You, of course, would be wrong.
Between now and the last post, I have lost my soul to the form of one Nook Color. Having always been hesitant with e-readers and tablets because of my great love of the experience of reading, I wasn't positive how I would adapt to books on a screen. After all, staring at a computer screen for hours on end is downright painful, and I keep my phone so dimmed that other people can't make out the shapes on the screen.
When Michael surprised me with the aforementioned Nook Color for my recent 25th birthday, I was naturally excited yet apprehensive that I would be unable to adjust to this new literary experience.
Twenty days (and some dozen-odd books) later, I can safely say that I am beyond addicted, spending hours perusing for new and inexpensive books (my upper limit for digital books appears to be somewhere around $10) to bog Jo down with, and the rest of my time is spent blissfully plowing through my eclectic library.
An aside here: I tend to name all my devices, a way of bonding with them. My dearly departed laptop was Calvin; his replacement is Ragnarok (having the most personality of any electronic I have ever met). The Xperia play cellphone is Grover, and my newly acquired Nook is Miss Josephine, so called Jo after my most beloved book, "Little Women" by Louisa May Alcott.
All that blithery is to say: this post will be an update on the my more memorable of recent literary adventures.
"Thanks for the Memories" by Cecilia Ahern...I can't say that I paid more than $2 or $3 for this particular novel. The author had also written "P.S. I Love You", which I have neither read nor watched the related movie, but have heard overall positive reviews for, so I was intrigued enough to purchase this book.
One of the few topics I get passionate about is blood donation. The premise of "Thanks for the Memories" is that a woman, Joyce, who has recently received a blood transfusion after a tragic accident is suddenly remembering places and facts and people from memories that are not hers. Naturally, she is drawn to the gentleman--a handsome American man--that had given her these memories and his blood.
Overall, I enjoyed the book. Joyce's father is a dead ringer for an Irish version of my own father, and the hobble-y resemblance automatically endeared me to the character and therefore the book. It was well-written and engaging, but I felt the plot dragged on in one after another of those frustrating "near miss" situations. It felt as though a third of the book could have been shaved on with little to no consequence.
There were also times where she harped on and on ad nauseam when you inferred her intended meaning from the start. A lot of words felt wasted and as a passionate reader with an unfortunate lack of opportunity, I want every word to count.
The Percy Jackson and the Olympians series was not one I actually purchased; my friend Beth lent them to me to finish reading before she moves away for the summer.
Michael and I watched the Percy Jackson movie, and I gotta say...it was awful. Unfairly, I transferred my dislike for the film adaptation to the source material, which was a great disservice to Rick Riordan. Determined to give it another shot at the recommendation from Beth, I borrowed the books and have thus far made it through two (currently tackling "The Titan's Curse").
First, "The Lightening Thief".
Admittedly it was far better than the movie, and it encouraged me to keep reading the series. That being said, it was not the best book I had ever read. Naturally drawn to series intended for younger audiences such as this one, it was not that it was too immature for me. On the contrary, I think most adults would enjoy the stories. That being said, the first book was not one that I overwhelmingly loved or felt compelled to stay up all night and read the next four (as I am wont to do from time to time).
"Sea of Monsters" was improved. Now that all the groundwork had been laid, Riordan was able to really get the story to take off. I like series where by the end of the book, we have some resolution of a story line but hint of more to come.
"Hope in a Jar" was another one of those couple of dollar purchases, a light summer read about two estranged best friends from high school--it jumps between current day, their 20th school reunion and their school days leading up to the hinted-at falling out.
The bane of my reading existence is figuring out the plot "twists" too soon. Of course there is foreshadowing and clue-gathering along the way, but it cheapens it if the hints are too heavy handed. Toss a few red herrings out there, mislead, misdirect so that when we finally do arrive at the big reveal, it is an actual revelation.
For what it was, I enjoyed it. A light, easy, fun story. I wouldn't call it memorable, but it was entertaining enough. Beth Harbison is likely to join my roster of authors when I need something refreshing after a heavy or dark book.
The last book of note was the very first I read on my Nook--I (rightly) assumed that my addiction and obsession with Jodi Picoult books once I started reading would be the perfect learning tool for my new tablet. "Plain Truth" was only $4, a fact that excited me nearly beyond all reason, as most of her books fall more in the $12-15 range.
"Plain Truth" is about a murdered newborn baby found in an Amish community barn, and the search for the murderer. Picoult focuses more on internal, familial drama rather than sensationalism and drama derived from detective cases. The lawyer always has conflicting personal history that causes distress while working the case, but has to remain professional regardless.
Her books are the perfect example of what I was talking about above. Sure, in some books (like "House Rules") I can foresee the ending long in advance, but there is enough doubt left for me to question until the end. In others, I am left wondering and formulating theories all the way up till the end. Regardless, the stories are engaging and engrossing and always thoroughly enjoyed by me. Generally speaking, I prefer physical copies to digital because of the aforementioned $10 rule as well as my pack-rat like hoarding all of all my favorite things for rainy days (Jodi Picoult being one of my favorite authors), but this was an ideal "in" for me and Jo to start getting to know one another and bonding.
Other stories that I have read--The Girl in the Converse Shoes, Sleeping Arrangements, Flirting with Forty--are at best not worth mentioning (Converse) or at worse shamefully bad (Sleeping Arrangements). Two I did read and loved were "Land of a Hundred Wonders" and "Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter", but I will have to talk about those another time. My recent diet and exercise routine has me sullen and short-tempered, so focusing on a task this long is difficult.
Keep reading for my thoughts on "Widow for One Year" by John Irving!
--Andie
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