Hey, it's been a long time! I finished East in Eden, and I pretty much liked it. Looking forward to talking about it! If anyone else is still on here, what do you think? Is What's-her-name worse than Scarlett? A million times, Yes, I say.

Podcasts

I've been really into podcasts lately, and there are 2 that deal with books we've read you might be interested in. One is on the Fitzgeralds from HowStuffWorks. Subscribe here. The other is on Henrietta Lacks, and it's on Stuff Mom Never Told You. Subscribe here. We know most of the information, but there are interesting new tidbits I learned. Hope you like them.

Juliet and Italy

I'm loving Juliet! So when are we going to Itay?

Books discussed 2008

A Girl Named Zippy - Haven Kimmel (Robin - January 2008)
The Secret Life of Bees - Sue Monk Kidd (Diane - February 2008)
Dragon Slippers - Jessica Day George (Sarah - March 2008)
Sense and Sensibility - Jane Austen (Jenny - April 2008)
A Single Shard - Linda Sue Park (Becky - May 2008)
Anthem - Ayn Rand (Sarah - June 2008)
These Is My Words - Nancy Turner (Valerie - July 2008)
Sarah, Plain and Tall - Patricia MacLachlan (Diane - August 2008)
Hullabaloo in the Guava Orchard - Kiran Desai (Robin - September 2008)
A Long Fatal Love Chase - Louisa May Alcott (Sarah - October 2008)
Dracula - Bram Stoker (Valerie - November 2008)
Selected poems (Sarah - December 2008)

Hullabaloo

I just finished Hullabaloo in the Guava Orchard, and I have to say it was delightful, but I didn't care for the end. This book reminds me how interesting words are. It was fun read.

These Is My Words

I loved it, and I hope everyone can read it. Here are a few questions: Why did April leave? Did she hate the ranch b/c of the bad memories (e.g. rattlesnake incident--Oh my heavens, I almost had a heart attack for a second there), or did she leave b/c she was a bit of a priss and couldn't take hard-working, or boring, ranch anymore?

The bit about the young couple was disturbing. What was the point? Was she trying to convey a meaning?

Is Jack Elliott for real? He is now one of my favorite men in literature.

Why did her brother marry the prissy girl? Why do guys do that? How could he be that blind?
What's up with Albert not saying anything about Jimmy's character? If he could forsee problems and Sarah being unhappy, why didn't he say anything?

I'll have more questions as I think of them.

May book club . . . and welcome to spring, finally

Hello, everyone!  

Hope you can come to book club Saturday - I'm hosting.  The book for this month was A Single Shard.  It's a short book and an easy read, if you've not had a chance to pick it up yet.

Dragons and Dinner

Thanks, Sarah, for hosting another great book club on Saturday. And thanks, Diane, for introducing us to Jessica. It was a fun evening.
I'll be hosting in May, so if any of you have any book suggestions, I'd be happy to hear them. I've not found any really good books lately that I'd recommend, so I'm struggling to pick a book.

That kiss.

Did anyone else think that the kiss at the end of last night's "Persuasion" was the worst kiss in the history of movie kisses? I about wanted to die it was so ugly and awkward.

Books discussed 2007

Eragon - Christopher Pauoline (Diane - January 2007)
Island of Saints - Andy Andrews (Becky - February 2007)
North and South - Elizabeth Gaskell (Jenny - March 2007)
Under the Greenwood Tree - Thomas Hardy (Sarah - April 2007)
The Endless Steppe - Esther Hautzig (Valerie - May 2007)
Life of Pi - Yann Martel (Robin - June 2007)
Life is So Good - George Dawson (Becky - July 2007)
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows - J.K. Rowling (Trudy - August 2007)
Peace Like a River - Leif Enger (Diane - September 2007)
Murder on the Orient Express - Agatha Christie (Jenny - October 2007)
Persuasion - Jane Austen (Leslie - November 2007)
The Ultimate Gift - Jim Stovall (Sarah - December 2007)