Too Good to Pass Up

I realize that I haven't reported on any books for a long time.
I've certainly read a lot of them. Many were excellent (some were not), but none made me feel compelled to write about them.
At last, I've read one that touched me so much that I'd feel like a dirty skunk if I didn't share a bit of it with you.
The book is Chosen by a Horse by Susan Richards (2006).
On the cover it says "How a broken horse fixed a broken heart". That may strike you as overly-sentimental, but the story isn't.
A lonely, fortyish woman takes in a starving horse and foal. The story takes off from there. It isn't a romanticized "National Velvet" kind of story. This has horse poop, illness, alcoholism and the possibility of sex.
Bet you get teary at the end, just like Mike and I did.

This time, it's a book...

OK, no whining this time.
A good, fun book to read is Eat, Pray, Love by Elizabeth Gilbert ( 2006).
This first-person memoir was written by a young woman who recognized that she was quite unhappy, and set out a schedule for herself to bring about changes.
Fortunately, she had the financial wherewithall to be able to afford this.
First, she went to Italy for a certain amount of time, where she learned the language and ate a lot of pasta. Next, off to India for a while in an Ashram, where the expansion was not of the waistline, but of the spirit. Finally, she journeyed to Indonesia, to be loved.
It's interesting, and worth reading.

The bad thing about blogs

If anyone besides me reads this, you'll notice a real reduction in the number of posts as time has passed.
It isn't that I'm not reading; I'm just not writing about it.
The reason is: the lack of comments from readers. My daughter told me right at the beginning to not set myself up for disappointment by expecting comments, but when there are none, I feel that no one even looks here.
I write this to share recommendations about books that I've read, as many of those books have been recommended to me. The difference is that I tell people "Wow! I really liked that book", but seldom does anyone report back to me.
So, to those few of you who do: You're treasured!

Do I have great friends, or what?

I hope that any of you that read this blog realize that I don't find all these excellent books by myself. I have wonderful friends that lend or recommend or even bring books to my house. Yesterday, I finished reading Into the Wild by Jon Krakauer (1996). You may have heard of this book, as they just recently released a movie that was based on it.
This is the true story of a young, idealistic, financially secure college graduate who gave away all of his possessions and his money to set out alone looking for adventure, self-reliance, and equality with his fellow human beings.
He eventually ended up in the Alaskan wilderness where he starved to death. I'm not giving anything away by telling that; there's been a lot of publicity.
Sounds grim, doesn't it? Surprisingly, it's not. The book is very well written, and though the ending leaves you sad, you're also somewhat awed by the single-minded resolution of this young man that any of us would have been proud to know.

Scary Title

It caught my eye in the library. A softcover in the "New Books" section with a picture of a pile of brown dirt against a backdrop of blue sky. A hand holding a shovel can be seen throwing dirt skyward, which seems entirely appropriate for a book entitled Gravedigger. It was written by Peter Grandbois, and published in 2006.
It tells the story of a man in a small Spanish village whose inherited job it was to dig graves. The unusual part is that the recently deceased visits him while he is preparing the grave to tell him the story of their life, which he, in turn, passes on to the bereft family for their comfort.
We not only hear the stories from the dead, but also we learn his story, and that of his daughter. It's a well-written book telling an interesting tale.

An Exception --- At last!

I've gone quite a while between postings because although I've been reading a lot, none of the books were anything I cared to write about. They weren't bad, just kind of run-of-the-mill.
Finally, a friend loaned an excellent book.
It's The God of Animals by Aryn (that's a girl) Kyle (2007).
This book tells the story of a young girl/woman growing up on her daddy's horse ranch. The father was a horse trainer whose big dreams got in the way of any practicality. The mother was severely depressed and confined herself to her upstairs bedroom. There was an older sister who had been the darling of the ranch community because of her innate ability to ride, perform and bond with horses.
Then there's Alice, the younger girl. Alice's sister had run away with a young cowboy, leaving Alice and her dad trying get a little financial stability out of their ranch. Eventually, they were desperate enough to offer to board horses for the wealthy young matrons of the community. There's such a contrast between the lives of the characters in this book, and I can't imagine that it would fail to hold the interest of any reader.
This is Aryn Kyle's first novel. Let's hope she writes a whole lot more.

Just Plain "WOW"!

I haven't posted anything for a while because I've been reading a really big book (think "Hawaii"). This one was almost 800 pages, and that's in fairly small print. The book is AZTEC, by Gary Jennings (1980). Thanks to a good librarian, this came to my attention.
The story traces the entire lifespan of an Indian native to Mexico prior to and during the Spanish invasion. The narrator, Mixtli, is telling of his life and of his country to a group of priests who have commanded him to do so.
The story is divided into segments as transcribed by the priests to be sent to His Excellency, the Emperor of Spain. The book is so well done that not only do you learn about Mixtli, you also get several chuckles about the priests.
I'm so glad I got to read this book. I feel that it's probably pretty accurate historically, but it's also darn good entertainment.

A lot more than just history

I am not a lover of history --- except sometimes, and on certain subjects. I don't know a lot about the depression except that my parents lived through it, and that I was born near the end of it. And other than seeing The Grapes of Wrath several times over the years, I don't know much about the American Dust Bowl which happened in the same period of time.
But now, thanks to Timothy Egan, Pulitzer Prize winning reporter, I know a whole lot more about each of them. His book, The Worst Hard Time (2006), covers both grim subjects in an enjoyable manner.
Are you aware that more land was ruined in Kansas than in Oklahoma? Do you know that the major cause was greed? How about Americans starving to death? Ever hear of a soil temperature of 142? And no matter what your political persuasion, I believe this book will lead you to a lot of admiration for Franklin Delano Roosevelt.
I'm sure this review could not make you eager to read the book, but I was very impressed with it. Give the book a try. I bet you'll agree with me.

This was way different...

A close friend loaned another good book to me. It is Solar Storms by Linda Hogan (1995). The book won the Colorado Book Award for Fiction in that year. The narrator is a teen-age Native American almost-woman, who has been separated from her family and raised in foster homes. She bore the facial scars of an early injury, but no knowledge of how she had been hurt, nor of why she had been given away by, or taken away from, her mother. After making a connection with her grandmother, she also found a great-grandmother, her grandfather's first wife, other relatives, and eventually, her mother and a sister.
The three older women and the girl make a long and hazardous journey by canoe through the upper waters of Minnesota.
The book is written in a simple and beautiful manner. I liked it a lot.

More than Memorable

I recognize that I probably sound overly enthusiastic in my book reviews, but I seem to be going through a cycle of only being exposed to excellent, one-of-a-kind books.
My latest love affair is with Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen (2006). The author's picture on the inside of the book's back cover shows her to be a pretty, young woman -- so how could she possibly portray the old (90 or 93, he's not sure which) man in a retirement home with such bull's-eye accuracy? I hope I'm not infringing on the copyright to quote just a small segment.
*******************************************************************************
" There's dead silence in the room. I look around. All eyes are trained on me. "What?" I say loudly. "Is that so much to ask? Doesn't anyone else here miss real food? Surely you can't all be happy with this ... this ... pap?" I put my hand on the edge of my plate and give it a shove.
Just a little one.
Really.
My plate shoots across the table and crashes to the floor. "
**********************************************************************************
Isn't that great! I'm going to drive the library nuts trying to get her other books.
Anyway, the basic story is about a young almost-veterinarian who ends up caring for the animals in a circus train during the depression years. The narrator is the old man who is remembering.
You'd have to be a real pickle-puss not to enjoy this one. Remember her name. Sara Gruen.

Awed by an Author

I feel so fortunate in living at this time, in this place in the world where I have access to magnificent books, and good friends who recommend them. At the same time, I feel a lot of guilt about being so unaware of the actual suffering of other women. Not that I could have done anything, but women as a group could have, and we should have known.
I love our country deeply, but hate the fact that we Americans allow ourselves to be so isolated from the rest of the world. Try learning anything of any depth from the ordinary media. Ha!
All the above was inspired by reading two books written by Kahled Hosseini. They are Kite Runner (about 2005), and A Thousand Splendid Suns (2007)
Both books were heart-breakers. They are set in Afghanistan in the very recent past.
Kite Runner tells the story of two boys who grew up together in an Afghan city. The narrator was the son of a rich man; the other boy the son of a servant. Their friendship is shattered by a betrayal, but the love continues, though unrecognized by one of them. I feel certain that the book is at least somewhat autobiographical, but don't recall any confirmation of that.
A Thousand Splendid Suns tells of two women. We meet them as children of very different backgrounds, but as a young adult (15!), each of them is married to the same man, who is a miserable excuse for a human being. The book tells of living under the Soviet occupation, the Taliban, and all the way to the current situation.
I am not getting old and easily moved to tears, but the author makes you love these women and care deeply about what happens to them. Read it!

Not a book, but a movie

Mike, my husband, and I watched the movie Kelly's Heroes in 1970. Admittedly, that was 37 years ago, but we remembered it as a good, funny movie. I remembered Donald Sutherland as a spaced-out hippie, I remembered his tank that shot paint and played loud music, and I remembered that that these army guys were trying to get some gold bars that were in a German bank behind enemy lines (the movie was set in WWII).
Since we subscribe to Netflix, and love it, we thought we'd like to see this movie again.
Decades make a big difference in perspective.
Yes, it had funny moments, and it's still a good movie. I don't know about Mike, but what I saw was greed, death and destruction.
The earlier memory was more fun, but this realization was more accurate.

Old, New (to me) and Wonderful

Since the last post, I read a couple of mysteries by Harlan Coben, whose books are always good. However, since I read so many mysteries, I instantly forget the plot, and sometimes buy (as a used book) or check out the same one. If it's a library book, I simply return it, or I use a purchased one as a trade-in.
As a change of pace, I then read Final Gifts -- subtitle: Understanding the special awareness, needs, and communications of the dying -- by Maggie Callanan and Patricia Kelley (1992). I believe the subtitle tells you probably as much as you might want to know about this one, other than that I found it gentle, factual and worthwhile.
The main subject of this post, though, is High Tide in Tucson by Barbara Kingsolver (1995). I thought I had read most of her books, but somehow, I missed this one. Why didn't any of you guys tell me about it??? I don't remember enjoying a book this much in a long, long time , if ever. This is a collection of essays Barbara has written over the years. She writes of a hermit crab; weather in Tucson; her career; childhood; a secret slut society; divorce; living in Spain; a visit to Africa; traversing a volcano in Hawaii; being in a rock band; and well, you get the idea. I love her attitude about almost everything. If I had to be lost on that mythical island with only one book, I take this one. It gives you so darn much to think about.

I'm not THAT zippy!

Are you thinking "Wow! A review on the 4th, the 5th and the 7th. This person is one fast reader". I am a fast reader, but didn't read three books in four days. I was reading them all at the same time.
The God Delusion was heavy, so I read some, then started another book which I also couldn't stay with steadily, so I read (part of) the Cornwell book as an alternative. Here's a short report on the middle one.
It was Reading Lolita in Tehran by Azar Nafisi (2003).
I liked and didn't like it, though never doubting that it's a good book. The author is a professor of literature, and while I would have adored her as an instructor when I was much younger, discussions of and analyses of major fiction aren't exactly my cup of tea now. That said, let me say that I very much enjoyed the stories that disclosed so much of life in Iran. The women in the book were bold and courageous -- and very likeable.
If for no other reason, you should read the book to learn a little about Iranian women.

A Different Perspective

I always think I read everything that comes along, but have come to realize that I really don't. I don't read romances, westerns, regular detective stories, and not much in the self-help line anymore (Could I have given up?).
If those are your kind of books, please don't look here for any reviews of them.
I do read lots of political books, courtroom dramas, quality mysteries -- Richard North Patterson, John Grisham, and others -- and books about religion. Most of the latter are negative, but I read a spiritual one every now and then for balance.
I just finished The God Delusion by Richard Dawkins (2006). Dawkins is a famous biologist who is known also as an atheist. The book got a little over my head in the middle (physics??!), but that was the only part that I didn't enjoy.
It was extremely well-written, and leaves you with much to think about.
Coming soon: one on spirituality.

Big Disappointment

Most of us who enjoy a well-written mystery have enjoyed Patricia Cornwell's novels for several years. We've known her main character, Kay Scarpetta, so well that she seems real to us. While I've forgotten the title (too many years ago), I'll never forget the impact of reading about the brutal slaying of Kay's lover, Benton. I actually cried, and there are very few books that can affect me that way.
I felt angry and somehow cheated, or at least manipulated when the next book revealed that Benton's death had been a hoax.
In subsequent books, Kay has moved, her life has changed, and so have the other characters that surround her. In my opinion, the books have not been as good as the earlier ones, but they're still written by Patricia Cornwell, so how could that be bad?
I just found out. The latest (as far as I know), At Risk, stinks. All the characters are new, unlikeable, and boring. I gave up at about the halfway point.
I didn't think Patricia Cornwell could write a bad book. I was wrong.

A Recent Find

My daughter and I share a common interest in "religious sightings", such as The Holy Tortilla, The Chocolate Virgin, Jesus on Grilled Cheese, and others. So when I saw a library book titled The Virgin of Small Plains by Nancy Pickard (2006), of course I had to try it.
Hey, it's a really good book. Small Plains is a small town, and the female in the title is not a virgin. When the townspeople find a young woman's body which they are unable to identify, they give her a Christian burial, and as years go by, a legend grows that she was a virgin and is subsequently credited with performing miracles for those who pray to her.
There is another story being told at the same time about two teenagers who are truly in love. The scene where they decide to consummate their relationship is one of the sexiest I've ever read. I'm not a fan of gratuitous sex scenes written to sell books, but this is instrumental to the story. You can almost feel the heat between these two.
I have since read sever books by Nancy Pickard, and she's always good. I liked this best of all.

And just a little more...

I hadn't quite finished the book when I wrote that first post, because this is not the type of book you read quickly. I have now finished it, and am more impressed than ever. Barbara considers the viewpoints of both the vegetarian and the carnivore fairly, and gives the reader a lot to think about. Their family eats meat and shares in the responsibility of converting a living animal into food. She doesn't try to pretty it up, which leaves me full of admiration for the frankness and honesty. While many readers may go "Eeeewww", my feeling is 'Get over it. Didn't you know that's how the chicken starts it's journey to your grill?'
You can learn a lot from this book, and there are many laughs along the way.

First, Best, Current, Important

Barbara Kingsolver's Animal, Vegetable, Miracle (2007)
Many of us are familiar with Kingsolver's earlier work -- The Bean Trees, The Poisonwood Bible, and other excellent fiction. This one is fact.
She tells the story of when their family moved from Tucson, Arizona (around 2003) to a farm in Appalachia, where, as a family they made a committment to eating only locally produced food. Each family member was allowed to choose one item that couldn't be grown locally. The father chose coffee. Barbara chose spices. The elder daughter chose dried fruit, while the younger one had to have her hot chocolate. They learned to produce their own food, or to buy from local farmers. Barbara and the girls even became proficient at making cheese.
Anyone who likes gardening will enjoy the seasonal stories, and persons who are interested in health aspects of organic food will enjoy the rest.
My short description doesn't, of course, do the book justice, but let's hope I get better at this. Suggestions would be welcome.
The book is excellent, and probably available in your local library.