The Help

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One of the best parts of our beach weekend was having the chance to read. I started reading The Help by Kathryn Stockett on Tuesday on my train ride to Baltimore and finished it Saturday on the beach. This book was perfect for the beach. I literally could not put it down.

This book was fantastic for several reasons. It was easy to read and very captivating. There were parts where I really wanted to cringe at how the characters were treated. There were parts where I laughed out loud and there were parts where I wanted to cry. The author did a fantastic job of catching each character's point of view while keeping their voice distinct. As y'all know from my several book reviews, I love books that change voice, and this one was no exception.

I know many have read this book, but if you haven't, go read it now! Now I can't wait to see the movie!

Have you read The Help? What did you think?

Because of Winn-Dixie

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I have been on a book roll! OK, it helps that I have spent a lot of time on the train between Baltimore and DC lately. The occasional commute is LONG, but I have enjoyed the extra reading time it allows me.

This week I finished Because of Winn-Dixie by Kate Dicamillo. This book is a childrens book, but it is a quick and easy read. My mom and I saw the movie when it came out a few years ago (or 7 years ago) and I remember I thought the plot line was very cute. The book is no different and a lot better.

The novel is told through the eyes of Opal, a little girl who just moved with her father (a preacher) to a Florida town. She is lonely and thinks about her mother (who left when she was little) a lot. The story opens with Opal walking into a Winn-Dixie to find a stray dog wrecking havoic to the grocery store. When the manager asks whose dog it is, she says hers and adopts it. Throughout the story Opal and the dog Winn-Dixie meet various town residents and become friends.

The book is very cute and has a great lesson. If you are looking for an easy, quick read then this one is for you :)

In other news, we are 12 days away from the wedding. Jay and I got a lot done this past weekend, which i promise to post about this week. It feels great to have almost everything done. Now we get just to enjoy the ride :)

Pictures of You

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I finished Caroline Leavitt’s novel Pictures of You in a matter of days. This is really says something considering it took me two months to read The Poisonwood Bible. Don’t get me wrong, I loved The Poisonwood Bible, it just wasn’t the easiest or quickest read.

While Pictures of You is a really good, quick and easy read, but it is not the lightest subject. Just be forewarned the book is about a horrible car accident where the little boys mother dies. The character development is fantastic as Leavitt describes the grief of the child, the woman who hit the child’s mother and the father. 

Trust me on this one, go get this book, you will enjoy it.

The Poisonwood Bible

I finally finished it! After about 2 months, I can say I completed both April and May's goal. I had a lot of trouble getting into Barbara Kingslover's acclaimed novel The Poisonwood Bible, but I am so glad I made my way through it.

After talking to a number of friends, I realized I was not the only one who had a lot of trouble getting into this book. It took me about 100 pages to really get into it. But, I am glad I did give finally get into it.

I loved that it was told primarily through each of the daughters point of view. I did find their narrative a bit confusing at first as I tried to figure out who was who (realize I read on the metro and often pick up and put down the book between chapters). I don't think this would be a problem if you read a chapter at a time. I loved watching (or reading) the girls grow up and seeing how Africa, their relationships with their family and America impacted their lives.

minor spoiler alert ahead

I thought it was pretty obvious who was going to die. Orlenna divulges that one of her daughter's dies pretty early on in the book. As soon as she mentions leaving a child in Africa I knew which daughter it would be. I am ok with who Kingsolver kills off, but think it would have been interesting to watch that character develop as she aged.

 

Have you read The Poisonwood Bible? What did you think?

Books from February

I have been playing catch-up lately. Trying to catch-up on sleep, cleaning the apartment and updating the blog.

Last month, I read two books that never made it to the blog. One was Kate Morton’s The Forgotten Garden for book club and Kate DiCamillo's The Magician’s Elephant.

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Kate Morton’s The Forgotten Garden is by far one of the best books I have read in a while (except the Hunger Games Trilogy). The story centers around the mystery of one character's parents. In early 20th century England, a little girl is put on a boat bound for Australia by the "Authoress". Found months later on an Australian dock, a couple raises the girl (who they named Nell) as their own. It is not until her foster father dies does she begin to unravel the truth of her past. Mid-search, Nell becomes the guardian of her grand-daughter Cassandra. It is not until Nell's death that Cassandra (now an adult) discovers the truth of her grand-mother's past.

The book is very poignant and well written. The story intertwines several character's narrative as they slowly learn and tell the story of Nell, Cassandra and the Authoress (Eliza) and how Nell ended up alone on a ship to Australia.

I did feel like the author spoiled the ending half way through by giving the reader an obvious hint to who the mother is. The author also has some blatant cultural references like Frances Hodgson Burnett attends a garden party and is intrigued by the forgotten garden. In fact, Morton's story line mirrors that of The Secret Garden. Regardless, I hope to pick up more Morton's books soon!

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The other book I finished in February was Kate DiCamillo's The Magician’s Elephant. This book was Amazon's Kindle Daily Deal a few month's ago. I saw it and thought, why not?!?! A children's book can be a great reprieve from the literature I normally enjoy. The Magician’s Elephant is similar to many children's stories we have all read. It is about a little orphan boy who lives in unusual circumstances all the while wondering if his sister is still alive. One day a fortune teller shows up at the market. The boy decides to ask her if his sister is still alive. The answer is that an elephant will lead him there, which seems quite strange for the city of Baltese. The novel intertwines several characters lives together in pursuit of the elephant and leaves readers trusting the unexpected.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book. It was a great reprieve between the harshness of Hunger Games Trilogy and the mystery of The Forgotten Garden. I found it extremely easy to read on the metro, pick up and put down as I started and finished other books. But then again, it is a little below my reading level ;)

 

Have you read any good books this year?

The DC Blogger Book Club is reading The Poisonwood Bible by Barbara Kingsolver this month. Want to get involved? Let me know!

The Hunger Games

Spoiler Alert!! If you don't want to know what happens in any of the Hunger Games books I would highly recommend coming back another day. You have been warned!!

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This book review is looong overdue! I read the Hunger Games Trilogy in about a week back in early January and loved it. In fact, I could not put the books down.

I think most fans would agree that the first book The Hunger Games is by far the best book. It can easily stand alone and grabs your attention from the beginning. Collins immediately portrays Katniss as a strong individual who has been fighting diligently for her family since her father's unexpected death in the coal mines a few years prior. Collins also does a great job of setting up the disparity in District 12 and the importance of the games to a citizen from the first page. It is quite evident that Katniss will be one of the tributes from her district (each year one boy and one girl from each district compete to the death in the annual Hunger Games). The way Collins actually makes Katniss a tribute sets up her fantastic story telling skills from the beginning.

For the sake of brevity I won't outline the entire novel or trilogy. I will say that I think Collins does a great job of showing how different the games appear to a tribute vs. a citizen vs. a victor. As I began each section I was amazed how Collins continued to develop the characters and their settings. I don't think I have ever been as shocked as I have been when reading this book. I don't know why but I found each death to be very thought-provoking. Collins do not let her characters die without some sort of statement or point to develop another character.

As for the second and third book, I found each one was weaker than the last. In the second book, Katniss still has some strength to her, but I found this completely dissolves by the third book. As many others have said, the strongest thing Katniss does in the final book is kill Coin. My favorite comment about the third book is from Lunarbovine saying once you get through book one and two, you might as well read the third to find out what happens.

Regardless the world Collins creates is fantastic! I found Collins portrayal of the post-apocalyptic United Sates interesting. As Collins gave hints about each of the 12 districts controlled by the Capitol, I loved trying to place the current region with the one Collins created. I think this fan did a great job of placing each district.

I also want to say a few things about a few characters. The book opens highlighting the friendship between Katniss and Gale, her hunting partner. From the first book, I always assumed Gale was a big brother type. Maybe I am naive, but I really liked the platonic relationship they had and did not really like how the movie and later books play up the romantic triangle. I understand that Katniss becomes conflicted about her feelings while in the arena, but was surprised by how much the media has played up this relationship pre-movie. I guess I never really saw Gale as a romantic threat until the second book and even then I feel like she was destined to be with Peeta.

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As for Katniss's family, from the beginning Primrose (Prim) is depicted as an innocent little girl and her mother as weak. When Katniss's father died, Katniss had to keep the family going while her mother retreated into her self. While Katniss does acknowledge her mother's knowledge of healing power later in the trilogy, it is obvious that she has little respect for her mom. As the books progress, Katniss also acknowledges her sister's growth, maturity and age, as Prim becomes the head of their household demanding Katniss to let her into what she is going through. Unfortunately, I feel Katniss never really accepts her sisters maturity. Katniss instead continues to harp on the fact that Primrose was once so innocent even to her death.

I know many people had a problem with Prim's death so close to the end of the war. Yes, I found it ironic, but I also saw it as almost necessary. Collins never leads us on to believe that we would get a fairy tale, and I think in Katniss's world, it would be fairy tale ending if Prim alive and well.

As for the epilogue, I was genuinely curious what would happened to the characters and liked that Collins included both the positive and negative of the character's life post war. Normally, I am not a fan of epilogues, in fact I hated the Harry Potter epilogue because I found it way too positive and happy ending.

Wow, I think that details the main points I wanted to hit. The last characters that I think is worth including is of course, Peeta. I think Peeta and Katniss were destined to be together from the moment they were both selected to be in the games. This became evident to me while they were in the area together fighting and as they began comforting each other on their way back to District 12 (regardless of Katniss's feelings at the time).

 

I know there are many many Hunger Games reviews out there. If you have written one, link it up so I can see what you thought or please comment below.

Sick Run

I had plans this weekend, but life got in the way. I started the weekend by attending the blogger book club. It was a lot of fun to see everyone again. I just wish I had taken a few more photos!!

Besides all the lovely food, we talked about the book The Art of Racing of the Rain by Garth Stein. I really enjoyed the book! It was well written and captivating. Several times I even forgot that the books is told from the point of view of the dog. Though I think we all agreed that sometimes the dogs view was a tad far-fetched. Overall a good book and fast read.

Unfortunately, after book club my weekend went downhill fast. I woke up Saturday morning with the worse sore throat and spent the entire day drinking tea and eating chicken soup.

Thankfully, today was better. Since I do not have a fever, I decided to go on a leisurely 4 mile run. It may not have been the 9 mile run I had planned, but it was a run and it felt amazing. After my run, I felt so much better that I even got a few things done around the house.

Now I just have to decide on whether or not I should go to my Monday morning gym class.

Do you work out when your sick?

I follow the neck rule. If I have above the neck systems I will work out but with less intensity. If I have a fever I take a few days off.

A Practical Wedding

I found the “A Practical Wedding” blog when I first got engaged and fell in love with it. The website is full of funny and great advice about wedding planning. Meg Keene (the author) even posts (or seeks guest posts) on some tough topics and some people in the wedding business don’t want to talk about (i.e. what happens after the wedding). Needless to say I enjoy her posts daily.

Meg’s book was recently released. I will be honest and say I did not pre-order this book or run to the bookstore when it was released. I sat back and waited for the reviews. I mean I was already pretty far into planning my wedding.

Once Meg announced her book tour, including a stop in DC, I knew I had to get the book, read it and see her speak. While I am not more than 50 percent of the way through, I have to say the book is fantastic, and Meg is even better in person.

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So tonight, after work I headed over to Arlington’s One More Page Books to hear this ingenious woman speak.

Meg’s talk was great, not 100 percent about the book, but 100 percent about her beliefs about weddings. And believe me her beliefs are wide ranging (like one of the few things she recommends to every bride is pre-marriage counseling). She was funny, told us several times that comments were off the record and would even laugh at herself.

I am so glad that I took the opportunity to go hear her and meet women of similar minds. And yes, I went by myself (though I am sure if Jay was free he would have loved to go … not). I think events like this are great to go to by yourself because you can meet so many people and learn so many things.

One of the many things I have learned from Meg, her book, and her blog is that just as very person is different, so is there wedding. Now, I can be a very judgmental person (just ask my besties, parents or Jay). My parents are probably shaking their heads yes as they read this considering they hear the brunt of it (love ya!!). But one thing I have learned through the wedding planning process is that when you truly love someone, you could care less about all the details of the wedding planning process.

Take, for example, my older brother, Jim, who got married at a courthouse in Brooklyn. Yes, my immediate family would have loved to have been there (or taken them out to dinner afterward), but we weren’t. And that’s ok, because we are just happy that Jim and Natasha decided to start a life together.

So I guess the moral of this story is that wedding are as personal as the couple themselves. And while I may not think what every other bride thinks is pretty, I am genuinely happy for couples who tie the knot, because they look happy. Yes, some aspects of my wedding are not exactly what I have necessarily thought they would be, but I am enjoying the process for what it is (trust me ain’t all easy). I am enjoying wedding planning as I get to learn new things about Jay (men continue to amaze me) and spend more time with my Mom.

Goals for What’s Left of January

Yup, we are more than a third of the way through January and I haven't set any goals for the month. Ooops! I guess I got a little preoccupied by my 2012 resolutions and traveling that I forgot to think about what I want to accomplish this month.

This month I am focusing less on fitness and more on the other things that fill my days. Since the New Year I have already read three books. This morning when I was thinking about this post I vowed to finish the Hunger Game Trilogy this month, but honestly I would be surprised if I am not done by Monday.  

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So instead I am going to try to read six books this month. That will put me well on my way to my resolution of 20 books and provides a bit of a challenge. I normally don’t absorb book so quickly unless they are Harry Potter or apparently the Hunger Games.

Besides reading, I also want to finish my Index Card Journal. I first saw this idea on Iowa Girl Eats and am honestly impressed with my self for starting it. I have my cards made through May and have successfully written something on each day. Now I just have to finish!!

So my last goal is fitness related… In January I simply want to complete all my training runs for the USA Rock ‘N’ Roll Half. I have three left, a 6, 7 and 8. I am pretty sure I can do it, even though it is supposed to be freezing this weekend.

 

What are your goals for this month?

Can you Keep a Secret?

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What?!?! Two books in a row! I know, I know, not my normal routine. I am up in NYC this weekend with the family, so instead of letting the blog go empty I thought I would tell you about my first read of 2012 (wow, it's already 2012?!!?).

Can you Keep a Secret? by Sophie Kinsella is a fantastic read. The story follows Emma, a girl who has been keeping small secrets her entire life. At the beginning of the book, she is flown to Glasgow on business as a fill in. It should be a simple meeting, but everything just seems to go wrong. At the airport on her way home, she knocks a few back to calm her nervous and ends up having a nervous break-down on the flight, spilling all her secrets to the man next to her. From then on her secrets are slowly and also abruptly poured out to everyone she knows, but she rises to the occasion (with a little bit of crying).

I really enjoyed this book. Yes, it is Chick-lit. Yes, it is kind of corny and very unlikely, but it's a quick reead that makes you feel good inside. I would rate this book much like Sophie Kinsella's other book The Undomestic Goddess. This books makes me want to be a Sophie Kinsella fan, in fact I am a fan, just not of the Shopaholic Series.

The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo

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In an effort to see the movie, my latest read was The Girl With the Dragon Tatto by Stieg Larsson. I don't know what it is about books becoming movies, but it is huge motivator. Believe it or not, I did not become a Harry Potter fanatic until the first movie came out. I kept seeing such reviews and hearing all the hype that I decided to read the book and go see the movie with my Mom. While I have not seen The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo movie, I now understand all the hype.

I was warned that this book starts off slow. Knowing what I was getting into was very helpful. Once I was about 60 pages in I could not put the book down. I read this book in about 2 weeks, which includes the long Christmas weekend when I hardly picked up the book.

Warning, this book will suck you in. You will not want to put it down!

This book is also fairly graphic. I did not mind some of the more vulgar scenes. They all added to the character and plot development, but they also sometimes kept me up at night. I was about 50ish pages from the end when I had read through the main climax of the book. I put the book down knowing I would hate myself tomorrow at work if I kept reading late into the night. My only problem, I couldn't fall asleep for another 30 to 45 minutes.

I guess this instance just shows how riveting this book is. You get very invested in the characters and want to solve the mystery with them (and sometimes before). I was completely thrown off by the result, but liked how Stieg ended it.

Overall, great book. I highly recommend it to anyone who can get over the graphic scenes. As it comes to a commuting book, I would not recommend it because it is so hard to put down. I often found myself sitting in the lobby at work trying to finish a chapter or section. The good thing, there are lots of breaks in the book. It's just to hard to stop at these natural breaks.

Have you read The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo? What did you think?

The Violets of March

It’s moving week which means not much food will make its way to the blog. Sorry! I just didn’t think you would find us cleaning out the entire pantry as that exciting. Instead I thought I would tell you about the most recent book I finished.

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The Violets of March by Sarah Jio is another book I learned of from Jenna’s blog. The book is about Emily, an author who made it big in her 20’s but was having a rough time in her 30’s. Fresh out of a divorce, Emily visits her Aunt Bee on Bainbridge Island near Seattle for the entire month of March. During this month Emily becomes reacquainted with the island she loved during childhood summers and learns about a family secret through a diary found in the room she was staying in.

This novel is fresh and fun. I flew through this book and found it super easy to keep up with on my commute to and from work. I strongly recommend this book to anyone who is looking for the perfect beach winter read. :)

I am working on The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo now, but what should I read when I am done?

Productive Evening

I had a productive evening. I caught up on one of my favorite shows, Parenthood, while wrapping Christmas gifts.

They are all ready to go to Baltimore next weekend! Since Jay and I are moving before Christmas, I made sure all my holiday shopping was done by Thanksgiving. This way I will have everything wrapped and ready to get out of our current apartment before the move. I am just waiting on a few items that I purchased on Thanksgiving and I will be good to go!

After the gifts were wrapped, I made Jay and I a variation of my Vegetarian Pasta. It was delicious and really hit the spot on this chilly day.

It amazes me how quickly the weather can change from gorgeous and 60 degrees on Monday, to torrential down pour on Tuesday and chilly temperatures on Wednesday. I think last weekend was the last of the warmer weather here in DC.

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While I should have been enjoying the warm weather, I was finishing my latest book, Bloodroot by Amy Greene. I will be real honest, I was not the biggest fan of this book right off the bat. I picked up this book because of Jenna’s review. I have loved every book from her site that I have read, and this one was no different. BUT, I had trouble getting into it.

The story follows the main character Myra through the eyes of her loved ones in their own narrative. I did not find this distracting at all and found it to be the perfect format for my morning commute. Unfortunately, I also found this to be a problem in Part 1. In Part 1, neither of the character’s, Doug Cotter (childhood friend) and Byrdie’s (Myra’s grandmother) stories grabbed my attention. I thoroughly enjoyed this part, but was not thoroughly enthralled. This all changed by Part 2, and by the final Part and Epilogue, I could not put the book down.

Overall, I loved this book and recommend it to anyone who loves historical American fiction with a little mystery thrown in. It is easy to read on the go because you are never more than a few pages from a break. Plus, just like The Soldier's Wife I was hooked all the way to the last sentence. Yes, Amy Greene really did that!

The Soldier’s Wife

This evening was one of those evenings that did not go as planned in a very good way.

I picked up our Save-the-Dates from Costco and got to talk to my brother, Jim (eek sorry my phone stinks and cut us off).

When I got home I got a text from Charlotte about a Skype date. I jumped on the opportunity to spend some quality time with my BFF.

And now Mary’s mommy is here! So needless to say y’all get a book review tonight. But not just any book review, one for the MUST read category.

Lately, I have been putting holds on Jenna’s recommended books at my library. The title of her post about this book is “A Consuming Read”, and that it is. I loved this book.

The story follows a woman on Guernsey Island during World War II. Her family decides to stay during the German occupation. With her husband at war, she raises her daughters, cares for her mother-in-law and falls in love with a German soldier next door.

I have to agree with Jenna that this book is fantastic for a work commute or a vacation. It is mostly upbeat, but includes a few tense moments as any novel about war would. I was hooked all the way to the last sentence of the epilogue. Yes, even the last sentence of this book is fantastic! (No peeking).

Which recommended book have you recently read and enjoyed?

The Undomestic Goddess

There are many many reasons why I love the blogging world. One of them is the ability to connect with others.

Two weeks ago, I posted a review of Sophie Kinsella’s book Confession of a Shopaholic. I mentioned that while I enjoyed it, it also stressed me out. I was surprised because I knew so many people who love the Shopaholic series, so why didn’t I.

I had given up on Sophie Kinsella until a reader commented this:

Knowing that I did really like Sophie’s writing style, I placed holds on both books Sarah recommended and hoped for the best.

A little over a week later, I walked out of my local library with The Undomestic Goddess in my hands. It took me a few days and about 50 pages to get into the book, but once I did I could not put it down. I read the next 350 pages in 4 days! I could not put the book down, reading it as soon as I got home from work as well as well past my bed time.

Samantha, the main character, has a very different obsession than Rebecca from the Shopaholic series. She is motivated, works hard and has her eyes set on one thing; becoming a partner at London’s top law firm. Minutes before the partnership decision is made, Samantha learn she has made a huge mistake and leaves in a frazzle. Only hours later does she find herself in the English countryside working as a housekeeper and finally learns to slow down.

The plot of this novel is anywhere from plausible, but it is a cute story that teaches us that life should not always be lived in the fast lane. I may not be the biggest Shopaholic fan, but this book showed me I can still be a Sophie Kinsella fan.

Which author have you given a second chance and were glad that you did?

Confessions

My crazy crazy week is almost over! No day this week was like a “normal” day for me. I started the week working off-site and then at home. I returned to one of my yoga classes to find a different instructor teaching. Thankfully, it is an instructor I have had class with before and really like. Weekly yoga may be back! I had one of the most painless dentist appointments ever. I was in and out in about 20 minutes with sparkling teeth. I had a friend over for dinner for a night of Weeds. And tonight I am going to a work happy hour and dinner with my mom, her friend and my brother. Hopefully I’ll take pictures and do a recap (but don’t push your luck).

Wow, this week has been busy.

And in the midst of all this craziness, I still managed to finish a book.

I am very late to the game on the Confession of a Shopaholic bandwagon. While I did enjoy the book, I have to be honest and say it stressed me out.

The main character Rebecca Bloomwood (Becky) has a major shopping problem. She uses shopping as an escape from her boring job as a financial journalist and almost to keep up with her glamorous friends. Amidst it all, she can’t afford her lifestyle. She tries numerous ways to cut back, but just finds herself more and more in debt. And as a result founded by the local bank.

The book is definitely a page turner. I kept reading hoping things would get better for Becky. And it did, but the constant lies and bank dodging got to me.

I would recommend this book to most people. It’s a light book and easy to read. But if you are good with your money and keep to a strict budget, be forewarned this book is probably not for you!

What did you think of Confessions of a Shopaholic? Should I keep reading the series?

A little bit of this and a little bit of that!

Happy Monday everyone! It always amazes me how quickly the weekend flies. We were thankfully spared from the worst of Irene. We didn’t lose power and were able to fit in our 20 mile run (more on that tomorrow). Today, life was back to the normal daily grind.

At HLS I got to meet Tina from Carrots ‘N’ Cake and get her to sign her book for me. On my metro ride today I finished her book. As a few others said, it is a very easy and enjoyable read. I loved getting to know Tina better through her book.

I loved all of her healthy-living advice, from having cocktails at home to anticipating splurges. She even includes a bunch of great recipes. I love the recipes that are in smaller portions, like the microwave oatmeal cookie.

I may have gone a little too bookmark crazy… bookmarking at least one recipe per recipe section (oops!). The fun thing is all the recipes are bookmarked with blogger business cards from HLS. Now I can have fond HLS memories each time I make one of Tina’s Recipes. :)

This evening was a relaxing way to start the week. When I left work the sun was shinning so Jay and I decided to go to the pool. But of course, by the time we got our butts down there the sun had hidden behind a cloud. Regardless, it was nice to sit outside in the cool breeze for a 1/2 hour and catch up on each others day.

For dinner, we had a hybrid of my Summer Sausage and Broccoli Shells and Jenna’s Zucchini Pasta. I used the basic ingredients of my Summer Sausage and Broccoli Shells and Jenna’s sauce from the Zucchini Pasta. It was delicious!!!

After dinner, Jay decided it was time to clean the fishes tank… It was an adventure and I think we may have lost one or two. Sorry Celeste!

I decided that the action was too much for me. Photographer and blogger worked best for me ;)

in my super comfy HLS t-shirt giving you a funny face…

How was your Monday?

 

What is your favorite Hybrid Recipe?

Something Blue

I can’t believe tomorrow is the Healthy Living Summit! I can’t wait to get to Philly to meet everyone. I have been looking forward to this weekend for a while because I get to spend it with my high school friend Theresa.

This is my first blogger conference so I am excited and nervous at the same time. I can’t wait to meet everyone and see how they are in real life compared to their blog!

Tonight Jay and I went to dinner at The Palms. It was delicious and a great way to start off the evening! I debated about documenting the meal for the blog, but decided some experiences are best left to enjoy on our own. Instead I have another book review for you, this time Something Blue by Emily Giffin, the follow-up to Something Borrowed.

Something Blue from the other best friend’s point of view. This book does not simply retell the same story through another person, it continues into the future. After reading Something Borrowed, I was not impressed with the character Darcy. Something Blue is about stepping back from Rachel’s point of view and stepping into Darcy’s.

At the beginning, I found the book more interesting then, as I kept reading, I fell in love with the character. I found it interesting to see what Darcy saw, to perceive things as she did. Later you learn to love the character as she matures and stops being so concerned with herself and becomes more invested in others.

Something Blue is an eye opening book of what it’s like when someone thinks they have lost it all to only find they have gained so much more.

Don’t stop reading after Something Borrowed, because Something Blue is just as captivating and just as good!

Something Borrowed

I am so glad I pre-wrote most of this post about Something Borrowed because I came home to the following text from Mary “Happy Hour at Chevy’s”. How could I resist? I had a tempo run planned, but what fun is that when my other option is margaritas? Chevy’s margaritas for $3 each… yes, I had more than one.

Yep, the margaritas won. But, another winner is Something Borrowed. I do not know what took me so long to pick up this book. I took it out of the library at some point last year and could not get into it. I honestly can’t remember how hard I tried.

Sometimes, it takes a movie to motivate me to read a book. It worked for Harry Potter and it worked for this book. After hearing such good things, finally having a consistent reading schedule and seeing it in our apartment library I finally picked up this book. I wish I had read it earlier.

Something Borrowed is about a girl who falls for her best friend’s fiancé, it is also about that long lasting childhood friendship. Where is the thin line between friendship and love and when is it time to take care of yourself?

To every girl who has a childhood best friend, you will relate to this book. You may not always agree with the main character’s actions, but you will understand her feelings. How she is torn between her friendship and herself. This is a must-beach-read, the perfect novel to get lost in on a beach or on your commute to and from work.

 

What did you think of Something Borrowed?

 

I haven’t seen the movie yet, those of you who have, does it live up to the novel?

Bitter Is The New Black

Today I left work a little early to wait for a Verizon Technician. At the end of last month, Jay, Mary and I decided to drop our Comcast Cable TV and Internet for the more economical Verizon DSL. We never really watch Cable TV and have found there are a lot of ways to keep up with our favorite shows. Unfortunately, the transition was not as smooth as I had hoped.

Alas, a week later, 5 hours on the phone with Verizon, 2 technicians and our new internet service is up and running. Those green lights never looked soo good!

Ok I want to hear it. Tell me your telecommunication woes! And, do you have Cable TV? How do you keep up with your favorite shows?

This week I also finished Jen Lancaster’s Bitter Is The New Black. I had previously read her book Such a Pretty Fat but was not the biggest fan. Thankfully, my friend Lauren had read this book, loved it and recommended that I read it. I am so glad I did.

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This memoir recounts Jen’s experiences during the Dot Com bust. With the current economic times, I feel like we can all learn a lot from Jen’s experience. She is funny and smart as she recounts her woe’s with corporate America.

As always, I read this book to and from work on my 10 minutes metro ride. This book was a great pick up and ditch book. I was always able to pick up where I left off and it was easy to follow. I found this book a great reprieve from the work day.

After this book, I am more than willing to give Jen Lancaster’s other books a chance and have added her blog to my Google reader!

Have you given an author another chance? Who was it and would you read another one of their novels?