Month: May 2013

Books read in April 2013

Apparently Book groups have taken over my reading life.  Everything I read this month had to do with a book group!

Read
Twice Told
Scott Hunt
A book of short stories written by YA authors inspired by drawings made by Scott Hunt.  Each drawing had two different stories and it was interesting to see what inspired the authors.  In the back, each author talks a little about their process.

The Graveyard Book
Neil Gaiman
Matt and I read aloud.
This was a delightful fantasy about a boy whose family is murdered being raised by ghosts in a graveyard.  When I put it like that, the book sounds ghastly, but it really was quite sweet and whimsical.

Norwegian Wood
Murakami
Read for Kenton Library Book Group
An interesting view of 1960s-era college-student Japan.  After reading three of his books, I note that Murakami seems incredibly removed from his storytelling while at the same time is able to craft incredibly hot sex scenes.  I find this juxtaposition odd.

Brave Girl
Michelle Markel
Read for Librarian Book Group
A picture book that takes us into the early 20th century advocating for better factory conditions through the eyes of a brave girl.  Though I felt that there was no solid sense of time (how much does Clara age over the progress of the book?) I thought this was a good introduction to factories and the labor struggle.  The illustrations were interesting, using textiles as well as other media to tell the story.

One Gorilla
Anthony Browne
Read for Librarian Book Group
The pictures of the animals were great.  The pictures of the humans were weird.

Eleanor and Park
Rainbow Rowell
Read for Librarian Book Group
Rainbow Rowell’s name falls into the same category as Ransom Riggs (category:  YA authors with names I hope they didn’t grow up with, but suspect they did).  That said, this is probably destined to be a popular YA book and for very good reason.  The setting is unusual (Omaha in the 80s) the characters are interesting (Eleanor, poor girl from the wrong side of the tracks, Park, half-Korean boy who doesn’t fit in the standard of mid-80s Omaha masculinity) what brings them together is perfect (comics, music) and the dramatic tension in the story feels very real (I was quite worried). In short, this is a book to read now.  Go and find it.

Started and did not finish
Son of a Gun
Anne de Graaf
Read for Librarian Book Group.
Seemed interesting, but child solders is not a topic I am motivated to read about.

Postcard from Finland.

Here’s my first art postcard!  It’s from Juulia who is 11 and has great handwriting.  She says, “I hope this card is unbroken when it comes to you.  If here is falled letters, cards says: “Muffini” and that means cupcake in Finnish.

As you can see, nearly all the letters made it to me.

Also, this stamp makes me want to visit Finland in the summer.  Though I imagine their summer beach weather is not much different than the Oregon Coast, temperature-wise.

Two headlines from today’s paper

Reading this, I audibly gasped, mostly because I’ve been waiting for years for male athletes to start coming out of the closet.  Also: same last name!
 
Oh Grant Butler.  A few years ago you decided to experiment with being vegan for a few months and I thought, “I hope you can make it that long without cheese” because cheese is the number one reason I don’t want to be a vegan.  The number two reason is that I don’t think it’s actually a healthy way of eating.  But you, Grant Butler, took to it like a duck to water and now your write columns that amuse me such as this:

Now I don’t mind a good veggie burger now and then, but really, the bun?  The bun is the best part, in fact,  the main reason for eating the veggie burger.  When you get right down to it, I would eat the bun with a bit of butter rather than the veggie burger wrapped in lettuce or what have you.