A Day Without Rain

This winter has been very cold and wet, and that has been very hard to deal with.  I can't even remember the last time we had a day without any rain.  Until today...

A few days after learning a college friend tragically died in Afghanistan, and the day after learning the horrific news that another college friend lost his three year old son, the sun comes out.  There are no words...  Especially for someone like me who always has a hard time with words.  I never know what to say or how to say it.  I am better at doing things than saying thing. So I got up this morning and went to hike Spencer's Butte.  On the trail I picked up two rocks, one for Joe and one for Brody.

And as I climbed the trail and ran back down, slipping and sliding in the mud, I held those rocks tight and squeezed them hard, putting all of my energy and focus on nothing but them.  All my sadness and regret, and prayers for those left behind to deal with such fucked up realities.  All of my anger and questions. And when I reached the end of the trail I left them in the sunshine.  Rest well sweet boys.

After, I took myself to the only place I know where I can completely take my mind off things.  Smith Family Bookstore is a wonderful used bookstore in Eugene and I guess when I am surrounded by so many stories I am able to take my mind off of all the stories going on in my mind and truly get lost.  And that was all I wanted today, to get lost.

Worst Name in History

I picked up yet another Norwegian murder mystery, and our fearless detective is named Harry Hole.

Harry Hole.  Let that simmer for a bit...

Now imagine the way in which elementary age children would react to such a name.

Harry Hole.

I can't concentrate on the rest of the book because it is all I can think about.  The poor boy who had to suffer through the realities of his name.  Does someone ever get over that?

Harry Hole.

Really...

Another F#$&ing Trilogy!

27. The Passage

I have seen this book on all kinds of best books of 2010 lists, and it was finally in at the library and so I checked it out.  It is a big honker - 766 pages and all kinds of heavy.  I was drawn in immediately, and then after about 200 pages one books stops and a totally different book starts.  It was a jarring transition to say the least and I found myself almost giving up on it.  So I thought I would check out some of the reviews on Amazon to see if I should carry on.

Now this is often a bad plan.  I have ruined so many books for myself by doing this, but in this case I just angered myself.  I didn't read any spoilers and the reviews are pretty split down the middle between people who love it and people who hate it.  Instead I found out that this is just book one in a planned trilogy.  A PLANNED trilogy, meaning the rest of the story doesn't even exist yet!  I am fine with authors writing a series of books with reoccurring characters.  I look forward to some but each story is it's own and complete and it is left up to me to return or not, but this trilogy business is getting on my nerves!  Everyone has to write them now, mostly so they can also write three movies.  It is all about business instead of the characters and the story.

Back to the book.  I liked it.  It was entertaining.  A rip off of The Stand and The Road.  But it feels a bit more like a thorn in my side than an enjoyable experience.

Changes!

The past few weeks I have just felt so ugh...  Like I am always two steps behind.  Like I never get to be doing what I want to be doing.  Like I am stuck in mud and barely even aware of what is going on around me.  And I hate the fact that lately reading is more like a chore, or something I end up doing because I feel like I should.

Part of this is because I suddenly am mother to a toddler and not a baby.  A few months ago we literally heard a bump in the night, accompanied by a crying little boy walking in to our bedroom.  Time for a big boy bed!  I am so absolutely not ready for the stage of him being able to get up and come out of his room at any time.  I need my sleep and if it is interrupted my whole day is out of whack.  Not to mention the fact that nap time is getting shorter and shorter.  Nap time is my salvation and I miss it desperately.

Also, I am reading The Passage, and it is safe to say that this is a book that you have to stay wrapped up to really enjoy.  The fact is that after reading 200 pages it turns in to a totally different book and I am not enjoying the second part as much as the first.  The new world is disjointed and oddly complicated and with my limited concentration I am having a hard time continuing to care, especially since everything is all new.

Hit the Mark!

26. Through The Glass Darkly

This is the 26 book mark!  In an earlier post I mentioned the blog of people trying to read 26 books in the span of a year and wondered what number I will hit.  On we go but 26 has been achieved.

So the first half of this book was a rip roaring ride.  All sorts of romance and scandal, flirting and glimpses of true love, dreams of futures, hopeful ideas.  I loved it all!  I loved the courting and the weddings. I loved the dresses and the jewels. I loved the jockeying for position between women and men, and I loved how clueless all the men were.  But wow the second half...

Man, it was a downer!  Not so much love or happiness.  Dreams dashed and futures in ruins.  And all the death, my goodness!  If men and children truly died in such numbers it is a wonder that the human race still exists!  But I still flew through it and couldn't wait to see what happened next, so there is that.

Royal Obsession

Ever since I can remember I have been obsessed with royals and the British royal family.  I loved Diana and my grandmother sent me books about the royals and their weddings.  My family traveled to London when I was young and I got to see all of the castles and that solidified it for me; these weren't stories, it was real!

So it is safe to say I was over the moon about the most recent royal wedding.  I loved waking up at 2:30 in the morning, watching the events unfold on TV while sipping my PG Tips tea.  I know a lot of people thought they would just catch the highlights later, but not me. I wanted to see it first hand.  I loved the anticipation of who would be stepping out of the next car, what her dress would look like, how William would react.  I loved how confident and happy they both looked.  I am unashamed to say that I cried and clapped and loved every ounce of pomp and circumstance that they dished out.  I giggled over Harry and tried to read lips.  And I cheered when they rode that Aston Martin out of the palace gates!

 **This was my favorite pictures of the whole thing!  The footman just dropped her dress in a pile when she got out of the carriage but Harry - a prince! - stepped in and took care of it.  Someone was raised right!

 

Anyway, this is a blog about books not weddings, so let's get back to it.

After all of the wedding excitement I was having a hard time getting back to reading so I finally picked up a book that my sister-in-law recommend to me when I was in the midst of my I'm-pregnant-and-can't-read stage.  I knew she had said it was hard for her to put down and I knew it was set in the royal courts of England and France, so it sounded perfect.  

And the truth is I have barely come up for breath since starting it.  It is truly a page turner and Barbra is so far a really great character.  It is quite the love story so far, and I bit more of a bodice ripper than I was expecting.  In fact, it reminds me a bit of this picture...

Awful, awful, I know, but sometimes it is funny to see the ways in which no matter how will laid your plans are, there is always a hitch!  Poor girl...

Unexpected Results

25. Miss Entropia and The Adam Bomb

Jesus Christ.  That was rough.  I am not even really sure what to say about this book, other than it was very unexpected.  I bought it because of the fun title and cover.  I thought it was a YA book because it is about two teenagers, but I don't know many teenagers who could handle reading it.  It was well written, but my god it was sad.  The title made it sound fanciful, the cover made it seem mystical; I read it as a way to escape, and now I sit here dumbfounded.

These two kids are really screwed up and being together is tragic for them.  Their life stories are tragic.  The effect they have on people around them is tragic.

I truly don't know how to react to this.  It is a well written book, and Adam is a well developed and great character.  He is funny and honest and so very aware of all the oddness of life revolving around him, even though he is the one to wear the label of "crazy".  In many ways it is one of the best books I have read recently but I am not sure I would tell anyone to read this because it is just so sad.  The fact of the matter is that the outcome of the book is described in the first few pages but that didn't make it any less shocking to see it come to fruition.  A John Green novel this is not, which isn't to say that that makes it bad, I just walk away wondering how to be hopeful again.