The Laughably Mediocre Results of the 2011 Challenges

It's a new year, and time for some new Challenges. But first, how about a summary of the completion (or general lack thereof!) of the 2011 Challenges!

Reading Goals - 66.6% Complete
- 50 Books for 2011, complete with counter to keep me motivated and excited to see the numbers go up! - Fell a little shy on this one, with 35 out of 50. Still happy with the total though!
- Write a review for at least half of my books read in 2011 -  I read an odd number of books (35) and reviewed 17....the "official" half is 17.5, so I'm rounding up from 17 and saying this one is good!
- Give away at least 10 books that I've enjoyed to friends/colleagues, to hopefully get some folks around me able to have some great book conversations! - I honestly don't know the official count on this, but considering that I sent at least 3 packages of books to Old Faithful this summer and another one with 4 books in right after Christmas, I'm having the faith that it was at least 10.

Blog - 0.00% Complete
- Post at least two blog posts per week - This one did ok up to when my computer finally kicked the bucket in March. It was all downhill from there.
- Only one post per week can be a review...must be creative and stretch the brain muscles a bit more - See above!

Knitting/Crochet - 25% Complete
- Complete both scarves that I have started so far this year! - I technically restarted one of them AGAIN, after it was long enough to be finished, because I am a little too particular sometimes. But, it did officially reach the required size for completion :)
- Finish my best friend's daughter's baby blanket...before her 2nd birthday in October. - And that would be a negative on both counts....not finished at all, let alone in time for the birthday. I actually think it is about the size of a large washcloth at the moment. Maybe time to start thinking about making it a throw blanket for when she goes to college.....
- Learn how to knit something that is not just some variation of a square(aka - no scarves, coasters, dish towels, blankets, etc) - And again....negative.
- Crochet a hat that actually fits my head :o) - I obviously had a rough year with the fiber crafts......

New Things I've Been Planning to Do - 50% Complete

- Actually take the pottery class I talk about every year! - Ok, so I didn't actually do this, but I'm still counting it. I did actually look up the class, make sure I had enough money and that it fit the schedule...then they didn't have it.

Gettin Out! - 62.5% Complete
- Go to at least 3 places on my local "To Visit" list - Woo hoo for exploring! I visited: Lewis & Clark Caverns, Natural Bridge State Park, Drove Chief Joseph Highway to Cody and went to the Buffalo Bill Historical Center!
- Take vacation to somewhere that neither Bryan nor I have been - Since we didn't go on vacation, that made this one a little tough.....
- Hike! I'm going to keep track of what I do from May-September, and the goal is to average 5 miles per week for the summer - While I did get out quite a bit more this summer than in the past few years, I have to be honest and say I probably didn't make the 5 mile per week average. So, I'm giving myself half credit for this one since I did at least make an improvement!
- Try a new outdoor activity(I have a sneaking feeling this will end up being hunting with the boys, but still undecided on that one!) - And hunting with the boys it was! I had the joyous experience of attempting (poorly I might add) to be quite while walking through dried leaves and fallen branches, watching Bryan shoot and gut a deer, getting lost while trying to find my way back to the car through trailless woods and then having my car smell like dead deer until, well, it honestly still kind of smells like it. Overall, I would definitely go again....and the deer sure does taste good (and save on grocery spending, yay!). I also spent a day on an outboard motor boat attempting to fish with my dear friend Laney - I will definitely go out and play on the lake again!- Finish my guitar instruction book and DVD, and be able to play at least 3 songs from memory - Nope....but I did open the book!

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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