Poem of the Week

To Fight Aloud, Is Very Brave

To fight aloud, is very brave --
But gallanter, I know
Who charge within the bosom
The Cavalry of Woe --

Who win, and nations do not see --
Who fall -- and none observe --
Whose dying eyes, no Country
Regards with patriot love --

We trust, in plumed procession
For such, the Angels go --
Rank after Rank, with even feet --
And Uniforms of Snow.

- by Emily Dickinson

My First Wordless Wednesday

Hosted by Wordless Wednesday

Musing Mondays

With the holiday season now upon us, have you left any hint – subtle or otherwise – for books family and friends might buy you for Christmas? Do you like to receive books, or do you prefer certificates so you can choose your own?

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Eh, no, not really. I'm pretty sure it's understood throughout most of my family that I always enjoy gift cards to bookstores for any gift-giving occasion. I sometimes list actual book titles, but it's pretty unusual. I really enjoy browsing in the bookstore - or on Amazon, as the case may be - for myself. Even if I know what book I'm looking for, I prefer to be the one to pick it up.

Of course, I ALWAYS have a list of books in my head that I'd like to buy. So in the spirit of helping out my husband this year, here's my letter to Santa:

Dear Santa Claus,

How are you? I am well. I have been a pretty good girl this year - check your list... I'm SURE you'll find my name in the "nice" column.

There are a few items I would especially like this year. They are all books... (hopefully you have a Borders or Barnes & Noble card.) Here is my list:

Rampant by Diana Peterfreund
Prophecy of the Sisters by Michelle Zink
Tender Morsels by Margo Lanagan
Colonel Brandon's Diary by Amanda Grange
The Memoirs of Cleopatra by Margaret George
The Looking Glass Wars by Frank Beddor
The Stolen Child by Keith Donohue
Eragon by Christopher Paolini
The Lace Reader by Brunonia Barry
Inkheart by Cornelia Funke

Hoping you and Mrs. Claus are both well!

Sincerely,

Susan B. Evans

What about you? Do you have a list of book titles to add to your list to Santa this year?

Isis: A Book Review

Isis by Douglas Clegg

Published 2006 / 113 pages

Reading Challenges:
100+ Reading Challenge
Countdown Challenge

Young Iris Villiers has grown up at her family Cornwall estate of Belerion Hall. Her childhood is peppered with the folk/ghost tales told by the family's gardener, Old Marsh:

"Beware a field hedged with stones. See there? The hedge holds it in. Will not let it out. Things lurk about places like that. Unseen things. In the garden, in the Tombs, up along the flagstone walk beneath the windows, even down in the Thunderbox Room, for the cellars are stone hedges, too."

When tragedy strikes her family, Iris leans heavily on her forbidden knowledge of the occult in an effort to call back her beloved brother from the otherworld.

Douglas Clegg's Isis is a supremely creepy novella, with a fascinating Gothic aftertaste. According to my research, this novella is meant to provide a back story for a series of novels by Douglas Clegg. I will definitely be putting his other works on my lengthy tbr list! Isis is deliciously eerie and captivating. Iris is a well-written and sympathetic character and the setting and auxiliary characters are fantastic. I thoroughly expect the story to haunt my dreams tonight!

Isis is thrilling and chilling - a truly satisfying tale of the world of the supernatural, told using the backdrop of the mythos of Isis and Osiris. Unique and interesting, Isis is also a quick and effortless read, easily conquered in just a couple hours time. I recommend it for any fan of classic horror. The spooky atmosphere Clegg has conjured in Isis will be well worth your time.

The Uncommon Reader:A Book Review

The Uncommon Reader by Alan Bennett

Published 2007 / 120 pages

Reading Challenges:
100+ Reading Challenge
Countdown Challenge



Alan Bennett's The Uncommon Reader is a surprisingly interesting novella chronicling the Queen of England's (fictional) realization of the vast world of books and reading. If she were anyone else but the Queen, this might be a wonderful and pleasant journey - the discovery of a traveling library practically at her doorstep, receiving book recommendations from a young man working with her kitchen staff, sparking bookish discussions with everyone she meets - sounds delightful, right? Well, despite having a marvelous time, the Queen's advisers and staff decide that her reading would only serve to show favoritism and might make some people excluded from the Queen. These nuts go to great lengths to halt the Queen's reading, by hiding her books and having them misdirected at airports - it really is crazy!

I really enjoyed reading The Uncommon Reader (Ha! that sounds funny!) The characters were unique and quirky - from the Queen herself, a self described opsimath; to her politically correct aide, New Zealander Sir Kevin, forever concerned with the negative impact that the Queen's increased literacy might have on the Monarchy; to the kitchen boy turned literary advisor, the Queen's amanuensis, Norman - they are all multi-dimensional, realistic, well-written characters.

At just 120 pages, The Uncommon Reader is a quick and amusing read - easily tackled in one sitting. It is incredibly humorous in its complete absurdity, and leaves the reader alternately shaking one's head and laughing out loud. This is a book for the reader in us all. It was a joy to read, from it's hilarious beginning to it's surprising ending. You will not be disappointed!

Her Fearful Symmetry: A Book Review

Her Fearful Symmetry by Audrey Niffenegger

Published 2009 / 401 pages

Reading Challenges:
100+ Reading Challenge
Countdown Challenge

Synopsis from Publishers Weekly:

When Elspeth Noblin dies, she leaves everything to the 20-year-old American twin daughters of her own long-estranged twin, Edie. Valentina and Julia, as enmeshed as Elspeth and Edie once were, move into Elspeth's London flat bordering Highgate Cemetery in a building occupied by Elspeth's lover, Robert. The girls are pallid and incurious; they wander around London and spend time with Robert, their upstairs neighbor Martin, and Elspeth's ghost. Valentina's developing relationship with Robert arouses mild jealousy, and when Valentina pursues her interest in fashion design, Julia disapproves, which leads Valentina and Elspeth to concoct an extreme plan to allow Valentina to lead her own life.

You know it's bad when you're sitting in front of a blank screen, trying to figure out what to say about a book. This is how I feel about Her Fearful Symmetry, Audrey Niffenegger's long awaited follow-up to her fantastic debut The Time Traveler's Wife. It has taken me a full six days to slog through the meager 400 pages of this story. Never once in almost a week, did I experience that "can't wait to get that book open" moment that makes for a good read. I had to force myself through the entire thing.

Her Fearful Symmetry begins with such promise, but the story quickly goes downhill. I thought I'd be really interested in the twins, Julia and Valentina, but I just couldn't make myself care about them. Up to about page 275, I was just bored. Then the story took a dark turn (involving an innocent kitten) and I was disgusted. Valentina's plan to live as an individual away from her sister is not only incredibly selfish and horrifying, but also ridiculous. Whatever small redeeming quality the story had, it lost somewhere between the incident with the kitten and Valentina's plan.

I kept reading, hoping at least for a satisfactory ending. Not a "happy ending" - there was no way that was going to happen - but at least an ending that made the reading worth while. I did not get it. The ending was pointless and without any kind of tangible meaning. I was completely let down.

I am so surprised at the good reviews I have read about this book. The prose is really beautiful, but that is not enough to make for a good story. In finishing the book, my world is neither better or worse for the reading (unless you take into consideration almost a week lost within it's covers.) I will not recommend Her Fearful Symmetry to you. It definitely lacked the magic of The Time Traveler's Wife, and has nothing really redeeming - no interesting characters, no captivating setting, no fascinating plot line. I am really disappointed.

Poem of the Week

Impromptu

If I were a cassowary
On the plains of Timbuctoo,
I would eat a missionary,
Cassock, bands and hymn-book too.

- by Samuel Wilberforce

Teaser Tuesday

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. Anyone can play along! Just do the following:



1. Grab your current read.
2. Open to a random page.
3. Share two (or three or four, if you're me) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page.
4. BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)
5. Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!

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"He stood in the hall and wondered how best to proceed. He decided that the dining-room table would be the most comfortable and sat down with the Ouija board, plastic circle and his pad of paper before him."

- from Her Fearful Symmetry by Audrey Niffenegger

40 Years on the Street... and Counting!

Forty years ago today, Sesame Street premiered on PBS. In honor of my childhood (and sometimes adult-hood) favorite, I've found some appropriately "booky" Sesame Street segments. So take a few minutes today and give a big salute to Sesame Street!

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And since I gotta be me, how 'bout a quiz?

"Which Sesame Street Character Are You?"

You Are Bert

Extremely serious and a little eccentric, people find you lovable - even if you don't love them! You are usually feeling: Logical - you rarely let your emotions rule you. You are famous for: Being smart, a total neat freak, and maybe just a little evil. How you life your life: With passion, even if your odd passions (like bottle caps and pigeons) are baffling to others.

The Sesame Street Personality Quiz

Blogthings: Our Quizzes Weren't Written By Bored 12 Year Olds

Dime Store Magic: A Book Review

Dime Store Magic by Kelley Armstrong

Published 2004/ 448

Reading Challenges:
100+ Reading Challenge
Countdown Challenge



Kelley Armstrong's Dime Store Magic is book 3 in the fantastic Women of the Otherworld series. This is the story of Paige Winterborne, the young leader of the American Coven, and my absolute least favorite character from the previous book. In Stolen (book 2 of the series,) Paige loses her mother and gains a ward, a powerful young witch named Savannah. Dime Store Magic continues the story with both the usual struggles of raising a teenage girl, and the unusual issues you face when that emotionally volatile girl is also a witch coming into her real powers.

As I said before, Paige is not really my favorite character. Fortunately, raising Savannah has made her much more sympathetic. Although I'm still not in love with her, I don't dislike her anymore. Paige does the best she can for Savannah - protecting her from her father's Cabal and a nasty custody battle, while trying to instill good values in her. Her beloved Coven has all but abandoned her, believing that Savannah is more trouble than she is worth. Much to their dismay however, Paige will not give up on the girl - it's one of her best qualities as far as I am concerned.

As with the previous two books, Dime Store Magic is a well-written, fun piece of paranormal/fantasy fiction. I was sad not to see more of Elena Michaels in this book, but perhaps her story is over. I'd like to see where Paige and Savannah go in the future, and whether or not their sexy sorcerer lawyer, Lucas Cortez goes with them. I'll definitely be looking for the next book at the library. This is an excellent and complex series that is full of surprises and interesting characters.