Bookfoolery

Friday, December 10, 2010

Fiona Friday - Sleeping Beauties (and some new book arrivals)

This looks so tiny!! But, I loaded the full-pixel image, so you should be able to click on the image to see the kitties a little closer (I hope).

I'm just now cooling off from a workout that involved throwing the little toys we call "milk carton tabs" in two different directions and zipping back and forth to keep repeating the process, so that the two kitties didn't cross paths and get peeved at each other for "stealing my toy". Chiefly, I'm referring to Fiona, who has recently taken to gnawing on Izzy until Izzy cries out, "Help me, help me, help me, stop her, stop her, stop her, OUCH!" in kitten language (the sound is very much like several steps on a squeaky toy). The only solution is to wear out both furballs, although there may be some time-outs involved if Fi keeps this up.

I wear out much faster than the cats do, unfortunately.

I began working on a review of Cosmic by Frank Cottrell Boyce, last night, but I didn't get far before I was overcome with a sudden and overwhelming urge to read, which resulted in one of those really late nights that you have when you're an insane book addict who keeps saying, "Just one more chapter. Okay. Just one more. Really, this time I'll stop at the end of the chapter." On and on until I finished Pemberley Ranch. I got to bed at 3:00 am. Then I had to wake up (oh, the trauma) to go fetch Kiddo from school and run some errands. I'm kind of beat.

Tomorrow, I plan to finish my Cosmic review some time during a day of mad cleaning. It's going to be a very positive review, in case you're interested.

Since I still haven't charged my camera batteries, I'll just copy some images to show you my 4 most recent arrivals.

The Thief of Time by John Boyne - from a swap site (I've decided to simply refer to Paperback Swap generically, in the future, for the sake of those who might not know what PBS stands for). I have no earthly idea where I heard about The Thief of Time but it sure sounds fun. Here's the cover blurb:

It is 1758 and Matthieu Zela is fleeing Paris for Dover, having witnessed the murder of his mother by his stepfather.

Beginning in murder and ending in redemption, Matthieu's life is characterised by one extraordinary fact: before the eighteenth century ends he discovers that his body has stopped ageing. At the end of the twentieth century he is able to look back on a life lived to the full. He has been an engineer, a rogue, a movie mogul, a soldier, a cable TV executive and a lover to many. Spanning two-and-a-half centuries, The Thief of Time weaves Hollywood in the 1920s, the Great Exhibition of 1851, the French Revolution, the Wall Street Crash and much more into a dazzling novel of murder, treachery, passion and glamour.

Angel Harp by Michael Phillips - Advanced Reader's Copy from Faith Words for FirstWild review

Selected excerpt from the cover blurb (not the entire blurb):

Widowed at thirty-four, amateur harpist Marie Buchan realizes that her life and dreams are slowly slipping away. A longed-for summer in Scotland offers far more than a change of scenery. Not only does the music of her harp capture the fancy of the small coastal village she visits, but she is unexpectedly drawn into a love triangle involving the local curate and the local duke.

In this sparkling new novel, acclaimed author Michael Phillips takes readers on a romantic journey along Scotland's beautiful shores and into a young widow's search for love, faith and fulfillment.

Bitten by Kelley Armstrong - from a swap site

After reading the entire young adult Darkest Powers series by Kelley Armstrong, I decided I absolutely must read more and Melissa recommended the Women of the Otherworld series. I got two of the books whilst on Thanksgiving holiday and neither was the first book (I had to guess), so I ordered Bitten.

Elena Michaels seems like the typically strong and sexy modern woman. She lives with her architect boyfriend, writes for a popular newspaper, and works out at the gym. She's also a werewolf.

Elena has done all she can to assimilate to the human world, but the man whose bite changed her existence forever, and his legacy, continue to haunt her. Thrown into a desperate war for survival that tests her allegiance to a secret clan of werewolves, Elena must reckon with who and what she is in this passionate and page-turning novel.

La Petite Four by Regina Scott - from a swap site and highly recommended by a blogger, but I have this unfortunate tendency not to write down who wrote the review that swayed me. I'm going to work on trying to become more organized in that way, in 2011.

La Petite Four are Lady Emily and her three best friends: Priscilla, Ariadne and Daphne. They've finally graduated from the Barnsley School for Young Ladies and can't wait for the ball that will launch them into London Society.

Then detestable Lord Robert announces that he wants to mary Emily! This dreadful news threatens to prevent their ball from ever taking place! La Petite Four vow that no gentleman will come between them and what promises to be the biggest party of the season. Even if it means chasing Lord Robert all over town to discover his ugly secret, muddying their hems and constantly running into wickedly charming strangers like the mysterious James Cropper. Or could it be that James is following them?

But when La Petite Four uncover a deadly scheme, they realize they are the only ones who can put a stop to it. Now they don't know who to trust--only that they must save the ball, and Emily, before it's too late!

I have more titles I haven't mentioned and which I'll share another day.

Question:

Have you got any great plans for the weekend? My plans, besides mad cleaning and writing my Cosmic review are to finish at least two books, watch a couple of movies, begin writing Christmas cards (yes, yes, I know I'm getting a late start, but usually I just ignore them completely) and do a bit more Christmas decorating. We haven't even got a tree, but that's okay since we don't yet have any packages to put under one. This is the tree I want.

Wednesday, December 08, 2010

Two Tickets to the Christmas Ball by Donita K. Paul

Two Tickets to the Christmas Ball
by Donita K. Paul
Copyright 2010
Waterbrook Press - Seasonal/Christian
240 pages

Cora Crowder is used to working during the holidays and spending her free time alone with her cat. A recently-converted Christian, she's just a little confused about Christmas season and what it should mean to her. Mostly, she just wants to get the season over with. Parties aren't her thing and she hates crowds so she does her shopping bit by bit.

When Cora goes to a bookstore in search of a book for her uncle, she's surprised to find the owners are more than a little odd and there's something just a little bit magical about the store. And, then she runs into her boss's boss.

Simon Derrick is serious and focused. In fact, he doesn't even seem all that friendly. He can't even remember Cora's last name. When Cora runs into him at Warner, Werner and Witzbotterdad's -- a very strange little bookstore on a street nobody seems to think exists -- he is every bit as unfriendly and distracted as expected. But, when both Cora and Simon find an invitation to the Wizard's Ball in their purchases, they are thrown together. Simon wants to take his sweet sister Sandy, who has Down's Syndrome, because he thinks it will make her happy; and, Cora wants to get rid of her ticket.

What neither knows is that the Wizard's Ball is a magical thing. People who go to the ball tend to end up married. Simon and Cora are both surprised to find that they really like each other when they're thrown together by various mishaps, an unexpected litter of kittens and their tickets to the ball. But, Cora really isn't sure she wants to go to a dance. Obviously, Simon wants to take his sister Sandy. Cora likes Sandy. Her plain-spoken thoughts about God and natural charm are endearing, but Cora doesn't want to feel like a third wheel. And, when Cora's wayward sister shows up and a very important item goes missing, it looks like Cora's not going to end up at the ball, whether she wants to or not.

What I liked about Two Tickets to the Christmas Ball:

The characters really are charming. Simon seems unfriendly, at first, but it quickly becomes apparent that he's a terrific guy who adores his family and has put his own life second to taking care of his mother, grandfather, great-aunt and sister. Cora is a wounded soul. Her large, extended family is a total disaster and as a new Christian she's more than a little torn about how she should feel about family and the holiday season. She has a lot of trouble summoning the Christmas spirit. Sandy is adorable and the rest of Simon's family is funny and sweet. You can't help but fall in love with the cast.

I was also quite fond of the touch of magic to the book -- especially what happens to Cora's sister in the end -- and I liked the general predictability of the story. There are plenty of surprises but you know how it's going to end, which I definitely appreciate in a seasonal romance. Although wizards and Christianity don't seem to go together, I like a touch of magic in a Christmas tale and the magical/wizard aspect didn't bother me a bit.

What I disliked about Two Tickets to the Christmas Ball:

There were some dull moments and occasionally a sentence or two that I had to reread a couple of times to understand -- never enough to convince me to put the book down, though. A lot happens considering how short the book is, so I found it very entertaining. The only thing I really disliked about the book was the ending. It's a romantic story and I wanted the romance all wrapped up in a pretty bow. I thought the book ended rather abruptly and a little too soon. But, I liked it enough to recommend it.

The bottom line:

A sweet, romantic, slightly magical Christmas story. Two Tickets to the Christmas Ball had all the elements I really love in a Christmas story. Although it was a tiny bit flawed, I enjoyed it and recommend it to those who love a light-hearted and romantic Christmas read.

I received this book for free from WaterBrook Multnomah Publishing Group for this review.

In other news:

I didn't keep track of books in/books out, last week because I'm an airhead. But, I know I donated about 15 books, swapped a few and sent 1 to a friend. A seemingly unconscionable number of ARCs and swap books seem to have landed in my mailbox or on my doorstep, though. As soon as I find my two camera battery chargers (both of which I've managed to misplace -- and both cameras are totally out of power), I'll take a picture of my recent arrivals.

In case you're wondering:

I reviewed one of Simon Van Booy's philosophy books and the other two have been in my sidebar under the "Reviews Forthcoming" header for-freaking-ever. Want to know why? It's because one of them is my most Post-it-filled book of the year and the other is equally awe-inspiring. In other words, there is just so much to say about them that I haven't figured out quite how to narrow my thoughts down to reasonable size.

But, here are some general thoughts . . . I thought Simon did a brilliant job of choosing readings (some of the paintings confuse me as to their purpose -- the readings are much more obvious), describing the authors and introducing their works. The readings and poetry are thought-provoking and would be awfully fun to read as a group and discuss, in my humble opinion.

Philosophy has always intimidated me and now I'm not so terrified. Some of the readings were definitely dull or over my head, but very, very few. I was kind of stunned, in that regard. The two remaining titles I need to review -- Why We Need Love and Why Our Decisions Don't Matter -- are going to be highly recommended if I can ever figure out how to write about them. Confidentially, I'd be happy writing a 10-page document rather than a couple of weenie little posts. I suppose that makes me a very serious nerd.

Other thoughts:

I'm behind on Christmas stuff (decorating, cards -- oops, haven't written a single one -- and shopping) and I'm in a cleaning mood, so the reading seems to be falling by the wayside a bit. Also . . . I've been in a movie-watching mood. Tonight: Inception. Tomorrow: A Single Man. Well, some weeks are like that. Maybe I'll finally catch up on that review backlog. I'm getting close. Is the holiday season getting in the way of your reading, at all?

©2010 Nancy Horner. All rights reserved. If you are reading this post at a site other than Bookfoolery and Babble, you are reading a stolen feed. Email bookfoolery@gmail.com for written permission to reproduce text or photos.

Inside Hurricanes by Mary Kay Carson

Inside Hurricanes by Mary Kay Carson

Sterling - Children's (ages 9-12)

48 pages

Inside Hurricanes introduces youngsters to the dangerous rotating storms known as "hurricanes" on the western side of the globe and "cyclones" in the eastern hemisphere, shows what they look like from above and inside the storm, describes how and why they develop and the different stages of developing hurricanes, shows the results of these horrendous storms and describes how to prepare for a coming hurricane.

The photographs and diagrams in Inside Hurricanes are, for the most part, nice and large (there are a few smaller ones, naturally, for the sake of fitting the layout). Hurricanes are beautiful when shown from space and yet so utterly destructive. You get a view of all angles with satellite photos, a cut-away diagram, photos like the cover shot of the trees blowing and the waves surging inland, and shots of flood and wind damage after. Inside Hurricanes gives children a pretty comprehensive look at hurricanes for such a short book and part of what makes it wonderful is the fold-out pages, which allow for a lot of room for big, gorgeous photographs.

The only thing I disliked about this book was the focus on New Orleans in the historical section, when Hurricane Katrina was described. It still baffles me that the horrendous flooding, which we know to be at least partly caused by human failure, gets so much attention when the sheer force of the hurricane occurred to the east. I personally believe the pictures of all the rubble and the houses and businesses that were virtually shredded till they looked like piles of toothpicks shouldn't be overlooked. It's both startling and graphically illustrative of the power of hurricanes to see that kind of damage and for that reason (plus the fact that New Orleans photos are the most commonly seen) it would have been nice if the author had chosen a before-and-after of the Mississippi Gulf Coast, rather than downtown New Orleans. But, that's a personal preference.

Just a note about the age range: I'm going to go out on a limb and say this book can be read to or by younger children (based on ability, of course) or at least flipped through and enjoyed for the photographs because I'm pretty sure my kids would have enjoyed it -- and the entire series -- around first grade and onward. Most important is that they're best saved till after children have exited the tearing stage and are able to handle fold-out pages with care.

Inside Hurricanes is a big paperback book (10" by 9.5") with a stiff cover and 10 pages that fold out so that as you're reading about hurricanes, how they form, specific hurricanes and the damage they've done, etc., you get to look at large spreads of photographs and charts.

There's an entire series of "Look Inside" books by Sterling and I have 4 of them. I've flipped through all of them and I think they're pretty cool. I'm a bigger fan of weather than peeking inside the body and I nearly got dinosaured to death when my boys were younger, so Inside Hurricanes and Inside Tornadoes are my favorites, but they're all equally impressive.

©2010 Nancy Horner. All rights reserved. If you are reading this post at a site other than Bookfoolery and Babble, you are reading a stolen feed. Email bookfoolery@gmail.com for written permission to reproduce text or photos.

Tuesday, December 07, 2010

Izzy's Turn and a Reading Update

I am a busy girl, today, so I'm giving Izzy a turn to bury you in an avalanche of cute and then I'll give you a quick update on what I'm reading. Isabel is an avid tunneler and wrapped herself in both the green towel and brown blanket shown below.

You know what I'm reading just by looking in the sidebar, but let me tell you a bit about how far I've gotten and whether or not I'm enjoying the reading. Short version: "Of course I'm enjoying the reading of all of them or I'd ditch them -- I do that, you know."

Voice of America by E. C. Osundu - A book of short stories set in Africa, they're . . . well, kind of whiny. I'm finding it fascinating that I will quickly ditch whiny/desperate/hopeless stories set in the U.S. and yet I'm fine with "whiny in a foreign land where life is justifiably worth a great deal of complaint." I'm about halfway through this one.

Christmas 1945 by Matthew Litt (history) - I've learned some fascinating little tidbits about the WWII years from this book -- how Americans refrained from lighting Christmas trees to save energy for the war effort, for example -- but I unaccountably set this one aside for quite a while. I've just started reading, again, and I'm not far into the book but I'm loving it.

The Shifter by Janice Hardy (fantasy/YA) - I just started reading The Shifter, which is about a young girl who can heal one person and shift the injury/illness to another, this morning. I'm only on chapter 3. This book sucked me right in and I have a feeling it will be a very fast read.

Pemberley Ranch by Jack Caldwell (historical fiction) - You're going to think this is so weird because . . . well, it is. The beginning of this book takes place in Vicksburg, Mississippi (um, here) in 1863 and I had trouble figuring out where the action occurred. I couldn't bear to read on till I had that figured out, so I asked my husband. He told me where the Texas redan was located and now I "get it" and can read on. It was a weird reason to stop because I'm pretty sure the rest of the book takes place in Texas, not Mississippi. At any rate, I'm going to focus on this one, tonight.

Gunslinger by Ed Gorman (Western) - I'm not a Western reader, in general and I'm hard-pressed to figure out how I ended up with this book but I think maybe, just maybe I bought it as a closeout when the bookstore in which I used to work closed and the boss moved the store to Florida. It was on my son's shelf and he put it in the "get rid of" pile, but the book is so shiny and pretty and SHORT that I figured I could whip through it before passing it on. I've read one story, which was set during the Civil War, and it was surprisingly good.

The Mental Floss History of the United States by Eric Sass (history) - This book has very short sections and is perfect for reading in short bursts, and I've been reading it just that way. I'm about 84 pages in and it's shocking me! The lies they told us in history class!! Oh, oh, oh. Also, I'm having an awful lot of fun with the reading. Eric Sass has a terrific sense of humor.

6 books at one time -- that seems like a bit much, doesn't it? I need another readathon day, but I'm going to also require a housekeeping fairy if that's ever going to happen. There's that Christmas thing to consider, you know. We're still pondering. Tree? No tree? Tree somehow tied to ceiling and bolted to wall? It's a dilemma when you have one kitten and one kitten-at-heart who routinely rock their 6-foot kitty tree whilst playing chase-up-and-down.

Happy Tuesday!

Monday, December 06, 2010

The Winter Sea by Susanna Kearsley

The Winter Sea by Susanna Kearsley

Sourcebooks Landmark - Historical fiction paired with a contemporary story

544 pages

'Ye cannot start a battle, lass, by thinking ye will lose it. Now come, let me show ye how it's played.' He was a soldier, and he taught the movements from a soldier's viewpoint, starting with the forward lines. 'These wee men here, the pawns, they're not allowed to make decisions. They can only put one foot before the other, marching in a straight line to the enemy, except when they attack. Then they follow the thrust of their sword arm, see, on the diagonal.' Moving his pawn against one of her own, he demonstrated. 'Now, the knights, at their backs, they can move that much quicker because they're on horseback and bolder . . . '

--from the uncorrected Advanced Reader's Edition of The Winter Sea, p. 354 (some changes may have been made to the final print version)

The Winter Sea tells the story of novelist Carrie McClelland. A successful published writer, Carrie is having difficulty writing her latest historical fiction, the tale of how a Jacobite fleet nearly succeeded at landing the exiled Scottish king, James Stewart, back in Scotland to reclaim his crown in 1708.

After visiting the area in Scotland where the invasion attempt took place, Carrie decides she's been writing from the wrong perspective and rents a small cottage near the ruins of Slains Castle. As she settles in and begins to write, she finds that whenever she checks her facts, the scenes she has already written turn out to be stunningly accurate. Eventually, she realizes that she is channeling the memories of her ancestor, the heroine of the book, Sophia. The story is told from both historical character and author perspectives, in alternating chapters.

As Carrie writes, she gets help from various Scots who live in the village nearby and falls in love with one of her landlord's sons. The cover of the book describes the historical portion as, "a tale of love and loyalty . . . and ultimate betrayal," a very apt description.

What I loved about The Winter Sea:

Everything. Okay, I know, that's not very specific. To be honest, I've had trouble putting a finger on what exactly it is about this book and this particular author's writing that so completely captured me. It's the kind of chunkster that you can sink your teeth into, though -- a thoroughly escapist read but also a dazzling adventure, not one but two romantic tales and one of my absolute favorite settings: Scotland.

I was truly impressed with the way Kearsley deftly moved from historical to contemporary storylines so that it was always clear which direction in time one was stepping. Also, there is a haunting air about The Winter Sea that reminds me of Daphne DuMaurier's writing and the historical description is emphatically believable. As is often done in more recent printings of historical fiction (this one is a reprint from the late 80's, I believe), the author describes what is real and where she has "taken liberties" with history. It appears that the research on this one was pretty meticulous and that may be one reason it's so believable.

What I disliked about The Winter Sea:

Absolutely nothing. Okay, that's not entirely true. There was one little quirk of Scottish historical speech that kind of drove me nuts -- the addition of "did" or some form of the word "do" before a verb, as in, "He did escape through the back door," rather than, "He escaped through the back door." Those are not sentences from the book, by the way. I don't know if they stuck a form of do/did/does before their verbs in the late 17th - early 18th century, but it sure was annoying. Other than that: nothing. Seriously. I loved this book.

I've already ordered a second book by Kearsley because I'm so enamored of her style that I want to see if I feel the same way about another of her titles.

The bottom line:

Beautiful, clear writing, a believable storyline, adventure and romance landed The Winter Sea on my list of favorites for 2010.

Ten Big Toes and a Prince's Nose by Gow & Costanza

Ten Big Toes and a Prince's Nose
By Nancy Gow
Illustrated by Stephen Costanza
Copyright 2010
Sterling - Children's (ages 4-7)

There once was a princess so lovely and fair
with ruby red lips and a mane of brown hair.
Her voice was like honey, her smile soft and sweet . . .
but the beautiful princess had gigantic feet.

So begins Ten Big Toes and a Prince's Nose. As you might imagine, the prince has his own flaw:

Now far, far away in our fanciful yarn,
there lived a young prince with a nose like a barn.
The prince loved to laugh.
He was bright like the sun.
He was warm, he was kind,
he was charming and fun.

But, of course when they saw him, the maidens would run. <---I wrote that; it just happened to rhyme. Ten Big Toes and a Prince's Nose is one of my absolute favorites of the children's books I've read in 2011 -- and I've read quite a few. The illustrations are kind of dreamy and yet they're also bold, bursting with color. But, it's the story that I truly love. Of course, you know they'll end up together, but the way the story is told is so sweet and funny, the rhythm perfect and the characters so lovable that you really, really, really care about them in spite of the fact that they're characters in a very short children's picture book. They also just happen to have very wise parents, so the book has an upbeat, positive message -- it's not just the romance.

But still there was hope, for the prince had a dad
who was clever and wise. He would say to him, "Lad,
my father would sing me a rhyme every night
just before he would kiss me and turn out the light:

I am what I am and that's all right with me.
I don't have to be different. I just have to be.
I don't want to be somebody else. No sir-ree!
I am what I am and that's all right with me."

Isn't that wonderful? The prince and princess meet while skiing -- he with his nose completely covered and she with her feet so big they merely look like skis. And, then, after they fall for each other they reveal their secrets.

He stared at her toes. She stared at his nose.
They laughed and they giggled, and then he proposed.

I love it!!! Highly, highly recommended. Ten Big Toes and a Prince's Nose is a wonderful tale with a lovely message. Fun, dreamy illustrations and even some laughs make this book a winner, a wonder, a thing to put under . . . your tree, that is. Since it's Christmas season, I'll just tell you: Buy this one for the little girl on your Christmas list and then come back and tell me whether or not she loves it as much as I did. Okay? Go forth and shop.

Fade by Lisa McMann

Fade by Lisa McMann
Copyright 2009
Simon Pulse - Young Adult fiction
248 pages

I bought the first book in this series, Wake, and ended up staying up so late to finish it that I just knew I had to read on. It took a week or two, but I managed to buy a copy of Fade. I don't regret it, but I will say that it was a totally different experience from Wake in that most of the secrets that tug you through Wake and, thus, make it compulsively readable have already been revealed by the end of the book.

Having said that, I like the protagonist, Janie, and the boy she falls in love with, Cabel.

Warning: This paragraph may contain some information that could spoil the reading of Wake. Please skip this part if you plan to read Wake, soon. I'll tell you when it's safe to continue reading.

In the first book, Janie's "dream-catching" has gotten totally out of hand because she's in high school and wherever she goes, there are sleeping students. If someone is sleeping nearby, she falls into their dream. By the end of Wake, Janie is learning to control her ability and she and Cabel are using her ability to help try to put a drug dealer in jail.

Okay, it's safe, now. You can come out from under the rug.

In Fade, Janie and Cabel continue onward with their on-again, off-again relationship -- a rocky one because they both have their own demons to fight, metaphorically speaking and, this time, Janie must put herself in a dangerous situation in order to discover whether or not a crime is being committed by one of the teachers at her high school. She also finds out that her dream-catching ability is causing her physical damage.

I liked this book almost as much -- but not quite as much -- as the first in the series, in spite of the fact that much had already been revealed and I thought it didn't work quite as well. I think there are a couple of reasons I like the continuation of the series. For one thing, I really like Janie, Cabel and most of the side characters. I find Cabel a little hard to believe in because he's almost too perfect and when he does tear himself a way for a time, his reasons never quite click with me. But, he's such a wonderful character that Janie and I keep forgiving him. The other reason I think I like this series so much is its uniqueness. Maybe this has been done before, but if it has, I haven't read it. I like the whole concept of dream-catching and the way it plays out in the books.

I'll wait for the next in the series, Gone, to go to paperback because I really kind of hate hardback books, but I do plan to read on.

©2010 Nancy Horner. All rights reserved. If you are reading this post at a site other than Bookfoolery and Babble, you are reading a stolen feed. Email bookfoolery@gmail.com for written permission to reproduce text or photos.

Saturday, December 04, 2010

3 Christmas Books - The Christmas Journey, Richard Scarry's Best Christmas Book Ever! and The 12 Days of Christmas in Washington, D.C.

Since I was going to shoot for mini-reviews anyway, I've decided to put three of the Christmas books I've recently read together in a single post. I'll tell you what they're about, whether or not I liked them (Blogger Game Cheat: I liked them all), and whether they're worth buying, in my humble opinion.

The Christmas Journey by Donna Van Liere
Copyright 2010
St. Martin's Press - Seasonal/Christian
62 pages

Donna VanLiere is known for her charming, often amusing and deeply touching Christmas books. In The Christmas Journey, she departs from her usual delightful storytelling and tells the story of the journey Mary and Joseph took to Bethlehem.

The story is told in two parts. First, the rhythmically beautiful tale told in the words of the Bible is repeated. Then, the author shares why she believes the Bible version is a little too tame and moves on to the second portion of the book. The latter part is a grittier retelling of the Christmas story, in which the feeling of being outcasts, the pain of riding on a mule while 9 months pregnant, the fatigue from a long journey and filthy conditions of the barn where Jesus was born, along with other such realistic discomforts are described.

VanLiere wrote the second bit to read at her church and I think that--and similar group settings--is, in fact, what it's best for, although I would pick up a copy and peruse it before considering its potential audience. I think it would make a good keepsake book for reading around the tree as a family or sharing in church -- or just for your personal reading. I liked the way VanLiere took the story and put it in more human terms. However, for reading to children I'd look for a slightly larger book because The Christmas Journey is the same size as VanLiere's other books and has lovely watercolor illustrations, but they're a bit too small. If you're going to read it to children, it would be best one-on-one.

I enjoyed the reading and read the first part aloud to the cats (the Biblical portion) while we waited for our tornadic weather to pass, earlier this week.

Some additional info:

Donna VanLiere's Christmas movies will be airing on Lifetime TV. Link at left leads to the schedule.
There is a contest to win all of Donna's Christmas books, including an autographed copy of The Christmas Journey that ends on December 14th: link here.

Richard Scarry's Best Christmas Book Ever!
By Richard Scarry
Copyright 1981
Orig. Publ'd by Random House
Reprinted by Sterling Kids

When my children were small, I discovered Richard Scarry via hand-me-down books from my husband's family and they were always a hit. Scarry's characters are cute, friendly-looking and quirky, his stories amusing and often very sweet.

Richard Scarry's Best Christmas Book Ever is loaded with stories, 2 Christmas songs (with easy musical scores for playing at home) and even a board game. I had fun reading this book to myself, but I'm definitely going to have to find it a happy home with children.

Loads of fun and definitely worth buying for the young family on your gift list. I don't think you can lose with Richard Scarry. There were some stories I consider personal favorites, but I enjoyed them all and kind of wish I had a little one around to share it with, this holiday season.

The Twelve Days of Christmas in Washington, D.C.
By Candice Ransom
Illustrated by Sarah Hollander
Copyright 2010
Sterling Kids - Seasonal

Did I tell you I begged a publicist for Christmas books because I was in a mood for Christmas reading, last month? Well, I did. Richard Scarry's Best Christmas Book Ever and The Twelve Days of Christmas in Washington, D.C. were two of the books I received and I was very pleasantly surprised by The Twelve Days, etc.

As you may imagine, the Washington D.C. book is merely one of a series of "Twelve Days of Christmas" books set in different locations across the U.S. It tells the tale of Olivia and James. James lives in Washington, D.C. and in an opening letter invites his cousin Olivia to visit for the holidays. Then Olivia describes the places she visits and things she learns via letters home to her mom and dad on the left-hand page of each spread. On the right-hand side of every spread is a "12 Days of Christmas" rhyme (part of the rhyme to go with each day's activities and then the entire list, thus far, as in the original song).

At the end of the book, there's some additional information about Washington D.C. and a list of famous Washingtonians. The Twelve Days of Christmas in Washington, D.C. surprised me in the same way I was pleasantly surprised by the Fancy Nancy book I read to my niece during our family reunion in Colorado, this summer. I expected fluff and instead found the book is actually educational. The illustrations are delightful and detailed enough to give young readers a lot to look at.

If I had young children, I would be tempted to buy several from the Twelve Days of Christmas series (link leads to Sterling's website, where you can see all of the titles) and continue to collect a few each year because I absolutely love an entertaining book that's also educational. For gift-giving, it would be loads of fun to send a child on your Christmas list a book about your area -- or theirs -- for starters. I absolutely loved this book and highly recommend them for gift-giving.

In other news:

Obviously, I've been on a bit of a posting frenzy, this week. That will continue for a while, since I'm accustomed to taking off 2 or 3 weeks from blogging to enjoy family time during the holiday season. As always, please feel free to comment only when you feel compelled to do so and don't feel obligated to read everything!!

©2010 Nancy Horner. All rights reserved. If you are reading this post at a site other than Bookfoolery and Babble, you are reading a stolen feed. Email bookfoolery@gmail.com for written permission to reproduce text or photos.

The Big Read List, in which I officially lose my honorary Brit status

The Big Read list has been passed around quite a bit, this past week or two, so I thought I'd join in. It's a list of 100 books; the BBC believes most people will have read only 6 or so off this list. They probably have a point. I doubt you'll see anyone outside the book blogging community getting all excited about the list. The average Joe probably has only read what's required or the most popular tripe, right? Anyway, I'm going to alter mine a little.

Bold black = I have read it

Purple = I read part of it but did not finish

Green = I own a copy and plan to read it

** = A personal favorite from this list

Red = You've got to be kidding. Who comes up with these lists and why this book?

Blue = Would like to read this one, but don't own a copy

1. Pride and Prejudice - Jane Austen**

2. The Lord of the Rings - J. R. R. Tolkien - Here is where I lose my honorary Brit status. I haven't read this and still haven't summoned the interest, although I keep saying, "Maybe someday." It's the British favorite from this list. Or, maybe I should say "favourite".

3. Jane Eyre - Charlotte Bronte

4. Harry Potter Series - J. K. Rowling (I've read 3 of the books)

5. To Kill a Mockingbird - Harper Lee**

6. The Bible

7. Wuthering Heights - Emily Bronte

8. 1984 - George Orwell

9. His Dark Materials - Philip Pullman

10. Great Expectations - Charles Dickens**

11. Little Women - Louisa May Alcott

12. Tess of the D'Urbervilles - Thomas Hardy

13. Catch-22 - Joseph Heller

14. Complete Works of Shakespeare

15. Rebecca - Daphne DuMaurier**

16. The Hobbit - J. R. R. Tolkien

17. Birdsong - Sebastian Faulk

18. Catcher in the Rye - J. D. Salinger**

19. The Time Traveler's Wife - Audrey Niffenegger

20. Middlemarch - George Elliot

21. Gone With the Wind - Margaret Mitchell

22. The Great Gatsby - F. Scott Fitzgerald

23. Bleak House - Charles Dickens

24. War and Peace - Leo Tolstoy

25. The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy - Douglas Adams**(also got to hear the author do a reading from this one)

26. Brideshead Revisited - Evelyn Waugh**

27. Crime and Punishment - Fyodor Dostoyevsky

28. The Grapes of Wrath - John Steinbeck

29. Alice in Wonderland - Lewis Carroll

30. The Wind in the Willows - Kenneth Grahame

31. Anna Karenina - Leo Tolstoy

32. David Copperfield - Charles Dickens

33. Chronicles of Narnia - C. S. Lewis

34. Emma - Jane Austen**

35. Persuasion - Jane Austen

36. The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe - C. S. Lewis

37. The Kite Runner - Khaled Hosseini

38. Captain Corelli's Mandolin - Louis de Bernieres

39. Memoirs of a Geisha - Arthur Golden

40. Winnie the Pooh - A. A. Milne

41. Animal Farm - George Orwell

42. The DaVinci Code - Dan Brown

43. One Hundred Years of Solitude - Gabriel Garcia Marquez

44. A Prayer for Owen Meany - John Irving

45. The Woman in White - Wilkie Collins

46. Anne of Green Gables - L. M. Montgomery

47. Far from the Madding Crowd - Thomas Hardy

48. The Handmaid's Tale - Margaret Atwood

49. Lord of the Flies - William Golding

50. Atonement - Ian McEwan

51. Life of Pi - Yann Martel

52. Dune - Frank Herbert

53. Cold Comfort Farm - Stella Gibbons

54. Sense and Sensibility - Jane Austen

55. A Suitable Boy - Vikram Seth

56. The Shadow of the Wind - Carlos Ruiz Zafon

57. A Tale of Two Cities - Charles Dickens

58. Brave New World - Alduous Huxley

59. The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Nighttime- Mark Haddon

60. Love in the Time of Cholera - Gabriel Garcia Marquez

61. Of Mice and Men - John Steinbeck

62. Lolita - Vladimir Nabokov

63. The Secret History - Donna Tartt

64. The Lovely Bones - Alice Sebold

65. The Count of Monte Cristo - Alexandre Dumas

66. On the Road - Jack Kerouac

67. Jude the Obscure - Thomas Hardy

68. Bridget Jones' Diary - Helen Fielding

69. Midnight's Children - Salman Rushdie

70. Moby Dick - Herman Melville

71. Oliver Twist - Charles Dickens

72. Dracula - Bram Stoker

73. The Secret Garden - Frances Hodgson Burnett

74. Notes from a Small Island - Bill Bryson

75. Ulysses - James Joyce

76. The Inferno - Dante

77. Swallows and Amazons - Arthur Ransome

78. Germinal - Emile Zola

79. Vanity Fair - William Makepeace Thackery

80. Possession - A. S. Byatt

81. A Christmas Carol - Charles Dickens

82. Cloud Atlas - David Mitchell

83. The Color Purple - Alice Walker

84. The Remains of the Day - Kazuo Ishiguro**

85. Madame Bovary - Gustave Flaubert

86. A Fine Balance - Rohinton Mistry

87. Charlotte's Web - E. B. White

88. The Five People You Meet in Heaven - Mitch Albom

89. Adventures of Sherlock Holmes - Arthur Conan Doyle

90. The Faraway Tree Collection - Enid Blyton - Although I'd never heard of Enid Blyton, till recently, I'd like to read something by her. She seems to be a childhood favorite of many.

91. Heart of Darkness - Joseph Conrad

92. The Little Prince - Antoine de Saint-Exupery

93. The Wasp Factory - Iain Banks

94. Watership Down - Richard Adams

95. A Confederacy of Dunces - John Kennedy O'Toole

96. A Town Like Alice - Nevil Shute

97. The Three Musketeers - Alexandre Dumas**

98. Hamlet - William Shakespeare

99. Charlie and the Chocolate Factory - Roald Dahl

100. Les Miserables - Victor Hugo (Saw the musical in London and watched the movie - does that count?)

Aw, only 34. But, this list clearly makes the statement that I need to challenge myself to read some of those that I own but have not yet read and finish a few others.

Friday, December 03, 2010

Fiona Friday - The Angst Edition

"If you're not going to let me out of this stupid bathroom, I'm going to chew on the strap of your camera." -- Fi during the tornado warning

"Mo-o-o-o-m!! Either let me come outside or come back in here and play with me!" --Fiona on a sunny day

Vietnam War Through the Generations Reading Challenge Wrap-Up

It's a wrap! Well, actually, it's a bit of a failure but I'm going to go ahead and throw in the towel on the War Through the Generations: Vietnam challenge because I've got quite the lovely stack by my reading spot and I don't think I'm going to finish up any more Vietnam reads in the coming 28 days or so. That doesn't mean I won't continue to read Vietnam books. I've still got Semper Cool and Matterhorn waiting for me to read them. To be honest, after a while the challenge buttons in the sidebar start to annoy me if I'm not succeeding.

So, here's what I managed to read for the challenge:

1. The Things They Carried by Tim O'Brien
2. The Lotus Eaters by Tatjana Soli
3. A Hundred Feet Over Hell by Jim Hooper

Of the three, The Things They Carried and A Hundred Feet Over Hell are a pretty close tie. I liked The Lotus Eaters, but The Things They Carried was so hauntingly beautiful that it just can't be beaten and A Hundred Feet Over Hell was a roller-coaster emotional ride.

Next up? I am not currently signed up for any challenges in 2011, but I'm considering creating my own One Shelf At a Time Self-Challenge, in which I choose one of my personal shelves and work my way through it.

©2010 Nancy Horner. All rights reserved. If you are reading this post at a site other than Bookfoolery and Babble, you are reading a stolen feed. Email bookfoolery@gmail.com for written permission to reproduce text or photos.

Thursday, December 02, 2010

The Baby Bible Christmas Storybook by Robin Currie (review)

The Baby Bible Christmas Storybook
By Robin Currie
Copyright 2010
David C. Cook - Children's Board Book

The title makes it obvious that this book tells the Christmas story, but The Baby Bible Christmas Storybook is the Christmas story for very young children and it's "interactive" in that it actually tells the adult reader what motions to make while reading (hold arms out and rock, as if rocking a baby, etc.). When I first opened the book, I thought that was kind of silly. I never felt as if I needed guidance when it came to making reading fun.

But, as usual, I squelched my skepticism and gave it a try. I actually read the book aloud and made the motions with my husband sitting nearby. I am so fortunate to have a spouse who thinks my eccentricities are amusing. He sat there smiling and I found myself convinced that The Baby Bible Christmas Storybook is a pretty bright idea, although I consider the illustrations commonplace. I'd particularly recommend this book for teachers who want to get a group of preschoolers excited, but mothers will appreciate it, too. And, after the fun or reading and acting out the book is over, then you can hand your little one the book and they'll likely play-read it many, many times.

Recommended for moms and teachers of babies and preschoolers.

©2010 Nancy Horner. All rights reserved. If you are reading this post at a site other than Bookfoolery and Babble, you are reading a stolen feed. Email bookfoolery@gmail.com for written permission to reproduce text or photos.

Wednesday, December 01, 2010

Before I Fall by Lauren Oliver

Before I Fall by Lauren Oliver

Harper - Young Adult Fiction

470 pages

The cover grabbed me; the story held on. I picked up a copy of Before I Fall and flipped through it at Borders but passed up buying, one day. I did, however, promptly add it to my wish list because the storyline sounded interesting. And, then I found a copy at my library. Excitement!! It's not easy finding fairly new releases at my library -- especially Young Adult novels --and I only had to wait . . . um, maybe 8 months from the release date? Not bad.

Samantha has died in an automobile accident. She remembers it well -- the fear, the pain, the sensation of dying. But, each morning she wakes up alive, only to relive the day of her death.

Sam is pretty, popular and planning to lose her virginity to her boyfriend at a former friend's party (mostly to "get it over with") on her final day. As she and her friends go about their day, the things that stand out are their rudeness to the unpopular crowd and how the entire day they're careening toward the alcohol-fueled party that will lead to Sam's death . . . and that of another girl. But they have no real understanding of how much the little things they do impact other people. When she is forced to relive the day, Samantha slowly begins to understand how she needs to change things to make them right. She sees her boyfriend and the boy who is hosting the party in a totally new light and gradually changes how she interacts with them.

As in the movie Groundhog Day, Sam experiments with making changes to her last day. Some days she tries to be perfect and save her own life; one day she just lets herself go completely wild. She relives her last day 7 times.

In the end, Samantha realizes that the only way she can possibly escape living the same day forever is to make things right. And, how she goes about doing so is not something I can go into because you'll want to enjoy the surprises. The two descriptive words that I think of when I reflect back on the reading of Before I Fall are "consistently surprising". I truly never knew what Sam was going to do, next. It's not wholly unexpected that she redeems herself in the end, but there are questions that really make the book a page turner. For one thing, you have to wonder if Sam will ever be able to save herself. Will she, by learning about her fate and how to prevent it, cease to be dead?

Well . . . I'm not telling. What you need to know is that Lauren Oliver is an amazing writer and Before I Fall is a stellar book in many ways. The author keeps you guessing, allows Samantha to learn slowly enough that the wild premise remains strikingly believable, and even makes a few people who seem truly horrendous reveal their good sides. Oh, and there's a bit of refreshing romance.

The bottom line:

I absolutely loved Before I Fall. I began reading it at home, rechecked it for my trip to Oklahoma and finished the reading of Before I Fall in Tulsa. A week later, it's still rolling around in my head and I am absolutely dying to see what Lauren Oliver comes up with next. Capricious Heather has read Oliver's next title, Delirium, which doesn't come out till February of 2011 and I am sooo envious.

Warnings: Sexual content, drug & alcohol use and . . . I think there's some bad language, but I can't remember. I personally think the author did a good job of using the sex, drugs and alcohol (drunken students falling all over each other and then driving off the road, basically) as object lessons, although she could have gone a bit farther about the dangers of drinking and driving. But, on the other hand . . . Samantha's dead thanks to her drunken friend's driving. That kind of gets the point across.

Tomorrow, I have a book tour and then I hope to return to cranking out reviews like crazy on Friday.

1 + 1 = 5 by LaRochelle & Sexton

1 + 1 = 5 and Other Unlikely Additions

by David LaRochelle

Illus. by Brenda Sexton

Sterling Kids - ages 4-8

32 pages

I sent my copy of 1 + 1 = 5 to a friend who expressed interest in using the book in her classroom, so I can't quote from it but I'll give you an idea what "Other Unlikely Additions" means. Say, you take 1 family of cats that contains a mother cat, a father cat and a kitten and add them to a dog family that contains a mother dog and one pup. 1 cat family + 1 dog family = 5 animals. That's the kind of wacky addition you'll find in 1 + 1 = 5.

When I first opened the book, I thought it was a little strange but I must have been in one of my moods. The second time I read it, I fell in love with the bold, brightly-colored illustrations and realized that the idea of adding groups together is one we all eventually learn and why not make the learning fun and colorful? For youngsters, 1 + 1 = 5 will give them a head start on the kind of critical thinking involved in grouping sets together and will also give reader and child a lot of laughs. The book is really quite funny. The friend who inherited my copy read it to her 6-year-old and they both gave it a big thumbs-up.

Note #1: Reviewers at Amazon used the words fresh, imaginative and cleverly illustrated. One added that it's not "babyish". I agree with those reviewers 100% and thought you'd like to hear their thoughts in addition to my own.

Note #2 from the author: "If any teachers or librarians are interested, there is a free teaching guide and plenty of extension activities for 1 + 1 = 5 at my website, www.davidlarochelle.net."

Many thanks to Sterling for this unexpected review book!

Two DNFs - Child of the Northern Spring and Vanishing

Vanishing and Other Stories
by Deborah Willis
Copyright 2010 - Harper Perennial
288 pages

You know how sometimes you open a book, read a little and think, "This is a pretty skilled writer," but then you don't feel compelled to read on? And, every time you look at the book and think, "I really ought to pick that up," you get such a strong feeling of resentment that you continue to skitter around it until you finally realize that it's just not the book for you? Such was the case with Vanishing. I recognized the author's skill, but I read more than half of the book and then picked it up, put it down, picked it up, put it down for months.

I just could not talk myself into continuing. Talent aside, there's a bleakness to the stories in Vanishing that I believe is the source of my discomfort. I like a glimmer of hope in my reading and felt hope was lacking. I would not say, "Avoid this book." There is no doubt Willis' writing has "emotional range and depth" as Alice Munro says in the cover quote. But, her stories are a little too haunting for me. I'd recommend Vanishing to readers who like literary stories but don't mind stories that may leave you feeling a touch sad.

Child of the Northern Spring by Persia Woolley
Copyright 2010 - Sourcebooks Landmark

Orig. Publ'd 1987

476 pages

I adore the lovely cover at left and desired to fall in love with Child of the Northern Spring, the first in the Guinevere Trilogy by Persia Woolley. Sadly, that did not occur. Woolley's writing is lovely and flows well, so it would have been a quick read, had I continued. But, by page 50 I was becoming frustrated with the lack of action.

I gave the book another 50 pages, eagerly anticipating . . . something, anything. I'm a plot lover; I like a lot of things to happen and character-driven books just don't do it for me. Child of the Northern Spring is definitely focused on characters and setting. In spite of the lovely writing, I gave up at page 107 because there just wasn't enough going on to keep me engaged. I would recommend Child of the Northern Spring to people who like reading retellings of the classic King Arthur tale and prefer character-driven novels. I don't plan to give the book a second try.

Water Tales by Alice Hoffman - mini review

Water Tales by Alice Hoffman
Two Novels: Aquamarine and Indigo
Copyright 2002 and 2003
Scholastic
198 pages, total

I'm going to start whipping out quickies. Stop me and ask questions if you want more details about anything, okay? Okay.

Sometimes words spoken are the ones you've been afraid to think, but once they're said aloud there's no way to make them disappear. There, on a clear evening, in a town where it seemed nothing ever happened and nothing ever changed, these three friends decided to take hold of their fate.

--from Indigo, p. 141

I snatched up this copy of Water Tales at my library's perpetual sale, this week, and gobbled them right down. Both are about young friends facing uncertain futures. In Aquamarine, two girls who have been best friends and neighbors are spending their final summer together hanging out daily at the Capri Beach Club, which is going to be bulldozed at the end of the summer. Claire is going to move to Florida with her grandparents and Hailey promises not to make friends with whoever moves into Claire's house. Then, they are forced to face their fears and the future when a mermaid shows up in the Capri Beach Club's pool after a heavy storm.

In Indigo, Martha and her two friends Trevor and Eli (nicknamed "Trout" and "Eel" for their webbed hands and feet) spend time up on her roof and then hatch a plan to leave town. Martha's mother has died and her father hasn't recovered. A woman named Hildy has forced herself into their lives but she has no interest in Martha. Trout and Eel are adopted and yearn for the sea, but they were adopted during a vacation the McGill's took to the shore and have since been stranded in dry Oak Grove. Why won't their parents allow them to see the ocean? What should Martha do about Hildy?

I can't say I completely fell in love with either of these stories, but they had very uplifting and admirable common themes of friendship and taking control of your destiny. Alice Hoffman's writing is always quirky and kind of delightful but bears the weight of realism and I'm awfully fond of her style. I'd definitely recommend the stories, but don't expect anything overly enchanting or deep.

So . . . if I hurry up and re-donate the book to the library sale, do you think I can sneak out of ditching 10 books in its place?

©2010 Nancy Horner. All rights reserved. If you are reading this post at a site other than Bookfoolery and Babble, you are reading a stolen feed. Email bookfoolery@gmail.com for written permission to reproduce text or photos.

Tuesday, November 30, 2010

Everything Austen II Challenge Wrap-Up

The Everything Austen II Challenge - Completed!

Aha! So it is possible for Bookfool to successfully complete a challenge! Nice to know.

Here are the items I read and viewed for the challenge, with links to my posts:

1. & 2. Emma - the classic novel by Jane Austen and A & E movie

3. Emma and the Vampires by Jane Austen & Wayne Josephson

4. Mr. Darcy's Obsession by Abigail Reynolds

5. Persuasion - the 1995 BBC movie on DVD

6. Jane Austen Ruined My Life by Beth Pattillo

7. Jane Austen Biography on DVD

8. The Making of Pride & Prejudice (Colin Firth/Jennifer Ehle version) on DVD

9. Persuasion - the Rupert Penry-Jones movie version on DVD

Only 6 items were required, but I love Jane Austen, so I just kept on reading and watching movies and such till I was satisfied. The last three links all lead to the same post for the convenience of random strangers who might wander into my happy little blog home looking for something specific.

I was going to write about what I liked and disliked, but the truth is that I pretty much enjoyed everything except for the Jane Austen biography on DVD. Each had its strengths and weaknesses. I've recently grown weary of classics with a paranormal twist, such as Emma and the Vampires, but I enjoyed the reading of that title and simply will avoid reading similar titles in the future, at least for the time being.

In other news:

Last night's storm did, in fact, turn out to be quite a doozy. I have a weather radio because we have dangerous storms practically year-round in Mississippi. The radio's warning siren was activated 4 times and frightened the kitties so much they nearly hit the ceiling. Good thing they're short. I borrowed the following image of all 47 tornado warnings covered by Jackson's WLBT weather team to show you what a wild night we had.

Our safe spot is the bathroom so I piled blankets, a comforter and pillows in the tub, put folded towels on the floor for the kitty girls to lie down upon and took a flashlight, a phone, books and a canned drink (you never know when you're going to get really thirsty) into the room. And, then I had a good time reading while Fiona sought an escape route and Izzy snoozed.

Question:

I've had a lot of books lingering in my sidebar for a while, so I'm going to attempt to do mini reviews to knock out as many as possible. Are there any particular titles you'd like to read about in depth?

Monday, November 29, 2010

Jane Things - A biography, The Making of Pride & Prejudice and Persuasion 2007

While I'm waiting for the worst of the storm to arrive (I hear we're likely to have a bit of ducking in store, shortly), I'm going to tell you just a wee bit about some Jane Austen things I've meant to talk about for quite some time.

The first is a bio of Jane Austen, which is included as one of the extras in my 10th Anniversary Limited Collector's Edition of Pride and Prejudice (the Colin Firth/Jennifer Ehle version, of course). It is billed as the "new Jane Austen documentary from the Emmy-winning BIOGRAPHY series".

Well, my friends, that sounds like a case of too big for your britches, after viewing the bio. I just can't think of a better descriptive term than "sucked". It was truly awful, not in any way fresh or revealing, and the visuals were horrendous. To avoid putting a face to Jane, every time they showed an image of an actress playing Jane, the image was deliberately blurred. Sheesh. That makes for some pretty pathetic viewing and the bio itself was all rehash.

After viewing the Jane bio, I cleared my palate with a viewing of yet another extra in my anniversary edition, a film about the making of the same film version of Pride and Prejudice. The "making-of" was absolutely enthralling and well made up for that sucky bio. Several members of the cast shared their experiences: Lucy Briers (Mary Bennet), Alison Steadman (Mrs. Bennet), Benjamin Whitrow (Mr. Bennet), Adrian Lukis (Wickham) and David Bamber (Mr. Collins -- and, wow, he looks great when he's not playing an obsequious little toady).

The story of how that particular version of Pride and Prejudice came into being, how the locations were chosen, etc., is all quite fascinating and if you can get your mitts on a copy, I highly recommend it. My 10th-anniversary set also included a companion book, The Making of Pride and Prejudice by Sue Birtwistle and Susie Conklin(shown at left) and I plan to read that, but not as a part of the Everything Austen II Challenge, which I'll wrap up with a final post linking up to everything I've read and viewed.

Last but not least, I checked out the more recent version of Persuasion, starring Sally Hawkins as Anne Elliot and Rupert Penry-Jones as Captain Wentworth. And, I am torn. There's such a huge difference between the 2007 Penry-Jones/Hawkins version and the 1995 Root/Hinds version I reviewed a while back that it kind of stunned me.

Here are my thoughts, though. In the 1995 version, I thought Anne was a little too subdued and unemotional but the film was admirably accurate to the storyline and the lack of emotion is probably, in fact, more in line with the subtleties of Austen. At any rate, it is certainly well done, but I would have liked to see a little more emotion on Anne's part, at least at times when she was not in the presence of The Captain Who Made Anne Swoon.

And, the Penry-Jones/Hawkins version (ITV, 2007)? Well, when it comes to emotion, they really went whole-hog. As to the accuracy; I'm afraid that's sadly lacking. And, of course, those of you who have seen Anne runnning through the streets shared a good laugh with this viewer. But, it's still awfully fun to watch and who can look at that photo of Penry-Jones and not think, "Oooh. Ahhh." Not I.

I'll have to stop, here, as my weather radio has just screamed that we're under a tornado warning and that means I must shut down the electronics and duck. The official wrap-up will come in a later post.