Update on reading list

Hi, All, as you can see, I've been busy reading and reading and reading...three new posts tonight. I still have to finish Under the Dome. I only have about 25 pages left but have put finishing it on hold because it's so enjoyable, I do not want it to end. So that's a little bit (haha) of a hint on how my review will go.

I will also be reading The Secret Life of Bees and To Kill a Mockingird this week as well as a few other books that I happened to pick up at Goodwill (a great place to get books by the way).

So many books, so little time. So come back on a regular basis over the next few weeks because I'm on vacation this week and I'm on a reading roll!

Confessions of a Shopaholic by Sophie Kinsella

Confessions of a Shopaholic by Sophie Kinsella

OMG...and WOW. I read this book in one day (a vacation day, mind you). This was so enjoyable. The main character, Rebecca, is a shopaholic who gets herself into some debt trouble and of course, she ignores, lies, continues to shop and with the whole snowball effect there's some serious anxiety. Of course her profession just happens to be Journalist, who just happens to write about finance. This hit home for me...because I'm an Accountant...and as they say, we numbers people are the worst when it comes to our own checkbooks, and ain't it the truth...lol. I laughed a lot during this read. When her world was crashing down, I felt it...when good hopeful things were happening, I felt that same hope. I even felt her obsession when she was shopping...she was obsessed...and it was so fun to be in that character while reading this book.

She plays the lottery and is convinced she will win...the description of that one night...from her playing the numbers till she is watching the lottery on TV...is perfect...and so realistic. Actually going through and figuring out how much she would win, how much she had to deduct to pay off her debt, buy a flat, buy gifts for others, etc...so realistic...so funny. I know I have felt that way many a times...I was just so impressed with Ms. Kinsella's descriptions, her realism, her creations of such realistic, loveable characters (and some so not likeable at some times). This story was a roller coaster ride, and I did NOT want to get off of the ride. I'm glad there are more books because I will defnitely be reading them. To think, I almost skipped this book over just because I wasn't interested in the commercialism that has followed this book/movie.

Oh and in between chapters there are letters from Rebecca's debtors and they mention her excuses in some of the letters...what a riot. This book and this character actually reminded me a bit of Bridget Jones (books I will be reading and reviewing at some point) and I did so love those movies.

I give this book two thumbs up, five stars. It has depth in it's seriousness, it has lots of humor, it has a definite lesson in it and the character development is superb.

A highly recommended read, Confessions of a Shopaholic is a book any girl who holds a debit or credit card and likes to shop, should defnitely read.

Enjoy!

The Critical Library

Nights in Rodanthe by Nicholas Sparks

Nights in Rodanthe by Nicholas Sparks

I will start off by saying that I have not seen this movie as of yet. The reason I chose to read this book was because I have seen The Notebook which was based on the book by Nicholas Sparks and it's one of my favorite all time romance movies. So I decided to give this book a try. I have read one other Nicholas Sparks book before but the name currently escapes me. If I find it, I will post it at a later time just for informational purposes :)

After reading this book, I find that I do like Mr. Sparks' writing. This was heavy, deeply emotional subject matter. I was worried while reading this story that I was destined for a broken heart by the last page...that it would leave me in tears...and frankly, it should have. But as strange as it sounds, though the subject matter was heart wrenching, I didn't take the 'feelings' of the character away from the pages. This is not a bad thing. I could understand the feelings of Adrienne, the main character and understood her pain but did not "feel" her pain for her. I actually liked that about the book. This is why Mr. Sparks' books make such good basis' for movies because you can take the story and expand on it...give it more life than it seems to have on the pages. Again, I'm not saying that this takes away from the book at all. It doesn't. It's a great story, though you sort of know what is going to happen, and I expected to cry somewhere down the line...and though it WAS as sad as I knew it was going to be, I didn't shed a tear. Instead I came away thinking...wow, that was a tragic but at the same time, enlightening.

I think part of the reason it's not as sad feeling is because of the strength of the characters. I did feel the emotional intelligence and strength that the characters portrayed.

I think this book was a great basis for a movie. I just think it gives a basis that a screen writer and director could expand on and really make you feel what the characters are going through with beautiful scenery as it's set on the beach (my favorite).

I didn't find the story very thought provoking...I was only left with one question...how many people would survive a story such as this one and come away stronger and be able to use these events as a teaching experience. Come to think of it...this story had similarities to The Notebook as they are both stories being remembered and told in the now through writings. I'm wondering if other books by Mr. Sparks are written the same way. Oh as an afterthought...this book does make you take a bit of inventory of your life, I think...but then again, the people living as "Paul" does in the book, will not actually be taking the time to read a Nicholas Sparks' novel so I'm not sure it will change many lives. :)

This was an easy read, I got through this book in about two days (vacation week so not a lot of interruptions and a lot of time spent reading). I wouldn't say it was a page turner though it did have some instances where I wanted to see what was going to happen so had a hard time putting it down for long. I am going to give this book three stars. There wasn't a lot of depth to this story, and it was a bit predictable. The "what" was predictable, you just didn't know the "how." I guessed at the how but was wrong...lol. If you like love stories, romance with a bit of tragedy, you will like this book. I enjoyed it, I took away a nice feeling from it but it's probably not something I would read over and over. I will make sure I see the movie because I will be interested to know how the director expands on the story.

Over all, a good story.

The Critical Librarian.

Living Dead in Dallas by Charlaine Harris

Living Dead in Dallas by Charlaine Harris




This is the second book in the Sookie Stackhouse series (HBO's True Blood is based on this series). I liked this book better than the first believe it or not. I am trying to enjoy the books separately from the HBO series and am doing so but think it's important to compare the two as well. The True Blood, the second season is based lightly on this book, and for that, I'm quite glad. This book was entertaining, surprising, a light read. There are a few spots where I would say this was a page turner but I am finding that the subject matter though filled with vampires and murder and other "creatures" is not heavy nor scary...though a few pages are a bit 'thrilling.' The best way to describe these is just an enjoyable story filled with likeable/loveable characters. Sookie, by herself, keeps you coming back for more as the stories are told from her viewpoint. She is just so interesting, brave, innocent, loveable, intense, passionate, cute and leads a very event filled life.

I won't give away too much...but some characters you may love in the TV series don't make it past the first chapter in this book...so there are definite differences that show up immediately. Some characters are the same...Andy Bellafleur is one (I may be misspelling his last name because I'm too lazy to look it up at the moment...lol).

I give this book four out of five stars...the only reason I don't rate these five stars is because I have to save that extra star for really deep stories and these are GREAT, fun stories...but definitely aren't deep.

A fabulous read and highly recommended!

Happy Reading!