Y is for Yoshikawa

I got back on track for my next to last novel in the journey. Surprisingly, there were several Y authors from which to choose. When I first started reading this one, I wasn't sure I'd made the right choice, but as I read, I really fell for "One hundred and one ways" by Mako Yoshikawa.

Kiki Takehashi is a modern American woman who is of Japanese descent. She worries that the men she falls for are only falling for her because of what she calls an "Asian-woman fetish." She is dating Eric but can't get over Phillip, who died while mountain climbing. In fact, Phillip still haunts her as a small, naked figure in her apartment. This triangle is but one part of the novel. Kiki's relationship with the grandmother she's never met is a wonderful part of the story. Kiki is the namesake of her grandmother, Yukiko, who had been a geisha as a young woman. Throughout the novel, Kiki thinks about the questions she will ask her grandmother, questions that she has never asked her mother. Kiki's relationship with her mother is another strong issue in the novel. In fact, the triangle of Kiki, her mother and grandmother is as strong a storyline as is the triangle of Kiki, Eric and Phillip.

As for the relationship with Eric, maybe it was just me, but I had a hard time getting behind it. I'm not sure if I was just feeling Kiki's suspicions about Eric's motives or if he was just written so that the reader wouldn't like him very much. At the same time, I wasn't crazy about Phillip or his little ghost. As I got to know Kiki, I wanted more and better for her. It's a good read when you can feel real emotion for a character.

"One hundred and one ways" is a love story and a coming of age story and a story of mothers and daughters and a story of cultures. It is beautifully written, at times haunting, at other times jubilant. I think every young woman can see something of herself in Kiki. She is not the perfect heroine. She is not the perfect girlfriend or daughter. Like many of us at times, she doesn't know what she wants to do or with whom she wants to spend her life.

I recommend "One hundred and one ways" to women who have wondered if they are on the right track. I recommend it to those who have loved and lost and wonder if they are ready to love again. I recommend it to every woman who has had a sometimes tough relationship with her mother. I really enjoyed the writing of Mako Yoshikawa and recommend her highly.

X is for Lutz. What?

Yes, you read correctly, X is for Lutz. I ran into a bit of a predicament when it came to choosing a novel to represent the letter X. In our library system, there is not a single fiction product by an author whose last name begins with X. I considered reading the "Autobiography of Malcolm X," but it broke two of my rules for this project: I'd already read it and it is not fiction. So, I just broke one rule instead. The author of my X book does not have X anywhere in his name. The title of the book however says it all. For my X book, I chose, "The Ex" by John Lutz.

During this alphabetic journey, I've read some very thought provoking novels. This was not one of them. "The Ex" is pure psycho-thriller, though not a great psycho-thriller. It did move quickly and it did put a bit of a scare in me from time to time.

David Jones had moved to NYC to start over after an ugly divorce. He had a great job, a gorgeous wife and a wonderful young son. All is well until one day he hears her voice. His ex-wife Deidre has "accidentally" run into him in the city. What he doesn't know is that Deidre had recently escaped a mental hospital when a tornado tore it apart. She had killed a few people on her way to see David and was not finished with her murder spree. Deirdre has decided she wants David back and nothing and no one will stand in her way.

Lutz wrote the novel on which the creepy movie "Single White Female" was based. If you've seen that one, you know his style in writing creepy women. Well, Deirdre is uber-creepy. Like I said, it's not deep and it's not even that great of a thriller, but it does make the hair stand up on your neck from time to time. Most of Deirdre's biggest acts you see coming well in advance. In fact, everyone can see what Deirdre is up to, except David. He falls right back into her arms all the while trying to hide the relationship from his wife.

If you are looking for a quick, predictable read, pick this one up. The book cover said there had been a movie produced based on the book, but I never saw it. I'm guessing it was about as good as the novel.

W is for Winston, Lolly

When it came time to choose my "W" book, I really wanted to find an author named Williams since that is my maiden name. There were several in the library, but none spoke to me the way a book by Lolly Winston did. Hey, Lolly is a really cool name anyway. So, for "W," yes we are already to "W," let me present to you Lolly Winston's Good Grief.

Sophie Stanton had been married just three short years when she lost her husband to cancer. She feels way too young to be a widow and really doesn't know how to deal with it. Sophie chooses to grieve with ice cream and any other food she can buy at the convenience store. Everything hurts, from trying to go through her husband's clothes to trying to go back to work. After an embarrassing meltdown in the middle of the grocery store and showing up to work in a bathrobe and slippers, Sophie decides it's time to move. Her best friend Ruth lives in a small town in Oregon, so Sophie takes her up on her offer of a place to stay. Going from being a happily married woman with a good job and a great future to being a young widow with no job and no prospects in a strange town could be completely overwhelming, but not to Sophie.

Things really change for Sophie once she gets to Oregon. She applies to be a part of the "Big Sister" program, imagining spending her weekends coloring or playing dolls with a young girl. Instead of the tiny person she had imagined, she gets Crystal, a sulking 13-year-old with a bad smoking habit and a horrible home life. Crystal's fascination with fire could be even more dangerous than her smoking or cutting. Sophie considers calling the "Big Sister" group and telling them she can't see Crystal again, but sees something in the girl and perseveres.

While dealing with her grief and her new young friend, Sophie finds a job waiting tables. This is not her finest moment and after several problems, she ends up working in the kitchen. What could be seen as failure turns in to a great triumph for Sophie. She finds her place making cakes and pies for the restaurant and soon decides she will open her own bakery. Of course more obstacles stand in the way, but Sophie handles them with some grace and much humor.

Having grieved the loss of someone I loved, I picked up this book with some trepidation. How would a writer handle the grief process? The reviews I read said there was humor involved. How do you mix humor and grief? Well, Lolly Winston did a great job of it. Grief is hard. Losing a loved one is a sad thing, but Winston found a way to remind us that life is funny. We do silly things, humorous things. Winston handled the grief process with respect, but not with kid gloves.

I would recommend Good Grief to anyone who has had to mourn the loss of a spouse or significant other. You will likely recognize yourself in at least some of Sophie's mourning antics. I would recommend Good Grief to those who have looked up from the very bottom. I would recommend Good Grief to anyone looking for a good read filled with both tears and out loud laughter. I would consider Good Grief to be a bit of a "chick read" but it is a very enjoyable one. If you're looking for something to read on a cold winter's day, Good Grief fits the bill.

V is for Vernon, Olympia

I have actually been putting off this review for nearly a week because I just don't know what to say about this book. As I've approached the end of this journey, I've had fewer choices in some letters. Of course there aren't many authors whose last name starts with a V. I liked what I read on the back of this novel, but, for me at least, it didn't really translate to an enjoyable read. Still, I bring Eden by Olympia Vernon.

Eden is the story of 14-year-old Maddy, an African-American girl growing up in rural Mississippi. As punishment for drawing a picture of a naked woman inside the Bible during Sunday school, Maddy's mother sends her to care for her dying aunt Pip. Much of the story revolves around the time Maddy spends with Pip, who is dying of breast cancer. Pip and Maddy's mother are estranged because Pip slept with Maddy's father. Maddy's father, Chevrolet, is an unlikable character who walks naked through the house and sleeps with whomever he can. There really aren't that many likable characters in Eden. You want to cheer for Maddy, but her obsession with all things sexual makes her a bit too much for a 14-year-old. You want to like Maddy's mother, Faye, but her failure to forgive her sister and be there to help her die makes her less likable. You want to like Pip and perhaps I came closest to liking Pip. She knows who she is and doesn't try to be anyone else. If there are truly an likable characters in Eden, I would say they are Pip and her best friend Fat.

I enjoyed Vernon's writing style. She is a lyrical writer for sure. I just didn't enjoy the content. I felt the novel had to reach quite a bit to say what Vernon was trying to say. I felt that much of the vulgarity was added more for shock value than because it made the book work. I am not saying that a book about a 14-year-old has to be written in language appropriate for a young teen, but it's unsettling to read some of what Vernon wrote as coming from a teen girl.

U is for Updike

As I've made this reading journey over the past months, one thing I've tried to do is read not quite so famous authors. Sometimes it was easier than others. For my "U" book, it didn't happen that way. As you might expect, there are not a ton of authors whose last name starts with a U. I chose a rather famous writer's 18th novel as my "U" adventure. Here are my thoughts on "U" is for Updike, John and his novel Toward the End of Time.

There are a few things you just don't want to admit when you finish the 18th novel of a famous American author. One of those things is that you didn't really like it. Another is that you didn't really get it. I'm admitting both of those things to you. Now I realize that John Updike is not universally loved. After finally diving into one of his books, I can understand that. Toward the End of Time has a fascinating premise. The U.S. and China have been at war with each other. This war ended with only about 1/2 the population of the entire world remaining. The U.S. government is in shambles and China is uninhabitable due to nuclear fallout. The dollar is worthless and individual states are producing their own scrip. It sounds like it would be a frightening time or a time of real self-discovery. For the not so likable main character in this novel, it's just another day of being retired and bored.

The novel revolves around the life of one Ben Turnbull, a retired stock broker living just outside Boston. While Ben could be talking about how the world has changed for the better or for the worse, he is so self-absorbed he talks only of the small world around him. He is a 66-year-old loser. While it would be fascinating to be taken on a journey to the year 2020 where the world is picking itself back up following a horrific war, we are instead treated to the rambling descriptions of every tree, plant and flower on the property owned by Ben and his second wife, Gloria. During one of Gloria's business trips, Ben actually fantasizes that he somehow killed her and subsequently moves a prostitute into his home to be his new wife. Ben is obsessed with sex, preferably with much younger women. He is weak in the face of Gloria, who does return, much to his surprise. Even after being diagnosed with cancer, he just can't seem to garner sympathy from the reader.

There were some interesting futuristic moments in the novel. An abandoned space station which can still be seen in the sky brings eerie thoughts in consideration of the current state of our own space program. With the fall of the government, taxes are no longer being collected and the police and fire departments have little to offer in the way of protection. Small bands of "entrepreneurs" take charge and offer their own protection, of course, for a fee. Rather than allowing these thugs to take over the security business, one of the last remaining working entities shows up to save the day. For a monthly fee, FedEx begins providing protection to all good citizens. These thought-provoking moments are scattered so lightly through the novel that it's hard to gain enough sustenance from them to carry you through the entire book.

When this journey is over, I may go back and read one of Updike's earlier novels. Unfortunately for some writers, things just change for the worse with age or over-publication. I hope that's the case. I hope to goodness that Updike's work has not always been so trite and so narcissistic. Toward the End of Time could give a good sci-fi writer some interesting ideas on which to build, but other than that, I'd not recommend it.

T is for Tropper, Jonathan

With every letter I complete, I see this journey nearing it's end. As I write this review, I've already started reading my "U" book and have checked the shelves for availability of the remaining letters. I may be forced to bend the rules when it comes to the letter "X" because there just aren't many fiction authors with a last name starting with "X." I will worry about that when I get there, but for now, let's talk about "T" is for Tropper, Jonathan.

I remember pulling this book from the stacks because of the multi-colored lettering on the spine. It is the little things that draw me to what I end up reading. I read the inside cover and was interested. Still, I continued looking around. I came back several times to Tropper's novel and decided to check it out. For my "T" book, I read This Is Where I Leave You.

The story revolves around the Foxman family, who have gathered for the funeral of their husband and father and to sit shiva for him. Shiva is a seven-day long time of mourning for a family of the Jewish faith. The family gathers in the home of the deceased and receives visitors. It is supposed to be a solemn time of remembrance and mourning where mirrors are covered and the family sits on low shiva chairs. When the Foxman children heard from their mother that their father's dying request was that they sit shiva for him, they were beyond surprised. Their father had not been a religious man and had only taken them to Temple once or twice a year. Still, they came together to remember their father.

Our narrator is Judd Foxman who is dealing not only with the death of his father, but also the end of his marriage. Just weeks before his father died, Judd had walked in on his wife Jen in bed with his boss, a Howard Stern-like radio host who was despised by most women. As Judd explained, "Not mine, unfortunately." Along with Judd we have his mother, a retired psychiatrist who wears clothing which makes Judd and his siblings uncomfortable and brings out the local widowers by the droves. Also sitting shiva are Judd's only sister Wendy and her obnoxious husband, older brother Paul who has taken over the family business, and younger brother Phillip who arrives with his much older "fiancee." The relationships among the siblings are strained and often awkward. Being in the same house for seven days of mourning would likely test the closest family, but it really strains a dysfunctional family like the Foxmans.

There is a great deal of humor in the book. Much of it is quite dark, as could be expected in the setting. The Foxman children are destined to make discoveries about themselves as they remember their father and look more closely at their own lives. While there is quite a bit of gratuitous sex and language, Tropper makes light of many of the situations.

One big twist in the book comes when Judd's estranged wife shows up to give Judd the news that he is going to be a father. This bombshell comes as Judd is considering renewing a fling with a high school sweetheart. In the light of the loss of his own father, Judd considers what type father he will be to a child who will likely be raised by his wife and former boss. Part of this equation is answered in the last chapters of the book, but Tropper leaves it to the reader to decide exactly what happens to Judd and Jen.

This Is Where I Leave You is being turned into a movie for a 2011 release. As you read the novel, you can see it on a big screen. It is entertaining and relevant enough to translate well to film. I am looking forward to seeing the movie.

This Is Where I Leave You is not always an easy read. The reader is forced to see themselves in the shoes of the Foxman children. Those with siblings will likely see at least some similarities in their own familial relationships. If you are looking for a good read that will make you think, I would recommend This Is Where I Leave You.

S is for Sharpe

There are many, many writers with a last name starting with "S." I knew this would be a tough one to choose and I'm honestly not sure I made the right choice. This is not the first time I've chosen a book based on title or cover design, and it likely won't be the last. I will admit that I chose this book almost entirely because the cover photo has a Corgi. Yep, I'm a sucker for a dog. So, for better or worse, let me present to you my "S" book, As Good As It Got by Isabel Sharpe.

I actually really liked the premise of this book. Several women who had suffered a great loss gathered together at a therapeutic camp in Maine. The book focuses on three of the campers: Ann, whose husband took his own life, Cindy, who lost her marriage to a string of mistresses and Martha, whose one true love is lying in a coma on the verge of death. I am somewhat of a feminist and love reading about strong, powerful women taking control of their lives, but I think even I would have been turned off by Camp Kinsonu. There are only so many times a person needs to hear the song "I am woman" before they want to jump into an icy Maine lake.

Of the three primary characters, I liked Ann and Martha. Cindy is whiny, needy and so convinced that her cheating husband will come home once again when he realizes he just can't live without her. It's not that easy to like Ann, but in the end, I couldn't help it. She's tough and very honest. She says what she's thinking and that doesn't set well with all the campers, especially during group therapy sessions. Ann has a great deal to overcome when she arrives at Camp Kinsonu. It was only after her husband killed himself that she discovers he had lost all their money, their house and their financial future. Not surprisingly, Ann is bitter. Her journey at camp will see her realize that the high life she and Paul were living was not living at all. She will come a very long way in a very short time. My other favorite was Martha, who came to the camp when her long-time secret love suffers a stroke and ends up in a coma. Martha has spent her adult life waiting for her politician lover to give up his pretty wife and children and realize that it's her he truly loves. Martha feels she doesn't fit in with the other campers. She is the token fat girl. She is eccentric and feels very alone.

See, the premise sounds good. The delivery was not so great. Camp Kinsonu is supposed to be a professionally run, therapeutic camp, but it comes across as more like high school. The inclusion of the allegedly gay male worker is a poor reflection on professional therapy. Hopefully, a real camp like this would actually check out the stories of their workers. The fourth member of Ann's cabin just doesn't fit in at all. A peripheral character should stay on the periphery, not be thrown into so many scenes. Perhaps I was taking the book too seriously. Based on the outline, I was expecting something more thought-provoking, not a beach read. There were some great moments in this novel. There were times when the women really looked deep inside and discovered what they were made of, but those moments were few compared with the fluff.

If you are looking for a fun, quick read with some laugh out loud moments and a few moments of empathy and reflection, I think you'll enjoy "As Good As It Got." If you are looking for a deep look at the problems of women and how they fight to overcome them, keep looking. Isabel Sharpe paints a beautiful picture of summer time in Maine. Camp Kinsonu is a great idea that falls short of it's potential. Maybe that's what Sharpe was aiming for.

I recommend "As Good As It Got" for those looking for a fun read. I recommend it for those who want to laugh a bit and maybe tear up a bit. I do wish the dog on the cover was more than just a memory for one of my least favorite campers. Next time I need a beach read, I might pick up another of Sharpe's books. If I'm looking for something a bit more thought-provoking, I'll pass her by.

R is for Rubio

I've tried during this journey to stay away from Oprah. I have been trying to find my own books and not allow the Queen of all media to pick for me. This time, I just couldn't escape her. The title of the book intrigued me, so I grabbed it to check it out a bit closer. I immediately saw the Oprah Book Club logo on it and considered putting it back, but I still read the summary. I was even more intrigued. I continued to look through the "R" section, but kept coming back to this book. In the end, I carried my "R" choice to the front counter and checked out Icy Sparks by Gwyn Hyman Rubio.

This is a wonderful story of a young orphaned girl growing up in the 50's in the hills of Kentucky. Icy got her name because she was as cold as Icy Creek when she was born. Just weeks after Icy is born, her mother dies, seemingly to the family from eating sour fruit. Icy believes it is the sourness she was nourished on in the womb that has caused all her troubles. Icy grows up in the home of her loving grandparents from whom she tries to hide her growing problems. Around the age of 10, Icy starts suffering from tics and croaks. She is labeled a frog-child by her peers and is shunned by the entire community. As an outcast, Icy finds friendship in an unlikely source; the older, obese owner of the town's feed store. Miss Emily becomes friend, teacher and mentor to the young and confused Icy.

One of the few rough places I found in the book was in Icy's stay at a mental hospital. While I understood why during the 50's a child with tics and croaks who sometimes curses with abandon would be sent to a hospital, there never was much resolution there. No diagnosis was found and she really didn't change at all after her stay. The chapters where Icy was in the hospital were a horrifying glimpse into what a state-run hospital for mentally ill children might have been like in the 50's. From the aide who tormented the children to the mix of physically ill with mentally ill children, it was a sad look back. Icy left the hospital just as she entered it, with her anger, her tics and her separation from the community around her.

Under the tutelage of Miss Emily, Icy studies and prepares for a life outside of the rural community from which and in which she has been isolated. She tries her hand at young love, only to watch it slip away when the tics overcome her while she is in the embrace of her new boyfriend. Icy does find her gift in song. Singing relaxes Icy so the tics stay at bay and through music she is able to bridge some of the gap between herself and the town people.

In the book's epilogue, Icy tells us that she finally found the cause of the tics, twitches and croaking when she is diagnosed with Tourette Syndrome. While the diagnosis does little to erase the pain she endured as a child, it gives Icy a new view of her future.

There were some rough patches in Icy Sparks, but for the most part, it was a wonderfully written book. Rubio's writing is reminiscent of some of the finest Southern writers ever. Icy is a wonderful narrator who makes us laugh and cry, rejoice and cringe. Icy Sparks is a different kind of coming of age story. If you ever felt that you didn't belong, you'll identify with Icy and Miss Emily. I recommend Icy Sparks for anyone who loves Southern writers. I recommend Icy Sparks for anyone who has felt totally left out at some time in their life. I recommend Icy Sparks if you want to laugh and cry and be thoroughly entertained.

Q is for Quinn

Here we are at the letter Q. I was not at all surprised to find one small shelf of books by authors whose last name started with Q. I don't think I know many people with Q names. I was thrilled to find a wonderful book by a Q author. For the letter Q, let me introduce to you "Ishmael" by Daniel Quinn.

When I first read the inside cover I was a bit amused. This is the story of a gorilla who talks with people telepathically. Yep, sounds like a laugh a minute, right. Wrong. "Ishmael" is a book for someone who truly wants to think. If you're looking for a good beach read or something to wile away the time with, this is probably not for you. Now, I'll be honest, I wasn't exactly looking for a great think when I picked up this book. I'm back in school now and I do plenty of thinking reading textbooks and writing papers. I kind of hoped that "Ishmael" was going to be a funny talking gorilla. At the end of the book, I'm so glad that he wasn't.

The novel opens with our narrator finding a strange ad in the newspaper. The ad says "TEACHER seeks pupil. Must have an earnest desire to save the world. Apply in person." That would make me think twice. Today, you'd almost expect to see an ad like that somewhere on Craigslist. Our narrator decides that he must reply, so he shows up at the address, which is just your generic, low-rent office building. Inside the office, he sees a big glass wall and behind that wall sits a half-ton gorilla. As he exchanges glances with the gorilla, he realizes that the gorilla is talking to him in his mind. Ishmael, the gorilla tells the narrator that he, in fact, is the teacher. At this point, Quinn, our narrator, considers leaving, much like most of us would, I'm sure. He stays though to hear what the gorilla has to say.

Ishmael is a wonderful, knowledgeable teacher who talks to Quinn about the ramifications today's culture could have on the earth. Ishmael goes back to the beginning with his story. He basis his teachings on the clash between the two groups he calls the "Leavers" and the "Takers." Through his teachings he gets Quinn to see that the belief by man that they are the reason the earth was ever formed is doing great harm to the earth. Now, this is not just some tree-hugger book, it gets down to the nitty-gritty of ecology and sociology. Quinn makes the reader take a closer look at the culture of modern man and at their own life. I loved his theory of Cain and Abel. While I do believe in the literal telling of Biblical stories, I loved how he used the two brothers to show the attack of the Takers on the Leavers. It gave me a new perspective on ancient and Biblical history.

"Ishmael" was not an easy book to read. The first few times I picked it up, I read only a few pages at a time. I think I was still waiting on my funny gorilla to show up. Ishmael the gorilla and "Ishmael" the novel made me think. If you are ready to face your own beliefs head on and figure out why you believe what you do, "Ishmael" is a great tool to use. Reading this novel can help you firm up your beliefs while also tearing down others. Whoever thought that a book about a talking gorilla could have me taking a closer look at how my country is run and what I can do to make it run better?

Read "Ishmael" if you have an open mind. Read "Ishmael" is you have never taken the time to question why you do what you do and why you believe what you believe. Read "Ishmael" if you are ready to be challenged. Read "Ishmael" if you are ready to think.

P is for Pearson

I knew there would be some tough choices to be made when I started this project. I knew some letters wouldn't have as many authors as others. I'm still not to the really dreaded letters of Q and Z, but I'm getting there. I thought there would be more choices for the letter P than there were, but I'm oh, so glad I had this choice. Our P novel hits close to home, I mean really close to home. "A Short History of a Small Place" is a novel by Winston-Salem native T.R. Pearson.

In this novel, Pearson takes us to the fictional town of Neely, North Carolina. Ok, Neely is about as close to Reidsville, where I live, as you can get. He talks about the ice house, which has now been torn down, he speaks of Scales Street and Lawsonville Avenue. He even mentions from time to time the statue in the square. While other parts are truly fictional, you can see that Mr. Pearson modeled Neely, at least loosely, on Reidsville. This made the story more vivid for me. Now, if you don't live here and have never visited Reidsville, it wouldn't clear things up any for you, but believe me, it's kind of cool. Let's get to the story, which is very entertaining.

"A Short Story of a Small Place" is narrated by young Louis Benfield, but it's the story of the life and death of town socialite and eventual eccentric Miss Myra Angelique Pettigrew. We learn about Miss Pettigrew from watching her through the iron fence that surrounds her yard. Young Louis is not alone in watching Miss Pettigrew's life through the fence. He is joined frequently by his father, Louis, Sr., who is allowed by young Louis's mother to smoke, but not carry matches. He is also joined by other interesting and sometimes hilarious characters like litigation happy Pinky Throckmorton, Casper Epps, the plumber turned preacher and Mrs. Phillip J. King who knew everything about everyone in Neely. Of course every good story needs a monkey, right? Well, this one has one. Miss Pettigrew has a companion in Mr. Britches, a monkey who takes pleasure in shimmying up the front yard flag pole to relieve himself on the bushes and sometimes people below. This is the story of a small, southern town and its quirky, sometimes downright strange residents.

You'll laugh at the antics of the Neelyites while also thinking that you probably know someone just like many of them. Pearson has written a wonderfully entertaining book. Even if you've never visited Reidsville and don't know the Bypass from the Boulevard, you'll get a kick out of the residents of Neely and the wonderful tale spun by T.R. Pearson.

O is for Oren

If you are like me, you think of all soldiers as being heroes, but my "O" book reminds us that soldiers are still human and often make terrible mistakes during war. In Michael B. Oren's debut novel, "The Reunion," we meet a group of men who fought together during World War II. Those who survived are now elderly men getting together one final time. This year's reunion is not being held in some hotel or VFW hall, but rather at the site of their greatest battle, a battle they lost. They are returning to the small town of Saint Vith in the Ardennes.

Throughout the novel, we get stories of the war. We see from the eyes of the aged soldiers how hellish war really is. We learn that all soldiers don't stand bravely in their fox holes firing their weapons until they run out of ammunition. We learn that not all officers are gentlemen and we learn that memory is a funny thing and not always accurate.

If you've ever been to a class reunion, you probably understand the confusion the soldiers had about attending theirs. It was near Christmas, half a world away, in a place where they had witnessed the very worst in men and they all had their own lives. Still, one by one they accepted the invitations sent by their former company clerk. The reunion starts as expected with old men trying to remember the faces of their comrades, visits to local attractions and the battlefields where they fought and lost their friends. Things change though with the arrival of an unexpected guest and the revelation of a true wartime mystery. All kinds of things were going on behind the scenes while these soldiers were dug in on "the ridge" during the Battle of the Bulge. These things come to light all these years later for the soldiers as they try to come to terms with the time that has passed and the men they have become.

If you are a fan of stories about World War II, I believe you will enjoy "The Reunion." If you've ever heard that men of that era never talk about the war with anyone who wasn't there, this novel will help you understand why. I think sometimes we forget that the soldiers didn't just march off to war, liberate those under the oppression of the Nazi's then come home to ticker tape parades and a grateful nation. They fought under terrible conditions. They didn't win every battle. Some soldiers were taken as prisoners of war. Young men died. This is at times a difficult book to read. The stories are sad and the disgraceful behavior by some of our boys makes you angry. Still, some were heroes. Some of the men of the 133rd Infantry Battalion were the soldiers of the movies; brave, strong and faithful to the end.

I'm fascinated by the author of "The Reunion" Michael B. Oren. He knows of WWII from his father who took part in D-Day in 1944. He knows of battle because as an American-born Jew, Oren went to Israel and joined the Israel Defense Forces and fought as a paratrooper in the Lebanon War. As far as I know, this is his only work of fiction, but Oren has written several books on Israel. He even gave up his American citizenship to become the Ambassador for Israel to the United States. He is an interesting man and a very good writer.

If you are interested in learning more about what happened behind the headlines during WWII, read this book. If you want to see how time and distance change the way a person sees an event in which they were a main participant, read this book. If you like a bit of mystery mixed into your historical fiction, read "The Reunion."

N is for Nolan

Ireland is one of the most beautiful places I've visited. It is a country in which I felt very at home. When I saw a book set in Ireland on the N shelves of my library, I was quite excited. I had my choices narrowed down to two and of course went with the Irish book. My selection for my N book is Christopher Nolan's "The Banyan Tree".

Before I get started with the review of the book, I'm going to tell you a bit about the author. From the back inside cover, I read that Christopher Nolan was deprived of oxygen at birth and therefore was paralyzed and mute. Despite this, he was able to use a stick attached to his forehead to type. It took Nolan over a decade to write "The Banyan Tree". Nolan was working on a second novel when in 2009, he choked on a piece of fish and died.

Now that you know a bit about the man who wrote this book, let me say jabberwocky! This is what I felt I was reading for nearly 400 pages. I've never liked "Through the looking glass" for that reason. I don't like jabberwocky! There was a wonderful story in "The Banyan Tree," but it was so hard to find. I realize that the author was Irish and the English of the Irish and the English of the American are not always the same. I get that. He used different words for common things. That's not what I'm talking about. I'm talking about the long, rambling sentences that were placed in the novel for no apparent reason. I remember one paragraph, toward the end of the novel, that was one very, very, very long sentence. There were probably over 100 words in the one sentence. Sometimes it went from jabberwocky to sounding like a bad poetry jam. Despite the annoying way Nolan wrote, I loved the story and I truly loved the main character.

This is the story of Minnie O'Brien of Drumhollow in Ireland. Minnie is the wife of Peter and the mother of Brendan, Sheila and Francis. She is a passionate woman, a loving woman and an incredibly strong woman. As we turn the pages, we see Minnie go from young bride to middle aged widow to old, sometimes senile, woman waiting to hand down her farm to her favorite child. We read of the highs and lows of this strong Fenian woman. This is truly Minnie's story though we do get to make acquaintance with Minnie's parents, the neighboring family the Fortunes, the town midwife and we learn a secret about Minnie's husband Peter.

Like many mothers, Minnie sees her children leave the fold one by one. Her oldest Brendan is called at a young age to be a priest. We follow Brendie from afar as he leaves for seminary, is ordained, goes to Africa and eventually returns home wearing the ring of a Bishop. Sheila, the only daughter feels her calling to be a nurse. She lands in Dublin as the wife of an overbearing, over-protective wealthy man who traps her in a sad and oppressive marriage. Then there is Francis, the favorite. Minnie's youngest child is the reason she lives. Frankie, as he's called, is expected to care for his mother and their farm when his father dies suddenly. Frankie has other ideas though and can't wait to leave Ireland. Minnie holds on day after day, year after year knowing that Frankie will come walking through the gate at any time. One of the mysteries of this novel is whether Frankie will return and if he'll return in time to see his mother one last time.

"The Banyan Tree" is a beautiful story hidden in the rambling (though many reviewers call it lyrical) writing of Christopher Nolan. While I never got on the same page as those who adore his writing style, I loved the story. I turned the pages to see if Frankie would come home, to hear the sometimes hilarious ramblings of Minnie and to lavish in the green sod of Ireland. Recommending this book is hard for me. If you love abstract paintings, you would likely enjoy the novel. If you see swirls and paint splatters on canvas as swirls and splatters, you probably won't.

M is for Martel

Here we are just entering the sixth month of 2010 and I am half-way through my journey. I am really enjoying reading through the alphabet. For a spur of the moment decision, it has sure been a fun journey so far. I've left my comfort zone and though I do look to return to the thrills and chills of the cold war espionage novel, I'm loving the glimpse into more literary novels.

As you would expect, there were dozens and dozens and dozens of "M" books from which to choose. I again went in blindly, allowing the book titles to speak to me. I looked at several, pulled a few just far enough out that I could find them again and put many more back where I found them. One of the few I pulled out for a return visit was the novel I ended up checking out of the library. Usually when I pick a book, it's based on the title and the inside dust cover. That is where you find the summary and possibly a review. This is all I found when I opened this book,
"A boy
A tiger
And the vast Pacific Ocean

This is a novel of such rare and
wondrous storytelling
that it may, as one character claims,
make you believe in God.

Can a reader reasonably ask for
anything more?"

How could I pass it up?

Yann Martel wrote a wonderful novel that won the Man Booker Prize. This novel is our "M" book, "Life of Pi".

As the dustcover promised, it's the story of a boy, a tiger and the Pacific Ocean. Piscine Molitor Patel is a young Indian boy living at the zoo his family owns. You've probably already stumbled over his first name. You are not alone. Friends, enemies and even teachers did the same thing to young Piscine. He finally had enough and began introducing himself as Pi. With a much more suitable name, Pi continued his journey in life.

Young Pi fell in love, but not with a girl, but rather with religion. Pi was raised in a Hindu home, but not an overly religious one. Still, he felt the desire to know a Higher Power. He learned more about his Hindu religion, but still longed for more. On holiday with his family, Pi gathered the courage to enter a Catholic church. In this church, he met a wonderful priest who introduced him to the stories of Jesus. Pi was enthralled and filled with questions. He never had heard of a God who became a man. Pi still longed for more. He searched further and met a Muslim mystic, a Sufi. This humble baker of bread introduced Pi to Islam. Having three religions would be tough on anyone, but especially a teenage boy. Pi suffered under this weight of religion and question. Still, he believed. Though told by his father to choose one, Pi could not. It was this openness which likely saved Pi on his harrowing time on the Pacific.

Pi's father decided to sell the zoo and move the family to Canada. Pi and his brother were not happy about leaving India, but they were obedient children and got ready for the journey. It was the journey to Canada aboard a cargo ship where everything changed. The Patels were on the cargo ship with dozens of the zoo animals they were selling to other zoos. A loud explosion was followed by water flowing into the ship. Pi abandoned ship. He landed in a large lifeboat and waited for his family or the ship's crew. Instead of those companions, he found himself with a male hyena, a female orangutan, an injured zebra and Richard Parker. Though the name sounds like just another man, Richard Parker was actually a Bengal Tiger. These animals were not meant to be together, especially with a teenage boy on a lifeboat in the Pacific.

There were times reading "Life of Pi," where I almost quit and returned it to the library. This was not a cute story of bunnies and kittens. There were gruesome scenes of predatory animals making sure they did not go hungry. I often had to remind myself that this was indeed a novel, not a true story. For a true animal lover, this was not an easy read. It was though, a great read. Yann Martel is a wonderful story teller. His writing draws you in and hangs on to you chapter after chapter. You root for your hero or heroes. You worry, you get thirsty and hungry and wonder how anyone will ever survive. You know you are reading a good story when you actually care what happens.

I recommend "Life of Pi" by Yann Martel for anyone who has ever doubted the existence of God. I recommend it to those who wonder how much one person can take. I recommend it for those who think Job had it easy. If you can get past some of the graphic images of the animal kingdom, it is a wonderful and fascinating read. Enjoy "Life of Pi" and see if you can finish it not believing.

L is for Lansens

If you are like me and are fortunate enough to have a sister, you know it's a unique relationship. A sister knows you like no one else does or can. She's been there your entire life and remembers what it was like when you were a goofy little kid. She loves you because of who you are and despite who you are. As children, sisters may fight, feud, pull hair, call each other names and tease each other mercilessly, but as adults, you find your best friend in your sister. Now imagine your sister being by your side every day, every minute, every second. No matter how much you love your sister, can you fathom being attached to her at the head? That is the story of Rose and Ruby in "The Girls" by Lori Lansens, my choice for my "L" book.

Ruby and Rose are born one night during a tornado. They are the daughters of a 15-year-old girl who runs away as soon as she sees them. Fortunately for "the girls," as they come to be known in their small Canadian town, they are adopted by the nurse who was there when they were born. Aunt Lovey, as they call her, and her Slovac husband Stash raise the girls in a dilapidated farm house where they can be as normal as possible. The novel is written in the girls own words. It is their autobiography as they face their 30th birthday and the possibility of being the oldest living craniopagus conjoined twins. It's a funny, touching story of the the love between sisters, overcoming daunting obstacles, living life and facing death.

Though forever joined at the head, the girls are as different as night and day. Rose is able to walk, but because of Ruby's shortened legs and club feet, must carry her sister all the time. Rose is a sports fan who loves to watch all the games with Uncle Stash. She dreams of being a writer some day and decides she needs to write the story of her life. She realizes that her autobiography must include her sister Ruby because they are after all inseparable. Ruby is the pretty one despite her short legs and the constant hold she has around her sister's neck. Ruby likes TV, but not sports. Ruby also is intrigued with the Native Neutral Indians who once lived on the land that is now their home. She collects artifacts for the local museum. Like other girls coming of age, Rose and Ruby want to know about boys and love. Their crush on a high school classmate opens that door for the girls, but with an outcome neither could have seen coming. We follow the girls into their adult years where they get jobs at the local library. They have their own duties and their own schedules. Yes, they both have to be there whenever either is scheduled, but they want to do things on their own.

"The Girls" is a wonderful story filled with lots of laughs and many tears as well. Lansens really shows the differences between the girls as she writes chapters from each girl's perspective. Rose, the writer, is effusive in her chapters, leaving nothing behind and trying to sound deep and philosophical. Ruby, on the other hand, is simple with the style of someone writing in their journal or diary. Their closeness creates a bond unlike any other while their differences make them learn and grow beyond anything anyone would have thought possible.

Read "The Girls" if you love your sister, but can't imagine being joined to her every second of the day. Read "The Girls" if you don't have a sister, but know the bond of best friends. Recommend "The Girls" to a teenage girl who is trying to fit in and maybe trying to hide all the things that make her unique and special. Read "The Girls" if you want to laugh and cry and consider just how truly blessed each and every one of us is.

K is for Kallos

I can't believe it's May already and I can't believe that I'm already up to K in my trek through the alphabet. I was surprised at the great selection of K books. As I looked through the titles, one jumped out at me, "Broken For You" by Stephanie Kallos. When we take communion, we often hear a part of I Corinthians 11:24, "And when he had given thanks, he brake it, and said, Take, eat: this is my body, which is broken for you: this do in remembrance of me." While the novel has nothing to do with that scripture, I'm so thrilled that the title was strong enough to draw me in.

This is another first novel by an author. "Broken for You" took Kallos seven years to write. She truly put her life and heart and soul into this work. It is beautifully written and deeply moving. The novel brings to the reader those "what would you do if" questions that can bring better understanding of ourselves. At the heart of the story are two women, 76-year-old Margaret and 34-year-old Wanda. Margaret has just learned she has a brain tumor and must decide whether she wants treatment or not and if not, how to live what's left of her life. Wanda has just moved across the country following a man who left her. Their lives intersect through a roommate wanted ad. As Margaret tears down long-standing walls to free herself to live and die, Wanda puts together small pieces of glass to make art and build bridges.

"Broken for You" deals with the guilt one woman feels because of the sins of her father and the loss another feels over the desertion of hers. A wonderful cast of characters join Margaret and Wanda as they break china, drink champagne and learn to love themselves and others again. While Margaret and Wanda are the stars of this novel, don't overlook the charm of Wanda's handsome assistant Troy, the charming Scot Gus, the fantastic chef Bruce and Margaret's nurse Susan. They all bring their own personalities and stories to Margaret's house. There is also the side story of M.J. Striker and Holocaust survivor Irma Kosminsky. The story of M.J. and Irma is ever so important while it's soft, warm and funny.

Stephanie Kallos put seven long years into writing this novel and I took my time reading it. "Broken for You" is a beautifully written, deeply touching story. It's a wonderful read. I recommend "Broken for You" to all who have loved and lost, all who are facing tough decisions in life, all who want to laugh and cry and feel. Read "Broken for You" and go break a plate! You'll get that when you read it.

J is for Jordan

I love finding author's first published novels. I guess that's because of that desire I have to write and be published. The "J" stop on our journey is with Hillary Jordan who has written an intriguing and very sad story of the Mississippi Delta during the 1940's.

"Mudbound" is a haunting tale of two families trying to survive the hardships of cotton and soybean farming in Mississippi. This is the story of the white farm owners, the McAllans and one of their black farm families, the Jacksons. Henry McAllan has dreamed of being a land owner and farmer since his father sold the family farm when he was young. He worked hard and saved to buy a farm in the tough Delta. Henry is married to city-born Laura who is not thrilled with her husband's sudden announcement that they are leaving Memphis to work the farm. Henry, Laura and their two young daughters pack up everything and head to Mississippi where they land on their new farm which Laura and the girls quickly name Mudbound. Henry's father, Pappy, also moves with the family. Saying Pappy is cantankerous would be a very nice thing. He is a mean, ugly racist who makes life miserable for Laura and for Florence Jackson, who helps Laura around the house. When the war winds down, Henry's brother Jamie joins the family on the farm. He brings smiles to the little girls and a completely different feeling to Laura.

"Mudbound" is about two families scraping their way on the farm, but it's about so much more. It's about the attitudes of people towards people of color in America. In 2010, we don't think much about the ugliness, the evilness that was spewed at blacks in America just a few decades ago. We think we're above it and beyond it. I think "Mudbound" reminds us that it wasn't that long ago that a crazy man in Germany was trying to eradicate an entire race while here at home, we were making another race of people ride in the back of the pickup, use the back door and never, ever look us in the eye. Even the supposed good people in "Mudbound" followed the norms of the day. This book made me angry for what happened, sad for those to which it all happened and fearful that if we do not remember history, we will repeat it.

Hillary Jordan wrote a powerful first novel. I think readers, like me, who never attended a segregated school or saw a whites only water fountain will learn a great deal from the novel. I enjoyed the story, loved the writing style and was reminded of what terrible things we as humans are capable of doing. I recommend "Mudbound" to those who need a refresher course in why all men and women are truly created equal.

I is for Ishiguru

When I was browsing the "I" section of the Reidsville Public Library, the title of this book caught my attention. When I grabbed it, I noticed that the author had also written "Remains of the Day." I was intrigued, so I checked it out. For our "I" stop on the journey through the alphabet, I read "When We Were Orphans," by Kazuo Ishiguro.

"When We were Orphans" is the story of Christopher Banks, an Englishman born in Shanghai in the early 20th century. Sounds good so far, right. Banks is just a regular privileged kid living in a very sheltered area of what was apparently a pretty rough and tumble city. Shanghai took everything from the young Banks. The city took his father, then his mother. Banks was forced to move to England to grow up with his aunt. All he dreamed of was finding his parents and became a detective to do just that. Banks solves several high profile cases in England before bowing to pressure to return to Shanghai to solve the one case which has haunted him since he was a boy.

The story sounds so intriguing, but honestly, I kept feeling like I was missing some inside story. I felt throughout the book that I was hearing two separate conversations and trying to make them into one. While the writing was good, I just never could get into the story. Did I want to find out what happened to Banks' parents, yes; did I care how he found out, not really. I hate when I don't bond with any character in a novel, but I never bonded with Banks or any of the peripheral characters. Maybe it was me. The reviews on the book are great, but it just didn't click with me.

H is for Hyde

I am one of probably a handful of Americans who has never seen the movie "Pay it Forward." I think I've seen bits and pieces on TV, but I've never sat and watched the entire thing. I do know it starred that little "I see dead people" kid. I think it also starred Kevin Spacey. Since I've not seen the movie, I can't compare it to our "H" novel on which the film is based. I do know I wish it were not a novel, but rather a reality. Our "H" author is Catherine Ryan Hyde and her novel is Pay it Forward.

Trevor McKinney is your typical 12-year-old boy or at least what you want your typical 12-year-old boy to be. He is industrious, he's smart and he really loves his mom. His mother, Arlene is an over-worked recovering alcoholic who is trying to raise her son alone, again. The boy's father has vanished. His wrecked truck has been found and hauled back to Arlene's house. She co-signed the loan on the truck and has to make the payments despite it just being a shell of a vehicle. It wasn't like he was ever much of a father for Trevor or a man for Arlene, but she did love him. She won't give up on him, though she's the only one in the world who thinks he's ever coming back.

A new teacher arrives at Trevor's Junior High. His name is Reuben St. Clair and he's a Vietnam veteran. Mr. St. Clair has a face no one can forget, actually, it's only half a face. Reuben returned from Vietnam with scars to his face and his soul. He is a good teacher though and immediately bonds with young Trevor. In a teaching assignment for extra credit, Mr. St. Clair encourages his students to come up with an idea to change the world. Only a few students take him up on the extra credit offer and most of those have pretty pedestrian ideas. Only Trevor's idea really seems to fit the bill, though Trevor thinks it's a failure.

Trevor's idea to change the world is to do something really nice for three people. In return for his good deeds, those three people would pay it forward and do good for three people each. Trevor sees this as a true way to change the world. His plan doesn't come together to easily though. His first act of good seems to fail when his person goes back on drugs and ends up in jail. In his second attempt, his person dies before he believes she can pay it forward. The third person he chooses is Mr. St. Clair, who he decides should fall in love and marry his mom. How does this one work out?

If you've seen the movie, you know that the ending is not a happily ever after kind. If you've not seen it, I won't ruin it for you. Do be prepared for tears. I really enjoyed Pay It Forward for the ideas it put in my mind. Wouldn't it be a wonderful world if everyone paid it forward, if people weren't selfish and went above and beyond the Golden Rule? Where would we be if when we saw someone in need, we actually did something about it? This is supposed to be a book review, so I'll stop with the moral aspects of the book. The writing is just ok, but the ideas are so good, they get you past some lackluster characters.

Enjoy Pay It Forward for the ideas, if not for the stellar writing. Learn from Trevor and even from Mr. St. Clair and Arlene. Check out Pay It Forward even if you've seen the movie. I'm sure there will be some surprises.

G is for Gearino

Wouldn't you love to be a fly on the wall? We've probably all heard that question at sometime in our lives, I know I've heard it and said it. It would be great, wouldn't it? You could hear and see everything that's going on, but no one would realize you were there. People would open up, tell their deepest secrets, do things and say things they'd never say if they knew you were there. What fun! Well, that's the premise of my "G" novel, What the Deaf-Mute Heard by G.D. Gearino. The premise is great, but the book falls a bit short of it's promise.

The main character in this novel is Sammy Ayers who woke up at age 10 in the back of an empty bus. His mother was gone and he was at the end of the line in a small town in Georgia. Of course, he is in a state of shock, but rather than crying or asking for his mother, Sammy just clams up. He doesn't answer when adults ask him questions and he acts like he can't hear them. Sammy becomes a deaf-mute by choice. The manager of the bus station takes Sammy under his wings in a way. He allows the boy to stay in the storage room at the station. Sammy grows up in the station, seeing and hearing everything, but basically invisible to the town. You really want to cheer for Sammy because of the hand he's been dealt, but he just never becomes that kind of hero. For me, it was sad to see this boy become a man but never desire to be anything more than the handyman living in the bus storage room. His only real goal in life is revenge on the bully from school who has become the town's top preacher. He does make a couple of huge discoveries in his life, but they don't change him much. He remains the fake deaf-mute living in the storage room.

I was so excited after reading the inside cover of this book. It had such promise. I mean, who wouldn't want to hear all the juicy secrets in a small town? The characters were just never really fleshed out. You don't grow to love anyone or for that matter really hate anyone. There are no real good guys or bad guys, just people doing what they do, mostly for their own gain. I think the author missed a great opportunity to write a wonderful novel. He had a fantastic idea, but he just didn't follow through all the way. What the Deaf-Mute Heard could have been a great book, but in the end, it was just ok.

I realized in my journey that all my choices wouldn't be great, but I was disappointed in my first mediocre book. We're still early in the journey and hopefully my choice in the category of "H" will get us back into pleasurable reading.

F is for Foer

Have you ever read a book and just couldn't wait to get to the end for some reason. Maybe you wanted to find out if the bad guy got caught or the lovers found each other again or maybe the book just stunk and you wanted it to be over. Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close is NOT one of those books. This is a book I never wanted to end. I wanted to read it every day. I wanted the story to go on forever.

Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close is a novel by Jonathan Safran Foer. Our hero is Oskar Schell. Oskar is smart, quirky, precocious, different, sad and, did I mention, 8 years-old. Oskar is an inventor. He invents things that will keep his family and friends and the whole world safe. Oskar is consumed with this after losing his father. Oskar is really consumed with many different things after the death of his father. One of Oskar's obsessions is "inventing" ways his father died. He's not sure he'll ever really rest again until he knows exactly what happened on that morning his father was attending a breakfast meeting at Windows on the World. Oskar needs to know what happened in that restaurant on September 11, 2001. Oskar needs to figure out what happened in the minutes following that last recorded message from his dad.

Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close is not what I would consider a 9/11 novel. It's not about that tragic day as much as it is about a young boy dealing with the aftermath. Foer's novel is a look into the life of Oskar's whole family. There's Oskar who can't move on following the tragedy, Oskar's mom, who he fears is moving on and Oskar's grandma, who has a fascinating story all her own. There are also the many people Oskar meets on his journey to learn more about his father.

I know my review of this book is doing it absolutely no justice. I throw out the term 9/11 and people will have one idea of the book, but it's wrong. I say that Oskar wanders the boroughs of New York on a quest and you'll get another wrong idea. If I mentioned Oskar's grandparents and how and when they fled Germany, you'll get another idea, and it's wrong. All I can say is that I loved Oskar. I loved his bird seed shirt invention. I loved his jewelry making. I loved his made up words so he wouldn't curse. I was sad with Oskar. I was frightened with Oskar. I was excited with Oskar. I walked in Oskar's "heavy boots."

Read Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close if you remember how you felt that morning. Read it if you've lost someone you love and you just can't get past that feeling of trudging uphill, through quicksand in very heavy boots. Read it if you want to laugh or need to cry. Read Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close by Jonathan Safran Foer for all the things it is and all the things it isn't.

E is for Eng, Tan Twan

Since I have abandoned my research into books I will read on this journey, I am spending more time looking at titles. I'm sure I've missed some great books because the titles just didn't grab me. My "E" book wasn't a shirt grabbing title, but rather one that whispered loudly to me. I had never heard of Tan Twan Eng, but I am so glad I've now read his wonderful novel "The Gift of Rain."

Now, I'm not one to just gush over a book, but I may have to hold myself back to keep from doing that with this novel. Eng writes in a style that is both beautiful and deeply soothing. His music is lyrical and as wonderful as a soothing rain. What is most amazing is that he somehow keeps the lyrical, almost meditative style to his writing while writing about the horrors of war. The reader still sees the ugliness that is war, but at the same time somehow finds beauty and enduring friendship.

The hero of our novel is a young man who has lived his life as somewhat of an outcast in a highly respected family. He doesn't feel that he fits in anywhere. In his small Malaysian island, he is not Malay, not English like his father nor Chinese like his deceased mother. He is a young man adrift until the words "I would like to borrow a boat from you" change his life. Philip Hutton is taken under the wing and into the training of Japanese aikido master Hayato Endo. Endo-san teaches young Philip about life and about his belief that the two had met and been friends in many lives before. Philip learns to fight and think and survive under the tutelage of Endo-san. He shares his beloved island of Penang with the Japanese man and learns that there is often a price to be paid for friendship.

When war breaks out on the peaceful island, Philip must make choices. His choices could cost him his family or his friendship or his life. Right and wrong are not black and white choices in Philip's life. His journey through the war is brutal, his sensei is not the man he believe he was and his family ties are stretched to the breaking point. If Philip makes it through the war, he wonders if he'll be remembered as a hero or a traitor.

"The Gift of Rain" is one of the most beautifully written books I've ever been honored to read. Tan Twan Eng takes us on what feels like a very personal journey in a land he knows and loves. It's no wonder this book was nominated for the Man Booker Prize. Read "The Gift of Rain" if you want to step inside the other side of World War II. Read it for the beautiful, moving prose. Read it for the sometimes heartbreaking reality of life in that time. Read it to understand the true depths of love and friendship. Enjoy "The Gift of Rain" for the true literary gift it is.

D is for Duncan, Pamela

I decided to go with the no research approach to picking my D book. I had realized after researching for B and C that my little library didn't have all of the books I'd picked, so I might as well see what they had before making my decisions. So off I went to pick up D.

When I got to the stacks, I noticed that D was just on the end of one row. That kind of surprised me. D doesn't seem like a letter that would not be popular for last names. Apparently, there is not an overabundance of fiction authors with a last name starting with D. So, I walked down the row and began looking for a D book. Since I did no research at all, I figured it would take a little while. I started by looking for catchy titles. Of course, I stopped for a bit when I got to the Di's. There in front of me was a shelf of Charles Dickens novels. I seriously considered going with Dickens on this one. I love Dickens. Then I got to thinking about it and realized that I had 52 weeks to read 26 books and I was running a bit behind. Dickens would take a while to digest, so I said farewell and moved on.

When I got toward the end of the D's, I started getting worried. I had nothing in my hand and not many looked like I might go back for a second look. I'm trying to stay away from series because it's going to be so long before I can get back to them and while I'm venturing into some unknown reading territory for me, I'm not quite ready to venture into the land of science fiction. These restraints do make things a bit more difficult in a small category.

My library does something I really appreciate. If an author is from North Carolina, they put a little NC sticker on the spine of the book. I like to read local or regional authors and this little sticker makes that so much easier. I tell you that to lead you to my D book. I was nearly at the end of the D's and saw an NC sticker on a couple of novels. One title caught my eye. I picked it up and read the synopsis. Hmm, not bad. I just wasn't sure about it though, so I kept looking. I finished all the D's and started over, going back to front this time. Still nothing, so I returned to the book I'd seen.

"Moon Women" was the title and it was written by North Carolina native Pamela Duncan. Honestly, I wasn't sure I was going to like this book at all. It sounded kind of like something maybe I'd read before or seen in a movie. I really wanted to give it a chance though since the author was from NC.

I started "Moon Women" that evening and after reading the first couple of pages, I was ready to throw the book through the window. I hated it. I'm not the grammar police, but I am an honorary deputy and this book is written in the vernacular of uneducated and undereducated rural North Carolinians. Yeah, it sounded like I was standing in the middle of Food Lion listening to a conversation. I have determined in this journey that I am going to finish every book I check out, so I read on. I still cringed at the grammar, but I started liking the characters.

"Moon Women" is at it's core a story of three generations of women from the western part of North Carolina. Ruth Ann Moon Payne is a daughter, mother, sister, grandmother and recent divorcee. She's a nervous woman who worries about her elderly mother Marvelle and her 19-year-old daughter Ashley who is just about ready to get out of rehab. While Ruth Ann is the central character in the novel, she is not in any way the only primary character. Marvelle Moon is an amazing old woman. She's the mother of 12 children, not all of whom made it to adulthood. She's a strong woman, but is now in the early stages of dementia. Ashley is the wild child. She'd run away and hadn't been heard from in years until she landed herself in rehab. Now, she needs a place to live and start over. She also needs to decide what to do about the young man who got her pregnant and about the baby now growing inside her. How will Ruth Ann deal with the added stress of a pregnant teenage daughter and an elderly mother who now walks away from home and gets lost?

"Moon Women" struck a special chord with me. As the daughter, granddaughter and great-granddaughter of strong Southern women, I identified with many of the characters. I still wanted to correct their grammar, but I really fell in love with the Moon women.

Throughout the novel, Marvelle takes us on a journey through her long life. I had to wonder if that's the way things were for my great-grandmother, raising 11 children in the early decades of the 1900's. Marvelle didn't have an easy life. She lost babies, she saw tragedies, but she persevered. She was strong and raised strong daughters.

I heartily recommend "Moon Women" to any woman, but especially to Southern women who will identify with the hardships and victories seen by Marvelle, Ruth Ann, Ashley and the other members of the Moon clan. When this year long journey is finished, I will read more from Pamela Duncan.

When you are browsing books in your local library, I recommend you check into local or regional authors. They may not be best selling books, but you might connect more closely to them. Today, I head back to the library to return "Moon Women" and to check out my E and F novels.

Read on!

C is for Cisneros, Sandra

I was very excited when I went to the library to choose my C book. I had read reviews of several books by Sandra Cisneros and really wanted to read her. When I got to the library, they were out of most of the books I'd read about, but they did have "Caramelo." This book was nothing at all like I expected, but it was a fantastic read.

Before my review, let's tackle one issue you might have with the novel. There is a pretty good amount of Spanish spoken. Some of the Spanish is translated for you, but quite a bit is not. I have a rudimentary grasp on the language and could make out most of the phrases, but if you don't speak any Spanish you might want a Spanish-English dictionary to understand everything. Of course, you can just skip over the Spanish phrases and get the gist of the book. I personally loved the addition of the Spanish phrases because it lent such an authentic flavor to the novel.

In "Caramelo" Sandra Cisneros takes us inside the Mexican culture of the 1950's and '60's. Now, I grew up in Texas and I thought I knew something about Mexican culture. While I knew what a telenovela was and could tell you the difference between a tamal and an enchilada, my knowledge was nothing near what I thought it was. There is a huge difference in Mexico Mexican culture and Tex-Mex culture. Both are beautiful, bold and strong, but they are quite different.

"Caramelo" is the story of the Reyes family of Mexico City, Chicago and San Antonio. It's told by Lala, the only daughter of Inocencio Reyes and his wife Zoila. The novel doesn't read like other novels in that it's a book of short stories that flow together, rather than an ongoing narrative. While each story is self-contained, they all do feed off each other. Sandra Cisneros has a beautiful style of writing. The writing is very colorful, exciting and sometimes a bit disjointed, but very endearing. You can see the bright colored houses of Mexico City. You smell the meats and fruits and sometimes terrible smells of a bustling Mexican city. Cisneros writing is very lyrical and you can almost sing along with some of her phrasing. You find yourself in the mind and heart of a young girl then teenager. For those of us who remember those thoughts and feelings, it's a beautiful reminder.

Mexican culture revolves around family and that is exactly the point of "Caramelo." Family is everything to Inocencio Reyes. His mother, the Awful Grandmother, is the center of all life and that is just fine for her but not for Inocencio's wife and daughter. The Awful Grandmother makes herself heard both in life and death. She wants nothing less than the complete and total love of her oldest son, Inocencio. To that end, she makes life less than perfect for the other females in the family. Lala must grow up with that pressure and pain and learn how to deal with it and how to love while not always feeling loved. Other characters you meet along the journey include the Little Grandfather, Uncle Fat Face, Uncle Baby, Aunty Light-Skin and Lala's 6 older brothers.

There are great surprises in "Caramelo" and wonderful lessons to be learned. Readers will enjoy the twists, turns and travels. The format takes a bit of getting used to, but it becomes a pleasure. I enjoyed the historic lessons. I learned a great deal about Mexican history and how that history plays into the Mexican way of life today. Check out "Caramelo" and be ready to be entertained and educated. This was the first time I'd read Sandra Cisneros, but I know I will be back.

B is for Bronte, well kind of

When I got ready to pick out my B and C books, I decided to do a bit of research. I went to Amazon and checked out their book lists. They have wonderful alphabetized lists of their best selling books. I made notes and wrote down a few authors for each letter. I was set and headed out to the Reidsville Library.

Let me remind you that I love my library, I really do. There is one downside to living in a small town and having a smallish library. That downside is that they just can't carry every book. When I walked into the stacks with list in hand, I quickly realized that my library didn't carry the authors or the titles by those authors I'd picked out. No need to worry, there were plenty of others.

As I looked through the B's, I saw a couple of promising titles and then I saw "Emma Brown." All but the first two chapters were written by Clare Boylan. It's those first two chapters that sold me on the book. They were an unfinished manuscript by Charlotte Bronte. Now, don't start thinking that I'm some Victorian era romance reader because I'm not. As I've written before, my favorite genre of novel is cold war spy. I was intrigued though that someone had taken an unfinished manuscript by a very famous writer and completed it. After reading the synopsis, I checked out "Emma Brown" by Clare Boylan.

I honestly don't recall ever reading "Little Women" or any other novel by a Bronte sister. That wasn't my thing as a girl and it still isn't. The Victorian era is fascinating though. Those of us with laptop computers, iPods and frequent flier miles might have a hard time walking into a world of horse travel, letter writing and spiny undergarments. While it comes across as being a beautiful time, it had to have been very harsh. Young girls were married off to old men, babies died of basic illnesses and regular folk had to know how to sew and cook and build a good fire. You couldn't just run out to the Wal-Mart or Lowe's to get your supplies. Life may have been simple, but that doesn't mean it was easy.

"Emma Brown" is set in and around London. Our heroine is young, though even she doesn't know her exact age. We first meet her at a new school for girls run by the domineering yet exceedingly dull Wilcox sisters. Emma is left there by her apparently well to do benefactor who gives what turns out to be a fraudulent name and address. She is said to be of good means and breeding, but we soon find out that none of this is really known or provable for quite a while. Emma is not a beautiful child nor a very likable one. The sisters Wilcox put her on a pedestal on which they believe she belongs, but one she doesn't like nor believe she deserves. When the bills come due, we begin to believe the worst of Emma and her benefactor. Emma is shunned by the previously worshipful Wilcox sisters and our adventure truly begins.

"Emma Brown" takes you into the depths of the horrors of Victorian London. You come face to face with sickness, death and child prostitution. You meet a young girl who carries around dead babies she finds in the gutters. You meet people who will sell their own children or any other child they can find just to take care of themselves. You also meet people of great character who make the most of what they are given and of the circumstances in which they find themselves. Though some of "Emma Brown" reads like a Victorian Lifetime Movie, it is a pleasure overall.

I can't compare Clare Boylan's writing to authentic Victorian era writing, but I believe she stayed true to the direction in which Charlotte Bronte started this novel. I think fans of the genre will be pleased with "Emma Brown."

I don't know if this is the farthest I will stray from my preferred genres, but I know it is a long way from Russia, the CIA or Daniel Silva. While I still love my spies, I think this journey will open my mind and my heart to other genres, other writers and other heroes, heroines and villains. Please join me on my journey as I read authors from A-Z.

A = John Altman

The first book in my journey to read an author representing every letter of the alphabet is "A Gathering of Spies" by John Altman.

This was John Altman's first novel and the perfect way for me to start. I've said before that I love spy novels, so the title grabbed my attention. I read the inside cover and thought it sounded interesting. While I didn't find Altman to be the best spy novelist I've ever read, I did enjoy the book.

The premise of the novel is that Nazi spies were dropped all over the U.S. in the years leading up to World War II. They had either been discovered as spies and arrested or had assimilated into the American culture and were living and continuing to spy. A female spy is dealt with extensively. Now, she's no softie by any stretch. She's a hardened Nazi spy who can and will kill to get what she needs and remain free. Using her willingness to murder and the lack of background information checks available in the 1930's, she marries a scientist who is working to help develop "The Bomb." You can see this is not a good thing. I won't give any thing else away, just know that she's not hesitant to keep killing to get this information back to her Nazi handlers in Berlin. She does have someone on her tail though. Thanks to a CIA agent who goes a bit rogue, she's followed by him and the always sexy MI5 from Britain. Will she escape? will she get her information to Berlin? Will our hero be reunited with his wife, who is being held in a concentration camp? You know how the war ends, but you'll enjoy some of the twists and turns and the what might have beens that are presented in John Altman's "A Gathering of Spies."

Next, we hit the B's. Until then, get out to your local library and check out a good book!

Reading from A-Z

One of my favorite places in all of the booming metropolis that is Reidsville, North Carolina is the public library. I love the hushed voices, the faces transfixed at the computer screens and of course, the stacks and stacks of books. I was in the library just days before the end of the year, trying to decide what to check out. I had one book in hand, another Kathy Reichs novel, but I wasn't sure what else I wanted. I was wandering down aisle after aisle when I ended up at the very first fiction aisle. It was just a little stack, about 1/3 the size of the other rows. I was in the A's. That's when it hit me.

I'm not one to make New Year's resolutions, but I decided to make a New Year's project. While looking at about 100 books from authors who had last names starting with an A, I decided to read my way through the alphabet.

I looked at this smaller selection of books and found something comfortable to me: a spy novel. I thought this would be a good place to start. I wasn't jumping in in a crazy way, but I was jumping in.

During 2010, I plan to read one book from an author from every letter of the alphabet. I know some of the letters won't be easy. I don't plan to keep things easy on myself. I will branch out. I won't just read fiction and when I do read fiction, it won't all be spy novels, but I will read some because I just love them.

If you're reading this blog, I invite you to join me. Go to your library, maybe it's been a while. Get a new card, if you need one. They are one of the few things in life that remain free. Check out a book or 2 or 3. Challenge yourself to read outside your comfort zone. Challenge yourself to read!