Catching Up with Books

Books, Books, Books...

I've been reading a variety of books lately, so I thought I'd break them down into age groups. If you're not interested in middle school novels, skip to high school (because that is also an excellent adult read) and adult fiction areas below.

Middle School

First, I'd like to recommend Peg Kehret as a writer. I'm known to preach the merits of her books because they do well with the middle school crowd. Kehret is good at pulling readers into the action and shocking them pretty early on. I haven't read some of hers in awhile, so I decided to read Stolen Children. I wasn't disappointed. In fact, I was able to convince some other students to read it by simply reading the first two lines:

"Amy's babysitting course taught her basic first aid, bedtime tips, and how to change a diaper, but it did not cover what to do if two thugs with a gun showed up. She had to figure that out herself."

And if you think that's the only shocking thing in the book, it's obvious you've never read Peg Kehret. This writer knows how to hook a reader! This isn't a long novel, 165 pages with fairly large print, but it IS a good book. I'd recommend it for sixth graders and for reluctant seventh and eighth grade readers.


High School

Jennifer Donnelly is another great author I love. I admit, though, she broke my heart a little when she agreed to write a series of books for Disney. I'm sure the money was good (and I don't blame her), but reading about mermaids just isn't my cup of tea. Perhaps, that's why I decided to go back in time to one of her older novels I'd never read.

I chose to read A Gathering Light (titled A Northern Light in the U.S.) because it was from a time and place I knew nothing about. The setting is the early 1900's in the Adirondack Mountains. The story is a historical fiction at its finest and revolves around the real murder of a young lady staying at a hotel on holiday. Donnelly writes the story from the perspective of a mountain girl, Mattie, who works as a servant in the hotel. Mattie had served the young woman the night before her murder, when the woman gave Mattie some letters to burn. Once the hotel guest is found dead the next morning, Mattie doesn't know what she should do with the letters: Keep her promise and burn them? Read them and look for clues? Turn them over to the constable?

This book is definitely a page turner that begins with the gruesome scene of the dead girl and goes back in time as Mattie tells the reader what took place before. The book does an excellent job of portraying life for the people of that area during that time. Mattie is a likable character, wise beyond her years, and with more responsibilities than a young girl should have to be burdened with. There are many layers to this story, and all of them are intriguing.

Adult Fiction

I found a fascinating book titled Serena, by Ron Rash, at our library's book sale. I was attracted to the novel because the setting was the 1930s in North Carolina. I was born and raised in North Carolina, but I know nothing of what life was like there in the 1930s. I found out, after I read the book, Serena is also a movie (which I haven't seen yet).

There are many things I like about this novel, but I'd have to say I most enjoyed hating the villain. There's nothing quite like the pleasure of finding a character you can completely loathe. Too often, villains are given an excuse for being evil. Not this time.

The novel centers around a Boston business man, George Pemberton, who owns a logging company in the NC Mountains. Labor is cheap, conditions are harsh, and he's a jerk. George meets his match in his new bride, Serena, and he brings her back to the NC Mountains to help him run his business. The two share quite a passion, both physically and in a type of bloodlust for violence and hunting. It's almost like she's the female version of her husband, a perfect reflection of his own ego. And isn't that every man's dream? Perhaps.

I didn't like that Rash's book was compared, in reviews, to Steinbeck. I almost didn't read it because of that. I'm not a big fan of Steinbeck, though some of his novels are okay. If I had to compare this type of novel to anyone, it would be Daphne du Maurier. It is definitely, what I would consider, a gothic tale of intrigue and suspense.

My advice on this one? Don't read any spoilers, don't watch the movie,...just...read it. If you like good twists and evil villains and violence of varying degrees, this book fits the bill. I soaked it up in a day. It's very rare I get an entire day to read a book, but this one insisted on it.

Next, in my TBR stack was a debut novel...

The Hideaway by Lauren K. Denton was an easy, uncomplicated novel with a host of loveable characters. Sara lives in New Orleans, away from her eccentric grandmother, Mags. When Mags dies unexpectedly one day, Sara finds that she's inherited her grandmother's old, rundown bed-and-breakfast. Sara has been left specific instructions on what to do with the property before she decides to sell it or not. Sara finds many things at the old bed-and-breakfast, but she never expected to find...that she never actually knew her own grandmother.

This is a delightful read, but...it pretty much reads like a Lifetime Movie Network movie. I'm not saying that's a bad thing, I'm just letting you know it fits in that category for me. I'm glad I read it, I always like to give debut novels a shot, but it's not my type of genre. It fits in more with readers who enjoy Nora Roberts.


Currently reading...

I'm enjoying a lovely autumn day today, as I read A Gentleman in Moscow by Amor Towles. I started the novel a couple of days ago. I'll let you know my review on it next week.

Happy Autumn!

Three At A Time

You know, I'm not one of those people who likes to read several books at once. Normally, I enjoy dedicating myself to one book at a time, completely immersing myself in the story. There are exceptions to that rule, though (as there is to everything):

1) If I'm reading a non-fiction, I like a little fiction in between.
2) If I'm reading a book that's a collection of stories, I like to read a novel, as well.
3) I'm almost always reading a young adult book along with an adult book.

Prior to the present, those were my only exceptions. I don't even read multiple young adult books, unless I'm reading them with my class or student book clubs. Even then, I've read the novel before on my own, so I don't count that as reading/absorbing it as I would with a first read. All of this worked fine for me...until now.

You see, I am currently reading a book that I can't stop reading,...but I have to pause and take breaks from it. It is an incredible book, but it is hard on my heart. Because it is hard on my heart (which I will explain in a moment), I have to read something else to take my mind off of it. I have to read something with a lighter, easier topic.

I decided to read a middle school book a friend of mine suggested: The False Prince by Jennifer A. Nielsen. It was a really good book, the first one in a trilogy (and I can't wait to read the second one), but...the topic was a bit more serious than I expected and wasn't pulling me out of the aching, sweet sadness I felt when reading the first book - my "main" book. I really did enjoy it, though, and - as my friend had said - the narrator of the story was my kind of witty character and I had a little 'character crush' on him.

While I was now enjoying both books, I decided to pick up one more. My students and I had been to the library and viewed book trailers. I became interested in Freaky the Mighty by Rodman Philbrick. It isn't a new book, just a good one that's been around long enough to have a movie made about it back in 1998. I had never read the book and never seen the movie AND...it was the perfect size: small. That's right, one of the reasons I chose it was because it wasn't a big book. I didn't want to invest too much time in another book, I already had two other ones going. Remember, the intent was to use two for "break books" from my main one.

Needless to say, I found myself in another 'serious' story. Funny, sometimes? Yes. The False Prince also had its funny moments, and both middle school books had good narrators. I enjoyed both, though both were very different. While they did take my mind off of the first book, they did nothing to soothe my emotions. They were distractions and not cures. So, I finished both of the other books and have now focused my attention on finding a humorous adult book and a humorous young adult book for those times when I just have to close my main book and pull away from that ache it causes in my soul.

What book did I need a cure from? What kind of book was I reading (and I'm still reading it - not quite finished yet) that haunts me so much I look for other books to take my mind off of it? Paper Love: Searching for the Girl My Grandfather Left Behind by Sarah Wildman. And all I can say is - I am forever changed. I know that was the author's intent...with good reason.

Wildman's novel is a non-fiction book that starts out about a Jewish grandfather she loves and the story of his life - her family's story of his life - and how he successfully got himself and his family (his mother, sister, brother-in-law, and nephew) to America before Hitler took over Vienna. Her grandfather, Karl, has always been the "hero" of the family and the man everyone adores.

After his death, Wildman finds there is another story no one has told her. She discovers letters from a girl her grandfather knew before he came to America - old letters her grandfather had kept all through the years, some of them with photos in them. The letters begin to tell her only part of the story. She becomes determined to find this woman, Valy, and know the rest of the story. The author is driven by the desire to completely understand the kind of man her grandfather was before coming to America and who he really was as a human being.

Wildman goes on a research mission, a journey of discovery that takes her to several countries, to find this girl her grandfather had to leave behind. She travels to Europe to walk the streets her grandfather walked, to see and experience the things the girl talks about in her letters. As she uncovers more and more, and continues to read and re-read Valy's letters, her desire grows to find and know what happened to this incredible woman. Wildman takes us with her as she gets closer and closer to finding out the truth about this girl and her grandfather's past.

Valy & Karl, Vienna - 1936

It's an incredible journey. It's one I'm still on...