon lounger. The characters were likeable and made the imaginary plot aspects seem like they could really happen, in that girly and romantic, guilty pleasure sort of way.



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Picture Perfect

Picture Perfect by Jodi Picoult

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


I have only read a few Jodi Picoult books but they never cease to please me. This was a thrift store score that I hadn't heard of and didn't know what it was about, and it did a great job keeping me guessing.

The story centers on Cassie and Alex, an intelligent but naive anthropology professor and a Hollywood star, and their "fairy tale" love and marriage. They seem perfect and say they are "made for each other" but in reality have a troubled and abusive relationship that no one would believe if they actually did tell anyone, without actually seeing the proof.

Through the storytelling, you feel as though it's autobiographical, as it seems so knowing and insightful that you wonder how anyone could make this up. I also found myself cheering for Cassie and Alex to make it, despite him being abusive. You get to know the good in him, the damaged childhood that he truly seems like he wants to overcome, that he truly does love her, and you want to say "give him one more chance, maybe he really won't do it again..." when you know logically that you should be telling her to run for it. Picoult's imagination and formidable skills at weaving an amazing story make you feel as though if, having never been in an abusive relationship, you are given a while new insight and appreciation for the situation, and why even the strongest of woman have had difficulty leaving such situations. It is an eerie feeling - there were so many times that this novel made me incredibly uncomfortable admitting what I was feeling about what was going on but never able to stop reading. I have never hesitated for a moment to help a friend get away from an abusive situation, but also never had nearly so clear and idea of how they may have felt as I do after reading this novel. Once again, Picoult asounded, intrigued and educated me.



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The Art of Racing in the Rain

The Art of Racing in the Rain by Garth Stein

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


To say I loved this book is an understatement. I started dinner last night and then curled up on the couch to start this book while it simmered. Next thing, with my nose firmly buried in a book, I have completely forgotten dinner and it's burned to heck. Pause for a quick kitchen clean and nose back to book. Next thing I realize after that, through unstoppable sobs, is that it is now 11:45pm, completely dark and past bedtime, and I've just finished and closed the book.



This story is told by a human thinking dog named Enzo, and chronicles his life from puppyhood with Denny Swift, an aspiring race car driver, and eventually Denny's wife Eve and daughter Zoe. At times you forget that Enzo is a dog because he seems so insightful and observant but this is the very thing that snaps you back to realizing he is a dog....a person would never get away with much of the commentary he makes because people don't seem to like truth if it isn't what they want to hear, but truth is what Enzo is dishing out.



The "racing in the rain" is the backbone of the book's metaphors, beginning with Denny's excellent abilities at handling a race car on the wet track and the insights on this skill and other racing tidbits that he shares with Enzo over the years. Enzo then uses such insights as "when your eyes go, your car goes" and "that which you manifest will be" to remind us how very similar our lives are to the art of racing in the rain. The metaphors are intelligent, insightful, philisophical and simple enough to just sit and ponder without being down and insulting.



This is an amazing book, and one that I almost feel compelled to pick up and start reading over again today....but I might wait until dinner is off the stove this time....



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The Poisonwood Bible

The Poisonwood Bible by Barbara Kingsolver

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


I had heard many times over what a wonderful book this was and it lived up to every word and more. Told by a mother and her 4 daughters, it chronicles their time spent as missionaries in the Congo, beginning in 1959 and the subsequent courses their lives follow after the experience.



Just the idea of a baptist minister from Georgia moving his wife and 4 girls to post-colonial Africa in 1959 is enough to catch your attention and it never stops there. Each character tells parts of the story from her point of view, complete with different manners of speach, gramatical, spelling and pronunciation errors and varying degrees of thought, caring and knowledge.



The differences in the characters, and how well they develop and share their lives with us, is the key to this book. Rachel is the oldest, and the most materialistic of the bunch. Leah and Adah are twins who could not be more different: Adah is the underdog, the disabled child, who is free with her thoughts because no one acknowledges that she has them while Leah is the model child, following in her father's theological path and must learn from her experiences to be free to think. Ruth Ann is the baby, the always impressionable youngest who is smart as a whip and quite impressioning herself. Together this group of girls brings you to a world that you could never imagine, and honestly don't want to. You love some, you hate some, you are indifferent to some, but everyone you meet throughough this story is memorable enough that you can at look back and know at least how you felt about them.



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Water for Elephants

Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


While I did like this book, I may have falling victim to being a little overexcited by the hype but for me it didn't live up.



The yellow flag was waiving for me as I was reading, but the red flag has shown itself now just a few days later....I have already forgotten the names of characters, even ones that I enjoyed. As the male lead, Jacob was interesting, developed and gave us a great beginning: small town kid from humble beginnings about to finish his Ivy League veteranary education when tragedy strikes. Enter the circus, every young runaway's sleepytime fantasy. It keeps up for a bit, and actually does manage to hold you in throughout the story, but the characterization and depth of story drops shortly after this, and drops like a lead weight.



Marlena as a the female lead and love interest is basically boring. I gathered from the blatant scenes and statements that Jacob has fallen in love with her, but even at the end of the book have no understanding of why. All we know about her is that she is beautiful, married, wears pink sequins when performing with the horses and that Jacob is in love with her. August, as her husband, is equally flat, and boxed into the stereotype of violence due to his mental illness. This part was almost over the top to me.



The story itself was fast paced in a way that kept you intrigued, but in retrospect I think it went too fast, as nothing is memorable at this point. I honestly cannot remember if the speak-easy or the drunken night in the stateroom came first.



I know it does not sound like it, but overall I did enjoy this book and would recommend it as a light read. My disappointment is primarily driven by the rave reviews it received and the hype surrounding it. Go into it with expectations of "I hope I like this" or "This might be a good book" and it can be a good book. Definitely never a great one in my book though.



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The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo

The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larsson

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


This book was on my radar to read because so many people with different tastes were talking about it, which always intrigues me, but it wasn't on the priority list until a co-worker walked in with a "pass it around" copy and said "didn't you say you wanted to read this?" But of course, I'll never turn down a "pass it around" book that's anywhere on my to-read list :)



I honestly didn't even know what these books were about until I had the copy, and then was expecting it to be another of the stock crime dramas that gain a following because they have great writing or a creative draw. Boy did this one have both, but not even in the stock way that I expected.



FIrst, the Swedish setting drew me in because it was something different, with the different cultural areas and ways of doing things. Next, the characters were well created without being overdone, and the spacing and foreshadowing of their stories, both past and present, throughout the book were very well done. I felt as I was reading like I was actually getting to know Mikael and Lisbeth as I went, rather than getting a rundown on them to start and then straight into the story.





My only complaint is with the ending, as it was a bit too simple for all of the build up. It also seemed, contradictory to the, without giving a spoiler, "we looked everywhere" statement that was so elemental to the storyline and mystery itself.



Overall though, a great read and one that kept me tied to the couch for a few late evenings and a rainy Saturday!



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