BEACHGAL I think Running With Scissors is enjoyable so far. Even though it says memoir on the cover...I have a hard time believing it to be all true. I plan to read a big chunk of it tonight...I'll let you know if my thoughts change

OHMIGOSH!! This book (The Tale of Genji) is going take SOOOOO long to read!! I officially got into it Saturday night and have only read through page 25! It's so weird! I've never really read a book that I couldn't just zoom through. I think the biggest hindrances are the footnotes. There's an average of five per page and most of them are a full sentence or definition. All I've got to say is; this book better be good!!!

Kim, isn't that so frustrating! I always feel like I need to read every footnote and it distracts from the flow of reading, so it takes forever. Hope you get into the swing of it soon or it starts feeling like it's worth the effort!

Thanks for the wonderful recommendation, Jessie. I've added Annie Freeman... to my list of books to read. Sounds like such fun...as do all the books you read! Good for you on being able to read other political view points. I tend to get all fired up and upset when I read views that are drastically different than mine. I'm not sure what my nickname is on Paperback...I log in with my e-mail. I'll try finding you instead...okay?

Anna, let me know what you think of Running... I'm interested.

I loved Running with Scissors! I can believe the author wrote about (I use to be a psych nurse and can envision the craziness). I ended up picking up his next book Dry which is on my list to read next.

~Robin

Had to bump this up to say I finished The Birth of Venus yesterday and I absolutely loved it! Definitely enchanting. I started Scent to Her Grave by India Ink, which is a cozy mystery--a good light read before I dive into Jodi Picoult!

Jessie, I'm so glad you enjoyed the Birth of Venus as much as I did! I'm jealous of the fun reading you're doing...I'm feeling guilty about all the books I've started and not finished, but they are all nonfiction and part of me just wants to read some 'guilty pleasure' books...but the nonfiction are mostly from the library, so I feel committed to finishing them first. Sigh! Guess they're right...so many books, so little time!

Ciaran, I can believe that it could be true, but if it was, I'm not so interested in reading it. I don't know if that makes sense. There's just so much sadness and mental illness in the world today...I don't think I can handle reading about more unless I think it's just fiction. I think I'm into escapism as of late...

I finished Mountains Beyond Mountains for my book group. It's fantastic! About halfway through, I had to take a little break and I read some magazines for a little bit. But it was really amazing and the hardest part was that it ended in the middle of the story...I have to take the time to do some research and see what Dr. Paul has been doing since the book came out in 2003. I'm looking forward to discussing it with the book group. We're going to pick a couple of books for our next couple meetings and I'm going with a huge list of ideas.

Now I'm reading Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Cafe. I saw the movie back when it came out, or shortly thereafter, but never read the book. Now I've heard that there's a lot in the book that wasn't shown in the movie, so I'm reading it. Interesting book...funny and quirky with lots of flavor. There's a quote on the back that says, "If Idgie Threadgoode were around at the right time, I do believe Huckleberry Finn would have tried to marry her!" I think that's a great way to describe her character...she's crazy and wild and wonderful.

Hi I just finished a book called Uglies By scott Westerfeld Its a YA book I have been working on my own YA piece and like to see peoples styles its about a future world where at 16 everyone has extreme plastic surgery to make themselves pretty. It was a pretty amazing look at People (not even just teens) and Body Image I'm hoping to read the other 2 books in the trilogy!
Kier

I just finished 4 books since I was on vacation, and am about to start a 5th that my brother recommended to me....

I read Roses are Red and Hide and Seek by James Patterson.

Also read Octopus Alibi and Gumbo Limbo by Tom Corcoran. Soon2B, as much as you loved Key West, you really should read his books. Start with Gumbo Limbo, then Bone Island Mambo, then Octopus Alibi. There are two others that I haven't read yet, one being his newest and one other that fits in there somewhere. They're mysteries based in Key West and the main character, Alex Rutledge, talks about where he lives, goes to eat (Turtle Kraals,) meets friends for drinks (Sloppy Joe's,) etc. They're really cool books if you want to get to know a little more about Key West and the culture down there, as well as be entertained by suspenseful mysteries.

The one my brother recommended was 23 Minutes in **** by Bill Wiese. It's supposedly a true story about a Christian man who was dropped into **** for 23 minutes and then after speaking with God, returned to earth to get the message out about ****, what it's like, how scary it is, etc. The author includes Scripture to back up the things he saw. It sounded really interesting and my brother and mom really enjoyed it. I need to get it from my mom.

Wow, Weezle, you are widely read, which is so cool! Let me know about the 23 mins book...sounds fascinating. Though I can't help but wonder...why 23 minutes? Why not 22 or 24?

Kier, that book sounds awesome! I'd love to check it out. Have you read Star Girl? That's one of my favorite YA books for girls.

Beachgal, as soon as I read it, I'll let you know how it goes... I don't know why it was only 23 minutes. Maybe God tells him and it's explained in the book. Apparently it felt like days but when he ended up back home, only 23 minutes had gone by. I guess it really freaked out Mom and Ryan. I'm excited to read it.

Will definitely let you know!

Sounds a little frightening. And strange. How does one get dropped into ****? Anyway!

I just finished Scent to Her Grave by India Ink, a cute little cozy mystery. I found the characters realistic and entertaining. A good, short read.

Now I am reading She's All That by Kristin Billerbeck. She writes Christian chicklit. This is the first in her SpaGirls series. I can't put it down! Love her writing.

Yes, I am a reading addict. It took me 2 days to devour She's All That. I love Kristin Billerbeck. Then I jumped into Plain Truth by Jodi Picoult and all I want to do is stay home and read it. I tend to be like that with her books...I just can't stop reading! I knew better than to bring it to work because I might just ignore work and read instead...

Hope everyone had a lovely weekend.

I've done a lot of reading in the last 10 days.

The Red Tent by Anita Diamant

S is for Silence by Sue Grafton- I thoroughly enjoyed this. It had been enough time since I read whatever R was, or else this one really is a little better, fresher than the rest.

Those Who Save Us by Jenna Blum.-The narrative alternates between the present-day story of Trudy, a history professor at a Minneapolis university collecting oral histories of WWII survivors (both German and Jewish), and that of her aged but once beautiful German mother, Anna, who left her country when she married an American soldier.

It's a Girl: Women Writers on Raising Daughters by Andrea Buchanan -
A good book to read while waiting 5 minutes here, 5 minutes there.
And it made me think about what I had hoped for in a daughter before I ever was even pregnant: I hoped I would have a daughter who would be strong, and independent, and assertive. One who would question authority. One who would speak out. My daughter is just the kind of daughter I'd hoped to have. I haven't been thinking about it in this way in the past months (years) that we have had clashes.

Snow Flower and the Secret Fan by Lisa See -
follows 2 close women friends and their families in 19th century China. Very very good. I wish her other books were similar - I'd love to read more - but it looks like her others are mysteries set in present day China.

Thanks, Weezle, definitely let me know. I'll tell you this...23 minutes would be 23 minutes too many IMHO!

Jessie, I how you devour books! I have been reading so many big books lately that I haven't had the ability to speed through them like I like. Too much nonfiction, I tell ya! Your choices sound delicious. Isn't Plain Truth just AMAZING?????? It made me absolutely ravenous for more books about the Amish. There are a ton of great Christian fiction books about the Amish...I especially love those by Beverly Lewis. The Postcard and the sequel to it were my favorites.

WOW, rebel, you have read a lot of great books lately!!! Thank you SO much for the reviews...I added several to my "want to read" list. I adore Sue Grafton and got off of reading her when I caught up with the newest book and had to wait for it to be available at the library. I'm not sure now where I stopped...better go online and find the synopsis. She's a great writer!

I finished Mountains Beyond Mountains by Tracy Kidder and it was an amazing read. Our book club met on Monday and we all liked it a lot, though for different reasons. I was interested that so many of us enjoyed it...usually at least one of us doesn't.

I was really in the mood for some 'mind candy' and found a brand new romance at the library by a favorite author of mine, Betina Krahn, called The Book of True Desires. It was a bit fantastical, but I really enjoyed it. The story is about a treasure-hunting adventuress in the 1800s. She's the unknown granddaughter of a tycoon and convinces him to give her money for an expedition, but only if she goes on a 'little errand' for him first which requires plunging into the Mexican jungle with his 'butler' (who turns out to be a hunk as well as a scientist and chemist paying back a debt with service) to locate a Mayan ruin. It was full of action, adventure, and romance.

Now I'm not sure what I'll start next... Son of a Witch just came in to the library but I also have Nigel Nicholson's books on Virginia Woolf and on his mother and father (Portrait of a Marriage). I loved the movie version of the latter book and have been wondering if there was more to it. His mother and Virginia Woolf were lovers, so I'm wondering if his biography will be especially accurate. Interesting! So many books, so little time...and that doesn't even include the magazines...or You: The Owner's Manual which I'm still wading through and loving. I need to make a career of reading...or something!

Hehe. Laurie, my career is reading but sadly not sitting at home reading novels and memoirs as I would like to do.

I've been sick and so, of course, reading a lot! Finished Plain Truth. I was slightly disappointed that I had kind of guessed the ending (who did it, not the trial verdict). I love to read about the Amish--have read several Beverly Lewis but not The Postcard series.

Then I read a little Love Inspired romance called Journey to Forever by Carol Steward, I think her name was. They are short and fun for a breather. Now I'm finally getting around to reading Snow Flower and the Secret Fan, which is supposed to be phenomenal and extremely sad! I'll keep you updated!