Posted on February 8, 2010 by Nari
Dream Life by Lauren Mechling
Age Group: Teens
****Spoilers****
Dream Life is the sequel to Lauren Mechling’s cute teenage supernatural mystery saga of Claire Voyante. After having saved the lives of her newest best friend and family, Claire and Becca formed a very strong bond. After a summer apart, Claire is a little bummed when Becca rekindles friendships with girls from her former school. To makes things worse, Claire sort-of boyfriend, Andy, breaks up with her early in the book, blaming school and distractions as the main reason. Although disappointed, Claire soon finds out the truth behind Becca’s trysts with her friends from her former high school and is soon sucked into a world of secret societies and conspiracies added onto the daily dose of normal high school drama.
Although I didn’t fall in love with the first title, I really enjoyed this sequel to Dream Girl. I thought it had a lot of good messages and themes of honesty, and friendship. Claire did rely on her charmed necklace to help her solve most f the novel’s mysteries, as she did in the first book, but she did use more of her own instincts and abilities in place of the necklace. It showed how much she changed and matured from the first book. One thing I hate about series is that the characters never develop or grow as the series progress (ie…Gossip Girl). I particularly liked Claire’s decision at the end of the book in regards to the secret society. I thought it was a very mature and well thought out decision. Claire makes a great role model for teenage girls. She’s a good mix of clever, funny and normal without seeming cliche or over the top. I think a lot of girls reading this series will connect with her over any of the other characters.
Dream Life
Lauren Mechling
Delacorte Press, 2010
ISBN 978-0-385-735230
325 pages
Review copy
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Posted on January 28, 2010 by Nari
Storm Front by Jim Butcher
Age: Adult
Strom Front by Jim Butcher is the first book of the popular series known as the Dresden Files. By day, and by night, Harry Dresden is a private investigator in Chicago, always on the hunt for supernatural activity.
Business has been slow for Harry. That is until the Chicago PD calls him in as a consultant for a grisly double murder. Once at the crime scene, Harry realizes that black magic was used and where there is black magic, there is trouble. Throw in a hardened mafia boss, a sexy journalist and a magic panel eager to see Harry suffer, and you have one crazy, mixed up supernatural mystery case.
Although a bit cliche, I found the book to be pretty entertaining. Butcher did a great job with the plot, the story getting more detailed and intricate with each chapter. The characters are well thought-out and hilarious . Harry Dresden is a likable character despite his sharp wit, and bad reputation. This book was a book club pick January and almost all the girls in the club enjoyed it. We even watched the first episode of the Dresden Files that aired on the SyFy channel a while ago. As much as I thought this book was corny, the TV show was much worse! Total cheese-fest.
I think I may have liked this book more if I didn’t feel overdosed on the supernatural theme already. Her Fearful Symmetry was sort of the last I could take of eery, and mystical happenings. I’m in the mind for something new…or something more classic.
Storm Front
by Jim Butcher
Penguin, 2000
ISBN 9780451457813
322 pages
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Filed under: Books | Tagged: Book review, Dresden Files, Harry Dresden, Jim Butcher, Storm Front | 1 Comment »
Posted on January 25, 2010 by Nari
Up in the Air by Walter Kirn
Age: Adult Fiction
I went to see the movie Up in the Air about a few months ago, and instantly fell in love with the story, the theme and the characters of the movie. Having learned that it was based on a book by Walter Kirn, I put a hold on the book as soon as possible and started reading it.
The book Up in the Air, differs incredibly from the movie. Although there is a still a melancholy tone, a theme of unfinished business and unrequited love, the actual story told about Ryan Bingham is different. In the movie, Ryan’s job is to announce lay-offs to employees of major companie and provide those employees with advice to help them with their transition from having a job to being jobless. In the book, this is still Ryan’s job, but it is not the focus of the book. In fact, the focus is on Ryan having turned in his 2 week notice, his attempts to meet with his publisher about his self-help book, and about his desire to work for Mythtech. The story of the book spans only a week. During this week of travel, Ryan is still earning points, hoping to achieve 1million frequent flier points before his last day at CIC. In this week, we are introduced to Airworld. A work in flight, in motion and with little to no baggage involved. The people in Ryan’s life are fleeting and unreliable, but then again, so is he.
Overall, I found this book to be an wonderful breath of fresh air for all the chick-driven literature I’ve been reading lately. This book was told by a man, for men, and that was an awesome thought process to experience. Kirn’s short and choppy sentences demonstrate just how fast-paced Ryan’s life is. He supplements the dull moments with philosophical quips about human behaviour and interactions based on Ryan’s methods of handling different situations and via his conversations with fellow passengers on the plane.
My only regret is that I did not give this book the time that it needed. I kept putting off reading the last third because I had to read my book club books first. By the time I was able to return to Kirn’s fictional Airworld, I had lost my connection to the book and sort of rushed through the end. I think if I hadn’t taken such a long break, the book would have had a more powerful effect on me.
Up in the Air
Walter Kirn
Doubleday, 2001
ISBN 9780385497107
303 pages
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Posted on January 12, 2010 by Nari
TEASER TUESDAYS asks you to:
# Grab your current read.
# Let the book fall open to a random page.
# Share with us two (2) “teaser” sentences from that page somewhere between lines 7 and 12.
# You also need to share the title of the book that you’re getting your “teaser” from … that way people can have some great book recommendations if they like the teaser you’ve given! # Please avoid spoilers!
My Two Teasers:
Dammit. I was going to have to do that research after all. Maybe it would turn up something helpful, some kind of clue to help lead me and the police to the murderer.
From Storm Front: Book 1 of The Dresden Files by Jim Butcher
Filed under: Books | Tagged: Dresden Files, Jim Butcher, Storm Front, Teaser Tuesday | 5 Comments »
Posted on January 6, 2010 by Nari
So, I lied in my 2009 recap post about not joining anymore challenges. I came across the OATES challenge on Trish’s blog, and figured I could at least do this one…it is only 5 books, and goes from January 1st to December 31st.
So, each letter in OATES stands for a literary author’s name, we can pick up to 5 authors.
These are my picks:
O – Flannery O’Conner
A – Jane Austen (Persuasion, the only Austen book I haven’t read)
T – Leo Tolstoy (Anna Karenina is on my book club list for February)
E – Edith Wharton
S – J.D. Salinger
The official rules
- The challenge goes from January 1, 2010 through December 31, 2010.
- Anyone can participate! You do not need a blog!
- Challenge books can overlap with other challenges.
- You do not need to pick your books in advance.
- You can change levels mid-challenge!
- Levels:
- Instant OATES – 1 book
- Old Fashioned OATES – 2 books
- Rolled OATES – 3 books
- Steel Cut OATES – 4 books
- Whole OATES – 5+ books
Sign up at Trish’s blog: Hey Lady Watcha’ Reading Here
Filed under: Books | Tagged: OATES challenge, reading | 2 Comments »
Posted on January 5, 2010 by Nari
Her Fearful Symmetry by Audrey Niffenegger
Age: 16+ years old
Twins Eslpeth and Edwina live separate lives, one in London and the other in Chicago. Neither sister has spoken for over a decade until Eslpeth becomes diagnosed with cancer and soon starts correspondence with her long lost twin. After her death, she wills her second floor flat in London to her nieces, twins Julia and Valentina. In her will she states that they must live in the flat for one year before deciding if they want to sell it. What Eslpeth had not accounted for, was that her spirit would return from the grave to haunt the flat, the girls, changing their lives.
To be honest, I found this book to be really dull. I thought Eslpeth made for an incredibly boring ghost, the twins were annoying and there weren’t any likable characters other than Martin (and I wish we learned more about Martin). There was a big rift between the elder twins that caused them to not talk for over a decade, but by the time you found out what that secret was, it didn’t effect the plot at all and seemed to be a let down. One of the girls from my book club compared this book to Breaking Dawn: so much build up for nothing. I wouldn’t go that far. Audrey Niffenegger is still incredibly more talented as a thinker, creator and writer than Stephanie Meyer. The ending of HFS felt rushed, and I was mad that it ended just as it got interesting. The ending was predictable (I guessed what would transpire between Eslpeth and Valentia halfway through the book).
What I did like:
I love Niffenegger’s descriptions and characters. Although they weren’t likable, they were fully formed and had their own personalities and histories. I loved that she used British slang and colloquialisms in her writing and I loved learning about Highgate cemetery and its history. I will not compare this book to Time Traveler’s Wife, because they are completely different and one should not be judged based on the other. I love her emphasis on character development and seeing how Martin and Valentina progressed and grew stronger while the initially stronger characters (Julia and Marijke) grew weaker. It was an interesting dynamic.
Overall, I was disappointed with the book. It wasn’t creepy and it wasn’t very original. It had many elements that I have seen in countless ghost movies and read in other ghost stories.
Her Fearful Symmetry
by Audrey Niffenegger
Scribner Books, 2009
ISBN 9781439165393
404 pages
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Filed under: Adult Fiction, Books | Tagged: Audrey Niffenegger, Book review, ghost story, Her Fearful Symmetry | 2 Comments »
Posted on January 4, 2010 by Nari
I read a total of 76 books in 2009, most of which ended up being YA or Juvenile books. A good chunk were nonfiction, although I didn’t even finish the challenge I started (The Dewey Decimal Challenge). Congratulations to everyone who participated and did complete the challenge. I, apparently, am not good with challenges and will therefore refrain from starting or joining any other challenges, ever.
The final breakdown:
Read more »
Filed under: Books | Tagged: 2009, Books | 4 Comments »
Posted on December 29, 2009 by Nari
TEASER TUESDAYS asks you to:
# Grab your current read.
# Let the book fall open to a random page.
# Share with us two (2) “teaser” sentences from that page somewhere between lines 7 and 12.
# You also need to share the title of the book that you’re getting your “teaser” from … that way people can have some great book recommendations if they like the teaser you’ve given! # Please avoid spoilers!
My Two Teasers:
When viewed from above, some state boundaries make sense — they follow rivers, declivities, chains of hills — but the straight lines defining Wyoming are purely notional and basically delimit a mammoth sandbox.
Wyoming is just the land no other state wanted endowed with a capital building to make it feel good.
From: Up in the Air by Michael Kirn
Filed under: Books | Tagged: Michael Kirn, Teaser Tuesday, Up in the Air | 5 Comments »
Posted on December 28, 2009 by Nari
For the past 31 years in San Francisco, a large group of volunteers puts on a 4 weekend event known as The Charles Dicken’s Fair.
Despite having lived in the Bay Area for 20 years of my life, this was the first year that I actually went, and it was fantastic. I felt like I traveled back in time. People dressed up in costume of the era, I saw an actual Punch and Judy puppet show, saw characters from Dicken’s books walking around the lot and ate lots of good authentic British food. The fair, for the most part are rows and rows of shops and little carts selling specialized goods (Victorian costume and clothing, jewelery, candy, etc).
There was a Fezziwigs Warehouse as soon as you walk in, and the entire place was mapped out using character names and city references from all of the Dicken’s books. An avid Dicken’s fan would have loved it. I’ve only read a few of his books and those few and far between each other. I had my book club read A Christmas Carol and we went to The Dicken’s Fair as our first Book Club Field Trip. Needless to say, we didn’t actually discuss A Christmas Carol because its a story so many people know by heart and one that the movies replicate exactly from the books, including specific lines and narration. Gonzo’s narration in A Muppet Christmas Carol is taken directly from the book.
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Now for some picture proof of the awesomeness of the Dicken’s Fair.
This hat shop we went to was AMAZING. I think we tried on every hat inside, including stray feathers we stuck in our hair. (I think we look like swash-bucklers in this photo — fyi, I’m the one on the left).
This is Fezziwig’s Warehouse during a dance. They also played games with people from the audience.
This is the stage for the Punch and Judy Show:
Filed under: Books | Tagged: A Christmas Carol, Charles Dicken's Fair, Cow Palace | Leave a Comment »
Posted on December 21, 2009 by Nari
Dream Girl by Lauren Mechling
Age: 10 – 14 years old
Dream Girl is about Claire Voyante, a sophomore with a curious trait. Her dreams tend to come true. On her 15th birthday, her grandmother Kiki gives her a charming cameo necklace that seems to have a special set of powers. The necklace, as Kiki put it, makes your dreams come true.The necklace, in fact, enhances the powers of the wearer.
At the start of the novel, we find out that Claire is transferring to a new school, one where her former best friend is now the reigning mean-queen bee. After making a couple of new friends, Claire’s dreams start to lead her down a path that will put her in a position to save lives and solve a major mystery for one of her newest friends.
Dream Girl, by Lauren Mechling, has a lot of similarities to Gossip Girl, but its more PG than R. Cut out the sex, curse words, and drugs, and add a little mystery and fantasy to the mix, and you have Dream Girl. I would say this book is appropriate for girls 10-14 years old, but older teens will find it dull. There is just as much fashion name-dropping and glimpses into New York city life of the upper elite as Gossip Girl, but it seems to be missing the glamour that goes with it. I did enjoy the elements of Claire trying to get along in school and make friends, as well as her relationship with her family. I though Mechling did a great job interpreting how teens feel about major changes in their lives (in this case, starting at a new school and making new friends). The fantasy element worked sometimes, and other times it felt forced. Its well written and the characters are lovable even at their worst. I can see this book being turned into a TV-show for kids if it ever gets the chance.
Dream Girl
by Lauren Mechling
Delacorte Press, 2008
ISBN 978-0385735216
309 pages
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Filed under: Books | Tagged: Book review, Dream Girl, Lauren Mechling | 5 Comments »
