Book Review Thursday #2

Not much to report here on the home front.

Baby C and I have had to stay inside for most of the week.

Boo.

We did head down to City Creek Mall the other day, and we enjoyed the Christmas decorations.

He was a great sport as I tried on red lipstick, Anthropologie dresses and perused Forever 21.  

Basically all the things Mr. H would not have had fun doing with me. :)

We also got to go to little brother O's band concert tonight.  

It was AMAZING.  He did such a good job. 

Baby C danced to all the songs and clapped dutifully.  He was awesome.

Since we have stayed inside most of the week

I have read a LOT.

It's not technically Thursday, but it's close enough.

Book #1

"Ender's Game" by Orson Scott Card

Mr. H loves this book.  He wants to go see the movie, and I have this thing about needing to read the book before I see it on the big screen.  I'm not a huge fan of Card as an author, so I was a bit hesitant.  Fantasy/Sci Fi isn't really my thing either, but I decided to give it a go.  

The story is really sad and depressing.  I thought it was clever and had a good message, but the overall feel of the book was a little dark and violent for my taste.  I would recommend this book to thinkers. (Like MR. H)  It definitely was a social commentary, and I thought it was executed well.  

***

Book #2

"The Rithmatist" by Brandon Sanderson

So this was another book recommended by Mr. H.  It was in the whole fantasy/sci-fi genre again, and so I was very VERY hesitant.  But, I had a rainy afternoon, so I gave it a go.

I was impressed.  The story was extremely clever, and it had a really fun tone throughout.  There were a lot of diagram thingies which didn't grab my attention as much, but I enjoyed the story.  It was interesting, light, and fast paced.  This is a good one.

****

Book #3

"All But My Life" by Gerda Weissman Klein

This book was much more up my alley.  It was a holocaust memoir, and I was surprised I hadn't already read it.  I really enjoyed it.  It was from a female girl perspective, and I appreciated the happy ending.  I love seeing different parts of that war, and I thought she presented a totally new story for me. It wasn't horribly graphic, and I thought the tone was much more hopeful than some of the other holocaust literature I've read.

****

Happy Reading!

*=not worth your time

**=ok, not recommendable

***=I'll recommend it, but I didn't enjoy it as much as I wished

****=I really enjoyed it

*****=Loved it! Everyone should read it!!!

Book Review Thursday

Book Review Thursday:

I am an avid reader.   I think I have my parents to thank for this, as both had a love for books and read to us all the time.  I still remember my dad reading to us C.S. Lewis, The Princess Bride, and other classics.  He has a natural gift for reading aloud.

anyway---

I thought it would be fun every Thursday to write a little review on the books I've just finished this week.  

Book #1

A Father First: How My Life Became Bigger Than Basketball

by Dwyane Wade

So Mr. H actually picked out this book.  Go figure, I guess Dwyane Wade is a famous basketball star or something.  I had no idea.  But, one afternoon I was bored, so I picked it up.  What a great book!!!  I have been having some qualms with the way men are being treated lately that we don't need them, we're better off without them etc.  So I loved that Mr. Wade :)  made a case for all fathers and husbands out there.  His early story is remarkable, and it was eye opening for me at all the sacrifices that were made for him by his family.  I loved how he realized, that when he had his two boys, they needed him. They needed a father.  The custody battle was very, very long and his ex-wife did not want him in their lives.  But he knew how important it was that they saw him often.  I loved that he put so much on the line to be a DAD.  This was a very inspirational read.  

****

#2

Hunchback of Notre Dame

by Victor Hugo

This book has been recommended to me by my sister for a long time.  It's Victor Hugo, so you know the story will be good.  This was also my challenge read of the week: I got the unabridged version and it was very long, and a lot of it was in french.  As I was struggling to get through it, I ended up reading the plot synopsis on wikipedia to help me get a handle on characters and plot development.  First suggestion: Get the abridged version!!!  At least if you are like me, I did not care for the pages after pages of descriptions of Paris.  He really wanted to paint a picture, but some of it was way too long for me, and had nothing to do with the storyline.  Also: warning-very depressing book.  Unlike the Disney version, which I still felt was very dark, the book does not have a happy ending, or sweet themes through out.  It deals with some dark, heavy stuff and it made me very sad.  The story is really good though, and it makes you think.  I walked away with "How do I view people?  What do I value in my relationships?"  

***

#3

The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks

by: Rebecca Skloot

This book is for a book club in my neighborhood.  I thought it was really, really good.  It seemed like it was half and half---half story, half science.  I personally enjoyed the story, narrative part more than the science, but I felt I learned a lot.  I liked that I could read a fun, historical piece and learn about tissues, cancer and vaccinations.  I loved the truth and honesty that the author portrayed in the novel.  It made me think about ethics in medicine, and also the American plight.  It was a really good informational/fun read.  

****

*=not worth your time

**=ok, not recommendable

***=I'll recommend it, but I didn't enjoy it as much as I wished

****=I really enjoyed it

*****=Loved it! Everyone should read it!!!