And Another Thing...

Books # 5 and 6

No reviews this week, both of these are so good that I am just recommending that you run to your library and get them right now.  Also, I can't review either book without spoiling them if you haven't read them.  If you have read them email me and we can talk.  So good!

Book # 4

I was so absorbed in this book that I virtually ignored my kids all day so I could finish it.  I am usually hesitant about reading memoirs because it's hard for me to get into non-fiction, but this book just swept me in with all the stories of the women that came through Patsy's nurse-midwifery practice.  Some of the stories were uplifting, some were heartbreaking, some were infuriating.  Most of them left me shaking my head thinking,  "How could that woman let this happen to herself?"

I do wish there was a little more closure at the end.  I feel like everything was left with no resolution and there were quite a few things that I was hoping would be resolved.  Perhaps there is a sequel in the future?

I really recommend this book, it was a fairly quick read and enthralling.  It was very interesting to get such a unique insider view of this particular field of medicine.

Book #2

Oh my goodness was this a great read!  I read this book in less than 24 hours because I could not put it down.  Funny, intuitive, heartbreaking, infuriating and victorious, I had to keep turning each page to find out what was going to happen next.

I loved the way that Jenny, the main character, just keeps rolling with the punches and does what needs to be done.  Although she is faced with an unexpected pregnancy and then unexpected single motherhood, she totally focuses on her baby and readjusts to what her life is now. 

I'm not going to tell you anymore than that because you have to go get this book for yourself.  Right now. 

Katherine Center has a new book out, Everyone is Beautiful that is definitely on my list to read this year.  She also has a new book coming out in April, Get Lucky that I am really looking forward to. 

Book #1

I actually started this on Christmas day, but since it is over 1400 pages long, I read the bulk of it in 2010.  I finished this yesterday and I am already anxious to start the next book in the series.  Breath of Snow and Ashes is the 6th book in the Outlander series written by Diana Gabaldon.  I started reading this series several years ago and am slowly working my way through it, as the texts are all at least 1000 pages and very wordy.  Some of the characters have worked their way into my heart (Jamie, Claire, Bree, Roger, Jemmy, Fergus, etc.) and some of the characters have worked their way on to my hit list (Stephen Bonnet, Major MacDonald, Ulysses, Malva, Mr. and Mrs. Bug, surprisingly). 

The entire series is riddled with one tragedy after another, but this particular book takes the cake, I think.  Abduction, rape, murder, theft, revenge, arson, incest, more murder, suicide, STD's, birth defects, fatal diseases, and the loss of friends and family in so many different ways.  It's one huge emotional roller coaster, but in the end, people stick together and make things work.  It's awesome to see the lengths that the different couples will go to to stay together.

If you have not started this series, I really encourage you to do so.  It certainly takes a huge commitment of time, but it is totally worth it.  You will gain friends that stay with you your entire life and you will give your husband new standards that he will never live up to.  That is, unless he is already a huge red-haired Scottish man of obvious viking descent that has almost no flaws and always know exactly what to do in any situation.  In that case, he's safe :o)

52 Books in 52 Weeks

I'm going to attempt it again this year.  I think I just made it last year, but I stopped recording the books in March so I can't be sure.  This year I am going to actually record and review the books every week.  Yeah, I know, I'm skeptical too, but there's always hope.  Here's a list of the books I'll be reading in the next few weeks:

A Breath of Snow and Ashes  by Diana Gabaldon

Gluten Free Girl by Shauna James Ahern

The Bright Side of Disaster by Katherine Center

The Free Range Knitter by Stephanie Pearl McPhee

Echo in the Bone by Diana Gabaldon

So, keep on me and make sure that I follow through with posting about these books.  I'm counting on you to keep me honest here :o)

52 Books - Book #3 Over Sea, Under Stone

I am going to attempt to review the book I just finished, but be forewarned.  I am not a book critic and I am no longer a very good writer.  You'll just have to bear with me while I try to figure this out!  Hopefully I'll get better as the year goes by.  I have titled this post accordingly and I will continue to use this title as I go along so that you can skip reading these if you would like!

I just finished Over Sea, Under Stone by Susan Cooper and I was very impressed.  This is the first in a sequence of books called The Dark is Rising, and is technically a young adult book.  It is about three siblings on holiday in Cornwall, England who embark on an historic quest to find the grail of King Arthur before the "bad guys" get it.  It all begins with the discovery of an ancient manuscript and map leading them to the location of the grail.  They are aided by their great Uncle Merry (whom they suspect to be Merlin!), but he tries to remain in the role of protector and let them work out the clues for themselves.  In the end, they do find the grail in the nick of time, though they loose the second manuscript that accompanies it.  This is a great segue into the next book (which is on my list for the year) where they will, presumably, set off to re-find the second manuscript.  

I am on to my next book Milk Glass Moon by Adriana Trigiani. Hopefully I'll be back in the next few dys to give a full repot on that as well!

52 Books in 52 Weeks

I have decided that I am going to join a group of knitters on Ravelry who are going to read 52 book sin 52 weeks.  This sounds like a very fun goal to have this year and will also help me with my goal to have more "me" time.  I have already read 2 book thus far this year, and I think that puts me ahead of the game. 

The first one I read was The Expected One by Kathleen McGowan.  I really got pulled into this book and thought it was a great read.  It definitely kept my interest as I wiled away 2+ hours in the bathtub 3 nights straight!  It is another book about Jesus and Mary Magdalene and their alleged marriage and lineage.  I don't know what my opinion is on that subject, but I do know that since the book is fiction, I don't really need to have an opinion!  There is a sequel to it, but I am not sure that I am ready to read it yet.  I think I need let this one sink in a bit first!

The second book is Big Cherry Holler by Adriana Trigiani.  This is the third book I have read by this author and I find her wiriting very entertaining.  It is the second in a trilogy about Ave Maria, a pharmacist, wife and mother in a small Virginia mining town.  I will definitely put the third book of the trilogy on my list for this year!

I would love to write more in depth reviews of these books, but as you know, it's birthday season here at the Eikenberry house and I am beat!  One more fesitivity tomorrow and then I can crawl under a rock and hibernate with my books for a few months.