CA Bibliophiles

New Year, re-dedicated to our book club!

2011-12-27T14:44:00.001-08:00

Hi Friends! Merry Christmas and Happy New Year (almost)! I am writing this post from Merced, CA and I couldn't be happier writing from here. I LOVE MERCED! I LOVE HOME! AND I LOVE FAMILY! I am finding myself a lot more sentimental and gushy lately, haha, I wonder why. I think it is my turn to pick a book. I got this book for Christmas and have been wanting to read it for awhile. I saw the movie years ago and have been wanting to read the book but never got around to it: The Power of One by Bryce Courtenay. I can't find a short summary so if you'd like to read one you can go here. The storyline follows a man from childhood to adulthood and portrays the different obstacles he overcomes. I have been so in the mood for an amazing story of triumph, I love those. Let me know if you have read it and if most have we can maybe choose a different one. Yay for our book club!

Time For Some Book Discussion

2011-11-17T07:23:00.001-08:00

Has anyone else finished "The Cater Street Hangman"? I read it and thought it was okay. Overall I felt kind of let down because I was expecting to feel more suspense. Even though it was a murder mystery, I didn't really have the feeling of curiosity and eagerness to find out who the murderer was. I liked the main character, Charlotte, but I thought the rest of the family was kind of annoying.
But here is the thing that really disturbed me....did you guys know that Anne Perry, the author, is LDS? Did you also know that when she was a teenager she and her best friend murdered her friend's mom? Seriously. For reals. Before I even read the book Kim told me about this and I read about it on wikipedia. I was, and still am, so disturbed by this. AND she writes murder mysteries!!! Is anyone else totally creeped out by this?

Catch Up

2011-11-06T16:37:00.000-08:00

Ok, I know I was supposed to pick a book for November but Kim and I were talking and we thought it would be a good idea to take a month or two to catch up.

As in, let's pick new books AFTER the holidays.

But, I still want to hear thoughts on the books from the last couple months. So let's keep up the commentary and then in January I'll pick a new one.

Today our RS lesson was about the new book about the RS that we were supposed to read. I haven't read it yet. Sigh. But, today totally inspired me to do it. Hopefully I'll have some insights to add to Camille's.

Love you all.

Happy Halloween!

2011-10-12T11:41:00.000-07:00

I'm sorry this is so late. I'm behind in our book club and currently reading a book that is taking much too long to complete.
I wanted to choose something appropriate for Halloween. I came close to choosing Pride and Prejudice and Zombies, but couldn't get past the disgusting picture on the cover. I considered Devil in the White City but figured most of you have read it. So I decided to go with one of the mysteries I read in my British Mystery Novel class while in London (best class ever).

The Cater Street Hangman

by Anne Perry

is the first of the series

Here's the synopsis (and picture) from Amazon:

Panic and fear strike the Ellison household when one of their own falls prey to the Cater Street murderer. While Mrs. Ellison and her three daughters are out, their maid becomes the third victim of a killer who strangles young women with cheese wire, leaving their swollen-faced bodies on the dark streets of this genteel neighborhood. Inspector Pitt, assigned to the case, must break through the walls of upper-class society to get at the truth. His in-depth investigation gradually peels away the proper veneer of the elite world, exposing secrets and desires until suspicion becomes more frightening than truth. Outspoken Charlotte Ellison, struggling to remain within the confining boundaries of Victorian manners, has no trouble expressing herself to the irritating policeman. As their relationship shifts from antagonistic sparring to a romantic connection, the socially inappropriate pair must solve the mystery before the hangman strikes again.

And just so America isn't outdone, here's a link to The Legend of Sleepy Hollow.

Plural Marriage

2011-09-29T20:39:00.000-07:00

I'm only on page 49 of September's book, but I really like taking my time with this. Isn't it great? On page 49 it tells a bit about the history of relief society relative to plural marriage. There were only a handful of decades where it was a part of the church. Can you imagine hearing the prophet, Joseph Smith's command to practice plural marriage and reconcile yourself to that, and then decades later hear President Woodruff's manifesto? Yikes!

That would have required such a deep reservoir of faith for those women. It's something I haven't spent a ton of time studying or thinking about, but yikes! Can you imagine?

Conference is this weekend and whether this controversial or not, we will receive instruction from God at the general level, and on a very personal and spiritual level. I hope I can build my reservoirs of faith so that when I hear those commands, promptings, and principles my heart can say yes because of the covenants I've made.

Yikes! I feel like the plural marriage issue is as controversial as the gay issue. But both just require faith.

THoughts?

An Idea

2011-09-09T12:44:00.000-07:00

I know September is Debbie's month to choose a book, but I have an alternative idea since she hasn't chosen one yet (which is totally fine, by the way). Last week in Relief Society we were all given the new "Daughters of My Kingdom" book. I started to read it and I'm actually really enjoying it. Not so much because of the actual words I'm reading, but because I feel the spirit helping me understand what my role is and what I need to focus on and improve upon.

Do you all remember Sister Beck's talk last fall at the general RS broadcast? She talked about this book. Here is what she said:

"Our presidency has prayed, fasted, pondered, and counseled with prophets, seers, and revelators to learn what God would have us do to help His daughters be strong in the face of “the calamity which should come upon the inhabitants of the earth.”⁶ An answer has come that the sisters of the Church should know and learn from the history of Relief Society. Understanding the history of Relief Society strengthens the foundational identity and worth of faithful women.

In consequence of this, a history of Relief Society for the Church is being completed and will be available for our use next year. In anticipation of this, Relief Society history is receiving increased attention, such as on the visiting teaching page of the Liahona and the Ensign. The preparation of the history has been an inspired and revelatory experience.

As we have studied the history of Relief Society, we have learned that the Lord’s vision and purpose for Relief Society was not of a sleepy meeting on Sunday. He had in mind something much, much bigger than a women’s club or special-interest entertainment group.

He intended Relief Society to help build His people and prepare them for the blessings of the temple. He established this organization to align His daughters with His work and to enlist their help in building His kingdom and strengthening the homes of Zion."

So I suggest that we all read this book in September. I have complete faith in the revelation the general RS presidency and the quorum of the twelve received, that the women of the church need to know about the history of Relief Society to help us do the work we are supposed to do. And I know from experience, by just reading the first couple of chapters, that the spirit will motivate us and guide us as we read this book. What do you guys think? Do you have copies of the book yet?

Authenticity

2011-09-08T09:50:00.000-07:00

So has anybody finished Camille's book yet? I am about half way through. So far, I have agreed with most of the author's ideas. Randi posted about courage and having courage to be vulnerable and honest about who we are. The author...can't think of her name right now and too lazy to find it...says that living with the courage to be who we really are is living an "authentic" life. As I read the section about authenticity, it made sense, don't do things just to fit in, be who you really are, etc. However, I am curious about where you draw the line. I don't believe that life is about just sitting back and being "who we are". I think we have to try to become something more; to grow and progress.
For example, if I were honestly to be who I am naturally, I would always have a dirty house and spend my evenings being lazy. I don't like to clean and after work I don't feel like doing anything. However, I don't want to be known as a lazy person or have a nasty house, so I try to force myself to clean and to be productive, even though most of the time I don't want to. So does that make me unauthentic? I'm sure the author would agree that setting goals and trying to improve ourselves is a positive thing, but don't we have to set goals because our natural selves aren't accomplishing that specific thing? If it were something we did or loved to do naturally, it would already be getting done! Right?
So what do you guys think? Are there certain goals that we shouldn't try to achieve because it is just so far from who we really are? What do you think about this concept of "authenticity"? and how does it still leave room for trying become better people?

2011-09-01T17:17:00.000-07:00

"If we have a friend, or a small group of friends, or family who embraces our imperfections, vulnerabilities, and power, and fills us with a sense of belonging,

we are incredibly lucky."

The Gifts of Imperfection

2011-08-31T12:26:00.001-07:00

Ok, I actually just got this book in the mail yesterday (and I ordered it like 3 weeks ago...booo).

I started reading it this morning and I have already realized it is exactly what I need right now.

I know you guys don't know this, but I have been struggling on and off with mild depression for a while now. And, with the birth of Liam 6 weeks ago, it has definitely turned into a full blown problem.

My mom and grandmother both struggle with depression as does my dad's sister, so it's a real deal in my family and it sucks.

I am having a hard time coping and seems to be getting worse as my life gets more hectic.

So I decided it is time to get some help.

I don't want my kids growing up with a depressed mom and I'm tired of feeling sad and irritated all the time.

I'm tired of feeling like I can't do anything right and being so down on myself.

I have an appointment on Friday with my OB where I'm hoping to get some sort of medication that can help me be more of the person I know is inside me.

This is why I am loving all the stuff in this book about courage.

I love this:

"Ordinary courage is about putting our vulnerability on the line. In today's world, that's pretty extraordinary."

Then the author talks about how her young daughter had the courage to call her mom when she wanted to come home from the sleepover.

Courage is hard.

I feel so dumb having to go get medication to help me deal with my own life.

But I know it will help and I know I need it, so I need to let go and have the courage to talk to someone.

We have to let go of what other people think and do what we know is right and best for us.

It's hard.

I kind of feel like no matter how many times we try to pretend like we don't care what others think of us, we do to an extent.

But we still need to have the courage to be we are and give ourselves permission to be imperfect and human.

" [....] courage has a ripple effect. Every time we choose courage, we make everyone around us a little better and the world a little braver. And our world could stand to be a little kinder and a little braver" (pg. 15).

Totally going out on a limb here

2011-08-13T10:35:00.000-07:00

I want to read this book by Brene Brown. It seems like a quick read at 137 pages. The Provo City Library didn't have it so I just bought it new on Amazon for $6. They have used ones too, but maybe your library will have the book. Half.com also has it. Or maybe you can get it on your kindle, Cam?

(How do you guys get book club books? Buy them? Check them out? E read them?)

The Gifts of Imperfection by Brene Brown.

I want to read it for a lot of reasons that I will write about after I read it. I have a LOT to say about why I'm reading it - or maybe not a lot, but a really meaningful few things. Here's a TED talk by her to help you see if you'll like it/her. So it hasn't been recommended by anyone, but I'm just picking it! What do you think?

Here's a description of the book:

Each day we face a barrage of images and messages from society and the media telling us who, what, and how we should be. We are led to believe that if we could only look perfect and lead perfect lives, we’d no longer feel inadequate. So most of us perform, please, and perfect, all the while thinking,

What if I can’t keep all of these balls in the air?
Why isn’t everyone else working harder and living up to my expectations?
What will people think if I fail or give up?
When can I stop proving myself?

In THE GIFTS OF IMPERFECTION, Brené Brown, Ph.D., a leading expert on authenticity, shame, and courage shares what she’s learned from a decade of research on the power of Wholehearted Living.

She writes, “Wholehearted living is about engaging in our lives from a place of worthiness. It means cultivating the courage, compassion, and connection to wake up in the morning and think, No matter what gets done and how much is left undone, I am enough. It’s going to bed at night thinking, Yes, I am imperfect and vulnerable and sometimes afraid, but that doesn’t change the truth that I am also brave and worthy of love and belonging.”

Dr. Brown’s most unique contribution comes from her 10-year groundbreaking study on vulnerability and shame. In this new book, she not only gives us direction for living a more authentic life, but courageously talks about “the things that get in the way.”

For example, in the chapter on cultivating rest and play, Brown addresses the challenges of letting go of exhaustion as a status symbol and productivity as self-worth. In her chapter on creativity she explains the paralyzing properties of comparison. Brown may be one of the only writers in this genre that offers us a path for change and an honest look at the obstacles.

As a nationally renowned researcher and speaker, Dr. Brown’s perspective is fresh, honest, and always delivered with warmth and humor. She writes about the experiences we all have, but few of us are willing to discuss. Using personal stories of her own struggle to “embrace vulnerability” she writes about the experiences we all have, but few of us are willing to discuss.

Don't Bother

2011-08-09T06:38:00.001-07:00

Hello friends! So did anyone get a chance to read "All Other Nights"? I read it on my trip to and from Tahoe and I have to be honest, I was totally disappointed. If you haven't read it, don't bother. Just go ahead and cross it off of your list of books to read. Sorry for picking a dud. But in case any of you did read it, here are some reasons I didn't like it:
-the ending was retarded
-the event that I thought was supposed to be the climax of the story (based on the synopsis I read) happened way too early in the book and then the story was stupid from there.
-The characters weren't all that loveable
-the author didn't do a good job of making me believe that the conflict in the book was as serious as it was supposed to be.

Basically, I just wasn't that into it. So who is next?

July Book...sorry its late!

2011-07-13T08:21:00.000-07:00

Okay, I have FINALLY chosen a book for this month. I apologize for taking so long. One of my sisters recommended a book to me months ago and I was trying to hunt her down (she is on vacation) and get the details. Long story short, I'm not completely sure I know which book she was referring too as there are several with very similar titles. I'll have to do more research and choose that one on my next turn.
So....without further delay, here is the book I have chosen instead.

All Other Nights
by Dara Horn

I read several overviews of the book, but all of the good ones kind of gave away the story. Here is one I found that remained ambiguous, but it also doesn't make it sound quite as interesting. Happy reading!

"How is tonight different from all other nights? For Jacob Rappaport, a Jewish soldier in the Union army, it is a question his commanders have answered for him: on Passover in 1862 he is ordered to murder his own uncle, who is plotting to assassinate President Lincoln.

After that night, will Jacob ever speak for himself? The answer comes when his commanders send him on another mission—this time not to murder a spy but to marry one.

A page-turner rich with romance and the history of America (North and South), this is a book only Dara Horn could have written. Full of insight and surprise, layered with meaning, it is a brilliant parable of the moral divide that still haunts us: between those who value family first and those dedicated, at any cost, to social and racial justice for all."--From the Barnes & Noble Website

Hello? Is anyone out there?

2011-07-07T08:27:00.000-07:00

I have been a horrible book club member this past couple of months. I'm sorry! Has anyone finished reading "Not a Penny More, Not a Penny Less"? I have to be honest, I haven't even started it. I put it on hold at the library right when Amy announced it, and I still haven't heard anything from them. I'm going to head over there on my lunch break and see if I can find a copy. If nobody has finished, should I wait to announce a new book for July? Or do you all vote that I go ahead and pick something? I'm cool with whatever...majority rules.
How is everyone's summer going?

Um...different book for June??

2011-06-04T09:58:00.000-07:00

Okay, so I started The Postmistress and I'm a little concerned about where some of it is heading. I'm so bummed because I thought it was going to be a really good one. I'm hoping everyone hasn't already gotten it since it's still early in the month. Maybe it gets better, but from what I read in the first few chapters I can see it having some sketchy content. :) Anyway, I decided to pick a new one...from someone I know that has already read it. My mom said this is one of her favorite books and it sounded like a good fun fiction story. Enjoy!

The conned: an Oxford don, a revered society physician, a chic French art dealer, and a charming English lord. They have one thing in common. Overnight, each novice investor lost his life's fortune to one man. The con: Harvey Metcalfe. A brilliant, self-made guru of deceit. A very dangerous individual. And now, a hunted man.

With nothing left to lose four strangers are about to come together-each expert in their own field. Their plan: find Harvey, shadow him, trap him, and penny-for-penny, destroy him. From the luxurious casinos of Monte Carlo to the high-stakes windows at Ascot to the bustling streets of Wall Street to fashionable London galleries, their own ingenious game has begun. It's called revenge-and they were taught by a master

Book for June

2011-05-27T21:32:00.000-07:00

Sorry I'm just finally getting around to posting this. I saw this book a while ago when I was in an airport bookstore and it looked really interesting. I saw it again a few weeks later in another bookstore and then I kept hearing reviews about it so I decided to get it. It's been sitting on my bookshelf while I've been catching up on the last book, but now that school is over I'm all set to catch up and read, read, read! I've been really excited to start this book and hopefully you haven't read it yet. I think it'll be a good one...I hope anyway.

Filled with stunning parallels to today's world, The Postmistress is a sweeping novel about the loss of innocence of two extraordinary women-and of two countries torn apart by war.
On the eve of the United States's entrance into World War II in 1940, Iris James, the postmistress of Franklin, a small town on Cape Cod, does the unthinkable: She doesn't deliver a letter. In London, American radio gal Frankie Bard is working with Edward R. Murrow, reporting on the Blitz. One night in a bomb shelter, she meets a doctor from Cape Cod with a letter in his pocket, a letter Frankie vows to deliver when she returns from Germany and France, where she is to record the stories of war refugees desperately trying to escape.
The residents of Franklin think the war can't touch them- but as Frankie's radio broadcasts air, some know that the war is indeed coming. And when Frankie arrives at their doorstep, the two stories collide in a way no one could have foreseen. The Postmistress is an unforgettable tale of the secrets we must bear, or bury. It is about what happens to love during wartime, when those we cherish leave. And how every story-of love or war-is about looking left when we should have been looking right.

P.S. - Happy Birthday to all the last couple month girls - there has been a few. And Congrats to Cami (and Tim). I just heard and I am so excited for you guys. We really all need to get together sometime soon. I would love to see all of you and catch up in person!

100!

2011-05-22T15:17:00.000-07:00

Amy,

Did you even realize that you posted the 100th post?!? You should win a prize! Wahoooo!

June!

2011-05-21T09:22:00.000-07:00

Okay, I am totally behind a book. Everything is so busy with end of the school year things that I haven't even been on here for a few weeks. We get out pretty early out here so school ends this Friday! Yahoo! Then my plan is to catch up on all my reading. So I think it's my month to choose a book, right? I have one all ready that I'm pretty excited about actually, but I wanted to check before I posted it.

these is my words + a new book for May

2011-04-27T09:50:00.000-07:00

So I just barely checked out These is my Words at the library like last week and I zoomed through it. I really liked that book. There were just a few things I didn't enjoy.

1. It was pretty dang predictable. I mean, I was just waiting for Sarah's first husband to die because of course she was going to end up marrying Captain Elliot. So who didn't see that coming?

2. The book was a little depressing. There was a lot of dying and creepy people trying to rob/rape people.

3. The character of Sarah herself really got on my nerves at a few points in the book. She was always so worried about being viewed as a "wanton" woman. She was also really annoying when it came to "do I love him or don't I love him? I do...I don't!" Kind of got old.

Other than those things, I thought it was a good story. And I didn't have any problem following the narration even without great punctuation and stuff. I think that's because, for me, as you read it, it's like she's just talking. That's kind of how are brains work anyway, right? There is not a lot of punctuation in our heads. So, her style of writing felt pretty natural. That may sound weird, but that's how I felt. Also, I'm really grateful that I was born during a time that is a little bit more advanced than that (to say the least). Having babies like they did does NOT sound to enjoyable to me. As I read the book I just felt like they were probably always dirty. ha.

Also, I was thinking a lot about how the military aspect is pretty similar to today. Living in Anchorage, Alaska, we new A LOT of military families. Anchorage has a huge Army and a huge Air Force base right in town. Our first ward covered half of the bases, so most families were military. I am grateful for all the people who are serving our country, but I am also grateful that my husband is not one of them. All of these military wives, just like Sarah, have to live a pretty unsteady life. Not really knowing how long they'll be somewhere, when they'll see their husband next, or if they'll see him again at all. It's hard to watch those mothers have to be a single parent basically for an unspecified amount of time and I know they get tired frustrated just like Sarah did in the book. In fact, Mike's brother is in the Navy and he's shipping out in July for 18 months and his wife just had a baby a few months ago! I can't even imagine.

Anyway, here is the book I have chosen for May:

I read this book a LONG time ago and, frankly, I don't remember what it's about. I remember I liked it and that people generally love it, so let's give it a try! Here is a synopsis:

Francie Nolan, avid reader, penny-candy connoisseur, and adroit observer of human nature, has much to ponder in colorful, turn-of-the-century Brooklyn. She grows up with a sweet, tragic father, a severely realistic mother, and an aunt who gives her love too freely--to men, and to a brother who will always be the favored child. Francie learns early the meaning of hunger and the value of a penny. She is her father's child--romantic and hungry for beauty. But she is her mother's child, too--deeply practical and in constant need of truth. Like the Tree of Heaven that grows out of cement or through cellar gratings, resourceful Francie struggles against all odds to survive and thrive. Betty Smith's poignant, honest novel created a big stir when it was first published over 50 years ago. Her frank writing about life's squalor was alarming to some of the more genteel society, but the book's humor and pathos ensured its place in the realm of classics--and in the hearts of readers, young and old.

May Day!

2011-04-18T09:37:00.001-07:00

Alright, ladies, who is in charge of May's book? Randi, is it you?

Also, I want to know your thoughts on These Is My Words.

the beekeeper book

2011-03-28T15:44:00.000-07:00

I feel like this book's title is misleading or something. It has nothing to do with the book as they talk about Sherlock Holmes' bees for about 3 pages.

Anyway, I actually really liked this book. It took a little while to get into it because Mary Russell bugged me so much at first but, honestly, after a couple chapters, I really started to enjoy it.

While I was in the middle of the book, Mike got the movie Sherlock Holmes on Netflix and it was fun to watch that while I was reading this book about him. It also made me want to read some real Sherlock Holmes stories by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle.

I don't have a lot to say about the book because it was all that deep or anything, I just found it really interesting. I do have one thing to say that will probably creep you guys out and I'm sure non of you will agree with me. I know it's weird, but I kind of wanted them to hook up and get married or something. I know I know, he's like 3 times her age, but I can't help it! I mean, back in the day older guys married super young girls all the time, right? She seemed a lot more mature than 18 or 19. Ok, I'm just trying to convince you. I know it's weird, I just liked them as a team/couple.

One more thing, I thought the writing was really beautiful in the chapter about them in Palestine. It was a nice little aside from the rest of the book and I liked all the Hebrew and the Jewish references. It was interesting.

Anyone else really like the book?

Aprils Pick!

2011-03-27T16:12:00.000-07:00

Happy Spring! Hope everyone is doing well. Sorry for the lack of picking/communication on my part. Here's April's book:
"These is my Words" by Nancy E. Turner. This is a recommendation from my roommate Lauren who just devours books. She said this is her favorite as of late. Summary below.

"These Is My Words" by Nancy E. Turner is in diary form and spans 20 years.

Sarah Prine is a teenage girl traveling with her family to make a living in Arizona Territory. Indian attacks, disease, death, and other hardships force Sarah to grow up face. When members of her family die and she is forced to take a significant role in careing for her family the strain starts to be overwhelming. One night, she breaks down crying in her wagon to be discovered by the arrogant, commanding, hard, and handsome army Captain that served as their wagon train guide, Captain Jack Elliot. She spends a night in his arms - nothing more than sleeping - and fears that she will be a ruined woman. Jack comforts her.

When her family leaves the wagon train to settle down a friend of the family shows up with a heard of horses, planning to start a horse ranch not far from their peach orchard. Jack, still on army duty, can only come by occasionally and still passionate embraces with Sarah. Too late, does he find Sarah married to Jimmy Reed, the family friend, out of a misguided sense of friendship. A short while later Sarah finds herself a young mother and widow - Jimmy being thrown from his horse and dragged at full gallop. Her husbands dying words were confessing his love for a woman he left behind - he married Sarah as a sort of "back up plan."

Jack appears in Sarah's life again, and his love for her and her daughter is stronger than ever. After courting for a while, they marry. The rest of Sarah's diary is her life with Jack and their trials. Growing into middle years, troubles with a sister in law, and the difficulties of raising children in an army fort.

NOTE: As it is in diary form there are many spelling and grammar errors, therefore, it takes a little bit to get used to the format. Probably the thing that throws people off the most is that there are no quatation marks. As assinine as this may sound, after a short time of getting into the book (a very easy and delightful read) one forgets those things. "

Happy reading!

The Beekeeper's Apprentice

2011-03-07T11:01:00.000-08:00

So, I decided to give Deb another month to think things over. The book for the month is:

(image from amazon.com)

The Beekeeper's Apprentice by Laurie R. King

I mentioned this on my last choice, and since the last one I chose was a bit boring, I've decided to go with one I've read. Since it's based off Sherlock Holmes it still fits with your expectations that I'll choose a classic ;)

Here's the description Amazon used from the School Library Journal:
At 15, Mary Russell is tall and gangling, bespectacled and bookish. In 1915, the orphaned heiress is living in her ancestral home with an embittered aunt she has plucked from genteel poverty to act as a guardian until she reaches her majority. In order to escape the woman's generally malevolent disposition, she wanders the Downs. On one such outing, she trips over a gaunt, elderly man sitting on the ground, "watching bees." This gentleman turns out to be Sherlock Holmes, and the resulting acquaintance evolves into a mentoring experience for the young woman. The story is well written in a style slightly reminiscent of Conan Doyle's, but is also very much King's own. The plot is somewhat predictable, but the characterizations are excellent and the times and places are skillfully evoked.

I will say that you don't really identify with her, and the feminist/erudite undertone is a little over the top, but it's an entertaining mystery.

2011-03-02T12:21:00.000-08:00

Who is supposed to pick the March book? I'm ready for something new to read.

Deep...

2011-02-24T14:25:00.000-08:00

I just finished Bonds That Make Us Free; and while I’m not sure I’ve fully internalized it, I wanted to write about it.
The first few chapters (the negative chapters) weren’t quite as engaging and were basically saying the same thing; but I think that was necessary to appreciate the later chapters. His ideas seemed so simple and yet so deep. I could almost feel my heart softening as I read some of his suggestions. Of course, once I left my little vacuum of reading alone in my room, things weren’t quite as easy to apply, but I’m excited to start trying.
Some of the gems I need to spend more time thinking about:

We have but little conception of how worthwhile we are because we are working so hard to prove how worthwhile we are. (p. 75)

Seeing other people as the problem is the problem. (p. 94)

When we have hardened and withdrawn ourselves, as we all do at times, we desperately need to encounter other beings on a fairly regular basis whose regard for us or for others softens us again. (p. 152)

We do well for a time. We slip. We have a truly dark day. We recognize how we’ve recently returned to our old, regrettable ways. We face up to a weakness. We resolve that this isn’t how we want to live. We ponder what we must change and, if prayer is part of our lives, we seek for help. (p. 262)

It is the present story of the past that works destruction in the individual life. (p. 289)

In speaking about a man who served his selfish wife: “…he didn’t consider serving Robin a deflection from his life’s purpose because she was its purpose. (p. 306)

“Love is the expression of the one who loves, not of the one who is loved.” –Keirkegaard (p. 307)

Unless we change in our hearts toward the people we struggle with here and now, we are condemned to struggle with whomever we may find ourselves associating with. (p. 307)

Hopefully this isn’t too personal for a public blog, but some of his examples made me think of Camille and her sisters. I’m always amazed at the faith and love you exhibit towards your father and husbands; despite everything that happened. If it’s not to personal, Camille, I’d love to know what helped you “forgive”.

February's book

2011-01-28T22:47:00.000-08:00

I can't believe February is almost here!

I was thinking about a lot of books and mentioned a couple to you all, but fake out - I'm not choosing any of those. One of my favorite books I read at BYU was Leadership And Self Deception, published by the Arbinger Institute. Terry Warner is part of The Arbinger Institute and he wrote another book - the book for February - Bonds That Make Us Free

I'm not one for "self help" books or anything like them. I LOVED reading Leadership And Self Deception. I thought it articulated the responsibility we have in our relationships perfectly, and applied in a professional paradigm. Bonds That Make Us Free is supposed to be the same principles applied in a gospel paradigm - I think :) I've never read it.

Anyway, I've wanted to read it for a long time. I think February would be a great month for it. Okay, ready, set, go!

Has anyone already read this?

Trying to get ready for February

2011-01-20T22:21:00.001-08:00

I'm supposed to have made an announcement already, right? For February's book? Was it last February that we read Gone With The Wind? I really loved that book.

I have a lot of books in mind, but I wanted to ask you if anyone has read Reviving Ophelia or In Defense of Food, An Eater's Manifesto?

I still have other books to choose from too. I can't decide what kind of mood I'm in!

WWII

2011-01-18T11:46:00.000-08:00

I LOVED this book. Kim gave it to me to read on Friday night and I finished it Sunday night. It was and incredible story. I cannot believe the kind of horrific cruelty the Japanese people inflicted on those POW's. I mean, honestly, those camps seemed worse than concentration camps. It really made me think about the human spirit. As human beings, we are capable of the most awful cruelty, if we let Satan control who we are and what we become. We are also capable of amazing survival, optimism, love, and compassion. Louie went through things that are seriously unimaginable, but he lived forever and influenced countless people for good. Also, I just kept thinking that has really good luck. But, was it luck? Or was he being prepared for his life later on? Amazing book. Amazing.

Moving On...

2011-01-05T06:27:00.000-08:00

Well, I guess we failed at getting together in Merced. I know my six days there were pretty crazy running back and forth between two families and I'm sure you were all busy with your families too. And what is it about vacation that makes you incapable of being productive? I kind of love it. I hope you all had a great Christmas and New Years!
It is time to move on to the next book and I have made the decision. Our January 2011 book will be..

From Laura Hillenbrand, the bestselling author of Seabiscuit, comes Unbroken, the inspiring true story of a man who lived through a series of catastrophes almost too incredible to be believed. In evocative, immediate descriptions, Hillenbrand unfurls the story of Louie Zamperini--a juvenile delinquent-turned-Olympic runner-turned-Army hero. During a routine search mission over the Pacific, Louie’s plane crashed into the ocean, and what happened to him over the next three years of his life is a story that will keep you glued to the pages, eagerly awaiting the next turn in the story and fearing it at the same time. You’ll cheer for the man who somehow maintained his selfhood and humanity despite the monumental degradations he suffered, and you’ll want to share this book with everyone you know. --Juliet Disparte

I have already started reading it and I'm loving it so far. Tim also read it and loved it. Why can't I figure out how to get rid of the italicized type? Lame.
Also, Brooke Callister Ward wants to join us. Randi, can you invite her and give her access? I will send you her email address.

Book Club Meeting/Lunch in Merced

2010-12-21T06:08:00.000-08:00

Hi Gals, hope you're all doing well! What was the consensus about getting together to discuss the books we've read this year? I'm volunteering my house, my mom would love it! I will be driving back from Las Vegas on the 28th, would it be possible to do it on the 29th? Camille, I think you are leaving Sparks and can only do it on the 28th? Let me know everyone's availability. I can probably come back earlier from Vegas if needbe. Is 'need be' one word or two? Merry Christmas in a few days!

Book of Genesis?

2010-12-06T15:24:00.001-08:00

I’m not sure if it’s because it was translated from Spanish or because it jumped around so much, but I had a really hard time getting into this book. The names were so similar that I was always a little confused. At least, I was at first.
I read the back of the book and the New York Times review began by saying it was “the first piece of literature since the Book of Genesis that should be required reading for the entire race”. I’m not convinced that’s true, but it made me realize this should be read more as a history than as a novel. There’s really not a plot, and once you accept that, the book goes a lot faster.
But you’ll also have to accept the fact that it contains just as much tragedy as the bible. I guess the reality is that no one is going to be devoid of hardship and trials, but their choices seem to lead to a lot of these tragedies. Amaranta’s bitterness and everyone’s promiscuity and selfishness just seem to perpetuate sadness in their family.
I have a feeling things won’t end well, but maybe the last one hundred pages will surprise me….

The Mansion

2010-12-05T19:23:00.000-08:00

So, President Monson, in the Christmas Devotional, mentioned three stories he reads every year. One of them was "The Mansion". I thought that might be a good story for us to read this month. You can even read it online for free.
But, I'm also open to other ideas.

How is everybody doing?

2010-11-22T06:14:00.000-08:00

Happy Thanksgiving you turkeys!! Have any of you finished November's book yet? I'll be honest, I have it on my nightstand, but I haven't read it yet. I'm using it as a reward for when I finish a couple of projects I've been putting off because I REALLY don't want to do them. I am in charge of choosing the next book, I think, but if nobody has finished this one do we want to wait and give ourselves an extra month? Or is that just ridiculous? Also, do we want to choose a Christmas-y book for December, or do you not care?

November Book

2010-10-28T00:42:00.000-07:00

Okay, sorry I'm posting this so late in the month. Things have been kind of crazy around here lately. I just got offered a teaching job at a high school in Petaluma (just north of SF) so I'm moving next week and start teaching in two. I'm really excited, but things are kind of hectic.
Anyway, a friend of mine recommended this book and she said it is one of her favorites. She's an English teacher so I always ask her for new ideas on what to read. I've heard good things about it so I hope it's a good one. And I hope you haven't already read it...I did just see that it was on Oprah's book club list (for any Oprah fans out there - Me, not so much :)) The author is a pretty famous Latin American author so maybe you've read something by him. Enjoy!

One Hundred Years of Solitude by Gabriel Garcia Marquez.

The story follows 100 years in the life of Macondo, a village founded by José Arcadio Buendía and occupied by descendants all sporting variations on their progenitor's name: his sons, José Arcadio and Aureliano, and grandsons, Aureliano José, Aureliano Segundo, and José Arcadio Segundo. Then there are the women--the two Úrsulas, a handful of Remedios, Fernanda, and Pilar--who struggle to remain grounded even as their menfolk build castles in the air. If it is possible for a novel to be highly comic and deeply tragic at the same time, then One Hundred Years of Solitude does the trick. Civil war rages throughout, hearts break, dreams shatter, and lives are lost, yet the effect is literary pentimento, with sorrow's outlines bleeding through the vibrant colors of García Márquez's magical realism.

I just had to post this review because it was everywhere I was reading about the book and I thought it was interesting -

"One Hundred Years of Solitude is the first piece of literature since the Book of Genesis that should be required reading for the entire human race. It takes up not long after Genesis left off and carries through to the air age, reporting on everything that happened in between with more lucidity, wit, wisdom, and poetry that is expected from 100 years of novelists, let alone one man...Mr. Garcia Marquez has done nothing less than to create in the reader a sense of all that is profound, meaningful, and meaningless in life." William Kennedy, New York Times Book Review

Cute Pregnant Jenny

2010-10-20T19:25:00.001-07:00

I meant to put this picture up about a month ago, where has time gone!? I went to Seattle for work and got to see Jenny for a bit. Love her, she is now a mom of three! Ha, we're kind of twiners.

I just don't know.

2010-10-14T06:20:00.000-07:00

I just don't know exactly how to explain my feelings about this book. Part of me wants to say I'm not a fan, but then the fact that the author is a dying (now deceased) man trying to leave his last words of advice to his children, makes you feel guilty saying anything bad about the book. If it weren't for the fact that this man wrote the book while dying of cancer, I'd really dislike the book. It jumps around like crazy and I even think he repeats himself quite a bit. You know the expression 'drinking water from a fire hose'? That is how I feel. Lots of good thoughts and things I should apply, but there is just so much of it! Does anyone else feel this way? Am I a horrible person?

Better Late than Never

2010-09-30T15:46:00.000-07:00

So I just finished Love Walked In and surprise, surprise, I LOVED it. Just reading about some of her old movie references inspired me to turn on the Turner Classic Movie channel. I think Cornelia is a much stronger woman than me, but I definitely identified with her. And let's be honest, I wish I had a gorgeous childhood friend to fall in love with. Oh, and this entry is helping me avoid figuring out "what color is my parachute".
Which explains why I identified with Cornelia's discovery: As she learned that prior to Martin's entrance into her life she was "...one who spent her days skirting around the edges of adulthood, commitment, responsibility, accomplishment". After Martin, she learned that real life is not "going after what you want and getting it" but "knowing what you love and why".
I'm not sure exactly why this week has been different, maybe because I've been praying to understand the Lord's mission for me on earth and here in Arizona, but I've become especially grateful for close friends and family. I think sometimes I get so caught up in the need to have everyone like me, that I forget to revel in the friendships I already have.
So, I want to tell each of you how much I love you. I love you for your goodness and your testimonies. I love you for our shared experiences: girls camp, weekend parties, "Made in the USA", making movies, etc, etc. And I love you for being a part of my life.

October's book

2010-09-26T21:51:00.000-07:00

Ok, I guess it's my turn to pick. I am picking a book that you might have read, but that I've been wanting to read for a while.

The Last Lecture

by Randy Pausch

Ok, I tried to get a summary, but blogger won't let me paste it here. So go to this website to read about it:

www.thelastlecture.com

I'm excited!

Who's picking for October?

2010-09-26T13:48:00.000-07:00

I have a business trip coming up and want a good read...just curious.

Still reading...

2010-09-09T10:44:00.000-07:00

This book is a slower read than I expected. I'm currently reading about their first few days in office as president.
But I find it fascinating to think about how many times they lost elections and kept going. Maybe it's because I don't have that kind of passion for anything, but I just couldn't imagine. How were they so willing to suffer disappointment after disappointment? He was basically a nobody in the West who couldn't even get elected by his state legislature yet somehow he became President of the United States.
It makes me think of Churchill and how he always believed he was destined to be in charge during WWII. I think he was right. I also believe Lincoln was the right man to be president during the Civil War.
But it's interesting to think about them as real people, who have made mistakes. I don't know if the rest of you do this, but I tend to think of the founding fathers, successful people, or even heroes in books to be perfect. I appreciate this book for reminding me that imperfect people can do great things.

Can I get any lazier?

2010-08-24T07:45:00.000-07:00

I have to tell you all the coolest thing EVER! I work at Wake Forest University and I often check out books from the campus library. I just started using a service they provide...are you ready for this? THEY DELIVER BOOKS TO ME AT MY DESK!! All I have to do is log into my account online and tell them what book/books I want and they bring them to me at my desk. And they aren't due back for a year. Isn't that the coolest? Are you alll jealous? You should be.
"Love is Eternal" was delivered to my desk just minutes ago. Good choice, Kim! I'm excited to read it!

September Book

2010-08-20T13:08:00.000-07:00

I made the mistake of asking my parents, brother, and sister-in-law for book suggestions. This led to a list of about twenty books. I narrowed it down to three, then decided to go for something older and less known (but still available in local library or amazon).

(picture borrowed from amazon.com)

Love is Eternal by Irving Stone

It is historical fiction of the relationship between Abraham and Mary Todd Lincoln. My mom loves it. As a disclaimer, it is fiction, so it may not be entirely accurate.

If you get bored next month, my other two options were The Beekeeper's Assistant and The Spy Wore Red. :)

Love Walked In

2010-08-15T22:09:00.000-07:00

I just finished the book and I really liked it; which is good because I needed a distraction this week. My house looks like we have been robbed. Even I am having anxiety about how messy it is. And that's saying a lot. We had a garage sale yesterday and got rid of a bunch of stuff, but there is still so much junk in here. what the what? blerg.
Anyway, as I read this book, I imagined the character of Cornelia as Kim Weed. Yup, I sure did Kim. Little; beautiful; sweet; kind; lovable; loving. I seriously just imagined everything with Kim in there. Someday you will be with a man who looks like Cary Grant, Kim. How lucky. Anyway, my favorite passage in this book was this:

"I sat up and rubbed her back with the circular motion I've always found soothing. After a while, she put her head in my lap and said,
'I want my mommy.'
I thought about those words, how they contained so much more than they seemed to contain, more than any four words could hold. They meant what they meant were also a universal cry, maybe the universal, plaintive, openhearted cry for comfort. Soldiers in the heat of battle; death-row prisoners; explorers stranded in deserts, jungles, on mountaintops; anyone sick or lost of just tired and bewildered: we all wanted our mothers."

Beautiful, right? Mothers. We all want our mothers. And that's one of things I liked about this book. There was so much love in it. People just loved each other. Patiently, unabashedly loved each other. Not only do we want our mothers, we need them. Just as we need each other. Viviana, at the end of the book, says something like a world with only two is not enough. We need each other! I am moving 4000 miles next month. I can't take everything with me. I called my mom to ask if she could make me some blankets since I had to basically give all of mine to Goodwill here (including my favorite one which I'm pretty sure we've all sat on at one time or another at Sunset Beach). No problem, she said. We can make as many blankets as you want. I LOVE LOVE LOVE my mom. That's what this book made me think of. Love didn't walk in, it was there from the beginning. We have our mothers. And we have each other.
How lucky are we?

August's Pick!

2010-07-26T20:31:00.000-07:00

This was recommended to me by a roommate. Here's a synopsis:

Life has been pretty kind to Cornelia Brown, the college-educated twenty-something manager of the Café Dora, a comfy little Philadelphia coffeehouse. In fact, things have been so good and so free of responsibility that lately she's been thinking she should make something more of her life. It's as if she's been treading water, having risen no higher on the food chain than café manager because she just hasn't figured out anything better.

Cynical about some things, totally romantic about others, and ultimately believing that "true love is tops," Cornelia seeks succor in Cary Grant films, hoping that one day her very own Mr. Grant will walk through that café door. And he does, in the form of the gorgeous, gracious, and most civilized Martin Grace, who takes one look at her, falls in love with her, and immediately asks her to come to London with him.

Meanwhile, Martin's ex-wife, Viviana, has recently abandoned Clare, her eleven-year-old daughter. Wise beyond her years, Clare is an absolute marvel - resourceful, imaginative, even brave - the kind of girl "you usually find in books." A fan of romance fiction, she is a startling mixture of sweetness and pluck; it's almost as though she has been delved from the pages of Little Women.

Clare knows that something is terribly wrong when her mother starts exhibiting strange and erratic behavior: soon she is shopping compulsively, inexplicably pulling Clare from school, taking her to lunch in a fancy restaurant, even giving her red wine to drink. There's no explanation for Viviana's strange absences or odd behavior, but with her mind gradually slipping and skipping away between confusion and clarity, none of Clare's books have taught her what you do when your mother turns into "someone you don't know, someone who doesn't take care of you anymore."

When Viviana drops Clare off on the side of the road before disappearing, the young girl is set adrift, forced to find a home with Martin while trying desperately to imagine living with her father instead of her mother, and realizing that her father probably couldn't imagine it, either. Thinking, deciding, and worrying, it all becomes too much for the poor girl; she realizes that she is through with all of that: "floating and drifting, she did not want to think at all."

Almost immediately, Cornelia falls in love with the fragile Clare, adopting the role of semi-parent. But in the process, she discovers that Martin is not exactly the man she had hoped he would be; his chilly attitude toward Clare in her time of need has disturbed Cornelia. Wracked by doubts regarding his rightness for her, even though he is a "flesh and blood man," and with the less-than-fantastic sex on her mind, Cornelia's world is rocked when Tao, her distractingly handsome brother-in-law, arrives in town.

Moving between the voices of Clare and Cornelia, author Marisa de los Santos progressively charts the deepest and most poignant of these characters' emotions, revealing their flaws and exposing their hidden insecurities. For most of Clare's life, there has been so much distance between her father and herself, an empty space across which she could send stories, that actually telling him mattered so little - "he was just the near-stranger he'd always been."

Cornelia little by little becomes distracted about the nuts and bolts of Clare's well-being, the attributes of parenthood thrust upon her without warning. Yet she also worries about her relationship with Martin, forced to deny a steadily growing and brutally honest attraction to Tao. For Cornelia, Clare, and Tao, the world holds endless possibilities, but can the house of cards they seem to be keeping up through sheer force of will do anything but tumble down?

The author writes candidly and delicately, thoroughly in tune to the quiet domestic dramas of life. The characters in Love Walked In can little afford to leave their troubles behind, or even live in an in-between space where you think troubles can't find you. For all these characters, denial and defiance is not an option. It is where parenthood and its ensuring responsibilities crop up in the unlikeliest of places.

Only through her bourgeoning relationship with Clare and her surprise love affair with Martin does Cornelia realize that real happiness isn't what happens to you when you "whistle along," drifting through life, ignoring responsibilities and pretending that bad things just don't exist.

Happy Reading!

washington

2010-07-13T20:59:00.000-07:00

So I really like this book. I wasn't sure what to expect of it. I mean, I wasn't sure if it was a novel, or like a boring textbook. Surprisingly, it's kind of like both, but awesome! My favorite quote so far is from the gold medal that was struck in Washington's honor:

"Those pages in the annals of America will record your title to be a conspicuous place in the temple of fame, which shall inform posterity, that under your directions, an undisciplined band of husbandmen, in the course of a few months, became soldiers."

BEAUTIFUL. George Washington was even more marvelous than I thought. I'm only at the part where the British ships have all entered New York and are seriously outnumbering our military. Even though I know we eventually win this war, I find myself seriously on the edge of my seat wondering how we're going to get ourselves out of this mess. I like it.

July Book Announcement

2010-06-21T21:47:00.000-07:00

I've always wanted to read this. July seems like a good time to do it. How many of you have already read it? If I'm the only one who hasn't read it I have a pretty good back up.

I'm next, right?

Ugh!

2010-06-21T21:35:00.000-07:00

This book has been really hard for me to read. I keep thinking of that "conference" of the church when Jacob was the prophet and he had to speak harsh words to soft hearts or broken hearts. I just don't really want to be happy about the idea of pornography being so HUGE.

I keep reading until there is a positive note then I take a break.

I can't read it right before I go to bed or I have sad dreams.

I'm taking it really really slowly.

I'm really happy to be reading it though because it is reality. And I have a son. Oh, and I'm pregnant and I think it's going to be another son. I can also see a lot of parallels in the science of the brain and other addictions I've read about: drugs and alcohol. I guess that's obvious though because the author points out the similarities.

I'm motivated to take a positive and proactive approach to teaching our children about this beginning with "I Am A Child of God." The sanctity and eternity of our bodies. The Plan of Happiness. Personal grooming and respect as well as for others.

Lots of thoughts. Thanks for choosing the book Cami.

What are you all thinking as you read this book?

On a more serious note....

2010-05-19T11:06:00.000-07:00

I have chosen the book for June, and I hope it doesn't depress everyone. For a while now, I have been feeling the need to read and learn about pornography addiction and recovery. Thankfully, I have not had to deal with this in my personal life, but I know that the chances are high that I might have to one day. I feel like I need to educate myself about this problem in order to be more understanding, sympathetic and prepared, and to be less judgmental of those who do struggle with pornography addiction. As we get older and continue to have opportunities to serve in our families and in the church, I am convinced that I/we have to educate ourselves on this topic. I think it is particularaly important that we have this knowledge as we work with our children and the youth of the church.
So sorry to drop a bomb on you with such a sobering topic, but I'm hoping I'm not the only one who will find this useful. This particular book comes highly recommended from people I trust completely. My mother-in-law, Christa, has read many books as she's tried to educate herself on the topic and she says this is one of the best. The author is not LDS but apparently Elder Holland quotes him frequently. I can't find the book in local libraries, but it is on amazon or deseret book. I'm trying to give you advance notice so you can order it, if you choose to read it. So....here it is:

The Drug of the new Millennium: The Brain Science Behind Internet Pornography Use
by
Mark Kastleman

"An epidemic is sweeping across America and much of the world. Parents and spouses are desperate for answers. Clergy and counselors are inundated and searching for solutions. It s estimated that over 60 million in the U.S. are addicted at some level. Nine out of ten children between age eight and sixteen have been exposed. Teens are the largest consumers. The epidemic? Internet Pornography Use. Now, via computers, cell phones and even video gaming systems, every variety of Internet porn is instantly available to anyone, regardless of age or gender no one is immune!

After 10 years of study and research with leading neuro-scientists, and direct interaction with more than 10,000 families, renowned author, researcher and speaker Mark B. Kastleman brings the world his groundbreaking work. Rather than approaching this controversial issue from the traditional moral or religious angle, Mark sticks to the facts the brain science behind Internet pornography use. For example:

Internet porn triggers a flood-release of potent neuro-chemicals in the brain virtually identical to illicit street drugs. Porn use is substance-abuse a drug addiction.

Internet pornography radically alters the brain at cellular level, dramatically impacting attitudes and behaviors.

Most importantly, in addition to cutting-edge brain science, Mark provides parents, spouses, clergy and counselors with the 3 Power Principles guaranteed to protect children, marriages and families tested and proven practical solutions to prevent addiction to this super-drug.

This remarkable, comprehensive guidebook gives people the straight-forward, no-nonsense answers and practical solutions they've been searching for."

On a lighter note...Do you realize that we've been doing this book club for a year and a half?! We are awesome!! I love you all!

Sympathy or No Sympathy???

2010-05-17T13:32:00.001-07:00

I still have a little bit left in the book, but I just thought I would throw this out there. Is anyone else having conflicted feelings about feeling sorry for Max?! I usually find in these books about WWII that it's always so easy to feel sad for the Jewish people and the whole situation, and I still do here, but it's a little different. Max was super selfish and totally abandoned his mother. What in the world? Knowing the way I feel about my mom, there is no way I could ever do that. So I was talking with my sister-in-law about this and wondering what I would have been like if I had been there during this time. Would it have just been every man for himself? What if I were German...would I have hid people in my house and risked everything? It's so easy to say yes now, but I wonder. So my question is...sympathy...or no sympathy? He left the people he loved behind to save himself. I think the gospel and knowing what we do about families gives us a different perspective and we probably know exactly what we would do in that situation, which makes it all the more difficult for me to feel sorry for Max. It kind of changes the tone of the book for me because I can feel this inner struggle about what happens to him when I read.
On a different note...I love that it is written from death's point of view. Awesome! I love that the whole thing is about finding a love of reading. Different experiences really do change things for people. I think it took me until my senior year with Crime and Punishment to really love and appreciate reading like I do now. If only I had found a grave digger's handbook when I was younger...

High School Goodies

2010-04-28T15:26:00.000-07:00

Oh my, when I was looking for a high school picture that included Amy Hendricks, I came accross these oldies but goodies! I thought this might provide some good laughs. Miss you gals!

picks and pickles

2010-04-14T13:19:00.000-07:00

So I finished the book long long ago. Is everyone else there now? I found myself finishing the book really fast. Because it was an easy read and because I thought it was pretty entertaining. However, I kind of thought it was the poor man's Steel Magnolias. I mean, it kind of started to bug me as the book went on. Why didn't someone punch Agnes T. Ritter in the face. I don't care if she's a "pickle." She sure didn't act like one. Grrr.

I also found myself wondering about our main character Queenie. It seemed like she and her husband had plenty of money (at least considering) and I wondered how that was possible with farming the way it was. Anyone know? Did it ever explain why they were so much better off than most? Maybe I just missed it.

Well, I think that since I am the last alphabetically to choose, it is Amy's turn! Welcome, and let us know what the book for May is. Meanwhile, we can keep commenting on the pickle club.

My Initiation: The May Book

2010-04-13T20:54:00.000-07:00

So I know the book should be posted a month ahead of time, but there was so much pressure with this being my first pick and all; I really had to make sure it was a good one. I'm super excited about being part of this elite club! I miss you girls. I checked through the old posts to make sure I didn't pick a repeat, so I hope everyone hasn't read this one yet. If so, let me know and I have a back up plan. Okay, the book for May:

The Book Thief
By Markus Zusak

It’s just a small story really, about among other things: a girl, some words, an accordionist, some fanatical Germans, a Jewish fist-fighter, and quite a lot of thievery. . . .

Set during World War II in Germany, Markus Zusak’s groundbreaking new novel is the story of Liesel Meminger, a foster girl living outside of Munich. Liesel scratches out a meager existence for herself by stealing when she encounters something she can’t resist – books. With the help of her accordion-playing foster father, she learns to read and shares her stolen books with her neighbors during bombing raids as well as with the Jewish man hidden in her basement before he is marched to Dachau. This is an unforgettable story about the ability of books to feed the soul.

My sister-in-law recommended this book and said she was hooked from page one. I got it with the intent of reading it and then life got crazy and that never happened, so here goes another try. Enjoy!

2010-04-09T05:57:00.000-07:00

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, CAMILLE!!

Persian Pickles are just a fancy name for Paisleys

2010-04-06T11:15:00.000-07:00

I started the book over the weekend and was bored after about five pages. I really just wasn't in the mood to concentrate and try to get into it so I put it down. I picked it up again last night and it only took me about two pages to be totally into it. I guess I'm fickle. I was reading on my lunch break today and I had to stop in a place that totally left me hanging. BUT...I'm pretty sure I've got the whole mystery figured out. Are any of you reading it yet? Were you bored at first, or was it just me?

snow flower and new book

2010-03-16T14:02:00.000-07:00

Ok, so I finished the book yesterday and...I liked it I guess. I got a little tired of the way the culture treated women. I know, that's just the way it was, but I just wanted to yell at some of these characters toward the end. Like Snow Flower's whole family pretty much. I was thinking about what Kim said about the culture being the antagonist in the book and I agree. I do think that Lily was not a very supportive friend to Snow Flower when she was going through terrible times, but were those really her sentiments? Or was she just regurgitating the sentiments of an ancient culture? Lily thought she was comforting her friend by saying she needed to have sons. She was trying to be her best self.

This book also made me very grateful to live in a culture and during a time when I can be whoever I want to be. But, is our culture that much different? We still view women in terms of how they look, how talented they are, what they can accomplish. To be honest, I think we are bombarded with pressure in every part of our culture. As women, we are expected to be beautiful and thin. As a mother we are expected to always be smiling and loving every second of the ride. As an LDS woman, we are expected to be crafty and talented and be able to be everything to everyone. Are we stretched just as thin as the women in this book? In some respects I think we are.

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Ok, so here is the book for April

The Persian Pickle Club
by Sandra Dallas

My sister-in-law really enjoyed it and I pretty much get all of my recommendations from her. Here is a brief synopsis of the book:

It is the 1930s, and hard times have hit Harveyville, Kansas, where the crops are burning up and there’s not a job to be found. For Queenie Bean, a young farm wife, a highlight of each week is the gathering of the Persian Pickle Club, a group of local ladies dedicated to improving their minds, exchanging gossip, and putting their quilting skills to good use. When a new member of the club stirs up a dark secret, the women must band together to support and protect one another. In her magical, memorable novel, Sandra Dallas explores the ties that unite women through good times and bad.

The Young Women Values

2010-03-12T08:32:00.000-08:00

I started the book and so far I am finding it interesting. Surprisingly, the foot binding part didn't make me queasy, but it was disturbing none the less. The fact that their culture places a girl's worth on the size of her foot, and not even the natural size of her foot, makes me extremely sad. I am sad that so many girls suffered so much. Obviously, they suffered physically, but more importantly emotionally and spiritually, just because their culture failed to see the big picture. However, before it starts to look like I'm pointing fingers, our culture has done the same thing with body image, so we are also at fault.
As I've been reading this book, the Young Women values continue to come into my mind. I know that it is the spirit that is "bringing things to my remembrance" and testifying of their truth. I've always love the YW values and I have had many experiences that have strengthened my testimony of their importance and reading this book has been another one of those experiences. Specifically, the values of Divine Nature and Individual Worth. Divine Nature...we are daughters of God and that alone gives us more worth than anything else ever can. There is plan for us that is very personal and based on our faithfulness, our actions, and the desires of our hearts, not based on what other people think of us or how we look or how much money we make. Individual Worth...we all have something great to offer. We each have been blessed with specific talents that can bring us, and those around us, so much happiness. We don't have to be clones of the people around us.
My heart just aches for Lily (or every girl who went through this exact same experience) as she is conditioned to believe she has little worth and whatever worth she does have is based on circumstances that are completely out of her control. I'm so thankful that I was taught those 7, now 8, specific values as I grew up and I'm even more thankful now that I still get to learn about them. I can't imagine how girls and women make sense of the messages being thrown at them without the guidance of the Lord through his servants the prophets and the General YW Leaders. Seriously. We are so lucky!!

FYI...in case you didn't know, they just put out another new personal progress book a couple of months ago and they are encouraging ALL women to earn or re-earn their award. You should all do it, it is a really great program. And I'm officially done acting like your YW leader now.

Shout out to our newest member!

2010-03-11T09:16:00.000-08:00

Welcome Amy Hendricks!! I am so glad you asked to join our very formal and very strict book club. It made me wonder if there is anyone else out there who has stumbled across our club and wished they were part of it. Right now there might be someone out there in a deep hole of depression because they feel left out of our book club. If you are from Merced and you know the people in the picture on our blog and you want to join, just ask!
Okay, so I thought it would be fun to list some memories I have of/with Amy Hendricks. I'll list mine here and feel free to add yours in the comments section.

1. cleaning out dads' law office listening to Brittney Spears. Don't pretend you are too cool for B.S. and you don't remember...I know you do.

2. The Alto section. Enough said.

3. Driving down G Street after a football game and somebody making us thing the tire on your mini-van was flat.

4. trying to find that chemical that turns pee blue or green to answer Ryan and Tim for prom.

5. Leadership my Jr. year

6. 4th period chemistry. You were in that class with us, right? I have to be honest, all I really cared about in that class was flirting with Tim, but I'm pretty sure you were in that class. However, your last name started with "H" so you were a couple of rows away from me. right?

7. Amy was always one of the happiest people. I love that about her.

Excuse the random thoughts

2010-03-08T10:48:00.000-08:00

Did anyone else get a little bit queasy at the footbinding description? I can't even imagine...

I have to admit, my love of the Asian culture took a bit of a hit. I know they aren't the only ones to view women as inferior, but it is so frustrating. To be considered a burden by their birth parents, and a visitor by their in-laws must have been very demeaning. Though, I guess women haven't really changed all that much. Their worth was determined by the size of their feet, the victorian era viewed small waists as most important, and we still often view our worth by superficial means.

I was just reading in the bible of Jacob and his relationship with Leah and Rachel. Rachel was obviously the one Jacob loved, but Leah was the first to have children. In the scriptures she rejoices, saying that now her husband will love her for bearing a son. Yet, Jacob still loves Rachel more. Despite that, Rachel envies Leah for her ability to have children. Apparently women really haven't changed; we will always compare ourselves to other women.