10 Books I Want to Reread

Llevinso @ Sarcastic Female Literary Circle had posted this while I was in Boston, but since I didn't care to type out a blog post on my Nook Color, I'm doing this now.

I love to reread favorite books. Nothing like a good reliable story if you are in a funk, or just need to lighten the reading schedule. Plus you will always see something you missed the previous time around.

1. The Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkien: Blame the official casting announcement a few months. Martin Freeman will make a perfect Bilbo. But I've been wanting to reread this since then.

2. Harry Potter series by J.K. Rowling: I had intended on rereading this before the final movie comes out, but that's not going to happen. But I may make it through the audio books before then. But I'd like to reread and catch all the little clues she laid out through the series.

3. Gone with the Wind by Margaret Mitchell: I read this back in the 7th grade, and have not read it since, though I love the movie. Be nice to read it with an adult perspective, and a greater knowledge of history.

4. The Last of the Mohicans by James Fenimore Cooper: Another I read in junior high or there abouts and would like to revisit.

5. A Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood: This was something assigned my senior year of high school, so it was read out of duty then. But since then I've found I really like the distopian genre so I figured it be a good one to revisit.

6. Don Quixote by Miguel de Cervantes: I had picked this to read for a class project, but I don't remember too much about it. Though I can spout out numbers from Man of La Mancha nearly at will. So would like to revisit it, once I find my copy.

7. The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne: Yup, another school read. Unlike many people, I don't have any bad rememberances about it from then (a rarity for assigned school readings), so would like to revisit.

8. Something by Emerson, Thoreau or one of the other transcendentalists: In studying the movement in history classes after intially reading the works in class, I found I really found that I agreed with some of the big points of the movement, so I'd like to reread them.

9. The Chronicles of Prydain by Lloyd Alexander: I loved this series since elementary school.

10. Mistress of the Art of Death Series by Ariana Franklin: I still have the last book to read, but I loved this series, especially the initial book. And since the author died this last winter, I will need to reread it to get my fix, since there aren't likely to be any more.

The true benefit of checking out e-books from the library...

Some people would probably say that the true benefit of checking out e-books from the library versus real books is that you get them right away, or if a hold comes in, you don't have to go down to the library to pick it up.

But really, the true perk of checking out e-books is that you don't have the temptation of the library book sale section. Sure you may only spend $5 on the five books you get, but these deals are much harder to resist. But then, I did find Year of Wonders, and unread copies of Practical Magic and The Surgeon (which I had already picked up used, but paid as much for that one book in poorer condition as the five I got today), so shouldn't complain too much.

The Blighted Troth: A Novel of New France

From the author's journal:
In 1702, Emilie Basseaux lives with her widowed mother in New France. On the eve of her wedding to Robert Lanzille, she catches the eye of the settlement’s unscrupulous overlord, Seigneur Richard Tonnacour who threatens to kill the parish priest if he performs their marriage. This sets off a catastrophic chain of events that turns her life, and that of her betrothed, into a desperate flight for their lives, separating them, and sending them straight into the arms of peril. Emilie and Robert’s plight sweeps them into the convents and taverns, the riots and small-pox epidemics of New France where they each face death and discover the true meaning of love and forgiveness. It is a compelling story of love and treachery, faith and loss, forgiveness and triumph. The Blighted Troth is a retelling of the classic novel, The Betrothed (I Promessi Sposi) by Alessandro Manzoni. Inspired by this epic Italian classic novel, the author weaves an entirely new and unqiue captivating tale in a new setting, a new century, and with new plot twists.

Review:
I had never heard of this author prior to seeing this listing on LibraryThing's Member giveaways, so I had no expectations going in. It is an easy read. It has a nice glimpse at life in a small Canadian (New France at the time) town, and a bit of a comparision to life in Quebec. We also got to see how the 1702-1703 Smallpox epidemic effected everyone in the colony. I've never really learned or read much about Canadian histoy, except where it tied directly into a American historical event, so this is all new territory for me.

It was a fairly quick read as well. For a 452 page e-book, it only took me approximately four days to get through. Some of this may be due to how the book is set up. It has 142 chapters. A good many of them are one pagers, and in the 2-5 page range. These short chapters, made for a quick pace, though it makes the chapter count sound scary. I'm not sure that it is better than combining some of the small chapters into others, but it may be just me nit-picking about editing-formatting issues.

The characters could probably have been developed a bit more. You get a clear sense of who they are, but I could have used a bit more to get me fully invested in them. The best characters are Pere Jean Civitelle, the parish priest who cares more for saving his own hide than tending to the needs, and Claude Prudhomme, one of the neighboring lords to the one where Emilie and Robert live under. Claude is known as one of the more ruthless overlords in New France, but during the course of the novel and gives up his bad ways. His story would make a really interesting novel, on its on.

Been having trouble putting into words just does and doesn't quite work for me. Its a good diversion, but not great. There's a few really good characters, but the others could use just a bit more to make them really pop. The ending I could see coming from near the middle of the book.

I give this a 3.5-4 star

Mailbox....er Wednesday?

I just got back from a trip to Boston, so going to do this today. I had to show much restraint, as I could have easily have filled a suitcases with interesting books I saw.

Won from Amy @ Passages to the Past and Christy English =D :
To Be Queen: A Novel of the Early Life of Eleanor of Aquitaine by Christy English

For Review:
The Converted by C.R. Hindmarsh

Library:
Sarah's Key by Tatiana de Rosnay
Matched by Ally Condie
The Trinity Six by Charles Cumming

Purchases/Freebies:
Shadowbrook by Beverly Swerling
Soft Apocalypse by Will McIntosh (Freebie Friday)
A Fool Again by Eloise James
Photographs and Phantoms by Cindy Spencer Paper

Trip purchases:
Judge Sewall's Apology: A Biography. The Salem Witch Trials and the Forming of an American Conscience by Richard Francis
Concord: Climate for Freedom by Ruth R. Wheeler
The Devil in the Shape of a Woman: Witchcraft in Colonial New England by Carol F. Karlsen
Power Plays: Shakespeare's Lessons in Leadership and Management by John O. Whitney and Tina Packer

Mailbox Monday

Hosted by Passages to the Past this month.

Library:
Oryx and Crake by Margaret Atwood

For Review:
A Kingdom's Cost by J.R. Tomlin
Freedom's Sword by J.R. Tomlin
The Blighted Troth by Mirella Sichirollo Patzer

Purchased/Freebies (aka Sarah spends too much time looking up the free books on BN)
Lost Tales of Mercia by Jayden Woods
The Demon Girl by Penelope Fletcher
13 Little Blue Envelopes by Maureen Johnson
I Serve by Rosanne Lortz

---------------------------------------------------

Nook Color owners- Check your email associated with your nook, because the new firmware update that ads in the apps and other things is live. The email has a direct link if you are impatient and want to manually install it

Travel Reads

Traveling- a great time to get some reading done. But how do you pick what book(s) to take with you?

My last trip, I took The Fiery Cross by Diana Gabaldon with me, since I was going to be gone 2 weeks, and a 1400-ish page book would work well for it. I actually think I started the Outlander series the trip before that.

But this time I have my Nook for those times that its allowed on the plane, and in the airport. But I need to pick out something for the other times when electronic devices are not allowed. Despite the copious amounts of books I have, I've not a clue which to take. Though I think I might pack one of my tiny Shakespeare volumes as a backup, since that set is tiny (each volume is a little larger than deck of cards and has 4-5 plays in it).

I'm leaning towards not a chunkster, since I pack light (ie carry on or bust), but will have to make a short stack and see.

Mailbox Monday

Had a couple more library holds come in this week:

The Weird Sisters by Eleanor Brown
Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen

Also got for the Nook
The Bronze Horseman by Paullina Simons
Soul Identity by Dennis Batchelder (freebie)



---------------------
Been reading The Help since Thursday and am only about 160 pages in. I know alot of people just love this book but I'm just not getting that love. Story is alright, but doesn't have that thing that makes me want to read it for long stretches.

Mailbox Monday

Ok, these are the books that have made it to my greedy little hands in the last week. None in the actual mailbox, however (my form of restraint).

Library:
The Help by Kathryn Stockett
The Thief by Megan Whalen Turner
Coraline by Neil Gaiman
(or I just found my county library has started using Overdrive and can get my hold now)

Purchases:
A Breath of Snow and Ashes by Diana Gabaldon
A Clash of Kings by George R.R. Martin
The Kingmaker by Hellen Hollick (e-book)

E-Reader Meme

Stolen from Wendy @ Wall-to-Wall Books, but I forgot to do it earlier closer to when she posted it.
1. What kind of eReader do you own?
Nook Color

2. How long have you had it?
About two months. Got it near the beginning of February when I started a long monitoring project for work.

3. What was your first bought book?
We Two: Victoria and Albert: Rulers, Partners, Rivals by Gillian Gill

4. Name 3 random books on your eReader "shelves" or in your "library" that are waiting to be read.
The Hanover Square Affair by Ashley Gardner
Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins
Magyk by Angie Sage

5. Name 3 random books on your eBook wishlist.
Fool by Christopher Moore
Autobiography of Mark Twain
America the Edible: A Hungry History From Sea to Dining Sea by Adam Richman

...though the last I'd probably get more as a real book. I've just started using it as a sort of notepad if I'm in a book store and see something I want, but don't want to buy at the moment.

6. What will your next purchase probably be and why?
I'm tempted to get the Zombie Survival Guide while its still $5

7. If you get music (Nook Color gets Pandora) what was the last song or singer you looked up?
I've not bothered signing up for it yet. I've got two Ipods, so I'm really covered on them for audio

8. How often do you use your eReader?
As of late, daily, since I've had a couple library ebooks I was reading, then started on some of the other. But I have a real book going too, so it varies who gets the most attention.

9. Have you downloaded any magazines?
Not yet, because I don't like most of the magazines offered. I'm a history and science girl. Don't want politics, or worse fashion magazines. If I did I'd probably go for Nat Geo, or a newspaper

10. How did you ever survive without an eReader?
Quite easily, as my boxes of boxed up books can attest to. But now I can get better bargins (when was the last time you got something good for 99 cents at a new book store?) and not worry where to put them.

Mailbox Monday

Should have been for last week, but I didn't get to it, so...



The Philosopher's Kiss by Peter Prange

I got this from the Goodreads Early Review giveaway.

Description from Goodreads:

Paris, 1747. Betrayed by God and humanity, Sophie moves to the seething capital of the kingdom. To survive, she works at Café Procope, the meeting place for freethinkers and revolutionaries.

Against her will she falls deeply in love with one of the regular customers: Denis Diderot, the famed philosopher and a married man. He and his colleagues are planning the most dangerous book in the world since the appearance of the Bible: an encyclopedia. Even more explosive are the covert references in the Encyclopedia that threaten to undermine both the monarchy and the church. But Sophie soon realizes that the stakes are even higher for her personally. At risk are her right to freedom, love, and happiness.

Gone was an e-book I "got" from the LibraryThing Early Review giveaway. Got is a relative term as the download link had exceeded its limit by the time I got home from work last Monday, so had to use the flip link. Anywho....since I already posted the review, I won't repost that.