BOOK #33

Sloane Crosley is my new favorite essayist, next to David Sedaris, natch.

I've had this book in my pile for over two years, I'll bet. I do remember hearing about her from one of my book blogs so that's why I bought it. I could kick myself for waiting so long. I'm not much for essays or short stories in a book but I thoroughly enjoyed this. Her humor is not as biting as Sedaris or Notaro - she's a bit gentler but still wickedly funny.

But the funniest thing about the author is that she was hired to write from one email she sent in to a NY magazine commenting on a story. Oh, the power of the internet. That email must have been a doozy!

She has a new book either coming out June 15th.
Sigh.

The Wednesday Letters

I don't even know how the book got in my stack, but I am so glad it did. I read it in a matter of hours, and it was just what I needed. Such a sweet story about love and forgiveness. Not as sappy as The Notebook, but I still cried at the end. I recommend it for anyone that is looking for a good book to read on a Saturday afternoon.

BOOK #32

I can't help myself. I'm still in the weird chick-lit phase. I do like this author though. Always an entertaining story.

I blame my lack of reading lately on work. I haven't been on the train so my reading time has virtually disappeared. And during lunch, we are ensconced in The Love Boat reruns. And before bed, I'm obsessed with my damn iPad.

But I have five days off coming up and I plan to read my little heart out!

The Girl Who Kicked The Hornet's Nest

WOW. What can I say. Great book. Third in a kick ass series. The last ten pages were right on. It was a long book, and I had to read a few parts of it more than once, but I think a lot of that had to do with the Swedish names. The heroine is the best I have seen in a while. I can not recommend this book highly enough. I am only sad that the series is over....

Spooky Little Girl

Love me some Laurie Notaro. I have been reading her forever, and so when this book came out, I simply could not resist. I was a little disappointed, and will say that her essays far surpass her attempts at fiction. Still, it was a fast read. The book is about a woman that gets hit by a bus, but doesn't get to go on until she makes things right. There is still plenty to chuckle about, but just not near as funny as her true life stories.

The Witch of Portobello

I liked the Paulo Coelho book we read in book club - The Alchemist. I'm one who doesn't connect to organized religions so I think as a result. I find his books interesting as they are "spiritual" but don't seem to subscribe to a particular doctrine.

The Witch of Portobello didn't bowl me over like The Alchemist did - perhaps having read one of his books, I knew somewhat to expect - but I did enjoy it.

The theme of the book, in my understanding, was a comment on the loss of the feminine side of God and the disconnect that causes in modern religion. His premise suggests what we might call "pagan" religions were actually this feminine understanding of God and that female nurturing God respects and understands the bonds that all life has with nature and love, whereas the male understanding of God (ie: the major religions today) imposes more rules and organization to spirituality ("morality").

I found it an interesting and enriching read.

I love Harlan Coben , and his latest is no exception. I read this book in a few hours, and the suspense just kept me turning the pages. There were surprises and twists a plenty. If you can accept that the ending will not be happy for everyone, then I highly recommend it.