Life in La Crete

One thing you may have noticed in my previous book list is that the last bunch of novels are all in a series where as previously this year I have been reading a larger variety of books. (Or have tried to at least).  The reason that is is because I have moved!

At the end of August I moved to Northern Alberta to do my internship for my Education Degree. One of the first things I did (after taking care of my, once again, broken computer) was to find a local library and start borrowing books. I did not bring many with me, since I was flying and space was precious, so I knew to complete my challenge I would need to find a library, or really on audio and ebooks, which is harder to do without a computer or e-reader.

The library I found is a community library. That means, small and local. Where as back home I could pretty much get any book I wanted, either from my nearest library or through an inter-library loan, here I am limited to the books they have in the library.  Also because it's a community library and not a public library I had to pay a membership fee (which was very reasonable). The library is located in the high school, a dual-purpose school/community library, so I am in limited in my book selection by what they have available. They have quite a large selection of Christian Fiction, and many novels that one would expect to be in a high school library (like those classic high school novels). However they are missing books that I was hoping to read this fall.  Game of Thrones, The Book Thief, anything Harry Potter.

I also had two books I had started by not completed before I moved, and I couldn't take them with me. Falling for God by Gary W. Moon and Dry Store Room No.1: The Secret Life of the Natural History Museum by Richard Fortey. I will try to find them online, either as audiobooks or ebooks, but I feel they will not be finished before the end of the year. :(

So my selection may not be as varied as before.  I will still gladly take any book suggestions and read them if I can find a copy of it. :)


I'll leave you with a scenic picture I took up here.

Fall is here!

Wow! Time has flown!  Sorry for not posting anything since the end of June.  Summer was really busy (I worked in a zoo, literally!) and then when I moved on the 23rd of August my computer broke, and I went a month (plus some) without computer/internet. Now I have both back!

Because I missed so much time, and I have read so many books, I'm not going to write a review for each of them, rather I'll just list them here and say what I had rated them on Goodreads. If you want to know what I thought about a particular book, just ask!

There Once Lived a Woman Who Tried to Kill Her Neighbor's Baby by Ludmilla Petrushevskaya (4/5)

Son by Lois Lowry (3/5)

Half Broke Horses by Jeannette Walls (4/5)

Life as We Knew It by Susan Beth Pfeffer (4/5)

A Whole New Light by Kim O'Brien (4/5)

The Cuckoo's Calling by Robert Galbraith (4/5)

Killer Croc of Doom! by Laurie Sutton (4/5) - read this one with my nephew about three times one weekend.

We Bought a Zoo by Benjamin Mee (4/5)

Invasion of the Ormazoids (Doctor Who: Find Your Fate #5) by Philip Martin (3/5)

Julie and Julia: My Year of Cooking Dangerously by Julie Powell (3/5)

Confessions of a Shopaholic by Sophie Kinsella (4/5)

Neverwhere by Neil Gaiman (4/5)

The Lightning Theif by Rick Riordan (3/5)

For Better or Worse by Jennifer Johnson (3/5)

The Dead and the Gone by Susan Beth Pfeffer (4/5)

Redemption by Karen Kingsbury (4/5)

Remember by Karen Kingsbury (4/5)

Shattered by Scott Wallens (3/5)

Varjak Paw by S.F. Said (4/5)

Return by Karen Kingsbury (4/5)

Exposed by Scott Wallens (3/5)

Pushed by Scott Wallens (3/5)

Rejoice by Karen Kingsbury (4/5)


Altogether I have now read 41 of the 53 books I am going to read this year. Yay! Which means I am one book ahead of schedule!! :)

Messenger - Lois Lowry

When I was in fourth grade I read a book that I immediately feel in love with. The Giver by Lois Lowry.  I read it many times between then and now, and it is still a favourite of mine. A few years ago I learned that Lowry has since written more books in the series. I admit I was not very excited at first, because I also learned that it was not about Jonas (the main character), and it was him I wanted to learn more about. However last year, while in France, I came across a copy of the second book (Gathering Blue), in Enlgish!, so I had to give it a try.  I really enjoyed it.

So now I have read the third book in the series (with the fourth, and final, sitting next to me).  Messenger follows one of the characters from the second novel and links three main characters together (although without naming one of them). I will admit that when I saw one of the characters again I squealed out loud! I really enjoyed it. Although I did find that the book moved through the story really quickly, I have to remember that it is labelled juvenile fiction, and is aimed at 10 year olds.

Once again Lowry has written a story that has captured my imagination, and I am well past her target age. I only wish I could have read these books when I was back in grade four (although Messenger was not written until 2004).  I recommend this book to anyone who is in its target age (about 8 -13), and anyone who is a fan of The Giver (although read the second one first).  This novel got a 4/5 stars from me!!

Serenity: Better Days - Joss Whedon & Co.

This is the second book in the Serenity series that fills in the gap between the tv show Firefly and the movie Serenity.  I enjoyed reading Better Days, and found that it was better than the first one, though not quite as enjoyable as the third. (I guess this is a case of it gets better as it goes).  One thing that I am enjoying about graphic novels are the graphics. I found these were well drawn and ignited my imagination. They definitely enhanced the story and had a lot of details hidden away in the pages. I found that I could just study the pictures for ages and still enjoy them.

I have not read a lot of graphic novels, outside of the Serenity series, so I do not have a whole lot to compare this to.  This book is different from the other two because it was composed of a bunch of shorter stories, a number of vignettes of a grander story arch (which is the story arch of the whole Firefly world). These stories brought me back into the world of the show. It read like the tv show played, and I rather enjoyed it. I would definitely recommend this to other firefly fans.

Overall I would give it 4/5 stars!

A Stolen Life - Jaycee Dugard

At the young age of 11, Jaycee Dugard was kidnapped and held prisoner for 18 years before she finally escaped with her two daughters. A Stolen Life is her story, her memoir.

This was a hard story to read. What happened to Jaycee was beyond words. I could not fathom what happened, nor how the two responsible could justify it. Yet in the end she is able to forgive her captors and move on, as much as she can, to normal life.  All she wants for her children is a normal life, one that she was never able to have.  I think back to my teens years, and how much I experienced and all the things I would have missed out on had I been missing for 18 years, I would not even be back yet!  My heart breaks and weeps for all that she missed, and all that she went through.

From a more literary/readability standpoint I have to say that this was well written.  She wrote the book from the mind-
frame that she was in at the. Consequently at the beginning it is as if an 11 year old is telling you the story.  Throughout the book she jumps back in, current time, to fill you in on what was happening outside of her life, and reflections based on what she currently knows.  Some people might find this confusing if they have trouble following narrative that does not follow a straight line, however I did not find it to difficult to follow.  I have read memories before that are poorly written, and while you can't fault them for telling their story, they just are not written well enough.  This was definitely NOT the case. It was very well written, even without a ghost writer, and she got her story and message across very well.

I would recommend this book for others to read. I feel that it reminds us that horrible things still happen in our day and age and that we need to pay attention to things that do not feel right or just feels odd. But even while it reminds us of the bad in the world, it also shows us that there is hope.  There is good out there that offsets the bad. Light to outshine the dark.  I give this memoir a 4/5 stars.  I will warn you that the earlier chapters especially are a little graphic, although not so much explicit, it could be a trigger for some people, especially those who have experienced abuse in the past.

Serenity Vol. I & III - Joss Whedon & Co.

There are three graphic novels (I believe) in the Serenity series. These novels fill in the gaps in between the show, Firefly, and the movie, Serenity.  Firefly is a television show created by Joss Whedon that aired in 2002.  It is a space western and only lasted one season, sadly. I started watching these at the end of last year with some friends, and found that they are actually really good. The film, Serenity, was released a few years later and attempted to summarize what happens in the last 5ish seasons of the show, although mostly just how the show would have ended.  There were a lot of gaps. These graphic novels help to fill in the gaps.

I read these books out of order because it was the order I could get them in at the library.  I also did not seem to need to read them in order because there were not really

spoilers crossing one book to the other (I have, after all, seen how it all ends in the movie).

The first graphic novel that Whedon released was called Those Left Behind.  I read this about two weeks ago and already forget what the plot line was.  That really isn't a great sign. All I really remember of it was that it read like an episode of Firefly, which I really enjoyed.  The graphics were different that I am used to, but I still really enjoyed them. They definitely lit up my imagination and helped to create the story.  In this book the crew of Serenity take on a job that turns out to be a trap set by an old enemy, and that is all I can remember. :(  I still give this particular novel a 3/5 because I did enjoy it while reading it, and would definitely read it again.  I think the only problem with graphic novels is that I tend to read them fairly quickly and miss out some of t
he story because of it.  I didn't take the time to read the pictures of this one like I did with the next two.

The third graphic novel of the series is called A Shepherd's Tale and tells the background story of Shepherd Book, and boy was it a background story. I really enjoyed this story. You don't learn a whole lot about Shepherd (a pastor in this future world) in the television show or in the film. In the film you learn that he left the crew and stayed on one of the planets to guide the people.  In the first novel you find out why he decided to stay behind.   This novel handled the background telling different than other books I read. Instead of being a linear regression it told the story backwards. It started with Book's death and then had narratives of what had happened that brought him to that point. Starting with where he was just prior to joining Serenity at the beginning of episode one. The last story was of him as a young man, living at home with his father and what drove him away from there in the first place.

This third novel made me want to go back and re-watch the series because it completely changed how I viewed this character and made me understand him a lot more. That is something that I think a good book should do. It should make you re-think something and make you take a look at it in a different light. And although this book did it through making me re-look at his character in the television series, it still made me look at him in a new light, and by consequence other people I meet. Sometimes when I hear someone's background story it is a little disappointing because it does not truly feel like it fits, but this time it did. For that I give it a 4/5 starts. Much better than the first one, I read it a little slower and truly enjoyed the story line.

The Night Circus - Erin Morgenstern

I absolutely loved The Night Circus. It is definitely one of my favourite books of the year. I first discovered this book by a YouTuber who gave it an excellent review. It seemed interesting so I placed a hold on it at the library.

Erin Morgenstern crafter a magical novel about circuses, loves, and the consequences of an old rivalry. The Night Circus takes place at the turn of the 20th century. A young girl, sent to live with her father after her mother's death, learns that she has a unique gift that her father intends to train her in. So confident in his daughter's abilities that he challenges an old rival. This challenge is one that they have had many times. Each of them train their protégé in their own unique way. Once the training is complete these students enter a challenge that they have been bound to since childhood, one in which they cannot escape from. The outcome of this challenge is to determine whose method of teaching is better, but the challenge is not as straightforward as that.

Enter the Night Circus. A beautiful and surreal experience for any circus goer. When one enters the night circus they enter a world of black and white. A world of the strange and extraordinary. The patrons of this unique circus never know when it will show up, nor how long it will stay, they can simply enjoy the time that they are given, walking through the grounds, amazed and mystified by all that they see and hear. None of them know that this circus is in fact a stage for a contest, and what they see are the results of the competitors. Not even the circus members themselves know of what is really happening in their world.

Then things start to happen.  It is hard to keep such a competition a secret, and the effects start to leak out and effect those closest to the competitors.

I enjoyed every moment of the story that Morgenstern wrote. A fairy tale as good as those of old. One that I would definitely read again and again.

I gave this novel a 5/5 starts. The first one this year. I would recommend this book to anyone. This book entranced me like none I have read in a while, and probably none I will read for a while yet.

A Game of Thrones - George R.R. Martin

A Game of Thrones first came out in the 90s, but has had a resurgence in popularity because of theHBO series based on the books.  I have not seen the series yet, and have not decided if I will or not (there is some sex in the book and I do not particularly want to see those scenes play out). However this book has been on my to-read list for a few years now, and I finally got around to picking it up and reading it.

A Game of Thrones is a fairly long book, but I was happy to find that it did not feel long. The book moved along at a steady pace and I did not find it overwhelmed with either dialogue or description. The part that was hardest to follow along was the lineages. There are a LOT of characters in the books that are all related to each other in some way or other. It was a little hard to keep track of who was on whose side and why, how they were related and what their purpose in the story line was. Thankfully the book had an appendix that laid out the family lineages which made everything a lot easier.

This book is the type of fictional story that I really enjoy. I love reading about other worlds with complex backstories and characters with a lot of depth. I feel that there is much more backstory than I will ever learn even if I ever do finish the series. This actually makes me happy because it makes the world feel so much more real.

For those who do not know the story line it is about this kingdom, which is made up of 7 kingdoms, each ruled by a different family. Back before the book starts the king of this world was usurped and most of his family killed. The only two remaining children were forced to leave their lands and live as paupers.  This book is primarily about the Starks, the family from the north where there is snow even in the summer. Eddard Stark is best friends with the current King and there is something off in the kingdom. Stark is worried about what the Lannisters are up to, thinking they might be trying to steal the kingdom for themselves. The problem: the king's wife is a Lannister.

George R.R. Martin created a fantastical world with Kings and Queens, Knights and Dragons. A world that feels as if it could be real. Although the book was long when I finished it I wished I could start on the sequel immediately, which tells me how good the book actually is. I haven't started the second book yet, mostly because the length is a bit intimidating and I want to catch up on my goal before I start another really long book.

Overall I give Martin's novel a 4/5 stars.  I would recommend it to anyone who enjoys fantasy or historical fiction. A great book. :)

Christianity 101 - Gilbert Bilezikian

This was most definitely a school book, and not a very good one.  To give my prof credit he told us the first day that he picked it because there were points in it that he definitely did not agree with and knew it would cause discussions and arguments, or at least it was supposed to. (My discussion group generally did not discuss much).

The only reason I read the whole book was because I was so close to being able to count this as one of my books read. We were supposed to have read the whole book for class, but I admit that the last few classes I skimmed and read just enough to pass my discussion questions (it was close to the end of the year, everything was due ... I finished it afterwards).

In his book Bilezikian 8 basic doctrines of Christian beliefs (1 per chapter), and explains them to people who are new to Christianity, aren't Christians, or just want a better understanding of Christian theology.   He does so without using big, scary theology terms, but in plain every day language.

I give this book a  3/5 because even though there were times when I seriously questioned his theology (and times when he over simplified things), overall he was able to explain some core components of the church in a way that is easy to understand. So if you are looking to learn some basic Christian theology, you can start here, but remember that just because a theologian claims that it is true does not make it true. Always cross reference everything you are told with the Bible and your own common sense. (Other theology books help to).

The Sign of Four - Sir Arthur Conan Doyle

The Sign of Four is the second of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's Sherlock Holmes series. During the summer I had started watching, and really enjoyed, the british show Sherlock, so I decided to give the books a try. They had been on my list of books I was interested in for ever. Over Christmas break I read the first one and was surprised to find that the show followed it fairly closely, at least to a point. I enjoyed it enough to try the second one, which, although I did not enjoy quite so much, was still a good book.

I found that the story seemed to drag in the second novel. I am not sure if this was because the story truly dragged on or because I read it at the end of the school year and ended up having to read it over a longer period of time than I usually do. Either way it is one of those books where the story does not stay with me, even only a month after finishing the book I am having a hard time remembering what it was about. If I were to read it again I probably would find that I did not remember how it ended, although I would remember everything that was happening.

In this novel Sherlock Holmes, along with his partner Watson, are asked for help from a young woman who has received a mystery letter claiming that he knows information about her father's disappearance years prior and that if she is willing to meet with the mysterious letter writer he will make things right. Sherlock and Watson join her to this mysterious rendez-vous where they end up on a strange little treasure hunt. It follows a typical Sherlock story line, where he manages to solve the complex case quite simply, and does so above the heads of all the people he is working with. The authorities give him a hard time, because he shows them up and is quite smug about it. In the end they are simply glad that the mystery is solved and take the credit for themselves. Sherlock doesn't care about this because he gets his thrill through solving the mystery itself, not in the glory that comes with it.

Thinking over this novel and Sherlock's attitude towards solving the mysteries makes me wonder why it is I do the things I do. When I do something is it with the hope that I will get credit and glory? Or do I do it simply for the sake of doing it? Do I feel that Sherlock deserves to receive credit for what he has done, or can I accept the fact that he does not care about the credit and enjoys the process more?

I gave this novel a 3/5 stars because I enjoyed it and would recommend it to others. I probably would even read it again someday, but not for a while. If you enjoy a good mystery novel give this one a try, it always gives a satisfying answer to the problem at hand.

Fierce Conversations - Susan Scott

Image source: amazon.ca

Fierce Conversations was another book that I had to read for school. Going into this book I have to admit I was prejudice, mostly because of how this book was presented. It was for a class that I had started with high hopes for, but quickly lost all enthusiasm and it became my least favourite course.

The professor put this book on the syllabus and then didn't mention it again until almost the end of March when she told us that we needed to have it read for next class.  Um, what? I'm a fast reader, but even I can't finish a book like this in one night. So I was not in the best mood for reading the book, nor was I particularly interested.

I admit that I didn't even want to become interested because I was really unimpressed with this teacher and no longer cared about the class.  But then I decided that this was a book that I was supposed to read (although the majority of the class never did read it) and I could count it as a book towards my yearly count. And besides it is apparently a best seller so it must be somewhat good. (Although so is Twilight, so not sure I can count on Bestsellers).

Susan Scott teachers through this self-help book about how to have fierce conversations. These conversations are not fierce in the sense of scary/fearful, intense, anger-filled conversations, but rather in the intense, personal, honest, lets-move-things-forwards conversations. I did not come across any earth shaking discoveries while reading this book, everything seemed to make sense.  Be honest, tell people how you are feeling about the issue and your thoughts behind it and then listen to their feelings, really listen, and try to understand their thoughts behind it. You want to get to a point of full understanding of an issue, which will not happen until you truly understand their point of view. But I have already known this to be true (although I don't often put it into place since I would rather hide from my feelings and confrontations).

Although Scott does not present any earth shaking ideas in her book, in my opinion anyways, she does present some good, solid, advice. Once I got past my prejudices about the book, I was able to appreciate it for what it was, and had some good conversations with a few of my classmates who had actually read the book about our conversations and how we approach them generally.

This book is best read over a longer period of time (not in the less than a week I took), because to truly benefit from it you will want to digest what has been said and try out some of the assignments. That is if you really want to start having fierce conversations.

I give Fierce Conversations a 3/5 because while it had good advice, it was not much new and I still never fully got over my original feelings of the situation.

The Great Gatsby - F. Scott Fitzgerald

This was a re-read. I first read this book in my first year of university and I didn’t hate it, but I didn’t love it either. It was a meh book for me then. However what I am finding is that many books that I read before my third year of university I read with a filter and after re-reading them I see them in a whole new light. Because of this I am probably going to re-read a number of books that I once read and didn’t understand why people liked it.

The back of the book calls this novel a supreme American novel. When I first read it I seemed to have trouble following the entwined lives of the characters, this time around I had no trouble with it at all.  I read this book over March Break (I know, I’m late getting the blog up!) and I really enjoyed it. I did not remember a whole lot about what happened in the novel and found I had a few false memories (Spoiler: I thought Daisy died, but it turns out she ran someone over with a car.).

While reading this book I found myself reflecting on what society is like today and comparing Gatsby’s world with my own. Although there are many telling differences (I am far from rich, I live in the Maritimes of Canada while he lived in New York, I live in the 21^st century, he lived in the early 20^th century), there were many similarities.  Around me I can see many people dissatisfied with their life, but living it anyways because it is the life that society tells them they desire. Like Gatsby I can see many people having idols that they try for so long to attain only to realize that they are no longer what they once imagined. Their fantasy of the idol had long surpassed the reality and their long pursuit ends in melancholy.

I would rate this book a 3.5/5. It’s not quite a four but I really enjoyed it and would recommend it others. It’s a book I think you need to have a bit of life experience to be able to properly understand it, so it is not surprising to me that I didn’t quite get it the first time around.

Brisingr - Christopher Paolini

I only read this book because of the first one. Brinsigr is the third book of the Inheritance Cycle by Christopher Paolini. My friend gave me Eragon, the first book, as a Christmas present in high school, not to long after it came out, and before the second book came out. I absolutely loved Eragon and could not wait for the second book to come out. The second book Eldest I bought and read shortly after it came out. Then I kind of lost track of the books and never got around to buying the third one. I kept meaning to go back and read the first two again, since I could not really remember what happened in the second book, so I could finally read the third and fourth book. Well, I finally got around to it, and I am not sure when I’ll get around to reading the fourth and final book.

I listened to the first and second novels as audiobooks last year while I was in France and remembered why it was I could not remember what happened in Eldest, it was not that good. It started out fine but the end, horrible. Characters started to feel a bit force. But this is not about the first two novels, this is about the third one.

I decided to give Brisingr a try for two reasons. 1. I wanted to find out what happened to the characters that I had grown to like in the first book and a half. 2. My friend told me that Eldest was the worst in the series and that this one was her favourite.

My reaction? It is not a very good book.  I don’t mind books with a lot of descriptions or a lot of story lines thread throughout, I actually usually enjoy them. More to figure out and more plot twist possibilities, however this book felt really long, and really dragged on. It felt like it could have covered the story in half the time it actually did. There was a lot of details that pulled me out of the story and made me question why it was put in there in the first place. The characters are starting to feel unbelievable and a lot of things seem to be happening more so for matter of convenience than anything. Characters dying because they just aren’t needed anymore. Events happening just in order to get to the next piece of the plot. The writing is not all that great and the story line is getting old. I had been really hopeful about this series, it started out with a pretty good plot idea, good characters with a lot of chance for growth and interesting story arches. But this novel has fallen flat, and I don’t particularly recommend it. If I read the last book (probably not this year, but we’ll see) it will be to find out what happens to one character in particular, I feel there is a lot of promise for the character and a chance for a turn around, although I feel like the author might not head in that direction. We shall see.

Overall I give this book a 2.5/5. It’s okay for what it is, but it could have been so much better with more editing.

The Last Little Blue Envelope - Maureen Johnson

This is the sequel of the book that I read earlier in the year, 13 Little Blue Envelopes. It wasn't that long ago, actually. I really enjoyed the first book and I knew there was a sequel and because of those two things I really wanted to find out what was in that last little blue envelope.

Maureen Johnson did not disappoint with this book. I enjoyed it, laughed a fair bit, and face-palmed a few times. (Showing up, unannounced, at the guy-you-like's door, when said guy lives in a different country? Definitely a face palm moment, knowing no good was going to come of it.)

I really like Ginny's character and can definitely relate to her. She is unsure of herself and is convinced her life is boring, even though the evidence speaks to the contrary. I think all teenagers, at least girls, feel like this. They dream of having an amazing life, and often don't realize that they already have one. When the life you are living is yours to you it is normal, not amazing, no matter how much others mike say otherwise it will always seem ordinary. Because it is your normal.

Honestly I liked the first book better, which often happens, but I would still read a third should Johnson ever choose to write one, because I really want to find out what happens to Ginny.

So if you like Young Adult fiction and enjoy reading about people traveling and being extorted then you would enjoy this book. It's fun, funny, and a great read. I would give it 4/5 stars.  Come on Maureen, I want a third book.

Note:
I promise my reviews will get better as the year goes on, but I will not promise that they will be great reviews. These are just my own thoughts about the books I read.

Life of Pi - Yann Martel

Life of Pi, a novel that was published back in 2001 and has become popular once again because of the movie that was released this year (which I have not seen). I admit I only heard about it about three years ago, I came across it at a book store, the title stuck out to me, but I dismissed it. Then I started to notice other people talking about it. So I decided to put it on my to read list.

It did not disappoint me. A boy, 16 years-old, shipwrecked. With him in his lifeboat is a Zebra with a broken leg, a gorilla, a hyena, and a bengal tiger called Richard Parker. Yah, so his father owned a zoo in India. For whatever reason I thought this would be a nice story where a boy lands on a deserted island and all the animals get along because of course that is what happens when you take zoo animals and stick them with a boy and give them no food. NOT. So it was more violent and messy than I was expecting, but I believe that is what makes the book so good. It felt more real, almost believable. It almost felt like this book was based on a true story, though it is not, and if it were I'm not so sure things would have turned out the same.

This book made me think a lot. Looking at Pi's view on religion and life made me reflect on my own views of religion and life. I wondered how I would fare on a life boat alone with only some carnivorous animals for company. Would I go crazy? Would I be all right? I'm pretty introverted and like being alone, so I'm not sure that would be so bad. But to not have anything to read? I can be pretty sure I would have read that instruction manuel a dozen times or more.

The end threw me for a bit of a loop. Being left to decide what really happened, what was true, what wasn't. I'm not sure if I want to make that decision. I know what it is I want to be true, and I know what it is that seems more likely to be true, and those two things are not the same. But isn't that how it often happens with life.

I give this book 4.5/5 stars (I'm holding out on the 5 for a book that I fall head over heals in love with). I would definitely recommend it for others to read.

13 Little Blue Envelopes - Maureen Johnson

I picked up this book because they did not have either of the other two books that I wanted available the day I got my library card (yay! :)) and because I've heard she is a really good young adult author and I have been wanting to read one of her books. I had already picked this one as the first of her books I wanted to read and luckily enough it was the only one of her books that was at my library.

13 Little Blue Envelopes is about a 17 year old girl, Ginny, whose Aunt has recently passed away. A few months later Ginny gets a letter from her aunt which contains 1000$ and instructions to buy a passport and ticket to London, but to stop in New York to pick up a package first. This package contains 12 more little blue envelopes that are to be opened sequentially after the task in the previous envelop is complete. Ginny is taken on an adventure across Europe as she moves out of her shell and meets many different people and learns more about herself and her aunt.

I really enjoyed this book. Having spent last year in France, and some of that time travelling though Europe, reading this book brought back many memories for me. Not only that it made me really want to travel more. But what I liked most about this book was that it was fun. It was a book that you didn't want to put down, and when you finished you just wanted to read it again. Even though at times it was very predictable I found it never took away from the story. I would definitely recommend this book.

4/5 stars because I loved it. (5/5 is reserved for books that I consider a must read)

Library Cards

I got a library card the other day. That's not to say I didn't have one before, I did, but I just haven't used my New Brunswick one since I was about 13, and I couldn't find it anywhere and it wasn't in the system anymore anyways. So I got another library card to add to my collection (Which is now comprised of 6 if anyone was wondering). Having this library card does 2 things for me. One it makes me miss my library in Miramichi. I spent so much time at that library when I was growing up. Two it makes reading 53 books so much easier, because now I have access to many, many books.

With my shiny new, purple library card I now have 4 books lined up, the first of which I already finished. They are:

13 Little Blue Envelopes by Maureen Johnson
Brisingr by Christopher Paolini
Life of Pi by Yann Martel
The Last Little Blue Envelope by Maureen Johnson (as soon as I finished the first one I really wanted to read the second so I put it on hold right away).

These books should bring me to almost the end of February.

Still Alice - Lisa Genova

This was an amazing book. My mom gave it to me for Christmas, and at first I wasn't sure if I would enjoy it. The main character is a 50 year old psychology professor, married with children. I'm a 23 year old BEd student. How would I relate? But my mom gave it to me, so of course I had to read it. I really enjoyed it.

Still Alice is about a 50 year old professor who discovers that she has Early Onset Alzheimer's. Throughout the book we watch as Alice progresses through this disease, from first noticing the symptoms to not remembering her own children. I felt her frustrations and fear when she went for a run and found herself lost in her own neighbourhood, not knowing how to get home. I felt her anger when she could not remember how to make the pudding she had made since she was a kid. But most of all I related to her daughter.

Lydia is 24 years old and an actress. Her and her mother have disagreed a lot on her life choices, not to go to college for one, becoming an actress for another, however of all three of Alice's children Lydia is the one who is around the most. Lydia relationship with her mother grows and Alice learns more about who her youngest daughter is and is able to connect with her in new ways. Lydia is also the child that Alice forgets first.

As I read this book I could see myself in Lydia and it made me think of my own mother and the relationship I have with her. I would never want my mother to suffer through this, but I hope to always be there for her, just like Lydia was for her mom.

I would give this book a 4/5. I really enjoyed it. I am very glad my mom chose it for me and would definitely recommend others to read it.

Who Needs Theology? - Grenz and Olson

This was a school book. I need two religious studies courses to graduate and this is for one them (Intro to Christian Thought). The prof chose this as one of two books we will be reading and discussing this semester. For whatever reason this book had to be finished by the third week of school, and the other one is being read over the course of the semester.

I sat down and read pretty much this whole book in 1 day. I wouldn't recommend trying that. It hurt my head. Not because it was complicated theology, but because it was a book that required some thought. I couldn't get lost in someone else's life, because this was about life in general. But that is not to say I didn't like it.

This isn't the first theology book I have read, and it probably won't be the last. That being said it is far from my favourite. Basically it is claiming that everyone is a theologian because everyone thinks about life and the afterlife, who God is or isn't, and how all this knowledge affects their life. This book stressed the importance of being a good theologian. It spoke about how oftentimes theologians have a bad rep because there are bad theologians out there, but the key to that is not to get rid of theology, but rather to have good theology.

I agree with the premise of the book. People need theology, especially Christians. You need to know what you believe and why. It is very dangerous to believe something because you were taught it or simply because "the Bible says so". If you already believe theology is important than this book isn't for you. Skip it, you already know it. However if you are wondering if theology is important and what it looks like to do on an amateur level, give it a read. Just don't try to do it in one day.

Overall I would give this book 3/5. It is what it claims to be and could be useful for certain people.

Northanger Abbey - Jane Austen

My first book of the year was a classic. For a disclaimer I started this book last year and finished the second half in the New Year, but it's more the finish date than anything.

I really enjoyed this book. I read my first Austen novel in my third year of University and found that I enjoyed it. I really had next to no exposure to Austen except for pieces of the movies and what I heard from other people. When I started this book I new almost nothing about it except that it was a book that talked about books and the purpose of reading and that it was written first and published last. I also knew that it spoke about a book called the Mysteries of Udolpho (thanks to having watched The Jane Austen Book Club).

I found that I really enjoyed this book. I absolutely loved Catherine's character, mostly because I felt like I related to her a lot. She was lonely when she first went to Bath because she did not have any friends, but slowly she made a few friends, some of who turned out not to be the greatest of friends. That sounds a bit like my life. Except for I have never been to Bath.

The only part of the book that I did not like was the ending. Not that I did not like how it ended, I just found that it was abrupt. The last chapter was spent tying the loose ends and it almost felt like Austen got bored of writing the book and decided to stop writing but then thought she had to close things off.

Overall I would give it a 4/5 because I would definitely read it again and recommend it to others.

New Year's Resolution

One year, at the beginning of summer, I looked at all the books I had read and realized I was about a dozen books shy of reading 52 books in one year, but I still had a little over a month to reach that goal. I ended up reading 50 books. This year, for my New Year's resolution I have decided to read 52 plus 1 books in 2013, which is just over a book a week.

I have been known to do crazy goals. I read the Bible in 90 days (that is actually quite difficult...), I completed NaNoWriMo in November and have done similar crazy things. I seem to work best under crazy deadlines. So to be sure I actually complete my goal I am going to write a blog post about each book! Now I have never written a proper book review before, nor do I promise that they will be amazing, although I hope to improve over the year. This blog is to keep me on track.

Feel free to offer books suggestions. I have a list of books I have been intending to read, as well as some schools books I need to read that will be counted (they are, after all, books). I will pretty near read anything!

So join with me as I read 52 plus 1 books.