The House at Riverton – A Review
Author: Kate Morton
Publisher: Washington Square Press
Genre: Fiction
Length: 468 pages
I fell in love with Kate Morton’s writing when I first read The Forgotten Garden, Morton’s ode to her love for Frances Hodgson Burnett. How appropriate then that I fall in love with her work all over again while reading The House at Riverton, Morton’s ode to all things F. Scott Fitzgerald and Ian McEwan’s Atonement – appropriate because I recently wept and swooned over Tanya Egan Gibson’s own ode to her love of The Great Gatsby (How To Buy a Love of Reading) and felt compelled to re-read the work myself. Apparently it is to be a year of the jazz age. I’m even on a mission to read the entire Agatha Christie Crime Collection. In honor of it all, I may be a flapper again for Halloween this year, but what I really want is that green dress Keira Knightly wears in Atonement and for my husband to take me to a play while I wear it. Of course, I no longer have the boyish figure of the jazz age, emaciated with Kate Hudson sized breasts, I haven’t had that since college. Now I have the soft roundness of motherhood.
But of course, I’m not talking about me, I’m supposed to be writing a review. That’s the thing about Kate Morton though, her work is beautiful and intricate and secretive and it feels so real. Although I get completely engrossed in her story (because she is an amazing story teller), by the end all I can think about is my own story, my own secrets. Obviously, nothing so dark and grand as love-babies out of wedlock and murder and suicide, but still she makes you think about all the things in your life left unsaid that will remain unsaid even after you die.
Morton wrote the elderly Grace beautifully. I imagine that is exactly how it must feel to be old. I loved her so much, and she reminded me so well of people I have met in nursing homes when I used to sing there. She left so many little hints of other pieces of Grace’s life outside of Riverton, I was left longing for more of Grace even after Hannah and Emmeline’s story was over. I wanted to dive into a spin off story of Grace on her archeological adventures and reconnection to Alfred. I know it wouldn’t be a best seller, wouldn’t hold the same magic with Grace’s deep dark secret already revealed and the last thoughts at her death already documented, but I wanted to have a little more of Grace nonetheless. That’s what makes Morton’s writing so great though, you don’t get tired of the story. She wraps everything up so nicely for you, but still leaves an inkling of longing in your heart for what is now done.
One thing that I must say to the masses about this book… if you are one of those that reads the last page first – DON’T. You will ruin the charm and the magic. I can’t imagine reading the last page first without the whole book losing its adventure.
Check out this blog to read a more detailed and descriptive review: http://gigilovesparis.blogspot.com/2009/12/house-at-riverton-by-kate-morton-review.html
My Love for Brief Histories
and how aliens should stay on the Tardis
Title: A Brief History of Stonehenge: A Complete History and Archeology of the World’s Most Enigmatic Stone Circle
Author: Aubrey Burl
Publisher: Constable & Robinson
Genre: Non-fiction, Archeology
Length: 368 pages
Although I read mostly fiction, nonfiction (history and science mostly) has a special place in my library and heart. Where I devour stories and riveting tales, I pour over facts and dates. I underline and disparage intelligent books with my amateur notes in the margins. My nonfiction books take a beating my fiction titles can’t even dream of… ink splatters from broken fountain pens, pages become stained and wrinkled from spilled coffee and dog-eared corners. There’s sticky residue from too many post-it notes. Where my fiction books radiate and breathe the word “treasure,” my nonfiction books tiredly whimper “tool.”
My collection of “A Brief History of…” books are prime examples,Stonehengeby Aubrey Burl being the most recent victim of my hunger for knowledge.
“I’m reading about the history ofStonehenge.” – Me
“That’s silly, no one knows the history ofStonehenge, it’s a mystery. The aliens did it.” – My sarcastic sister.
Its moments like these when the dichotomy of my reading habits collide the most often. Where science fiction and fantasy novels are, at times, the highlight of my day, I like these kinds of conjectures to stay in novels. The concepts of the pyramids being mystical,Stonehengebeing magical, and the world being over-ridden by alien beings from other planets make great stories – awesome Dr. Who episodes – but really annoying documentaries.
That guy with the hair on Ancient Aliens, you know who I’m talking about, the one that shows up in every show about everything with his orange face and tan lines around the eyeballs… he totally cracks me up! But I think he’s a nut and I’d much rather sit and read an archeologist’s account of their findings than risk that guy interrupting my research, telling me (yet again) that the aliens did it.
I love how Diana Gabaldon uses Stonehenge-like structures as her premise for time travel in the Outlander series. Its brilliant! But don’t try to convince me that little piece of fun is the real deal, the actual way of the world.
Aubrey Burl has delivered exactly what I want out of my nonfiction reading. It’s a complete and thorough report on every piece of archeological evidence, history, and anthropological speculation (minus the aliens) that has been made over the years. It’s got maps, diagrams, measurements, and so on. From the Druids, to 1500-1800 literature, to the most recent of science experiments, Burl gives me enough information to feel knowledgeable enough to either putStonehengeaside and call myself learned or have a solid basis at which to do additional research and know where to look. And its reader friendly, even if my copy has been treated maliciously by ink and coffee.
Buy Stonehenge by Aubrey Burl
Weekly Low Down on Kids Books 3/20/12
Unfortunately there’s nothing to report. We’ve read and read and read this week, but each time I picked up a title from the library it was quickly tossed aside by Miss Ayla. Nothing resonated with us. Day after day, she kept bringing me Librarian on the Roof! Its become the household favorite over night. Ayla is very young, so even when she is interested in something it doesn’t guarantee we will make it all the way through the story, but she will sit and flip through the pages of Stephen Gilpin’s illustrations over and over again, and come back to it hour after hour. She loves it.
Even now, as I type this, I had the book in my lap and she had Curious George (which she picked out all on her own, mind you) on the floor, and she just instituted a trade.
Although, she does have a bit of a love/hate relationship with the dust jacket. She is fascinated by it, but doesn’t want it attached to her book. Its a slow painful process teaching a toddler to treat dust jackets with care, but she’s getting the hang of it.
M.G. King and Stephen Gilpin… Well Done! Ayla and I look forward to owning any books you may write and illustrate in the future!
Read My Official Review of Librarian on the Roof
Buy Green, Save Green, Win Time on the Green!
Buy green, save green, win time on the green!
Starting Monday, March 12, buy anything “green” at our HPB store in Humble and enter to win a golf package that includes: 4 to 9 holes of golf at Humble Oil Patch Golf Center, a bucket of golf balls, a golf shirt and an HPB Gift Card. Drawing to be held on St. Patrick’s Day, March 17 at 7pm. Need not be present to win. Offer good at this location only. See store for details.
Another Cozy Coffee Read
Author: Cleo Coyle
Publisher:BerkleyPrime Crime
Genre: Cozy Mystery
Length: 350 pages
Buy Roast Mortem
If you haven’t noticed, I’m a sucker for cozy mysteries. Although I loved them as a child (and had read everything Sherlock Holmes related that I could get my hands on by the time I was ten) I didn’t begin revisiting this passion for whodunits until my post-college years while working as a bookseller at Half Price Books.
Cleo Coyle’s On What Grounds was actually the first of this popular genre I’d ever read and she got me hooked! After discovering her, I dug into the same author team’s Alice Kimberly Haunted Bookshop series and then began branching out to other pleasantly clever authors like Rebecca Kent and Laura Childs. They are fabulous guilty pleasures, and I love the added feature of some series that provide me with baking tips and recipes.
The ninth in the coffeehouse mystery series, Roast Mortem is the first one that I haven’t waited to find in paperback in a bookstore, I couldn’t wait for my lazy browsing to turn up the next installment after doing a blog post on Holiday Grind a few weeks ago. I procured this copy in hardback from the public library across the street, but having read it already, still plan purchase at a later date to make my set complete.
I highly recommend this series, although I must admit that this one frustrated me in a way the previous books have not in the number of typos I discovered. I don’t blame the author, as a writer I am well versed in having moments when your fingers are trying to desperately keep up with your brain resulting in dropped r’s off “yours” and silly errors like “with” getting typed in place of “would.” But I would have expected editors from the Berkley Prime Crime crew to discover those and fix them. At least, I hope that if I get a book published one day, someone has helped me correct my little mishaps before its set before the public eye.
All in all, another fun piece from the Cleo Coyle writing team!
Live Shows at Half Price Books Humble
So, if you follow my blog at all, you know I’ve been coordinating events for Half Price Books in Humble, which by the way is a complete blast! In February, Christine Hand came to town and serenaded the store for two hours (Friday, the 24th between 7 and 9 pm).
For those of you unable to make it, or who don’t know who Christine Hand is, you should know that the very next day, she discovered her Bob Dylan cover was being played on the radio in Dallas. I happily brag about this to let you know that we book great musicians, and when you hear about Half Price Books having live artists in the store – you should definitely take time to stop by so you don’t miss a rare and great opportunity to meet the artists of the future!
If you did miss that last performance, no worries! I’ll do my best to make it happen again. And as a sign of good faith, my lovely customers, I’ve booked Tito Ortega for March!
Tito Ortega is another Dallas local making a special trip down to Houston to play at the Humble store. He, too, writes his own music in a fun, low-key and soothing style. A testament to his great songwriting is the fact that Eric Tipton, a recent contestant on The Voice, did a cover of his song Something Beautiful on his cd Straight From the Couch (that album is a personal favorite of mine, check it out here: http://www.myspace.com/erictipton).
Check out Tito’s site at TitoOrtega.com, and follow him on twitter @titoortegamusic.
We’ll see you at the show on March 24th (Saturday) 7-9 pm! Come ready to enjoy an intimate show and purchase digidownloads or cds.
Weekly Low Down on Kids Books – better late than never
How Do You Hug A Porcupine by Laurie Isop
I love this one, and so did Ayla, but I must admit that I’m a little nervous about insinuating that the practice of hugging porcupines is acceptable at all! It reminds me of Dora the Explorer having picnics with snakes and bears. Possibly a silly concern, but that’s what pops up in my head nonetheless. We read this several times this last week.
The Mixed-Up Chameleon by Eric Carle
Eric Carle is always a good read, as I’ve said in the past, I love his illustrations and so does the kiddo (who doesn’t?). This particular book is especially neat because Carle gives tribute to the idea being inspired by the kids he has visited in the past. I thought that was a nice touch.
I Am The Biggest Thing In the Ocean by Kevin Sherry
Our absolute favorite this week! We read this over and over again and plan to purchase a copy first chance we get. Its always great (even if a little shocking) when a kids book surprises even the adults in the room, every time, without fail.
How Do Dinosaurs Play With Their Friends by Jane Yolen
We’re on a mission to collect all the Jane Yolen dinosaur books, so imagine my excitement when I came across this one at a school carnival! Of course, we both adored it, but Ayla still prefers the bedtime one best. Because she’s familiar? Or because its better? I don’t know.
Lullaby and Goodnight by Jill Ackerman
Ayla discovered this at Half Price Books and just had to have it. We bought it, brought it home, and she’s gone to bed with it every night since then. She loves the light up moon feature, and rocks back and forth to the song. If we tell her to ‘push the star’ she gets so excited, knowing it will start the song again.
Zenith Rising – A Flash Back Review
This is a review I dug up from a few years ago. I’ve chatting with the author lately and wanted what was fresh on my mind to be fresh on my blog as well.
Title: Zenith Rising
Author: Michael Goodell
Publisher: PublishAmerica
Length: 229 pages
As most people know, I am a shelfari.com addict. It makes sense, as shelfari is a book site for book people and I am quite certainly a book person. In my shelfari hunting and pecking for great reads and cool recommendations, I ran across an author named Michael Goodell who has since been a fun shelfari friend to engage in the banter of book talk. One day, a group of us decided to read his book Zenith Rising (available for purchase on amazon) and discovered quite a treat.
I found Zenith Rising to be an interesting read and great first novel for Goodell. It was slightly reminiscent of an old classic with a mix of John Grisham’s The Rainmaker, but unique and very much an original piece full of life and art and the raw thoughts of humanity. I also believe that its a good shelf companion to Ayn Rand’s The Fountainhead.
Goodell has said about his work,
[…] one message I want people to walk away with after reading Zenith Rising, it would be the transformative effect that the pride of accomplishment and the sense of ownership can have on people who have never accomplished anything, (nor been told that they could or should), and never owned anything that wasn’t given to them. On that last point, when I was working with a nonprofit housing group, I was struck by the similarities between the lives of trust fund babies, and those of welfare babies. They both are born into lives with no demands and no expectations, and both engage in self-destructive behaviors, often culminating in wasted lives. I tried to point out that connection through some of the characters and their antics.
I think Goodell has succeeded in his goal, as most people I have talked to about the book feel a twinge of nostalgia towards the work as a whole. I cried like a baby through chapter nine, the way I cried in Wall-E. People should read this book before finishing school, high school or college, I don’t think it really matters which, just before they go out into the world. Inspire them to not let money go to their head, and not let their cities become pieces of crap. We’re always taught about the problems in other countries. Growing up, I always heard the glories of mission trips. Did we ever do activities in our own cities that were helpful? Not really. The closest we came was a yearly trip to Dallas four hours away. We got a lot done and it was amazing, but anything that can be done in Dallas could have certainly been done in Houston.
I truly believe that Goodell’s book has a bit of simple brilliance about it and cannot wait to read his second book which will also be set in the city of Zenith.
An excerpt from the book (pg.82-83):
One of the men stood with back to the viewer, in the lower center of the painting, where the mountain sloped down to a ridge, gazing out across a valley or vast plain stretching to the horizon. Often painted at dusk, with mist rising from the ground, or the sunset colors reflecting in the myriad streams snaking their way across the valley floor, the paintings gave the attorney an aching desire to step into that long lost world. He stood beside the adventurer at the edge of a precipice. The world unfolded at his feet, waiting for a man courageous enough to carve a life from its untamed wilds.
Information from the Zenith Rising Website:
From its stunning opening scene of a police raid gone tragically awry, to its heart-breaking conclusion, “Zenith Rising” tells the story of a dying city. Yet once that city was a world leader in manufacturing and technological innovation.
Once Zenith’s future was limited only by the size of its dreams.
Though the years stripped away its promise, the people of Zenith didn’t share equally in its decline. For some, the wealth garnered during the glory years insulated them from the city’s struggles. Others sought to suck the last bit of life, and profit, from the dying city, while a few, a lonely few, saw things as they were and vowed to change them.
Michael Goodell has given us a compelling tale ripped from today’s headlines. By means of a riveting plot and vivid characters, he presents a challenge every American must confront.
You can learn more about it at http://www.zenithrising.webs.com
The list price is $24.95.
http://www.shelfari.com/groups/23648/discussions/105903/Zenith-Rising