The Moonstone by Wilkie Collins

from goodreads

5 stars

My mom is an avid reader. When I think back to my childhood I remember her always reading. Usually Robert Ludlum or Anne McCaffrey. Our house was an old farm house and in one of the rooms my mom put ceiling to floor shelving that covered the whole width of the walls. That room was "the library". I mostly paid attention to the books that were in the kids section. But, every now and again I would look at the adult books and dream that some day I would be like my mom and read all these book. I imagined what the stories were about. I had my favourite covers. These books became friends even though I hadn't cracked the spine. The Moonstone was one of those books that I couldn't wait to grow up and read. I thought it was about actual moonstone rocks and not a diamond called the moonstone (I grew up in the mineral capital of Canada and I had moonstone outcroppings just down the road), and I thought it was a mystical fairy thing and not a english countryside mystery, but, that is a minor detail.

Synopsis

The moonstone is a sacred rock in India. There is a curse on it that anyone who takes it from its home will have nothing but hardships and sadness. During a british siege an officer, John Herncastle, killed the diamond's guards and took the stone. Returning to England he lead a secluded life, and was nervous about his own gruesome demise. He did die, and left the diamond to his niece, to be given to her on her 18th birthday. The rest of the book are the events that unfold once she has the diamond.

My Thoughts

I simply loved this book. There were so many twists and turns I wasn't sure who the culprit was. I thought I had it figured out and then something happened that made my hypothesis completely wrong. This happened two or three times. There middle section did drag on bit, but on the whole it was an exciting and surprisingly quick read, considering the print was so small and it was published in the mid 19th century (not a time period usually known for its fluff literature). I didn't have to reread sentences to make sure I understood what it meant, like I sometimes have to do with other authors of this era.

The characters were very well developed. I loved the butler Betteredge. He thought that all the answers in life could be found by reading Robinson Crusoe. If something perplexed him he would open Robinson Crusoe and find a passage that would either put him at ease or give him a notion of what to do.

T.S. Eliot had it right when he said The Moonstone was "the best of modern English detective novels." It was one of the first of its kind. Which I think, makes it even more remarkable.

I look forward to reading more by Wilkie Collins. Hopefully his other books leave me as satisfied as I felt after reading this one.

Winter's gift by Jane Monroe Donovan

from goodreads

4 stars

This as been a long and cold winter. And, just as you think it is warming up, another cold snap happens. Winter just won't let up. Oh well! At least the sun is out today and the sky is blue. I can laze on my couch in the sun this afternoon drinking a warm herbal tea and reading. I definitely don't mind that part of winter.

Synopsis

The events in this book take place on Christmas eve. There are two story lines. The first is of a recently widowed old man going about his life and reminiscing of his wife. The second is of a wild mare who has lost her way from her herd and is stuck in the snow. When the two story lines meet the horse is saved and is and the man has a new found hope for his future and perhaps in a small way, misses his wife a little bit less keenly.

My Thoughts

I loved the illustrations in this book. They were very realistic. I sort of want them in a calendar they are  so beautiful. When you look at them you feel the cold air of winter, but you also feel the warmth of inside. They were simply wonderful.

As for the story, it wasn't too bad either. Once again the story was real. There were now flowery words or dumbing down of events. You got to understand how much this man pined for the love of his life. How much she meant to him and how sad he was that she was gone. It is kind of nice for kids to see. That those kind of deep connections still exist in this world where a lot of times marital relationships are taken for granted and dissolved so often. It was nice to see that once the man helped the horse and saw the foal that he felt hope again for his life of tomorrows. It is nice to show kids that even when we are sad, or things aren't exactly how we would like them, there is always a hope for a brighter tomorrow. That things will look up and there is always something to keep us going.

I found the ending kind of abrupt. One minute it is winter time in a barn, you turn the page and suddenly it is spring, with no other explanation. Perhaps none is needed but I just found the change a bit sudden and felt a bit hanging. The book did feel as complete as it could of been. But that could just be me.

Looking for Alaska by John Green

from goodreads

3 stars

Here is a secret pet peeve of mine. I am not even sure I have shared this with my husband. I hate when I see the name John spelled with out the "H". I mean what is this, Jon. Grossarama (that is my new word, what do you think?) I think John looks so much more distinguished and polished. Now, I'm sure that there are plenty of Jon's out there who are very nice fellows indeed. I just need to make sure I never see them spell their name, or I will never think highly of them again, or at least I will never think of them without being a little squirmy on the inside. So, a big thank you to John Green's parents for putting the "H" in there. It is much appreciated.

Synopsis

Miles "Pudge" leaves his boring life in Florida to go to boarding school at Culver Creek in Alabama, in hopes to experience the great perhaps. There he makes good friends for the first time in his life and is attracted to a girl named Alaska. After a tragic accident Pudge and his friends discover how to navigate life and discover its meaning.

My Thoughts

This is a really well written book. There are no gaps in the story and the characters are fairly well developed. It is superbly captures teen life. It sort of reminds me of the movie 16 Candles or Ferris Bueller's Day Off, in the way that the dialogue is written. Fast paced and witty.

I like that the chapter headings are X many days before and then X many days after. You get the sense of things leading up to something and then ebbing away.

So after those two paragraphs you are probably wondering why I gave it a 3. Well, this book just didn't hold my interest all that much. I think it is one of those books where if I read it as a teenager, or perhaps after a tragedy in my life, I might have related more to the characters and enjoyed it more. The characters were such that I didn't really care about them or their story really. I also didn't like all the smoking, alcohol abuse and randomly thrown in swearing. Perhaps I am becoming too much of a square, but the whole time I'm like "hello, lungs and livers are good things to keep healthy. Smoking and drinking do not make you cool and mature".

I found this book really hard to give a rating because it is very masterfully crafted and thought out, yet, it just didn't hold my interest. I think your teenager would like it though. The subject might peak their interest more than it did mine.

Stick Man by Julia Donaldson illustrated by Axel Scheffler

from goodreads

4.5 stars

I don't know about your kids, but mine love picking up sticks. My middle one especially. We could be in the middle of a parking lot, no trees around, and yet, she can find a stick to pick up. Unbelievable. The basket under the stroller gets full of these treasures and our doorway is like a tree graveyard it is so full of sticks. (I make them leave the sticks and leaves and rocks outside. I have too much junk inside as it is!) This book made me wonder if we have unknowingly picked up any stick men and carried them far from their home.

Synopsis

Stick Man has a great life living with his lady love and his three children. One day while out for a run (kudos to Stick Man for having a healthy lifestyle) a dog gets him and wants to play fetch. From that point on Stick Man moves from one person to another getting farther and farther from his home.

My Thoughts

I loved the Gruffalo, also from this duo, and I love this book. Even though it is technically a Christmas book you could read this all year long. It really doesn't have much to do with Christmas at all.

The way the book rhymed and the rhythm in which it was read was very enjoyable. The pictures were so cool. You felt you were really with Stick Man as he was being made into a nest, or being tossed in a game of fetch.

I really liked how creative the author was with what she had Stick Man become. They were all believable and it exactly what kids might use it for. To children sticks can become anything. Donaldson captured that so well.

The think that bothered me about the book was not knowing what his lady love was doing and thinking the whole time he was gone. Was she worried or sad? What she having a party because she was glad he was gone? You get a little glimpse at the very end, but it would have been nice to have an inkling of what was going on with her. Like he was gone for months and months. Was she looking for him? Did she file a missing stick report? But, that is an adult perspective on a children's book. For the actually kids, they just loved the story and didn't worry about the other stuff.

I think you will love this book and your children will love this book. At my library it was filed under their Christmas section, so you may have to wait until the next Christmas season for it to be accessible. It is definitely worth the wait.

It's Like This, Cat by Emily Neville

from goodreads

3 stars

I am a firm believer in holding a book in your hands and manually turning the pages and experiencing the full joy of an actual real book. That being said, having an e-reader has its place. Like, if you are going on vacation, or you travel a lot for work. In order to read this book for my book club I read it online. Project Gutenberg is a site that has over 42 000 books that you can download. You can also just read it online. That is super cool. Libraries can only hold so many volumes and copies so this is a great way to read hard to find books. And it's free! Can it get any better? I also found this book here. Google is truly amazing.

Synopsis

It's the 60s and Dave Mitchell is fourteen and living in Manhattan. He is discovering the changes that occurs in relationships with parents, friends and girls. He meets some pretty interesting people all because of his cat named Cat.

My Thoughts

Even though this is a Newberry Award winner, it is not what you would typically expect from a Newberry Award winner. Usually Newberry's make you think and questions things. It rubs people the wrong way and usually has rich language and storytelling. This book is very straight forward and simple. There are no grand descriptions or life changing revelations. Yet, it seems to work. You truly believe that it is a 14 year old boy narrating.

I found it to be a bit disjoined and found some of the characters were flat. It would have been nice to see a bit more of the actual family dynamics and understand Dave's father more. You sort of get hints and whispers, but nothing concrete. Was his dad decent or not. It is hard to tell.

I don't think it is one of those life altering books, like the Giver. Though, a reader can take comfort in the ordinariness of Dave's life. He lead a ordinary life just like most people. We can identify with misunderstanding parents, hard friendships, how to handle the opposite sex.

I think this a book that would be best appreciated if you were a teen in the 60s. You would understand more about life at that time. It was a more simple time in a lot of ways and this book reflects that.

So to me, It's like This, Cat, was a meh book. There really wasn't that much to get excited about, but it wasn't so bland that you couldn't read it.

The Tail of Little Skunk by Marsha Diane Arnold Illustrated by Michael Terry

from goodreads

4 stars

This post is a bit late going up today. It is Olympic fever here and I had to watch what some of the Canadian Athletes were doing! Slope style skiing, is quite the sport. I love the Olympics. And, for the record, I do cheer for other countries from time to time, much to the chagrin of my husband.

Synopsis

Little Skunk lives at the bottom of a mountain. A big scary bear lives at the top of the mountain. Little Skunk asks other animals what they do if they see the bear, as he wants to protect himself. Will Little Skunk find his own protection within?

My Thoughts

Literacy, especially literacy in my children, is very important. I want them to succeed so it is great that they have these learning to read books that have bigger print and simple words. That being said, most of them are so horribly written or have no real story that it is quite painful as the adult listener. I know most of these books are about movies or t.v. shows that kids like, but come on, please have the books be mildly interesting. I am not looking for Newberry Award work here but seriously.

This book was a very pleasant surprise. There was actually a real story. The story didn't have any logic gaps or missing detail. It was just a really nice story that an adult could actually stand. And the kids can read it too!

I like the use of different woodland animals. Often a bluejay isn't a character in a book. So the variety of animals, especially one's not often used in typical woodland set books was nice.

I love how proud the skunk looked at the end when he found out what his secret weapon was. I don't know what it is but I love skunks. They make me smile.

So please look for this book in the stack of other "step into reading books"that will be at your local library. This one is actually a joy to have your kids read to you and not a painful torture. (Seriously, if my kids bring home one more scooby doo or princess book I will go crazy, they are so bad.)

Happy Olympics! Catch some reading in during the commercials, or during the boring hockey games.

Susannah's Garden by Debbie Macomber

from goodreads

3 stars

When I think of Debbie Macomber, I think of a warm summers day lazing on the beach, the sun starting to set. Pure and utter relaxation. You don't have to think much, you can just read the story and know that there is going to be a happy ending. Sometimes it is nice just to have a happy ending story.

Synopsis

Susannah is back in her hometown. Her mother has been moved into a nursing home leaving Susannah to pack up the house. Susannah has also been dreaming about her high school boyfriend and wondering what his life is like. As she goes through her parents things she gets more questions than answers. Susannah has to decide if the risks outweigh the benefits of knowing the all the answers.

My Thoughts

I found this book to be well written and very readable. Macomber seems to understand human emotions and how we all feel at one time or another. I found there was enough detail you understood the situation but was not so detailed you felt bogged down. While reading this book it made me want to visit Washington state. I love the landscape there and would love to hike through the forests.

As for the actual characters themselves, well, I did not find Susannah or her daughter Chrissie all that likeable. I felt that they were both immature and frankly, a bit whinny. I felt that Susannah came across to be younger than what she was. I think she was supposed to be in her late forties early fifties. To me she came across as being more in her thirties. The lack of trust Susannah had in her husband, whom she supposedly loved and thought was the best, was a bit disturbing. If the story teaches you anything it is trust your partner, they are probably more understanding than you give them credit for.

As for her daughter Chrissie, she was self-absorbed and ridiculous. She kept on saying that her parents couldn't tell her what to do because she was an adult now. Well if you are such an adult, get a job, stop thinking your parents are going to pay for everything, be a bit grateful and get over yourself!

I did like some of the secondary characters. They were pretty cool, and Susannah's husband. What a stand up guy, considering all the craziness he has to put up with.

So to me this was a fluff book. I have read a few other Macomber books, main characters were a bit more likeable, and they were all lighthearted and just fine. These are basically books that will make you feel good and makes you think about your relationships a little, but are definitely not intellectually stimulating.

The Princess and the Peas by Caryl Hart Illustrated by Sarah Warburton

from goodreads

4 stars

This is another pink spined wonder. My four year old loves this book and brings it home from the library over and over and over again. Luckily, I don't mind reading it.

Synopsis

Lily-Rose May was always a wonderful good natured child. Then one day her father gave her peas to eat. She refused. Even after her dad did everything he could to hide the peas, she would not eat them as they made her sick. Her father called the doctor her gave the diagnosis of being a princess. Lily-Rose May was then shipped off to the castle to become a princess.

My Thoughts

This was a great book. The pictures were fun. The story was fun. And it helps kids learn that foods are great and that there is always some sort of sauce or dip or something they can put on foods to make them more palatable.

I loved how the Doctors diagnosis was that Lily-Rose May was a princess. That was awesome. I also liked what made Lily-Rose May have a change of heart towards the peas.

I found this book clever and engaging and quite simply a delight.