Top Ten Tuesday

 

Top Ten Tuesday is an original feature meme created over at the Broke and The Bookish. This week’s topic is Ten Books I Would Want to Read With my Book Club.

1.       Wild By: Cheryl Strayed- I just finished her book Tiny Beautiful Things: Advice on love and life from Dear Sugar and it was amazing. Strayed has a way of putting her thoughts into words, and she is so eloquent. In a lot of her advice she talks about her personal life which I know she touches on a lot in Wild, so I think it would be a great book to discuss.

2.       I Am Malala By: Malala Yousafzai- This girl is amazing! Her struggles and the rights she is trying to obtain for women in oppressive countries are just astounding. What a role model! 

3.       The End of Your Life Book Club By: Will Schwalbe- I think this one would be a tough read, but I think that it would create some great discussion. The author starts a “book club” with his mother who is dying of cancer.  

4.       Gone With the Wind By: Margaret Mitchell- I have always wanted to read this book! I think it would be great to sit down with a group of girls and discuss the issues of the times from the book and also kind of compare it to the movie. 

5.       Quiet By: Susan Cain- This is a book about the world of introverts. How introverts live in society, how society may not be the best environment for some introverts, etc. I myself am a social introvert, so I love being around others, but I also need my quiet, alone time or I get very cranky!

6.       The Opposite of Loneliness By: Marina Keegan- This is a collection of posthumous essays and stories written by Keegan. She passed away a couple of days after her college graduation. She wrote a great essay entitled The Opposite of Loneliness, which happened to be the last essay she wrote for her school and it was great. This made me interested in her other work.

 

7.       We Were Liars By: E. Lockhart- This book sounds really good. I have been becoming more of a YA book fan, and so this one sounds like it would be fun to delve into and then talk about all the juicy gossip.  

8.        Not That Kind of Girl By: Lena Dunham- I love Lena! I have drunken the Kool Aid, and I can’t get enough of her. I have heard this book is pretty funny, which would be fun to reminisce about with a group of girls! 

9.       The Invention of Wings By: Sue Monk Kidd- An Oprah’s book club book. I mean, do I need to say more? 

10.   The Poisonwood Bible By: Barbara Kingsolver- I have tried to start this twice, and people can’t believe I haven’t gotten sucked in. My cousin did say though that it took about 50 pages or so. I think maybe if I read this for a book club I would be able to press through.

 

 

What Alice Forgot

By: Liane Moriarty

My Rating: 5 stars

Who Should Read This?: Fans of Liane Moriarty will love this book. Anyone who may have read her other books I think will enjoy this light read, especially since her other books, in my opinion, tend to be on the more serious side. My mother actually read this and recommended it for a fun read. It is a quick read and would actually be a perfect summer read when you are feeling lazy and maybe laying on a beach somewhere.

Synopsis (From Goodreads): Alice Love is twenty-nine, crazy about her husband, and pregnant with her first child. So imagine Alice’s surprise when she comes to on the floor of a gym and is whisked off to the hospital where she discovers the honeymoon is truly over — she’s getting divorced, she has three kids and she’s actually 39 years old. Alice must reconstruct the events of a lost decade, and find out whether it’s possible to reconstruct her life at the same time. She has to figure out why her sister hardly talks to her, and how is it that she’s become one of those super skinny moms with really expensive clothes.
Ultimately, Alice must discover whether forgetting is a blessing or a curse, and whether it’s possible to start over.

My Thoughts:

I was hesitant to start this book before my mom insisted I read it. As I mentioned previously I feel like Moriarty can write some depressing stuff, and this book sounded complicated. Though it does have its moments when you sit back and reflect on the hardships all of the characters are going, the protagonist Alice kind of provides comic relief. Moriarty really got me thinking about how crazy it would be to wake up and be missing a decade of memory. I don’t have children, but I can only imagine how difficult it would be to wake up thinking you were pregnant with your first child, only to find out you actually had 3 children. One of the things I really enjoyed about Alice was that even though she was going through this tremendously stressful situation, she still kept such a positive attitude. I don’t know if I would have been able to do that. Furthermore, we find out quite early in the book that Alice has changed quite a bit in the last decade. Except she doesn’t realize she has, so she goes back to having the beliefs and personality of her old self. I thought it was a brilliant idea for Moriarty to add this because the reader than gets to go through the journey with Alice kind of coming back into her own, learning she made mistakes, and also learning how she got to this new her. It reminded me how much people can change over time.

Like other Moriarty books, this one jumps from character to character point of views. Sometimes I really loathe when authors do this, but Moriarty does a good job in keeping the flow of the book going. Characters revealed the answers to questions that Alice could not tell the reader because of her memory loss, so by giving the point of views from other characters it really rounded out the storyline and added depth to the book. It reminded me that there are two sides to a story, and that although on the surface people may seem to be handling life, that doesn’t necessarily mean it is true.

What Alice Forgot really surprised me, and it was different from other books that I have been reading, which was refreshing. It is a fast book for being a little bit of a longer book, and the character development was well done. I really enjoyed the topic of memory loss as well because it really got me thinking how that would affect one’s life, and was equally as impressed that the author could keep it relatively light hearted with a topic that could easily be morbid. I truly recommend this book to everyone because I think anyone can learn something from this. From reading this book I definitely learned to appreciate my loved ones more and realized that no matter how complicated life gets, we need to remember to be there for the ones who matter the most to us.

Top Ten Tuesday

 

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly feature hosted by The Broke and The Bookish.

This is a weekly feature that is hosted by The Broke and the Bookish. For this week, the topic was "Top Ten Books I Want to Re-read." Hope that you enjoy, and let me know some of the books you would love to dive back into.

1.       Mountains Beyond Mountains By: Tracy Kidder- This book was one of the reasons I went into the field of public health. Dr. Paul Farmer is a crusader for health, rights of the impoverished, and showing people how they can give back. Kidder does an amazing job at describing Dr. Farmer and showing the reader a great perspective of the man that just keeps on giving.

2.       Night By: Elie Wiesel- This is a short one, but oh my word is it a profound one as well. I remember just crying and wondering how we as humans can be so cruel. Not only that, but the courage it took Mr. Wiesel to tell his story and to have to relive that part of his life is truly inspiring and humbling.

3.       The Little Prince By: Antoine de Saint-Exupery- I read this when I was in middle school, or maybe when I just started high school, and I think that it might be time to go back and really sink into the book. I have a feeling I will appreciate and understand it much more now being in my late 20s.

4.       Harry Potter Series By JK Rowling- I don’t really feel like I need to explain my reasoning for this…how could one not want to read these over and over again.

5.       The Catcher in the Rye By: JD Salinger- I read in an article once that people either loved Holden or hated him. I would be one of the formers and could not get enough of him. Yes, he could be whiney, a little naïve when it came to the privileges that he had, and sometimes was unbelievably selfish, but there was also so honest and raw about him.

6.       Half the Sky By: Nicholas Kristof- This book was eye opening. I will sadly admit that I was naïve to just how ungrateful I really am to have grown up in a country that allows women to aspire to a career, having a voice, and just having the right of choice! The women in this book are heroes in my eyes and they inspire me to remember how much I have to be thankful for and to also work for others to have the rights that I have.

7.       Eat, Pray, Love By Elizabeth Gilbert- I have to confess, I did not finish this book the first time around. I recently though went through some big life changes, and I wonder if I might find more appreciation for Gilbert’s journey and struggles this time around.

8.      The Night Circus By Erin Morgenstern- This book was amazing!! It was so fun and different. The descriptive language the author possesses is truly a wonderful gift and I got completely lost in the story.

9.       The Shadow of the Wind By Carlos Ruiz Zafon- I feel like I have this book on my list of must reads for anyone and everyone. The gothic setting and diverse characters make this a read that will keep you up until the wee hours of the morning because you just won’t want to put it down. One of my favs of all time for sure.

10.   Unbroken By: Laura Hillenbrand- The movie adaption of this true story is coming out this Christmas, and I kind of want to read it again before going to see it. This is another book I recommend to absolutely everyone. Zamperini (on whom the book is about) endured so much hardship during WWII and I kept wondering all through the book if I could ever be strong as him. After reading it, for weeks I ate everything on my plate and couldn’t bear to toss anything into the trash because of how precious food and water came to be for him in the book. It is definitely a story that will make you grateful for the men and women who put themselves in danger every day in order to protect the freedoms we all take for granted.

Well that’s about it. I realize now there are so many amazing books I want to re-read! I could probably go on and on if asked to.

 

Beautiful Ruins

By: Jess Walter

My Rating: 3 stars             

 

Who Should Read This: Anyone who loves books that take you through various decades with a heartwarming yet heart wrenching love story. The book is written through multiple perspectives, giving the reader a chance to see everyone’s point of view on the actions that effected all of their lives.

Synopsis (From Goodreads): The story begins in 1962. On a rocky patch of the sun-drenched Italian coastline, a young innkeeper, chest-deep in daydreams, looks on over the incandescent waters of the Ligurian Sea and spies an apparition: a tall, thin woman, a vision in white, approaching him on a boat. She is an actress, he soon learns, an American starlet, and she is dying.

And the story begins again today, half a world away, when an elderly Italian man shows up on a movie studio's back lot-searching for the mysterious woman he last saw at his hotel decades earlier.

What unfolds is a dazzling, yet deeply human, roller coaster of a novel, spanning fifty years and nearly as many lives. From the lavish set of Cleopatra to the shabby revelry of the Edinburgh Fringe Festival, Walter introduces us to the tangled lives of a dozen unforgettable characters: the star struck Italian innkeeper and his long-lost love; the heroically preserved producer who once brought them together and his idealistic young assistant; the army veteran turned fledgling novelist and the rakish Richard Burton himself, whose appetites set the whole story in motion-along with the husbands and wives, lovers and dreamers, superstars and losers, who populate their world in the decades that follow.

Gloriously inventive, constantly surprising, Beautiful Ruins is a story of flawed yet fascinating people, navigating the rocky shores of their lives while clinging to their improbable dreams.

My Thoughts: This is a book I had wanted to read for awhile now. I had heard really good reviews from multiple blogs, and the synopsis promised me all the makings of a good love story. I spent two weeks in Italy after undergrad, and loved all of the history and culture that it oozes. And what people say about Cinque Terre is absolutely true, it is breathtaking!! The pictures of it are beautiful, but if you have the chance to go there, I HIGHLY recommend it! Needless to say, I was excited to read the book and go back to Italy for a little while. The book turned out to be a lot different then what I was expecting. As the synopsis says, the book does span through various generations and places. I actually did like the jumping around in time and places, but at points there were parts that in the end I was unsure why the author included them.

I think what surprised me the most was how much I disliked some of the major characters, and I think the story might have been better actually if the write had incorporated fewer characters. At points it felt that some were unneeded. Michael Deane, the producer, was extremely unreal although I don’t know what I was expecting from a character based in Hollywood and in the movie franchise. Even Claire his assistant, who was in a quarter life crisis and who truly wanted to make great movies and not crappy reality tv shows, bothered me. I felt like nothing was ever good enough for her. She seemed to be in a constant rambling of complaints and I wanted to tell her to make up her mind and make a decision. 

I promise I didn’t dislike all of the characters. Pasquale stole my heart from the very beginning. This shy, timid, Italian man made me a believer in the kindness of humanity, and that there are those out in the world that actually do, do the right thing. Even I would probably feel inadequate of Pasquale’s friendship if he existed in real life. He was so selfless and a romantic and I just adored him. When Pasquale first sees Dee, the actress, who has come to his small sea town in Italy, he falls in love just seeing her and knows that he “would remain in love for the rest of his life — not so much with the woman, whom he didn’t even know, but with the moment.” Ugh, just love! 

Ultimately, I give credit to Jess Walter for writing an eloquent love story. The book was well written and in the end he tied everything together in a way that will leave readers satisfied and content. I really enjoyed the ending and although I won’t give too much away as to not ruin it for others, I will say that it made me remember the importance of love, in all its forms. The love we find in a significant other, the love of we have for our children and family, the love we find in a stranger who brings us peace of mind, even the love we have for a truly great artist who reminds us of how fragile we as humans can  be. 

I am interested to know what others thought of it, so if you have read this book, please let me know!

The Ending of a Good Year

I can't believe it has been over a month since I have updated my blog! I also have no idea how we are already at the end of another year! It went by so fast, and looking back on it brings back smiles; which is always positive. This year I made the leap and moved back to my home state, California. I took the leap, quit my job in DC, and moved over to the West in the hope of finding a new job. Starting back was a little scary, but my friends and family are probably the most supportive group of people I know. They helped me find a job in a restaurant while I looked for a job in my field, they let me stay in their homes/apts during contract jobs, and every time I was feeling down, they were right there to pick me back up. I have now started a job back in the field I studied for, just bought my first brand new car, and am living close to my family again! I am blessed beyond belief!

Furthermore, the holidays were good to me this year (hence the lack of any new entries), and although I am excited for them to come around every year, I find that they are also so exhausting and that I am sometimes a little thankful once they are done as well. The eating and drinking, parties, and festivities are a thrill, but also exhausting! It was great to see the family though; I never tire of family time! With everything going on though I made sure to find time for some reading, and wanted to give a quick update on books I have loved, traditions I kept, and some of my possible New Year's resolutions.

Two of my favorite things about the holidays are the music and movies. The day after Thanksgiving I start with the music. I know, I know, technically it isn't December yet, but I only get a month to enjoy it so I don't usually feel too bad. My mom and I every year also try to watch as large a variety of movies as possible. Sometimes it is difficult because I can only come home for a short period of time, and we also want to bake cookies, visit with friends you haven't seed in awhile, and finish the shopping and wrapping of presents. This year though we were able to watch a few, and I think my favorite of the year was White Christmas. you really just can't beat that classic, and although I love A Christmas Story and Elf, the music in the movie gets me every time!

This year I also took part in The Broke and Bookish Secret Santa Exchange, and it was sooooo much fun! I loved taking part in finding books for a book lover, and it was also exciting to get my package in the mail. My secret Santa spoiled me for sure! I don't know if I could thank them enough! One of the books, Fangirl, I have been wanting FOREVER, and I read it in a day. I just could not put the book down, and recommend reading it on a day that's rainy or at least one where you don't have anything else to do. I actually heard about it through The Broke and the Bookish. I have started reading more YA as of late, and finding that I am really enjoying them. I am on to Last Letter From Your Lover next and can't wait to dive into it. I also re-read Pride and Prejudice for the umpteenth time, and it was as amazing as ever. Even more, my best friend gave me an infinity scarf with an excerpt of the book printed on it for an early birthday present! Needless to say, I absolutely love it, and have worn it everywhere!

 Looking back over the year though for my bookish resolutions though I found out I was a little behind on my resolutions. I know now I am not going to make the challenge for Goodreads I made (always next year!) and I won't make the Historical Fiction Reading Challenge either! For the historical fiction challenge I aimed to read 10 books, but only made it to 6. For my Goodreads challenge I was hoping to finish 45 books during the year and so far have completed 39. Close, and even though I didn't make it, I have confidence I am going to do better this year! I am always looking for new book goals too, so if anyone knows of some good ones, please let me know!

Well, that's all the updates I have for know. I will probably be writing more really soon on the couple of books I have read lately. Hope everyone had a wonderful holiday, and a safe and happy New Year as well!

Top Ten Tuesday

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly feature hosted by The Broke and The Bookish.

 

This is a weekly feature that is hosted by The Broke and the Bookish. For this week, the topic was "Top Ten Things I am Thankful For." Hope that you enjoy, and let me know some of the things you are thankful for this holiday season!

1)      Family/Friends: This year has been quite the year. Lots of decision-making and leaps were taken. I could never, and I can’t emphasize this enough, NEVER, have done any of this without my support system. I am truly blessed to have such an amazing family and network of friends who have shown their support emotionally, through guidance, through the opening of their homes to me, and giving me the confidence to take chances!

2)      Coffee: Really, let’s be honest, I wouldn’t survive without the amazing ness of this beverage.

3)      Scandal: The show, not the actual act. I am obsessed with this show. I am ashamed because I am not ashamed of the love I have for this show. I don’t care for drama in my life, so this show gives me a little dramatic fix when I need it. And you just never know what is going to happen……each week I find myself with my jaw to the floor in shock. Shonda Rhimes is a genius!

4)      Being Employed: There are many who are not able to find a steady job right now, and with the holidays coming up, I am even more grateful to have a new job!

5)      Barnes N Noble: Or really any bookstore for that matter. This is where I go after a bad day, when I need me time, or just want to be surrounded by books for a little while. It makes me so sad that everything is starting to become all electronic….I cringe when another bookstore closes!

6)      Blankets: Doesn’t matter what color, shape, or size, there is nothing like curling up on the couch on a rainy day surrounded by the warmth of a great blanket and book.

7)      Pinterest: I know that it’s probably more of a waste of my time more than anything else. But I love the DIY ideas I get from it! There’s something for everyone on Pinterest!

8)      Having Basic Rights: To be honest, I am probably not nearly as grateful and thankful as I should be about this. I sometimes forget what a privilege it is to grow up and live in a country that has given me the choice of an education/career/childbirth, etc. I know this was not always the case, and I am also aware of some of the battles (same-sex marriage) that are still ongoing today. However, with that being said, there are still countries that don’t allow women to go to school, are given up as a child bride at the age of 11, and those who aren’t even given basic rights!

9)      Post-its: I make lists on those things allllll day long. I heart lists! :) And I know that I could make them on my phone and probably save trees in the process, but for me post-its are just so much more fun to use. They have neon color options, pastel options, small one, long ones, some post-its are lined, while other are not. The options are endless!

10)  Ryan Gosling: I mean…do I even need to explain?

The Cuckoo's Calling

By: Robert Galbraith (J.K. Rowling)

My Rating: 3 stars

Who Should Read This: Anyone who likes mysteries, but nothing too scary. This had a good plot twist, but you don't have to worry about anything gruesome. People interested in J.K. Rowling would probably also want to check this out!

Synopsis/My Thoughts:

I tried to dive into this book without any expectations. I knew that J.K Rowling had been the ghost writer, and although I LOVED the Harry Potter series, I was afraid I would find myself comparing the two when I shouldn’t because I knew these books would be so different from each other. The book started off great with the death of Lula Landry, coveted supermodel, and then jumps to a couple of months later with the character Robin starting a new temp job with a man by the name of Cormoran Stirke. The story is predominantly told from the point of view of Strike, with bits of Robin’s perspective from time to time. Strike has just broken up with his fiancé, is having loads of money woes, and has a lack of clients. Then a man by the name of John Bristow, older brother to a deceased friend of Strike’s, comes into the office and requests Strike find the person who killed his sister, Lula Landry. The problem is Lula’s death has already been deemed a suicide. Although Strike himself thinks that John is wasting his money he decides to take the case on. Of course, through his investigation Strike comes to realize John is correct in his assumption of foul play in regards to his sister’s death, and so Strike becomes determined to find the truth.

The storyline overall, was pretty good. It could have been a little faster paced and a tiny bit more dramatic for me, but being from mostly the point of view from Strike, the story was very meticulously written. It was written in the way that showed the reader how Strike worked and enhanced his character’s subtle, no drama attitude. I think at some points I got frustrated because I wanted to know exactly what Strike was thinking in regards to who the killer was, and you are left in suspense of this for the majority of the book. I mean, I definitely kept reading because I was trying to see if any of my assumptions were correct. The writing was well written, not really surprising, but the one thing that I would have liked more of is having more character development for Robin. I felt like the reader kept getting small glimpses into who she was and how she felt, and then all of a sudden it went back to the point of view of Strike. I really liked Robin’s character because of her enthusiasm for the job and how dedicated she was even though her fiancé didn’t approve of it, so I thought she deserved more time in the book. There was even some teasing I felt in relation to her and Strike’s relationship. They meet at the beginning of the book, but I feel like the reader could start to subtly see some chemistry between the two of them, and I started to kind of root for them. Probably one of my favorite characters though was Guy Some. He plays a small role in the book, but his attitude and eccentricity was addicting, and I found myself hoping that he would pop up in other parts of the book.

Even though I had my differences with parts of the book, I commend J.K. Rowling in writing a book for a different genre. Although the book was a little slow at times I found that overall I enjoyed it. As I stated before it was very well written, and in the end I was surprised on who the killer was. Once Strike started to explain the pieces I found myself wondering how I didn’t see it! I am a fan of trying to figure it all out and finding out in the end if I am right or wrong. This time, I was wrong. Way wrong. But maybe that is just a testament to the book! If you have read the book let me know what you think!