A Reader's Point of View: June 2018

I've been doing really well these last few reading months. This month I've read 9 books. Let's get to those reviews!!

Book #1: Still Alice by Lisa Genova

Alice Howland, happily married with three grown children and a house on the Cape, is a celebrated Harvard professor at the height of her career when she notices a forgetfulness creeping into her life. As confusion starts to cloud her thinking and her memory begins to fail her, she receives a devastating diagnosis: early onset Alzheimer's disease. Fiercely independent, Alice struggles to maintain her lifestyle and live in the moment, even as her sense of self is being stripped away. In turns heartbreaking, inspiring and terrifying, Still Alice captures in remarkable detail what's it's like to literally lose your mind...

I couldn't help myself. I had heard a few people mention this on BookTube. I had remembered it when I was in my local library and when I looked at the synopsis on Goodreads, I realized it was really something I would read. I work in a memory care unit and this book gave me such insight into the residents in the unit. Alice has a suspicion that many people don't. She thought right away that something was wrong neurologically. I wouldn't have thought that. She doesn't even hesitate to ask to see a neurologist. Naturally, she doesn't like the diagnosis she is given. Understandable. I gave this book a 5/5 because I have information going in, so I really understand Alice's plight. Along with many others, I provide care for people further along than Alice. One of the brilliant things from this book is her rallying other early-onset people together, at least until the disease took that much of her mind away. I really enjoyed the way Alice had her family, mostly, there to help out. It gave me good fuzzy feelings. I hope that any future books Ms. Genova writes are as good as this one is.

Book #2: My Friend Flicka by Mary O'Hara

The first time that Ken McLaughlin sees Flicka galloping past him on his family's Wyoming horse ranch, he knows she's the yearling he's been longing for. But Flicka comes from a long line of wild horses, and taming her will take more than Ken could ever have imagined. Soon, Ken is faced with an impossible choice: give up on his beautiful horse, or risk his life to fight for her.

A boy and his horse. Ken McLaughlin spends a lot of his time that he should be using to study daydreaming about horses. He doesn't even properly do the work around the ranch like he is supposed to. He is nearly desperate to get a horse of his own. One of the first things that aggravated me about this book was the use of the word 'colt' in place of the word 'foal' to describe young horses of either gender. He and his family would say a filly colt and a horse colt, despite the fact that colts are male foals. I was displeased by that. Any rancher worth his salt would not call them the wrong things. The ending of the book left a lot to be desired. We don't get to see the resolution of how Flicka's training goes. We are just left knowing people can change when Ken's dad changes his mind. Not that he became any better for it. I really didn't like him. He could praise his family and yell at them in the same breath. Nell, Ken's mother, was just strange to me. She couldn't pick if she was assertive or not. I know Rob expected everyone to be 'or not' and when they weren't it annoyed him. They were never to defy his orders, even if they knew something he didn't that would have changed the orders given. Nell felt bad for telling him off. Why? I rated this book a 2/5. I didn't like the book. I doubt I'll re-read it, but at least it wasn't absolute garbage. Maybe I'll see if Ms. O'Hara has other books out, and I will try them. Couldn't be worse than My Friend Flicka.

Book #3: Butterflies by Diana Ajjan

Designed to emulate traditional, full-sized books, the fashions of classic bookmaking -- full-color throughout, stylized endpapers, fine quality paper, full-length text, and Smyth-sewn binding -- are represented in this line. Topical. Traditional. Tactile. Tempting. Targeted. Less than half the size of our Little Books, these palm-sized volumes are irresistible.

It was okay. About what one would expect from a tiny book on butterflies. I did enjoy reading it, but it was far from satisfying. My biggest issue was how little actual information we got. I understand it was a tiny book, but seriously, they could try. Meh. Oh well. Better luck next time when it comes to small books. I am definitely keeping this though because it is absolutely adorable and would go well in a dollhouse or something.

Book #4: Hummingbirds by Paul Lipari

Same as Butterflies. Very short, so much so that I don't really care for it. It was good enough to earn a 2/5, but I wish there was more information in place of the pictures.

I won't be reading any more books from this series again. I am not excited about them at all. Can't win them every time, right?

Book #5: Dewey by Vicki Myron

How much of an impact can an animal have? How many lives can one cat touch? How is it possible for an abandoned kitten to transform a small library, save a classic American town, and eventually become famous around the world? You can't even begin to answer those questions until you hear the charming story of Dewey Readmore Books, the beloved library cat of Spencer, Iowa. Dewey's story starts in the worst possible way. Only a few weeks old, on the coldest night of the year, he was stuffed into the returned book slot at the Spencer Public Library. He was found the next working by library director Vicki Myron, a single mother who had survived the loss of her family farm, a breast cancer scare, and an alcoholic husband. Dewey won her heart, and the hearts of the staff, by pulling himself up and hobbling on frostbitten feet to nudge each of hem in a gesture of thanks and love. For the next nineteen years, he never stopped charming the people of Spencer with this enthusiasm, warmth, humility (for a cat), and, above all, his sixth sense about who needed him most. As his fame grew from town to town, then state to state, and finally, amazingly, worldwide, Dewey became more than just a friend; he became a source of pride for an extraordinary Heartland farming town pulling its way slowly back from the greatest crisis in its long history.

I always say books never make me cry. The struggle was real when it came to one of the challenges for this year (read a book that made you cry). I stared at the prompt for a while, then Dewey Readmore Books came into my life. His story, especially chapter 25, really moved me. It brought both tears of joy and tears of pain to my eyes. Anyone who loves cats should read this book. I took a star off because for the life of me I didn't understand a good number of the times when Vicki would delve into her own personal history. I wish I knew what her high school and college years had to do with Dewey (in another state) and the Spencer Public Library. It added nothing, beside page count. It had no bearing at all that I could think of other than to use it as an outlet to tell her own story. Some parts, like Stephen and her mother, did make sense because she tied it back to Dewey. I immensely enjoyed this book and happily rate it 4/5. I'm very tempted to research Dewey of Spencer Public Library because we here in Weatherly have never heard of such an animal. I wish we had a library cat. We'll just have to settle for our library having once been a bowling alley.

Book #6: The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern

The circus arrives without warning. No announcements precede it. It is simply there, when yesterday it was not. Within the black-and-white striped canvas tents is an utterly unique experience full of breathtaking amazement. It is called Le Cirque des Rêves, and it is only open at night. But behind the scenes, a fierce competition is underway - a duel between two young magicians, Celia and Marco, who have been trained since childhood expressly for this purpose by their mercurial instructors. Unbeknownst to them, this is a game in which only one can be left standing, and the circus is but the stage for a remarkable battle of imagination and will. Despite themselves, however, Celia and Marco tumble headfirst into love - a deep, magical love that makes the lights flicker and the room grow warm whenever they so much as brush hands. True love or not, the game must play out, and the fates of everyone involved, from the cast of extraordinary circus performers to the patrons, hang in the balance, suspended as precariously as the daring acrobats overhead. Written in rich, seductive prose, this spell-casting novel is a feast for the senses and the heart.

It took me a while to read this because the thrill of a new (to me) book always gets in my way. I bought and borrowed a large quantity of books. That's not the point though. This is a very good book. I enjoyed the way it was written and the fact at first I didn't know if his opponent was Celia or Isobel. It was very interesting way to introduce a character. We are introduced to two men who have been waging small "games" with each other for years, possibly even centuries, and they are starting up again. It's interesting to consider that once, many years ago, they were friends. It's not until the end that we learn the origins of the game. I would not want to be chosen for this game. That's for sure. No way. We soon skip to the creation of The Circus of Dreams (I can't French), where our two players will compete with each other despite having no idea who the other player is. We're told of only one specifically at first: Marco Alisdair, player for Mr. A. H--, the academic of the pair. I really enjoyed the use of the circus as a focal point of the game being played. It was very unique. I haven't very many books that even feature a circus. Only two come to mind, and neither are like The Night Circus. I really liked how the other characters interacted with the players. You could tell they knew something was up, but couldn't put their fingers on it. I rated this book a 4/5 because of the simple fact it entertained me. I loved all the subtle nuances of the game. I wasn't impressed by the time skips back and forth. One chapter something is happening in 1901, and in the next, it's 1898 again, then it's 1903 with no explanation. Other than that, I loved it. Definite re-read potential.

Book #7: A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens

A Christmas Carol in Prose, Being a Ghost Story of Christmas (aka A Christmas Carol) is a book by Dickens 1st published on 12/19/1843 with illustrations by John Leech. Dickens called it his "little Christmas Book". The 1st of the his five Christmas books, the story was instantly successful, selling over 6,000 copies in one week. Originally written in six weeks under financial duress to help Dickens to pay off a debt, the tale has become one of the most popularly enduring stories of all time. Some historians have suggested the story's popularity played a significant role in redefining the importance & spirit of the holiday. A Christmas Carol was written during a time of decline in the old traditions. "If Christmas, with its ancient & hospitable customs, its social & charitable observances, were in danger of decay, this is the book that would give them a new lease," said English poet Thomas Hood.

This book was okay. It was neither good nor bad. Sort of in between, so it gets a middle of the road rating of 3/5. Didn't like it, didn't dislike it. I think it was just really okay. Scrooge's change of heart, while good, happened a little too fast. No one could change so much in so little time. It's impossible. He should have also been more afraid of the various spirits. My house is inhabited by benevolent (if sometimes mischievous) spirits, and it took me years to be okay with random visitations by them. And he's okay after an hour? Yeah, no. Not logical. Another thing that bothered me was how no one was suspicious of Scrooge's sudden personality shift. He was a greedy bastard on December 24, unwilling to let the clerk have so much as a piece of coal, to a super incredibly nice guy on December 25, giving the same clerk a pay raise and more or less became a patron for their family. How does no one question this? How?! Mr. Dickens has two other holiday books out and I will read them. Maybe I'll like them more?

Book #8: Pudd'nhead Wilson by Mark Twain

At the beginning of Pudd'nhead Wilson a young slave woman, fearing for her infant's son's life, exchanges her light-skinned child with her master's. From this rather simple premise Mark Twain fashioned one of his most entertaining, funny, yet biting novels. On its surface, Pudd'nhead Wilson possesses all the elements of an engrossing nineteenth-century mystery: reversed identities, a horrible crime, an eccentric detective, a suspenseful courtroom drama, and a surprising, unusual solution. Yet it is not a mystery novel. Seething with the undercurrents of antebellum southern culture, the book is a savage indictment in which the real criminal is society, and racial prejudice and slavery are the crimes. Written in 1894, Pudd'nhead Wilson glistens with characteristic Twain humor, with suspense, and with pointed irony: a gem among the author's later works.

While not my first Twain read, definitely one of the more interesting ones. David "Pudd'nhead" Wilson is an almost well known person about town. More for an unfortunate remark than for what he went there for, to be a small-town lawyer. It took him nearly twenty years to even become a lawyer of any respect. He spent those twenty years collecting the fingerprints of the residents of Dawson's Landing. This proves important later. We then meet Roxana. A slave woman who could nearly pass for white if it weren't for a few select features. Now she works for a landed gentleman by the name of Percy Driscoll (I thought of fruit right away) looking after his young son. Roxy allows Pudd'nhead to take the prints of the boys in good fun, not realizing the consequences it will have later. In a fright she flips the babies for the protection of her son. A move any mother would make. Some twenty years go by and now a set of twins comes in and ruins everything for one boy and sets an unprecedented gain for another. I gave this book 4/5 stars. It reminded very much of The Prince and the Pauper, only in this case the two are entirely unconscious of the change. The way their lives differed because of the perceived stations was incredible. Proving nurture over nature in this case. I enjoyed their tale, but wished we saw more of Pudd'nhead as that is the title, so one would expect it to also be the main subject or character. To fit the tale we got, "Roxana" or "Tom Driscoll" would have been better suited. I was pleasantly surprised by the Carpello twins of Italy. They jump started the story when my interest was beginning to fade. Mark Twain knew what he was doing there. I was very intrigued by the short at the end as well of them as a set of conjoined twins. I do wonder what happened to Angelo after Luigi died? Did he die too, or did they separate the brothers so Angelo could move on with his life? It was an amazingly written book, with diverse characters. I'm glad I read it.

Book #9: Lily's Crossing by Patricia Reilly Giff

This year, as in other years, Lily has planned a spectacular summer in Rockaway, in her family's cozy house on stilts over the Atlantic Ocean. But by the summer of 1944, World War II has changed almost everyone's life. Lily's best friend, Margaret, and her family have moved to a wartime factory town, and worse, much worse, Lily's father is on his way overseas to the war. There's no one else Lily's age in Rockaway until Albert comes, a refugee from Hungary, a boy with a secret sewn into his coat. Albert has lost most of his family in the war; he's been through things Lily can't imagine. But when they join together to rescue and care for a kitten, they begin a special friendship. For Lily and Albert have their own secrets to share: they both have told lies, and Lily has told a lie that may cost Albert his life.

I like WWII stories. Really, I do. This book was weird. It had virtually no plot whatsoever beyond Lily wanted her father back. She rarely listened and did what she was told. Then when she did it, it was half-assed at best. She seemed angry when she had to do certain things. The basic premise was difficult to figure out. I think it was supposed to be how one little girl dealt with the war at home. She just struck me as a very spoiled girl who wasn't used to not having her way. The author remarks that she based it on her life. I feel bad for her. Partly that she had to go through that (my own grandma was only 3 in 1944) and partly because I hope she is not as bad as Lily was in the book. 3/5, unlikely to read it again.

A Reader's Point of View

Thursday, June 7, 2018

Friday Reads: 05 May to 08 June 2018

May 2018 Wrap Up