Wild Rose by Jennifer Donnelly

This is the final installment of the Rose trilogy which I have put off reading for a long time.  I loved the first two so wanted to be able to immerse myself in the final book and read it quickly which is hard to do for a 600 plus page book when you have kids.  The flight back from Denmark was the perfect time to do just that.

The book as usual is about the Bristow family and their relatives.  This book starts in pre World War I London and continues into the beginnings of the post-war period.  While Fiona and Joe Bristow are always the cornerstones of the story, this installment was mostly about the relationship between Willa Alden and Seamus Finnegan and their conflicted love story.  In the previous book the two had climbed Kilimanjaro together and Willa fell and broke her leg on the way down.  By the time Seamus got her to a hospital her leg was so gangrenous the doctor recommended amputation and Seamus told him to go ahead despite Willa's protests.  She hated him for it.  Despite that hate they still both love each other and have a hard time having any real relationships with other people because they are always pining for each other.  Willa flees London and conflict as she always does, which takes her on further adventures around the world.  Seamus tries to find love elsewhere but has trouble as well.

Along with all of this there are subplots that have to do with the war, including a complex spy ring.

Altogether an enthralling book which I enjoyed as much as the first two.  I wasn't able to finish it inflight, but I finished it within a week.  The book does a good job of tying up the loose ends in a satisfying way.  Sometimes very much what you would expect, and other times not.  

It's hard to summarize a book of this scope so I'll just say if you enjoy a good epic story of historical fiction, check out the Rose trilogy by Jennifer Donnelly.  You won't be disappointed.  I purposely took my time between each book as I wanted to keep the journey going with these characters as long as I could.  Honestly, I'm going to miss some of them.  

Tell the Wolves I'm Home

I saw this book many times over the summer and finally bought it.  It started off slowly but the fact that I was a 14 year old in Westchester in 1987 just like June kept me interested. I got all the pop culture references - Fiorucci, Reagan, WPLJ, Dennis Miller on Saturday Night Live (it wasn't SNL yet).

It's a coming of age novel but almost too much.  I read the summaries on the backs of books when I buy them, but after that I don't read it til after I have read the book.  When I started this book I thought. June was much younger than 14.  She seemed very immature to me - maybe 9 or 10.  

Back up a bit.  June and her older sister Greta are sitting for a portrait by their renowned artist uncle Finn.  Finn is June's godfather and they have a close relationship.  She enjoys going into the city for the sittings, Greta attends but can't wait to go home.   

Their parents are accountants and largely leave them on their own during tax season.  Another reviewer likened them to the Peanuts parents. Just background noise.  Although Mom's part becomes more important in the end. Mom had a tense relationship with her brother and that translates to her relationship with June, although they never talk about why there are problems, just get upset at each other. 

Finn dies of AIDS and June notices a man lingering on the side of the funeral.  Shortly after she receives a teapot in the mail (from the stranger aka Finn's lover Toby).  Despite Finn and Toby having a long committed relationship, June and Greta were never introduced to Finn as their mother did not approve of him.  

June reaches out to Toby as she feels no one else understands the pain she feels from Finn dying. They form a strong bond which is often misconstrued as an older man taking advantage of a much younger girl. 

There is a great deal of drama throughout the book (between Greta and June, between June and her parents, and between Toby and pretty much every one but June, and the usual high school drama of both June and Greta).

It's one of the first books in a while that I didn't really enjoy the parts but looking at the whole, it was a good read.  So I guess, if you give it a try you need to stick with it.  I wouldn't necessarily recommend it to others - I don't normally do stars but I guess if I did for this one, I'd give 3.5.  Better than average but not one I'd be recommending to everyone. 

Paris by Edward Rutherfurd

An epic novel that did not disappoint.  The book spans multiple generations and jumps back and forth between them, but with a few common families and family relationships to tie it all together.  The characters include aristocrats, artists, department store owners and a brothel owner. It's hard to summarize a book that spans over 600 years, and has so many characters, but I did enjoy it.

Thomas & Luc Gascon.  Thomas was an ironworker who helped build the Eiffel Tower.  His brother Luc ran a bar and restaurant but was also part of the seedier sides of Paris.

Blanchards - Marc was a artist but despite his parents objections.  His parents own a department store in Paris that his sister Marie and her daughter Claire end up running.  He gets a girl pregnant but his parents quickly make "the problem" disappear

Frederic Ney is an affluent lawyer who also boards a number of widows in his spacious home. He has a staff of people who take care of them - Edith and her Aunt Adeline are the main ones.  

Roland de Cygne and Jacques Le Sourd a rivalry that has continued for generations, growing stronger with each year.

Louise - grows up in England but comes to Paris looking for her roots, and becomes quite well-known in certain circles.

World War I and II are large parts of the story naturally.  I know that Rutherfurd does his research and most of the historical parts are accurate, but there was one aspect to the story that I liked but I'm not sure if it's true.  When the Germans occupied France and Hitler first came to Paris he wanted to go to the top of the Eiffel Tower but couldn't - as the elevator cables had been cut to prevent him going up.

An enjoyable read which really made me feel I was in Paris and want to go back. It also made me want to give his book about New York another try.  

Beautiful Ruins

I picked up this book a few times this summer, but never bought it.  Then a friend of mine mentioned on her blog that she had done the same thing and finally bought it and enjoyed it.  Based on her recommendation I finally committed.  It started off well enough but the second half and ending weren't good.

I read in the interview at the back of the book, that the author worked on the book on and off for 15 years and it shows.  It's very disjointed.  It starts with a dying American actress Dee Moray arriving in a town near Cinque Terre in the 60s. She was filming Cleopatra in Italy when she found out she was sick.    She comes to a family owned pensione - the Hotel Adequate View (the name is explained later)  Pasquale lives there with his mother and aunt (his father died in the war).  

Michael Deane is a producer in present day LA.  He worked on Cleopatra when he was younger.  After some success, Michael hasn't produced anything in a long time.  But on one of his "Wild Pitch Fridays" Claire Silver spends the day listening to pitches from anyone.  Shane Wheeler an aspiring screenwriter has flown in from Oregon to make his pitch.  

Pasquale comes in with one of Michael Deane's old business cards from the Cleopatra days looking for help to find Dee Moray.  Pasquale speaks no English but Shane just happens to be fluent in Italian.  

From there the book goes back and forth between Italy and the US.  Past and present.  While it's easy enough to follow, I feel like the characters and the original plot had great potential but then it just fell apart.  The last chapter especially felt rushed with quick summaries of what happened to everybody.  

If you want a book about Italy I'd recommend the Shoemakers Wife.  I don't have a recommendation for a Hollywood book.

Sister by Rosamund Upton

This book was recommended to me by a friend whose opinion I usually agree with.  I wanted to like this book, and while I didn't hate it it fell short on a few key levels for me.  

Despite the premise being that a woman in NY is called back to London urgently to help find her missing sister, I felt the story took a while to get going.  

The story is mostly told as a series of interviews between Beatrice and Mr Wright who works for the police department.  

Tess was pregnant and expecting soon.  She was unmarried and the father didn't want to be involved with the baby.  Tess and Beatrice had a brother Leo who died of cystic fibrosis at a young age and they know they are both carriers.  Tess signs up for a in utero trial cure for CF.  

Not long after Beatrice arrives in London Tess' body is found and ruled a suicide.  Beatrice refuses to believe that Tess committed suicide, and continues to investigate Tess' death at her own peril. This was the part of the book I found interesting, but at first I didn't buy the ending.  I skimmed the book again the next day to see if there was some detail I missed and with fresh eyes it did seem more plausible, but still not satisfying.  

Next up Paris by Edward Rutherford.  I've read a few of his books and have thoroughly enjoyed some (Russka and London) and couldn't get through New York or The Princes of Ireland.  I'm hopeful about this one.  

Trinity Six

This book had a lot going for it, but I was disappointed with the ending.  But I'll get to that.

The book starts off in London, 1992 with the death of Edward Crane.  He was 76 years old and died in a hospital. His obituary described him as a career diplomat.  On the surface nothing would seem strange abut a 76 year old man dying, but in time we learn that his death was not what it seemed.

Sam Gaddis is a professor at University College London in Russian History who gets involved in researching a ring of Soviet and British spies - the Trinity Six. He is tipped off by a journalist friend of his who dies after telling him about the story she is working on.  Sam is convinced she was killed to silence the story but has no proof.  He continues investigating on his own, drawing both the attention of MI6 and the FSB.  He wants to stop but is compelled by the story and hopes to score a big book deal with the completed story as he is heavily in debt.  

At times Sam's not sure who if anyone he can trust, although he continues to get information from multiple sources.  I enjoyed it until the very end.  While some reviewers were frustrated by Gaddis' mistakes I thought they made him more believable.  He is not a spy, he is an academic, of course he's going to make some mistakes and take some risks.  I feel like the ending wasn't very realistic, as all the loose ends are too neatly tied up in the end.  Not sure if Cumming is planning a sequel (this was published in 2011), which could make the ending make sense.  

Still I've missed the Cold War spy novels and this definitely is reminiscent of those. I also appreciated the similarities between the fictional President of Russia - Sergei Platov - and Vladimir Putin.  I would be willing to try another by this author, but first I think it's time I read one of John le Carre's since I never have.  

Where'd You Go, Bernadette? by Maria Semple

I had seen this book at bookstores quite a bit and the cover intrigued me, but it was only after a friend recommended it, that I picked it up. It's a story of Bernadette Fox, an architect who moved with her husband to Seattle when he was offered a job with Microsoft.  They have a teenage daughter Bee.  Bernadette was a renowned architect despite only completely one project.  When they moved to Seattle she bought a rundown former girls school and was determined to live in it, while they renovated.  Beyond some work on the house she never designed anything again (and never got very far in renovating the house to her neighbors' dismay).

Bee attends a private school and Bernadette does not fit in with any of the other parents - she refers to the mothers as "gnats" She is agoraphobic and introverted at a school where parent involvement is strongly encouraged.  She farms out all of her mundane tasks to a virtual assistant in India as she can't get herself to do them herself.

As an incentive to Bee to get good grades, her parents tell her that she can have anything she wants if she gets all A's.  Bee succeeds and surprises her parents by asking for a trip to Antarctica (they had thought she would ask for a pony).  Bee's father, Elgin Branch, is game.  At first, Bernadette throws herself into researching the trip and acquiring everything they will need to bring but she gets increasingly distressed about the trip as it gets closer.  Elgin is so concerned about Bernadette's mental state he actually tries to have her committed.

The book is an epistolary novel which can be a little confusing at times as it jumps from character to character quite a bit and not just the three members of the Fox family but also, Soo-Lin - Elgin's admin, Audrey Griffin - the Foxes neighbor, and others.  I enjoyed it and while yes I definitely thought in the beginning that Bernadette was crazy (but extremely entertaining) I could definitely understand her side of the story once it all came out in the end.  She had moved to Seattle to support her husband's new job, but never felt happy there and needed to get away from all that to find peace.

Ironically, it seems to be somewhat similar to what my Mom is going through right now.  No she didn't have a breakdown and disappear, but after a successful hip repair surgery last week she was moved to a rehab facility this week to begin physical therapy.  When I called her the other day she was very positive and when I asked if she was bored and wanted me to send her anything, she said she had been busy, so no need.  I talked to my sister and she said the same thing, Mom is treating this like a retreat.  Dealing with my Dad the past couple of years has been hard on her, especially since she can't easily get around on her own like she used to if and when she wants a break.  She's a very independent person - like Bernadette, but not agoraphobic.  Now that she's finally in a completely different environment and knows that Dad's being taken care of, she can relax and focus on herself.  Different situation in many ways but still enough similarities.

Persepolis by Marjane Satrapi

This is another book I picked because of the summer reading club - I was supposed to pick a graphic novel and this was the only one I could think of.  It's the memoir of an Irani girl during the Islamic Revolution.  It starts when Marjane was 6 and the shah has recently come to power and ends when she is 14.

It was interesting to read about that time through a child's eyes.  Marjane's parents were opposed to the Shah and protested the new regime a few times before it got too dangerous.  Her uncle was imprisoned at one point.  She and her friends went from attending a co-ed French non-religious school to a new school where boys and girls were separated and girls were required to wear veils.  It was scary and sad at times, and other times hopeful and funny. She eventually moved to Vienna and now lives in Paris.  I'm curious to find out what happened to her parents, and plan on reading the second installment at some point to find out.

When I was in middle school the Shah of Iran's daughter, Leila Pahlavi - who is referred to a couple of times in this book - attended my school.  I never knew her - she was in the high school which was a separate building.  She had a bodyguard but otherwise was like any other student.  Still just the fact that she was there piqued my interest in Iran. Similar to my interest with Hilter's rise to power and the way he and the Nazis oppressed many parts of German society in the 30s and 40s.

Seriously...I'm Kidding by Ellen Degeneres

I had to listen to an Audiobook for my summer reading club, and since I was afraid I'd zone out to a regular fiction story decided to go with Ellen's latest book instead. I used to love watching her show, but haven't had the time in a long time.

I love her sense of humor - unlike many comedians these days, she manages to be funny without being vulgar or insulting other people.  She's happy with who she is and where she is in her life but she doesn't gloat.  She jokes a few times about being a Covergirl spokesperson, but I think mostly because it was not anything she ever aspired to or expected.  A few chapters are just plain silly, and I enjoyed those too.

The book is not pure comedy though, it's as much about positive thinking and encouraging you to do whatever makes you happy (unless you're a serial killer).

Because it was an audiobook and I didn't take the time to bookmark any of the funny passages, I can't really relay any of her funny lines. I'd probably mess up the punch lines Suffice it to say, if you like Ellen, definitely give it a shot.  I had planned on listening to it on one of my long runs, but ended up getting a nasty cold thanks to Little Man, so just listened to it in the car and while doing laundry.  I have to say chores and errands are much more fun when you have a comedian talking to you.  

Beautiful Day by Elin Hilderbrand

I read Seating Arrangements by Maggie Shipsetad last year, and this was very similar but much better.

A family is gathering on Nantucket for a daughter's wedding.  Jenna is the bride to be.  Margot is her sister and matron of honor. They grew up in Connecticut and summered on Nantucket.  Mom died about 7 years before of cancer, and before she died wrote a notebook of guidelines for Jenna's wedding.  The Notebook becomes the Bible for the wedding, and Jenna carries it with her wherever she goes and follows it to the letter.  While I always got annoyed by mother's who try to control their daughter's weddings, this one works.  While some of her advice is outdated, most of it works well.  

Jenna's Dad, Doug, is a high profile divorce attorney who against his better judgement married one of his former clients after his wife died.  Margot, Jenna's sister, is divorced.  Stuart, the groom, is from North Carolina.  His Mom is a state senator.  The groom's family has marital issues of their own - Jim and Ann split for a while as he had an affair (and had a child with another woman - Helen) and then remarried.  There are the stereotypical hookups between bridesmaids and groomsmen.  

Despite all of Beth's tips there is a lot of drama before the wedding - nastiness due to step-relationships colliding and cold feet by the bride.

A lot of the side characters are fun as well - Roger the contractor turned wedding planner, Ellie - Margot's hoarding daughter who ends up playing a key part in the pre wedding chaos.

It was a fun read and I will definitely read more of her books.  Even though I lived in Massachusetts for 7 years I never once went to Nantucket so don't get most of the island references, but that's ok.  One mistake did notice though (as I live in Chicago now) that one of the characters grew up in Cabrini Green (which the author incorrectly says is on the South Side of Chicago). I guess most people think of the south side being the bad part of the city ( which it is) so she assumed that Cabrini is there too when it's really right next to the Gold Coast and at this point is getting gentrified.

The Camel Club by David Baldacci

I needed to read an ebook for our library summer reading club and I picked this one basically cause it was the first one that showed up that I had any interest in. I had never read anything by Baldacci but had seen his books in stores many times, so figured I'd give one a try.  I don't like ebooks but for the sake of the reading club I figured I'd give it another try.

The story starts with a murder in DC and a plot against the the President of the United States. The murder is seen by members of the Camel Club - 4 guys from different backgrounds who are all conspiracy theorists.  As is sometimes the case, sometimes the truth is so crazy it has to be true.  They are a motley crew - Oliver Stone (obviously a pseudonym) is the leader of the bunch.  He works as the caretaker of a cemetery but spends most of his time protesting in front of the White House.  The other members a former Viet Nam vet, a librarian in the archives of the Library of Congress, and a hacker with severe OCD who used to work in intelligence until his OCD got in the way of job performance. 

Alex Ford and Jackie Simpson are the Secret Service agents assigned to the case.   Alex is the veteran, Jackie is his relatively new partner who has Washington connections.  I'd say it was kind of Tom Clancy Light. Like Clancy there are lots of subplots that don't seem connected at first but of course all come together in the end.  I call it light because when explosives or nuclear submarines are described it's in a fairly brief paragraph not the usual pages and pages intricate details of Clancy.  

I wasn't all that happy with the ending.  While the what, who and how were explained, the why wasn't. I still don't understand the motive of the person behind the plot against the President.  Not sure if that's the fault of the author, the fact that I have a cold and my brain was a little foggy or the fact that I read it as an ebook.  If it were a regular book I would flip back through it and reread parts to try and make sense of it all, but that's harder to do with an ebook.  

I would be willing to try another book by this author at some point but I'm not in any hurry to do so.

Besides I just got a shipment from Amazon and based on recommendations from friends I've got a bunch of new books to read.  Now the trouble is deciding which one to read first.....

Rules of Civility by Amor Towles

Kate Kontent is a twentysomething living in Manhattan in 1937.  The story starts off on New Years Eve.  She is at a small jazz club with her roommate, Evelyn Ross, rather than the big fancy parties as they don't have a lot of money.  Shortly after they arrive a young man comes in looking very out of place.  He sits down next to them and after a while joins them at their table.  He is Tinker Grey - a young banker who they assume is the stereotypical banker with a wealthy prep school and Ivy League background.

Kate grew up in Brighton Beach (her family immigrated from Russia) and works in the secretary pool at a law firm.  Evelyn grew up in an affluent family in Indiana but once she arrives in New York wants to prove she can make it on her own and refuses any financial support from her parents. She works for a publishing company.

Both girls are attracted to him which causes some tension between the two, and Tinker seems confused by who he likes more.  They are both quickly welcomed into Tinker's social circles.  In the beginning it seems they are using Tinker and his friends to some of them to enjoy opportunities that are beyond her budget, but no one seems to mind.  Certainly there are snobs in the bunch but Kate does also end up making some friendships that surprise her.  Certain opportunities also become available to them through their connections.  

Evelyn and Tinker end up pairing up, and while it upsets Kate a little in the beginning she soon finds a boyfriend of her own - Wallace Wolcott.  Through Wallace and her other new friends, Kate gains confidence and gets a new job, that she enjoys and thrives at.  The book is very well-written and the characters enjoyable.  

I picked this book as part of my Summer Reading Club for our local library.  I had never heard of it before but was supposed to pick a book from one of their book club lists and picked this one cause it sounded interesting.  I thought it would be more fluff than it was.  While there certainly were plenty of gin-soaked parties there is more substance to the book than I had expected.  Kate starts the book as fairly timid and naive and somewhat dependent on Eve.  As she explores different parts of New York and takes her new affluent friends to some of her favorite places she matures and starts taking more responsibility for herself.  By the middle of the book she has a better job and soon after her own apartment.  

 

The Birth Order Book

I bought this book for my husband as he has always been fascinated by family dynamics.  He's an only child and his parents aren't very close to their siblings for various reasons and I think that is why.

He doesn't read often but really enjoyed this book.  He spent most of the time reading it psychoanalyzing the rest of us and after quoting and summarizing large sections insisted that I should read it too. Before I even started reading it, I knew our kids fit the stereotypes for their birth order.  While this book is not meant as a parenting book, it can certainly be read as one.  The author encourages you to find out the birth order of the people you are close with (either professionally or personally) arguing that knowing their birth order will help you understand why they are the way the are, and then can help you relate to them.  Obviously that works with parenting as well.

His tips for our little family of 5
1.  It's ok to treat each child differently.  What works for one may not work for the others.  Also just because one child gets something (in terms of material stuff or privileges doesn't all need to get the same)
2.  Make as much time as possible for one on one time with your children.
3.  The middle child often feels squeezed or neglected between the oldest (who is often an ambitious conscientious child) and the baby of the family (who gets attention due to probably needing more help.  The middle child often feels they can't measure up to older sibling but also gets frustrated that the younger sibling gets away with things they can't.  Tip number 2 is especially true of child #2.  They really crave they attention that the other siblings get, and I have been trying to do more for my Little Hugger.  She's a sweet loving little girl, and I know when she acts out it's because she feels ignored.
4. Treat the baby of the family the same way you treated the firstborn at that age.  Meaning, don't let them get away with things just because they are the baby.  Give them responsibilities that are age appropriate so the older ones don't feel they are doing all the work, but also to teach the youngest that he needs to help out too.
5.  Make sure to take time to read to the youngest.  Story time at bedtime was a nightly occurence with our firstborn, and fairly regular with our second.  Unfortunately nighttime routines take longer and we often skip bedtime stories to try to get everyone to bed on time.  When that happens I do make more of an effort to read to him in the daytime when his sisters are at school, and to their credit they often read to him in the car.

None of the above tips are earthshattering and I could probably have come up with them all myself, but sometimes it helps to get a reminder

It was an interesting read although I have to say that while most of the people I know fit their birth order type right on, I don't feel that there is a very accurate portrayal of the second born of a two child family - me.  I don't fit the regular baby mold, and am in many ways (but not all) a first born type even though I'm only 2 1/2 years younger than my sister.

In the Garden of Beasts by Erik Larson

I never made it through Devil in the White City so didn't have high hopes for this one.  Still since the book takes place in pre WWII Germany I figured I'd give it a try.  I've always been fascinated with that time frame, specifically Germany and wondered how Hitler was allowed to rise to power and while this book stops in 1937, it does help explain it.

This is a non-fiction book but reads like fiction.  Larson weaves the story based largely on accounts of the people who lived during this time - his main sources seemingly their personal diaries.  William Dodd is a history professor at the University of Chicago when he is offered the position of US ambassador to Germany in 1933.  He is an unlikely choice for many reasons and initially reluctant to go, as he sees the tension building in Germany with Hitler gaining power.  At the time Hitler is the Chancellor of Germany and there is still a President - Hindenburg - in power.  However, Hindenburg is elderly and ill, and is recuperating for much of the Hitler's early rise.  Jewish leaders and rabbis in the US had already received accounts of discrimination against the Jews, and some Jews were emigrating from Germany even in the early 1930s.

Despite all the tension, and hoping for an easy pre-retirement to work on his book Dodd decides to accept the offer.  He moves to Berlin with his wife, Mattie, and two grown children - Bill and Martha.  One funny thing about this book is that Dodd's wife is hardly ever mentioned.  I guess she was for the most part busy playing the non-interfering role of an ambassador's wife.  She plans dinner parties and occasionally they travel together but for the most part the book focuses on Dodd and Martha's experiences in Berlin.  Martha was a young recent divorcee and certainly enjoyed a fresh start in a new city.  While she knew the behavior that was expected of an ambassador's daughter, she ignored the rules and lived life on her own terms.  At first she sided with the Nazis being a young idealist not seeming to understand what all the fuss was about.  She was seduced by their uniforms and in some cases the men in the higher ranks.  She played the international field - along with the Germans, she also had a long lasting relationship with a young married Soviet diplomat and others.  While the State Department was certainly aware of her actions no one ever managed to rein her in.  I think both sides were hoping to gain information through her relationships.

The surprising part of this account to me was what was portrayed as the "Jewish problem" in the book.  Of course we all know the gruesome details of the Holocaust, but what surprised me was how long the Americans allowed the Germans to discriminate against the Jews as the US was also anti-Semitic.  Obviously the US did not go to the extremes that the Nazis eventually did, but Washington certainly was dominated by WASPs at the time, and Jews were not welcome in most circles.  During Dodd's first meeting with Hitler Dodd sympathizes with Hitler on the Jewish problem, but quickly learned that the problem was being dealt with in very different ways on opposite sides of the Atlantic.  To his credit, Dodd does his best to keep the State Department and FDR apprised of developments within Germany hoping to spur a US reaction, but much of it falls upon deaf ears for a variety of reasons.

I'm not sure that I can say that I enjoyed the book, given all I learned, but I do enjoy learning by reading.  Two different things.  Again, this read like a fictional work, and while I glossed over Martha's parts in the book, her experiences definitely made this book that much more real and enjoyable to me. There were times when I read of precursors to Hitler's rise to absolute power that I wanted to cry and needed to throw the book down and walk away, but I appreciate the details that were included in the hopes that they are not repeated.

About 6 months ago my 9 year old daughter started hearing bits and pieces about the Holocaust and ordered the Diary of Anne Frank through Scholastic Books.  I paid for it, but advised her that she should probably read it with us.  At the same time, her siblings are way too young to be having this read aloud to them.  I think I need to reread it, and then let her read it.  At the end of each night she could mark how far she got, so I can keep up with where she is and answer any questions she may have along the way.

Wedding Night by Sophie Kinsella

This is a fun comedy of errors.  Lottie's boyfriend, Richard, asks her to lunch at a nice restaurant because he has to ask her a question - she hears big question and assumes he's going to propose.  She is devastated to find out that his question was not a proposal but something much less interesting.  On top of that he is moving to San Francisco.

Lottie returns to her office to find a message from a guy named Ben.  The name doesn't ring any bells, but she returns the call.  Once she hears his voice she recognizes him as her gap year boyfriend who she hasn't spoken to in years. 

Once reunited they pick up pretty much where they left off and decide to get married, and go back to the Greek island where they met
.  Lottie's sister Fliss does everything she can to stop the wedding and every time she thinks she has the problem solved someone else steps in and messes it all up again.

As with most of Sophie Kinsella's books there aren't a whole lot of surprises when it comes to the ending but the plot twists along the way are fun.  Definitely a fun read.

The Winter Rose by Jennifer Donnelly

IThis is the second installment in Jennifer Donnelly's Tea Rose trilogy.  The first was mostly about Fiona Finnegan and she still plays a part in this one, but the focus of the book is on India Selwyn-Jones.  India is fresh out of medical school (a rarity for a woman in 1900).  She works with a male doctor who is very set in his old-fashioned ways.  India dreams of opening her own clinic to help the impoverished women and children of London.  India's parents are well off and would prefer she marry her ambitious fiance, Freddie Lytton and forget about the clinic.  He also feels that her career as a doctor would be a detriment to his career as an MP.  Freddie is ambitious and conniving and will stop at nothing to get what he wants - including murder and framing others for it.

Freddie's main opposition in Parliament is Joe Bristow - Fiona's husband.  Joe represents the working class area where he and Fiona grew up.  Fiona has two brothers Seamus and Charlie (aka Sid Malone). Seamus is adventurous and is always looking for new expeditions to join - traveling to Antarctica, or climbing mountains.

Sid Malone is a gangster who runs a large syndicate in Joe's district.  India meets Sid when tending to her patients and he helps her get some of the things she needs to help her patients.  While both try to fight their feelings they eventually become secret lovers.  

Fiona worries greatly about her brothers sometimes to the detriment of her relationship with her husband.  As with any good epic novel, there are many other story lines and characters and I definitely enjoyed this.  I even preferred to the Tea Rose and I don't think you have to read the first to enjoy this one.  I look forward to reading the third (and I think final) installment but am taking a break to try some other authors.

Dork Diaries - Tales of a Not-So-Popular Popstar

My daughters LOVE these books.  When the new one was recently released they begged me to buy it on the release day - lucky for them Costco had it.  Since they love them so much I figured I should I should read one and see what all the excitement was about. Also, technically my daughters are on the young side to read these books (9 and 7 years old) and I when I heard them talking about the main characters crush I figured I should see how far things went with this crush.  I asked them which one was their favorite and they agreed on this one.

Anyway, very quick read since it is written as a diary and includes lots of pictures.  Overall it was a lot of fun.  The main character - self proclaimed dork is Nikki.  She attends a private middle school in Westchester New York.  Her family is not well off, she attends the school because she got a scholarship - her Dad is the exterminator for the school.  She is terrified that anyone at the school will find out her secret including her two BFFs - Chloe and Zoey.  The main mean girl is Mackenzie who does anything and everything she can to humiliate Nikki.  To her credit Nikki does stand up for herself sometimes and fires some zingers right back at Mackenzie.  

There is a talent show happening at the school and the main prize is a scholarship to the school.  Nikki believes that she lost her scholarship due to a letter she got from the school canceling her Dad's contract and revoking her scholarship. She's terrified to tell her parents so is determined to win the scholarship instead.  After a few setbacks due to Mackenzie she gets a band together and they come up with a song that they are proud of.  

I can see why my daughters like these books. Aside from my kids using a few too many OMGs in their regular vocabulary, there was nothing inappropriate for them to read.  Also while Nikki is a self-proclaimed dork it's not something she's ashamed of.  She is who she is.  She knows she'll never be one of the CCPs (cute and cool people) but doesn't really seem to mind, which is a nice change.  So many other books for this age focus on wanting to/needing to be popular (or at least they did when I was in middle school - when I was admittedly a dorky bookworm who wished I was more popular)

Tall Pine Polka by Lorna Landvik

I read Angry Housewives Eating Bonbons ages ago and enjoyed it so when I saw this one at our library book fair I figured I'd give it a try.  Like the previous one it is set in Minnesota and includes a whole bunch of characters.  The main ones are Lee O'Leary - the owner of Cup O'Delight - the town coffeeshop and main hangout for the group of friends, Slim Knutson - a Vietnam war vet who works for Lee and suffers from PTSD, Fenny Ness - who works in one of the stores in town and seems content to stay in Tall Pine forever and Big Bill - who is half Hawaiian, half Native American and after being raised in Hawaii comes to Minnesota.

The main plot line is that a movie is going to be filmed in their small town of Tall Pine and when the writer, Christian Freed, is in town scouting locations he sees Fenny and ask her to do a screen test to be the leading lady.  After much debate she flys to LA for the test, and gets the job.  Because the movie is being made in such a small town, everyone ends up getting involved in some way or another, and they usually end up back at the Cup O'Delight to talk about it all.  

Along with the foursome mentioned above the regulars at the Cup O'Delight include an older lesbian couple - Miss Penk and Frau Katte (Miss Penk is the town's only black citizen and Frau Katte is from Switzerland), Mary Gore (who fancies herself a poet but doesn't have any talent and the rest of the bunch all make fun of her) Pete (the local shoemaker (who has a couple of sweet secrets).

Then there are the "Hollywood" characters - Harry Freed (the producer who spends most of the time in LA but is still an important part of the story), Christian Freed (the writer is trying very hard to make it big in Hollywood), Boyd Burch (the lead actor in the movie) Malcolm Edgely (the tyrannical director) and Grace Aisles (a supporting actress who becomes close friends with Fenny

It's a fun book with lots of great characters who are all very well developed.  No one really feels like a minor character cause you get to know them so well. 

While maybe not a traditional summer read (since it takes place mostly in the fall and winter of Minnesota) I would recommend it. As the author says in the interview in the back of my copy, "i prefer character-driven novels, especially when they take you on big, full rides" and she definitely delilvered that with this book 

The Keeper of Lost Causes

I read the Stieg Larsson books as I felt like I had to after all the hype. They were ok. Some parts were disturbing but I guess that's a testament to how well written they were.

A couple of weeks ago my cousin in Denmark recommended this author. The back of the book puts Adler-Olsen puts in the Nordic Noir category with Stieg Larsson. I didn't realize that was actually a subgenre of thrillers but I guess it is.

I figured if a Danish author was doing well internationally it was worth checking out. I read the book in English which in hindsight I shouldn't have. There were a few things that just didn't translate right. I knew what the author meant but a few subtle things definitely got lost in the translation. I'm not saying I could have done a better job, but if I read another book by him I should read it in Danish.

The book alternates between Carl Mørck and Merete Lynggard. Carl is a police detective who recently shot in the line of duty - his partner was seriously injured, another was killed and while Carl physically recovered, the department is not so sure of his mental state. He refuses to take a leave of absence so the powers that be relegate him to a basement office to handle cold cases from around the country. He knows they are trying to force him out, but in his passive aggressive way refuses to go. After twiddling his thumbs for a while, he decides to investigate the disappearance of a member of Parliament five years before - Merete Lynggard. Merete was heading down to Berlin with her brother and disappeared on the ferry. After a brief investigation it was assumed that she had fallen overboard and the case was dropped.

The truth is much worse. Merete has been captured and wakes up in a small dark room. She is given a bucket of food once a day but that's it. She has no idea who has captured her or why. She does her best to keep herself from losing her mind and strength as she has no idea how long she will be held. Some of the parts of her story are pretty disturbing.

The book goes back and forth between Carl trying to solve the case and flashbacks to the ordeal that Merete's story. Little by little we learn more about who has captured her and why.

Like Stieg Larsson it is well written which is what makes the story so disturbing. Carl is an abrasive character and not really one you sympathize with. He has a Syrian assistant, Assad, who's story I am interested in knowing more about.  Not sure that I would recommend this book unless you're a big fan of this genre.

We're heading to Denmark this summer so I may pick up the next one then.  In the meantime, I think it's time to get back to more uplifting reading.

Sisterhood of the Travelling Pants

I recently found this book at the children's book fair at our library. It was so popular when it came out I was intrigued for a while and also noticed friends of mine referencing it here and there even though we had all moved beyond YA lit. Still, a good book is a good book so I got it for myself and enjoyed it.

It's the story of four teenage girls who are best friends. Their Moms all met in a pregnancy aerobics class and they were all born in the same month. While their personalities are different and they don't all attend the same school their bond is very strong. The story is about the summer between freshman and sophomore year when they are all apart for the first time and for a long time. One of them buys a pair of thrift store jeans on a whim and they realize that they all look good in the jeans despite different body types (just suspend your disbelief about that part and go with it). They send the jeans from person to person throughout the summer using them as strength when they need the support of their friends.

It's such a quick read I'm not going to summarize the four girls stories, but it got me thinking about girls friendships. What is it with the foursome? By 7th grade I was part of a foursome, although I had another BFF at a different school who wasn't friends with the other 3. In 11th grade we moved across the Atlantic and I found a new foursome, but my old one fell apart. Even though I was the quiet wishy-washy one, I had been the glue. 3 of us are still close, the fourth has faded away.

I'm still Facebook friends with my European foursome but contact is rare since we live so far apart. In my local day to day, I don't have a foursome or even a local call them about anything kind of friend :(

Sex and the City was about 4 women, the yayas are a foursome. Telling my daughters about the book (because they wondered why I bought a book for me at the kids book fair) Little Reader realized that she was part of a foursome of which she is also the glue. Little Hugger (in 1st grade) is in a threesome, but as my husband and I joked they are interviewing for a fourth.

All this got me wondering why girls are in foursomes. I asked my husband about guy relationships and while guys have lots of friends the real close ones are always one on one in his mind. His theory of the foursome is that girls like to talk and over analyze, and if there are two it's not very interesting. If there are three, there are always two talking about/siding against the third so that doesn't work. I pretty much agree on that one. Four is good as you have lots of options - different pairings, or if there is a threesome get together one night, the lone one out doesn't feel bad as the tables will be turned another time. Not bad analysis I must say. I don't agree with all of it, but some I do. I don't remember us gossiping about the others in their absence, we gossiped about those outside our group.

Still I'm looking for my adult foursome. I live in a town with lots of people who grew up together so it can be hard to break in to the cliques. I have friends but it's hard to find new friends at 39 especially as an introvert. I've been trying to make girls' nights out more of a priority, and reaching out more to other Moms who seem good fits. Part of the problem is that since I met my husband when I was 18 and never dated after that, and finding new friends isn't that different from dating. Again as much as I know a lot of women hate jewelry parties, part of the reason I am having my Lia Sophia party is to try and get a chance to connect with more people. Even if they don't come to the party, at least I will have reached out and made the first move.